Let’s talk about Joe Biden’s first State of the Union address that took place last Tuesday night. Joe Biden has held the presidential office for just over a year now and as of Tuesday night gave his first State of the Union address while holding this position. Normally the SOTU gives and covers a grocery list of policies that the President and Congress plan on focusing on in the next year, as well as exemplifying the accomplishments that have been made in the past 12 months. This SOTU though is unlike any other due to the timing and the circumstances in which it has landed in. Less than a week ago, Russia invaded Ukraine with the intention to reclaim Ukraine as its own. This is the largest invasion and war that Europe has seen since WWII. This conflict had a large affect on how the SOTU was organized and altered the comradery of the speech entirely. Another factor that makes Biden’s SOTU different than any before is the Covid-19 pandemic. Biden’s election and first year in office was engulfed in policies and protections regarding Covid-19 and the best way to safely handle it. Because of these two factors, the SOTU this year was both an act of solidarity for Ukraine as well as a major reset in the political and economic resurgences after Covid-19.
Ukraine and Russia Conflict
President Biden spoke out on the invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin a week ago today. Although Putin’s intentions were to “shake the foundations of the free world” Biden claims he wildly miscalculated. As a member of NATO, the United States and its fellow NATO partners have responded by inflicting powerful economic sanctions. The U.S. Department of Justice is also assembling a dedicated task force to go after the crimes of Russian oligarchs. American forces will not engage in Ukraine and will only go into action if Putin decides to move further west.
Infrastructure
A large focus of not only Biden’s speech, but also legislature in the past year has been domestic infrastructure. While the US used to have the best infrastructure in the world, it is not even ranked in the top 10 anymore. “We’ll create good jobs for millions of Americans, modernizing roads, airports, ports, and waterways all across America.” Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure bill passed in 2021 and states are now deciding which areas within their states need it the most whether that be the reconstruction of a highway or something as small as local potholes.
Made In America
In regard to infrastructure, Biden promised within his speech that every material used in the rebuilding of America would be American made. A large theme of the SOTU was the idealistic promise of patriotic comradery when it came to rebuilding America. Biden made it sound as if the restoration of the country would bring republican and democrats together holding hands and singing as they renovate the country brick by brick; unfortunately, this is unlikely.
Taxing
In the SOTU, Biden touched on the current tax system within the United States and how unfair it is to the middle and lower class. Biden believes that the wealthiest residents of the United States and not paying their fair share and must begin to. Because of this issue, he proposed a 15% minimum tax rate for corporations. He also got 130 countries to agree on a global minimum tax rate so that companies cannot get out of paying their taxes at home by shipping jobs overseas. This though is not set in stone at the current time.
During the rest of the SOTU, Biden spoke on the unpassed Voting Rights Act that was unable to pass through Congress at the beginning of the year, immigration security, police funding, Covid-19, Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson and many other lightly touched on topics. As Biden says, “Now is the hour,” we will see what actually turns of these proclamations. Stay positive everyone.