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When President Bush addresses Congress on Tuesday, he probably will sum up the state of the union in a word or two. Here’s how past presidents have filled in the blank:
--SWATI PANDEY
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The state of the union is ... “favorable”
George Washington, 1790
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“purified by sorrows and strengthened by conflict”
Andrew Johnson, 1865
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“closely knit together”
-- Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1942
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“good”
John F. Kennedy, 1963
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“free and restless, growing and full of hope”
Lyndon B. Johnson, 1965
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“sound, and full of promise”
-- Richard M. Nixon, 1973
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“not good”
-- Gerald Ford, 1975
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“still not good enough”
Ford, 1975
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“better”
Ronald Reagan, 1982
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“sound and strong”
George H.W. Bush, 1990
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“the strongest it has ever been”
-- Bill Clinton, 2000
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“confident and strong”
George W. Bush, 2005
Source: The American Presidency Project
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