On Sunday’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos, White House press secretary Jen Psaki highlighted Russia’s ongoing attack on Ukraine and Vice President Biden’s upcoming State of the Union address.
Biden’s popularity ratings plummet ahead of Tuesday’s presentation, with the most recent surveys showing him at 37% support and 55% disapproval. According to a Washington Post-ABC poll, moreover, half of Americans have doubts about Biden’s mental acuity to serve as president, compared to just 40% who feel differently. Additionally, Biden received a 59 percent approval rating from Americans.
Psaki avoids question on polls doubting Biden's 'mental sharpness' for office https://t.co/hoY7Ewijnz
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When host George Stephanopoulos questioned Psaki about Biden’s statement, he mentioned this study.
“The president is approaching his State of the Union in a pretty difficult political position right now, 37% approval rating, Democrats trailing badly in the midterm polling,” Stephanopoulos said. “A majority in our recent poll out this morning even question the president’s mental capacity. How is he going to turn that around on Tuesday night? And how much has this war in Ukraine changed his State of the Union?”
Psaki did not respond to Biden’s mental capacity accusations but instead focused on Biden’s State of the Union address.
“You know, George, there’s no question that the State of the Union, the American people, and anybody watching around the world will hear the president talk about the efforts he has led over the past several months to build a global coalition to fight against the autocracy and the efforts of President Putin to invade a foreign country. That is certainly present in all our lives and certainly in the president’s life at this moment,” Psaki said.
Also, she stressed that Biden’s emphasis would be on the American people’s “optimism” and “resilience,” equating Biden’s attitude to that of former presidents of the United States.
“And you know, George, from covering State of the Unions for some time, that it is about delivering a message to the public at the moment in time,” Psaki said. “And if you look back when President Obama gave his first State of the Union, it was during the worst financial crisis in a generation. When President Bush gave his first State of the Union, it was shortly after 9/11.”
She closed by saying, “Leaders lead during crises. That’s exactly what President Biden is doing. He’ll speak to that, but he’s also going to speak about his optimism of what’s ahead and what we all have to look forward to.”
As the Russian-Ukrainian crisis enters its fifth day, Vice President Biden has stayed at his Delaware home.
