'That’s The Kind of State of the Union that Works'
One part weapon in war against Russia, one part vision for America, Biden's State of the Union may offer political bounce back
President Biden delivered a State of the Union speech Tuesday night which was at once pointed barb at Russian leader Vladimir Putin, touching tribute to the embattled Ukrainian people while also sketching for Americans where and how he wants to lead the country.
It was a tall order, but one Biden seems to have pulled off — and pulled off well — if initial reaction is any barometer.
The speech, Biden's first official State of the Union since taking office a little more than a year ago, may also help buoy the president to a political resurgence after he’s seen his popularity and job approval numbers fall off in the last several months.
Tuesday's speech, of course, became a much different animal than the president and his speechwriters first intended, after Putin lawlessly ordered a full Russian incursion into the sovereign and democratic Ukraine just last Thursday.
Since then, Biden's been leading an allied resistance aimed at undercutting Putin in answer to the bloody invasion.
Among a raft of other sanctions and other penalties aimed at Putin and the ultra-wealthy oligarchs at the top of Russian society, Biden announced that Russian aircraft will be banned from American airspace because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“The Russian economy is reeling, and Putin alone is the one to blame,” Biden said.
Biden also reintroduced a domestic agenda which last year was left for dead because it couldn't get approval from the Senate.
“President Biden presented an agenda to the American People that was clear and has broad popular support. Today Republicans and their allies in Conservative Media, the same people who praised Putin last week, have resorted to school yard insults as a rebuttal,” tweeted Chris Hahn, a New York politician and political commentator.
“Biden going full populist in this speech. Strong [State of the Union],” commented Kyle Kulinski, a political commentator and YouTuber.
And it wasn't only Americans who were deeply moved by the president’s remarks.
Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Nations Sergiy Kyslytsya said that he was “almost crying” while watching Biden's address.
Biden's Tuesday night speech compares favorable among State of the Union addresses, according to prominent presidential historian Michael Beschloss.
“Biden’s speech told us who he is and what kind of a society he wants. From my experience, that’s the kind of State of the Union that works,” he tweeted.
While others took note of a different tone apparent between Biden and the Democrats sitting in the Capitol as he delivered the speech.
“Democrats led a chorus of ‘USA USA USA’ while GOP sat silently during #SOTU For too long, Democrats have surrendered the notion of ‘proud to be an American’ to the Republican Party, @POTUS Biden took it back Tuesday night,” said Ken Bardella, a former Republican staffer now supporting Democrats.
Biden, too, took a different approach.
“I am taken how President Biden plunged ahead though all the applause and didn't bask in it. It speaks to who he is, it really does ...” commented D. Earl Stephens, author and former editor of the US military newspaper Stars & Stripes.
More notably, the American people appear to be responding favorably to Biden's speech.
Some 78 percent who watched the State of the Union approved of Biden's remarks, according to a fast CBS News opinion poll.
“You’re going to see Bidens poll numbers start to rise now. He has done an amazing job leading the Ukraine situation, and his speech last night covered all the necessary ground, and was unifying,” author and activist Amy Siskind tweeted.
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