In his annual State of the Union address, US President Joe Biden urged Republicans to help “complete the job” of delivering for hardworking Americans.
The Democrats emphasized the need for bipartisanship to a split Congress where the Republican majority in the lower chamber is now in place.
He also vowed to safeguard American sovereignty in the aftermath of an alleged Chinese spy balloon incursion.
The speech was viewed as a blueprint for a widely anticipated reelection attempt in 2024.
Mr. Biden’s 73-minute speech was delivered while his public approval rating stays near its lowest point throughout his presidency.
Annually, the opposition party responds to the president’s State of the Union address. Tuesday evening, the Republican answer was delivered by the governor of Arkansas, who accused Mr. Biden’s administration of being more concerned with “woke fantasies” than with “the harsh realities Americans face every day.”
Mr. Biden made the speech to a crowded auditorium filled with prominent visitors, including Bono of U2, and Supreme Court justices.
Kevin McCarthy, the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, was one of the president’s most vociferous detractors, standing behind him on the House podium.
Mr. Biden threw an olive branch to the opposition party, which last month seized control of the House of Representatives and vowed to examine the president’s family and Cabinet.
“To my Republican friends, if we were able to work together in the last Congress, there is no reason why we can’t work together in this new Congress,” added the president, who has been repeatedly accused of using divisive language.
“We’ve been dispatched here to complete the task,” he continued.
Mr. Biden also stated that America’s democracy was “unbowed and unbroken” two years after fans of his predecessor, Donald Trump, rioted in the US Capitol.
As is common during State of the Union addresses, opposition lawmakers heckled the president at various moments.
In his 7,200-word address, Mr. Biden made scant allusion to the foreign policy crisis that has captivated the nation in recent days: a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that crossed US soil before the U.S. Navy shot it down last weekend off the coast of South Carolina.
The president stated that he was dedicated to working constructively with China, but issued the following warning: “As we made clear last week, if China undermines our sovereignty, we will take action to defend our nation. And we did.”
Republicans have demanded to know why Vice President Biden delayed a week before acting. The government president stated that it wished to protect civilians from falling debris.
Mr. Biden’s speech was short on foreign policy in general, with Ukraine – the primary focus of his 2022 State of the Union Address in the wake of Russia’s invasion – being mentioned at the conclusion of this year’s remarks. Mr. Biden reaffirmed that the United States will stand with Kiev “for as long as it takes.”
The president emphasized domestic issues and praised the endurance and vigor of the American economy.
In January, the unemployment rate reached a 50-year low, and there are indications that the worst inflation in four decades is abating. However, the president admitted that American families require additional “breathing room.”
Mr. Biden’s political wish list included a ban on assault weapons, a minimum tax on billionaires, and access to preschool for three- and four-year-olds; however, many of these policies are unlikely to pass Congress.
He also criticized the “outrageous” profits made by oil firms, but earned derision from Republicans in the chamber when he stated, “We’ll need oil for at least another decade.”
In response to the killing of Tyre Nichols in Memphis last month, Vice President Biden urged lawmakers to pass long-delayed reforms to policing, stating, “Do something.” The mother and stepfather of Mr. Nichols were in attendance as guests of First Lady Jill Biden.
Additionally, the president emphasized that “the majority of police officers are fine, moral people,” eliciting a rare standing ovation from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.
There are concerns about the president’s ability to serve a second term, which would conclude when he is 86 years old.
Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the country’s youngest governor at age 40 and best known for serving as former President Trump’s press secretary, delivered the Republican response to his address.
Frequently, the response is presented by rising stars of the other party and frequently from outside Washington.
Mrs. Sanders stated,
“The majority of Americans simply want to live in freedom and peace, but we are under attack in a left-wing culture war that we did not start and never intended to fight.”
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