Once a year, the president of the United States makes a speech to both chambers of Congress about their administration’s achievements and goals for the upcoming year. This speech, which is held at the U.S. Capitol and streamed on national television, informs the American people, as well as the students who watched, about the political landscape for the upcoming year.
On Mar. 7, President Joe Biden made his address and he spoke about his upcoming policy goals on issues ranging from foreign policy to the economy. This address, which was during the primary election season, gave him an opportunity to tout his administration’s achievements and discuss his policy goals for the upcoming year. One of President Biden’s main points he discussed was the importance of defending democracy at home and abroad. He mentioned the need to continue sending Ukraine weapons to defend themselves against Russia and the importance of protecting democracy at home in light of the January 6th attack on the capital. Senior Evan Geisner felt informed about the state of politics in the country and found it interesting hearing the topics spoken about in the speech. Geisner said, “I found the State of the Union to be interesting and informative this year. I learned about different achievements in the previous year and about the goals of the upcoming year. Seeing as this is an election year, it was important to learn about the goals of the current administration and hear about the policies they are trying to work on.”
According to a Pew Research poll released before the address, the American people viewed strengthening the economy as the most important political issue that should be a top priority for the administration. The economy was one of the major talking points during the speech as President Biden talked about strong employment numbers over the past and the benefits the infrastructure bill has had on opening new opportunities for American workers. Senior Casey Bennett, who listened to the speech, felt that it was important to learn about the president’s plan not only on the economy but on all major issues due to it being in an election year. Bennett said, “I watched the State of the Union and thought it was important to hear the policy achievements on the economy and all issues during the speech. Due to the fact that this is an election year, it is incredibly important that the public gets to hear up-to-date information from the president and this speech is a good way to accomplish that.”
This annual address, which first began in 1790, has served every year as a way to share information and inform the country about the state of politics providing those who watch and read the opportunity to gain greater knowledge on the policy that affects them today.
