US Shutdown: Donald Trump's speech postponed

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US President Donald TrumpImage source, Getty Images

US President Donald Trump will not be able to deliver his yearly State of the Union (SOTU) speech.

It's after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi - who is the third most powerful person in America after the President and Vice President - told him that government services should fully reopen first.

What is the State of the Union address?

The State of the Union Address is a speech that the President of the United states gives every year to politicians and the American people .

The speech outlines what is happening in the country and is broadcast throughout the US and the world.

Every president has had to do this speech each year because it's written in the American Constitution - the laws that outline the rights of the people.

The government shutdown has become the longest in US history at 34 days and counting. It's left 800,000 federal staff without pay since 22 December.

The shutdown has happened because of an argument between America's two political parties The Democrats and Republicans.

Republican President Trump wants £4.4bn to build a wall on the US-Mexico border but the Democrats disagree about giving him the money.

Mr Trump previously said that the speech should be "on time, on schedule, and very importantly, on location".

But because of the shutdown and the lack of government staff, the speech will not happen on the day that Mr Trump wants it to.

Mr Trump has said that he looks forward to giving a "great" State of the Union Address in the near future.