Newsman: President Joe Biden made calls for unity and tried to emphasize conciliation over conflict in his State of the Union address Tuesday night. Biden’s speech mostly ignored the bitter divisions between Republicans and Democrats. He talked on common ground, making the case that both parties can back U.S. factories, new businesses being formed and the funding of 20,000 infrastructure projects.
Biden said ‘the soul of this nation is strong’ uttering the phrase “finish the job” at least a dozen times during his address. The job is not finished yet,
“We’ve been sent here to finish the job,” Biden said, He portrayed Republicans as partners in governance during the first two years of his presidency.
Biden highlighted his focus on the common man, calling out billionaires who pay lower tax rates than the middle class and airlines that treat their passengers like “suckers.”
“No billionaire should pay a lower tax rate than a school teacher or a firefighter,” Biden said in one of the bigger applause lines of his speech.
The president brought back an idea from last year to put a minimum tax on billionaires so they don’t pay a lower rate than many middle-class households. Biden had pitched a 20% tax on the income and unrealized financial gains of households worth $100 million or more. The administration estimated it would generate $360 billion over 10 years. That would in theory help fund some priorities and possibly reduce the deficit.
He was straightforward in saying he would stop airlines from charging fees in order to sit families together, saying that children were being treated like luggage. He wants to ban hidden resort fees charged by hotels and penalties charged by cell service providers.
“Americans are tired of being played for suckers,” Biden said.
Biden’s comment that generated boos and hoots from Republicans: Biden said some in the GOP were bent on cutting Social Security and Medicare. It amounted to a dare to Republican lawmakers who increasingly claim to represent blue-collar workers.
Biden addressed briefly the incident directly: “As we made clear last week, if China’s threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country. And we did.”
Biden took a moment to pay tribute to Ukraine, addressing one of his guests, Ambassador Oksana Markarova, as representing “not just her nation but the courage of her people.”
He also applauded Congress for giving the Ukrainian what it needed to face Russia’s brutal aggression; the United States has already committed nearly $30 billion in security assistance since the start of the war.
President Biden offered an optimistic outlook about the prospects of long-term American support to Ukrainian.
“Ambassador, America is united in our support for your country,” Biden said looking toward Markarova in the gallery. “We will stand with you as long as it takes.”
