The State of the Union, 2015: Not Great, but Getting Better

The state of the nation? Not great – but it’s sure been worse. That summarizes public attitudes as Barack Obama prepares to deliver his penultimate State of the Union address. There are grace notes, largely based on improving views of the economy. But deep concerns about long-term and structural economic […] Read more »

State of the Union 2015: How Americans see the nation, their leaders and the issues

President Obama and other administration officials have been road-testing several possible themes and proposals that are likely to come up in his State of the Union speech today. Here’s a look at public opinion on the issues that Obama and Republicans say they will push in the coming year, as […] Read more »

Do people want to stop Obama’s immigration move? Yes. And no.

Congressional Republicans face a major dilemma in how to respond to President Obama’s executive action delaying deportation for millions of undocumented immigrants. And to complicate that decision, two polls find conflicting results about what the public wants Republicans to do. CONT. Scott Clement, Washington Post Read more »

Where Obama Has—and Has Not—Recovered

President Obama heads into his State of the Union address tonight enjoying reviving approval ratings from key groups in his coalition but still facing entrenched skepticism from the older and blue-collar whites who were crucial to GOP victories last fall. … Whatever the economy’s condition, African-Americans, Hispanics, and college-educated white […] Read more »