President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address will push for bipartisanship Tuesday evening, early speech excerpts show, a dramatic shift after labeling MAGA Republicans “extreme” in September’s so-called “Dark Brandon” speech.
“To my Republican friends, if we could work together in the last Congress, there is no reason we can’t work together in this new Congress,” Biden’s speech excerpts read.
“The people sent us a clear message,” it continued, alluding to losing the House in the midterm elections. “Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflict, gets us nowhere.”
Biden’s speech echoed a second contradiction. Biden touted his struggling economy, which cost American families an estimated $5,520 per year in 2022.
According to a Sunday poll, 41 percent of American families say their financial position has worsened since President Joe Biden assumed office — the worst result in 37 years.
“My economic plan is about investing in places and people that have been forgotten. Amid the economic upheaval of the past four decades too many people have been left behind or treated like they’re invisible,” Biden’s speech reads.
“[W]e’re building an economy where no one is left behind. Jobs are coming back, pride is coming back because of the choices we made in the last two years. This is a blue-collar blueprint to rebuild America and make a real difference in your lives,” it continues.
Polling from Monday shows fewer than four in ten — under 40 percent — Americans say the state of the union is strong, while fifty-eight percent say it is not strong.
Biden’s State of the Union address before Congress is distinct from his speech delivered, shrouded in red light, in September in Philadelphia.
“Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic,” Biden claimed just months ago.
“MAGA Republicans do not respect the Constitution,” he said. “MAGA forces are determined to take the country backwards.”
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.