The battle between Biden and Republicans began after the State of the Union
The Inflation Reduction Act: Two Years of Progress and a New Opportunity for the Middle-Class Economy in the U.S.
Over the past nearly two years, we have made enormous progress. My administration, working with Democrats in Congress, is building an economy that grows from the bottom up and middle out.
We have created a record 12 million jobs since I became president, and more jobs were created in two years than any president has ever created in four years.
This election is turning out to be a lesson in how inflation can have a negative impact on politics and everyday life in the US since it last affected it back in the 1980s.
I want to bring down the costs of everyday things for middle-class people, like health insurance and prescription drugs, so they can afford to live with their families. The Inflation Reduction Act was passed without a single Republican vote and will lower health care and prescription drug prices for 13 million Americans.
And partly because of the actions we’ve taken – including a historic release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve – gas prices are decreasing. They’re down $1.20 since their peak this summer and just this week they fell another 10 cents. That’s adding up to real savings for families.
Republicans in Congress are doubling down on mega, MAGA trickle-down economics that benefit the wealthy and big corporations. They have clearly laid out their plan. It would raise your costs and make inflation worse.
My administration finally gave Medicare the power to negotiate lower drug prices. We capped out- of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 a year for seniors and reduced monthlyinsulin payments to $35 a month. Big pharma and lobbyists spent hundreds of millions of dollars to try to prevent health care savings for Americans. They failed.
No More Taxes for the Richest Corporations in America and Implications for Social Security and Medicare for the Most Expensive Americans
Democrats are making sure the biggest corporations begin to pay their fair share in taxes. Fifty five of the richest corporations in America paid no federal income tax in 2020. No longer. I signed a tax bill into law. And, I’m keeping my campaign commitment: no one earning less than $400,000 a year will pay a single penny more in federal taxes.
Republicans plan to cut taxes for the wealthy, and some aim to cut Social Security and Medicare for seniors. Rick Scott, the Senator from Florida who is in charge of electing Republicans, has a plan requiring Congress to vote every five years on keeping, cutting or eliminating Social Security and Medicare. Senator Ron Johnson from Wisconsin has proposed putting Social Security and Medicare on the chopping block every single year.
The fact is, this is not your father’s Republican party: Many Republicans in Congress want to pass a national ban on abortion. I will codify abortion in January if we get more Democrats in the Senate and keep the House.
Joe Biden: Preliminary Address of the Biden Electoral Challenge in Washington, D.C., Nov. 14, 2001
Democracy is being put to the test in America. We are learning what every generation has to learn: nothing about democracy is guaranteed. You have to defend it. Protect it. It is up to you.
I think the American people will vote in record numbers and make it clear to everyone that democracy is a critical part of our culture and identity.
Over the last few years, we have faced some of the most challenging challenges in history but we did not give up. And, I have never been more confident about our future. In 14 days, the American people will decide whether we keep moving forward or go backwards.
Joe Biden is trying hard to convince the electorate that Democrats are behind him in the election, which could bring two years of misery for him in the White House.
The president traveled to New York to tout the benefits of manufacturing electronics in his home state. The fact that he showed up in a state he won by more than 20 points two years ago shows how his low approval ratings limit his capacity to help his party climb out of a hole.
Biden’s speech made a case that when they come to full fruition, his policies will repair decades of declines in manufacturing and American industry. He argued that his signature bills passed during a legislative hot streak, including a bipartisan infrastructure measure, a law meant to ignite US semiconductor production and another that builds a clean energy economy, would bring jobs and prosperity. He declared that his social spending measure passed over the summer would make Americans more prosperous since it would cut some long-term health care costs.
Biden and the Democrat Party in the Post-Democracy Phase of the 2020 Midterm Election: How Good is the Economy?
His approach was indicative of the testing environment facing Democrats, who are in jeopardy of losing control of the House of Representatives as their hopes of clinging onto the Senate appear to have faded.
Eleven days out from the election, Republicans are targeting deep blue territory that would enable them to build a wave that could translate into a significant House majority. Republicans only need a net gain of five seats to flip the chamber, and could win enough seats in the Empire State to do that, according to CNN commentator Harry Enten.
The race for Senate in Arizona has narrowed, like in the case of Mark Kelly, a Democratic senator. Democrats were alarmed by the debate performance of John Fetterman, the Pennsylvania Senate nominee, who is still dealing with hearing and processing issues after a stroke. The commonwealth represents the party’s best chance to pick up a seat and could be critical to their hopes of holding control of the 50-50 Senate, where Vice President Kamala Harris casts the tie-breaking vote. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, in a conversation overheard with Biden and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday, said he thought the Pennsylvania debate “didn’t hurt us too much,” but expressed concern about the high-profile race in Georgia, saying it’s the state “where we’re going downhill.”
The President could be in big trouble, as he braces for a volley of Republican investigations, including one looking into his family’s business dealings, and his handling of the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
It is too early to determine the status of the race given the current uncertainty in polling. But Biden’s speech on Thursday reflected Democrats’ burden in this election and suggested that the historical pattern of first-term presidents getting a midterm election drubbing may be reasserting itself, after his party nursed hopes of bucking the trend this summer in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.
His speech demonstrated the political impossibility of highlighting undeniably positive aspects of the economy – including hopeful GDP growth figures released Thursday and a historically low jobless rate – when inflation is raging at near 40-year highs.
The Ugly Budget Crisis: The Problem with Social Security, Medicare, and the Taxpayer’s Paycheck? Commentary of Donald J. Biden on the 2020 Campaign in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania
Biden called out Republican members who celebrated funding for their people, even though they voted against the infrastructure bill. Biden was fearless as he masterfully boxed Republicans into publicly opposing cuts to Social Security and Medicare, nor did he shrink from naming the horror of January 6 and the vicious consequences of the 2020 election lie and divisive political rhetoric.
If we don’t respond, we are not going to be moved into a situation where we have to default on the debt. All of us seem to agree that social security and medicare are gone now. All right. We got unanimity,” he said to cheers.
The president admitted that Democrats always argue that Social Security is at risk during elections but also argued that Republican proposals threaten the retirement program.
The issues is that if those measures succeed, they won’t affect the election in time. There is a chance that they can help Biden in the future, as long as he doesn’t run for reelection.
Some 47% of voters in Wisconsin, 46% in Michigan and 44% in Pennsylvania said that the economy and inflation was the most important issue affecting their vote. In each state, this more than doubled the number of those most exercised about the next-highest-ranking issue – abortion. Democrats had hoped outrage over the Supreme Court decision would have neutralized their economic liabilities heading into the November 8 election.
The race for governor in New York is unexpectedly competitive since the GOP hasn’t elected a Republican statewide in two decades. Hochul and Biden were in Syracuse which is also the home of a competitive House race.
The Pain of Inflation: When President Biden and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen Became a Preferred Flip-Flop
The President is in a difficult situation, trying to claim credit for encouraging aspects of the economy while empathizing with the pain that many Americans are going through. When he was vice president in the Obama administration, the White House faced a similar problem. Many Americans didn’t feel that their economy was coming back after high unemployment. In the run up to the mid-term elections in 2010, Barack Obama argued that giving the control of Congress to the Republicans would be akin to giving the keys to the people who drove the car into a ditch. But voters weren’t happy and Republicans seized control of the House and made big gains in the Senate.
When a voter’s income is not keeping up with their costs, especially for the staples of everyday life like meat, bread, eggs and gasoline, they are bound to look for scapegoats. The president in power is responsible for Biden getting the blame.
Biden’s claim is correct. He didn’t mention, however, that gas prices are still significantly higher today than they were when he took office. And it’s important to note that presidential policy has a limited impact on gas prices, which are determined by a complex global interplay of supply and demand factors.
In an interview with CNN’s Phil Mattingly on Thursday, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen counseled patience since many of the measures the administration has taken to boost the economy will take time to come on line.
But she admitted, “Inflation is very high – it’s unacceptably high and Americans feel that every day,” in the interview broadcast on “Erin Burnett OutFront.”
People still have a hard time with inflation. When Biden was a kid, his father would tell him if he didn’t cover his expenses by the end of the month, he was in real trouble.
He said it was time for the Republicans to state their positions on important issues such as the debt ceiling or support for Medicaid. Some members of the GOP caucus objected to Biden’s statement that some Republicans were prepared to let the US default on its debt in order to force cuts to popular programs. He framed that chaotic response as a consensus that would not be the case and any backtracking they did on the issue would be labeled as bad faith flip-flops.
David Axelrod is a senior political commentator and host of “The Axe Files.” He was a senior adviser to former President Barack Obama and strategist for his 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN.
The president has a duty to report on both foreign and domestic affairs in a State of the Union speech. The world’s response to Russian aggression has been rallied by Biden this year.
The report to Congress and the nation is important as it almost guarantees that a president will get the largest audience for his message from the American people all year.
The traditional pre-game television interview before the Super Bowl may deliver a much larger audience, of course, and a chance for President Joe Biden to crow about his beloved Philadelphia Eagles. But interviews are a gauntlet a president can’t entirely control. People watch football instead of politicians.
After a string of impressive legislative victories, impactful leadership in stiffening allied resolve against Russian aggression in Ukraine and a surprisingly strong showing for Democrats in the midterm elections, Biden has been dogged lately by a classified documents imbroglio that, at the very least, has been a distraction.
Even though the approval rating of Biden has remained below average since August of 2021, many Democrats would prefer an alternative nominee. A recent Washington Post-ABC Poll found a majority of Americans – 62 percent – think Biden has not accomplished much during his first two years in office.
Biden is the Biggest Before Lyndon Johnson and Why We Shouldn’t Have to Talk About It: An Address to the U.S. Capitol Addressing the 2003 Pandemic
And he pointed out that he’s helped usher in a historic amount of legislation – including 300 bipartisan laws around issues such as improving infrastructure, boosting domestic semiconductor manufacturing, and improving veterans benefits.
Americans have weathered many of the effects of the epidemic, even if it was wrenching loss. We have been hit with inflation because of global supply chain shortages and the war in Ukraine.
When you are President of the United States, Harry Truman said, “The buck stops here” as the world has been rocked by the same forces. You can’t jawbone people into feeling better.
Biden should be aware of this and not make grandiose claims like “Not since Lyndon Johnson!” or “The biggest since FDR!” Leave that stuff to historians.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/opinions/state-of-the-union-biden-speech-stakes-axelrod/index.html
Joe Biden’s State of the Union Address: What America Can Do Now About the Problems of the World, and What Will We Do About It?
Explain that you have tried to help, but don’t tell them how great things are. It could be worse, how great you are. You can’t change people’s minds, and will lose them if you try.
All presidents want to project such a vision. But when you have recently turned 80, and you’re already the oldest president in American history, people don’t instinctively connect you with the word “future.”
In his State of the Union address President Joe Biden said, “We’re just getting started.” To highlight the achievements of his administration and make the case for his second run at the presidency was the job of Biden tonight. His speech was a success on both counts.
But there is a much larger point: The ongoing struggle in Ukraine underscores his argument for the importance of continued American leadership and global alliances in a dangerous world. If the Republican is right about America being alone, that is a disastrous path.
I’m sure the President will speak about gun violence and abortion rights and the crying imperative for more steps to prevent unspeakable horrors such as the savage beating of Tyre Nichols.
He needs to address the crises at the border and millions of immigrants who are not in the US legally, and also speak about his plans to reform the immigration system.
These issues, too, are about the future in our growingly diverse country. As a political matter, Biden has a popular position on almost all of them, while the new Republican majority is on the losing side.
The new House majority, which is animated by some of the GOP’s most extreme voices, will be the center of attention on Tuesday. Many of them swear they will be destroyed by Biden. He should use political ju-jitsu to turn their negative energy back on them.
He should say: “To those of you in the new House majority, let me say, we all have a choice. The next couple of years will be spent trying to destroy each other. We can try to work together wherever we can to find a solution to the problems faced by families and communities. I’m pretty sure I know which choice the American people are hoping we make. I have a choice to make. I hope you join me.
President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech was the most Joe Biden that voters have seen from Joe Biden since the election — good for most Americans, but somewhat disappointing for abortion rights activists and other progressives.
This is consistent with the way in which the President has understood the way of unity. A creature of the Senate, Biden’s approach has focused on passing popular legislation most Americans will understand and appreciate, while drawing attention — and political energy — away from the divisive identity politics and culture wars that fueled the rise of Donald Trump.
McCarthy will have to choose between giving Biden a popular accomplishment to run on or giving him an appealing issue to run on. It is a win-win proposition for Biden.
What Do Black Families Tell Us About Our State of the Union? A CNN Political Analysis of a Cold War by a Black Man: Paul G. Begala
Paul Begala, a Democratic strategist and CNN political commentator, was a political consultant for Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign in 1992 and served as a counselor to Clinton in the White House.
Voters are used to politicians making promises. What will stand out most, then, are the things that voters may not have heard in a State of the Union before, the things that make clips the next day.
Anderson is a CNN political commentator and author of the book “The Selfie Vote: Where Millennials Are Leading America (and How Republicans Can Keep Up).”
Biden grabbed the MAGA message of losing pride in America, but rather than going backward to a pre-civil rights era, he reflected it back onto feeling unmoored in recent years. He adopted the language calling the attack on the Capitol an insurrection, referring to January 6 as the day “our democracy faced its greatest threat since the Civil War.” But many members in the audience still support the lie that the 2020 election was stolen and are part of that threat to democracy.
Biden said that everyone should pay their fair share of taxes, but only half of the chamber looked at him because he pointed out that an oil and gas company was paying 15% tax.
Biden was unafraid as he wove together the painful reality of black families talking about how to interact with the police and humanized the police in a renewed call for reforms to our criminal justice system.
He got down the most relatable aspects of policy — that when families who feel pinched in the pocketbook can finally afford a vacation, we get hit with resort fees at places that “aren’t even a resort” and airlines force parents to pay to be seated with their children.
Biden, the Snake, the Salt, and the Water: The Face of a Presidential Candidate During His First Day in office
It’s all part of Biden’s narrative about government as a force for good. Biden took the idea of democracy, the possibility of what good it can do in our lives and made it concrete again. Too bad this current Congress is operating in an alternate reality.
But for middle-of-the-road voters, neither the southern border nor inflation received much attention from the President — despite both issues being of importance to voters. The Chinese spy balloon did not undermine Biden’s talk about Chinese president.
Biden promoted his agenda without being overly partisan. He made repeated appeals to bipartisanship, underscored the achievements made with Republican support, and when GOP members heckled him on Social Security, he managed to spar with them from the podium and, with a bit of jujitsu, appeared to secure a bipartisan agreement to leave Social Security benefits untouched.
Biden was known as the world best orator but he was enjoying himself. After some of his early jokes landed awkwardly, he came out of the gates at a rapid clip, doing his best to allay concerns about his age and fitness for another national campaign.
Georgia’s Lieutenant Governor was a CNN political contributor. He is a former professional baseball player and the author of “GOP 2.0: How the 2020 Election Can Lead to a Better Way Forward for America’s Conservative Party.”
Karen has worked in media and cultural change for 25 years. Her career includes roles as top Democratic communications strategist and spokesperson, political commentator, television and radio show host, White House staffer, business and communications adviser, leader and advocate for social justice and civil rights.
But he now faces an even sterner test: Did he actually move the needle? A powerful public appearance by a president can bring about change in politics. Clinton and Reagan were each capable of changing minds when they held a microphone.
Biden may have begun persuading potential voters to join up for his reelection campaign on Tuesday. If so, Democratic strategists will become much more confident about his prospects for reelection. But if he doesn’t pick up steam after a night like this, they may wander off the reservation.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/08/opinions/highlights-lowlights-biden-sotu-roundup/index.html
The Memphis Shooting That Kidnapped: An Opinion Reflection on a Prominent Lawmaker Who Stopped the Justice in Policing Act
David Gergen is senior political analyst at CNN, and he has worked in the White House as an adviser to several presidents. He graduated from Harvard Law School and is currently a professor of public service at the Harvard Kennedy School.
Still, it was political malpractice for him not to explicitly call for Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. The family of the man who was killed by police officers in Memphis deserved to hear about it.
Mondaire Jones is a CNN political commentator and former Representative for New York’s 17th Congressional District. He also serves as a member of the US Commission on Civil Rights.
It comes in standing up for what you believe in even while speaking to the other people. This was the first State of the Union since the Supreme Court stripped a fundamental right from American women in overturning Roe v. Wade. But abortion didn’t merit a mention until well into the speech — despite the fact that, for women, the right to decide when and whether to have children is as fundamental a concern as outsourced jobs or federal contracts.
And some members of the Republican caucus seemed keen to highlight the distinctions between the thoughtful, unity-emphasizing Biden and their own party’s shameful descent. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia was among the many who booed and yelled throughout the speech, but stayed seated when the parents of the man murdered by Memphis police officers were introduced. It may say more than Biden ever could.
Jill Filipovic, aka Kevin McCarthy, and the Biden-Harris Manifesto in Los Angeles after the September 11, 2016 Mass Shooting
Jill Filipovic is a journalist based in New York and author of the book “OK Boomer, Let’s Talk: How My Generation Got Left Behind.” Follow her on Twitter @JillFilipovic.
I’m a native of Monterey Park, California, but it still shocks me that a mass shooting occurred there last month that killed 11 people. So it was incredibly moving when the president thanked Brandon Tsay for his heroism disarming the suspected gunman in the attack. It was a poignant reminder of our continuing need for gun reform – as well as deserved recognition of a brave American.
Kevin McCarthy urged his Republican colleagues to do the same, as he promised to treat Biden respectfully. It was a tall order, given the loose grasp he has on his conference and the propensity from certain Republicans for stunts.
Biden, the oldest president in U.S. history at 80 years old, has said it his intention to run again in the 2024 presidential election. He’s expected to make an announcement soon.
Turner Conoly Group and a consultant for the organization were headed by the CEO, ashley Allison. She worked on the Biden-Harris campaign as a senior aide.
The Time for a New Generation of Republican Leadership: A Commentary on President Biden on the Status of the Economy and the Nation’s First Comprehensive Plan
President Biden devoted the end of his speech this year to his plans to end cancer, support veterans, and address mental health after he had made little mention of theUnity Agenda.
But it has done little to actually unify the country. According to recent polls, Americans are just as divided today as they were before the election and most think there won’t be much political drama in the next two years.
Justin Gest is an associate professor at George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government. He has written six books on the politics of immigration and demographic change.
Frida Ghitis, (@fridaghitis) a former CNN producer and correspondent, is a world affairs columnist. She is a weekly opinion contributor to CNN, a contributing columnist and a columnist for World Politics Review.
Huckabee argued that it was time for a new generation of Republican leadership.
Ms. Sanders was after him over his age. At 40, I am the youngest governor in the country. And at 80, he’s the oldest president in American history,” she said. She added that it was time for a new generation of Republican leadership, without saying if that meant her former boss, Mr. Trump, should be nominated for a third time.
Repatrixing the Biden Era: The Case for a Better America During the First 100 Years of the Senate Dem Demographics
In moments throughout the address, Republicans in the House chamber shouted at Biden, protesting his approach to a wide range of issues such as immigration, Social Security and Medicare spending and the debt ceiling.
Biden focused on the accomplishments of his administration, particularly unemployment numbers, new jobs and lower drug prices. But the reality is that just because he says things are better, doesn’t make it so. American people are still hurting.
She accused the Biden administration of appearing “more interested in woke fantasies than the hard reality Americans face every day” and leaned heavily on culture war issues that she claimed her party “didn’t start and never wanted to fight.”
Like it or not, he spoke for many Republicans who believe Biden’s failure to defend our borders and defend our people puts the State of our Union in danger, like it or not.
Americans still view his presidency skeptically — he is under water in recent opinion polls — and a looming standoff over raising the national debt limit to pay the country’s bills could cause some chaos this year. Republicans may not have a large majority in the House, but it was enough to make Kevin McCarthy the speaker and place a political opponent behind Biden’s shoulder during the speech, an important symbol of the power Republicans now hold in Washington.
Biden offered good wishes for the congressional leaders. For many Americans, this may be their first time hearing of Jeffries. Read more about him.
Biden, Pelosi, and the American Dream: A Tale of Progress, Resilience and Possibilities in the Post-Democracy Era
After Democrats lost control of the House in the November elections, Pelosi stepped down from her leadership position. It is a new leadership team for the first time in a long time.
The prediction by Biden about job creation was beyond the scope of a fact check. But his claim about companies having announced $300 billion in manufacturing investments during his presidency is accurate; the White House provided CNN with a list of these publicly announced investments. (It’s worth noting that companies sometimes end up investing less than they initially announce.)
This felt very much like a reelection pitch, asking people to look past their fears about inflation and the economy to take a longer view of the Biden years so far.
As we gather here tonight, we are writing the next chapter in the great American story, a story of progress and resilience. When world leaders ask me to define America, I define our country in one word: Possibilities.
The parties worked together on a number of issues and the first gun legislation in years was one of them. Immigration reform and government spending are issues that they remain far apart on.
While infrastructure and support for Ukraine remain two things with bipartisan support, having a GOP majority in the House will mean more scrutiny for this type of spending.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
Bipartisan Laws: From Violence Against Women to Respect for Marriage and the Electoral Count Reform Act (The bipartisan priorities of the House of Representatives)
In fact, I signed over 300 bipartisan laws since becoming President. From reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, to the Electoral Count Reform Act, to the Respect for Marriage Act that protects the right to marry the person you love.
These are serious issues. The Electoral Count Act is meant to guarantee there will be no insurrection 2.0. The Respect for Marriage Act marked a change in the issue of marriage in a generation.
The people gave us a message. Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflict, gets us nowhere.
Working together is more than a request. In order to raise the debt limit, fund the government or do much of anything else, Biden will need to work with the Republicans who now control the House.
Biden’s unemployment rate record in 2021 revealed that the number of business applications had a positive “high-propensity” was 5.4% higher than 5.3% in 2005
To create an economy from the bottom up and the bottom out. It is important that the poor and the rich do not go downhill when the middle class does well. We all do well.
As my Dad used to say, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It is about your dignity. It is about respect. It’s about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, “Honey –it’s going to be OK,” and mean it.
It was a risk for Biden to talk about jobs because the Federal Reserve is trying to slow the job market by raising interest rates, which will cause inflation and lead to higher unemployment.
Biden’s claims are accurate. The Black or African American unemployment rate was 5.4% in January 2023, just above the record low of 5.3% set in August 2019. The Hispanic or Latino unemployment rate was 4.5% in January 2023, not too far from the record low of 4.0% that was set in September 2019 — though the 4.5% rate in January 2023 was a jump from the 4.1% rate in December 2022.
Biden’s figures are correct; however, the “good-paying” qualifier is subjective and can’t be independently verified for each of those 800,000-plus positions.
This is true. There were about 5.4 million business applications in 2021, the highest number since 2005 (the first year for which the federal government released this data for a full year), and about 5.1 million business applications in 2022. Not every application turns into a real business, but the number of “high-propensity” business applications — those deemed to have a high likelihood of turning into a business with a payroll — also hit a record in 2021 and saw its second-highest total in 2022.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and How We Are Going to Get It Right: The Case of America’s Most Congested Highway, Bridges, Tunnels, Ports and Airports
The small computer chips that make up Semiconductors are the same size as your finger and are used to power everything from cellphones to automobiles. This was the place where the chips were invented.
But in the last few decades, we lost our edge and we’re down to producing only 10%. We all saw what happened when the chip factories shut down.
We came together to pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which is the largest investment in infrastructure since President Eisenhower, and we are coming back.
These projects will put hundreds of thousands of people to work on rebuilding our highways, bridges, railroads, tunnels, ports and airports.
Some of the lawmakers that did this in the CNN report last year are pictured here. They include Sen. Paul and Rep. Paul Gosar.
The nation’s most congested freight route carries $2 billion worth of freight every day. Folks have been talking about fixing it for decades, but we’re finally going to get it done.
Ten million homes and 400,000 schools have poisonous lead pipes, and every child in America can be drinking clean water if we replace them.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
What is in the Inflation Reduction Act that Congressman Biden is Trying to Tell Us: How President Biden has been Moving Too Slowly
Investing in places and forgetting people is one of the plans I have for my economic plan. Some people have been left behind during the economic upheaval of the past four decades.
Jobs are coming back due to the choices we made in the last two years. This blue-collar plan is to rebuild America and make a difference in your life.
It’s important for Biden to convince Americans that his plan to create opportunities by moving the economy away from fossil fuels will be good for them.
Too many of you lay in bed at night staring at the ceiling, wondering what will happen if your spouse gets cancer, if your child gets sick, or if something happens to you.
I am aware of it. With the Inflation Reduction Act that I signed into law, we’re taking on powerful interests to bring your health care costs down so you can sleep better at night.
Every day millions of people need help with their diabetes so they can live. It’s been around for 100 years. It costs drug companies just $10 a vial to make.
But there are millions of other Americans who are not on Medicare, including 200,000 young people with Type I diabetes who need insulin to save their lives.
This is a key issue for many Americans, but it faces a major lobbying effort from pharmaceutical companies. A consumer rights advocate and a Texas Democratic congressman wrote last month for CNN Opinion that Biden has been moving too slowly.
The Democrats passed the Inflation Reduction Act and Republicans have characterized it as wasteful spending. Read about what is in the law.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
Taxes and Debt: Dem Dem Demagogy in the Presence of a Republican-Electoral Corrupt Presidential Candidate
Most Americans still get health insurance through their employers, but interest has surged in plans offered to individuals under the Affordable Care Act.
Actually, as CNN senior political analyst Ron Brownstein has written, it’s a great irony of climate change politics that red states often feel more pain.
Biden’s pledge to not raise taxes on anyone making less than $400,000 per year could be challenged by his promises to get government to do so much more.
It has been discovered over the years that billionaires don’t pay taxes. Many people want to fix the tax system, but many tax laws, like the one that was signed into law by Trump, move in a different direction.
Businesses say that raising taxes will hurt their investment in the economy. Further raising a tax on corporate stock buybacks might encourage them to put more investment back in.
Instead of cutting the number of audits of millionaires, I signed a law that will cut the deficit by $114 billion.
Biden’s claim is correct. The national debt, now $32 trillion, increased by over $8 trillion during the four years of Trump’s presidency because of his major tax cuts. Some of the increase in the debt during the Trump era was because of the trillions of emergency Covid-19 pandemic relief spending that passed with bipartisan support. The national debt spiked in the first half of 2020 after increasing gradually during Trump’s first three years in office, and because of spending required by safety-net programs that were created by previous presidents. A significant amount of spending under any president is the result of decisions made by their predecessors.
Now that they have power in the House, Republicans are insisting on some unspecified spending cuts in exchange for raising the debt limit. The economy could go into a tailspin if debt is not paid. This will be major drama until June or so, when the debt limit must be raised — or else.
Some friends of mine want to take the economy hostage until I agree to their plans. All you should know is what their plans are.
McCarthy shook his head and there were shouts of “no” from Republicans. McCarthy does not agree with these views and he won’t cut medicare and social security. If he wants to remain speaker, he has to appease fringe GOP members.
Biden said, “contact my office, I’ll give you a copy of the proposal.” Even though he doesn’t think a majority of Republicans would approve, he noted that it is being proposed by some of them. Biden is referring to a proposal by a senator.
This is about the easiest and most popular pledge for any American president to make. Biden kept riffing. He said that no one wanted to cut Social Security.
We will have to wait and see what Biden’s plan actually does. Republicans haven’t said what specific cuts they would impose. McCarthy stated he would not cut the safety net programs.
I don’t want to raise taxes on people making under $400,000 a year. And I will pay for the ideas I’ve talked about tonight by making the wealthy and big corporations begin to pay their fair share.
Biden went after corporate stock buybacks, oil and gas company profits, Big Pharma, “wealthy tax cheats” and billionaires (hello, Sen. Bernie Sanders).
Babysitters and Pre-School Programs: A Key Account of Biden’s Failure to Compensate on Unstable Jobs in the U.S.
Here’s my message to all of you out there: I have your back. We’re already preventing insurance companies from sending surprise medical bills, stopping 1 million surprise bills a month.
The purpose of cracking down on nursing homes that commit fraud, endanger patient safety, or prescribe drugs that are not needed is to save seniors lives and life savings.
Biden also fired back at a television commentator he heard aboard Air Force One lamenting his focus on junk fees: “Junk fees may not matter to the wealthy people, but they matter of most folks like the home I grew up in. They add hundreds of dollars a month to make it difficult for you to pay your bills. I am aware of how unfair it is when a company charges you more than they should, and then they can get away with it.
30 million workers were required to sign non-compete agreements when they took a job. The cashiers at burger places can not cross the street to take the same job at another place to make more money.
Let’s also make sure working parents can afford to raise a family with sick days, paid family and medical leave, and affordable child care that will enable millions more people to go to work.
This is true. The child poverty rate was cut nearly in half in 2021, and the expansion of the child tax credit was the main factor. The enhancement made up the bulk of the reduction.
These are things that Democrats wanted to deliver when in charge of the House. It sounds good in a speech, but is really not that important now that they have less power.
Democrats were unsuccessful in their attempt to pass a universal pre-K program, despite having designs on doing so.
Children who attend pre-school are more likely to finish high school and go on to earn a two or four-year degree, no matter their background, according to studies.
Provide two years of community college, a pathway to a four-year degree and connect students to career opportunities in high school in order to complete the job.
Did Sen. Joe Manchin and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, or the Democratic Leader, Stand Up During the 2018-2019 School Closure Crisis?
The Democrats failed to create a universal community college program because they didn’t have support from their own party. Biden did not mention Sen. Joe Manchin in the speech, but the West Virginia Democrat, who is up for reelection in 2024, loomed large over this portion. It was Manchin, along with Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who refused to go along with party leaders and pass a more ambitious agenda last year. Manchin also refused to consider reforming the filibuster in the Senate.
When schools were closed, let’s remember how far we’ve come in the fight against the swine flu.
The US has a documented Covid-19 death toll of more than one million. It was still among the top causes of death in the US in 2022, per early data, and the life expectancy has fallen by nearly 2.5 years since 2020, according to a recent report by CNN’s Deidre McPhillips.
And as we emerge from this crisis stronger, I’m also doubling down on prosecuting criminals who stole relief money meant to keep workers and small businesses afloat during the pandemic.
We need to triple our anti-fraud strike forces to catch these criminals and double the statute of limitations on crimes like identity fraud in order to bring them to justice.
This type of fraud will be investigated by Republicans. As CNN’s Tami Luhby recently reported, pandemic jobless benefits fraud likely tops $60 billion.
Republicans have seized on fear of violent crime, which they think affects Black Americans, to make them feel frustrated with the police.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
The Battle For Gun Control Laws: Tyre Nichols’s Memories with the Families of Tyre and the Family of a Victim
Joining us tonight are the parents of Tyre Nichols, who had to bury him just last week. There are no words to talk about the loss of a child.
The moving moment in the speech was with the mother looking on, and Lawmakers under pressure to revive an attempt at new national policing standards.
I signed an executive order prohibiting chokeholds, no-knock warrants, and other key elements of the George Floyd Act because of the support of the families of victims, civil rights groups, and law enforcement.
That includes things that the majority of responsible gun owners support, like enhanced background checks for 18 to 21-year-olds and red flag laws keeping guns out of the hands of people who are a danger to themselves and others.
CNN’s Emma Tucker has a look at all gun control laws passed in 2022, including the federal legislation. The foundation of many state gun laws has been called into question by a recent Supreme Court ruling. The battle for gun laws isn’t over.
In that instant, he found the courage to act and wrestled the semi-automatic pistol away from a gunman who had already killed 11 people at another dance studio.
Bipartisan efforts to pass a comprehensive immigration law failed during the Bush and Obama administrations. There is a will among Republicans and Democrats to act on this issue, but there are very different directions they would take.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
Do U.S. Border Patrol Agents Need to Come to the Rescue? A Brief Report on the Case for a Complete Homeland Security Reform
We now have a record number of personnel working to secure the border, arresting 8,000 human smugglers and seizing over 23,000 pounds of fentanyl in just the last several months.
If you won’t pass my comprehensive immigration reform, at least pass my plan to provide the equipment and officers to secure the border. The pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, those on temporary status, farm workers, and essential workers are included.
This sounded like the kind of thing that could happen — pairing a largely Republican priority on more border funding with a largely Democratic priority to help Dreamers (undocumented immigrants who were brought to the US as children).
We are protecting reproductive health care access and patient privacy, and I am working with the Vice President. But already, more than a dozen states are enforcing extreme abortion bans.
If Republicans could pass a national abortion ban through the House — a very big if — it seems extremely unlikely that kind of thing could pass through the Senate, where a 60-vote supermajority is required for most policy issues and there are multiple Republicans who support some version of abortion rights.
For such a defense matters to us because it keeps the peace and prevents open season for would-be aggressors to threaten our security and prosperity. One year later, we know the answer.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
The Importance of Foreign Policy for the Stabilization of the World with the China-US Relationship in Light of the September 11 Earthquake
There is clearly majority support to continue supporting Ukraine with US firepower, but there are also powerful skeptics in the new GOP majority. McCarthy has promised there will be no more “blank checks” for Ukraine.
This was important since both the US and China are building their militaries to protect against the other. There is a larger rivalry, which was shown by the downing of a Chinese spy balloon.
I do not want to apologize for how we are spending to make America strong. In industries that will define the future, and that the government of China is trying to dominate, you can invest in American innovation.
Biden is sensitive to accusations he is weak on China, according to people around him, while still intent on stabilizing the world’s most important bilateral relationship.
Biden added an ad-lib here. Who is a world leader who could change places with the Chinese President? Xi Jinping,” he said. “Name me one. Name me one.
It’s also interesting to note that all of the foreign policy he mentioned was focused on this. The recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria didn’t come up.
Climate and global health are two of the challenges that America is pushing the world to meet.
Biden wanted the US to be the world’s democratic and trade leader, but he preached the need for economic independence.
And bridges are forming between partners in the Pacific and those in the Atlantic. People who bet against America are learning how wrong they are.
Two tragic deaths of young people: The role of mental health, and how the VA is doing what it takes to protect our nation’s sacred obligation
Two tragic deaths of young people were told in this speech. Nichols in a deadly police encounter in Memphis and Courtney Griffin from fentanyl.
There is room for bipartisan agreement on an issue that affects many people. It was intriguing to hear Biden talk about harsher penalties, since there has been a move towards more treatment for drug abusers in recent years.
Let’s make mental health a priority for our children. When millions of young people are struggling with bullying, violence, trauma, we owe them greater access to mental health care at school.
And it’s time to pass bipartisan legislation to stop Big Tech from collecting personal data on kids and teenagers online, ban targeted advertising to children, and impose stricter limits on the personal data these companies collect on all of us.
Another area for bipartisan compromise? Republicans also want to crack down on Big Tech, but they are interested in rooting out a perceived bias against conservatives.
We should do more to equip those we send into harm’s way and care for them and their families when they return home, so that our nation’s sacred obligation is not lost.
The VA is doing everything it can, including expanding mental health screenings and a proven program that recruits veterans to help other veterans understand what they’re going through and get the help they need.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
The Big Lie: How the U.S. can make AIDS a better world: When the American people will take up the challenge
Our goal is to cut the cancer death rate by at least 50% over the next 25 years. Turn more cancers from death sentences into treatable diseases. Providing more support for patients and their families.
If this is a truly American moment, we can save lives and we can prove to the world we can do big things.
The US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, is arguably the most successful US foreign policy in decades. There will be a push to renew it, because it expires at the end of the year. Democrats pushed for AIDS relief money in congress, and this proves that Republicans can work with them. Biden notably wants that to be the model for his cancer effort.
There was violence in the house of the Speaker of the House just a few months ago, because of the Big Lie. Using the very same language that insurrectionists who stalked these halls chanted on January 6th.
We must all speak out. There is no place for political violence in America. We need to protect the right to vote in America. We honor the results of our elections, not subvert the will of the people. We must uphold the rule of the law and restore trust in our institutions of democracy.
It is notable that Republicans lost in many of the marquee races featuring election-denying candidates last November. It will be a test of US democracy to see if faith in elections, eroded in recent years, begins to repair.
Biden said that the effort to protect democracy sounded like a war. That phrasing about generations being called on to protect democracy has echoes in previous foreign wars.
We are not bystanders to history. We are not powerless before the forces that confront us. We the people have the power to make it happen. We are facing the test of our time and the time for choosing is at hand.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/02/annotated-fact-checked-president-biden-sotu/
The State of the Union: Joe Biden’s Vision During a Week in the Life and Times of an Elderly President – A Primer on his Role in House and Senate
All of us are made the same by the image of God. A nation that stands as a beacon to the world. A nation in a new age of possibilities.
The State of the Union is strong because the soul of the nation is strong, because the people of the nation are strong and because the nation’s backbone is strong.
The message President Joe Biden gave when he spoke to the House chamber on Tuesday was one of optimism despite the open hostility.
Reading rapidly through his prepared remarks and occasionally sparring with his congressional adversaries in real time, Mr. Biden — at 80 the oldest president in history — used the biggest platform of his office to frame his argument for an expected re-election bid by portraying Republican policy proposals as out of step with most Americans even as he offered to work across the aisle.
A majority of Americans think that he hasn’t accomplished much, many Democrats aren’t happy about the prospect of him running for reelection and he faces a clear disdain from most Republicans.
The State of the Union address was given by the president on Tuesday and he mentioned legislative achievements and economic progress but also said “let’s finish the job.” which is likely to be his official pitch for reelection.
The speech carried a strain of populism rooted in strengthening the middle class – vintage Biden, but delivered at a pivotal moment for his political future.
Biden hopes toaddress the national mood, which remains downbeat even as the economy improves and the country tries to return to normal, by not tout any single accomplishment.
In a room full of elected officials, identifying an adult shouldn’t be difficult. Both Republicans and Biden’s team telegraphed a wish to act as the mature voice seeking common ground and lowering the temperature in the room going into Tuesday’s speech.
For the first 45 minutes of Biden’s address, that appeared to be the play for both sides. The decorum dropped after Biden began accusing Republicans of cutting Social Security and Medicare.
“He gets energy from his audience,” the official said. It’s not a new view on how Biden operates – his advisers constantly talk about how he finds his energy from engaging with people.
A serious focus on governing is what Biden and his team believes is more in line with House Republicans who are investigating the president and his family and threatening to get the nation into default.
As lawmakers like Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene interrupted Biden, McCarthy was silent – but his glare into the crowd spoke for itself. He was shushing his conference when the president interrupted it.
Biden’s Left-Right-State Address at Camp David: A Step Towards the Future of America without Moving Away, or Should We Move Away?
It was important that Biden looked like someone who could keep doing the job as he prepared to ask voters to let him remain in office until he is 86.
Even if he stumbled over some of his lines, his delivery was still energetic. He quickly turned the Republicans’ heckles into challenges when they interrupted him.
During the weekend at Camp David, aides prepared a conference room for Biden to practice his speech with his team. As they prepared for the speech, the White House had a plan for the hecklers.
The speech was in focus, but also the language, ensuring it could be understood in a vigorous way. For most of the people in Biden’s television audience, Tuesday’s speech was one of the few times they heard and saw the president this year.
He talked about his views of the middle class and inequality, but it was the riffs and anecdotes from his father that made Tuesday’s speech different from his previous two.
He made a direct appeal to the demographic that used to vote for Democrats, but now votes for the GOP.
Many people have been left behind or treated like they are invisible since the economic upheaval of the past four decades. Maybe that’s you, watching at home,” he said. You wonder if there’s a path to go ahead without moving away.
Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/07/politics/takeaways-biden-state-of-the-union-address/index.html
Reply to the “Demarch of the War for America”: A State of the Union Address of the Founders and the President of the United States
Appearing for the first time in front of a divided Congress, Biden also leaned into his record working across the aisle – even as he faced heckling from Republicans.
“To my Republican friends, if we could work together in the last Congress, there is no reason we can’t work together in this Congress as well,” he said.
His focus on highly specific issues – like eliminating “junk fees” for consumers or reining in tech companies – are areas the White House believes will resonate with Americans who aren’t necessarily attuned to the ins-and-outs of Washington.
At times, his speech seemed to fit the needs of a nation that is annoyed by baggage fees on airlines and hotel bills.
“Make no mistake: As we made clear last week, if China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country. And we did,” Biden said in his speech.
She lacked an audience and her speech was much more boring than Biden’s because Republicans provoked him in his State of the Union speech. Delivered solemnly from the governor’s mansion in Little Rock, the speech was instead a somewhat dark warning against Democratic policies she deemed “crazy,” a descriptor she used three times.
Rather, she seemed to call for a change of the guard that could affect both Democrats and Biden in different ways.
Marty Walsh, the labor secretary, was not there because he’s expected to step down soon and be a designated survivor if there is a catastrophe at the Capitol.
The U.S. Constitution and Freedoms: a State of the Union Address of the General Relative to Reply to Biden
As important as his program may be, the president also faced pressure to ensure a smooth performance in front of what was likely to be his largest television audience of the year. If he seeks re-election, he would be asking voters to entrust the White House to him until he is 86. Many Democrats are concerned about his age because they want to see a younger generation rise to leadership in the party.
He called on lawmakers to pass policing reform and immigration legislation, codifying abortion rights and capping the price of diabetes care at $35 a month.
Biden used his State of the Union address to draw a contrast with the Republicans on a number of issues, including raising the debt ceiling.
“Let’s commit here tonight that the full faith and credit of the United States of America will never ever be questioned,” the president said, repeating his call for Congress to raise the debt ceiling with no preconditions.
Social Security and Medicare are no longer on the books now, right? They’re not to be touched,” he said, to what turned into claps. “We have unanimity!”
“What happened to Tyre in Memphis happens too often, we have to do better” Biden said, nodding to Tyre’s mother and stepfather, who were in the chamber as special guests.
“Already, we’ve funded over 20,000 projects, including major airports from Boston to Atlanta to Portland,” he said. “And folks, we’re just getting started.”
The Underdog Story of Biden and McCarthy During the First Half of the 20th Century: The Case of Social Security, Medicare and Social Security
He is still hopeful that issues where members of both parties could find common ground can be found.
And he showed a clear contrast between himself and right-wing House Republicans, who couldn’t help themselves, hectoring Biden repeatedly despite newly minted House Speaker Kevin McCarthy explicitly instructing them beforehand not to do so.
The president didn’t call for a whole lot of new policy initiatives from the new Congress — beyond, for example, ending what he called “junk fees” in travel, entertainment and credit cards. He is likely going to campaign on what he already accomplished and drawing a big-picture difference between his vision for America and Republicans’.
A lot of surveys show that the Democrats would prefer someone else to run in 2024 because of Biden’s age, but no one knows who the alternate should be.
He showed the ability to spar with Republicans and portray them as extreme, which is likely to make Democrats comfortable.
The best example of this was on Medicare and Social Security. He riled up House Republicans by accusing them of wanting to cut popular entitlements. He was careful in that section to note that “some Republicans want Medicare and Social Security to sunset every five years.”
The exchange erased any trace of a comity that had existed earlier in the evening. The Republicans shouted and heckled when they heard Biden being a “liar” and others yelling, “It’s your fault!” When he decried deaths of Fentanyl.
Americans love an underdog story, especially when mixed with a dose of nationalism. That’s especially true today with right- and left-wing populism clearly the hot ticket in politics. Both Biden and former President Donald Trump have populism at their core — the little guy vs. the people in power. They’re modern-day Howard Beales, angry and not going to take it anymore.
It was a heavy dose of left-wing populism with policies that are actually quite popular. He even made news, saying that he is going to “require all construction materials used in federal infrastructure projects to be made in America.”
But there wasn’t much beyond about 200 words of the more than 7,000-word speech devoted to what’s become inarguably one of America’s top geopolitical threats.
On Ukraine, Biden noted the presence of Ukraine’s ambassador and touted what the U.S. has done for the country over the past year of its war with Russia.
But beyond that, there wasn’t much on either country. That shows that Biden’s reelection campaign will be focused on domestic issues.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2023/02/08/1155329147/5-takeaways-from-bidens-state-of-the-union-address
Reply to the Debt: Why Did Congress Defend the Law? The Case for a Demonstration of Left-Right Symmetry
“After years of Democrat attacks on law enforcement and calls to ‘Defund the Police,’ violent criminals roam free, while law-abiding families live in fear,” she said.
Biden actually received bipartisan standing applause, and the way he talked about it was a stark distinction from Republicans’ caricature of Biden as beholden to the extreme left.
West Virginia’s Democratic senator, Joe Manchin, criticized representatives who heckled Biden saying it was “awful childish”, “distasteful” and that it might be acceptable in a third world country. Dick Durbin said it was really unbefitting.
“How did Congress respond to all that debt?” “Do you have any?” Biden asked. They did the right thing and lifted the debt ceiling three times.
Republicans did not say a word while Democrats cheered. Protesters erupted again after the president accused Republicans of wanting to cut Social Security and Medicare.
The Case for a Solution: Joe Biden and the 2018 State of the Union Address in Washington, D.C., July 12 – September 11
Biden then recognized departing chief of staff Ron Klain, whose last day is Wednesday. Klain spoke briefly, saying not only was the speech strong on the whole but the president made everyone incredibly proud in the back-and-forth with Republicans over Medicare and Social Security.
The State of the Union was an all time great moment that people would look back on for a long time. That got a big applause from the crowd.
Virginia GOP Rep. Bob Good told CNN that he was one of the hecklers who called Biden a “liar,” saying the president deserved it for his comments about Republicans saying they want cuts to Social Security and Medicare.
He says that he has a solution to the drugs at the US border with Mexico, and that he could have closed it, but he didn’t. He has not done anything about it.
South Carolina congressman, Joe Wilson shouted, “You lie!” During Obama’s health care speech, he was quickly condemned by members of his party. He later apologized.
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for example, tore up a copy of then-President Donald Trump’s 2020 State of the Union address when he wrapped up his remarks.
President Joe Biden is expected to campaign in Wisconsin again in the future, using his State of the Union economic message to argue that the US is moving in the right direction.
Biden said he would keep fighting the social safety net argument as he headed to the road, sparking a scene that was one of the many highlights of the speech. The argument pointed out how Biden wanted to shift his message away from the talking points of the election.
“There’s a senator named Mike Lee who was also yelling, ‘Liar, liar, house on fire’ kind of stuff last night. … He said they played a video of him saying that it would be his goal to phase out Social Security.
Joe Biden: Seeing the House of Representatives through the lens of the PBS NewsHour Investigative Report on the Campaign for President Barack Obama
PBS NewsHour asked Joe Biden if he was expecting any reaction like the one he got in the House chamber.
“From the folks that did it, I was,” Biden said. “The vast of majority of Republicans weren’t that way, but you know, there’s still a significant element of what I call the ‘MAGA Republicans.’”
He said he hoped that the conversion of some Republicans was true, during his speech. I’ll believe it when I see it when their budget’s laid down with the cuts they’re proposing. Looks like we made a deal in the House of Representatives.
Biden attempted to make a broader argument for working with GOP lawmakers, noting the successes of his first two years in office.
“People sent us a clear message: Fighting for the sake of fighting gets us nowhere. We’re getting things done,” he said, before going on to draw clear arguments against his Republican colleagues.
And he again called on Congress to raise the nation’s debt limit during his earlier remarks, warning against the “chaos” he said Republicans are “suggesting.”
