President Biden says, “State of the Union is Strong,” but Republicans Worry about His Spending and Country’s Debt

By Yehudit Garmaise

Many Americans worry that President Joe Biden’s pricey legislation is feeding inflation and crippling the country’s ability to repay its debts, but last night, when presenting his second State of the Union speech, the president sought to show that he has Americans’ backs financially.

“Jobs are coming back, [and] pride is coming back, because of the choices we made in the last two years,” President Biden said. “This is a blue-collar blueprint to rebuild America and make a real difference in your lives.

“My economic plan is about investing in places and people that have been forgotten.”

When asking Americans to “look at the results,” the president pointed out that the “unemployment rate [is] at 3.4%, a 50-year low. As I stand here tonight, we have created a record 12 million jobs, more jobs created than any president has ever created in four years.”

Although economists say excessive government spending fuels inflation, Biden took no responsibility and blamed skyrocketing prices on “the pandemic that disrupted supply chains and Putin’s war that disrupted energy and food supplies.”

Although many prices, such as at the grocery store, still appear high to most Americans, Biden said, “Inflation is coming down.

“Here at home, gas prices are down $1.50 a gallon since their peak.

“Food inflation is coming down.

Not only did Biden say that “Inflation has fallen every month for the last six months,” but he claimed that “take-home pay has gone up:” a claim that is probably debatable by most hardworking Americans.

Singing the praises of our entrepreneurial nation, however, the president brightly pointed out that “a record 10 million Americans applied to start new small businesses.

“Every time someone starts a small business, it’s an act of hope.”

To thunderous applause from both Democrats and Republicans, Biden said, “We’re making sure the supply chain for America begins in America,” as he spoke about the more than $300 billion the federal government has invested in the last two years in American manufacturing of everything from the small computer chips called semiconductors to larger products, like cars.

After passing his Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in November 2021, which cost an eye-popping $1 trillion, which many Republicans felt was excessive, last night, the president announced “new standards that will require that all construction materials used in federal infrastructure projects to be made in America.

“American-made lumber, glass, drywall, and fiber optic cables.

“On my watch, American roads, American bridges, and American highways will be made with American products.” 

Although Republicans have been trying to put the brakes on what they see as Biden’s out-of-control spending, for which Democrats try to compensate by raising the amount of money the federal government can borrow by “raising the debt-ceiling,” last night, the president claimed he was “fiscally responsible” by “cracking down on wealthy tax cheats” and cutting the deficit by more than $1.7 trillion.”

Finally, Biden wants to help Americans financially by outlawing “junk fees, those hidden surcharges businesses [such as phone companies and airlines] use to make you pay more and banning non-compete agreements that prevent workers from seeking higher salaries at similar jobs.

Urging cooperation and unity, Biden said, “Next month when I offer my fiscal plan, I ask my Republican friends to offer their plans.”

“We can sit down together and discuss both plans together,” which was one of the few times newly-minted Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who was sitting behind the president, looked happy with what Biden was saying.

“We are the United States of America, and there is nothing, nothing beyond our capacity if we do it together,” the president said. 

“Because the people of this nation are strong, the State of the Union is strong.”

photo credit: Flickr