The partisan argument underscored anew the degree to which Trump's presidency is clouded by his actions and often shaped by Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation.
In the public balconies were the guests of members of both parties and of the White House. Many were genuine heroes, but there were others in the audience who were proxies for current conflicts.
They included a group of "Dreamers," the undocumented young people whose fate is to be determined in the coming weeks. Trump has proposed a package that he called a down-the-centre compromise, but to win passage he will have to overcome strong opposition — some on the right, but much more on the left.
Throughout the speech, Trump paid tribute to acts of courage, sacrifice and heroism that he said embody "the beauty of America's soul and the steel in America's spine".
They included Americans who responded to hurricanes, wildfires or the mass shooting in Las Vegas; and others who suffered losses of loved ones or who showed bravery in the face of danger.
Those tributes were many of the most effective moments of the speech. He also said, "But it is not enough to come together only in times of tragedy.
Tonight, I call upon all of us to set aside our differences, to seek out common ground, and to summon the unity we need to deliver for the people we were elected to serve".
Trump had a positive story to tell about the economy, which continued to grow steadily over the past year. The jobless rate is at its lowest level in 17 years, and wages have begun to rise.
The passage of the Republican tax cut has prompted companies to give bonuses to workers, announce new investments and promise more jobs. The President has been a cheerleader calling for more, as he did at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week. All this has put economic optimism higher than it has been in nearly two decades.
When Trump campaigned for the White House, he survived events that would have caused substantial damage to most other politicians.
But if nothing bad stuck to him during the campaign, nothing good seems to stick long either. He has seen few political dividends for the positive developments that have occurred on this watch.
When he spoke to a joint session of Congress last February, his approval rating in the Gallup weekly tracking was 43 per cent positive, 51 per cent negative.
Today, despite the economic news, it is 38 per cent positive and 58 per cent negative.
Since he last spoke to Congress, Trump has fired an FBI director (James Comey), openly criticised his attorney-general and onetime political ally (Jeff Sessions), repeatedly vilified a deputy FBI director (Andrew McCabe, who suddenly resigned ahead of schedule) and, as was reported last week, wanted to fire Mueller last year, only to be blocked when White House Counsel Donald McGahn threatened to resign.
Now he appears to be at odds with the Justice Department, which has warned against releasing the intelligence committee's partisan memo.
The President's calls for unity and bipartisanship also came with an obvious political motivation.
Officials in both parties are keenly focused on the November midterm elections. As the party that holds the White House, Republicans are on the defensive. Trump's personal standing makes the head winds stiffer.
