State of the Union: Biden in full campaign mode

Let’s just say it: President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Thursday night was a campaign rally. 

Amid cheers and chants from fellow Democrats in Congress, a fired-up President Biden took the 2024 race right into American living rooms as he went after his “predecessor” and framed the future in existential terms.

“Freedom and democracy are under attack, both at home and overseas,” Mr. Biden said, referring both to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and to former President Donald Trump, though not by name. “History is watching.” 

The event was classic Biden. He arrived late – in part because pro-Palestinian protesters blocked the main route to the Capitol – and then worked the room before taking the podium nearly a half-hour late. 

Once onstage, the tableau suggested a coordinated effort by both parties to support and oppose the president. Democratic female members of Congress who were dressed in white – the color of old-time suffragists and now women’s rights – presented the most visible evidence. Democrats also chanted “four more years” on multiple occasions. 

On the Republican side, every heckle and jeer brought a “bring it on” expression to Mr. Biden’s face. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson had told colleagues to show “decorum” during the speech, but to no avail – and Mr. Biden was clearly ready. 

On the fraught issue of immigration, the president didn’t flinch; he dove headfirst into perhaps his biggest political vulnerability, holding up a pin handed to him moments before by Georgia GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who was wearing a “Make America Great Again” red hat. The pin bore the name of Laken Riley, a Georgia nursing student killed last month; murder charges are now pending against a migrant who entered the country illegally.

Representative Greene had dared Mr. Biden to “say her name,” which he did – though a bit incorrectly – and then pivoted to a “feel your pain” moment as he referenced his own experience with losing children. He also challenged Republicans to support bipartisan border legislation that failed after former President Trump objected. 

This year’s presidential speech before a joint session of Congress was Mr. Biden’s biggest and best opportunity to reach out directly to American voters before the November election. He trails Mr. Trump in opinion polls on a likely 2024 rematch, and has struggled to convince Americans that the economy is doing better post-pandemic, though economic optimism is on the rise. 

On Friday, the February jobs number was solid – an increase of 275,000 – but whether Mr. Biden can benefit is unclear. A post-speech poll by CNN showed the president doing well, with more than 60% of viewers reacting positively. 

The president’s address Thursday contained the usual recitation of proposals and perceived accomplishments. Aside from immigration, another major hot spot for Mr. Biden was the war in Gaza. The president, a decadeslong supporter of Israel, leaned on the Jewish state to allow humanitarian aid and affirmed his support for a two-state solution. But the biggest issue on the table was age. The octogenarian needs above all else to convince enough Americans he’s up to the task of another four-year term. And he waited until the end of his speech to go there.  

“My fellow Americans, the issue facing our nation isn’t how old we are; it’s how old our ideas are,” Mr. Biden said. “Hate, anger, revenge, retribution are the oldest of ideas. But you can’t lead America with ancient ideas that only take us back.”

Democratic members of Congress praised the speech as evidence of the president’s vigor, and characterized him as the leader who can unite the country. But Republicans heard a different message.

Speaker Johnson looked by turns bemused and beside himself during the speech. He would sigh, furrow his brow, and then periodically tilt his chin upward as if to try to reset with a dignified expression.

“I tried to keep a poker face, but it was very difficult,” the Louisianian told reporters afterward. “I disagreed so vehemently with so much of what he said.”

“I mean, look, usually in a State of the Union, you have at least segments of it that are bipartisan, where we can unify and agree on things,” he added. “President Biden gave none of that. ... It was a campaign speech and a pretty vitriolic one at that.”

Indeed, long after Democrats had cleared out of the media zone set up in Statuary Hall, Republicans lingered to criticize the president for campaigning instead of taking the opportunity to unite the country as it faces challenges within and rising aggression from autocratic leaders in Russia, China, and Iran. 

“He didn’t try to find the best in people tonight,” said GOP Rep. Jake Ellzey of Texas, a former Navy fighter pilot. “There are enemies of ours outside. And Americans need to be uniting together in a very difficult and dangerous time.”

Unlike last year, when he found reasons to stand and applaud things he agreed with, Representative Ellzey said he only found two opportunities to do so Thursday night – and he couldn’t remember what one of them was. The other was calling out Russian leader Vladimir Putin. 

As for questions about the president’s mental acuity, even Republicans had to admit he was fired up. House Freedom Caucus leader Bob Good called it “impassioned.” Louisiana Rep. Garrett Graves conceded, “It wasn’t his worst performance.” 

The GOP outbursts during the speech gave him a chance to demonstrate spontaneity, and some took his response as a positive sign.

“He handled the Republican heckling and nonsense very well,” said Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland. “He was very statesmanlike in dealing with that and got back onto the points he needed to make.”