White House chief of staff tells House Democrats he’s hoping State of the Union address will boost Biden’s poll numbers

By MJ Lee

White House chief of staff Ron Klain told House Democrats on a video call Wednesday that he hopes President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address next week will hand him a bump in the polls, in part by demonstrating leadership on national security and by showing empathy for Americans frustrated with Covid-19 and inflation, according to sources.

Klain told lawmakers that the White House believes it can do a better job of sharing with Americans what the administration has achieved in the President’s first year in office and that Biden plans to acknowledge frustrations about the spike in consumer prices as well as the pandemic, according to two lawmakers on the call and a person familiar with its contents.

There was acknowledgment that there is more work to be done to ensure that Democrats — including the President — are perceived as more trusted on their handling of the economy, with Klain suggesting part of that will entail touting certain economic data points like the number of jobs created. House Democrats, who have been hit with a number of retirement announcements not seen in decades, are facing an uphill battle to hold control of the chamber in November’s midterm elections.

Biden’s speech next Tuesday will have a significant national security focus, Klain suggested, with the goal of displaying leadership particularly as it pertains to the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

A source familiar with the call said the discussion also touched on other top priorities for Biden, including naming his Supreme Court nominee, which is expected in the coming days. Officials on the call promised that Biden and other top officials will travel more after the State of the Union to discuss his agenda. Klain also referenced some of Biden’s key domestic priorities that remain outstanding.

The call was described to lawmakers as an opportunity for the White House to lay out Biden’s vision for the year and preview the key themes the President will touch on in his address to Congress, according to sources. Other White House officials, including director of legislative affairs Louisa Terrell, senior adviser Cedric Richmond and communications director Kate Bedingfield, joined the call.

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