this is this is "nightline." tonight it's the state of the union as you've never seen it before. behind the scene of the president's big night. >> the president of the united states. >> from the congressmen who camped out for a prime seat to the one chosen to be the sole survivor in case of a major attack. plus bikers flooding the highway. is this a celebration of mlk day? or a menace to society? with incidents like these on the rise, police across america are now scrambling to retake rush hour. and what's old is new again. the new kids on the block trying to maintain an endless summertime. ♪ it's not about you ♪ >> all grown up and back in action.

but first, the "nightline" five. "nightline" it's happening. it's happening. everywhere. people are dropping their pants for underawareness, a cause to support the people who may need the protection of depend underwear. show off a pair of depends and show them it's no big deal. because, hey, it's just a different kind of underwear. join us. support the cause and get a free sample of depend. >> number one in just 60 seconds.

hey, good evening. the state of the union is not just a speech, not just an annual rite of our democracy. behind the scenes, it is also a massive, complicated and often

chaotic spectacle populated by quirky characters and embroidered with fascinating little traditions. so tonight here the version of this event most people never get to see. >> the president of the united states. >> this is the part of the state of the union we all see, but there is also a whole colorful world behind the scenes. check out this time lapse video posted by speaker john boehner. you're looking at statuary hall right outside the chamber of the house of representatives where the president gives his speech. it is here that, starting early in the morning, the media set up shop. it is also where, at 2:30 this afternoon we found representative eliot engel from new york taking a break from his 12-hour campout for a prime seat. >> there are a number of people who come early, sit in the seats and we kind of look after each other and protect each other. it's actually becomes a lot of fun.

>> reporter: he's known as an aisle hog. for 26 years he's made sure he has had a seat on the aisle. there he is with bush one, clinton and bush two. >> sometimes just a pleasantry like welcome to the house. i never think about what i'm saying until i'm actually there. >> reporter: at 3:00 today the house historian posted this picture of the house chamber 150 years ago. little known fact, for most of this country's history, the state of the union address was actually just a written document known as the annual message. the first televised state of the union was 1947, harry truman. >> each group of our population has its own responsibility. >> reporter: president obama has been working on his speech for weeks, even while on vacation. this is a picture of him with his speechwriter, 34-year-old cody keenan, who obama calls hemingway because he often sports a beard. at 3:55 today, a tweet from the comedy site, the onion.

headline, biden arrives early to set up state of the union fog machine. minutes later at 4:00, senator marco rubio meets the press. you may remember rubio took some ribbing in 2013 when he delivered the republican response to the state of the union and he stopped for a drink of water. >> reporter: today, he was asked what advice he would give to senator joni ernst, seen here preparing for the republican response. >> senator, do you have any tips for joni ernst tonight? >> drink lots of water. >> reporter: at 4:35 on the north lawn of the white house, abc's john karl spoke to valerie jarrett. >> he does have a bounce in his step. it is reflected in the fact that the economy is strong, the state of our union is good. >> reporter: that bounce in his step likely the result of recent abc news poll numbers showing the president's approval rating has jumped nine points since

november when his party got clobbered in the midterm elections and the republicans took control of both the house and, for the first time in years, the senate. at 7:50, the white house tweeted a picture of obama's suit for the big speech, with the #yeswetan. at 8:00, the white house said that representative foxx was chosen as the designated survivor. the cabinet secretary who will spend the evening at an undisclosed location ready to take control in case anything dire should have happen during the speech. back in 2006 jim nicholson who was the secretary of veterans affairs was the designated survivor. >> the white house mess fixed me a fabulous meal that i told my wife it was the best meal i had outside of our house. and then we all sat down and watched the state of the union. >> reporter: at 8:50 the president left the white house and it became very clear that the whole tan suit thing was a joke.

9:00, game on. >> you are looking live at the capitol. >> reporter: abc news goes live. shortly after the president arrived and walks down the aisle. engel, a democrat, was a rare friendly face, in the room that for the first time since obama became president, was dominated by the republicans. but his speech made no mention of that fact. >> the shadow of crisis has passed and the state of the union is strong. >> reporter: a defiant, triumphant president declaring victory over the great recession, a vindication, he said, for his policy. >> at every step, we were told our goals were misguided or too ambitious, that we would crush jobs and explode deficits. instead we've seen the fastest economic growth in over a decade. this is good news, people. >> reporter: instead of calling for compromise, a president who

clearly feels unfettered as he goes into his final two years proposed a controversial plan that he knows cannot pass. raise taxes for the rich to help the middle class with affordable child care, free community college and a higher minimum wage. >> and everyone in this congress who still refuses to raise the minimum wage, i say this -- if you truly believe you can work full time and support a family on less than $15,000 a year, try it. >> reporter: that got applause from the democrats in the room with the republicans sitting stone faced. something that happened repeatedly tonight. but perhaps the feistiest and most memorable moment of the night was an unscripted comment towards the end when the president was reflecting on his current position. >> i have no more campaigns to run. [ applause ] my only agenda -- i know because i won both of them.

[ applause ] >> reporter: when it was all said and done, the president got a total of 33 applause interruptions, six laughter interruptions and 36 standing ovations. at 10:26 joni ernst, sporting camouflage heels delivered her republican response. >> and with a little cooperation from the president, we can get washington working again. >> reporter: as i watched tonight from my office, i wondered, with viewership steadily declining for the state of the union and according to one study only 40% of the idea proposed in the speech ever becoming law, why do we do this any more? i asked political analyst matt dowd. should we go back to when the president sends a letter? or should we update it to an e-mail? >> it still gets a huge audience and a huge audience of influential people who are supposed to make and divine public policy in washington, d.c. and influence those people as well as all of us in the media.

>> reporter: it may sometimes be disappointing or dry, but the state of the union is still an important american tradition and, of course, if we canceled it, congressman engel would be super bummed. don't mess with the aisle hogs. much more post game analysis coming up on gma first thing in the morning but coming up here tonight on "nightline," bikers swarming the streets of a major american city. why do they do this? we hit the streets alongside them for a firsthand look. no one else gives you options like that. [voice echoing] no one at all! no one at all! no one. wake up! [gasp] oh! you okay, buddy? i just had a dream that progressive had this thing called... the "name your price" tool... it isn't a dream is it? nope. sorry! you know that thing freaks me out. he can hear you. he didn't mean that, kevin. kevin: yes, he did! keeping our competitors up at night. now, that's progressive.

[vet] two yearly physicals down. martha and mildred are good to go.

here's your invoice, ladies. a few stops later, and it looks like big ollie is on the mend. it might not seem that glamorous having an old pickup truck for an office... or filling your days looking down the south end of a heifer but...i wouldn't have it any other way. lo ok at that, i had my best month ever. and earned a shiny new office upgrade. i run on quickbooks. that's how i own it. bulldog: you don't need superpowers to help someone. sometimes, all it takes is a warm heart and a cold nose. that's why mattress discounters good deed dogs is raising money to train service dogs for people with disabilities. i would never imagine a life without an assistance dog ever again. i relied on people a lot. he helps me live a more independent life. bulldog: we need your help to do more.

give at mattressdiscountersdogs.com, or any mattress discounters. mattress discounters good deed dogs helping dogs help people

it has it has happened again. a horde of bikers hitting the streets of a major american

city. this time it was miami. it's become an escalating battle between bikers and police. and tonight juju chang wades straight into the fray. >> reporter: it's a ride giving new meaning to the term "rush hour." hundreds of bikers swarming freeways around south florida. speeding, stunting, even standing on their bikes in midair, creating potential hey zards along the highway. a joy ride they say, to honor mar tine luther king. >> it brings everybody together. this is better being in the club fighting with each other. >> reporter: popping wheelies. right there you can see a woman barely hanging on. all these antics both terrifying and infuriating commuters along their route. >> most people just stopped and froze. >> reporter: the ride triggered one minor injury but police in miami-dade county decided not to chase the riders fearing a hot pursuit might only escalate the dangers. >> puts the officer at risk and puts the person being pursued at risk. just a recipe for disaster.

>> reporter: but the bikers say they're riding in the spirit of nonviolence. >> put the gun down and come together. >> reporter: organizing around this hash tag, the crowd bubbled up, thanks in part to social media. the call for peace, a far cry from the violence that occurred during a similar stunt ride on a new york city highway. a group of bikers blocked traffic. the panicked motorist drives over a biker and seriously injuries him. the bikers take pursuit and after this video ends pulling him from his car and beat him in front of his wife and toddler. >> now everybody across the nation thinks there's a pack of bikes it's a bunch of hooligans. >> reporter: they invited us along to give us an inside view of why they find these stunt rides so thrilling. what's the thrill of doing that out on the open road? >> you're not supposed to do it. >> people don't see how stunt riding is more of an art form, a

true sport now. you look at some of these guys. they can manipulate a machine to its core. >> reporter: are you a menace to society? >> no. can i at sometimes be a pain in the authority's ass? yes. >> ready? >> reporter: ready. >> here we go. >> we're not out to terrorize the town. just a nice way of getting an adrenaline rush without having to do something completely stupid like rob a bank or something. >> reporter: along with hundreds of fellow riders, they're about to try to shut down one of charleston's most iconic landmarks, the bridge. they call it the chuck town shutdown. unlike the bikers in miami, chad knows the police are looking for any excuse to disrupt their ride. >> i just like [ bleep ] with the cops. >> the highway is no place to do a stunt. >> reporter: law enforcement

here in charleston monitoring social media to keep tabs on the bikers' plans. >> all it takes is one tiny thing and we've got a ten-car pile-up. >> reporter: on the morning of the shutdown, some of the bikers are worried about getting arrested. >> got money in case i need to get bailed out. >> reporter: many of these riders have been here before. >> this piece of machine right here, everything that i live for everything that i die for. this my life. >> we're going to ride together from here. anybody makes any contact, get on the radio and let us know that you have a group so we can get people there quicker. >> everybody is going. >> ladies and gentlemen, be safe, be careful. y'all spread out on the interstate, please. >> i feel good. beautiful day. out riding a motorcycle. can't beat that.

>> cops have arrived. piece of [ bleep ] slow-ass helicopters. >> the helicopter's slow. our bikes go a lot faster. got about 15 cops sitting up the road waiting on us. >> reporter: this is seriously a confrontation that feels like it's brewing. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> reporter: since the police can't arrest them for simply wanting to shut down the bridge they start pulling over bikers for any traffic violation. >> they got to come up with something. >> what happened? >> i ran a red light. >> reporter: as the police begin to infiltrate, the ride breaks up into smaller groups taking different routes.

the group led by chad and waylon are the first to reach the highway. >> the cops think they're ahead of the game. they think they know where we're going and what we're doing. we're just rerouting our stuff right now. that's all. >> the group is now catching up. they're starting to bunch back up. >> reporter: a half hour into the ride, the bikers have regrouped and can see the bridge.

>> reporter: as the bikers succeed in amassing on the bridge, law enforcement moves to the front. suddenly, police converge on a lead biker with an exposed weapon. >> they surrounded me. [ bleep ]. they all drew their guns on me. keep your hands on the [ bleep ] bike. ahhh! >> [ bleep ]! >> it's nerve-racking. you got a lot of motorcycles. you've got a lot of things going on. >> reporter: how is your blood pressure? >> good, i'm legal. i wasn't worried until i stopped. >> reporter: but the pullover stops the momentum. cements police control of the bridge. it effectively puts an end to the shutdown. >> we really wanted to have some fun on the streets, but they

came with a really strong opposing force. >> my goal was for no one to get injured, nobody hurt, no crashes. >> it's not like we robbed a bank or murdered anybody. we did a wheelie, we ran a stoplight, we sped. big deal. >> reporter: the overwhelming police presence may have kept things in check in charleston. a lesson for miami authorities to keep in mind for next time. coming up next, a reunion for the ages. goodenows for fans that have been loving the new kids on the block forever. new kids on the block forever. ♪ thanks for the ride around norfolk! and i just wanted to say geico is proud to have served the military for over 75 years!

roger that. captain's waiting to give you a tour of the wisconsin now. could've parked a little bit closer... it's gonna be dark by the time i get there. geico. proudly serving the military for over 75 years.

it's the big shrimp festival at red lobster. so open wide and pair 2 of 6 big shrimp creations for just $15.99. make room for crispy jumbo tempura shrimp or shrimp scampi linguini. yeah, we're gonna need a bigger fork. hurry, the big shrimp festival ends soon. for over 60,000 california foster children nights can feel long and lonely.

i miss my sister. i miss my old school. i miss my room. i don't want special treatment. i just wanna feel normal. to help, sleep train is collecting pajamas for foster children, big and small. bring your gift to any sleep train and help make a foster child's night a little cozier. not everyone can be a foster parent but anyone can help a foster child.

ooooh... i can hear that sizzle. getting louder! and louder! philly cheesesteak and egg sizzling with prime rib and gooey cheese. i better (just) silence this sizzle! the new philly cheesesteak and egg skillet. denny's. welcome to america's diner.

they're not so new any more, but today '80s boy band new kids on the block made a big announcement right here on abc. ♪ step by step ♪ >> they're back. remember "step by step," the young'uns behind some of the biggest hits of the '80s and '90s are all grown up. today the new kids on the block told our friends at "good morning america" that they're still hanging tough. >> we've decided to reform again, not that we have broken up, but we're going to go back out on tour this summer. ♪ forever ♪ >> even though they sang a song called "forever," their band didn't quite last that long. the new kids split in 1995. most of the members faded out of

the limelight except for donnie wahlberg who followed his brother mark into acting starring in the cbs police drama "blue bloods." the name of the band may not be so accurate any more. all five members of this boy band are now in their 40s. but they are insistent on keeping their comeback alive. it all started in 2008 with "single." ♪ pretty woman if you're single ♪ >> and when they head back out on tour, they won't be alone. >> the biggest girl group in the history of music. ♪ don't go chasing waterfalls ♪ >> the group behind "waterfalls," tlc, is coming along for the ride. and adding to the heat nelly famous for the song "so hot in here." >> i will be on the main event

tour. >> for blockheads there's a lot to be excited about, for sure. to see the group take the stage, you're going to have to wait until summertime. ♪ i think about you in the summertime ♪ >> it's going to be a long winter. thanks for watching abc news. we're online at abcnews.com. good night.