More than a quarter of Americans (27%) say this year's State of the Union address is less important than those in the past; a year ago, in the wake of Bush's major speech outlining the troop surge in Iraq, just 16% saw the 2007 State of the Union address as less important than those in past years, while 32% said it was more important. The modest anticipation for this year's address stands in stark contrast to public assessments of Bush's first two State of the Union speeches, in 2002 and 2003. Majorities in both years said those addresses were more important than in previous years.

Source: Pew Research Center

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