Biden aims to reset presidency
- Biden’s first State of the Union address starts at 9 p.m. ET.
President Joe Biden fulfills a constitutional request when he delivers a State of the Union address – his first – to Congress on Tuesday.
The president kicked off his speech strongly condemning Russia for its “unprovoked” invasion of Ukraine, including closing off U.S. airspace to Russia planes.
And he hailed a new phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, urging Americans to see the virus, and not each other, as the enemy.
Once President Joe Biden leaves the podium after giving his first State of the Union Tuesday, at least two political leaders will deliver separate responses to the address: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds for the Republican Party and Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan.
Here’s what else you need to know, along with some history on the speech.
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Who heckled Biden?
A notable moment in the State of the Union came when Biden talked about talked about the flag-draped coffins of fallen service members, including his son, Beau, who died in 2015 of brain cancer at age 46.
As Biden spoke about Beau, people inside the House chambers reported someone shouting, “You put them in there, 13 of them.” After the comment was made, attendees in the chambers began to boo and groan at the comment, as Biden paused for a brief moment and continued his address.
Boebert later confirmed on Twitter she in fact made the comment, in reference to the 13 U.S. soldiers who were killed in a suicide bombing attack at Kabul’s Hamid Karzai International Airport in August as the Taliban took over Afghanistan and Afghans attempted to flee the country.
–Jordan Mendoza
Biden touts Justice Breyer, Ketanji Brown Jackson
In one of the more touching moments of Biden’s remarks Tuesday, the president briefly recognized Associate Justice Stephen Breyer, who announced he will step down from the Supreme Court after nearly three decades.
Breyer, holding his hands over his heart and, at one point, his face, appeared to be embarrassed by the attention. Breyer, who will retire in June, approached Biden after the address and the two spoke for several minutes and shared a laugh.
“Thank you for your service,” Biden said to Breyer during the speech. “Thank you. Thank you.”
Biden nominated U.S. Circuit Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson for Breyer’s seat on Friday, and the Miami native, who has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit since June, has started to meet with members of the Senate who will vote on her confirmation later spring.
The president described Jackson as a “consensus builder” but made no mention, as he has in other venues, of what makes Jackson a historic candidate: She would be the first Black woman ever to serve on the nation’s highest court.
At 51, Jackson could serve on the Supreme Court for decades. Democrats are seeking to confirm Jackson by early April.
— John Fritze
Who is Joshua Davis? Here’s more about the 13-year-old who stole the show at State of the Union
Of all the guests invited to President Joe Biden’s first State of the Union address, one of the few mentioned was 13-year-old Joshua Davis. Davis, who is from Midlothian, Virginia, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was just 11 months old, according to the White House.
At the age of four, Davis began advocating for the Virginia General Assembly to make “school safer for kids with Type 1 diabetes.”
Earlier this month, the seventh-grader at Swift Creek Middle School introduced President Biden at an event on prescription drug costs at a community college in Virginia.
–Jordan Mendoza
Biden’s report on the State of the Union: Strong
The president struck an optimistic tone in his concluding remarks, praising American values and calling the moment a “test of resolve and conscience, of history itself.”
“It is in this moment that our character is formed. Our purpose is found. Our future is forged,” he said. “We will meet this test.”
Biden acknowledged while the country has faced a challenging period, he is “more optimistic about America today than I have been my whole life.”
The president waited until the end of his speech, which lasted more than an hour, to deliver his report on the state of the union: “strong.”
“Because you, the American people, are strong,” he said as the crowd erupted in cheers. “We are stronger today than we were a year ago. And we will be stronger a year from now than we are today.”
— Courtney Subramanian
Biden says Americans can order more COVID tests from the government…
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