The Observer view on Joe Biden’s bravura performance in his State of the Union address

address to Congress before November’s pivotal US election with public expectations at rock bottom. He returned to the White House a few hours later with all flags flying and the cheers of grateful Democrats ringing in his ears. Biden had survived what could easily have turned into a wake for his unpopular presidency. More than that, he had scored a personal mini-triumph which, for now at least, has boosted faith in his ability to win a second term.

The age factor is but one of many worries for Biden’s re-election campaign. Only one in four voters believes he is leading the country in the right direction. Opinion polls consistently show an across-the-boardamong voters classed by education, race and gender. And a majority is critical of Biden’s handling of the economy – always the biggest issue – despite, falling inflation and hopeful signs, for him, of an accelerating pre-election recovery.

The line about revenge and retribution was one of numerous, not so subtly veiled references to Trump, to whom Biden referred throughout as “my predecessor”. It was as if the very name of the man who has spent the past four years calling him a liar, a fraud and an election cheat stuck in his craw. That’s no surprise.

Ukraine could win the war, Biden insisted, if it was given the military support it needs – but that meant ending the stalemate in Congress over additional US aid. Yet Trump simply didn’t care. He had told Putin to “ ‘do whatever the hell you want’… I think it’s outrageous, it’s dangerous, and it’s unacceptable,” Biden said. Defending “freedom and democracy” will be one of his signature themes this autumn., Biden turned his wrath and scorn on Trump and the Republicans.

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