President Joe Biden delivers third State of the Union address

tonight President Biden State of the Union Address his message to America and to the world the stakes could not be higher ABC News live coverage begins right now this is an ABC News special the State of the Union at the end of the day we know who we work for the objective is to get things done tonight how will President Biden address the key issues facing our nation the battle over the Border it's real simple it's time to act as long Pas time that the economy and jobs nearly 15 million new jobs

since I came to off but why are so many Americans not feeling it the wars overseas Israel and Gaza Ukraine and Russia and here at home the Deep divisions how to bring this country together with the country now facing a Biden Trump rematch we must be clear democracy is on on the ballot your freedom is on the ballot moments from now before a joint session of Congress the American people and the world the president delivers his State of the Union I have never been more optimistic in my life about t

he prospects what we can do if we just work together there's nothing beyond our capacity now reporting David M good evening from the nation's capital tonight President Biden is just moments away from delivering his State of the Union addressed to the American people and of course to the world he comes before the country tonight at a high stakes moment in his presidency questions about his age his rematch against Donald Trump now underway with Trump sent to clinch the Republican nomination after

a near sweep on super Tuesday this week the national polling showing this is already a very close race with Donald Trump in the lead we have our Powerhouse political team right here with me tonight and as you can see the chamber already filling with lawmakers the president's cabinet members of the Supreme Court just moments ago coming in to the chamber we saw Chief Justice John Roberts Justice sod mayor Kagan Justice Gorsuch Kavanaugh retired Justice Kennedy also there uh justice ganji Brown Jac

kson also in attendance there tonight and they're playing a role as you know in this presidential election whether they would like to or not just this week we saw them make that decision involving Donald Trump to keep him on the ballot across this country saying Colorado could not take him off the ballot they'll then take up another issue in the coming weeks about presidential immunity when it comes to one of the federal trials involving Donald Trump you can see George Santos is actually there i

n the chamber as well we'll get to why he's there uh coming up here in our coverage of course he was expelled by the house so the question you might be asking at home is what is he doing there so we'll ask our team right here we're expecting the first lady Dr Jill Biden any moment of course the first ladies uh in these speeches always play an outsize role with the guests they invite uh for the president State of the Union the president tonight will be standing before a deeply divided Congress sp

eaking to a deeply divided nation and at the same time well aware that this is also kickstarting his reelection campaign his every move tonight his every word his energy will be closely studied amid questions about his age and whether voters will give him a second term the president's message tonight will focus on immigration the southern border abortion rights the economy millions of new jobs wage growth the stock market reaching new Highs but the president this White House well aware many Amer

icans are still not feeling this Rachel Scott is in the house chamber tonight uh Rachel what is the mood and we understand that the Speaker of the House who by the way will be the third speaker to stand behind President Biden for a state of the union has asked the house chamber asked his colleagues to be respectful exactly David this is going to be a high stakes address for the president and look you mentioned it when President Biden enters this chamber tonight he will be passing through what he

knows is a deeply divided Congress what on everything from immigration to funding for Ukraine inside of the chamber right now is a sea of white Democrats wearing that color to show support for Reproductive Rights and abortion rights an issue we know the president will be putting front and center in his address tonight now some members are also wearing tags with the number 153 on it a member telling us that's the number of days since Israel was attacked by Hamas those tags are to show support fo

r the Israeli hostages and of course you mentioned it David right behind the president tonight a different and new Speaker of the House Mike Johnson he has been urging his Republican members to be respectful and civil tonight saying dorum is the order of the day we caught up with him on his way into the chamber he told us that everyone will be on their best behavior but David we will have to see whether or not that actually happens speaker Johnson holding an off the reccord meeting with reporter

s and anchors here in Washington today can't get into the details we appreciate the fact that they invite us in on the days of these big speeches the president as well but one thing uh speaker Johnson did not mind us sharing John is his uh concern that this remain respectful tonight hoping to uphold uh the great traditions of these state of the unions uh he wants civility in the chamber he wants theorum in the chamber he has sent that message out and some of his me members have received it skept

ically I mean this remember how rockus it was last year and in fact Marjorie Taylor green when pressed on this today said well we'll just wait and see what the president has to say so be watching that you saw the image of George Santos there moments ago I want to bring Rachel Scott back in because Rachel the obvious question for people watching at home is uh what is he doing there exactly many Americans may be remembering that Congressman George Santos was expelled from the house he's facing 23

counts accused of everything from credit card fraud to identity theft lying to Federal officials he was expelled by his own fellow members who called him a disgrace well he decided to show back up today as a reminder here former members do have privileges to be on the house floor and Santos has kept his floor privileges despite being expelled so he is allowed to be inside of the chamber tonight I am spotting him right now he is standing in the back here he's not SED he's not seated down with his

former colleagues at all he's standing in the back by Congressional AIDS where Senate pages are standing right now but he is inside of the chamber for this State of the Union Address tonight David So bottom line you're welcomed in the chamber even if you're expelled you are welcomed into the chamber even if you are expelled the house rules actually say nothing about that at all you are not allowed back in the chamber if you've been convicted of a crime or if you were a lob but the bottom line e

ven as a former member of the house that has been expelled by his colleagues he is allowed to be here for the State of Union Address tonight David extraordinary it's 2024 in America you saw that shot there of Senator Bernie Sanders there moments ago just one of the many voices offering advice uh counsel to the White House to President Biden the Biden campaign uh Mary the president just moments ago saying he's feeling good as he headed to the capital from the White House Mary Bruce our chief Whit

e House correspondent it's really hard to underscore just how significant this night will be for President Biden this is a huge and massively critical and pivotal moment for this President he knows it the White House knows it the campaign certainly knows it look he is down in the polls to Donald Trump he is facing these persistent concerns about his age he certainly knows well that everyone is paying attention tonight not just to what he is saying but to how he is saying it his challenge here is

now to take advantage of this massive audience perhaps the largest he'll have all year to try and change the public perception he has to sell iCal voters on his accomplishments and also show the American people that he is up for another four years I mean bottom line he has to bring it in this speech now the campaign feels that at this point in in the campaign that the American people aren't truly dialed into the race that they haven't fully registered yet that we heading for this Biden Trump re

match they know these men but the Biden team feels the American people are suffering from what they call Trump Amnesia this is the president's chance to change some of that I'm told he won't call out Donald Trump by name but it will be very clear who he is talking out about out as he lays out their very different Visions for the future of this country David So Mary not expected to draw on Donald Trump's name during this speech but very likely to draw on contrasts between these two men uh as he m

oves through the n and it's my understanding he wants to do it uh while at the same time respecting the chamber he has to strike the right tone here first of all remember this is a a format which Joe Biden is very comfortable he relished his time in the Senate and in Congress he feels uh very comfortable in this environment and he certainly respects Congress and he also wants to strike a respectful tone even as he is going to pressure Republicans to call them out on certain issues especially on

things like immigration he also of course is doing this at a time that he's trying to court uh Republican voters to come to his side second gentleman Doug mhof entering the chamber uh the vice president kamla Harris up there uh she'll stand behind the president as she always does but along with a new speaker this time speaker Mike Johnson of course it was Kevin McCarthy a year ago it was house Speaker Nancy Pelosi for the first address to a joint session of Congress there he's likely waving to h

is wife at the podium or perhaps Mike Johnson as well they're both up there uh together uh Martha rits this is also a house chamber uh that hasn't always been welcoming we had that moment last year with marger Taylor green uh and in particular the Republicans in the house have have really halted a couple of key things that the president has tried to accomplished just in recent weeks a to Ukraine looms large they have halted that saying You must act under the Border first then the president encou

raged Senate Republicans and Democrats to get that bill in front of them they prepared it a bipartisan border Bill very heavy security he said he was ready to sign it and then the house torpedoed it they torpedoed it because Donald Trump wanted it torpedoed he wants this to be an election issue he believes this is his issue and and that he can dominate on that issue and we talk about decorum we talk about decorum we obviously we see the First Lady coming in there now David entering the chamber h

ere tonight Jill Biden who has taken a more significant role just in recent Days Mary Bruce in this campaign a signal that she's going to be out there fighting for her husband too she absolutely will she is of course his closest most critical adviser someone who's behind his race again 100% and his most important and top surrogate she is going to be out on the campaign Trail heavily I suspect in the coming months David here's the gav here speaker Mike Johnson his first time in this role let's li

sten the president's cabinet the president's cabinet now entering the room Secretary of State Anthony blinkin and Martha just to bring you back into this conversation of course secretary blinkin on the world stage and has been for many months now uh not only with Israel and Gaza uh but with Ukraine as well and again a lot of questions even from within their own party about the humanitarian crisis in inside Gaza and the president is expected to make major news tonight on Gaza exactly and what and

what they want to do is set up a floating dock a floating Pier so the us can help get Aid into Gaza from ships deliver this very very critical Aid people are starving to death in Gaza you saw secretary blinkin there he has been so busy he has been over to the region so many times we also saw defense secretary Lloyd Austin there we know he had some health problems uh he did not tell the president he was in an ICU unit uh he has made up for that he has apologized for that but they have both been

very busy uh with Gaza with Ukraine and as you said that Aid to Ukraine has been blocked the Border Bill block we talk about dorin but the president walks in there with his own red Wall of Resistance and this really is the Republicans are fully aware this is a huge event for President Biden this is almost the beginning of the campaign for him so whether they maintain that decorum or not we'll have to see and the question is how will it be received any kind of behavior in this room the American p

eople often judge this with very different eyes they're not inside the Beltway here in Washington they're watching from home they know this is a deeply divided country and as we all have heard so often on the trail a lot of people say you know we have a lot more in common than we have that that separates us and often we don't see that in our own lawmakers so we'll keep that in mind as we move forward and watch this night lindsy Davis also with us here at the desk we're expecting to hear the hous

e Sergeant at- Arms any moment Lindsay introduce the president one of the things I know you've been looking into are The Independents the moderate voters some of the Nikki Haley supporters just this week who seem to give an indication that they're not necessarily going to vote for the Republican nominee automatically independent voters as you well know David determine the outcome of Elections we've seen it time and time again in 2020 Joe Biden was able to win those independent voters over in six

Battleground States the prior election 2016 Donald Trump was able to win over independent voters in six of the Battleground States in particular tonight I'm interested in those free agent Nikki Haley voters and is he going to be able to win them over perhaps persuade them because as you were referencing on Tuesday we saw that 51% of them said that they actually approve of Joe Biden 76% said that they oppose abortion bans and so they are going to be listening uh very critically I would imagine t

o what he has to say and by many stretches of imagination this is an opening statement for them no question about it Lindsay and you saw Alejandra mayorcas Homeland Security secretary there moments ago also in the chamber and on immigration a key issue tonight Republicans as we have reported here spent months imploring President Biden to do something on the southern border then of course as we mentioned with Martha the bipartisan border security Bill Republicans and Democrats the president sayin

g get it to my desk I will sign it only to have House Republicans there in the chamber tonight uh who halted that bill at Donald Trump's urging and as Martha points out that's likely because Donald Trump would like to keep immigration as an issue that is front and center uh come November tonight Mary Bruce President Biden will likely not shy away from immigration it seems he recognizes There's an opportunity for him in this moment too because he had an historic offer in front of him bipartisan R

epublicans and Democrats in the Senate saying we are finally ready work together on this and the kind of reforms that Republicans had been demanding for months but then insteed Donald Trump urging Republicans not to take the deal and of course we know it has gone nowhere since then uh it is interesting of course this comes just a week uh after Donald Trump and Joe Biden were both down at the border together those dueling visits President Biden again trying to up the pressure on Republicans to fi

nally act on this issue of course also trying to shift the blame to Republicans and Trump and he did have that remarkable invitation asking Donald Trump to join him in this I suspect tonight you will hear him again urge Congress to put politics aside to get this border deal done the Attorney General Merrick Garland there as well uh who has also been a key figure in this Administration uh Under Fire from some given the investigations into Donald Trump but has made the case that he has done this i

n an independent fashion he has stayed far from the special councils and all of these cases that are hard to track for people at home I'm sure uh he's there in the chamber as well as you heard Rachel Scott point out a number of uh white suits in the chamber tonight uh many of the democratic lawmakers are wearing them signal on Reproductive Rights the president putting the blame on Donald Trump in recent days for appointing the justices to the Supreme Court who overturned row uh and what the Pres

ident says are the Ripple effects already being seen across the country of course the debate in Alabama uh in recent days that state's highest court determining that Frozen embryos are in fact people uh clinics and hospitals in Alabama almost immediately halting uh IVF fertility treatments the procedures right when women and their husbands and families were in the middle of this process and there has been a move across this country almost immediately not only in Alabama but moving forward in sev

eral other states uh to protect women from uh this discomfort moving forward and also in that chamber tonight Rachel Scott you spoke with a young woman a mother and wife in Texas who became the center of a major national story uh when Dr is determined and let's listen here at the door we'll get back to you in a moment Mr Speaker the president of the United States there you have the moment Bill McFarland house sergeant and own arms introducing President Biden with his State of the Union Address t

he Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer behind him esorting him down that center aisle as he shakes hands with members of uh both party parties I should say John Carl we've watched so many of these but as Mary Bruce mentioned here earlier this is the kind of moment that that fuels this particular president this is always a big moment a big television audience all the Pomp and Circumstance but the truth is State of the Union dresses are often little noted and long remembered they don't have a las

ting impact this one David tonight it really feels different he has a chance to prove to a skeptical country that he has what it takes that he has the physical fitness the mental Fitness to go head-to-head in a very brutal long campaign with Donald Trump and to serve another four really 5 years as president uh so this this feels like an incredibly consequential moment especially also because how late it is it's March 7th it's just after super Tuesday rarely do you see ever in my lifetime you see

a State of the Union Address that actually doubles as effectively the kickoff for a presidential campaign and you know you mentioned a skeptical audience John and I know that you mean that in terms of not only President Biden but many in this country were skeptical of Donald Trump as well and we've seen it in the polling Americans across the country who say we don't want either one of these men running for President we we we want other choices and yet this is where the country is right now whic

h makes the stakes even higher tonight for him to try to convince some of those moderate independent voters that Lindsay was talking about who he brought over before the question is would he be able to do it again I mean you have upwards of 70% of the American public saying that they don't want the rematch that they are about to have they don't want to see Biden Trump yet again margerie Taylor green there wearing her uh make America great hat and holding up the pin we had an idea that Republican

s in the house chamber John would have pins tonight yep wearing pins uh highlighting what they are calling Biden's failed policy at the border uh look state of you know the the decorum issue so much has changed I mean I've seen I've been in the chamber for about a dozen of these things and I I fully remember when Barack Obama had a big joint session speech on uh Healthcare and one single member yelled out you lie and it was this it was this Scandal How could somebody and and and and now it's eve

ry member is using this as an opportunity to to make a moment for themselves you know it sent shock waves back then and it and it should have you that was it was quite a moment it was a single member yeah and unfortunately now it's become a little more of the norm than than not margerie Taylor green talking with the president uh right now somebody there tapping the president on the shoulder mark RIT and saying keep moving keep moving but he he certainly wasn't letting margorie Taylor green bothe

r him I think we talk about decorum I think wearing a make America great hat uh it's putting decorum aside right away but in so many ways and we talk about this this is not only the State of the Union this is the state of Joe Biden because that's what everybody's going to be looking at tonight how does Joe Biden handle this is he vigorous does he have the mental acuity that everybody's looking for last year as we sat here uh he gave a very powerful speech got good marks for that but again this i

s a this is a very different speech at a very different moment when voters are really really looking at the president both Democrats and Republicans look at this this is this is a patient president at this point too he's taking a number of selfies on his way down the Cent around this is classic Joe Biden by the way most presidents yes they take their time walking through the chamber they shake some hands he's having full-on conversations he's snapping selfies I bet if he could he would place cal

ls to their mother and father I mean and he's he's chatting with everyone along the way we should mention Joe Mansion not running for re-election had been talk of perhaps a run with no labels or a third party run of some sort Joe Mansion letting the public know in just recent days that he would not be running for president uh he said it was just too dangerous actually to run as as a third party candidate or independent candidate John he said the stakes were too high stakes were too high and Demo

crats firmly believe that a third party candidacy re-elects or elects once again Donald Trump you know looking at Biden here you got to consider I I haven't been able to go back and count each and every one but I believe this may be his 50th State of the Union Address he's been in the chamber and he would be proud of that by the way Senator Turf Senator Coons Senator gyen brand uh Republicans and Democrats welcoming here to the center aisle we always like to see that Rachel Scott uh you're in th

e chamber uh so far so good so far so good David so far and and look here the coveted seats here are along the aisles that's where you're seeing members sort of rush to the aisles to try and greet the president of the United States notable on the Republican side you saw some of the most conservative right-wing members of the House Congressman Matt Gates Congressman Tim burett congresswoman Marjorie Taylor green trying to get the president's attention to shake his hand possibly deliver a message

uh that they want the president to to to share tonight you're hearing the chance now of four more years from Democrats tonight A a very Stark reminder at what the president is heading into this critical election here what is at stake this is very much also about making an appeal to the American people in a very critical election year where he will be likely facing off against former president Donald Trump David Justice katangi Brown Jackson there greeting to Chief Justice John Roberts as well wi

th President Biden of course they have a major decision Justice Kagan there as well a major decision looming here in the next couple of weeks they'll begin hearing arguments in Donald Trump's Federal January 6th case the election interference case and whether or not he has absolute immunity judge Gorsuch judge Kavanagh both with smiles on their faces uh greeting the president as we would expect uh but it's always nice to see in these uh deeply polarized moments in our country when when so far th

ings play out the way they're supposed to there you see the former house Speaker Nancy Pelosi and we'll stick with the president here but we did see Nancy Pelosi talking with Mitch McConnell just before he came on the Air Tonight uh sort of a signal there John Carl of a of a changing guard NC py obviously out of the speakership for a time now and Mitch McConnell revealing that he will step down as leader I mean I what a changing of a guard seeing the two of them really two of the most powerful f

igures in Congress over the last half century McConnell and Pelosi both making their marks in huge ways uh Pelosi uh with health healthare and with uh uh all that President Biden got through Congress in his first two years Mitch McConnell uh the longest Senate leader in history 17 years and it was nice to see McConnell and Pelosi engaged with one another you know in they had discuss they did and by the way they were together on January 6th as the capital was attacked and they were evacuated work

ing to get Congress back in session and to restart the certification of the presidential election that Trump supporters will try and stop not a surprise here Mary Bruce that the president is taking his time uh he even joked with reporters off the Record today that you know my own staff knows I feel very much at home up on the hill and that shows here tonight absolutely and and they think that that is something that will also play to his strengths here as he does deliver what is expected to be a

very very important speech Let's listen as Speaker Mike Johnson plays his role handing the speaker a speech handing the vice president the State of the Union Address as well thank you good evening good evening if I were smart I'd go home now Mr Speaker Madame vice president members of Congress my fellow Americans in January 1941 Franklin Roosevelt came to this chamber to speak to the nation and he said I address you at a moment unprecedented in the history of the Union Hitler was on the March wa

r was raging in Europe President Roosevelt's purpose was to wake up Congress and alert the American people that this was no ordinary time freedom and democracy were under assault in the world tonight I come to this same chamber to address the nation now it's we who face unprecedented moment in the history of the union and yes my purpose tonight is to wake up the Congress and alert the American people that this is no ordinary moment either not since President Lincoln and the Civil War have freedo

m and democracy been underall at home as they are today what makes our moment rare is that freedom of democracy are under attack at both at home and overseas at the very same time overseas Putin of Russia is on the March invading Ukraine and sewing chaos throughout Europe and Beyond if anybody in this room thinks Putin will stop at Ukraine I assure you he will not but you train Ukraine can stop Putin Ukraine can stop Putin if we stand with Ukraine and provide the weapons that needs to defend its

elf that is all that is all Ukraine is asking they're not asking for American soldiers in fact there are no American soldiers at war in Ukraine and I'm determined to keep it that way but now assistance Ukraine is being blocked by those who want to walk away from our world leadership wasn't long ago when a Republican president named Ronald Reagan thundered Mr gorbachov tear down this wall now now now my predecessor a former Republican president tells Putin quote do whatever the hell you want that

's a quote a former president actually said that bowing down to a Russian leader I think it's outrageous it's dangerous and it's unacceptable America is a founding member of NATO the military Alliance of democratic nations created after World War II prevent to prevent war and keep the peace and today we've made NATO stronger than ever welcome Finland to the alliance last year and just this morning Sweden officially joined and their minister is here tonight stand up welcome welcome welcome welcom

e and they know how to fight Mr Prime Minister welcome to Nato the strongest military Alliance the world has ever seen I say this to Congress we have to stand up to Putin send me a bipartisan National Security Bill history is literally watching history is watching if the United States walks away it will put Ukraine at risk Europe is at risk the Free World will be at risk and Bolding others to do what they wish to do us harm my message to President Putin who I've known for a long time is simple w

e will not walk away we will not bow down I Will Not Bow Down and a literal sense history is watching history is watching just like history watched three years ago on January 6 when Insurrection stormed this very capital and placed a dager at the throat of American democracy many of you are here on that darkest of days we all saw with our own eyes the insurrectionist were not Patriots they'd come to stop the peaceful transfer of power to over Stern the will of the people January 6 lies about the

2020 election and the plots that steal the election posed a great gravest threat to US democracy since the Civil War but they failed America stood America stood strong and democracy prevailed we must be honest the threat to democracy must be defended my predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth about January 6 I will not do that this is the moment to speak the truth and to bury the lies here's the simple truth you can't love your country only when you win as I've done ever since b

eing elected to office I ask all of you without regard to party to join together and defend democracy remember your oath of offic is defend against all threats foreign and domestic respect respect free and fair elections restore trust in our institutions and make clear political violence has absolutely no place no place in America zero place again it's not it's not hyperbole to suggest history is watching or watching your children and grandchildren will read about this day and what we do history

is watching another assault on freedom join us to light is Lor Beasley a social worker from Birmingham Alabama 14 months ago 14 months ago she and her husband welcomed a baby girl thanks to the miracle of IVF she scheduled treatments to have that second child but the Alabama Supreme Court shut down IVF treatments across the state Unleashed by Supreme Court decision overturning roie Wade she was told her dream would have to wait what her family had got through should never have happened unless C

ongress acts it could happen again so tonight let's stand up for families like hers to my friends across the aisle don't keep this waiting any longer guarantee the right to AB guarantee it nationwide like most Americans I believe rowy raid got it right I thank vice president haris for being incredible leader defending reproductive freedom and so much more thank you my predecessor came to office determined to see roie Wade overturned he's the reason was overturned and he brags about it look at th

e chaos that has resulted joining us tonight is Kate Cox a wife and mother from Dallas she's become pregnant again and had a fetus of a fatal condition her doctor told Kate that her own life and her ability to have children children in the future were at risk if she didn't act because Texas law banned her ability to act Kate and her husband had to leave the state to get what she needed what her family got through should have never happened as well but it's happening in too many others there are

state laws Banning the freedom to choose criminalizing doctors forcing survivors of rape and incest to leave their states to get the treatment they need many of you in this chamber and my predecessor are promising to pass a national ban on reproductive Freedom my God what Freedom else would you take away look it's a decision to overturn roie Wade the Supreme Court majority wrote The Following and with all due respect justices women are not without electoral electoral power excuse me electoral or

political power you're about to realize just how much you about CLE clearly those bragging about overturning rwe have no clue about the power of women but they found out when reproductive Freedom was on the ballot we won in 2022 and 2020 and we're will again in 2024 if you if you the American people send me a Congress that supports the right to choose I promise you I'll restore roie Wade as the law of the land [Music] again folks America cannot go back I'm here to tonight to show what I believe

is the way forward because I know how far we come four years ago next week before I came to office the country was hit by the worst pandemic and the worst economic crisis in the century remember the fear record losses remember the spikes and crime and the murder raging virus it took more than 1 million American lives of of loved ones Millions left behind a mental health crisis of isolation and loneliness a president my predecessor fail the most basic presidential Duty that he owes to American p

eople the duty to care I think that's unforgivable I came to office determined to get us through one of the toughest periods in the nation's history we have it doesn't make new but news in a thousand cities and towns the American people are writing the greatest comeback story never [Music] told so let's tell the story here tell it here and now America's comeback is building the future of American possibilities building an economy from the middle out and the bottom up not the top down investing i

n all America and all Americans to make every sure everyone has a fair shot we leave no one no one behind the pandemic no longer controls Our Lives the vaccines that saved us from Co are now being used to beat cancer turning setback into comeback that's what America does that's what America does folks my inherited economy is on the brink now our economy is literally the Envy of the world 15 million new jobs in just three years a record a record unemployment at 50-year loads record 16 million Ame

ricans are starting small businesses and each one is a literal Act of Hope with historic job growth and small business growth for black and Hispanics and asian-americans 800,000 new Manufacturing jobs in America and cting where is it written we can't be the manufacturing capital of the world we are and we will more people have health insurance today more people have health insurance today than ever before the racial wealth Gap is as small as it's been in 20 years wages keep going up inflation ke

eps coming down inflation has dropped from 9% to 3% the lowest in the world and tending low The Landing is and will be soft and now instead of importing importing foreign products and exporting American jobs we're exporting American products and creating American jobs right here in America where they belong and it takes time but the American people are beginning to feel it consumer studies show consumer confidence is soaring by America has been the law of the land since the 1930s past administra

tions including my predecessor including some Democrats as well in the past failed to buy American not anymore on my watch Federal projects that you fund like helping build American roads Bridges and highways will be made with American products and built by American workers creating good paying American jobs and thanks to our chips and science act the United States is investing more in research and development than ever before during the pandemic a shortage of semiconductors chips that drove up

the price of everything from cell phones to Automobiles and by the way we invented those chips right here in America well instead of having to import them instead of we private companies are now investing billions of dollars to build new chip factories here in America creating tens of thousands of jobs many of those jobs paying $100,000 a year and don't require a college [Music] degree in fact my policies have attracted $650 billion in private sector investment in clean energy Advanced manufactu

ring creating tens of thousands of jobs here in America and thanks and thanks to our bipartisan infrastructure law 46,000 new projects have announced all across your communities and by the way I notice some of you strongly voted against it or there cheering on that money coming out I like it I'm with you I'm with you if any of you don't want that money in your District just let me know modernize our roads and bridges ports and airports public transit systems removing po poisonous lead pipes so e

very child can drink clean water without risk of brain damage [Music] providing affordable affordable high-speed internet for every American no matter where you live Urban Suburban or rural communities in red States and blue States record investments in tribal communities because of my investment in Family Farm because I investment in Family Farm was led by my seor of Agriculture knows more about this than anybody I know we're better able to stay in the family family for the those farms for and

their children and grandchildren W have to leave leave home to make a liveing it's transformative the great comeback story is Bader Illinois home to an auto plant for nearly 60 years before I came to office the plant was on its way to shutting down thousands of workers feared for their livelihoods Hope was fading then I was elected to office and we raised the beler repeatedly with auto companies knowing Unions would make all the difference the UAW worked like hell to keep the plan open and get t

hese jobs back and together we succeeded instead of Auto Factory shutting down Auto Factor reopening the new state of the art battery factories being built to power those cars there at the same folks the folks of Bel I say instead of your town being left behind your community is moving forward again because I'm sit and watching Auto JB jobs of the future go overseas 4,000 union jobs with higher wages are building the future in Bader right here in America here tonight is UAW president Shan Fain a

great friend and a great Labor Sean where are you stand up and and Dawn and Dawn sim a third generation worker UAW worker at Bader Sean I was proud to be the first president to stand in the picket line and today dawn has a good job in her hometown providing stability for her family and pride and dignity as well showing once again Wall Street didn't build America they're not bad guys they didn't build it though the middle class built the country and unions built the middle class I say to the Ame

rican people when America gets knocked down we get back up we keep going that's America that's you the American people it's because of you America's coming back it's because of you our future is brers because of you that tonight we can proudly say the state of our Union is strong and getting stronger tonight tonight I want to talk about the future of possibilities that we can build together a future where the days of trickle down economics are over and the wealthy and the biggest corporations no

longer get to allow the tax breaks and by the way understand corporations I come from a state that has more corporations invested than every one of your states in the state United States combined and I represented for 36 years I'm not an anti-corporation but I grew up in a home where trickle down economics didn't put much on my Dad's kitchen table that's why I determin to turn things around so middle class does well when they do well the poor of a way up and the wealthy still do very well we al

l do well and there's more to do to make sure you're feeling the benefits of all we're doing Americans pay more for prescription drugs than anywhere in the world it's wrong and I'm ending it for the law that I propos and sign not one of you Republican buddies work voted for it we finally beat big farm instead of paying $400 a month or thereabouts for insulin with diabetes and it only cost 10 bucks to make they only get paid 35 a month now and still make a healthy profit and I want to but what to

do next I want to cap the cost of insul $35 a month for every American who needs it everyone for years people have talked about it but finally we got it done gave Medicare the power to negotiate lower prices on prescription drugs just like the VA is able to do for veterans that's not just saving seniors money it's saving taxpayers money we cut the federal deficit by a $160 billion because Medicare will no longer have to pay those exorbitant prices to Big farmer this year Medicare is negotiating

lower prices for some of the costliest drugs on the market to treat everything from heart disease to arthritis it's now time to go further and give Medicare the power to negotiate lower prices for 500 different drugs over the next decade they're making a lot of money guys and they'll still be extremely profitable a notot only save lives it will save taxpayers another $200 billion starting next year the same law caps total prescription drug cost for seniors on Medicare at 200 $2,000 a year even

for expensive Cancer drugs that cost 10 12 $15,000 I want a cap prescription drug cost of $2,000 a year for everyone folks I'm going to get in trouble for saying that but any you want to get an Air Force woman and fly to Toronto Berlin Moscow I mean excuse me and well even Moscow probably and bring your prescription with you and I promise you I'll get it for you for 40% the cost you're paying now same company same drug same place folks the Affordable Care Act the old Obamacare is is still a very

big deal over 100 million of you can no longer be denied health insurance because of pre-existing condition but my predecessor and many in this chamber want to take prescription drug Away by repealing Affordable Care Act I'm not going to let that happen we stopped you 50 times before and we'll stop you again in fact I'm not only protecting it I'm expanding it the we the enacted tax credits of $800 per person per year reduce health care costs for millions of working families that tax credit expi

res next year I want to make that savings [Applause] permanent to State the obvious women are more than half our population but research on women's health has always been underfunded that's why we're launching the first ever White House initiative on women's health research led by Jill doing an incredible job as first lady to pass my plan for12 billion to transfer women's health research and benefit millions of lives all across America I know the cost of housing is so important to you inflation

keeps coming down mortgage R will come down as well and the FED acknowledges that but I'm not waiting I want to provide an annual tax credit that will give Americans $400 a month for the next 2 years as mortgage rates come down to put toward their mortgages when they buy their first home or trade up for a little more space just for two years and my Administration is also eliminating title and Insurance on federally backed mortgages when you refinance your home you can save $1,000 and more as a c

onsequence for millions of renters we're cracking down on big landlords who use anti trust lot using anti who break antitrust laws by price fixing and driving up rents we've cut red tape so Builders can get federally financing which is already helping build a record 1.7 million in new house housing units Nationwide now pass now pass and build and renovate 2 million affordable homes and bring those rents down to remain the strongest economy in the world we need to have the best education system i

n the world and I like I suspect all of you want to give a child every child a good start by providing access to preschool for three and four years old you know I think I pointed out last year I think I pointed out last year that children coming from broken homes where there's no books and not read to not spoken to very often start school kindergarten or first grade hearing having heard a million fewer words spoken well studies show that children who go to preschool are nearly 50% more likely to

finish High School go on to earn a two and four year degree no matter what their background [Applause] is I met a year and a half ago with the leaders of the business Round Table they were mad that I they were angry I said well they were discussing why I wanted to spend money on education I pointed out to them as vice president I met with over eight I think it was 182 of those folks don't hold me the exact number and uh I asked them what they need most the CEOs and you You' had the same experie

nce to both sides Al they say a better educated Workforce right so I looked at them and I say I come from Delaware the Pont used to be the eighth largest corporation in the world and every new Enterprise they bought they educated the workforce to that Enterprise but none of you do that anymore why are you angry with me providing you the opportunity for the best educated Workforce in the world and they all looked at me and said I think you're right I want to expand highquality tutoring and summer

learning to see that every child learns to read by third grade I'm also connecting local businesses and high schools so students get hands-on experience and a path the good paying job whether or not they go to college and I want to make sure the college is more affordable let's continue increasing the pel grants to working in Middle Class families and increased record investments in HBCU and minority serving institutions including Hispanic institutions and I was told I couldn't universally just

change the way in which we did dealt with student loans I fixed two student loan programs that already existed to reduce the burden of student debt for nearly 4 million Americans including nurses firefighters and others in public [Music] service like Keenan Jones the public educator from Minnesota who's here with us tonight Keenan where are you K thank you he's educated hundreds of students so they can go to college now he's able to help after death forgiveness get his own daughter to college a

nd folks look such relief is good for the economy because folks are now able to buy a home start a business start a family while we're at it I want to give Public School teachers a raise by the way the first couple years we cut the deficit now let me speak to the question of fundamental fairness for all Americans I've been delivering Real Results and trally responsible ways we've already cut the federal deficit we've already cut the federal defic over a trillion dollars I sign the bipartisan dea

l to cut another trillion dollars in the next decade it's my goal to cut the federal defic another three trillion by making big corporations very wealthy finally beginning to pay their fair share look I'm a capitalist you want a makeer can make a million or millions of bucks that's great just pay your fair share in taxes a fair tax code is how we invest things to make this country great health care education defense and so much more but here's the deal the last Administration enacted a $2 trilli

on tax cut overwhelmingly benefit the toping 1% the very wealthy and the biggest corporation and exploded the federal deficit they added more to the National death in any presidential term in American history check the numbers Folks at home does anybody really think the tax code is fair do you really think the wealthy and big corporations need another $2 trillion tax break I sure don't I'm going to keep fighting like hell to make it fair under my plan nobody earning less than $400,000 a year wil

l pay additional penny in federal taxes nobody not one penny and they haven't yet in the child tax credit I passed during the pandemic cut taxes for millions of working families and cut child poverty in half restore that child tax credit no child should go hungry in this country the way to make the tax code fair is to make big corporations the very wealthy began to pay their fair share remember in 2020 55 of the biggest companies in America made $40 billion and paid zero in federal income tax ze

ro not anymore thanks to the law I wrote when we signed big companies have to pay a minimum 15% but that's still less than working people paying federal taxes it's time to raise corporate minimum tax to at least [Applause] [Music] 21% so every big Corporation finally begins to pay their fair share I also want end tax breaks for big farmer Big Oil private checks massive executive pay when it's only supposed to a million a million dollars it could be deducted they can pay 20 million if they want b

ut deduct a million end it now you know there are 1,000 billionaires in America you know what the average federal taxes for those billionaires no they're making great sacrifices 88.2% that's far less than the vast majority of Americans pay no billionaire should pay a lower federal tax rate than a teacher a sanitation worker or a nurse I propose a minimum tax for billionaires of 25% just 25% you know what that would raise that would raise $500 billion over the next 10 years and imagine what that

could do for America imagine a future with affordable child care millions of families can get they need to go to work to help grow the economy imagine the future with paid leave because no one should have to choose between working and taking care of their thick family member imagine imagine the future of Home Care and elder care and people living with disabilities so they can stay in their homes and family caregivers can finally get the pay they deserve tonight let's all agree once again to stan

d up for seniors many of my friends on the other side of I want to put Social Security on The Chopping Block if anyone here tries to cut Social Security Medicare or raise your retirement age I will stop you the working people the working people who buildt this country pay more into Social Security than Millionaires and billionaires do it's not fair we have two ways to go Republicans can cut Social Security and give more tax breaks to the wealthy I will that's the proposal oh no you guys don't wa

nt another $2 trillion tax cut I kind of thought that's what your plan was well that's good to hear you're not going to cut another $2 trillion for the super wealth that's good to hear I'll protect and strengthen Social Security and make the wealthy pay their fair share look too many corporations raise prices to pad their profits charging more and more for less and less that's why we're cracking down on corporations engag in price gouging and deceptive pricing from food to healthc care to housin

g in fact the snack companies think you won't notice if they change the size of the bag and put a hell of a lot fewer same same size bag put fewer chips in it no I'm not joking it's called shrink flation pass Bobby Casey's Bill and stop this I really mean you probably all saw that commercial on Snickers bars you get you get charge the same amount and you got about I don't know 10% fewer Snickers in it look I'm also getting rid of junk fees those hidden fees at the end of your bill that are there

without your knowledge my Administration announced we're cutting credit card late fees from $32 to $8 Banks and credit card companies are allowed to charge what it cost them to in to instigate the the collection and that's more a hell of a lot like $830 some dollars they don't like it credit card companies don't like it but I'm saving American families $20 billion a year with all the junk fees I'm eliminated Folks at home that's why the banks are so mad it's 20 billion dollar in profit I'm not

stopping there bu Administration propos rules to make cable travel utilities online ticket sellers tell you the total price UPF front so there no surprises it matters it matters and so does this in November my team began serious negotiation with a bipartisan group of senators the result was a bipartisan bill with the toughest set of border security reforms we've ever seen oh you don't think so oh you don't like that bill huh that conservative got together and said was a good bill I'll be darn th

at's amazing that bipartisan would hire 1,500 more security agents and officers 100 more immigration judges help tackle the backload of 2 million cases 4,300 more Asylum officers and new policies so they can resolve cases in 6 months instead of 6 years now what are you against 100 more Hightech drug detection machines to significantly increase the ability to screen and stop Vehicles smuggling fentanyl into America that's killing thousands of children this bill would save lives and bring order to

the Border it will also give me and any new president new emergency Authority temporarily shut down the Border when the number of migrants at the border is over overwhelming the boorder of Patrol Union has endorsed this bill the federal Chamber of Commerce is yeah yeah you're saying L look at the facts I know I know you know how to read I believe that giv the opportunity for a majority in the House and Senate would endorse the bill as well the majority right now but unfortunately politics has d

erailed this bill so far I'm told my predecessor called members of Congress and the Senate to demand they block the bill he feels political win he viewed as be a political win for me and a political loser for him it's not about him it's not about me I'd be a winner not really [Applause] I Lincoln Lincoln Riley an innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal that's right but how many are thousands of people being killed by legals to her parents I say my heart goes out to you having lost chil

dren myself I understand but look if we change the dynamic at the border people pay people people pay these Smugglers 8,000 bucks to get across the border because they know if they get by if they get by and let into the country it's 6 to 8 years before they have a hearing and it's worth the taking the chance of the $8,000 but but if it's only six month six weeks the idea is it's highly unlikely the people will pay that money and come all that way knowing that they'll be able to be kicked out qui

ckly folks I would respectfully s to suggest my my Republican friends owe to the American people get this bill done we need to act now and of my predecessor is watching instead of paying politics and pressuring members of Congress to block the will join me in telling the Congress to pass it we can do it together but that's what he apparently here's what he will not do I will not demonize immigrants saying they are poison in the blood of our country I will not separate families I will not ban peo

ple because of their faith unlike my predecessor on my first day in office I introduced the comp comprehensive Bill to fix our immigration system take a look at it as all these and more secure the Border provide a pathway to Citizens for dreamers and so much more but unlike my pressor I know who we are as Americans we're the only nation in the world with a heart and soul that draws from old and new home to Native Americans and ancestors have been here for thousands of years home to people of eve

ry PL from every place on Earth they came freely some came in Chains some came when famine struck like my ancestral family in Ireland some the flea persecution to chase dreams that are impossible Anywhere But Here in America that's America and we all come from somewhere but we're all [Applause] Americans look folks we have a simple choice we can fight about fixing the Border or we can fix it I'm ready to fix it send me the Border bill now a transformational his moment in history happened 58 59 y

ears ago today in Selma Alabama hundreds of foot solders for justice marched across the Edmund Pettis Bridge named after the Grand Dragon of the kcus clan to claimed their fundamental right to vote they were beaten they were bloody and left for dead our late friend and former colleague John Lewis was on that March we miss him joining us tonight our other marches both in the galling on the floor including Betty May Fikes known as the voice of Selma the daughter of gospel singers and preachers she

sang songs of prayer and protest on that Bloody Sunday to help shake the nation's conscience five months later the Voting Rights Act passed and was signing the law thank you thank you thank you thank you but 59 years later their forces taking us back in time voter suppression election subversion unlimited dark money extreme Jerry mannering John Lewis is a great friend to many of us here but if you truly want to honor him and all the heroes of March with him then it's time to do more than talk p

ass the freedom to vote act the John Lewis voting right out and stop stop denying another core value of America our diversity across American Life Banning books it's wrong instead of erasing history that's make history I want to protect fundamental rights pass the equality act and I M is a transgender American I have your back pass the proa for workers rights raise the federal minimum wage because every worker has a right to a decent living more than a seven bucks an hour we're also making histo

ry by confronting the climate crisis not denying it I don't think any of you think there's no longer climate crisis at least I hope you don't I'm taking the most significant action ever on climate in the history of the world I'm cutting our carbon emissions in half by 2030 creating tens of thousands of clean energy jobs like the ibw work is building installing 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations conserving 30% of America's lands and Waters by 2030 and taking action on environmental justic

e fence line community smothered by the legacy of pollution and pattern after the Peace Corp and America Corp I launched the climac core to put 20,000 young people to work in the Forefront of our Clean Energy Future I'll triple that number in a decade to State the obvious all americ Americans deserve the freedom to be safe and America is safer today than when I took office year before I took office murder rates went up 30% 30% they went [Music] up the biggest increase in history it was then thro

ugh no through my American Rescue plan which every American voted against I mad at we made the largest investment in public safety ever last year the murder rate saw the stest decrease in history violent crime fell to one of its lowest levels in more than 50 years but we have more to do we have to help cities invest in more Community police officers more mental health workers more Community violence in Ben give communities the tool to crack down on gun crime retail crime and car jacking keep bui

lding trust as they've been doing by taking executive action on police reform and calling for it to be the law of the land directing my cabinet to review the federal classification of marijuana and expunging thousands of convictions for the mere possession because no one should be jailed for simply using or having on their record take on crimes of domestic violence I'm ramping up the Federal enforcement of the violence against women act that I proudly wrote when I was a Senator so it can finally

finally end the scourge against women in America there are other kinds of violence I want to stop with us tonight is Jasmine whose 9-year-old sister Jackie was murdered with 21 classmates and teachers in elementary school in Uvaldi Texas very soon after that happened Jill and I went to Uvaldi for a couple days we spent hours and hours with each of the amilies we heard their message so everyone in this room in this chamber could hear the same message the constant refrain and I was there for hour

s meeting with every family they said do something do something well I did do something by establishing the first ever office of gun violence prevention in the White House that the vice president was leading a charge thank you for doing [Music] it meanwhile Meanwhile my predecessor told the NRA he's proud he did nothing on guns when he was president after another shooting in Iowa recently he said when asked what to do about he said just get over it there is his quote just get over it I say stop

it stop it stop it stop it I'm proud we beat the NRA when I signed most significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years because of this Congress we now must beat the NRA again I'm demanding to ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazine pass Universal background check none of this none of this I taught the Second Amendment for 12 years none of this violates the Second Amendment or vilifies responsible gun owners you know as we manage challenges at home we're also managing crisis abroad inclu

ding in the Middle East I know the last five months have been gut-wrenching for so many people for the Israeli people for the Palestinian people and so many here in America this Crisis began on October 7th with a massacre by a terrorist group called Hamas as you all know 1,200 innocent people women and girls men and boys slaughtered after enduring sexual violence the deadliest day of the for the Jewish people since the Holocaust and 250 hostages taken here in this chamber tonight our families wh

ose loved ones are still being held by AAS I pledge to all the families that we will not rest until we bring everyone of your loved ones home we [Music] also we will also work around the clock to bring home Evan and Paul Americans being unjustly detained by the Russians and others around the world Israel has the right to go after Hamas Hamas ended this conflict by releasing hostages laying down arms could end it by by releasing the hostages laying down arms and surrendering those responsible for

October 7th but Israel has a excuse me Israel has a added burden because the MOs hides and operates among the civilian population like cowards under hospitals daycare centers and all the like Israel also has a fundamental responsibility though to protect innocent civilians in [Music] Gaza this war has taken a greater toll on innocent vilians than all previous Wars in Gaza combined more than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed most of whom are not Hamas thousands and thousands of Innocents wome

n and children girls and boys also orphaned nearly 2 million more Palestinians under bombardment or displacement homes destroyed neighborhoods and Rubble cities in ruin families without food water medicine it's heartbreaking I've been working non-stop to establish an immediate ceasefire that would last for 6 weeks to get all the prisoners released all the hostage released to get the hostages home and ease the Intolerable and humanitarian crisis and build toward an enduring more something more en

during the United States have been leading international eff to get more humanitarian assistance to Gaza tonight I'm directing the US military to lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier in the Mediterranean on the coast of Gaza that can receive large shipments carrying food water medicine and temporary shelters no us boots will be on the ground a temporary peer will enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting in Gaza every [Music] day and Israel mus

t do its part Israel must allow more Aid in to God who ensure humanitarian workers aren't caught in the crossfire and they're announcing they're going to they're going to C have a cross in Northern Gaza for the leadership of Israelites say this humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip protecting and saving innocent lives has to be a priority as you look to the Future the only real solution to the situation is a two-state solution over [Music] time and I sa

y this as a lifelong supporter of Israel my entire career no one has a stronger record with Israel than I do I challenge any of you here I'm the only American president of is Israel in Wartime but there is no other path that guarantees Israel security and democracy there is no other path that guarantees Palestinian can live in peace with PO with peace and dignity there's no other pth that guarantees peace between Israel and all of its neighbors including Saudi Arabia with whom I'm talking creati

ng stability in the Middle East also means containing the threat posed by Iran that's why I build a coalition of more than a dozen countries to defend international shipping and freedom of navigation in the Red Sea I've ordered strikes to degrade the houthi capability and defend US forces in the region as commander and chief I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and our military personnel [Music] for years I've heard many of my Republican and Democratic friends say

that China is on the rise and America's falling behind they've got it backwards I've been saying it for over four years even when I wasn't president America is rising we have the best economy in the world and since I've come to office R GTP is up our trade deficit with China is down to the lowest point in over a decade and we're standing up against China's unfair economic practices we're standing up for peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits I revitalized our partnership and Alliance in

the Pacific India Australia Japan South Korea Pacific Islands I've made sure that the most advanced American techn ol can't be used in China not allowing to trade them there frankly for all this tough talk on China it never occurred to my predecessor to do any of that I want competition with China not conflict and we're in a stronger position to win the conflict of the 21st century against China than anyone else for that matter than any time as well here at home I've signed over 400 bipartisan b

ills there's more to pass my Unity agenda strength and penalties on fentanyl trafficking you don't want to do that huh pass bipartisan propy that say to protect our children online harness harness the promise of AI to protect us from Peril ban AI voice impersonations and more and keep our truly sacred obligation to train and equip those we send into Harm's Way and care for them and their families when they come home and when they [Music] don't that's why the song support and help of Dennis in th

e VA I signed the PCT act one of the most significant laws ever helping millions of veterans expose the toxin who now are battling more than 100 different cancers many of them don't come home but we owe them and their families support we owe it to ourselves to keep supporting our new health research agency called arpa and remind us remind us that we can do big things like and cancer as we know it and we will let me close with this y I know you don't want to hear any more Lindsay but I got to say

a few more things I know it may not look like it but I've been around a while when you get to be my age certain things become clearer than ever I know the American story again and again I've seen the contest between competing forces in the battle for the soul of our nation between those who want to pull America back to the past those want to move America into the future my lifetime has taught me to embrace freedom and democracy a future based on core values that defined America honesty decency

dignity equality to respect everyone to give everyone a fair chop to give hate no Safe Harbor now other people my age see it differently the American story of resentment revenge and retribution that's not me I was born mid World War II when America stood for the freedom of the world I grew up in scr Pennsylvania in Claymont Delaware among workingclass people who built this country I watched in horror as two of my heroes like many of you did Dr King and Bobby cun were assassinated and the Legacy

didn't smir me to pursue a care a career in service I left the law firm became a public defender because my city of Wilmington was the only city in America occupied by the National Guard after Dr King was assassinated because of the riots and I became a county councilman almost by accident I got elected the United States Senate when I had no intention of running at age 29 then vice president our first black president now president to the first women vice president in my career I've been told I w

as too young by the way they didn't let me on the Senate elevators for votes sometimes not a joke and I've been told I'm too old whether young or old I've always been known I've always known what endures I've known our Northstar the very idea of America is that were're all created equal and deserves to be treated equally throughout our lives we've never fully lived up to that idea IDE but we've never walked away from it either and I won't walk away from it now I'm optimistic I really am I'm opti

mistic Nancy my fellow Americans the issue facing our nation isn't how old we are it's how old ideas hate anger Revenge retribution are the oldest of ideas but you can't lead America with ancient ideas that only take us back you lead America the land of possibilities you need a vision for the future and what can and should be done tonight you've heard mine I see a future where defending democracy you don't diminish it I see a future where Resto the right to choose and protect our freedoms not ta

ke them away I see a future where the middle class has finally has a fair shot and the wealthy have to pay their fair share in taxes I see a future where we save the planet from the climate crisis and our country from gun violence above all I see a future for all Americans I see a country for all Americans and I will always be president for all Americans because I believe in America I believe in you the American people you're the reason we've never been more optimistic about our future than I am

now so let's build the future together let's remember who we are we are the United States of America and there is nothing nothing beyond our capacity when we act together God bless you all and may God protect our troops thank you thank you thank you 1 hour 7 minutes long President Biden speaking before a joint session of Congress shaking the vice president's hand there speaker Mike Johnson's hand as well there was a lot of stake going into this evening this is probably the largest if not one of

the largest audiences president President Biden will have before the election come November came right out of the gate looking at Republicans in that room in particular when talking about Vladimir Putin saying we must help Ukraine we must fund Ukraine Putin is on the March talked about his predecessor in comments that the former president Donald Trump though didn't use his name has said about Putin in recent days we'll get to what Trump said about Putin in just a moment here the President telli

ng the American people in that chamber the American people that history is watching he talked about the overturning of Row versus Wade what's followed the IVF debate in this country so you can see him begin to leave the chamber here and he looked right at the Supreme Court Justices he spoke of their decision that said women have electoral power and he essentially said you're about to see it come November and on immigration which is certainly one of the top issues if not the top issue as we head

into November the president again squarely looking at Republican in that room saying we must act on that bipartisan bill out of the Senate from both Republicans conservative Republicans and Democrats Senator Langford looking on the Cutaway of him from Oklahoma senator Langford nodding yes President Biden arguing we could adjudicate Asylum seekers in 6 months instead of 6 years with this bill listing all the other things that come with it too saying we can fight about the Border or we can fix it

we should fix it now our chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce Senator Bernie s shaking the president's hand we know as I mentioned earlier Senator Sanders one of the many offering advice in the days leading up to this speech I'm curious what you're hearing from your sources did he do what they wanted them to do I can tell you the White House is very happy right now I bet there are a lot of high fives going on right now they knew the challenges going into this the president well aware of th

e criticism of his campaign the pressure on him to perform tonight the White House feels that he nailed this that he put his critics you know on their heels at every turn here I think the overarching message coming out of this speech was really game on I mean it is clear from this speech that the general election is now on and for months the president has been criticized for not going hard enough against Donald Trump there really was a sense tonight that he was ripping the Band-Aid off that he w

as letting loose he was letting out a lot of that frustration it certainly didn't take him long to tear into Trump on everything from NATO to abortion he has sailed the Trump tax cuts he skewered him on immigration and this the tone of it was just so classic Biden right it wasn't polished lofty rhetoric it was folksy it was personal he was funny at times and David he repeatedly put Republicans on notice he sparred with them in the room in a way I don't think we've ever seen before at a state of

the union I mean at one point poking them on the immigration Bill he said you don't like that Bill H the one that you guys wanted the one that your party negotiated he asked the point blankly you know what are you against this felt more like a rockus Rowdy campaign speech than a state of the union and I think the big question and challenge going forward is can the president bring this fire to the trail will this Joe Biden show up at those campaign events all the way to November yeah prodding Rep

ublicans asking them what in this bill don't you like tell me tell me what you don't want that they've laid out with the help of Senator Langford who was right in that audience there tonight John it was very striking taking on Donald Trump but not by name how many times did he St predecessor tonight hey hey look this was this was a great night for for Joe Biden and this was much more a campaign speech than a State of the Union Address and you saw that in how he repeatedly took on Donald Trump by

my count by our count 16 times did he e either say my predecessor the former president or uh other people uh my age referring to to Donald Trump very direct attacks the most powerful one the very first one when he comes out and he first invokes Ronald Reagan who told uh the Russians who told the Soviets Mr Gorbachev tear down this wall and then he said compared to Donald Trump who tells Putin do whatever the hell you want very pointed the kind of campaign style speech you just never have seen i

n a state of the union but I think very effective and in fact what he was talking about is Donald Trump just in recent days talking about trying to get people to up this the the spending on on defense NATO countries which has been a long-standing argument for Donald Trump and and one that even President Biden has talked about making sure everybody pays the fair share but it was that turn when When Donald Trump then said If they don't do it well then I'd say do whatever the hell you'd want to Vla

dimir Putin uh so you you look but you have to remember I think this was a great night for Joe Biden I don't know if it was a home run but certainly was a triple uh but one factor to consider here he's been practicing for this speech this is home turf he knew the responses the Republicans are very predictable this audience is a very predictable audience uh he knew the taunts that were going to come and he knew that he you know what he was going to do in response and the way he directly took on M

arjorie tayor green no there's no question about that he knew that was coming on immigration he knew what her argument was going to be and he answered it uh in real time the rest of the campaign will not be so scripted that's the caution it will not be so but this was a very big night for Biden no question about that lindsy Davis also with us here at the desk in Lindsay that moment uh very rare for a president to look right at members of the Supreme Court sitting before them uh but he did and he

talked about the overturning of roie Wade he urged Congress let's codify roie Wade obviously that not going to happen but he mentioned that in their decision on roie way that they talked about the power women have the Electoral power they have and then he ran with it so significant in that moment for him to look at the justices directly in the room and talk about that and specifically he said look the a power of women uh that when reproductive Freedom was on the ballot we won in 2022 2023 and w

e will win again in 2024 and it's important to note that abortion may be on the ballot in as many many as 11 States including the Battleground states of Arizona and Nevada and so potentially that could determine the election right if that really brings people out uh in those two particular States uh but I do want to add though David I think that even Beyond some of these big ticket items of abortion or immigration or economy in many cases this was about uh the the elephant in the room if you wil

l about his age and uh those people who said they voted for Biden last time around 61 1% of them according to the New York Times who said that he they thought that he was too old to Be an Effective president and it seemed he really ate his weedies today right I mean he had that fire in the belly he had uh the the quick uh zingers and he addressed for many accounts uh directly headon uh the issue of his age saying it's not about how old we are it's about how old our ideas are no question about th

at Lindsay taking on the issue of age and saving it really to the very end of the speech saying you know I know I may not look like it but I've been around for a while using a little humor to address it I want to get reaction from Donna Brazil former head of the DNC of course an adviser to Democrats along the way and this Administration as well I'm so curious Donna what your advice was them leading up to tonight and did he deliver in your eyes I mean look he had to pour some Tabasco uh in his sp

eech and I think he delivered it very well it was spicy it was juicy it was another master class and how do you defend your values how do you tell the American people because of you we're stronger because of you we're fighting harder it was quintessential Joe Biden politics is in his blood and his DNA and tonight we saw why he was elected president let me ask you Donna for those at home who who might ask why not a performance like this in other moments along the way where did this come from toni

ght what what in particular about this he was speaking to the American people and also he was speaking truth to power looking at the Supreme Court he said every last word I would have said to John Roberts if I had the opportunity so tonight women and and of course the men who love us and support us understand that Joe Biden is going to fight for women he's going to fight for our reproductive health I what I loved about the president tonight is that he got up and the first thing he said was to Mr

Putin was that I see you and we're going to defend Ukraine it was a great speech a great night for Joe Biden but Joe Biden shows up every day of his life whether he shows up in the morning and by the way it's oatmeal not weedies I i' I've had pleas of having breakfast and I wanted grits and he had oatmeal but but he he showed up tonight and he's going to show up every day and what you're going to see on the campaign Trail is not just the president the vice president and everyone else who's goin

g to stand up for democracy and freedom did he Kickstart this campaign tonight oh the the campaign was already underway I think tonight he gave us a little gas in our tank Ryan prous former head of the RNC former Chief of Staff Donald Trump what was your take on tonight well I you know I it sounded a lot like a a DNC speech you know like a convention speech a political speech uh I think it was a health and wellness check I think everyone was right about that I think he passed the health and well

ness check tonight um clearly uh excited perhaps overcompensating maybe yelling quite a bit I think you're going to see a lot of people talking about the screaming and yelling but I also think he runs a risk of trying to paint a picture that the American people don't buy this idea that the economy is booming that the border is secure and it's only because the Republicans won't pass a bill and America is dominant on the world stage and so I think he he overplayed that quite a bit I don't think th

at's what Americans are feeling out there uh but as far as a health and wellness check yeah I I think he did that tonight let me ask you Ryan you're still closely connected to people who are working within the Trump campaign the the national polls as they stand right now and we're really far out we all know that but they are very close Donald Trump leading in in some of the major polls of the last two weeks and in the Battleground States but again a very close race is that the sense even inside

Trump World just how close this is absolutely I mean there is no feeling like this is uh you know a blowout I think people in the Trump operation know that it's going to be close they know that it's going to come down to 100,000 votes in five states uh it's all going to be about uh data ground game and turnout and that's what they know is happening rights preus down at Brazil both with us here as we cover this and we're preparing for the Republican response we should let you all know at home we

will bring that to you as well with a rising star in the Republican party we continue to watch uh President Biden in that room here tonight and Martha Ritz there were so many questions going into tonight obviously about age in this country even from President Biden's supporters you've traveled the country leading up to the primaries um he he was uncontested I mean obviously the final candidate dropped out um but even supporters of Biden when they leave telling the exit polls uh that they were co

ncerned about his age as well uh did he assade those concerns tonight with his performance here well he he certainly was vigorous it was a campaign speech it was probably for the Democrats a dream campaign speech because of his energy I don't know whether he was really screaming RS but he he was definitely raising the level of his voice and I think that probably because he often does clear his throat he does have have problems with his voice sometimes he didn't seem to have a lot of problems ton

ight but I also think this speech was more than just a campaign speech it was a legacy a legacy speech no matter what happens in November Joe Biden laid down the hammer tonight about what he believes and what he feels about this country so I think that Democrats will look at it as that as well and that's why Joe Biden probably really Rose to this moment he knew not only from a campaign speech how important it was but for his own legacy and I suspect Martha that we heard the beginning of what wil

l be a major campaign theme here at the end of the speech when he said it's not how old you are it's how old your ideas are and he tried to reframe this age debate that that's exactly right and I think I think his campaign people have been saying again and again and people within the White House I know there has been some disagreement about how they are handling that age issue you can't ignore it he can't ignore it and and in the next few weeks he may stumble he may make mistakes and it'll come

back to that age issue again but for tonight he put that to rest in so many ways I want to bring and Terry Moran who has covered multiple presidencies here in Washington Terry you knew the stakes going into tonight and it's not hyperbole to talk about the Highwire act that President Biden was uh walking into that chamber to try to perform uh did he deliver it it sure was a Highwire act and I think the fair thing to say a lot of Democrats over the past few weeks have been panicking I'll bet the v

ast majority of them feel better tonight because the president did hit hard you know you can talk about his performance all all you want but I think more importantly what he hit this was the oldtime religion the middle class working class labor Democrat agenda and he reached for it again and again and again both in terms of the values that line you can't love your country only when you win the best line of the speech fair play and decency are Bedrock values of the middle class no matter who peop

le voted for the notion that you don't love your country if if you guys lose uh it doesn't sit with them and then right across that economic agenda hitting again and again and again middle class middle class values with just a few seconds left in this segment Pierre Thomas chief justice correspondent of President Biden making it very clear tonight defending democracy will be a key theme right into November absolutely he went very hard on the issue of January 6 in terms of the attack on the capit

al he wanted to make sure that everyone in the public was reminded of that pointing to Congress to let them know that they were scurrying for their lives pointing that out as well David also it struck me that this was a president particularly in regards to the House Republicans who have been trying to impeach them that he really wanted to take them on head-on and let them know he really didn't care that much about how they felt about what he was saying David President Biden with a smile on his f

ace there as he leaves the chamber and when we come back here the Republican response tonight from a rising star in the Republican party as I mentioned Alabama Senator Katie Brit he's a mother of two she's just 42 years old the youngest Republican woman ever elected to the Senate we're going to go to break here for just a moment because she's getting ready to now speak to the American people the Republican response to President Biden right after the break don't go away ABC News live coverage of

the state of moments from now she is a rising star in the Republican Party the youngest female senator ever elected in the GOP Katie Brit from Alabama delivers the Republican response next not flossing well then add the wo of lisine to your routine new science shows lisine is five times more effective than floss at reducing plaque above the gum line for a cleaner healthier mouth line feel the wo can Thea support your brain health Mary Janet hey Eddie no Fraser Frank Frank frad how are you frad f

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critical condition we're back now ABC News live coverage President Biden State of the Union uh we've been watching him uh he's having a bit of an after hours party Martha RIT clearly enjoying the moment in that chamber we have talked often uh he spoke of it tonight about the length of his career how many years spent up on that Hill even before he was vice president talked about the history of being vice president to the first black president and now having the first woman vice president behind h

im that was also a moment toward the end of the speech uh Mary Bruce are you learning more from the White House tonight and from the Biden campaign about what they believe he had to do tonight and whether he delivered they certainly do think he delivered look they were well aware of how pivotal and important this moment was and they do think that he absolutely nailed it I mean they feel that he outlined the stakes in this election that he noted his accomplishments but also made very clear the St

ark Choice before voters and Rachel Scott just a few seconds there on the chamber the mood well Republicans have headed for the exits and this is typical Joe Biden you see him shaking hands with Democrats members of the military that have stuck around here the former the president going toe-to-toe with many Republicans here as you have all noted on immigration on Medicare Social Security as well divisions on full display but you heard those chance of four more years from Democrats reminder of th

e stakes Rachel Scott in the chamber Rachel thank you Senator Katie Brit now a republican star will deliver the Republican response she is a mother of two she'll be speaking from Montgomery Alabama you see the live picture right now coming up before you let's listen good evening America my name is Katie Britt and I have the honor of serving the people of the great state of Alabama and the United States Senate however that's not the job that matters most I am a proud wife and mom of two school-ag

ed kids my daughter Bennett and my son Ridgeway are why I ran for the Senate I'm worried about their future and the future of children in every corner of our nation and that's why I invited you into our home tonight like so many families Across America my husband Wesley and I just watched President Biden's State of the Union Address from our living room and uh what we saw was the performance of a permanent politician who has actually been in office for longer than I've been alive one thing was q

uite clear though President Biden just doesn't get it he's out of touch under his administration families are worse off our communities are less safe and our country is less secure I just wish he understood what real families are facing around kitchen tables just like this one you know this is where our family has tough conversations it's where we make hard decisions it's where we share The Good the Bad and the Ugly of our days it's where we laugh together and it's where we hold each other's han

ds and pray for God's guidance and many nights to be honest it's where Wesley and I worry I know we're not alone and so tonight the American family needs to have a tough conversation because the truth is we're all worried about the future of our nation the country we know and love seems to be slipping away and it feels like the next generation will have fewer opportunities and less freedoms than we did I worry my own children may not even get a shot at Living their American Dreams my American Dr

eam allowed me the daughter of two small business owners from rural Enterprise Alabama to be elected to the United States Senate at the age of 40 growing up sweeping the floor at my dad's hardware store and cleaning the bathroom at my mom's dance studio I never could have imagined what my story would entail to think about what the American dream can do across just one generation in just one lifetime it's truly breathtaking but right now the American dream has turned into a nightmare for so many

families the true unvarnished state of our Union begins and ends with this our families are hurting our country can do better and you don't have to look any further than the crisis at our Southern border to see it President Biden inherited the most secure border of all time but minutes after taking office he suspended all deportations he halted construction of the border wall and he announced a plan to give amnesty to Millions we know that President Biden didn't just create this border crisis he

invited it with 94 executive actions in his first 100 days when I took office I took a different approach I traveled to the Del Rio sector of Texas that's where I spoke to a woman who shared her story with me she had been sex trafficked by the cartels starting at the age of 12 she told me not just that she was raped every day but how many times a day she was raped the cartels put her on a mattress in a shoe box of a room and they sent men through that door over and over again for hours and hour

s on end we wouldn't be okay with this happening in a third world country this is the United States of America and it is pastime in my opinion that we start acting like it President Biden's border policies are a disgrace this crisis is Despicable and the truth is it is almost entirely preventable from fentanyl poisonings to horrific murders there are empty chairs tonight at kitchen tables just like this one because of President Biden's senseless border policies just think about Lake and Riley in

my neighboring state of Georgia this beautiful 22-year-old nursing student went out on a jog one morning but she never got the opportunity to return home she was brutally murdered by one of the millions of illegal border crossers President Biden chose to release into our homeland y'all as a mom I can't quit thinking about this I mean this could have been been my daughter this could have been yours and tonight President Biden finally said her name but he refused to take responsibility for his ow

n actions Mr President enough is enough innocent Americans are dying and you only have yourself to blame fulfill your oath of office reverse your policies end this crisis and stop the suffering sadly we know that President Biden's failures don't stop there his Reckless spending dug our economy into a hole and sent the cost of living through the roof we have the worst inflation in 40 years and the highest credit card debt in our nation's history let that sink in hardworking families are strugglin

g to make ends meet today and with soaring mortgage rates and Sky High child care cost they're also struggling to how a plan for tomorrow the American people are scraping by while President Biden proudly proclaims that nomics is working goodness y'all bless his heart we know better I'll never forget stopping at a gas station in Chilton County one evening the gentleman working the counter told me that after retiring he had to pick up a job in his 70s so that he didn't have to choose between going

hungry or going without his medication he said I I did everything right I did everything I was told to do I worked hard I saved I was responsible he's not alone I hear similar concerns from fellow parents whether I am walking with my friends or whether I'm at my kids games but let's be honest it's been a minute since Joe Biden pumped gas uh ran a carple or even pushed a g grocery cart meanwhile the rest of us see our dollar and we know it doesn't go as far we see it every day and despite what h

e tells you our communities are not safer for years the left has coddled criminals and defunded the police all while letting repeat offenders walk free the result is tragic but foreseeable from our small towns to America's most iconic city streets life is getting more and more dangerous and unfortunately President Biden's weakness isn't just hurting families here at home he is making us a punchline on the world's stage look where I'm from your word is your bond but for 3 years the president has

demonstrated that America's word doesn't mean what it used to from abandoning our allies in his disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan to desperately pushing another dangerous deal with Iran President Biden has failed we've become a nation in retreat and the enemies of Freedom they see an opportunity Putin's brutal aggression in Europe has put our allies on the brink Iran's terrorist proxies have slaughtered Israeli Jews and American citizens they've targeted commercial shipping and they've atta

cked our troops nearly 200 times since October killing three US soldiers and two Navy Seals meanwhile the Chinese Communist party is undercutting America's workers China is buying up our Farmland spying on our military installations and spreading propaganda through the likes of Tik Tock you see the CCP knows that if it conquers the minds of our next generation it conquers America and what does President Biden do well he bans Tik Tock for government employees but creates an account for his own ca

mpaign y'all you can't make this stuff up look we all recall when presidents faced National Security threats with strength and resolve that seems like ancient history right now our commander and chief is not in command the Free World deserves better than a dithering and diminished leader America deserves leaders who recognize that secure borders stable prices Safe Streets and strong defense are actually the cornerstones of a great nation just ask yourself are you better off now than you were 3 y

ears ago there's no doubt we're at a Crossroads and it doesn't have to be this way we all feel it but here's the good news we the people are still in the driver's seat we get to decide whether our future will grow brighter or whether we'll settle for an America in Decline well I know which Choice our children deserve and I know the choice the Republican party is fighting for we are the party of hardworking parents and family and we want to give you and your children the opportunities to thrive a

nd we want families to grow it's why we strongly support continued Nationwide access to invitro fertilization we want to help loving moms and dads bring precious life into this world Wesley and I believe there is no greater blessing in life than our children and that's why tonight I want to make a direct appeal to the parents out there and in particular to my fellow moms many of whom I know will be up tossing and turning at 2 a.m. wondering how you're going to be in three places at once and then

somehow still get dinner on the table first of all we see you we hear you and we stand with you I know you're frustrated I know you're probably disgusted by most of what you see going on in Washington and I'll be really honest with you you're not wrong for feeling that way look I get it the task in front of us isn't an easy one but I can promise you one thing it is worth it so I am asking you for the sake of your kids and your grandkids get into the arena every generation has been called to do

hard things American greatness rests in the fact that we always answer that call it's who we are never forget we are steeped in the blood of patriots who over through the most powerful Empire in the world we walk in the footsteps of pioneers who tamed the wild we now carry forward the same flame of Freedom as the liberators of an oppressed Europe we continue to draw Courage from those who bent the moral Arc of the universe and when we gaze upon the heavens never forget that our DNA contains the

same Ingenuity that put man on the moon America has been tested before and every single time we've emerged unbowed and unbroken our history has been written with the grit of men and women who got knocked down but we know their stories because they did not stay down we are here because they stood back up so now it's our turn our moment to stand up and prove ourselves worthy of protecting the American dream together we can reawaken the heroic Spirit of a great nation because America we don't just

have a Rendevous with Destiny we take Destiny's hand and we lead it our future starts around kitchen tables just like this with moms and dads just like you and you are why I believe with every fiber of my being that despite the current state of our Union our best days are still ahead may God bless you and may God continue to bless these United States of America and there you have it Senator Katie Brit from Alabama at 42 years old the youngest Republican elected to the Senate uh giving the Republ

ican response tonight to President Biden's State of the Union Address from her kitchen uh there in Alabama and I want to get right over to John before we say good night here because we have first reaction in from former president Trump to President Biden's speech tonight may not surprise you but Donald Trump didn't liked the speech he reacted by calling it The Angriest least compassionate and worst stateof the union speech ever made okay the race is underway isn't it John Carl Mary Bruce Lindsey

Davis Martha rits you guys make this so easy up here and down in Brazil Ryan prias always great to have your your analysis of these big political nights thank you thank you all we leave you tonight with this very ing image from just moments ago in the chamber uh President Biden almost the last person to leave that chamber tonight the lights appear to have been turned off in the chamber people still asking uh for selfies uh after having given the State of the Union tonight our coverage continues

ABC News live ABC news.com of course Good Morning America first thing in the morning and as the president leaves so do we your local news is next for many of you I'm David newor I'll see you tomorrow night good [Music] night