'I believe in America': Fired-up Biden uses State of the Union to skewer GOP

Voters have disapproved of how the economy is doing since Biden took office, though most of the measures economists look at have been increasingly strong. Biden's been trying to convince voters that his economic plans will deliver, but that’s been a hard sell even with his own voters.

Despite Americans’ economic outlook is improving, they haven’t so far given Biden credit, and it hasn’t translated into increased approval ratings for him.

-Monica Potts, 538

Biden, who has faced low poll numbers on his handling of the economy, highlighted the positive numbers on unemployment, job growth and cooling inflation from headline-making highs.

"Wages keep going up, inflation keeps coming down," he said to applause. "Inflation has dropped from 9% to 3%, the lowest in the world and trending lower."

"It takes time but the American people are beginning to feel it," he said.

Biden recalled how four years ago this month, the U.S. was hit by the "worst pandemic and the worst economic crisis of the century."

"I came to office determined to get us through one of the toughest periods in the nation's history," he said. "It doesn't make news, but in a thousand cities and towns the American people are writing the greatest comeback story never told."

Biden touted that 15 million new jobs were created in just three years after the onset of COVID-19 and unemployment is at 50-year lows. A "record" 16 million Americans are starting small businesses, he said.

He also suggested that the country has moved beyond the pandemic, though people continue to die from the disease every day -- at much lower numbers than before the advent of vaccines.

Biden spoke early about Jan. 6 as a threat to democracy, referring obliquely to Trump as “my predecessor,” and polls show most voters agree with him that democracy is in trouble.

Only 28% of American adults said they were satisfied with the way democracy in the U.S. is working in a Gallup poll from December. In a December Navigator poll, two in three Americans were concerned about a repeat of the insurrection. In an August Morning Consult/Bipartisan Policy Center poll, 82% of voters said they were worried about U.S. democracy.

But Republicans, who remain convinced Trump is innocent of the 91 criminal charges he faces across four cases in different states (as he denies wrongdoing), are worried for different reasons. They believe the criminal cases against him are politically motivated. And Trump has continued to sow doubt about American institutions and the electoral process, undermining voters’ trust in institutions.

All of this could have major impacts for how the November elections go down.

-Monica Potts, 538