Anon02/26/26, 13:42No.1491982
And a similar 62 percent said his policies on immigration — he spoke of sealing the border, ending catch-and-release and deporting criminal illegal aliens — would move the country in the right direction, including 92 percent of Republicans, 54 percent of independents and 12 percent of leaning-Democrats.And a similar 62 percent said his policies on immigration — he spoke of sealing the border, ending catch-and-release and deporting criminal illegal aliens — would move the country in the right direction, including 92 percent of Republicans, 54 percent of independents and 12 percent of leaning-Democrats.It was an overall favorable reception for the speech, but it was also a favorable audience: 41 percent Republican, 41 percent independent and just 18 percent Democrat, typical of State of the Union addresses, where the incumbent party is overrepresented, and the opposition party underrepresented.Meaning, it was an audience that was more open to the President, and disproportionately included supporters who had voted for him, but still with some opposition watching, too.Whether it results in the President getting a bump in approval ahead of the Congressional midterms in November — Presidents with higher approval tend to lose fewer seats — remains to be seen, but it also shows the Trump still has the ability to wield the bully pulpit to move public opinion.A scripted event such as the State of the Union provides possibly the widest possible audience for such a rhetorical moment, but much of the impact will depend on just how large the audience was. How many millions of Americans were watching? The more, the greater the persuasion power, the fewer, the more who have already written off the President.