President Joe Biden will deliver the annual State of the Union address at 9 p.m. Tuesday night, facing a divided Congress and stubbornly high inflation.
While the president intends to address the needs of low-income individuals and families, as well as crime, it appears that his message will fall flat with African Americans who are still concerned about voting rights and police killings of unarmed Black men and women.
Instead, according to White House aides who outlined his remarks, Biden intends to focus on job growth, the war in Ukraine, the rise in domestic manufacturing, the ongoing pandemic, and America’s strategic competition with China.
The president and congressional leaders will be allowed to bring guests to the event on Tuesday for the first time since 2019.
The event is attended by the majority of the president’s cabinet and diplomatic corps, as well as all nine Supreme Court Justices.
It will also be the first time Biden delivers the address before a divided Congress since Republicans seized control of the U.S. House in the midterm elections in November.
Despite record job growth and new evidence that inflation is slowing, Americans remain wary, if not pessimistic, about the economy’s prospects.
They blame Biden for rising interest rates and are concerned about the possibility of a recession. According to an NBC poll, only 36% of US adults approve of Biden’s handling of the economy.
Aside from economic woes, Washington faces a debt ceiling deadline later this year. It will be necessary for Biden to negotiate with the newly elected Republican majority in the House, who have demanded deep spending cuts before agreeing to raise the debt ceiling.
“This is his opportunity to show us that he sees our grief and intends to do something about it, something effective,” stated Judith Browne Dianis, who appears on the Black Press of America’s “Let It Be Known” this week to discuss Biden’s address.
“Nothing will bring back Tyre Nichols or ease the pain and anguish of his family,” stated Dianis, a lawyer, professor and civil rights advocate. “And yet, we can still take concrete steps toward creating a future where Black people and our communities are safe and free.”