Biden will attack Trump and acknowledge criticism of his age in the State of the Union
President Joe Biden holds a campaign rally ahead of the state's Democratic presidential primary in Las Vegas on February 4. (Kevin Lamarck/Reuters/File)
President Joe Biden plans to attack his presumptive general election opponent on Thursday while implicitly acknowledging his own age during his State of the Union address. .
“My life has taught me to embrace freedom and democracy. A future based on the core values that define America: honesty, decency, dignity and equality. Everyone should be respected. Everyone should be given a fair chance. Not providing safe harbor for hate,” Biden would say, excerpts shared with CNN before the speech. “Now, other people my age see a different story: the American story of resentment, vengeance and revenge. That's not me”:
The reference to Biden's age, which critics have raised as a weakness ahead of the 2024 general election, represents a further offensive tactic for the president; Last month, in an interview with comedian Seth Meyers, Biden told voters not only to consider a candidate's age, but “how old (their) ideas are.”
At 81, Biden would be the oldest person elected president if he wins re-election in November, while Trump will turn 78 in June.
A promise to restore Rowe
Biden also plans to “promise to reinstate Roe v. Wade as the law of the land,” if Congress passes such legislation, according to the excerpts.
“In its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court's majority wrote: 'Women are not without suffrage or political power.' It's not a joke,” Biden would say, according to prepared remarks.
“Those who brag about overturning Roe. Wade doesn't know about the power of women in America.
The president plans to lean into the political power of the reproductive rights issue: “But they found out when reproductive freedom was on the ballot, it won in 2022, 2023, and they'll find out again in 2024.”
Taking credit for “The Greatest Comeback Story Ever Told.”
In his speech, Biden will work to take credit for the post-pandemic economic boom, with many Americans still polling saying they feel apathetic about the state of the country and its economy.
“I came into office determined to help navigate one of the most difficult periods in our nation's history. We did it. “This is not the news, but in thousands of cities and towns, Americans are writing the greatest comeback story ever told,” Biden will say in his speech, according to advance excerpts.
The lines reflect a continuing frustration for Biden and his team as the country emerges from the Covid-19 pandemic: Despite falling inflation and rising wages, some Americans say they're feeling improvements and they don't give Biden credit.
In Thursday's speech, Biden will say: “Let's tell that story here and now. Reclaiming America means building a future of American possibility, building the economy from the bottom up (not the top down), investing in America as a whole (in all Americans) to ensure that everyone has a fair chance. We will not leave anyone behind.”
