Hunter Bates Quoted by The Hill on Biden State of the Union Address
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For its article “Biden SOTU to be balancing act of legislative agenda, courting weary voters,” The Hill quoted Akin Gump public law and policy practice co-head Hunter Bates.
On President Biden and the tenor of his State of the Union address on March 1, Bates, who served as Chief of Staff to Sen. Mitch McConnell, said, “Biden needs to give the best speech of his life. He has to walk along a very thin precipice balancing his accomplishments on infrastructure and economic growth with the pain of inflation, rising crime and global instability.”
On the topic of the Build Back Better Act, Bates said, “He has no choice but to tout the elements of BBB that still have a pulse, like green energy, and highlight the China competitiveness bill, which is likely to become law over the next few months.”
Bates also noted that he believed the American public will judge President Biden more on “tone, style and delivery” than on the specifics of any policy, adding, “Ultimately, every move that Biden makes has to be directed at trying to change the mind of the American people on one question: is this President capable of leading the country through an historic malaise and multiple, raging crises?”
