WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden will address Americans Thursday just ahead of his departure to Europe, the White House said, amid reports he will announce progress in the search for a deal in Congress on his social spending plans.

Biden was due to make remarks from the White House at 11:30 am (1530 GMT), right before he leaves to board Air Force One for Rome.

Biden had been hoping to get Democrats to end weeks of intense wrangling and conclude a deal on major social spending legislation before he left. According to The Washington Post, Biden may instead announce a revised package that he expects his party will finally support.

At stake is something just short of $2 trillion in spending on education, childcare and other social services, twinned with a separate package worth $1.2 trillion to fix the country's infrastructure.

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Biden is headed to Rome for meetings with Pope Francis and the G20 group, before continuing to Scotland for the United Nations climate summit.