On Thursday, March 7, Joe Biden made his third State of the Union Address. His goals were to convey his administration’s successes, compare himself to Donald Trump and come off as energetic amidst controversy over his age.
Biden attacked Trump several times but never by name. Talking about Ukraine’s need for U.S. weapons, he referenced Trump’s controversial comment to Putin to “do whatever the hell you want.” In another moment, he indirectly referenced the former president by saying that the 2020 election lies were the “gravest threat to democracy since the civil war.” In total, Biden referenced his “predecessor” 13 times, contrasting their differing policies on abortion, immigration and taxes.
Biden had several off-script interactions with Republicans when large “boos” would erupt. At one point, Marjorie Taylor Green, wearing a MAGA outfit, shouted, “Say her name,” referencing the murder of nursing student Laken Riley by an undocumented immigrant. Biden responded to Green directly and said Laken was an “innocent young woman killed by an illegal, but how many thousands of people are being killed by legals.” Afterward, Biden apologized for using the word “illegal” instead of “undocumented” in an interview with MSNBC.
Biden also focused on several foreign policy issues, like the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. He urged Congress to pass legislation to send necessary aid to Ukraine to defend against Russia. He talked about the humanitarian crises in Gaza and said that although Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has a right to defend his country, he must do more to protect the lives of civilians. He said his team had been working around the clock to establish a six-week ceasefire and to get the remaining prisoners home. He discussed the new military initiative to set up a temporary port on Gaza’s Mediterranean coastline to deliver essential aid.
On a more domestic note, Biden talked about key voter issues like access to abortion, raising taxes on the rich and lowering the costs of prescription drugs.
Biden and his wife, Jill, invited several guests to give a personal touch to the president’s narrative. One guest was Latorya Beasly, an Alabama woman who was in the process of in-vitro fertilization when, the white house says, “her embryo transfer was abruptly canceled as a result of the recent Alabama supreme court decision.” There was also Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, whose country had just been admitted into NATO that morning as part of an initiative by Biden to expand the alliance in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Overall, Biden conveyed a message of optimism on the state of the Union and his upcoming presidential race. He said, “It’s because of you, America is coming back. It’s because of you, our future is brighter. It’s because of you that tonight we can proudly say the state of our union is strong and getting stronger.”
Biden also addressed concerns over his age. “My fellow Americans, the issue facing our nation isn’t how old we are, it’s how old are our ideas,” he said. “Hate, anger, revenge, retribution are the oldest of ideas. But you can’t lead America with ancient ideas that only take us back.”
