Democrats have collectively exhaled in a metaphorical sigh of relief after President Joe Biden‘s 2024 State of the Union, an hourlong address that was more like a campaign speech than a report to Congress.

Biden had been under pressure from Democrats to perform amid speculation about his age and mental acuity before former President Donald Trump is poised to become this election cycle’s presumptive Republican nominee next week. But as most Democrats praised their commander in chief, others raised continued concerns regarding whether the people Biden needed to convince, namely independent voters, had paid attention.