Terrorism, Nuclear Weapons, China Viewed as Top U.S. Threats

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Americans generally regard terrorism, the development of nuclear weapons by unfriendly countries, and China’s military power as the most critical threats to U.S. vital interests. …

At the time of the survey, conducted in the weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine, 59% of U.S. adults regarded Russia’s military power, and 52% said the Russia-Ukraine situation, represented critical threats to the U.S. CONTINUED

Jeffrey M. Jones, Gallup

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Biden Approval Rating Gets Anemic State Of The Union Bounce Amid Hot Inflation

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President Joe Biden’s approval rating saw little improvement after he used last week’s State of the Union address to rally the country amid Russia’s Ukraine invasion, tout economic progress and present a more moderate policy agenda. High inflation and gas prices continue to be big sources of discontent.

The March IBD/TIPP Poll finds that Biden’s approval rating edged up eight-tenths of a point to 45.2 over the past month, after slumping to the lowest point of his presidency in February. That index measure indicates that 45.2% of adults surveyed approve of Biden’s job performance, excluding those who were unsure or declined to state an opinion. CONTINUED

Jed Graham, Investor’s Business Daily

How real are the latest job numbers?

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Friday was a good day for U.S. economic news, at least on the employment front. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the country added 678,000 jobs in February, and that’s coming off of 2021’s run of good reports.

But before anyone runs around trumpeting that number, it might be better to see what the “revised” figures look like next month — and beyond. Because the last year has shown just how hard it is to get a handle on the economy in a world dominated by a global pandemic. …

The last year has brought some massive revisions — up and down — to the monthly jobs numbers that are released the first Friday after the preceding month. CONTINUED

Dante Chinni, NBC News

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Democrats’ problem with Hispanic voters isn’t going away as GOP gains seem to be solidifying

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The Democratic Party’s early 2000s dream of an emerging majority based on a diversifying electorate has run into reality. Democrats lost the 2016 presidential election, and they barely won in 2020. Part of their problem was declining support among White voters.

But the 2020 election also pointed to another problem: Hispanic voters (who are growing as a portion of the electorate) moving toward the Republican Party. Recent polling — and now this week’s Texas primaries — show that these Republican gains don’t seem to be going away anytime soon. CONTINUED

Harry Enten, CNN

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Biden supporters applaud his speech as boring — and that was a good thing

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One prominent liberal felt the speech “left a little to be desired” in its ambition. A veteran Republican strategist called it a “missed opportunity to lead.” And the conservative leaning New York Post mocked President Biden for drawing fewer viewers than his predecessors did in similar speeches.

But, in the days that followed Biden’s first State of the Union address, Democrats felt better about what they heard. Gone was the talk about being a “transformational” president in the mold of Franklin Delano Roosevelt or Lyndon Baines Johnson. Gone was the talk about sweeping legislation changing almost every facet of American life.

That political downsizing made the speech boring, to some, but Democrats believe that slow and steady won the race in 2020, when millions of voters preferred Biden’s promises of boring competence over the chaos of the previous four years. CONTINUED

Paul Kane, Washington Post

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Russia is the rare issue on which Democrats and Republicans agree

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Almost everything these days has become the victim of partisan polarization. If Democrats like something, then Republicans don’t. If Republicans like something, then Democrats don’t.

Partisanship, though, has taken a back seat when it comes to Americans’ views of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Democrats and Republicans largely agree on how they view the invasion and countries and politicians involved, even on issues on which there used to be partisan disagreement. CONTINUED

Harry Enten, CNN

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