Administration

Biden to sell first-term accomplishments and future agenda at State of the Union

FILE - President Joe Biden delivers his first State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol, March 1, 2022, in Washington. (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool via AP, File)

President Biden will use his State of the Union address next Thursday to tout his accomplishments during his first three years in office as he looks to make his case to the public in pursuit of a second term.

A White House official told The Hill that Biden will use the speech to lay out the achievements from his first term and outline his vision for the future.

In previewing the upcoming speech, a White House official said Biden got more done in his first three years in office than many presidents were able to accomplish in two terms.

Biden is expected to highlight the bipartisan infrastructure law, which has helped upgrade roads, bridges and railways across the country, as well as the bipartisan CHIPS law that invested millions of dollars in manufacturing semiconductors domestically.

Biden will also hit on his efforts to get rid of junk fees, and the Inflation Reduction Act, which contained provisions to lower prescription drug costs, the White House official said.

The president will make the case that he is on the side of the public, the official added, citing efforts to lower costs, proposals to increase taxes on wealthy Americans and corporations, measures to protect democracy and reproductive health care, and the focus on his unity agenda, which includes ending cancer, protecting minors from big tech, aiding veterans and curbing fentanyl.

“We want to get as much done as we can as soon as we can,” the White House official said. “We’re going to be pedal to the metal this year — and there’s much more to come in a second term.”

Biden is scheduled to deliver his State of the Union address next Thursday from the Capitol. It is expected to serve as a critical springboard for his reelection bid, as it will offer him a big platform with millions of people watching.

Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) is slated to deliver the Republican rebuttal to Biden’s address.