WASHINGTON — Whatever President Obama has accomplished, he has made little headway on the goal he values most: government action to lift long-term economic prospects for average Americans.

Mr. Obama calls it “make or break,” “the defining issue of our time” and his personal measure of success in the White House. But his State of the Union address on Tuesday, which is sure to highlight once again the challenges facing the middle class and the poor, could underscore his inability so far to convert talk into the taxpayer-financed investments that he and other Democrats believe can make the biggest difference. Congress has shunned a $75 billion plan to expand early childhood education that Mr. Obama proposed in last year’s State of the Union, and the infrastructure bank he has pushed for four years.

As aides draft their 2015 budget plan, their 2014 version shows this bottom line for Mr. Obama’s sixth year in office: Government investments in infrastructure, research and development, and education and training, at 3.3 percent of the nation’s economy, match the level from President George W. Bush’s sixth year in office.

That reflects the impact of the economic emergency that consumed the opening of Mr. Obama’s presidency and the effectiveness of congressional Republicans who don’t share Democrats’ confidence in government. In an era dominated by concern over deficits, Republicans have largely controlled the debate, even as Democrats have won four of the last six presidential elections.