"No issue better illustrates the divide between America's working class and America's political class than illegal immigration," Trump will say, according to excerpts released ahead of his address. "Wealthy politicians and donors push for open borders while living their lives behind walls and gates and guards."

As he stands before lawmakers, the president will be surrounded by symbols of his emboldened political opposition. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was praised by Democrats for her hard-line negotiating during the shutdown, will sit behind the president as he speaks. Some Democratic women will be wearing white, the color favored by early 20th-century suffragettes. And several senators running for president will be in the audience, including Sens. Kamala Harris of California and Cory Booker of New Jersey.

For a time, it was unclear if Trump's annual address to Congress would happen. He'd been scheduled to speak to lawmakers last week, but Pelosi forced him to postpone while the shutdown persisted. White House officials said Trump planned to highlight areas where he believes he can work with Democrats, including infrastructure and prescription drug pricing.

While Trump was still putting the final touches on the speech Tuesday afternoon, he was expected to use some of his televised address to showcase a growing economy. Despite the shutdown, the U.S. economy added a robust 304,000 jobs in January, marking 100 straight months of job growth. That's the longest such period on record.

Trump and his top aides have also hinted that he is likely to use the address to announce a major milestone in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria. Despite the objections of some advisers, Trump announced in December that he was withdrawing U.S. forces in Syria.

In a weekend interview with CBS, Trump said efforts to defeat the IS group were "at 99 percent right now. We'll be at 100." Foreign policy has been another area where Republicans have increasingly been willing to distance themselves from the president. Several leading GOP lawmakers have sharply criticized his plans to withdraw from Syria, as well as from Afghanistan. Trump, in excerpts of his address, defended his moves, declaring: "Great nations do not fight endless wars."