Just over 48 million Americans tuned in to the telecast of his State of the Union speech on Wednesday, about 4 million fewer than watched his first address to Congress a month after taking office last year, Nielsen figures showed on Thursday.
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Yet, Obama’s latest speech, seeking to reconnect with Americans angry about a weak economy and high unemployment, surpassed the numbers that either of his immediate predecessors — George W. Bush or Bill Clinton — averaged with their State of the Union addresses.
Both Clinton and Bush averaged fewer than 46 million viewers in their respective eight annual messages to Congress.
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