U.S. President Joe Biden will deliver the annual State of the Union address tonight, his last in his first term as the 2024 presidential election is looking increasingly like a rematch of 2020 between Pres. Biden and former Pres. Donald Trump.
If you’d like more context on this matter, please consider Peter Loge, director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at the George Washington University. Loge has nearly 30 years of experience in politics and communications, including a presidential appointment at the Food and Drug Administration and senior positions for Sen. Edward Kennedy and three members of the U.S. House of Representatives. He currently leads the Project on Ethics in Political Communication at the School of Media and Public Affairs and continues to advise advocates and organizations. Loge’s expertise includes communications and political strategy.
“President Biden can’t get reelected with a great State of the Union address, but a terrible State of the Union address can certainly complicate his reelection chances. I think President Biden wants to come out and demonstrate he’s forceful, he’s got a lot of energy, and he wants to work together with Republicans to continue to move the country forward,” Loge says of his expectations of tonight’s speech.
He adds that how the speech is reported is arguably more important than the content of the speech itself.
“It’s going to be, partially what does the White House do to say these are the best soundbites. And, they’re going on the road. We’ve seen cabinet secretaries already going out, talking about important parts of policies that are being enacted. On the Republican side, they’re going to find the clips or the moments where Biden probably stumbled, he misspeaks and say, ‘See, I told you. He’s well-meaning, but he’s lost a step, he’s inept and he’s out of touch.’ It’s the story of the State of the Union that matters in many ways more than the State of the Union itself. You have to give the speech to tell the story, but the story is what has the impact.”
WATCH: Hear more from Prof. Loge on his thoughts ahead of the State of the Union here.
If you would like to speak with Prof. Loge, please contact GW Media Relations Senior Specialist Cate Douglass at [email protected].
-GW-
