During the State of the Union, President Joe Biden fit tens of issues into a one hour speech. He addressed plans for welfare development and upcoming policies to combat unemployment. However, select Republican lawmakers had a different plan. They immaturely interrupted the President’s speech, revealing the unprecedented levels of political polarization and its impact on political policy making.
To begin the speech, Biden addressed the elephant in the room — the recovering economy, a critical topic of contention in the 2020 presidential election. He said, “I ran for president to fundamentally change things. To make sure our economy works for everyone, so we can all feel that pride in what we do.” He emphasized protecting American supply chains and bringing jobs back to the United States.
Speaking on job creation, President Biden stated, “Outside of Columbus, Ohio, Intel is building semiconductor factories on a thousand acres. Literally a field of dreams. It is going to create 10,000 jobs, that one investment, 7,000 construction jobs.” Biden cited it as evidence of his impact on the growing economy, and he’s not wrong. It was just recently that Intel made this decision to give jobs to the American people instead of moving them overseas. It was refreshing to hear tangible evidence of change as opposed to ideas — a common occurrence in State of the Union speeches.
His speech made it clear that his priority is his constituents. This is vastly different from the priorities of those who shouted at him from their seats. Seizing an opportunity to be disruptive, these lawmakers made it clear that they were more concerned about their political positions rather than the well-being of the American people. Demonstrating his maturity and eye towards change, President Biden did not turn down requests for funding in the districts of the Republicans who voted against the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Instead, he stated, “I promised to be the president for all Americans.”
President Biden’s laws regarding infrastructure and employment are just some examples out of many mentioned in his speech. But, whether it be construction or medical care, President Biden puts the people first, and that is what I think will be most important going into the 2024 election. It was disappointing to witness the state of our divided political system, evidenced by the Republican’s heckling.
This outcry, usually something you would see at a sports game between impassioned fans yelling, was shown in the President of the United States’s most important message of the year. Americans were taken aback. In a place where monumental, impactful policies are created, the churlish behavior of select Republican lawmakers demonstrated an offensive lack of decorum.
As the President emphasized his concerns about the implications of Republicans’ plans to cut down Medicare and Social Security, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene shouted “liar!”
How can our nation grow if the leaders whom we rely on are shouting things like “China is spying on us,” (a quote from Representative Greene) during official proceedings — especially well-intentioned proceedings that are supposed to focus on solutions to prominent issues in America that citizens face on a daily basis.
It saddens me that our leaders cannot engage in constructive discourse and instead feel it is necessary to shout in a manner akin to an angry fan at a baseball game. Let that sink in: a member of Congress shouting at the President mid-speech because she disagrees. How can anything be achieved and how can compromises be reached if congressmen are so quick to interrupt the simple political process?
Disagreement is important, but yelling “liar” is an unjustified, inappropriate reaction that brings no value and undermines civility. Between the commotion during the Speaker of the House election and outburst a few weeks ago, a pattern among Republicans sticks out: many of our nation’s leaders have lost sight of the importance of what they do and the impact they have on real people’s lives.
Their actions reflect their own interest or affiliation but do not improve our country. Many try to minimize the significance of the heckling. Those in support of the heckled statements chalk it up to friendly fun or a necessary expression of free speech in the political process. However, the reality is much more dark, and the implications of this utter disrespect extend past the speech. In the modern day, politics seems to have lost its decorum, and the effects it has on citizens have not wavered.
When politicians are bashed for working across the aisle, the immediate impact is that bipartisan policy, which is necessary to addres every major political issue, becomes an impossibility. How is one to compromise with Greene, for example, after her comments give a bad look to anyone who works with her? At the end of the day, the government must focus on passing laws that will help those in need. Acts of outcry demonstrated during the State of the Union will do nothing but create further tension and polarity in our sysem of government.
