Professional Old Man Joe Biden gave the State of the Union address last night. Leading up to it, there was a lot of JOE BIDEN IS OLD and by the way, did you know that he is 81 years old and that’s old? Where have we heard this same thing before? Oh yes, last year.
You see, before the 2023 STOU there were rumblings about how he was slipping, and in response he gave a blistering speech where he was sharp to the point where he was trolling and setting traps for Republicans. To quote that old philosopher Yogi Berra, it was deja vu all over again.
Never underestimate the guy. Biden KILLED it. He came out swinging, and did not let up. To me, it also signaled an important change among Democratic politicians. Democrats seem to focus on looking ahead, and treat looking back as icky and weird. I strongly disagree, especially in these times. We need to acknowledge what Trump was, because it helps some of us less in touch Americans understand what he is and what he will be.
Well, Joe spent the first 15 minutes or so doing just that. He went right at Trump, going after him on his Putin love and how it puts Ukraine and the world in danger. He brought up January 6, calling out Trump and his GOP minions for trying to bury it and hit them with “Remember your oath of office to defend against all threats foreign and domestic.” He also added “You can’t love your country only when you win.”
He then looked backwards once again, to two major Republican-induced traumas in recent history. One was sticking the overturning of Roe, and all the pain it has caused since, squarely on Trump. He then promised that “if Americans send me a Congress that supports the right to choose, I promise you, I will restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again!”
One of Biden’s guests was a living example of the pain that Dobbs has caused, Kate Cox, the Texas woman who had to leave her state to terminate a non-viable pregnancy after state Republicans forbid her from receiving one, placing her life and her fertility at dire risk. Talk about making a clear point.
The other was regarding COVID, talking about how difficult it was for Americans to lose loved ones, the fear that they could lose their lives as well, the uncertainty, the economic fear, and then he said this:
“A president, my predecessor, who failed the most basic duty any president owes the American people: the duty to care. That is unforgivable.”
All this is important. Americans tend to have short memories, as Gore Vidal put it, “We are the United States of Amnesia, we learn nothing because we remember nothing.” Greg Sargent pointed out recently that less than a third of voters are aware of Trump’s dictator tendencies.
This is maddening: New polling conducted by Dems finds that an alarmingly small percentage of voters surveyed are familiar with Trump's most blatant authoritarian threats, such as his "dictator" quote.
This is bad. But it's also an opportunity. 1/
— Greg Sargent (@GregTSargent) March 5, 2024
This should go a long way towards changing that.
Also, this speech should help fend off the constant media drumbeat that Biden is a feeble, slow-witted old man. There was little indication of that last night, other than a few normal slip-ups of words. In fact, in looking around the TV world to see how the punditry was reacting immediately after the speech, I noticed that CBS News’ people seemed a bit stunned, almost as if they had a narrative in mind to run with and Biden destroyed it.
As far as some meat outside of style, Biden offered some encouraging proposals. He spent a fair amount of time talking about how billionaires do not pay their fair share and talked about how, if given a Democratic Congress, he will raise taxes on them and their corporations and not on middle- or lower-class Americans. It was a forceful rejection of trickle-d0wn and neoliberal economics.
Another huge proposal he offered is a $2,000 annual cap on the amount Americans pay for their pharaceuticals, which would no doubt help many Americans. No one should go into financial ruin if they get sick. He also proposed a $5,000 credit for first-time home buyers.
I can’t cover everything, of course, as it was a long speech – oh, and by the way, BIDEN IS OLD people, I thought he can’t do long speeches? The reaction from the right was predictable. Since Biden seemed energetic and took on GOP hecklers with pizzazz, the Republicans switched from Sleepy Joe to Druggy Joe, making ridiculous accusations he was on drugs last night (they should watch their guy’s speeches sometimes). They even stooped to Hunter Biden jokes.
And that official Republican response from Alabama Goddam Senator Katie Britt…hoo boy. Let’s just say I would not be surprised if a parody of it is this week’s Saturday Night Live cold open. It might be the worst they have done, an odd combination of racist apacolyptic visions delivered in bizarre manner that jumped from smiley to rage to almost seeming like she would burst into tears. Plus, they had her deliver it from her kitchen, which really drives home that Republican misogony. Britt came off like the worst parent in the PTA chapter, and apparently aimed her response at people who call the police when they see a brown or Black person walking up their street.
But nevertheless, a very good night for Biden and Democrats. It set the tone for the campaign, and I came away feeling optimistic about his chances.
The last word goes to the man of the hour, in case you missed his speech last night or want to see it again.