President Joe Biden will be delivering his second State of the Union address on Thursday, where he will likely highlight the achievements of his administration and lay out his plans for the future in front of one of the most politically divided Congresses in modern history.
Biden is presenting his case to both the Republican-controlled House, which is actively looking into him for potential impeachable offenses, and the Democratic-dominated Senate, which has generally followed his lead on significant legislation.
The speech’s March 7 delivery date is the latest one for a State of the Union address in history, Fox News noted.
This is only the second occasion in history that the president has chosen not to speak in person to a joint session of Congress in January or February. On March 1, 2022, Biden made his first speech to Congress.
It happened after bickering over Biden’s request for increased foreign aid for Taiwan, Israel, and Ukraine during the first two months of 2024 while Washington officials were frantically trying to prevent a government shutdown.
A war between Israel and Hamas rages in the Middle East, Ukraine is starting to feel the pinch of American resources, and China keeps raising the possibility that it may take steps to limit Taiwan’s independence.
Additionally, House Republicans told Fox News Digital that they would like to hear Biden discuss the growing border crisis on Thursday night.
Meanwhile, Democrats are pushing Biden to emphasize his achievements in the areas of infrastructure, the economy, and other matters.
The Majority Whip The third-ranking member of the House, Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., expressed doubts that Biden could effectively handle the issues he is dealing with this year.
“No amount of scripted rhetoric from the White House will change the fact that the real State of the Union has been defined by the unprecedented crisis at our southern border, chaos overseas, and lingering economic struggles caused by Joe Biden’s failed policies,” Emmer told Fox News Digital.
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., who represents a district Biden won in 2020, said, “I want to hear him address the border issue with some honesty.”
“The No. 1 issue is the broken border, which has led to the murders of innocent Americans by migrants released into the country and the epidemic of fentanyl overdoses. President Biden has the power to fix it but refuses to do so and just blames Congress,” Bacon told Fox News Digital.
Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., told Fox News: “Thursday night is sell night. The President needs to reiterate just how much he’s accomplished to the American people. His bipartisan legislative accomplishments are the best in generations. From the infrastructure bill to gun safety, building semiconductors, and helping our veterans, the President knows how to get stuff done, and the economy is on the upswing with consumer finance soaring post-pandemic.”
A House Democratic aide urged Biden to “save the ‘democracy is on the line’ argument for another day.”
“Tell the American people concretely how their life is better today than it was in 2020, with a focus on lower insulin prices, increased manufacturing jobs, and better health care for veterans. Those are tangible accomplishments, and there is no excuse not to be trumpeting them every chance he gets,” the aide told Fox News Digital.
“For the area where things aren’t better, like border security and reproductive rights, don’t sugarcoat it. Admit where the problems exist and make crystal damn clear both what you are for and what the Republicans are against.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson is putting heat on Biden over his lack of immigration and border enforcement after the Louisiana Republican invited the NYPD officers attacked by a mob of migrants last month to the State of the Union Address.
NYPD Police Officer Zunxu Tian will attend with Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY) and Lt. Ben Kurian with Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY).
“Sanctuary cities have endangered American citizens across the country. Brave law enforcement officers, like NYPD Lieutenant Ben Kurian and Police Officer Zunxu Tian, should never be victims of the senseless crimes these policies encourage,” Johnson said in a statement obtained by the outlet.
“Our NYPD officers are on the front line every single day working to keep our streets safe, and unfortunately now they are being forced to deal with hundreds of violent crimes being committed by those in our country illegally,” Malliotakis said in a statement, per The Post.
“I’m honored to have Lt. Kurian accompany me to the State of the Union to not only show support for New York City’s finest but to also bring attention to the need for the Biden Administration to end its dangerous border policies.”
