President Joe Biden delivered his third State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress Thursday evening and took the opportunity to make his case to voters to elect him for a second term, listing his achievements and outlining his future agenda. The president’s speech seemingly served as the kickoff for his presidential re-election campaign against the presumptive Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump.
Biden began by promising Ukrainians that the U.S. would not back away from defending them in the face of the ongoing oppression and war by Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying: “we have to stand up to Putin. We will not walk away. We will not bow down. I will not bow down. In a literal sense, history is watching.”
Referencing the January 6th, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, Biden did not name Donald Trump directly, but said: “my predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth of January 6th. I will not do that. This is a moment to speak the truth and bury the lies. And here’s the simplest truth. You can’t love your country only when you win.”
Speaking on the decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade, Biden vowed: “in its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court majority wrote ‘women are not without electoral or political power’. No kidding. Clearly those bragging about overturning Roe v. Wade have no clue about the power of women in America. But they found out when reproductive freedom was on the ballot and won in 2022, 2023, and they will find out again in 2024. If Americans send me a Congress that supports the right to choose I promise you: I will restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again.”
President Biden also officially announced the construction of a temporary port along the coast of Gaza to allow more humanitarian aid into the region as the war between Israel and Hamas militants in Gaza continues, saying: “no U.S. boots will be on the ground. This temporary pier would enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day. But Israel must also do its part. Israel must allow more aid into Gaza and ensure that humanitarian workers aren’t caught in the crossfire.”
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