President Joe Biden made the war in Ukraine a major focus of his first State of the Union address Tuesday, touting the unified allied response to Russia's invasion, including the closure of U.S. airspace to Russian flights, and taking aim at Russian President Vladimir Putin, who he said was "now isolated from the world more than he has ever been."
On the domestic front, Biden addressed the economy and inflation, which is at its highest level in decades and has been cited by voters as a top concern — and a major reason for his weak approval ratings in polling. He pointed out record job gains and economic growth and praised the passage of the bipartisan infrastructure bill as a major success. He also called for building up the U.S. manufacturing base and, with Covid receding, urged Americans to get back to work and schools — restrictions on which being a main point of GOP criticism.
The president used the address to counter Republican attacks on his performance and agenda, calling, for example, to fight increasing crime by providing more funding to police. And he pressed for greater unity, calling for an end to the politicization of the pandemic while praising his Supreme Court pick, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, as a "consensus builder" and rebranding his Build Back Better agenda in an attempt to salvage some of its elements.
GOP Reps. Greene, Boebert heckle Biden throughout address
Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., repeatedly interrupted and interjected during Biden's address.
Greene was heard grumbling through the entire part of Biden's speech about Covid policy before she shouted a remark about women's sports when Biden mentioned new laws targeting transgender Americans and their families.
Both Boebert and Greene tried to start a "build the wall" chant — a reference to former President Donald Trump's calls to construct a wall across the U.S. southern border — when Biden referred to securing the border and reforming immigration law.
But the moment that stood out most was when Boebert shouted "13 of them" — referring to the 13 U.S. service members who died in an attack in Afghanistan during the U.S. withdrawal last year — when Biden discussed battlefield conditions that may contribute to veterans' developing cancers "that would put them in a flag-draped coffin."
Boebert's remark came just before Biden mentioned that one such veteran was his son Beau Biden, who served in Iraq and died of brain cancer in 2015. Her remark prompted some boos from fellow lawmakers.
Tlaib hits 'corporate-backed' Democrats in response to Biden
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., delivered a response to Biden’s address in which she said her fellow progressives were the true fighters for the president’s agenda, while Republicans and “corporate-backed” Democrats are to blame for it’s being stymied.
“No one — no one — fought harder for President Biden’s agenda than progressives,” she said before criticizing Republicans “and just enough corporate-backed Democratic obstructionists.”
Some Democrats were critical of Tlaib, a member of the left-wing “squad,” for delivering a response to Biden’s address. She wasn’t the only Democrat to issue such a follow-up speech — something that typically is limited to members of the opposing party.
Biden speech brings brief moment of unity to the Capitol
It didn’t last long, but there was a fleeting moment of bipartisan unity in the Capitol as Biden used his State of the Union address to excoriate Russian President Vladimir Putin and rally the nation in support for war-torn Ukraine.
Awash in blue and gold scarves, dresses, ribbons and ties — a nod to the colors of Ukraine’s national flag — Democrats and Republicans lawmakers pressed pause on their usual partisan warfare and briefly came together to show solidarity with a European ally facing unfathomable death and destruction at the hands of Putin.
Symbols of America’s support for Ukraine were everywhere. Ukrainian flags were hung along Pennsylvania Avenue as Biden’s motorcade made the short drive from the White House to Capitol Hill. As she entered the House chamber, first lady Jill Biden warmly embraced Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.S., Oksana Markarova, who later got a standing ovation from lawmakers.
And Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-Ind., the first Ukrainian-born member of Congress, was selected to help escort Biden into the room and sat directly behind the top two House GOP leaders, Kevin McCarthy and Steve Scalise.
5 takeaways from Biden's State of the Union speech
Biden delivered his State of the Union speech at a perilous time for the U.S. and for his presidency, facing low approval ratings as his party braces for a tough midterm election this fall.
He sought to strike a tricky balance between touting his successes on Covid and the economy while emphasizing the pain many Americans are still feeling because of rising costs and anxieties that Russia's war against Ukraine could spiral into a larger global conflict.
He also made a plea for Congress to pass his stalled domestic plans.
"The State of the Union is strong because you, the American people, are strong," Biden said. "We are stronger today than we were a year ago. And we'll be stronger a year from now than we are today. This is our moment to meet and overcome the challenges of our time."
Congressional parents of transgender children express support for Equality Act
After Biden called for passage of the Equality Act, condemning state laws targeting transgender Americans, members of Congress with transgender children affirmed their support and advocated for the federal legislation.
Reps. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., and Marie Newman, D-Ill., both took to Twitter to respond to Biden’s speech, in which he said he would continue to support and advocate for the transgender community during his time as president.
Newman pointed to the discrimination transgender Americans face on a daily basis as reason to pass the Equality Act. Jayapal expressed her gratitude for Biden’s mention of the transgender community and called for the end of the filibuster to pass the legislation.
Biden’s remarks also come on the day of the primary elections in Texas — a state whose attorney general declared last week that transition care for minors is child abuse under state law. Soon after, Gov. Greg Abbott called on licensed professionals and Texas residents to report parents of transgender minors to the state if their children may be receiving gender-affirming care. Both officials are up for re-election this year.
The message behind Biden’s maskless mingling
From the moment he began his address, Biden tried to mark how far the country had come on Covid by noting that the pandemic prevented a proper gathering last year. But the true distinction between then and now was what Biden wasn’t doing — wearing a mask as he walked through the crowd.
After a protracted period of careful masking and social distancing, Biden, 79, gave America its first glimpse of what the administration hopes is the next phase of the pandemic. That phase, as Biden highlighted in his speech, includes keeping schools and businesses open.
There was perhaps no better personification of that sentiment than the images of the ever-cautious Biden now walking up close to dozens and dozens of people, mingling, shaking hands and hugging. It spoke not only to the possibilities in a new maskless world but also to the freedoms that could come with higher vaccination rates. (We’ll note that the White House tried moving toward no masks a year ago, only to have to reverse course after the delta variant took hold.) Those attending the speech were required to test for Covid ahead of time.
But Biden’s move also drew scoffs from Republicans who accused the administration of political motivations in reversing a mask order Friday — just in time for his big speech.
“Biden walked into the #SOTU2022 with no mask but walks across the lawn with a mask?” Donald Trump Jr. chided over Twitter.
Congresswoman calls on Biden to defund the police
Biden's call to fund the police rather than defund them drew support from members of the Republican Party, such as Reps. Kevin McCarthy of California and Lauren Boebert of Colorado, but it drew criticism from some Democrats. After his speech, Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri, tweeted: "With all due respect, Mr. President. You didn’t mention saving Black lives once in this speech."
She said all America has done is give more funding to police. "The result? 2021 set a record for fatal police shootings. Defund the police. Invest in our communities."
Bush wore a red top to Biden's first State of the Union address that said "18,000," which she said in a separate tweet signified the number of people whose clemency petitions are sitting in a backlog, waiting for Biden to review them.
Sherrilyn Ifill, the president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, questioned whether "the answer" to current public safety challenges is to "fund the police" as Biden claimed. She also questioned whether areas with the highest-funded police departments have the lowest crime rates and are more effective at solving violent crimes.
"Do they have higher public confidence?" she tweeted. "This is political framing not 'answers.'"
Ifill said she would have preferred that Biden use the State of the Union "platform to encourage Americans to embrace the complexity of public safety challenges, lift up community innovations, recommit to accountability, & commit to working w/communities & public safety professionals on solutions."
Fact check: Reynolds says Pelosi warned Olympians against criticizing China
During the GOP response to Biden's address, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said, “The Speaker of the House recently warned our Olympic athletes not to speak out against China.”
Reynolds was referring to comments House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., made in early February, when she urged athletes to avoid protesting the Chinese government during the Beijing Winter Olympics for fear of reprisal.
“I would say to our athletes you’re there to compete. Do not risk incurring the anger of the Chinese government, because they are ruthless,” Pelosi said.
Fact check: Reynolds says Harris and Biden have not visited the border since taking office
“And we’ve actually gone to the border — something that our president and vice president have yet to do since taking office,” Reynolds said in the Republican response to Biden's speech.
The Iowa governor was half right.
Vice President Kamala Harris visited the border last summer, but Biden has not made a similar trip since he became president.
