The bar was so lowered for him that all Joe Biden had to do was finish his State of the Union address for the in-the-tank leftist media to declare it a successful launch to his 2024 campaign. But they went overboard as they celebrated Biden’s “fiery” and “feisty” speech and his “punch in the face” to the GOP.
In sharp contrast, the official Republican response by Senator Katie Britt was met with derision as the New York Times deemed it a speech full of “smiles and menace.”
The following are just a few of the over-the-top reactions to the State of the Unions address from Biden’s cheerleaders in the press:
A “Feisty” and “Fiery” Biden Had a “Fire in His Belly”
“This was a feisty speech that, at times, felt more like a rowdy campaign event than a traditional State of the Union address. The President, well aware of the stakes, pitted his message directly against Donald Trump’s, repeatedly sparring with Republicans in the room in a way we’ve never really seen before. The President trying to show voters he is ready for a fight and has what it takes to serve another four years….A fiery President Biden kicking off the general election.”
— Chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce on ABC’s Good Morning America, March 8.
“President Biden delivering a mix of energy, humor, combativeness as well as plenty of ad-libs directed at his Republican critics. From President Biden a feisty State of the Union address...relishing the back and forth with Republicans.”
— Correspondent Peter Alexander on NBC’s Today, March 8.
“This seemed to me to be a speech designed first and foremost to show that Joe Biden has the stamina and the fire in the belly to go another four years. It was designed to be delivered with high energy. He even broke into a call and response at one point and Democratic lawmakers played along. He told jokes.”
— Correspondent Nancy Cordes on CBS’s live coverage of the State of the Union address, March 7.
Biden “Ready to Fight,” “Punch In the Face” to GOP
“This was his ‘How ‘bout them apples?’ speech….. It was like a punch in the face to every Republican in the room….By the end, Lindsey Graham was slouched in his seat with his arm folded, chuckling like it was John McCain up there….Waving of the white flag by the [Republicans]....I mean Mike Johnson’s face, I think, told the whole story….Everybody knows that this was a great speech and everybody knows that if this is the message going into the next eight months, the polls will soon reflect that….A really remarkable State of the Union.
— MSNBC Deadline:White House host Nicolle Wallace on MSNBC’s live coverage of the State of the Union address, March 7.
“I thought the speech was very high caffeine. I think Joe Biden woke up this morning, had a cup of coffee and had his Wheaties — he was definitely there to fight….He came in there tonight ready to fight for the presidency. To fight for the White House in a way that I think I did not expect. The speech was incredibly aggressive. He opened….with World War II, Hitler, appeasement, and then he went right for the people in front of him. He said, ‘My predecessor and some of you- some of you, have sought to bury the truth about January 6’ and he accused a member sitting right in front of him of seeking to bury that, then he kept punching.”
— MSNBC’s The ReidOut host Joy Reid during MSNBC’s live coverage of the State of the Union address, March 7.
Started the Speech in “Fifth Gear”
“If you are going to set the stakes for a political moment, you can’t set them any higher than 1941 fighting before World War II. So, he [Joe Biden] set them immediately, he started in fifth gear….The only other historical moment that you would pick that has equal weight is the Civil War and he name-checked that too and why? He’s calling on the ghosts of January 6, which aren’t even ghosts. There are people in that room there who helped that happen….and one of America’s leading political parties in a democracy has just nominated or is going to nominate in a democracy, to be their candidate, someone who has worked actively to undermine democracy.”
— CBS chief political analyst John Dickerson on CBS’s The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, March 7.
Biden “Met the Moment,” “Hit Hard”
CNN anchor Jake Tapper: “Dana Bash, what did you think? You’ve been to a lot of State of the Union addresses. Do you think that President Biden met the moment?”
CNN anchor Dana Bash: “He certainly met the moment that his members of his party, those who are really upset and worried about this coming election year and frankly, what would happen if he didn’t win another time because of their concerns about who’s on the other side of the ticket. They wanted him to be a fighter and — boy — fight, did he deliver.”
— CNN’s live coverage of State of the Union address, March 7.
“A lot of Democrats over the past few weeks have been panicking. I’ll bet the vast majority of them feel better tonight. Because the President did hit hard….This was the old time 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 in the middle-class. No matter who people voted for, the notion that you don’t love your country if your guys lose doesn’t sit well with them. And then right across that economic agenda, hitting again and again and again, middle-class, middle-class values.”
— Correspondent Terry Moran during ABC’s live coverage of the State of the Union address, March 7.
“Scranton Joe” Was “Impassioned,” “Engaged” and “Pissed Off!”
“I have been saying for months and months and months that Joe Biden is old, yes, he’s slower of step, yes, but he is far from being incoherent, from having dementia, from not being in charge. Yesterday he showed he is engaged. He was impassioned. He was pissed off. Scranton Joe showed up and fought. He had his gloves on from moment one.”
— Co-host Ana Navarro on ABC’s The View, March 8.
GOP Response = Full of “Smiles and Menace”
“With a sunny, inviting smile, Senator Katie Britt of Alabama welcomed Americans into her kitchen on Thursday night. Many soon backed away nervously….Britt delivered a jarring speech that toggled between an increasingly strained cheerfulness and a fierce glare as she gave ominous warnings about illegal immigration….She sat at her kitchen table and painted a dark picture of an America in decline.”
— Reporters Michael C. Bender and Kayla Guo in March 7 New York Times article “Katie Britt, With a Smile and a Fierce Glare, Delivers G.O.P. Response to Biden.”
