Joe Biden State of the Union sets stage for 2024 reelection campaign

Yup, he’s running.

President Biden’s second State of the Union address also functioned as a kickoff to his campaign for a second term Tuesday night, with the octogenarian commander-in-chief boasting of his administration’s accomplishments — while most Americans don’t believe he has many accomplishments of which to boast.

Over his 72-minute speech, the 80-year-old Biden touted areas of bipartisan agreement, telling Republicans at the top of his remarks “there’s no reason we can’t work together” after the GOP took control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections.

The president was particularly effusive early in the night about legislation to boost high-tech US manufacturing as well as an infrastructure spending law passed in 2021, saying: “I want to thank my Republican friends who voted for the law, and my Republican friends who voted against it as well.

“I still get asked to fund the projects in those districts as well,” he added, “but don’t worry, I promised I’d be a president for all Americans. We’ll fund these projects, and I’ll see you at the groundbreaking.”

Biden also used the phrase “finish the job” 13 times in his address — calling on Congress to do everything from capping the price of insulin at $35 per month to imposing new taxes on the wealthiest Americans to passing a ban on assault weapons.

Despite the refrain, recent polls show most Americans don’t want Biden to finish any job.

Only 37% of Democrats say they support the president running for a second term, down from 52% in October 2022, an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey from Monday shows. 

Overall, a whopping 78% of Americans want Biden to be a one-and-done president, compared to just 22% who say he should run for a second term.

Meanwhile, a Washington Post-ABC News survey found 41% of Americans are worse off financially than they were when Biden took office in January 2021 — and 62% believe Biden has accomplished “not very much” or “little or nothing” in his first two years in the White House.