On February 7th at 9:00 pm EST President, Joe Biden gave his State of the Union address in the US Capitol building to a joint session of Congress. Many other people outside of the government were also in attendance as guests. Biden was flanked by Vice President Kamala Harris and Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy on the podium behind him. He had many talking points during his nearly 2-hour long speech and gave a strong address to the nation.

Foreign Policy 

Biden mentioned how the USA responded to the war between Ukraine and Russia by mobilizing NATO and building a global coalition. He plans to continue to fight against Putin’s “unfair and brutal war”. He also spoke on the current situation with China, claiming if necessary America will act against them but we are still willing to work with them as long as our sovereignty is not threatened. 

Economy 

The economy was heavily focused on and a major part of the speech. The Biden administration according to him has done a great job bringing down the unemployment rate to a 50-year low and rebuilding the middle class, which he refers to as the “backbone of America”. He wants America to become the industrial superpower it was and be the head of the supply chain. He also is determined to tax the wealthy and corporations their fair share and bring down inflation. 

Education

Biden wants to extend guaranteed education past 12 years in order to continue being the most competitive country in the world. He plans to do this by making PreK more accessible, giving school teachers a raise, and reducing student debt further so people can pursue higher education.

Policy Agenda 

There was a major emphasis on the state of healthcare in America. He is opposes Big Pharma and how they upcharge the American people for major profit on products like insulin. Biden has worked on capping the price at $35 for seniors on medicare and wants to extend it further. He also mentions protecting Roe v Wade. Other talking points were police brutality, gun violence, the climate crisis in terms of the next generation, and workers’ rights. 

A very bipartisan president, Biden has signed over 500 bipartisan bills during his time in office and has worked to unite both parties on topics such as education, reform, and medicare. His speech was confident and sure when regarding his future plans and the state of the country. Many times he was able to get both sides on their feet in agreement, even after being heckled by some members of the Republican Congress. Overall, the speech covered many of the current and longstanding issues in America well and extensively.