Biden's SOTU Speech Proved Effective at Spinning Job Record, Dismal at Offering Policy Fix - Experts
© AP Photo / Jacquelyn Martin
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - President Joe Biden in his State of the Union address was surprisingly successful at marketing his administration’s so-called accomplishments, including on the economic front, but failed to address or provide any legitimate policy solutions to the country’s most pressing problems, experts told Sputnik.
Biden during a sometimes rowdy second State of the Union Address, delivered before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday evening, shined a light on the job gains under his administration and an unemployment rate that now stands at a 50-year low.
He also called on Congress to raise the debt ceiling while warning Republicans not to take the economy hostage by threatening to cut health care and social security. Biden’s speech was then interrupted by a chorus of boos from Republicans denying the accusation.
"In general, I was quite surprised by the president’s address. It was fairly good with an emphasis on the economy and initiatives he has executed," the Washington-based Eurasia Center Executive Vice President, Earl Rasmussen, said.
However, Rasmussen added, the gains look overblown considering the current environment is on par with pre-pandemic levels.
"Hence, his lauded improvements, while technically correct, are based on an economy that essentially was motionless due to the pandemic and the historic shutdowns," Rasmussen said.
'Peachy' Spin Obscures Reality
Biden also hit out at China, saying he wants to work with Beijing but will act if they threaten US sovereignty, a comment that comes as details emerge of a suspected Chinese spy balloon program. With respect to Russia, Biden said the United States would support Ukraine as long as it takes in what he referred to as a conflict for "the ages."
Rising Tide Foundation Vice President Matthew Ehret said while effective in terms of promoting his achievements, the speech failed in other ways.
"For Joe Biden, the speech was not a failure and may possibly win him a bit of support, but for America and the Americans who desperately need a leader with ideas and policies representing their true self-interests - which involve avoiding WWIII - it is a dismal failure," Ehret told Sputnik.
Overall, Ehret added, positive words of self-congratulations were contrasted with Biden's admission of rates of fentanyl deaths, veteran suicide, and collapsing infrastructure that betray the "peachy message."
8 February 2023, 06:11 GMT
For example, Biden inferred that the historic 2022 infrastructure spending bill will create green jobs and give billions of dollars to the private sector, Ehret said.
Ehret also took issue with Biden suggesting that uniting NATO and standing up to China and Russia are ways in which America has made the world safer, Ehret added.
"If one knew nothing whatsoever of the state of decay within America's borders which have been pushed to near civil war levels of tension, as well as the destruction committed to the nations of the world under America's lead, one would have heard Biden's speech and come to the conclusion that the US is enjoying the greatest recovery in history and has brought ‘peace, democracy and freedom to the world,’" Ehret said.
Rasmussen pointed out that America does not lead the world, at least as it was before, and many countries consider the US as the major threat to peace.
"US has lost its leadership, Russia and China are much more examples of countries trying to assist other countries in developing their infrastructures, economies and resolving internal conflict," he said.
Biden briefly touched on some key domestic issues in the address - such as abortion, gun control, and police brutality against Black Americans. Some pundits even suggested Biden outlined an agenda as if building a case for reelection.
Constitutional historian and political commentator Dan Lazare said Biden’s remarks sounded like superficial wishful thinking - including the warning to never bet against America. This US president, he added, would rather engage in "cheap sentimental displays" over grappling with problems in a serious way.
8 February 2023, 04:50 GMT
"Last night's state of the union address will likely turn out to be the Biden administration's high point," Lazare said. "From here on out, nothing but trouble lies ahead."
Military disaster is looming in the eastern Ukraine as Russia revs up its long-awaited spring offensive, Lazare added, while the showdown in the western Pacific is intensifying. On the home front the opposition party is launching probes into Hunter Biden’s laptop and business dealings, he observed.
"House Republicans are preparing to roast Hunter and Joe over red-hot coals," Lazare warned. "And the struggle over Social Security and the deficit will give new meaning to the word "brinkmanship.’"
Lazare said the heckling of Biden by Republicans over social security was a dramatic moment that epitomized the state of affairs in Washington.
"Capitol Hill is as much a war zone as ever," Lazare said. "The wounds from January 6 are wide open, and the bleeding is only going to get worse and worse."
Lazare also said Biden was delusional in thinking US democracy is "unbowed and unbroken," as the president said in the address. "But he’s wrong - it's in serious trouble," Lazare concluded.
