President Biden will be delivering his first State of the Union address Tuesday evening. It comes amid numerous crises at home and abroad including fears of WWIII over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the lingering COVID pandemic, inflation at a 40-year high, an overwhelmed southern border, skyrocketing fuel prices, and a stalled domestic agenda.
Outside the Capitol, law enforcement is preparing for the possibility of disruptive trucker convoys arriving in Washington after truckers shut down part of Canada’s capital for weeks to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other restrictions.
The State of the Union is traditionally a chance to rally support for a president’s agenda. But by all accounts, much of the president’s agenda is stalled.
In most State of the Union addresses, it’s common for presidents to claim things were a mess until they took office. But many Americans aren’t buying it.
A mere 29% of Americans think the nation is on the right track, according to the latest survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The AP even admits in its news coverage, “The state of the union is disunity. It’s a state of exhaustion from the pandemic. It’s about feeling gouged at the grocery store and gas pump.”
Biden’s polling numbers among core constituencies continue to fall. Since taking office, his support among Democrats has fallen from 90% to 78%, while his backing among independents has tumbled from 51% to 34%.
Today, the outlook for Democrats in the 2022 midterms is bleak with Republicans casting the upcoming congressional elections as a referendum on President Biden.
And while the Republican Party is not in control, pundits say Biden’s first official State of the Union will be shaped as much by the GOP as his own party. They are clearly going on the offense. Earlier on Monday, dozens of members made themselves available to the press on Capitol Hill for a four-hour window to talk about where they believe the president has gone wrong and what they’re looking for in Tuesday night’s speech.
Just ahead of the State of the Union, the mask mandate for Congress has been rescinded. The relaxed rules come as Biden aims to use his remarks to highlight progress against COVID-19 and updated guidance from the CDC.
But with numerous long shadows being cast over the backdrop of this speech – especially Russia’s attempt to overthrow the democratically elected government of Ukraine and take over their country – Biden has a tough task to convince us that America is still leading the world toward freedom and prosperity.
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