Trump's State of the Union address

President Trump attended a meeting with surrogates ahead of tonight's State of the Union address.

One of Trump's advisers, who also attended the meeting, said the President was so passionate about his desire for a barrier at the southern border, he even discussed the idea of painting the stretch of fencing where it meets the Pacific Ocean in San Diego.

Trump, according to the adviser, said he doesn't like the way it looks, noting there is some graffiti on that section of the border fencing. Trump complained that a general informed him that painting that portion of the wall may not be possible as it could cause environmental harm.

Trump and his son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, met with contractors at the White House to discuss building the border wall late last week, two sources with knowledge of the meeting told CNN. He also met with contractors on Monday, a day ahead of his State of the Union address, according to two people familiar with the meetings.

Some context: We're not sure if Trump's proposed border wall will come up during his speech tonight, but it was the key sticking point in the government shutdown that ultimately postponed this address.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi disinvited Trump from giving his speech on Jan. 29 because of the partial government shutdown, which went into effect when Trump and Democrats couldn't agree on funding for a barrier on the border. While the shutdown ended on Jan. 25, the State of the Union was rescheduled for today.

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