On Tuesday, President Joe Biden delivered his first State of the Union speech to representatives, senators and distinguished guests, including the Ukrainian ambassador to the United States.
Originally, the address promised to be optimistic, focusing on how the nation is working to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic following the omicron surge. However, the tone changed following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and ongoing attacks. In his remarks, Biden addressed issues that mattered to all Americans and many that directly impact the lives of students. Most notably, the pandemic and the Russian attacks on Ukraine.
The invasion and attacks were addressed at the top of the president’s speech, where he called out President Vladimir Putin by name. The United States has imposed sanctions on Russia, including cutting off Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), which provides communication between banks around the world. The president also noted that the Russian ruble had lost at least 30% of its value by the time of the address on Tuesday night. Biden said American troops will not go to Eastern Europe to fight in the conflict but instead, defend fellow NATO countries such as Romania, Lithuania and Latvia.
The president further addressed new mask guidelines and promised the American people that “we will never accept living with COVID”, vowing that the American government will always work to “combat the virus” and “be on guard.” The pandemic has upended the traditional route of the university years and the notion of what the traditional college experience is meant to be. Students were forced out of residence halls and in-person experiences were replaced with online learning.
Communities around the country are approaching the pandemic differently on the ground; however, on the federal level, the messaging is that normalcy is on the horizon. The president assured that with 75% of Americans fully vaccinated and hospitalizations down even more, masks can come off and “move forward safely.” Biden went on to say that the country is better prepared for any new variants that may emerge and that with congressional funding, tests and masks and pandemic staples of the past two years will be more readily available.
Biden unveiled his new “Unity Agenda” which highlights four points aiming to bring the nation together and issues that affect students across the country.
Biden and his administration plan to tackle the opioid epidemic by increasing funding to prevent drug addiction and working with law enforcement to go after drug traffickers. The second point involves an issue that is often on the minds of university students: mental health. The president noted that this issue has deeply affected children who have lost at least a year of learning, if not more. He encouraged Americans to sign up to take an active role in the learning process of children by signing up as part of support staff — a tutor or a mentor.
He noted the role that social media can play in mental health and said he wants all Americans to receive mental health care. Biden brought in the example of his son Major Beau Biden — a soldier who died of brain cancer as part of his third and fourth points for the agenda detailing how to support veterans and the cancer moonshot plan. For the cancer moonshot plan, the fourth point of the unity agenda, Biden announced his goal to cut cancer death by 50% over the next 25 years. He also wants to have more medical support for the veterans suffering from cancer.
Of course, many university students are looking at one thing at the end of their four years: a job. In his remarks, Biden noted that the American Rescue Plan has created 6.5 million new jobs which he noted is more “than ever before in the history of America.” The economy has also maintained the strongest growth ever in 40 years and at a rate of 5.7%, according to this speech — a welcome sign for students entering the job market.