Homage to the Ukrainians
The President also paid explicit tribute to the courage of the Ukrainian people fighting against Russian forces. A tribute exemplified by the invitation of the Kiev ambassador Oksana Markarova among the guests of honor to the Congress, greeted by a long and rare bipartisan applause from deputies and senators.
The domestic challenge of inflation
Biden then shifted attention to domestic challenges, first of all inflation at its 40-year high, which could be aggravated by the Ukrainian crisis itself, starting with the cost of energy and on which analysts emphasize that the White House and fiscal policy they have little control. “My big priority is getting prices under control,” she said. And to do so “by lowering costs, not wages”. This means “building more cars and semiconductors in America. More infrastructure and innovation in America. More goods shipped faster and cheaper to America. Instead of foreign supply chains, we focus on made in the USA ”.
Re-launch social reforms
He has also proposed – or rather re-proposed – initiatives that have hitherto been stranded in Parliament, to lower the costs of medicines and childcare, as well as to make the American economy more competitive and characterized by competition. He quickly cited other social initiatives, on climate change, on nursery schools, on tax credits for the poorest families.
Invitation to the indoor unit
There was also an appeal for the unity of the country which remains marked by deep political divisions: the President urged the Americans to no longer treat the pandemic as a party battle. However, tensions also exploded in foreign policy: while Biden paid homage to soldiers who died in the field, one of the most extremist Republicans, Colorado Congressman Lauren Boebert, interrupted him by shouting “You put 13 in the coffins”, referring to 13 US military killed in Afghanistan during the evacuation of US troops.
Minimum polls
There is no doubt that Biden made his speech at a difficult time in his presidency, amidst popularity polls at the lowest among the American public and with the Midterm elections for the renewal of Congress in November. His approval rate fluctuates between 44% and 37%, the lowest for a first-year White House president with the exception of his controversial predecessor Donald Trump. More specifically, Biden’s consensus is around 40 percent in foreign policy. In domestic politics, the ups and downs of the pandemic and the consequent restrictions have so far been affected, along with the controversy over the economic and environmental plans of over two trillion billion, originally collected under the banner of Build Back Better, and the surge in inflation annual at 7.5 per cent. This is despite Biden claiming that US GDP marched at 5.7% last year and that over six million jobs were created.