The White House said Wednesday that President Biden will be ready for anything during Thursday night’s upcoming State of the Union address, including hecklers.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked during Wednesday’s briefing whether Biden was prepared for hecklers during the State of the Union.
Last year, chaos erupted briefly in the House chamber when Biden repeated an old Democratic talking point that has long been debunked, saying, “Some Republicans want Medicare and Social Security to sunset.”
Biden said that stance was not from the majority, though he invited anyone who doubted his claim to contact his office and he would provide them with a copy of the proposal.
Still, after making the statement, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga, shouted, “Liar!”
The hecklers became so bad, then Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy shushed them when they interrupted the president’s tribute to a fentanyl victim.
So, when asked whether Biden would be prepared for hecklers this year, Jean-Pierre referred the reporter to how the president handled the hecklers last year.
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“Look, you saw the president last year when some Republican members behaved in a way that was, I would say, disrespectful. And he handled that, and he did that on his own and he held them to account as it related to important programs that matter to the American people: Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid,” Jean-Pierre said. “He called them out on it as they were obviously heckling at him. And so, the president’s ready for anything.”
She was asked again about the president’s preparation, and said he knows how to manage hecklers, as he showed in February 2023.
“Nobody was expecting that,” Jean-Pierre said. “And he took them on and laid out and fought for the American people on programs that matter to them. And so, he, you know, he got this. The President’s got this.”
Jean-Pierre gave a preview of what Biden is expected to talk about during Thursday’s annual speech to the nation.
“He’s gotten more done in the first three years than most presidents have accomplished in two terms,” said Jean-Pierre, who added Biden will talk about the success of lowering drug prices and getting rid of junk fees.
Biden will also talk about his plan to “improve the lives of all Americans,” by lowering costs on health care premiums, taking on big pharma to lower drug prices and making the wealthy and corporations pay their “fair share” in taxes.
Additionally, Jean-Pierre said Biden will speak about protecting women’s reproductive health despite attacks from Republican elected officials, and ending cancer as we know it, among other things.
