US President Joe Biden's State of the Union speech to Congress on Tuesday could serve as a blueprint for his 2024 re-election bid.
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Biden, a Democrat, told Republicans in Congress who have questioned his legitimacy and threatened to block his policies that "there's no reason we can't work together." Many Republicans found reason to disagree. While Democrats were quick to rise in applause, Republicans applauded only sporadically and remained silent when Biden his administration's accomplishments. Several Republican lawmakers remained seated throughout.
Republicans jeered the loudest when Biden accused them of planning to cut Social Security and Medicare, as some members of the party have suggested. "Liar!" shouted Republican US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene. "We never said that!" said Byron Donalds, another House Republican. Biden who seemed to be on the brink of losing control of the room, seized on the apparent Republican lawmakers' support for the popular old-age and healthcare programs, to say: "I enjoy conversion." "We got unanimity," he continued. "Social Security and Medicare are a lifeline for millions of seniors. Americans have to pay into them from the very first paycheck they started. So tonight, let's all agree, and apparently, we are, let's stand up for seniors." "Stand up and show them! We will not cut Social Security!" a gleeful-looking Biden said amid cheers as lawmakers from both parties stood.
Biden used a large segment of his ostensibly bipartisan pitch attacking corporations, from what he called "Big Pharma" and "Big Oil" to "Big Tech." He accused the pharmaceutical companies of charging too much for insulin but made no mention of their role in tamping down the COVID-19 pandemic. He accused tech companies of running for-profit "experimenting" on children, said oil companies were making too much money, and made a case for higher taxes on billionaires. "They aren't just taking advantage of the tax code, they're taking advantage of you – the American consumer," Biden said of corporations.
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