<P> The practice began in 1966 when Republican U.S. Senator Everett Dirksen ( Illinois ) and U.S. Representative Gerald Ford ( Michigan ) appeared on TV to offer a response to the address by Democratic President Lyndon Johnson . The opposition party 's response has varied in format , ranging from a prerecorded 45 - minute TV program in 1970 to a call - in show in 1972 where a panel of congressmen answered unrehearsed questions from callers . Since the late 1980s , it usually has been a televised speech given soon after the State of the Union address . </P>
when did response to state of the union start
in 1966