The President's Daily Brief - February 8th, 2023. The State of the Union... According to Joe Biden.

Episode Date: February 8, 2023

It’s February 8th. You’re listening to the President’s Daily Brief. Your morning intel starts now. ------ A good day to you, ladies and gentlemen. I’ve got a special State of the Union brief for you this morning that helps explain America — and the world. Last night, Joe Biden delivered the annual State of the Union address in Washington DC. As expected, he touted his accomplishments on a range of issues, domestically and abroad. Although, not everybody agreed with his assessments. Politicians do tend to brag about things they didn’t actually do.  And that’s what we’re going to focus on this morning. We’re going to talk about what Biden said regarding the issues of greatest importance to you — and his record on each, using polling and data.  In fact, what polls show is that you are most interested in and worried about three things: The Economy, Immigration, and Education. But that’s just on the domestic front. We’re also going to talk about what you all think of Biden’s handling our most pressing global threat — which is China.  And then, before I let you go, we’ll close out the podcast with a note on what the world thinks of the state of our union.  ----- Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of the President's Daily Brief. Email: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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You're listening to the President's Daily Brief. I'm your host and former CIA officer Brian Dean Wright. Your morning intel starts now. A good day to you, ladies and gentlemen. I've got a special State of the Union brief for you this morning that helps explain America and the world. Last night, of course, Joe Biden delivered the annual State of the Union address in Washington, D.C. As expected, he touted his accomplishments on a range of issues, domestically and abroad.

Although, not every day. Everybody agreed with his assessments, and that's because politicians do tend to brag about things that they didn't actually do. And that's what we are going to focus on this morning. We are going to talk about what Biden said regarding the issues of greatest importance to you and his record on each, keeping him honest with polling and data. And in fact, what polls show is that you are most interested in and worried about three things, folks. The economy, immigration, and education. but that's just on the domestic front. We're also going to talk about what you all think of Biden's handling of our most pressing global threat, which of course is China.

And then before I let you go, we will close out the podcast with a note on what the world thinks of the state of our union. In other words, my friends, we are going to move beyond the words and the promises from last night. And instead, we're going to get a more balanced view on America on this February 8th of 2023. So let's get to it, shall we? Let me first ask you, did you watch the big speech last night? Well, if you didn't, don't worry. And that's because Joe Biden didn't actually need to deliver that speech in the first place. In fact, Thomas Jefferson, who was the third president of the United States,

he never did deliver a state of the union speech. Instead, he started a tradition of writing down his views on the state of the union and then handing that document off to Congress. Well, that written tradition lasted until President Woodrow Wilson came along in the early 1900s. He was a man by, well, by all accounts, loved to hear himself talk. So it was no surprise then that he revived this idea of delivering a speech to Congress, which actually hadn't been done since President John Adams in the year 1800. So, folks, that is why we are stuck with this daggone speech, and you don't need to feel bad if you missed it.

But anyway, as Joe Biden delivered his speech last night, his words landed on a very skeptical American public. According to NBC News, 71% of Americans think that this country is on the wrong track. And that includes many Democrats, actually. A separate poll from the Associated Press shows that just 37% of Democrats want Joe Biden to run for a second term. right the only silver lining of any recent polling for mr biden is that 74% of black americans approve of his job performance and a majority of them want him to run again but the point is that if you are not happy with mr biden or the state of the union well you're not alone in fact polls suggest that your unhappiness comes down to three key issues according to a cbs news poll those issues are the economy

with 67% of you concerned, followed by immigration at 47% and lastly, education at 45%. Although I should mention that crime more or less ties with education as a top concern. So let's dive into each of those three main concerns, immigration, the economy, and education. Because if I may, we need a more honest, more data-driven conversation than we heard last night at the Capitol. All right? So let's start with the economy. As PDB listeners know from previous briefs, and frankly, just by living life in America these days, the economy and your pocketbook had been hit hard over the past couple of years. We have had record inflation up to 9.1% in June, down a little bit since then to around 6.5% now. So a big part of that very dramatic increase over Biden's term, in fact, has to do with record energy prices from oil to now. natural gas. Now, those prices have been driven in part because of the war in Ukraine, but also because Mr. Biden has often stated that he has a policy that we need to get rid of the oil and gas industry and instead embrace intermittent energy sources like solar and wind, stuff that,

of course, I call dirty green energy. So if you add up those economic headwinds around inflation, this next number makes a whole lot of sense. Just 16% of America, Polled by ABC News said that they are better off since Biden replaced Donald Trump in the White House. Now, to be fair, there are two positive economic pieces of news that we ought to consider. The first is that we're seeing an increasing number of jobs over these past few months, up 517,000 actually in just January. Although most of those new jobs are just plain catch-up to where we were from before the federal government lockdown, the economy due to the COVID pandemic.

So the other piece of relatively good news is that the unemployment rate is going down. In fact, it's at a historically low 3.4% based on the most recent data from the labor department. Although, here again, the picture is complicated. A major reason for that low number is the fact that older Americans retired in droves during the COVID pandemic. And that's led to a tighter labor pool and that lower unemployment. number. In other words, it's fairly easy to find a job right now, but that's because a bunch of workers quit and never came back. I'll let you all decide if that's something that we should

celebrate. Now, finally, I should also note one other important economic number, and that is 930.6 billion, right? That is America's total credit card debt as of the end of December, and that is a record, with a substantial percentage of that 930 billion being held by the those Americans aged 18 to 25 who are using their cars to pay for basic expenses. And with interest rates on these cards hovering around 20% in some cases, well, that is some very, very expensive debt for some of folks who really can't afford it. So all on all folks, despite what Mr. Biden said last night, the state of our economy, it's not all that great. And I think that is why only 18% of Americans think that Biden's economic policies are improving the country's economy.

All right, let's now pivot to the second issue that Americans are most concerned about, and that is immigration. Now, this is an issue that has been of great focus here on the PDB, and that's because if you don't have borders, folks, if you don't vet who comes into your country and who should be part of your American family, well, then you don't really have a country at all. The rule of law and order start to collapse. And in fact, polling shows. that that's what most Americans believe is happening right now. Pollsters from the Economist and YouGov reported a couple weeks back that 66% of Americans support increased border security.

But that begs the question, why? Why would they want more border security? What does the current border look like? Well, the data on this are just absolutely overwhelming and overwhelmingly bad. In fiscal year 2022 that ended back in October, The number of illegal migrants crossing at the southern border topped 2.76 million people. That breaks the previous record, which was actually set the year before in 2021, also under Joe Biden. But that's actually not the worst of it.

The more frightening number is 600,000. And that number reflects what the federal government estimates to be the gotaways or those illegals who managed to sneak through the border without detection. or should I say being captured. It's a number that the Department of Homeland Security comes up with based on direct and indirect observations by border agents, plus things like sensors and cameras. And I should say that those 600,000 are just from last fiscal year, right? The year before in 2021, also under Joe Biden, the number of gotaways was just over 389,000. In other words, folks, we're talking about one million people in the United States.

United States over the past two years who are here completely unvetted. We have no idea who they are or where they're at. So that in turn begs the question, who could be amongst that one million group of unvetted people? Well, we know that from the folks that we did capture, we arrested 98 illegals who were on the U.S. Terror Watch list. And so far this year, there have been 38. So I think it's reasonable to assume that amongst the one million plus godaways who are now circulating in America's cities, well, hundreds of them are known terrorists, and that doesn't include just your run-of-the-mill criminal or gang elements. Now, to be fair, Biden's team and immigration activists will argue that most of those illegals, the 2.7 million that were arrested or the one million

godaways, well, those folks are good folks, working jobs and paying taxes and so forth. And no doubt there is some truth to that. But what's equally true is that it took just 19 hijackers to bring down four planes on 9-11, right? You compare that 19 to the over one million illegals now roaming the streets, none of whom were vetted. So all told folks, the state of the border under Mr. Biden, just based on the data, not politics, just the data are very clear. We have no functional border. It is wide open for anyone and everyone. With that, let's now pivot next to our last brief, and this one is on the issue of education. So in my previous briefs where we have discussed this issue, I flagged many pieces of data that

suggest that we have a very serious set of problems. So let me review the data with a warning, because it's pretty ugly. But then we'll pivot to some good news, which is really about hope for America's kids and families. I'm looking forward to telling you about that. But first, the bad news. What the data show are that those COVID policies that locked down and locked out students, you know, pushing kids into remote learning, well, those policies led to an utter collapse in testing scores, especially in math and reading.

According to data from the nation's report card, which is officially called the National Assessment of Educational Progress, it found this past fall that the average fourth graders reading score dropped five points since 2020. That is the most significant drop amongst that age group in over 20 years. For the subject of math, test results were even worse. The average nine-year-old scores dropped seven points, right? That's the worst outcome since 1973. Well, unfortunately, these averages hide some pretty horrific outcomes for specific groups of America's kids. Test results are even worse for poor and disadvantaged students, such as black students,

who lost 13 points in math. You compare that with only five points amongst white students. And if you really want your heart just to be absolutely broken on this, consider that in one school district in the borough of Bronx, New York, only 7% of students who entered the ninth grade were ready for college four years later. And for black students, that figure drops to 4%. Now, what we've also seen in the state of America's education

is that as schools have opened back up following these horrific COVID policies, these kids returning have been acting like a bunch of animals. According to data from Duke and Columbia universities, the pandemic made kids increasingly uncooperative and unruly with their teachers and with each other. The universities assess that student mental health and social skills suffered because of isolation and lack of friendships due to these absolutely absurd COVID lockdown policies. And we're also hearing this same thing from teachers, too. There was a survey last May of American teachers and principals, about 850 in all.

And 35% of these folks reported an uptick in student fights or physical attacks when these kids returned for in-person learning. And for some teachers, they're just saying, look, I've had enough. According to a recent Gallup survey, 52% of K-12 teachers report that they feel burned out. And that's the highest level amongst all. industries and careers, including law enforcement. And that is why, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, around 300,000 public school teachers and other education staff left their jobs over the past two years. And as a result of that, students have returned this past fall and this past January to understaffed schools. According to the National Center for Education

statistics, 44% of public schools are reporting that they had teaching vacancies at the start of this year with more than half due to resignations. The point, folks, is that America's kids aren't all right, and neither are the teachers or our schools. But there are some reasons to be hopeful, and we are going to talk about those when we come back after a quick break. So, as ever, hang tight, and we will be right back. Welcome back to the PDB.

We are talking this morning about the state of the union, but not the one that Joe Biden talked about last night. No, no. We're having a much more honest conversation using polling and data to, well, have a more candid reflection of the state of the country. Now, before the break, we heard some pretty heartbreaking data about the state of America's education system. None of it good, unfortunately. Well, there are some areas of promise, two of them, actually, and one of which you can be a part of. So let's talk about the first. And to be fair, it is somewhat controversial. It's the use of vouchers. So the idea

with these things is that parents are given money from the state for their kids to either use for private school tuition or to support homeschooling. And the belief is that these options are better in some cases than local public schools which are failing.

Of course, administrators and teachers unions are generally opposed to the idea, but regardless, some states are moving forward, no matter the opposition. So for example, the state of Arizona has the country's largest voucher program. It allows any kindergarten child through high school student to receive $7,000 a year for either private school tuition, homeschooling, tutoring,

or other educational expenses. For what it's worth, at least 19 other states are considering the same or similar program. That's according to the National Council of State Legislatures. Now, it's true, mostly these programs are happening in Republican-led states like Florida, South Carolina. and Arkansas, which actually matches what we know about those folks who are opposed to these vouchers. They're largely Democrats and Democrats supporting teachers unions. Now, what they argue is this. 90% of the nation's students are educated in public schools. So that is where the money should go.

Well, I won't dig into that debate today, but the point is that a lot of parents out there aren't especially moved by that Democrat argument. they want their kids out of those public schools right now, not when the schools eventually maybe get fixed. And for those parents, these vouchers are a very good way for them to find new options, especially for those schools the data show are increasingly violent. Now, I mentioned that there were two pieces of good news about the state of education in America. Vouchers are one. The other is a little bit different, right? It's not some big federal program or the result of some fancy academic study. No, this one is about what happens when families, especially dads and men, get involved in the running of schools, especially troubled schools.

So here's that story. Last year, a high school in Shreveport, Louisiana became overwhelmed by violence. There were frequent assaults against teachers and staff. There were brawls between rival gang members. And so a school administrator is called an emergency meeting with parents. And after a few hours of discussion, a group of men came up with a novel solution. They called it dads on duty. Around 40 men, not just fathers, but uncles and grandpas and brothers, they organized into six-person shifts to spend time on campus during the school day. Now, they didn't patrol around like security guards, but rather they just made themselves visible in hallways and parking lots. They offered smiles, affirmation, and maybe the occasional dad joke, or yes, it's true, a

stern look of, don't you even try it, son? Well, as a result of this very simple idea, fights on campus at that Shreveport High School declined. And gang violence, that stopped completely. As you could imagine, the teachers were elated, kids were happier too, and smarter. Test scores improved. So, folks, that's the power of being present, of getting families involved, one shift of dedicated adults at a time. And we can all do this, by the way. The Dad's On Duty movement has popped up all around the country.

You can do a little internet research to see if there's a chapter locally that you can volunteer with. Or if there isn't, well, start one. Now, by the way, I believe that the moms can get in on this too. Moms on duty, I think they call it. But either way, this is a really cool story, one that we can all get around. Party politics aside and really, truly improve the state of our state. union. And that, ladies and gentlemen, concludes this special brief this morning focused on the state of the union. But I've got one more thing before I let you go. So we'll be right back.

Welcome back to the PDB folks. I've got one more thing before I let you go. During the state of the union address, Joe Biden made reference to a number of international events, which of course is of keen interest to you and I here on the PDB. Now putting aside his claims, I wanted to flag an ABC poll. that showed what you all think of his leadership and America's place in the world. The upshot is that you all aren't really happy with Mr. Biden when it comes to global affairs. 47% of Americans say that his policies make us less respected. Only 32% said more respected. Meanwhile, when asked about his leadership, 56% say he's incompetent.

57% say he's unfocused. And 60% say he's an effective. effective as our leader. By the way, this disapproval extends to the most important country of all China. All right, 61% of you disapprove of how he's handling China policies. And just to be really clear here, that country is the greatest threat that America faces. Imagine if 61% of us thought that the president were failing on terrorism after the 9-11 attacks or combating the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It's a pretty damning number, one that should cause a shakeup in his national security team and, well, him. But putting that aside, in fact, put aside Joe Biden and politics, I want to

remind us all of how great this country is in these United of States, because it's very easy to get angry or despondent about this moment in history, especially as I mentioned at the top of the show, that over 70% of us think that America is on the wrong track. So look, do you all recall a brief from a couple of weeks ago when I told you about the people of South Africa when they were asked where in the world that they would immigrate to if they were given a chance? Because the numbers were really important. About 35% said that they would go to the United States. In a distant second place was the United Kingdom at 22%. Germany. came in third at 11%.

Meanwhile, only 1.4% chose Russia and less than 1% chose China. Though South Africans, by the way, responded in that very pro-American way, irrespective of party affiliation, race, or income level, which is really remarkable, given that the people we're talking about in South Africa generally support a party called the ANC, which is, if I can be blunt with you, nothing but leftists and socialists and communists with a very strong affinity for Russia and China. So the point, my friends, is that just like Ronald Reagan said so many years ago, we are still

that shining city on the hill, right? We are still the country that many of us grew up with, one that is proud and strong and admired, at least in the eyes of many people around the world. And that gives me hope. because they don't yet see the problems or rot, frankly, that, well, you and I see reflected in those polls that I mentioned this morning on the economy and the border and education. And that means that we have time. We have time to fix what ails us before the world really finds out. We have time to make this place a more perfect union, no matter what the state of the union might currently be in. or, if we are to believe those polls this morning, the compromised man who sits in the White House.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, concludes your morning brief. As always, we close out the show, reminding each other of why we are here, talking about our country and our world. It's the creed of every good spy and every smart American. It's from John, Chapter 8, verse 32. And you shall know the truth. And the truth shall make you free. Good day. How many discounts does USAA auto insurance offer?

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