In divided nation, Americans do agree on this: Biden should talk about economy — CBS News poll

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The state of our union is … ? We asked people to describe it, and received some dour assessments: they picked “divided” most of all, followed by “declining” and “weak.” Few picked adjectives “strong,” or — amid tough economic ratings — “prospering.”

These aren’t just one-sided partisan points. Partisans share the sense of division and decline more than prosperity. It is in part a function of such dire views of the economy and inflation right now. In all, it’s a tough environment for a president addressing Congress and the nation. …

As with any president, an address to Congress is a chance to make a case for successes, but it appears Mr. Biden has some convincing to do in that regard: Most Americans feel Mr. Biden’s policies are making the economy, and specifically gas prices and inflation, worse rather than better. CONTINUED

CBS News

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Politics Abhors a Vacuum

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Jeff Dufour talks to Cook Political Report with Amy Walter founder and National Journal columnist Charlie Cook about Nikki Haley being poised to enter the 2024 presidential race and President Biden’s upcoming State of the Union address.

National Journal Radio podcast

Biden Approval Rating Climbs, Thanks To Investors, As The S&P 500 Rallies

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President Joe Biden’s approval rating has climbed to a five-month high, with Democrats appearing to rally around their leader as he prepares for battle with the GOP House, the February IBD/TIPP Poll finds. Yet Biden’s improvement is strictly among self-described investors and higher earners. It may be no coincidence that the S&P 500 touched its own five-month high amid polling last week.

The new IBD/TIPP Poll finds that 46% Americans age 18 and up approve of how Biden is handling the presidency, and 44% disapprove. Biden’s net +2-point approval rating is the first net positive rating for Biden since December 2021. CONTINUED

Jed Graham, Investor’s Business Daily

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Foolproof: A psychological vaccine against fake news

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… A biological virus is a parasite that attaches itself to the surface of a host cell. It will then inject its own genetic material into the host, hijacking the host cell’s machinery with the goal of reproducing itself.

In a very similar way, misinformation, conspiracy theories, and other dangerous ideas, latch on to the brain and insert themselves deep into our consciousness; they infiltrate our thoughts, feelings, and even our memories. Misinformation can fundamentally alter the way we act and think about the world. The misinformation virus hijacks parts of our basic cognitive machinery. …

Creating a vaccine requires understanding the structure of a virus, the chemicals that encode its genetic information (such as DNA and RNA). Accordingly, my research group has tried to uncover the key techniques that underpin the production of nearly all fake news, establishing a taxonomy of what we call the ‘Six Degrees of Manipulation’: polarizing groups in society; appealing to emotions to manipulate people; floating conspiracy theories; impersonating fake experts and official organisations; and trolling people and online conversations. CONTINUED

Sander van der Linden, University of Cambridge

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The models shaping Biden’s State of the Union

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When President Joe Biden delivers his State of the Union address Tuesday night, he will face a challenge that also confronted each of his four immediate predecessors: responding to an election that ended his party’s unified control of Congress.

Like Biden, Donald Trump, Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton all entered the White House with their party also controlling the House and Senate. That initially allowed all of them to drive an aggressive legislative agenda. But like Biden, each of them during their presidency saw voters send a signal of discontent by shifting control of one or both congressional chambers to the other party.

In their first State of the Union after that defeat, each president grappled directly with the new power alignment in Washington. But in their reaction to that uncomfortable reality, Biden’s predecessors offer contrasting models for how he may approach Tuesday’s speech. CONTINUED

Ronald Brownstein, CNN

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75% of Americans plan to watch Super Bowl LVII

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Seventy-five percent of Americans plan to watch Super Bowl LVII on Sunday, according to a new national survey of United States residents released today (Feb. 6) by the Siena College Research Institute and St. Bonaventure University’s Jandoli School of Communication.

Fifty-three percent say the game is an important part of their life, and 29% consider the Super Bowl to be a national holiday. Eighty-two percent of respondents look forward to seeing the new commercials and 80% enjoy the halftime show, while 78% say they love the game and never miss it.

Asked about their reasons for watching the Super Bowl, 90% of Americans say the Super Bowl is an opportunity to hang out with friends and family and 75% say it is an opportunity to eat and drink. Chips and dip topped the list of favorite Super Bowl foods at 75%, followed closely by chicken wings, pizza and nachos. CONTINUED

St. Bonaventure University

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