Folks, get ready for the fanfare. US President Joe Biden is in Australia next week and plans a rare address to our federal parliament, making him only the fifth US president to do so. That is, if he actually does arrive… Biden has previously said that his trip could be cancelled if the debt ceiling talks in the US aren’t resolved by take-off time, and today his administration said they’re “reevaluating” the Australian leg of the trip. Speaking of the debt ceiling, Biden and his key Republican antagonist, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, are meeting in Washington today to continue wrestling over the future of America’s finances. Supposing Biden does make it to Australia, he’ll speak to our politicians in Canberra next Tuesday, 23 May, before joining our Prime Minister Albanese, Japan’s leader Fumio Kishida, and India’s Narendra Modi at the Sydney Opera House on Wednesday.