GOP lawmakers anticipate 'torn up' State of the Union address
Sen. Marsha Blackburn and Reps. Greg Steube and Jody Hice share their expectations for President Biden's upcoming address.
President Biden will deliver his first State of the Union address on Tuesday, March 1, 2022, amid tumultuous events at home and abroad, namely, the Russian military invasion of Ukraine.
Biden will address a nation weary from the pandemic while feeling gouged at the grocery store and gas pump. The president is expected to elaborate on his plan to lower costs for American families while continuing economic recovery.
The speaker's dais in the House of Representatives is seen at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, where President Joe Biden will deliver his State of the Union speech Tuesday night to a joint session of Congress and the nation. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
This is expected to include making more things domestically, reducing the cost of everyday expenses by promoting fair competition, and eliminating barriers to good-paying jobs.
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The president will also likely focus on the ocean shipping industry which oversees everything from housewares bought online to agricultural products that American farmers market overseas.
Biden is expected to speak on the ocean shipping industry being dominated by "just a small number of giant, foreign-owned companies" that control more than three-fourths of global container ship capacity and 95% of the East-West trade lines.
President Joe Biden removes his protective face mask before speaking during a meeting with the Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Jan. 31, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
The president will also use the address to launch a major overhaul of nursing home qualify, including minimum staffing levels and steps to beef up inspections while continuing to keep COVID-19 at bay.
The plan calls for moving nursing homes toward private rooms for their residents, directing federal regulators to explore how to phase out living arrangements that house three or more residents in the same room.
Overshadowing Biden’s speech will be the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has in the past week commanded the world’s attention.
A view of damage due to armed conflict between Russia, Ukraine in Donetsk region under the control of pro-Russian separatists, eastern Ukraine on February 28, 2022. (Photo by Stringer/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
In a rare bout of bipartisanship, lawmakers have banded together to hold the U.S. and its allies together in the defense of a Western-oriented democracy.
"We’re all together at this point and we need to be together about what should be done," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds will give the Republican Party’s rebuttal to Biden’s speech.
"Republican governors across America are leading the charge in defending liberty and security unmatched economic prosperity in our states," Reynolds said in a statement. "The Biden administration is governing from the far-left, ignoring the problems of working-class Americans while pushing an agenda that stifles free speech, free though, and economic freedom. The American people have had enough, but there is an alternative, and that’s what I look forward to on Tuesday evening."
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Republicans held a press conference Monday afternoon to discuss what they hope to hear from Biden’s State of the Union address, with the top issues being the economy, gas prices, the border, COVID protocols, and Ukraine.
Democrats, meanwhile, will have not one, but two responses to Biden’s address. Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan was already poised to deliver one response. On Monday, it was announced that Rep. Colin Allred of Texas will deliver the Congressional Black Caucus’s response.
FILE: Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they push barricades to storm the US Capitol in Washington D.C on January 6, 2021. ((Photo by ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)
Tuesday’s gathering in the House chamber will be the first time since the pandemic outbreak in 2020 and last year’s attack on the Capitol that all members of the House and Senate are being invited to gather for what typically has been an annual event.
Masks will no longer be required though COVID tests and social distancing measures will still be required.
Biden’s address also comes as a trucker convoy, inspired by COVID vaccine mandates in Ottawa, plans to protest against pandemic restrictions.
While there are no credible threats related to Biden’s speech, law enforcement officials are ramping up security after the events of Jan. 6, 2021, when a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol, briefly disrupting the certification of Biden’s 2020 presidential victory.
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Biden’s address is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m. ET and carried by Fox News and Fox Business.
Fox Business’ Tyler Kendall, Fox News’ Chad Pergram, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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