Michelle Obama to host Haitian Ambassador, GOP mayor at State of the Union address

First Lady Michelle Obama will host 24 people in her box during her husband's first State of the Union Wednesday night, including Jill Biden, Haiti's ambassador to the United States Raymond Joseph, and Oklahoma City's Republican mayor, Mick Cornett.

Two White House staffers will also sit in the ceremonial box; Phil Schiliro, who, as director of the Office of Legislative Affairs, is President Barack Obama's chief liaison to Congress, and Tina Tchen, executive director of the president's Council on Women and Girls, which the first lady has taken a particular interest in.

In keeping with tradition, the remainder of the seats will by filled by a diverse group of citizens, including military service members and their spouses, students, and people who have benefited from Obama administration initiatives. 

Notable guests include Rebecca Knerr, whose husband, Captain Joseph Knerr, is leading an urban search and rescue squad in Haiti, and Julia Frost, a former Marine bandsman trumpeter who met Biden last year at Coastal Carolina Community College, where she is a student. Biden teaches at a Washington-area community college.