Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) on Friday lauded President Biden’s State of the Union address and said he spent so much time meeting with lawmakers and guests at the Capitol on Thursday because he is usually kept in “a bubble.”
Biden lingered following his speech Thursday night, speaking for quite a while after the House chamber began to empty.
“I thought he would do a great job. That audience is his element,” she said on a CNN panel Friday. “And I wasn’t surprised at how long he stayed because, you know, he lives in a bubble, and they don’t let him talk to people and here are all of his friends.”
Biden, 81, has faced increasing questions about his competency ahead of this year’s election. He delivered a fiery State of the Union address Thursday night, addressing a bitterly divided Congress.
While speaking about a host of policy issues, Biden — who is preparing to face former President Trump at the polls in November — also threw out one-liners and diverted from the script at times.
Dingell said he did a “great job” in the speech by reminding voters about “the things that we’ve gotten done” during his presidency, as well as laying “out his vision for the future.”
Biden took several jabs at Republicans throughout the speech. Without specifically naming Trump, he slammed his predecessor for overturning Roe v. Wade and befriending Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Michigan Democrat argued it was “very clear” that Republicans were uncomfortable last night when a few GOP members heckled Biden and how they cleared off the floor almost immediately after the speech concluded.
Dingell said it was a “very excellent speech” that showed a “clear, stark contrast” between Biden and Trump.