LRussian President Vladimir “Putin was wrong. We were ready”, Joe Biden will claim before Congress on Tuesday, to praise the unity of the West in the face of the invasion of Ukraine, and no doubt hoping to rally Americans who deeply doubt him.
And according to several American media, he should demonstrate this close international coordination by announcing a new, major sanction: the closure of American airspace to Russian planes, already decided by the European Union and Canada.
“During our history we have learned this lesson: if dictators do not pay the price for their aggression, they cause even more chaos”, must also declare the American president in his first “address on the state of the Union”, of which the White House broadcast a short excerpt in advance.
The Russian president “thought that the West and NATO would not respond. And he thought he might divide us at home” in the United States, he will say from 9:00 p.m. (02:00 GMT Wednesday).
Joe Biden may hope to find in the dread that has gripped America the momentum of unity that he has been trying, in vain, to create in the United States since his election.
Each year, the head of the American executive comes to report to the legislative power, in the very solemn setting of the Capitol, on his political action.
The exercise is generally more devoted to national issues but, this time, the 79-year-old Democrat must evoke as much the march of the world as “the state of the Union”, he who had promised when arriving at the House Blanche to form a grand coalition of democracies once morest authoritarian regimes.
Ukraine will constantly be present in the background of this major meeting in American political life.
First Lady Jill Biden has invited the country’s ambassador to the United States, Oksana Markarova, to join her on Capitol Hill. Pennsylvania Avenue, the main artery that goes from the White House to the Capitol, was decorated with the blue and yellow flag of Ukraine.
“A Better Plan”
But in this speech, which will be as extensively commented on as it was meticulously composed, Joe Biden will not overlook the great daily concern of American households: galloping inflation.
To the increase in prices, he wants to respond with an increase in productivity and with an industrial as well as a technological leap forward.
“We have a choice. One way to fight inflation is to lower wages and make Americans poorer,” he said, still according to these extracts delivered in advance.
“I have a better plan,” he said. “Rather than depending on foreign supply chains, let’s produce in the United States,” said the man who has always promised to prioritize American jobs and American companies.
Joe Biden has a lot to do to prove to Americans that the country is, with him, in good hands.
According to the latest polls, less than 40% are convinced of this, despite strong growth, despite low unemployment, and despite the pandemic which seems to be loosening its grip: wearing a mask will also be optional during the president’s speech. .
None of this has so far benefited Joe Biden or the Democrats, who fear losing their very slim majority in Congress in the fall.
Beyond the enormous political handicap of inflation, divisions in the United States are sharper than ever on major social issues, such as abortion, firearms, the fight once morest racism or sexual discrimination.
Politically, Donald Trump continues to warm up his supporters and the climate remains electric.
The Capitol police put back in place, before Joe Biden’s speech, the barriers that protected the building following its attack in January 2021 by supporters of the former Republican president.
02/03/2022 01:56:53 –
Washington (AFP) –
© 2022 AFP
