Biden’s State of the Union Address to Highlight Economic Plans, Russia Sanctions

President Biden will deliver his first State of the Union address Tuesday, as he seeks to tamp down a war in Ukraine, guide the U.S. and its economy through the Covid-19 pandemic, and help buoy Democrats in November’s midterm elections.

The president will juggle reframing his stalled legislative agenda with reminding Americans of what he sees as key accomplishments—such as the passage of his Covid-19 relief bill and bipartisan infrastructure legislation last year—and rallying them behind his strategy to counter Russia, which includes uniting with allies on a massive sanctions package.

Democrats, who narrowly control the House and Senate, are hoping Mr. Biden can use the speech to begin uniting Americans behind his leadership. The president’s job approval rating stood at 40.7% Monday, according to FiveThirtyEight’s aggregation of public polls, down from 53% in January 2021.