>> this program was made because -- possible from contributions to your pbs station by viewers like you. thank you. ♪ amna: good evening, and welcome to this special pbs newshour coverage of president biden's state of union address. i'm amna nawaz. geoff: and i'm geoff bennett. in just a few moments, president biden will be walking into a very different house chamber than from his speech a year ago. for the first time, he'll be addressing a divided congress, and a new republican majority in the house that has already launched several investigations and hearings into his administration's policies during his first two years. amna: you will see there the new

house speaker, kevin mccarthy, sitting next to the vice president during the speech, which is expected to draw sharp contrasts between the president's own agenda and republican priorities. but president biden will also try to highlht some areas where he believes both parties can work together. joining us here in the studio and watching alongside with us, amy walter, editor-in-chief of "the cook political report with amy walter," david brooks, columnist for the new york times, and jonathan capehart, associate editor of the washington post. geoff: but let's first go to congressional correspondent lisa desjardins, who is inside the house chamber. lisa, we should explain that you are in the chamber in the press gallery above the house floor. what do you see? lisa: this is a crowd that is very up beat. i wouldn't say electric. this is a congress that is

determining its own identity. we will see bitter divide or anger, or will this be a group that is march -- more collegial? tonight we see most republicans on one side, democrats on the other but so far an upbeat mood in the crowd. geoff: the former house speaker nancy police -- nancy pelosi by steny hoyer. amna: we will let you know as soon we watch president biden entered the room. we have our own white house correspondent laura barron lopez who is watching from capitol hill. she joins us. you have been talking to your white house sources getting a preview of what we expect to hear tonight. laura: the white house officials say president biden will talk about finishing the job he stted when he took office two

years ago. he will focus heavily on the economy, ting to express empathy but also optimismbout the road ahead. he will specifically refer to the 12 million jobs he says have been created, the recent analysis says have been created since he took office. he will also say according to expert -- excerpts that -- geoff: we have to interrupt. here is william mcfarland, the house sergeant at arms, announcing the president's arrival. >> mr. speaker, the president of the united states. [applause] geoff: forgive me, laura, for steppi in. please pick up where you ft off. laura: the president will also say covid no longer controls our

lives and will make a plea to republicans about finishing the job he started, saying the mid terms ultimatelyecided they should work together, given that it resulted with a split congress, democrats controlling the senate, republicans taking control of the house. he will save -- say there is no reason republicans can't work with him. geoff: amy, as president biden lays out a laundry list of his objectively historic achievements, there is growing dissatisfaction in the country. more than six in 10 americans believe president biden hasn't done very much. how does the white house change the narrative? amy: this is the arrow we are living in, one in which it is not just that the president has a challenge trying to speak those folks who are saying they feel bad about the direction of the country. our country, partisans feel

differently about what the priorities should be. we talk about, we need more bipartisanship and compromise but the reality is, when you look at the priorities americans say they think congress and the president should work on, very few priorities from democrats are the same as republicans. the pew poll found one of the top four for republicans showed up in the top four for democrats. it was the economy. in 2019 was zero overlap. the president can't fix that. that is part of this system that is in place, where actually ing a compromiser, creating unity, it might sell in terms of making a speech but in terms of selling it as a political strategy, it will not work as well.

amna: david and jonathan, you are waiting to see what the president says. bipartisanship is a big part of what he will be talking about but folks are watching to see if this is a soft launch for a reelection campaign. david: 62% say he hasn't done much. the administration believes they can sort of fix that. a lot of infrastructure spending past last year, those projects will happen this coming year. expect to see biden, if someone is filling a pothole, he will be there. putting up the sign joe biden did this. he talks about the campaign, sounds like he is running for mayor. he will be laying out, i really did do this. amna: he is hitting the road to do exactly that. what are you looking for? jonathan: i'm looking for the president, in addition to him laying out the accomplishments, i'm looking for tone.

i'm lookg for him to speak to the hearts of the american people, not just, i fixed your roads and bridges and i have done all of these things, but i understand the pain and frustration you have. and i understand the fear you have vis a vis law enforcement on the cops. there will be 16 family members of people who have died at the hands of police. the nichols family will be in the audience. i'm looking forward to what the president might say, not just to the family but to all the families around the country, particularly african-american families for whom interaction with law enforcement is not usually positive. geoff: we know the president will emphasize bipartisanship. there has been an internal debate about his -- among his

advisers about how tough he should be on republicans. we will find out. hold that thought. amna: the president will first-hand copies of the speech to speaker mccarthy and vice esident kamala harris, as is tradition. they will hold onto copies because that made for some memorable moments in the past. geoff: kevin mccarthy says he won't rip up the speech. [applause] president biden: thank you. >> members of congress, i have the privilege and honor to present to you, the president of the united states. [applause] president biden: mr. speaker.

you can smile, it is ok. thank you, thank you. thank you. please. mr. speaker, madam vice president, our first lady and second gentleman, good to see you guys up there. [applause] members of congress. [applause] by the way, chief justice, she gets to go to the game tomrow, or next week. i have to stay home. we've got to work something out. members of the cabinet, leaders of the military, chief justice, associate justice, retired justices and you, my fellow

americans. i start by congratulating the 118th congress, the new speaker kevin mccarthy. e] speaker, i don't want to ruin your reputation but i look forward to working with you. i want to congratulate the new leader of the house democrats, the frst african-american minority leader in history, hakeem jeffries. [applause]

i campaigned for him. congratulations to the longest-serving leader in the history of the senate, mitch mcconnell. where are you, mitch? [applause] and congratulations to chuck schumer, another term, senate minority leader. i think -- this time you have a slightly bigger marity, mr. leader. you are the majority leader. i want to give recognition to someone who i think will be considered the greatest speaker in the history of the house of representatives, nancy pelosi. [applause]

folks, the story of america is a story of progress and resilience. of always moving forward, of never, ever giving up. it is a story unique among all nations, as we are the only country that has emerged from every crisis we have ever entered stronger than we got into it. look, folks. that is what we are doing again. two years ago the economy was reeling. i stand here tonight after we created with the help of many people in this room, 12 million new jobs, more jobs created in two years than any resident created in four years, because of you all. [applause] two years ago -- [applause] two years ago, covid had shut down our businesses.

we were robbed of so much. today, covid no longer controls our lives. two years ago, democracy faced its greatest threat since the civil war and today, though bruised, our democracy remains unbound and unbroken. [applause] as we gather here tonight, we are writing the next chapter in the great american story, a story of progress and resilience. world leaders asked me to define america. i say i can define it in one word, possibilities. we don't think anything is beyond our capacity. everything is a possibility. we are often told, decrats and republicans can't work together. over two years we proved the naysayers wrong. yes, we disagree plenty and yes, there are times when democrats

went alone. time and again, democrats and republicans came together, came together to pass will -- a once in a generation infrastructure law, building bridges connecting our nation and our people. we came together to pass the most significant law ever helping victims exposed to toxic burn pits. [applause] it is important. [applause] in fact, i signed over 300 bipartisan pieces of legislation since becoming president. from reauthorizing the yvonne scott act, toward the respect for marriage act, and to my republican friends, we can work together in the last congress and there is no reason we can't

find consensus in this congress as well. [applause] i think the people sent us a clear message. fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflict gets us nowhere. that has always been my vision of the country and it is many of yours. to restore the soul of the nation, rebuild the backbone of america, america's middle class, and unite the country. we have been sent to finish the job. for decades, the middle class has been hollowed out. too many good paying manufacturing jobs moved overseas. factories closed. once thriving cities and towns became shadows of what they used to be. and along the way, something

else we lost, pride. our sense of self-worth. i ran for president of fundamentally change things, to make sure our economy works for everyone so we can all feel pride in what we do. to build an economy from the bottom up, not the top down because when the middle class does wel the poor have a ladder up and the wealthy still do very well. we all do well. [applause] i know a lot of you kid me for quoting my dad but my dad used to say, a job is a lot more than a paycheck. it is about a lot more than a paycheck. it is about your dignity, about respect, about being able to look your kid in the eye and say it is going to be ok, and mean it. folks, let's look at the results. we are not finished by any

stretch. unemployment is at 3.4%, a 50 year low. [applause] near record unemployment. [applause] near record unemployment for black and hispanic workers. we have created 800 thousand good paying manufacturing jobs, the fastest growth in 40 years. and where is it written that america can't lead the world in manufacturing? i don't know where that is written. for too many decades we imported products and exported jobs. thanks to you, we are exporting american products and creating american jobs. [applause] folks. inflation has been a global problem because the pandemic disrupted our supply chains and

pollutant'-- putin's brutal war in ukraineisrupted energy supply and food supply, blocking all the grain in ukraine. we are -- we have more to do. here at home, inflation is coming down. gas prices are down $1.50 from their peak. food inflation is coming down, not fast enough but coming down. inflation has fallen every month for the last six months. take-home pay has gone up. over the last two years, a record 10 million americans applied to start new businesses. 10 million. [applause] and by the way, every time -- [applause] every time someone starts a small business is an act of hope. madam vice president, thank you for leading the effort to ensure the small businesses have access

to capital and historic laws enacted that will come to be. standing here last year, i shared a story of american genius and possibilities. semiconductors, small computer chips the size of a fingerprint that power everything from cell phones to automobiles and so much more. these chips were invented in america. let's get that straight. invented in america. [applause] we used to make 40% of the worlds chips. in the last several decades we lost our edge and are down to producing 10%. we saw what happened during the pandemic when chip factories shut down overseas. today's automobiles need 3000 chips. american automobiles couldn't make enough cars because there weren't enough chips. car prices went up, people got laid off, so did everything from refrigerators to cell phones. we can't let that happen again.

[applause] that's why we came together to pass the bipartisan chips and science act. [applause] i know i have been criticized for saying this but i'm not changing my view. we will make sure the supply chain for america begins in america. the supply chain begins in america. [applause] we have already created -- [applause] we have already created 800,000 new manufacturing jobs before the law kicks in. with the new law, we will create hundreds of thousands of new jobs across the country, all across the country throughout not just the coast but through the middle of the country as well.

that will come from companies that have announced more than $300 billion in investment in american manufacturing over the next few years. outside of columbus, ohio, intel is been -- building semiconductor factories on 1000 acres, a field of dreams that will create 10,000 jobs. 7000 construction jobs, 3000 jobs in the factories when they are finished. jobs paying an average of $130,000 per year, and many don't require a college degree. [applause] because we worked together, these jobs were people don't have to leave home to search for opportunity. it is just getting started. think about the new homes and small businesses, the

medium-sized businesses. so much more is going to be needed to support those 3000 permanent jobs. the factories that will be built. i talked to democrats and republicans, mayors and governors. they will tell you what this means to their communities. seeing these fields of dreams in the heartland. to maintain the strongest economy in the world, we need the best infrastructure in the world. and folks -- [applause] as you well know -- as you all know, we used to be number one in the world and infrastructure. we have sunk to 13th in the world. the united states of america, 13th in the world and infrastructure, modern infrastructure. but we are coming back because we came together and passed a bipartisan infrastructure law, the largest investment since president eisenhower's interstate highway system.

[applause] and folks, already we have funded over 20,000 projects, including major airports in boston, atlanta, portland, projects that will put thousands to work rebuilding highways, bridges, railroads, clean water, high-speed internet across america. urban, rural, tribal, and folks, we are just getting started. we are just getting started. [applause] and i mean this sincerely. i want to thank my republican friends who voted for and against it. i still get asked to fund projects in those districts. don't worry, i promised i would be a president for all americans. we will fund these projects and i will see you at the

groundbreaking. [applause] look. this law, this law will further unite america. projects like a bridge in kentucky over the ohio river, built 60 years ago, badly in need of repair, one of the nation's most congested rate routes carrying $2 billion worth of freight every day across the ohio river. folks, we have talked about fixing it for decades. we are finally going to get it done. i went there last month with democrats and republicans from both states to deliver a commitment of $1.6 billion for the project. [applause] while i was there, i met a young woman named sarah who is here tonight. is she up in the box? sarah, how are you?

sarah, for 30 years -- [applause] for 30 years, she told me she had been a proud member of the ironworkers local ready for. -- local 44. known as the cowboys in the sky. [applause] the folks who built cincinnati's skyline. sarah said she can't wait to be 10 stories above the ohio river building the new bridge. god bless her. that is pride. and we are building back pride. we are replacing poisonous lead pipes that go into 10 million homes in america. 400,000 school and child care centers. so every child in america, every child in america can drink water instead of having permanent damage to their brain. [applause]

we are making sure -- we are making sure that every community , every community in america has access to affordable high-speed internet. no parent should have to drive by a mcdonald's parking lot to help them do their homework online with the kids. many thousands are doing that across the country. when we do these projects, and i get criticized but i make no excuses. we will buy american. we will buy american. [applause] and it is totally consistent with international trade rules. by american has been the law and's 1933 but past administrations have fought to get around it. not anymore. tonight i'm announcing new standards to require all

construction materials used in federal infrastructure projects to be made in america. made in america. [applause] i mean it. lumbar, -- lumber, drywall, fiber-optic cable. bridges and highways will be ma with american products as well. my plan is about investing in places and people that have been forgotten. so many of you listening tonight , i know you feel it. so many of you felt like you have simply been forgotten. too many people have been left behind and treated like they are invisible. maybe that is you, watching from home. remember the jobs that went away? you remember them, don't you? folks at home remember them.

you wonder whether the path even exists anymore for your children to get ahead without having to move away. that is why -- i get that. that is why we are building an economy where no one is left behind. jobs are coming back. pride is coming back. because choices we made in the last several years -- you know, this is my view of rebuilding america. make a real difference in yo lives at home. for example, too many of you lay in bed at night, like my dad did, staring at the ceiling wondering what in god's name happens if your spouse gets cancer, or your child gets deathly ill, or something ppens to you. will you have the money to pay those medical bills? you may have to sell the house or get a second mortgage on it. i get it.

i get it. with the inflation reduction act i signed into law, we are taking on powerful interest to bring down health care costs so you can sleep better at night with more security. we pay more for prescription drugs then any nation in the world. let me say it again, we pay more for prescription drugs than any majonation on earth. for example, one in 10 americans has diabetes. many of you in this chamber do. and in the audience. but every day, millions need insulin to control diabetes so they can literally stay alive. insulin has been around for over 100 years. the guy who invented it didn't patent it because he wanted it to be available for everyone. it cost the drug companies roughly $10 per vial to make the insulin, package and all you may get up to $13. big pharma has been unfairly

charging people for hundred dollars to $500 per month, making record profits. not anymore. not anymore. [applause] so many things that we did our only now coming to fruition. we said we were doing this and we said we would pass the law to do it. pele didn't know because the law didn't take effect until january of this year. we capped the cost of insulin at $35 per month for seniors. [applause] people are just finding out. i'm sure you are getting the same calls i'm getting.

there are millions of other americans who do not, who are not on medicare, including 200,000 young people with type one diabetes who need insulin to stay alive. let's finish the job this time. lets cap the cost of insulin for everyone at $35. [applause] big pharma will stoop -- still do very well, i promise you. this will also cap, it won't go into effect until 2025 but, the cost, the out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors on medicare at a maximum of $2000 per year. you don't have to pay more than $2000 per year no matter your drug costs. you know why? you all know. many of you and many in my

family have cancer. the drugs can range from $10,000, $11,000, $15,000 for cancer drugs. drug prices rise faster than inflation and drug companies will have to pay medicare back difference. -- will have toay medicare back the difference. we are finally giving medicare the power to negotiate drug prices, bringing down prescription drug costs. it doesn't just save seniors money. it costs the fedal -- cut the federal deficit by billions of dollars, hundreds of billions of dollars. because these prescription drugs are drugs purchased by medicare to keep their commitment to the seniors. guess what? instead of paying $400 or $500 per month, you are paying $15. that is a lot of savings for the federal government.

why would we want that? now some members here are threatening, and i know it is not a party decision so i'm not going to exaggerate. but repealing the inflation reduction act. that's ok. that's fair. as my football coach used to say, lots of luck in your senior year. make no mistake. if you try anything to raise the cost of prescription drugs, i will veto it. [applause] look. i'm pleased to say more americans have health insurance now than ever in history. a record 16 million people are enrolled in the affordable care act. thanks to the law i signed last year, saving millions, $800 per year on their premiums.

that law was written and the benefit expires in 2025. so my plea to some of you in this audience, let's finish the job and make the savings permanent. expand coverage of medicare. [applause] look. the inflation reduction act is also the most significant investment ever in lima change. ever. -- in climate change. ever. lower utility bills. american jobs. leading the world to a clean energy future. i visited the aftermath of droughts, storms, floods and wildfires from arizona to the canadian border. more timber has been burned that i have oerved from helicopters than the entire state of missouri. and we don't have global warming?

in addition to emergency recovery from puerto rico and florida to idaho, we are rebuilding for the long-term. new electric grids that are able to weather storms and prevent forest fires. roads and water systems that can withstand the next flood. clean energy to create jobs and communitieoften left behind. we will build 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations installed that will cost -- that will help workers. we are helping families of tax credits to purchase electric vehicles and efficient appliances, energy-efficient alliances. historic conservation efforts to be responsible stewards of our land. let's face reality. the climate crisis doesn't care if you are in a red or blue state. it is an existential threat. we have an obligation not to

ourselves but our children and grandchildren to confront it. i'm proud of how america at last is stepping up to the challenge. we will still need oil and gas for a while, but guess what? we do. but there is so much more to do. we have to finish the job. we pay for these investments in our future by finally making the wealthiest and biggest corporations begin to pay their fair share. [applause] just begin. [applause] i'm a capitalist. but pay your fair share. i think a lot of you at home, a lot of you at home will agree and many people you know. the tax system is not fair. it is not fair. [applause] look.

the idea that in 2020, 55 of the largest corporations in america in the fortune 500 made $40 billion in profits and paid zero in federal taxes? zero? folks, that is simply not fair. now, because of the law i signed, billion dollar companies have to pay a minimum of 15%. god love them. 15%. that is less than a nurse pays. [applause] let me be clear. i said at the beginning under my plans, as long as i'm president nobody earning less than or hundred thousand dollars will pay an additional penny in taxes. not one penny. let's finish the job. there is more to do. we have to reward work, not just

well. past my proposal for the billionaire minimum tax. there are 1000 billionaires in america come up from 600 at the beginning of my term, and no billionaire should pay a lower tax rate than a schoolteacher or firefighter. i mean it. think about it. [applause] look. [applause] think about it. have you noticed big oil reported record profits? last year they made $200 billion in the midst of a global energy crisis. i think it is outrageous. why? they invested too little of that profit to increase domestic production. when i talked to them they said

we are afraid you will shut down the oil wells and refineries anays so why should invest in them? i said we will need oil for at least another decade. and beyond that. we will need it. production. if they had infected in the -- invested in the production they could keep gas prices down. instead they bought back their own stock. rewarding ceos and shareholders. corporations ought to do the right thing. that is why i propose we quadruple the stock -- the tax on cporate stock buybacks. they will still make considerable profit. [applause] let's finish the job anclose loopholes that allow the wealthy to avoid paying taxes. i signed a law to reduce the deficit by $114 billion by

cracking down on wealthy tax cheat. let's be fiscally responsible. [applause] in the last two years, my administration has cut the deficit by more than $1.7 trillion. the largest deficit reduction in american history. under the previous administration, the american deficit went up four years in a row because those record deficits, no president added more than -- to the national debt in four years than my predecessor. nearly 25% of the entire national debt that took over 200 years to accumulate was added by just one administration alone. those are the facts. check it out. check it out. how did congress respond? they did the right thing. they lifted the debt ceiling

without preconditions or crisis. they paid the american bills to prevent an economic disaster in the country. tonight i'm asking congress to follow suit. let's commit to the full faith of the united states of america will never be questioned. some of my republican friends want to take the economy hostage. i get it. unless i agree to their economic plans. alof you at home should know what those plans are. instead of making the wealthy pay their fair share, some republicans want medicare and social security sunset. i'm not saying it is a majority. let me give you, anybody who doubts it, contact my office. i will give you a copy. i will give you a copy of the proposal. that means congress doesn't vote .

i'm glad to see -- i tell you, i enjoy conversion. if congress doesn't keep the progms the way they are, i'm not saying it is a majority of you. i don't even think it is a significant -- what is being proposed, it is by individuals. i'm politely not naming them but they it -- it is being proposed by some of you. folks. the idea is that we are not going to be moved into being threatened to default on the debt if we don't respond. [applause] so folks, as we all apparently agree, social security and medicare is off the books now, right? [applause]

all right. we have unanimity. social security and medicare are a lifeline for americans. we have to pay into them from our first paycheck. tonight let's agree, let's stand up for seniors. [applause] stand up and show them, we will not cut social security. we will not cut medicare. those benefits belong to the american people that earned them. if anybody tries to cut social security, which apparently nobody is going to do, if anybody tries to strip medare, i will stop them. i will veto it. i won't allow them to take away that, not ever. apparently it will not be a

problem. next month when i offer my fiscal pn i asked my republican friends to lay down their plan as well. i mean it. let's sit down together and discuss our mutual plans together. let's do that. [applause] i can tell you, the plan i will show you will cut the deficit by $2 trillion and won't cut a single bit of medicare or social security. we will extend the medicare trust fund for two decades. how do we keep it solid? well, i will not raise taxes on anyone making under $400,000 but we will pay for it like we talked about, making sure the wealthy and big corporations pay their fair share. here is the deal. they aren't just taking advantage of the tax code.

they are taking advantage of the american csumer. here is my message to you. i have your back. we are preventing americans from receiving surprise medical bills, stopping $1 billion surprised bills per month so far. protecting seniors' life savings by cracking down on nursing homes that commit fraud, endanger patient safety, prescribe drugs that are needed. millions can save thousands of dollars because they can finally get a hearing aid over without a prescription. -- over-the-counter without a prescription. look. capitalism without competition is not capitalism, it is extortion. it is exploitation. last year, i cracked down with the help of many of you on foreign shipping companies making you pay higher prices for every good coming into the country. i signed a bipartisan bill to

cut shipping costs by 90%, helping american farmers and consumers. let's finish the job. pass the bipartisan legislation to prevent big online platforms from giving their own products and unfair advantage. [applause] my administration is taking on junk feeds, hidden surcharges used to make you pay more. we are making airlines sho you the full ticket price upfront, refund your money if your flight is canceled or delayed, reduce exorbitant bank overdraft by saving consumers more than $1 billion per year. cutting credit card late fees by 75% from $30 to eight dollars. [applause]

junk fees may not matter to the very wealthy but they matter to most folks, like the home i grew up in. they add up to hundreds of dollars a month. they make it harder for you to pay your bills and afford that family trip. i know how unfair it feels when a company overcharges you and gets away with it. not anymore. we have written a bill to stop it called the junk fee prevention act. we will ban surprise resort fees that hotels charge that can cost up to $90 per night at hotels that aren't even resorts. the idea that cable, internet and cell phone companies can charge you $200 or more if you decide to switch to another provider? give me a break. we can stop service fees on tickets to concerts and sporting eventsnd make companies

disclose all fees upfront. we will prohibit airlines from charging $50 round-trip for a family just to be able to sit together. baggage fees are bad enough. airlines can't treat your child like a piece of baggage. americans are tired of being played for suckers. [applause] so pass the junk fee protection act so companies stop ripping us off. for too long, workers have been getting stiffed. but not anymore. we are beginning to restore the dignity of work. for example, i should have known this but i didn't until two years ago. 30 million workers have to sign noncompete agreements with the jobs they take. 30 million. so a cashier at a burger place can't walk across town and take the same job at another burger place and make a few bucks more.

i changed it because we exposed it. that was part of the deal, guys. look it up. but not anymore. we are banning those agreements were companies have to compete for workers and pay them what they are worth. [applause] and i must tell you. this is found to get a response -- bound to get a response from my friends. i'm tired of companies breaking the law by preventing workers from organizing. pass the proactive. business -- the pro act. workers have the right to form a union. let's guarantee workers have a living wage and parents can afford to raise a family with paid family medical leave, affordable childcare, sick leave. that will enable millions more

people to stay at work. let's restore the full child tax credit, which gave tens of millions of parents some breathing room and cut child poverty in half to the lowest level in history. by the way, we do all of these things, increase productivity, increase economic growth, so let's finish the job. let's get more families access to affordable quality housing. let's get seniors who want to stay in their homes the care they need to do so. let's get more breathing room to millions of caregivers looking after their loved ones. pass my plan so we can get seniors and people with disabilities the home care and services they need. support the workers who are doing god's work. [applause] these plans, we can afford to do them. restoring the dignity of work means making education and affordable ticket to theiddle class. when we made public education 12

years of it, universal in the last century, we made the best educated, best -- we became the best educated, best paid nation in the world. but the rest of the world caught up. my wife teaches full-time and has an expression. i hope i get it right, kid. any nation that out educates us is going to outcompete us. folks, we know 12 years of education is not enough to win the economic competition of the 21st century. we want to have the best educated workforce. let's finish the job. by providing access to preschool , for 3-4 years old. studies show children who go to preschool are nearly 50% more likely to finish high school and go on to earn a two or four year degree, no matter the background they came from. let's give public school teachers a raise. [applause]

we are making progress by reducing student debt, increasing pell grants for working and middle-class families. let's finish the job and connect students to career opportunities starting in high school to provide access to two years of community college. the best career training in america in addition to a pathway to a four year degree. let's offer every american to a path, whether they go to college or not. folks, in the midst of the covid crisis, when schools were closed, and we were shutting down everything, let's recognize how far we have come in the fight against the pandemic itself. while the virus is not gone,

thanks to the resilience of the american people and the ingenuity of medicine, we have broken the covid grip on us. covid deaths are down by 90%. we saved millions of lives and opened up our country. soon, we will end the public health emergency. that is called a public health emergency. we will remember the pain. it is never going to go away. more than one million americans lost their lives to covid. one million. families grieving, children orphaned, empty chairs at the dining room table, constantly reminding you that they used to sit there. membering them. we remain vigilant. we still need to monitor dozens of variants and support vaccines and treatments. congress needs to keep america

safe. as we emerge from this crisis stronger, we have to double down on prosecuting criminals who stole relief money meant to keep workers and small businesses afloat. [applause] before i came to office, the big issue was about inspector general's who would protect xpayer dollars. they were fired. many people said we don't need them. fraud became rampant. last year, i told you the watchdogs are back. since then, we have recovered billions of taxpayer dollars. let's triple the antifraud strike force going after these crinals, doubled the statute of limitations and crack down on the identity fraud by criminal

syndicates stealing billions of dollars from the american people. the data shows that for every dollar we put into fighting fraud, the taxpayer gets back 10 times as much. it matters. covid left scars. like the spike in violent crime in 2020, the first year of the pandemic. we have an obligation to make sure all people are safe. public safety depends on public trust, as all of us know. too often that trust is violated. joining us tonight are the parents of tyre nichols. welcome. [applause] they had to bury tyre last week.

as many of you personally know, there are no words to describe the heartache of losing a child. but imagine, imagine if you lost that child at the hands ofhe law. imagine having to worry whether your son and daughter comes home from walking down the street playing in the park or driving a car. most of us in here have never had to have the talk. the talk that brown and black parents have to have with children. i never had to talk to my children. i never had to tell them if a police officer pulls you over, turn your interior lights on right away. don't reach for your license. keep your hands on the steering wheel. imagine having to worry like that every single time.

here is what tyre's mother shared with me, when i asked how she finds the courage to speak out and carry on. she said her son was a beautiful soul, and something good will come of this. imagine how much courage that takes. it is up to all of us. we want neighborhoods free of violence. we wanlaw enforcement that earns the community's trust. just like everyone who puts on the badge in the morning has the right to go home at night, so does everyone else out there. our children has a right -- have a right to come home safely. equal protection under the law is a covenant we have with each other in america.

we know police officers put their lives on the line every night and day. we know we ask them in many cases to be social workers, psychologists, responding to drug overdoses and mental health crises and much more. in one sense, we ask too much of them. most cops and their families are decent, honorable people. the best majority. -- the vast majority. [applause] they risk their lives every time they put the shield on. what happened to tyre in memphis happens too often. we have to do better, give line was meant the real training they need, holds them to higher standards, help them succeed in keeping us se. we need more first responders and professionals to address

mental health and substance abuse challenges. more resources to reduce crime, community intervention programs, investment in housing, education and job training. all this can help prevent violence in the first place. police officers violate the public trust must be held accountable. with the support of the families of the victims, civil rights groups and law enforcement, i signed an executive order for all fedel officers banning chokeholds, restricting no-knock warrants and other key elements of the george floyd act. let's commit to making the words of tyre's mom true.

something good much -- must come from this. something must. [applause] all of us. [applause] folks, it is difficult, but it simple. all of us in this chamber, we need to rise in this moment. you can't turn away. let's do what we know in our hearts that we need to do. let's come together to finish the job on police reform. do something. that was the plea of parents who lost their children in uvalde. i met with everyone of them. do something about gun violence. [applause]

thank god we did. passing the most sweeping gun safety law in three decades. that includes things like that the majority of responsible gun owners already support. and hence background checks for 18 to 21-year-olds. red flag laws, keeping guns out of the hands of people who are a danger to themselves and others. but we know our work is not done. joining us tonight is brandon tsay, a 26-year-old hero. he was at his mom's side when she was dying from cancer. [applause] and brandon now works at the dance studio started by his grandparents. two weeks ago during the lunar new year celebrations, he

heard the studio door close and saw a man pointing a semiautomatic pistol at him. he thought he was going to die but he thought about the people inside. he found the courage to act and rustle the semiautomatic pistol away from the gunman who had already killed 11 other people. he saved lives. it is time we do the same. ban assault weapons now. ban them now, once and for all. [applause] i led the fight to do that in 1994. in 10 years, it was law and mass shootings went down. we let it expire in the republican administration and mass shootings tripled. let's finish the job. let's also come to -- together

on immigration. make it a bipartisan issue once again. we know we now have a record number of personnel working to secure the border, arresting 8000 human smugglers, seizing over 23,000 pounds of fentanyl in the last several months. we launched a new border plan last month. unlawful migration from cuba, haiti, nicaragua and venezuela has come down 97% as a consequence of that, but american border problems won't be fixed until congress at. if we don't pass the comprehensive immigration reform, at least provide the plan to provide equipment to the officers to secure the border. a pathway to citizenship for dreamers. those on temporary status, farmworkers, essential workers.

here in the people's house, it is our duty to protect all the peoples rights. congress must restore the right that was taken away in roe v. wade, and protect roe v. wade. [applause] give every woman they're right. the vice president and i are doing everything to protect access to reproduction health care. already more than a dozen states are forcing extreme abortion bands. if congress passes a national ban, i will veto it. [applause] let's also pass the bipartisan equality act and ensure lgbtq

americans, especlly transgender young people, can live with safety and dignity. our strength is not just an example of our power, but the power of our example. let's remember the world is watching. i spoke from this chamber one year ago, just days after vladimir putin unleashed a brutal attack against ukraine. a murderous assault, invoking images of death and suffering in world war ii. . putin's invasion has been a test for the ages. a test for america. a test for the world. would we stand for the most basic of principles? would we stand for soveignty? we stand for the right of people who live free of tyranny? would we stand for democracy? such defense matters to us because it keeps peace and prevents open season.

one year later, we know the answer. yes, we would, and read it. -- and we did. together, we did what america always does at our best, we lead. we united nato. we built a global coalition. we stood against putin's aggression. we stood with ukrainian people. tonight we are once again joined by ukrainians at bassett are to the united states -- ambassador to the united states. we are united in support of the country. will you stand? [applause] thank you.

because we are going to stand with you. as long as it takes. our nation is working for more freedom, more dignity, more peace, not just in europe, but everywhere. before i came to office, the story was about how the people's republic of china was increasing its power and america was failing in the world. not anymore. we made clear and in my personal conversations have been many with president xi, we see competition not conflict, but we are investing to make america stronger. investing in our alliances and working with our allies to protect advanced technology so they will not be used against us. modernizing our military to

safeguard stability and deter aggression. today, we are in the strongest position in decades to compete with tran or anyone else in the world any -- chinor anyone else in the world, anywhere else in the world. [applause] i'm committed to working with china where we can advance american interests and benefit the world, but make no mistake. if china threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country, and we did. [applause] let's be clear. winning the competition -- we face serious challenges across the world but in the past two years, democracies have become stronger, not weaker. name me a world leader who changed places with xi jinping.

name me one. america is rallying the world to meet those challenges from climate to global health, to food insecurity, terrorism. allies are stepping up and doing more. the bridges were forming between partners in the pacific and those in the atlantic, and those who bet against america are learning how wrong they are. it has never been a good bet bet against america, never. [applause] >> [chanting] usa! pres. biden: when i came to office, most assumed bipartisanship was impossible.

last year we made real progress together. we passed a law making it easier for doctors to pass prescriptions for opioid addiction. we passed historic legislation on mental health. we launched a breakthrough in the fight against cancer, alzheimer's, and diabetes, and so much more. lee past -- we passed legislation about toxic burn pits that i shared here last year, named after an iraq war veteran. [applause] i understand somethingbout those burn pits. there's so much more to do. we can do it together. joining utonight is a father named doug, from newton, new hampshire. he wrote my wife jill a letter, and me as well, about his

courageous daughter courtney. contagious laugh, her sister's best friend. he shared the story all too familiar to millions of americans and many of you in the audience. courtney discovered pills in high school. it spiraled into addiction, and eventually death from a fentanyl overdose. she was just 20 years old. describing the last eight years without her, doug said, there's no worse pain. yet, their family has turned pain to purpose, working to end a stigma and change laws. he told us he wants to start a journey to american recover. doug, we are with you. for internal -- fentanyl is killing more than 70,000 americans a year.

so let's launch a major surge and stop fentanyl production at the sale and trafficking, with more drug inspection machines, to stop pills at the border. [applause] working with fedex to inspect more packages, strong penalties to crack down on functional trafficking. let's do more on mental health, especially for our children. when millions of young people are struggling with bullying, violence, trauma, we need to have better access to mental health care at schools. we must hold social media, bernese accountable for the experimenting they are doing with children for profit. it is time to pass bipartisan legislation to stop big tech from collecting personal data on american and teenagers online.

ban targeted advertising on children and impose stricter limits on the personal data companies collect on all of us. third, let's do more to keep this nation with one fully sacred obligation to equip those we send into harm's way and protect their families when they come home. job training for veterans an their spouses as they return to civilian life. helping veterans of the rent because no one should be homeless in americaespecially someone who served the country. [applause] denis mcdonough is here from the v.a. we had our first real discussion when i asked him to take the job, i'm glad he did. we were losing up to 25 veterans a day to suicide. now we're losing 16 a day -- 17

veterans a day. more than all the people being killed in the wars. folks, the v.a. is doing everything it can, including expanding mental health screening, programs that recruit veterans to help other veterans understand what they are going through and get them the help they need. we have to do more. and fourth, last year, jill and i reignited the cancer moonshot and i was able to start with president obama. the goal is to cut cancer death rates at least by 50% in the next 25 years. turn more cancers from death sentences into treatable diseases, provide more support for patients and their families. it is personal to so many of us.

joining us are morris and candace.they met and fell in love in new york city. kindred spirits. he wrote us a letter about his little daughter ava, and i saw her just before i came over. she was just a year old when she was diagnosed with a rare kidney disease. after 26 blood transfusions, 11 rounds of radiation, eight rounds of chemo, one kidney removal, given a 5% survival rate. he wrote how in the darkest moments, he thought if she goes, i can't stay. many of you have been through that as well. jill and i understand that like so many of you. he read joel's book describing our cancer family journey and how we try to steal moments of joy wh we could with bo.

for them, that moment of joy was the smile of their baby girl. it meant everythg to them. they never gave up hope. little ava never gave up hope. she turns four next month. [applause] they just found out, ava has beaten the odds, and is on her way to being cured of cancer, and she's watching from the white house tonight, if she's not asleep already. [applause] for the lives we can save and the lives we've lost, let this be a truly american moment that rallies the country and the world together, and prove we can still do big things. 20 years ago in the leadership of president bush and countless advocates and champions, he undertook a bipartisan effort to transform the global fight

against hiv-aids. it's been a huge success. he thought big, he thought large. i believe we can do the same thing with cancer. [applause] let's end cancer as we know it. here are some cancers -- cure some cancers once and for all. there's one reason why we have unable to do these things. our democracy itself. it is the most fundamental thing of a. with democracy, everything is possible. without it, nothing is.the last few years, our democracy has been threatened and attacked, put at risk, put to the test. and then just a few months ago, and unhinged big lie assailant

unleashed political violence at the home of the speaker of the house, using the same language the insurrectionists used as they stocked these halls on january 6. here tonight in this chamber is the man who bears the scars of that brutal attack, but is as tough and strong and resilient as they get. my friend, paul pelosi. stand up. [applause] such a heinous act should have never happened. we must all speak out. there is no place for political violence in america. we have to protect the right to vote, not suppress. we have to uphold the rule of law and restore trust in institutions and democracy. we must give hate and extremism

any form no safe harbor. [applause] democracy must not be a partisan issue. it is an american issue. every generation of americans has faced a moment where they have been called to protect our democracy. this is our moment. my fellow americans, we meet tonight at an inflection point. one of those moments in only a few generations we ever face. the direction we now take is going to decide the course of this nation decades to come. we are not bystanders of history. we a not powerless to the forces that confront us. it is within our power of the people. we are facing the test of our time. we have to be the nation we've always been at our best,

optimistic, hopeful, forward-looking. a nation that has light, unity over division, stability over chaos. we have to see each other not as enemies but as fellow americans.we are good people . the only nation in the world built on an ideal. the only one. [applause] other nations areefined by geography or ethnicity, but we are the only nation based on an idea that all of us, everyone of us is created equal in the image of god, a nation that stands as a beacon to the world, a nation in a new age of possibilities. i have come to fulfill my constitutional obligation to report on the state of the union. here's my report. because the soul of this nation

is strong, because the backbone of this nation is strong, because the people of this nation are strong, the state of the union is strong. [appuse] i'm not new to this place. i stand here tonight having served as long as anyone of you have ever served here. but i've never been more optimistic about our future, about the future of america. just to remember who we are. we are the united states of america and there's nothing beyond our capacity if we do it together. god bless you all and may god protect our troops. thank you. [applaus amna: and we have been listening

to president biden's state of the union address. he just wrapped up his remarks. you can see him shaking hands with vice president kamala harris. the president will make his way out of the chamber and in a few minutes, we will have the republican response. the president covering a wide range of topics hitting notes of bipartisanship, touting economic success and pleading with members of congress to finish the job as he said repeatedly in his remarks. we are watching alongside our panelists as we see president biden shaking hands with members of congress on his way out. jonathan capehart is here with us. give me a sense of what stood out to you. jonathan: what we saw was a president on fire, a president who has a strong record to tout lots of accomplishments, things

that have been passed that he can talk about, numbers, facts and figures we can already talk about, projecting into the future of more things to come that have not been implemented yet. you brought up the thing that stood out to me, let's finish the job. he brought the tone that i was looking for and he ended his speech in the way he ends basically all of his big speeches and that is when he gets to the point where he says we are the united states of america. he almost growls it in a forceful, passionate way to remind us in word and in tone that this is a nation that when we put our minds to it, we can get a lot of things done. so by repeating that line at the end of every speech, he's trying to move us to a place that we are still seemingly reticent to move to, just because of the polarization of the country.

amna: david brooks, president biden hit a number of notes, talking partisanship, appealing directly to republicans, saying my friends, if we worked together before, we can still work together. there were some raucous back-and-forth's during the proceedings, but he came right out in a disarming way and congratulated speaker mccarthy for being there. what did you make of the way he spoke to folks across the aisle? david: if you look at his policies, a lot of them are going to republicans. a lot of them go to high school educated folks in red states. that is pretty joe biden. the economy he cares about is the woman repairing bridges in cincinnati. that is the core of where his heart of america is. . i thought politically, a lot of democrats will be heartened if they thought he was getting too old and tired, i think this will be an antidote to that. they will say, i feel comfortable with this guy.

i thought the phrase the left out blue color blueprint to rebuild america, that's who he is. quite a strong speech for a congress that did a lot. finally we began to see the marjorie taylor greenes, the house of commons raucous is going on, and that is a sign that the tongues of extremism are still in the room. he dealt with them i thought pretty well. amna: and a sign of a challenge for speaker mccarthy. >> president biden speaking for an hour and 12 minutes. you can see right there that is president biden in his element. we don't know how long he will stay on the house floor. amy: in the way he introduced his speech. he went through every leader. he loves this place. he loves being in congress and around. obviously right now he's around a lot of military officials. i think david's point is really good about the fact that he came out as sort of forcefully and

energetically, and i don't think we've ever seen president and congress negotiate in real-time during a state of the union about the debt ceiling. that is definitely a brand-new thing. >> this was an active point of debate, whether to cut social security or medicare overall in terms of the debt limit debate. he said we can both agree we will stay. >> and if you look at your twitter timeline, democrats on the timeline are really excited i what they saw. here they saw a look, biden is getting them, he still has it. the other thing i thought was interesting is how he ended his ste of the union address. it is a lot like how he ended the 20 campaign, how he got into his campaign in 2020, about protecting democracy, light against darkness, the idea of being optimistic and hopeful,

but centering so much of what he talks about as a contrast to the previous four years. he brought up january 6 as well but a contrast to that. geoff: the one area of the speech that i'm told was being changed was the part focusing on china. president biden talks about how his organizing principle of the world is how the u.s. is locked in this intractable battle between autocracies and democracies and we have to prove democracy can work. >> in the speech he said i make clear with president xi that we make competition, not conflict. it struck me as de-escalation. >> yes, there phrase these days is guardrails. we will have conflict with china and they will send balloons over our country, but they want guardrails so when there's a real crisis, we will not step outside our bounds and there will be a floor of stability that we will not sync below and

risk conflict. he made a vague referenced which is he thinks xi is so pummeled by problems, demographic decline, covid, he worries about what a week china might do more than what we used to worry about which was a dominant china. >> we have lisa desjardins still there at her perch atop the house floor in the gallery. give us a sense of what you saw. it was a very active crowd, times unruly, house chamber. fill us in. lisa: so many thoughts. at the beginning, the section where he was talking about a lot of statistics and numbers, bragging about his accomplishments, that's when we saw the crowd listened but not as emotional. as it got into sections about the border in particular and china, we saw and a rupture in from the republican side.

i'm still digesting, i witnessed something like a house of the british parliament, or more like a barroom? there was a real lack of restraint on the part of republicans, not just from who we usually suspect like marjorie taylor greene who has had outbursts today and in the past, but other republicans yelling on the floor of the chamber. it makese think there is still this underlying political lack of ability not only for discourse, but airing on the side of shouting in a way i have not felt before. this was different. more people yelling at different points in the speech. otherwise, republicans collectively had a number of eye rolls and big questn marks where they felt president biden was out of line and did not seem to understand him. as he exits the chamber now, i have to say there are not that

many members who have waited to speak to him. there are a few, but mostly he's spoke to cabinet members, members of the military and supreme court. most of the members of congress have exited. probably the smallest crowd of members of congress waiting to speak to any president i've seen at the state of the union at this point. amna: we should note as we are watching, we can see behind the president speaker mccarthy looked to be shushing some of the republican members yelling out in real-time. we also saw moments in which republicans were applauding for a few lines, specifically around the economy. what did you notice in the chamber? lisa: there clearly is a separation over the facts and numbers between democrats and republicans. we think we will hear this more in the coming days.

i think they have bigger problems here with issues on the border and the president when he said he wanted moneyor more border patrol agents. that's when i saw even moderate members of the republican side raistheir hands and say what are you talking about? people who have never heard that out loud in the speech thought he was out of line. also, i was surprised, the number of times he said he wanted to work with republicans, i saw most of the republican conference sitting down, not applauding. just one time when he reached out to them did i see there republican conference stand and say we want to work with you, too. amna: lisa desjardins, congressional correspondent in the chamber as president biden makes his way out after delivering the state of the union. our white house correspondent laura baroni lopez is also on capitol hill and has watched this on capitol hill. what stood out to you?

i know you were speaking to white house officials. i noticed also a lot of empathy coming from the president, repeated use of e line "i get it. " laura: a few things stood out. particularly talking to americans feeling that he knows they may not believe this economic picture and understands americans may not know what was passed in some of the laws he signed last year, because they did not take effect until january this year. that was something that was not in h prepared remarks and he halived on -- ad-libbed on. he was talking about the cap on insulin prices, capping it at $3for seniors on medicare. he called on congress to go further and cap insulin costs for all americans.

the other thing that stood out was when the president talked about combating inflation through specifically junk fees. this is something the white house has been focused on a lot lately, this proposal, talking about trying to go after bank overdraft fees, credit card late fees, and a line that stood out saying that airlines are treating your children like baggage. this is him trying to clearly show that he hears that not all americans are feelinas though they are getting help in their pocketbooks. this has been a key element for the white house in recent months. lastly, when president joe biden talked about "the talk," which is the talk black and brown families have with their kids about police and interactions with police, to hear a white presidt talk about that, especially after he worked as vice president for president barack obama, it reminded me of when obama specifically talked

about the personal feelings he felt when trayvon martin was killed in 2012, and that if he had had a son, his son would have looked like trayvon martin. president biden, this is an issue that police brutality as well as the rational -- racial reckoning the country has faced is something he struggled with during the 2020 campaign. he came under fire from fellow democrats including senator cory booker and senator kamala harris for the way he talked about how he word with segregationists in the senate. this is something to hear him come full circle and aggressively talk about what it was like, in that empathetic tone, that was really striking. amna: a powerful moment and acknowledging as well the parents of tyre nichols in the chamber watching all that. amy walter here in the studio with us. the other thing we noted as the president was talking, many

cases directly to middle-class americans, talking about repeating the promise that people making under $400,000 a year will not see an increase in taxes. there's also a listing of everyday frustrations we hear from americans all the time. i did not expect to hear about resort fees or drunk -- junk fees or credit card overages. amy: i did not either. this is a man who lives in the details and day-to-day lives. most americans are not engaged in policy and the way the people around this table and in that room are.there day-to-day existence about -- is about what is government doing to make my life a little better and less challenging? no, it is not changing the world or turning the world on its axis to take a resort fee out, but it suggests that it's the little things that add up. the family economy, the budget that you are worried for everyone one of these little expenses.

if you are republicans, you say the reason they are worried is because everything is more expensive now. inflation is because of joe biden's reckless spending. that's the argument you should expect to hear from republicans after the president leaves the chamber and over the course of the campaign in 2024.i think the fact that the president spent most of his time talking about what he had already accomplished, the 300 bipartisan bills that were already past, rather than trying to focus on big huge things we will get done in the next two years, is a nod to the reality of a divided congress and the fact that he's going to be spending a lot more time the next year and a half talking about what has happened as opposed to what could happen. geoff: jonathan capehart, can we talk about the new urgency democrats are trying to inject into the new police reform

effort? i saw congressman al green on the floor and he has a button. we saw members of the congressional black caucus wearing the 1870 pins, marking thyear the first unarmed, free black man, who was killed by a police officer. we heard president biden invoke the words of tyre nichols' mom, saying he was a beautiful soul and something good will come of this. i certainly wish misses wells grace and peace. that something good might not come in the form of police legislation because the underlying george floyd bill was tanked. jonathan: right. before you had a democratic-controlled senate and house. it passed the house and then went dn in a ball of flames because cory booker of new jersey democrat, and tim scott

republican from south carolina uld not come to an agreement. with the help of los angeles mayor karen bass, who was a member of congress who helped shepherd it through, it fell apart with qualified immunity and other things. now the idea you would get a george floyd justice and policing act or any police reform to the congress that is there now is wishful thinking. i do think that the white house, the president in particular, and certainly majority leader schumer and minority leader jeffries in the house are very well aware of the reality they face. i think they also know that they can't not try, that they must do something. we saw tyre nichols, before tyre nichols, there was walter scott in south carolina. there have been many. if they give up, even in the

face of the impossibility, they are saying to americans, saying to black aricans, we don't care. and from all the meetings i've been to today, from listening to the president of the united states, there is no doubt in my mind that theyare and that they want to do something. it is just too bad that folks on the others of the aisle can't meet them even halfway. geoff: to your point, on this issue, it is republicans who hold all the cards. understanding the point you make about the imperative to not ge up as democrats see it, the democrats risk falsely inflating people's hopes, people who care about the issue that something can get done, when it looks like nothing can get done. jonathan: youan blame them, if democrats in their message don't say we are on board, but republicans aren't. you have to talk about the issue and then the impediment to the

solution. the impediment to the solution are the republicans. so keep hammering away at the topic and the issue, because unfortunately there is going to be another tyre nichols. we just don't know where. we just don't know when. it breaks my heart that i even can say that with supreme confidence, but that's where we are. amna: we are watching president biden make his way out of the chamber. we are joinefor some reaction by congresswoman cheryl of new jersey serving on the armed services committee and the new committee on china. give us your quick takeaway in terms of what you heard from the president. he came out with a strong message of bipartisanship but there were raucous more moments with republican members. what did you make of that? >> i think it is the president's focus on bipartisanship that is so important as we go into this

divided congress. i think he made strong statement about what we have achieved and how it will impact the future. and then made some pleas to people in the chamber to continue this work and make sure we continue to move for it on infrastructure. it was good to hear the president stand up to that because i know within the caucus, we have a lot of bipartisan support to move forward on the new china committee. amna: one of the key republican criticisms we've heard has been the administration of to the discovery of that spy balloon from china. do you think the president did enough to quell some of those concerns? >> i was just in a house armed services committee hearing and that was presented to the former admiral.

he seems pleased with that situation. certainly covering the information from that surveillance equipment since we shot it over the water. i'm still delving into the situation andet more information from a classified roofing tomorrow morning. from what i have heard to date, it seems there was a thoughtful reaction, as long as we can assure ourselves the surveillance was being jammed during the time it was over our country. amna: there were clearly areas of disagreement between the president and republican members in the chamber. we did see some republicans applauding at certain moments including things like supply chain and economic policy. as you look ahead to the divided congress, where do you see the shared areas of interest where you believe democrats and

republicans can work together to get something done? >> you laid out some of the obvious ones. i was on the defense critical supply chain task force. our base does so much with the munitions and supply chain and look at rare earth minerals, where we are receiving goods into the supply chain, making it more resilient. that's an area we can all work together and we agree must be addressed. there are other things like rebuilding the nation's infrastructure and reassuring american manufacturing. there was a lot of support in the chamber for made in america. i think these are areas of broad bipartisan support. then there are areas where i will be looking if we can't come together. for example on childcare. as a working mom of four kids, we know investments and childcare will be investments in

strengthening the economy. the president discussed a key piece of how we impact the future and the future of our children so those are areas that may not be as obvious. when you lay out how important they are to be in the economy, every single member of congress right now is hearing about workforce shortages with these fantastic jobs numbers. we need people back in the workforce. childcare will be an area i will be looking for bipartisan pport on. amna: that is democratic congresswoman mikie sherrill of new jersey. thank you for your time. geoff: in many ways, the state of the union address cane viewed as a soft launch of president biden's reelection campaign. we don't know when he will announce. we certainly have not spoken to a white house official yet who said the president will not run. he usea phrase in the speech, finish the job. he used that phrase 12 times.

the infrastructure law, shoring up medicare, expanding education access, police reform, gun reform. seems like if he's not able to get it done in the next two years, this was him saying, hold on. it is the reelection speech. amy: i think what we will hear from republicans, especially like nikki haley and ron desantis, is we will want a generational change. he may finish the job, we think another generation needs to step in to do that. you can already see the battle lines drawing up on what the contrasting messages are going to be. geoff: we are set to hear shortly from sarah huckabee sanders. i'm told one of the reasons republicans selected her was to make a contrast of age. she's 40 years old, half president biden's age, also we should say half president trump. it was also important to have a

republican who is not going to run for office for the presidency. amy: it is that and also someone who comes from a red state, who is not feeling at all encumbered by worrying about what is this going to do for her own chances. usually, these responses have been star. a person who you might think will run for higher office but it never works out for them. now what they are doing is a generational friend and someone who's been around the trump orbit and knows how to fight with democrats. amna: we will listen to that in a moment. sarah huckabee sanders, the new governor of arkansas, delivering the republican response from little rock. she's no stranger to a presidential address. sanders previously served as the white house press secretary for the first two years of the trump administration. let's go now to governor

sanders. >> being a mom to three young children taught me not to believe every story i hear, so forgive me for not believing much of anything i heard tonight from president biden. from out-of-control inflation and violent crime to the dangers border cris and threat from china, biden and the democrats have failed you. they know it and you know it. it is time for a change. tonight, let us reaffirm our commitment. to a timeless american idea that government exists not to rule the people but to serve the people. democrats want to rule us with more government control, but that's not who we are. america is the greatest country the world has ever known, because we are the freest country the world has ever known , with a people who are strong and resilient.

five months ago i was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. it was a hard time for our family, particularly our kids. but we kept our faith and persevered. thanks to exceptional doctors in arkansas, a successful surgery, and the grace of god. i am cancer free. through it all, i couldn't help but think about my mom. shwas 20 years old and in her first year of marriage when she was diagnosed with spinal cancer . the doctors told her she might not live, and if she did live, they said she would never walk again. if she did walk, then she would definitely never have children. the daughter she was told she would never have was just sworn in as the new governor of arkansas and is speaking to you tonight.

adversity and fear of the unknown can paralyze us but faith propels us to charge boldly ahead. we can't stand still in the face of great challenges. you and i were put on this earth to charge boldly aad. i will be the first to admit president biden and i don't have enough in common. he's -- i'm for freedom. he's for government control. i'm the youngest governor in the country. at 80, he's the oldest president in american history. i'm the first woman to lead my state and he's the first man to surrender his presidency to a woke mob that can't even tell you what a woman is. in the radical left america, washington taxes you and lights your hard earned money on fire, you get crushed with high gas

prices, empty grocery shelves, and children are taught to hate one another on account of their race, but not to love one another or the country. whether jerry -- joe biden believes this madness or simply is too weak to resist it, his administration will be completely hijacked. the dividing line in america is no longer between right or left. the choice is between normal or crazy. it's time for a new generation of republican leadership. upon taking office a few weeks ago, i signed executive orders to ban crt, racism and indoctrination in our schools, eliminate the use of derogatory term latinx in our government, repealed covid orders and said never again to authoritarian mandates and shutdowns. americans want common sense from

their leaders, but in washington, the biden administration is doubling down on crazy. president biden inherited the fastest economic recovery on record. the most secure border in history, cheap, abundant, homegrown energy, fast raising wages, a rebuilt military, and a world that was stable and at peace. but over the last two years, democrats destroyed it all. despite democrats' trillions in reckless spending and mountains of debt, we now have the worst border crisis in american history. as a mom, our heart breaks for every parent who has lost a son or daughter to addiction. 100,000 americans a year are now killed from drug overdoses. largely from fentanyl pouring across the southern border. yet the biden administration

refuses to secure the border and save american lives. after years of democrat attacks on law enforcement and calls to defund the police, violent criminals run free while law-abiding families live in fear. beyond our borders, president biden's weakness puts our nation and the world puts us at risk. the president refuses to acknowledge our most formidable and -- president biden refuses to defend our border, defend our skies and defend our people. he is simply unfit to serve as commander-in-chief. while you read the consequences of their failures, the biden administration seems more interested in woke fantasies

than the hard reality americans face every day. most americans simply want to live their lives in freedom and peace, but we are under attack in a left-wing culture war we didn't start and never wanted to fight. every day we are told we must partake in their rituals, salute their flags, and worship their false idols, all while big government colludes with big tech to strip away the most american thing there is, your freedom of speech. that's not normal. it's crazy and it's wrong. make no mistake. republicans will not surrender this fight. we will lead with courage and do what's right, not what is politically correct or convenient. republicans believe in an america where strong families thrive in safe communities, where jobs are abundant and paychecks are rising. where the freedom our veterans

shed their blood to defend is the birthright of every man, woman, and child these are the principles republican governors are fighting for and in washington under the leadership of senate republicans and speaker kevin mccarthy, we will hold the biden administration accountable. beyond the street from where i sit is my all more modern -- alma mater, little rock central high. as a student i will never forget watching my dad, governor mike huckabee, and president bill clinton, hold the doors open to the little rock nine. doors that 40 years earlier had been closed to them because they were black. today, those children once borrowed from the schoolhouse are now heroes, memorialized in bronze at our statehouse. i'm proud of the progress our country has made, and i believe

giving every child access to a quality education, regardless of their race or income, is the civil rights issue of our day. tomorrow, i will unveil an education package that will be the most far-reaching, bold conservative education reform in the country. my plan empowers parents with real choices, improves literacy and career readiness, and helps put a good teacher in every classroom by increasing their starting salary from what of the -- one of the lowest one of the highest in the nation. here in arkansas and across america, republicans are working to endhe policy of trapping kids in failing schools and sentencing them to a lifetime of poverty. we will educate not indoctrinate our kids and put students on a path to success.

it is time for a new generation to lead. this is our moment. this is our opportunity. a new generation born in the waning decades of the last century, shaped by economic booms and stockmarket busts, forged by the triumph of the cold war and the tragedy of 9/11 , a generation brimming with passion and new ideas to solve age-old problems. a generation more to our dpest values and oldest traditions, yet unafraid to challenge the prison order and find -- present order and find a better way forward. if we seize this moment together, america can once again be the land of the free and the home of the brave. during my two and a half years at the white house, i traveled on ery foreign trip with the

president. a trip i will never forget was on dember 25, 2018. my husband and i had just cleaned up wrapping paper that was shoved into every corner of our house thanks to our three kids. i had to wk out on my own families christmas, unable to tell them where i was going that night because the place i would be traveling was so dangerous they didn't want anybody to know that the president was going to be on the ground even for a few hours. we boarded air force one in complete and total darkness. there were no lights on the plane. no lights on the runway. there were phones and computers shut down and turned off. we were going completely off the grid. nearly 12 hours later in the pitch black of night, we landed

in the war-torn part of western iraq. it was again a similar scene. no lights on the plane, no lights on the runway. the only thing you could see was coming from about a mile away in a dining hall where hundreds of troops who were in the fight against isis had gathered expecting to celebrate christmas with senior military leadership from around the region. they had absolutely no idea that the president and first lady were about to walk into that room. and when they did, it was a site and a scene and a sound i hope i never forget. the room erected -- erupted. men and women from every race, religion, every demographic

imagine, started chanting in perfect unison, over and over and over again, usa, usa, usa. it was an absolutely perfect picture of what makes our country great. one of the young shoulder -- soldiers yelled from the back, mr. president, i reenlisted in the military because of you. and the president said, i'm here because of you. shortly after that young soldier came up to me and he said sarah, you have a tough job

and the thousands we know who will be called upon to serve after him deserve to know they have a country and community back home doing our part in the fight for freedom. america is great because we are free, but today, our freedom is under attack and the america we love is in danger. president biden and the democrats have failed you and it is time for a change. a new generation of republican

leaders are stepping