WASHINGTON -- In his first formal address to Congress Tuesday night, President Trump will promise to rebuild the military and keep America safe from foreign adversaries.

But whether he'll offer specifics about what that means for the defense budget and foreign policy strategies remains unclear.

White House officials have thus far been tight-lipped about the speech, which will fill in for the annual State of the Union address this year.

On Monday, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said the address will carry a theme of "the renewal of the American spirit" and will "lay out an optimistic vision for the country, crossing traditional lines of party, race, socioeconomic status." It will also include Trump's often repeated themes of restoring American military might and "fulfilling of our commitments to veterans."

But past similar addresses to Congress have been long on presidential visions and short on policy specifics.

Trump's speech comes one day after the White House unveiled plans for a $54 billion plus-up in military spending -- at the expense of domestic programs -- and just a few hours after top defense officials presented their new plans to counter Islamic State group terrorists worldwide.

Spicer said Monday that in his remarks the president will push Congress to work with him on his "bold agenda," but the budget proposal was already met with skepticism from both political parties.

Democrats have called the military build-up too aggressive and destructive to other critical agencies, like the State Department’s diplomatic efforts.

Meanwhile, both Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., and House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, have called the proposed $603 billion base defense budget too low for military needs.

White House officials have not publicly discussed any plans on the ISIS strategy, or on military commanders’ requests for more troops for the ongoing fight in Afghanistan. They’ve also scrambled again in recent days to defend the January military mission in Yemen which claimed the lives of a Navy SEAL and several civilians.

Those topics appear unlikely to be included in the speech, although Trump’s penchant for speaking off-script means even his speechwriters could be in for surprises during the event.

The president’s speech begins at 9 p.m. Eastern time.

Leo Shane III covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He can be reached at lshane@militarytimes.com.

Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award.

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