Transcripts For MSNBCW Presidential Address To Congress 20210429

To just 200 lawmakers and government officials. Seeing a number of members of congress from both parties, senators and members of the house arriving, including the leader of the republicans there, kevin mccarthy. Most of the president s cabinet not in attendance this eepg. We saw the secretary of state, secretary of defense arrive. They will be it for the cabinet. This will change the tenor and move of the address but makes the speech no less significant. The pre making his first address to congress tonight at what is widely viewed to be an Inflection Point for the country, as the president puts forth his plans for the nation. Press leahy, president pro tempe. He would not commit in advance that he would be there pause of his key role in the president ial line of succession. Of course, democratic leader senator Chuck Schumer exchanging elbow bumps with others. Senator Mitch Mcconnell greeting wyoming congresswoman liz cheney, at the heart of so much internal republican consternation with herself in and her party in terms of the legacy of donald trump. Its also hi, we should note, that weve got the second gentleman looking on, along with first lady dr. Jill biden. Joy, i cant believe you didnt have anything to say at all about the first ladys dress. I held it in. I think its very pretty. And you know im secretly texting people to find out. You got very quiet. Yeah. I know her splendor will not go unremarked. I love the flowers, love the color. Gabriella hurst. See, youre into it, too. No. I just tell people what they tell me. I dontnd what any of this means. Ive been wearing the same thing for 13 years. Im buying you that dress for christmas. Unless its a black blazer, it wont fit. I think she looks lovely. And its age appropriate but showing a little bit of something. Shes gevg you a lel bit reveal but not so much. Did in the how she was received . She really is the most warmly, and no one is afraid of public embracing dr. Jill biden. Except the people who hate shes called doctor which is weird. In an effort to try to demonize her. Shes undemonizable. From looking at her she appears to be the nicest person in the world. And shes a teacher. Who doesnt love that . Here is the president. Madam speaker, the president of the you state. [ cheers and applause ] [ applause ] members of congress, i have the high privilege and distinct honor to present to you the president of the United States. [ applause ] thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Good to be back. Its good to be almost home, down the hall. Anyway, thank you all. Madam speaker, madam Vice President. [ applause ] no president has ever said those words from this podium. No president has ever said those words, and its about time. [ applause ] first lady, second gentleman, chief justice, members of the United States congress and the cabinet, distinguished guests, my fellow americans, while the setting tonight familiar, this gathering is just a little bit different. Reminder of the extraordinary times were in. Throughout our history, president s have come to this chamber to speak to congress, to the nation and to the world, to declare war, to celebrate peace, to announce new plans and possibilities. Tonight, i come to talk about crisis and opportunity. About rebuilding a nation, revital iing our democracy and winning the future for america. I stand here tonight, one day shy of the 100th day of my administration. 100 days since i took the oath of office, and lifted my hand off our family bible and inherit ed a nation, we all did, that was in crisis. The worst pandemic in a century, the worst economic crisis since the great depression, the worst attack on our democracy since the civil war. Now, after just 100 days, i can report to the nation, america is on the move again. [ cheers and applause ] the possibility, crisis the opportunity, setbacks in the strength. We all know leaf can knock us down, but in america, we never, ever, ever stay down. Americans always get up. Today thats what were doing. America is rising anew, choosing hope over fear, truth overlies and light over darkness. After 100 days of rescue and renewal, america is ready for a takeoff in my view. Were working again, dreaming again, discovering again and leading the world again. Weve shown each other and the world that theres no quit in america. None. 100 days ago, americas house was on fire. We had to act. Thanks to extraordinary leadership of speaker pelosi, majority leader schumer and the overwhelming support of the American People, democrats, independents and republicans, we did act. Together we passed the American Rescue plan, one of the most consequential rescue packages in American History. Were already seeing the results. [ applause ] were already seeing the results. After i promised we would get 100 million covid19 vaccine shots into peoples arms in 100 days, we have provided over 220 million shots in those days thanks to the help of all of you. Were marshaling, with your help, everyones help, were marshaling every federal resource. Weve gotten vaccines nearly 40,000 pharmacies and over 700 Community Health centers, where the poorest of the poor can be reached. Were setting up Community Vaccination sites, developing mobile units to get the hardtoreach communities. Today, 90 of americans now live within five miles of a vaccination site. Everyone over the age of 16, everyone is now eligible to get vaccinated right now, right away. Go get vaccinated, america. Go and get the vaccination. Theyre available. Eligible now. When i was sworn in january 20th, less than 1 of the seniors in america were fully vaccinated against covid19. 100 days later, 70 of seniors in america over 65 are protected, fully protected. Senior deaths from covid19 are down 80 since january. Down 80 because of all of you. And more than half of all the adults in america have gotten at least one shot. Mass Vaccination Center in glendale, arizona, i asked a nurse, i said, whats it like . She looked at me and she said, its like every shot is giving a dose of hope. That was her phrase, a dose of hope. A dose of hope for an educator in florida, a child suffering from an autoimmune disease wrote to me, said she was worried about bringing the virus home. She said she then got vaccinated at a large site in her car. She said she sat in her car and got vaccinated and just cried, cried out of joy and cried out of relief. Parents seeing smiles on their kids faces for those who are able to go back to school because of teachers, school bus drivers, cafeteria workers have been vaccinated. Grandparents, hugging the children and grandchildren instead of pressing hands against the window to say goodbye. Means everything. Those things mean everything. You know, still, you all know it. You know it better than any group of americans. Theres still more work to do to beat this virus. We cant let our guard down. But tonight, i can state because of you, the American People, our progress these past 100 days against one of the worst pandemics in history has been one of the greatest logistical achievements, logistical cheefbmentes this country has ever seen. What else have we done in those 100 days . We kept our commitment, democrats and republicans, of sending rescue checks to 85 of american households. We already sent more than 160 million checks out the door. Its making a difference. You all know it when you go home. For many people, its making all the difference in the world. A single mom in texas who wrote me, she said she couldnt work. She said the relief check put food on the table and saved her and her son from eviction from their apartment. A grandmother in virginia who told me she immediately took her granddaughter to the eye doctor, something she said she put off for months because she didnt have the money. One of the defining images from my point of view has been cars lined up, cars lined up for miles. And not people who can barely start those cars shall nice cars lined up for miles waiting for a box of food to be put in their trunk. I dont know about you, but i didnt think i would ever see that in america, and all of this is through no fault of their own. No fault of their own, these people are in this position. Thats why the rescue plan is delivering food and nutrition assistance to millions of americans facing hunger, and hunger is down sharply already. Were also providing rental assistance. You all know this. The American People, i want to make sure they understand. Keeping people from being evicted from their homes. Providing loans to Small Businesses to reopen and keep their employees on the job. During these 100 days, an additional 800,000 americans enrolled in the Affordable Care act when i established a special signup period to do that. 800,000 in that period. Were making one of the largest onetime ever investments, ever, in improving health care for veterans. Critical investments to address the opioid cries and maybe most importantly, thanks to the American Rescue plan, were on track to cut Child Poverty in america in half this year. [ applause ] and in the process, while this is all going on, the economy created more than 1,300,000 new jobs in 100 days. More jobs [ applause ] more jobs in the first 100 days than any president on record. International Monetary Fund [ applause ] the international Monetary Fund is now estimating our economy will grow at a rate of more than 6 this year. That would be the fastest pace of Economic Growth in this country in nearly four decades. Americas moving. Moving forward. We cant stop now. Were in competition with china and other countries to win the 21st century. Were at a great Inflection Point in history. We have to do more than just build back better. We have to build back better. We have to compete more strenuously than we have. Throughout our history, think about it. Public investment in infrastructure has literally transformed america. Our attitudes as well as our opportunities. Transcontinental railroad, interstate highways, united two oceans and brought a totally new age of progress to the United States of america. Universal Public Schools and college aid opened wide the doors of opportunity. Scientific breakthroughs took us to the moon. Now were on mars discovering vaccines, gave us the internet and so much more. These are investments we made together as one country and investments only the government was in a position to make. Time and again, they propel us into the future. Thats why i propose the american jobs plan, a onceinageneration investment in america itself. This is the largest jobs plan since world war ii. It creates jobs to upgrade our transportation infrastructure, jobs, modernizing our roads, bridges, highways. Jobs building ports, airports, rail cars, transit lines. Its clean water. And today, up to 10 million homes in america and more than 400,000 schools and Child Care Centers have pipes with lead in them, including drinking water. A clear and present danger to our childrens health. American jobs plan creates jobs replacing 100 of the nations lead pipes and Service Lines so every american can drink clean water. [ applause ] and the process will create thousands and thousands of goodpaying jobs. It creates jobs connecting every american with highspeed internet, including 35 of the Rural America that still doesnt have it. Its going to help our kids and our businesses succeed in the 21st century economy. And im asking the Vice President to lead this effort, if she would. Because i know it will get done. [ applause ] creates jobs, building a modern power grid. Our grids are vulnerable to storms, hacks, catastrophic failures with tragic results, as we saw in texas and elsewhere during the winter storms. The american jobs plan will create jobs to lay thousands of miles of transition lines for a fully clean grid. We can do that. [ applause ] look, the american jobs plan will help millions of people get back to their jobs and back to their careers. 2 million women have dropped out of the workforce during this pandemic. 2 million. And too often because they couldnt get the care they needed to care for their child or care for an elderly parent who needs help. 800,000 families are on a medicare waiting list right now, aging parent, loved one with disability. Check out your own district, democrat or Republican Voters. Their great concern almost as much as the children are taking care of an elderly loved one who cant be left alone. Create jobs for our caregivers, continue to cycle growth. For too long we failed to use the most important word when it comes to meeting the Climate Crisis. Jobs. Jobs. Jobs. [ applause ] for me when i think Climate Change i think jobs, engineers and construction workers to work building more energyefficient buildings and homes. Electrical workers, installing 500,000 charging stations along our highways so we can own the electric car market. [ applause ] farmers planting cover crops so they can reduce Carbon Dioxide in the air and get paid for doing it. Think about it. There is simply no reason why the blades for Wind Turbines cant be built in pittsburgh instead of beijing, no reason, none. No reason. So, folks, theres no reason why americans American Workers cant lead the world in the production of electric vehicles and batteries. Theres no reason. The best trained people in the world. American jobs good paying jobs, jobs americans can raise a family on. As my dad would then say with a little breathing room, and all the investments in the american job plan will be guided by one principle. Buy american. Buy american. [ applause ] that does not violate any trade agreement. Its been the law since the 30s. Buy american. American tax dollars are going to be used to buy american products, made in america to create american jobs. Thats the way its supposed to be, and it will be in this administration. I made it clear to all my cabinet people, their ability to give exemptions has been strenuously limited. It will be american products. Now i know some of you at home are wondering whether these jobs are for you. So many of you, so many of the folks i grew up with feel left behind, forgotten. And in an economy thats so rapidly changing, its frightening. I want to speak directly to you, because you think about it. Thats what people are most worried about. Can i fit in . Independent experts estimate the american jobs plan will add millions of jobs and trillions of dollars to Economic Growth in the years to come. It is an eightyear program. These are goodpaying jobs that cant be outsourced. Nearly 90 of the infrastructure jobs created in the american jobs plan do not require a College Degree. 75 dont require an associates degree. The american jobs plan is a blue collar blueprint to build america. Thats what it is. And it recognizes something ive always said in this chamber or the other. Good guys and women are on wall street but wall street didnt build this country. The middle class built this country and unions built the middle class. So thats why im calling on congress to pass the protect the right to organize act, pro act, and send it to my desk so we can support the right to unionize. And, by the way, thinking about think sending things to my desk, lets raise the minimum wage to 15. No one, no one working 40 hours a week, no one working 40 hours a week should live below the poverty line. We need to ensure greater equity and opportunity for women. While were doing this, lets get the paycheck fairness act to my desk as well, equal pay. Its been much too long. And if you wonder whether its too long, look behind me. Finally, american jobs is probably the biggest increase in nondefense research and development on record. Well see more technological change. And some of you know more about this than i do. Well see more technological change in the next ten years than we saw in the last 50. Thats how rapidly Artificial Intelligence and so much more is changing. And were falling behind the competition with the rest of the world. Decades ago, we used to invest 2 of our Gross Domestic Product in america, 2 of our Gross Domestic Product in research and development. Today, thats less than one percent. China and other countries are closing in fast. We have to develop and dominate the products and technologies of the future, advance batteries, biotechnology, computer chips, clean energy. The secretary of defense can tell you, and those of you who work in National Security issues know, the Defense Department has an agency called darpa, Defense Advanced Research product agency, and people who set up before i came here, and thats been a long time ago, to develop breakthroughs that enhance our National Security. Thats their only job. And its a semi separate agency. Its led to everything from the discovery of the internet to gps and so much more thats enhanced our security. The National Institutes of health, nih, i believe, should create a similar advanced Research Project agency for health. And here is what it would do. It would have a singular purpose to develop breakthroughs to prevent, detect and treat diseases like alzheimers, diabetes and cancer. Ill still never forget when we passed the cancer proposal last year i was Vice President. Almost 9 million going to nih. Reaccuse the point of personal privilege and i remember you standing and saying name it after my deceased son. It meant a lot. But so many of us have deceased sons, daughters and relatives who died of cancer. I can think of no more worthy investment. I know of nothing that is more bipartisan. So let end cancer as we know it. Its within our power. Its within our power to do it [ applause ] investments in jobs and infrastructure, like the ones were talking about, have often had bipartisan support in the past. Vice president harris and i met regularly in the oval office with democrats and republicans and discussed the jobs plan and i plud a group of republican senators who just put forward their own proposal. So, lets get to work. I wanted to lay out before the congress my plan before we got into the deep discussions. I would like to meet with those who have ideas that are different, who think are better. I welcome those ideas. The rest of the world is not waiting for us. I just want to be clear. From my perspective, doing nothing is not an option. [ applause ] look, we cant be so busy competing with one another to forget the competition we have with the rest of the world to win the 21st century. Secretary blivengen can tell you, i spent a lot of time with president xi, traveled over 17,000 miles and spent over 24 hours in private discussions with him. He called to congratulate me, we had a twohour discussion. Hes deadly earnest about becoming the most significant consequential nation in the world. He and others, autocrats, think that democracy cant compete in the 21st century with autocracies. It takes too long to get consensus. To win that competition for the future, in my view, we also immediate to make a onceinageneration investment in our families and our children. Thats why ive introduced the American Families plan tonight, which addresses four of the Biggest Challenges facing American Families and, in turn, america. First is access to good education. 12 years of Public Education universal in the last century, it made us the best he kated, best prepared nation in the world. I believe its the overwhelming reason its propelled us to where we got in the 21st in the 20th century. The world has caught up, or catching up. Theyre not waiting. I would say parenthetically, if we were sitting down, had a Bipartisan Committee together and said okay, were going to decide what we do in terms of government providing for free education, i wonder whether we would think, as we did in the 20th century, that 12 years is enough in the 21st century. I doubt it. 12 years is no longer enough today to compete with the rest of the world in the 21st century. Thats why my American Family plan requires four extra years to every person in america starting as soon as we can. Great universities of this country are conducting studies of the last ten years. In two years of universal highquality preschool for every 3yearold and 4yearold, no matter what background they come from puts them in the position of being able to compete all the way through 12 years. It increases exponentialily their prospect of graduating and going beyond graduation. Research shows when a young child goes to school, not daycare, theyre far more likely to graduate from high school and go to college or something after high school. When you add two years of Free Community college on top of that, you begin to change the dynamic. We can do that. And well increase pell grants and invest in historically black colleges, tribal colleges and minority serving institutions. The reason is, they dont have the endowments but their students are just as capable of learning about cyber security, just as capable of learning about metallurgy, all the things going on to provide jobs in the future. Jill is a Community College professor who teaches today as first lady. [ applause ] she has long said she has long [ applause ] if i heard it once, ive heard it a thousand times. Joe, any country that outeducates us is going to outcompete us. Shell be deeply involved in leading this effort. Thank you, jill. Second thing we need American Families plan will provide access to quality, affordable child care. We guarantee [ applause ] when i propose in the legislation, we guarantee low and middleincome families will pay no more than 7 of their income for highquality care for children up to the age of 5. The most hardpressed working families wont have to spend a dime. Third, the American Families plan will finally provide up to 12 weeks of paid leave and medical leave, family medical leave. One of the few industrial countries in the world. No one should have to choose between a job and a paycheck, or taking care of themselves and their loved ones, parent, spouse or child. And, fourth, the American Family plan puts directly into the pockets of millions of americans. In march we sxaned tax credit for every child and family up to 3,000 per child if youre under 6 years of age. Excuse me, over 6 years of age and 3,600 for children over 6 years of age. Thats 7,200 in the pockets of parents with two kids to help take care of your family. And that will help more than 65 million children, and help cut child care poverty in half. We can afford it. [ applause ] we did that in the last piece of legislation we passed. Lets extend that child tax care credit at least through the end of 2025. Lowered Health Care Premiums for 9 million americans who buy their coverage under the Affordable Care act. I know thats really popular this side of the aisle, but lets make that provision permanent so their premiums dont go back up. [ applause ] in addition to my family plan, im going to work with congress to address this year other critical priorities for American Families. The Affordable Care act has been a lifeline for millions of americans, protecting people with preexisting conditions, protecting Womens Health and the pandemic has demonstrated how badly, how badly its needed. Lets lower deductibles for working families under the Affordable Care act, and let lower Prescription Drug costs. We know how to do this. [ applause ] the last president had that as an objective. We all know how outrageously expensive drugs are in america. In fact, we pay the highest Prescription Drug prices of anywhere in the world right here in america. Nearly three times for the same drug, nearly three times what other countries pay. We have to change that, and we can. Lets do what we talked about for all the years i was down here in this body, in congress. Let give medicare the power to save hundreds of billions of dollars by negotiating lower drug prescription prices. [ applause ] by the way, it wont just help people on medicare. Lower Prescription Drug costs for everyone. And the money we safb, which is billions of dollars, can go to strengthen the Affordable Care act and expand Medicare Coverage benefits without costing taxpayers an additional penny. Its within our power to do it. Lets do it now [ applause ] weve talked about it long enough, democrats and republicans. Lets get it done this year. This is all about a simple premise. Health care should be a right, not a privilege in america. So how do we pay for my jobs and family plan . I made it clear we can do it without increasing the deficit. Let start with what i will not do. I will not impose any tax increase on people making less than 400,000. But its time for Corporate America and the wealthiest 1 of americans to just begin to pay their fair share. Just their fair share. Sometimes i have arguments with my friends in the democratic party. I think you should be able to become a billionaire or millionaire, but pay your fair share. Recent study shows that 55 of the nations biggest corporations paid zero federal tax last year. Those 55 corporations made in excess of 40 billion in profit. Lot of companies also evade tacks through tax hafbens in switzerland, bermuda and the Cayman Islands and they benefit from tax loop holes and deductions for offshoring jobs and shifting profits overseas. Its not right. Were going to reform corporate tacks so they pay their fair share and help pay for the public investments their businesses will benefit from as well. [ applause ] were going to reward work, not just wealth. We take the top tax bracket for the wealthiest 1 of americans, those making over 400,000 or more back up to where it was when george wncht bush started as president , 36. 9 . Thats what it was when george w. Was president. Were going to get rid of the loopholes that allow americans make more than Million Dollars a year and pay a lower tax rate on their Capital Gains than americans who receive a paycheck. Were only going to affect. 3 of all americans by that action. 3 . And the irs is going to crack down on millionaires and billionaires who cheat on their taxes. Its estimated to be billions of dollars by think tanks of left, right and center. Im not looking to punish anybody, but i will not add a tax burden, additional tax burden to the middle class of this country. Theyre already paying enough. I believe what i propose is fair, fiscally responsible and it raises revenue to pay for the plans i propose and will create millions of jobs that will grow the economy and enhance our financial standing in the country. You hear someone say they dont want to raise taxes on the wealthiest 1 or Corporate America, ask them, whose taxes do you want to raise . Instead, whose are you going to cut . Big tax cut of 2017, you remember it was supposed to pay for itself. Thats how it was sold. And generate vast Economic Growth. Instead, it added 2 trillion to the deficit. It was a huge windfall for Corporate America and those at the very top. Instead of using the tax saving to raise wages and invest in research and development, it poured billions of dollars into the pockets of ceos. In fact, the pay gap between ceos and their workers is now among the largest in history. According to one study, ceos make 320 times with an their average worker in their corporation makes. It used to be below 100. The pandemic has only made things worse. 20 million americans lost their job in the pandemic. Working and middle class americans. At the same time, roughly 650 billionaires in america saw their net worth increase by more than 1 trillion in the same exact period. Let me say it again. 650 people increased their wealth by more than 1 trillion during this pandemic. And theyre now worth more thanes ed 4 trillion. My fellow americans, trickle down, trickle down economics has never worked. Its time to grow the economy from the bottom and the middle out. [ applause ] you know, theres a broad consensus of Economic Experts who agree, among the highest values of investments we can make as a nation. Ive often said our greatest strength is the power of our example. Not just the example of our power. My conversations with World Leaders and i have spoken to over 38, 40 of them now. Ive made it known, ive made it known that america is back. Do you know what they say . The comment i hear most of all from them . They say we see america is back, but for how long . But for how long . My fellow americans, we have to show not just that were back, but that were back to stay, and that we arent going to go alone. Were going to do it by leading with our allies. No one nation can deal with all the crises of our time, from terrorism, nuclear proliferation, mass migration, cyber security, Climate Change as well as what were experiencing now with pandemics. Theres no wall high enough to keep any virus out. And our own vaccine supply, as it grows to meet our needs, and were meeting them, will become an arsenal for vaccines for other countries, just as america is an arsenal for democracy for the world, and as a consequential influencer of the world. Every american will have access before that every american will have access, be fully covered from covid19 by the vaccines we have. Look, the Climate Crisis is not our fight alone. Its a global fight. United states accounts, as all of you know, for less than 15 of carbon emissions. The rest of the world accounts for 85 . Thats why i kept my commitment to rejoin the paris accord, because if we do everything perfectly, its not going to hardly matter. I kept my commitment to convene a Climate Summit here in america of all the Major Economies in the world. China, russia, india, european union. I said i would do it in my first 100 days. Im going to be very blunt about it. I had my attempt was to make sure that the world could see there was a consensus, that we are at an Inflection Point in history, consensus is if we act to save the planet, we can create millions of jobs and Economic Growth and opportunity to raise the standard of living for almost everyone around the world. If you watched any of it, and you were all busy, im sure you didnt have much time, thats virtually what every nation said. Even the ones who arent doing their fair share. The investments i proposed tonight also advance a foreign policy, in my view, that benefits the middle class. That means making sure that every nation plays by the same rules in the global economy, including including china. My discussions in my discussions with president xi i told him we welcome the competition. Were not looking for conflict. But i made absolutely clear that we will defend americas interests across the board. America will stand up to unfair trade practices and undercut American Workers and American Industries like subsidies from state to state owned operations and enterprises and the theft of American Technology and intellectual property. I also told president xi well maintain a strong endo pacific presence not to start a conflict but to prevent one. [ applause ] i told him what i said to many World Leaders that america will not back away from our commitments, our commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms and our aleenss. I pointed out to him no responsible american president could remain silent when basic human rights are being so blatantly violated. An american president has to represent the essence of what our country stands for. America is an idea, the most unique idea in history. We are created all of us equal. Its who we are. And we cannot walk away from that principle and, in fact, say were dealing with the american idea. With regard to russia i know it concerns some of you, but i made very clear to putin that were not going to seek escalation, but their actions will have aunsquence if they turn out to be true, and they turned out to be true. So i responded directly and proportionately to russias interference in our elections and the cyber attacksen our government and our business. They did both of these things, and i told them we would respond and we have. We can also cooperate when its our mutual interest. We did it when we extended the new star treaty on nuclear arms and were working to do it on Climate Change, but he understands we will respond. On iran and north Korea Nuclear programs present serious threats to American Security and the security of the world. Were going to be working closely with our allies to address the threats posed by both of these countries through the diplomacy as well as stern deterrence and American Leadership means ending the forever war with afghanistan. [ applause ] we have without hyperbole to greatest fighting force in the history of the world. Im the first president in 40 years who know what it means to have a son serving in a war zone. Today we have Service Members serving in the same war zone as their parents did. We have Service Members in afghanistan who are not yet born on 9 11. The war in afghanistan as we remember the debates here were never meant to be multigenerational under takings of nation building. We went to afghanistan to get terrorists, the terrorists who attacked us on 9 11. And we said we would follow Osama Bin Laden to the gates of hell to do it. If youve been in the valley youve kind of seen the gates of hell. And we delivered justice to bin laden. We diminished interrorist threat in alqaeda and afghanistan. And after 20 years of valor and sacrifice its time to bring those troops home. Look, even as we do and maintain over the horizon capacity to suppress future threats to the homeland, make no mistake in 20 years terrorism has metastasized. The threat is above way beyond afghanistan. Those in the intelligence communications, the foreign relation committees, defense committees, you know well we have to remain vigilant against the threats of the United States wherever they come from. Alqaeda and isis are in yemen, syria, somalia, other places in africa, the middle east and beyond. And we wont ignore what our Intelligence Agency has determine today be the most lethal terrorist threat to homeland today. White supremacy is terrorism. Were not going to ignore that either. My fellow americans, look, we have to come together to heal the soul of this nation. It was nearly a year ago before her fathers funeral i spoke with gianna floyd and i was kneeling down to talk to her so i could look her in the eye. She looked at me and said my daddy changed the world. Well, after the conviction of George Floyds murder we can see how right she was if if we have the courage to act as a congress. Weve all seen the knee of injustice on the neck of black americans. Nows our opportunity to make some real progress. The vast majority of men and women wearing the uniform and a badge serve our communities and they serve them honorably. I know them. I know they want [ applause ] i know they want to help meet this moment as well. My fellow americans, we have to come together to rebuild trust between Law Enforcement and the people they serve, to root out systemic racism in our criminal Justice System and to enact Police Reform in George Floyds name and pass the house already. I know republicans have their own ideas and are engaged in a very productive discussion with democrats in the senate. We need to Work Together to find a consensus, but lets get it done next month by the First Anniversary of George Floyds death. The country supports this reform and congress should act should act. We have a giant opportunity to bend the ark of the moral universe toward justice, real justice. And with the plans outlined tonight we have a real chance to root out systemic racism that plagues america, american lives in other ways. The chance to deliver real equity, good jobs, good schools, affordable housing, clean air, clean water and paz it down through generations because you have access to purchase a house. Real opportunities in the lives of black white, latino, asianamericans and nativeamericans. Look, i also want to thank the United States senate for voting 941 the past covid19 hate crimes act to protect asianamerican and pacific islanders. We acted decisively. You could see on television the viciousness of the hate crimes weve seen over the past year and for too long. I urge the house to do the same and send that legislation to my desk which i will gladly, anxiously sign. But i also Hope Congress will get to my desk the equality act to protect lgbtq americans. Change for americans watching at home especially young people so brave, i want you to know your president has your back. Another thing lets authorize the violence against women act which has been law for 27 years. 27 years ago i wrote it. Itll close the act that has to be authorized now, itll close the boyfriend loophole to keep guns out of the hands of abusers. The Court Order Said this is an abuser. You cant own a gun. To close that loophole that existed. You know, its estimated that 50 women are shot and killed by an intimate partner every month in america. 50 a month. Lets pass it and save some lives. I need not tell anyone this but gun violence has become an epidemic in america. The flag at the white house was still flying for halfmast for the eight victim of the shooting. And in the weekend between those two events 250 other americans were shot dead in the streets of america. 250 shot dead. I know how hard it is to make progress on this issue. In the 90s we pass universal background checks, a ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines that hold 100 rounds that could be fired off in seconds. We beat the nra. Mass shootings and gun violence decline but in the early 2000s the law expired and weve seen daily bloodshed since. Im not saying if the law continued we wouldnt see bloodshed. More than two weeks ago in the rose garden surrounded by some of the bravest people i know, the survivors and families who lost loved ones to gun violence, i laid out several of the department of justice actions being taken to impact this epidemic. One of them is banning socalled ghost guns. These are homemade guns built from a kit that includes directions how to finish the firearm. The parts have no serial numbers so they show up at crime scenes and they cant be traced. The bars of these ghost gun kits arent required to pass any background check. Anyone from a criminal or terrorist could buy thisicate and within 30 minutes have a weapon thats lethal but no more, and ill do everything in my power to protect the American People in this epidemic and gun violence but its time for congress to act as well. [ applause ] look, i dont want to become more confrontational. We need more Senate Republicans and close the loopholes required in background check purchases of guns. We need a ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines. Dont tell me it cant be done. We did it before and it worked. Talk to most responsible gun owners and theyll tell you theres no possible justification to having 100 rounds in a weapon. Too many people a day are able to buy a gun that shouldnt be able to buy a gun. These kinds of reasonable reforms have overwhelming support from the American People including many gun owners. If a country supports reform then congress should act. There shouldnt be a red or blue issue. And no amendment to the constitution is absolute. You cant yell fire in a crowded theater. From the very beginning there are certain guns, weapons that could not be owned by americans. Certain people could not own those weapons ever. Were not changing the constitution. Were being reasonable. I think this is not a democrat or republican issue, i think its an american issue. And heres what else we can do. Immigration has always been a sense of america. Lets end our exhausting war on immigration. For more than 30 years politicians have talked about Immigration Reform and weve done nothing about it. Its time to fix it. On day one of my presidency i kept my commitments in a comprehensive immigration bill through the United States congress. If you believe we need to secure the border, pass it because it has a lot of money for high tech border security. If you believe in a pathway to citizenship, pass it. So 11 million undocumented folks the vast majority overstaying visas, pass it. If you actually want to solve a problem send a bill through and take a close look at it. We also have to get at the root problem of my people are fleeing particularly toour southern border from guatemala, honduras and el salvador, the violence, the corruption, the gangs, political instability, earthquakes, natural disasters. When i was president , when i was Vice President , the president asked me to focus on providing the help needed to address the root causes of migration, and to help keep people in their own countries instead of being forced to leave. The plan was working but the last administration decided it was not worth it. Im restoring the program and ask Vice President harris to lead our diplomatic effort to take care of this. Now, look, if you dont like my plan lets at least pass what we all agree on. Congress needs to pass legislation this year to finally secure protection for dreamers. And permanent protection for immigrants who were here on temporary protective status and came from countries set by man made and natural made violence and disaster. As well as the pathway to citizenship for farm workers who put food on our tables. Look, immigrants have done so much for america during this pandemic and throughout our history. The country supports Immigration Reform. We should act. Lets argue over it. Lets debate it, but lets act. And if we truly want to restore the soul of america we need to protect the sacred right to vote. Most people more people voted in the last president ial election than any time in American History in the middle of the worst pandemic ever. It should be celebrated. Instead its being attacked. Congress should pass hr1 and the john lewis Voting Rights act and send it to my desk right away. The country supports it, and congress should act now. Look, in closing as we gather here tonight images of a violent mob assaulting this capitol desecrating our democracy remain vivid in our minds. Extraordinary courage was summoned. Insurrection was an existential crisis, a test on whether our democracy could survive but the struggle is far from over. The question whether a democracy long endures is both ancient and urgent, as old as our republic, still vital today. Can our democracy deliver on its promise that all of us created equal in the image of god had a chance to lead a life in dignity and respect. Can our democracy deliver to the most pressing needs of our people . Can it overcome the hunger, hate and fears that will pull us apart, the autocrats of the world are betting we cant, and i promise you theyre betting we cant. They believe were too full of anger, division and range. The assault of the capitol is proof the sun is setting out on american democracy, but theyre wrong. You know it, i know it, but we have to prove them wrong. We have to prove democracy still works, that our government still works and we can deliver for our people. In our first 100 days together we have to restore peoples faith and were vaccinating the nation, creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs. Were delivering real results to people. They can see it, feel it in their own lives. Opening doors of opportunity, guaranteeing some more fairness and justice. Thats the essence of america. Thats democracy in action. Our constitution opens to the words, we the people. Its time to remember we, the people, are the government, you and i. Not some force in the distant capitol. Not some powerful force we have no control over. Its us. Its, we, the people. In another era when our democracy was tested Franklin Roosevelt reminded us in america we do our part, we all do our part. Thats all im asking that we do our part all of us. If we do that we will meet the center challenge of the age by proving a democracy is durable and strong. Autocrats will not win the future, we will. America will. And the future belongs to america. So i stand here tonight before in a new and vital hour of the democracy of our nation and say with absolute confidence i have never been more confident or opt murder in the first degreeic about america not because im president because whats happening with the American People. Weve stared into the abyss of insurrection and autocracy, pandemic and pain, and we, the people, did not flinch. At the very moment our adversaries were certain wed pull apart and fail, we came together, we united. With light and hope we summoned a new strength, new resolve to position us to win the competition of the 21st century on our way to a union more perfect, more prosperous and more just. As one people, one nation and one america. Folks, as ive told every world leader ive ever met its never been a good bet to bet against america and it still isnt. Were the United States of america. Theres not a single thing, nothing beyond our capacity. We can do whatever we set our mind to if we do it together, so lets begin to get together. God bless you all, and may god protect our troops. Thank you for your patience. [ applause ] this started by thanking the speaker of the house for having him. He finished by thanking all those watching for their patience. No one yelled you lie, the speaker didnt rip up the speech on live television. So by the standards of the last 20 years it was a successful evening where the speeches are concerned. Chairman of the joint chiefs followed by one time rival bernie sanders. Our mics are open. Were going to pause and try to catch some of this as he talks to both congresswoman waters, senator reid. The veteran democrat rosa deloro of connecticut having something of an intense fist bump moment with the president. Its by now a cliche but this is truly where joe biden is the most at home. In this and especially the neighboring Senate Chamber among pals, among elected officials. 36 years is a tough habit to break, and then that was followed by eight years residing over the senate as Vice President , meeting the new sergeant at arms. After four years of a monotone shout it was bracing to hear a speech delivered at times by a whisper. His use of voice modulation was rather extraordinary given the television era, and it served as cover at times for unspooling an ambition in this speech that was rooseveltien in size and scope. He treated the sparse crowd with a kind of intimacy in the chamber that may very well have translated to the Television Audience at home. At his best he reminded america what americans are capable of, something president s do, something president s say in the midst of what is by any standard a huge vaccine history laegs but his last line now that weve lost the ability to hear him in the crowd, we are the United States of america. There is nothing beyond our capacity, nothing we cant do if we do it together. Thats an easy one. Its always been true. We just havent heard it in a while, and right now a good many folks need to hear it. Rachel, over to you and our friends. Brian, thank you. Its telling and i think interesting in its own right that the president made tracks when he came into the chamber. That is often something in normal times that takes a very long time to make it down that aisle with members of congress crowding the aisle wanting to be seen with the president. There are times when the president at that moment signs things or otherwise poses with members on their way in. In this case walking in that was not what President Biden wanted to do, but now it is done and the opportunity is there for him to as weve seen in these last few minutes ask, hows your mom, tell her i said hi, talk to individual members of the United States senate, even the house showing that he knows them. Rosa, when he had that moment with rosa deloreo i had to think that had to be about the child tax credit, which was her lifes work. Which will have a massive effect on Family Finances of working families all over the country. If you have kids youre going to start getting checks from the government this summer. Every month as a tax credit for having kids in this country, rosa deloreo made that happen. The president tonight promised that he will do his best to get that made extended so its not just part of the temporary covid relief bill but it lasts as he said tonight until 2025. There was some news tonight the president i think appearing a little unclear but i think he was saying Vice President harris will be helming the effort to establish highspeed broadband nationwide. And he talked about arpa, an advance Research Project for health. You see the president there with republican senator rob portman. There will be lines that stand out from this speech both for history and for their impact when she said. And we should note the speech is about 5050 adlib and prepared remarks. But when he said go get vaccinated, america, go and get the vaccination, they are available, you are eligible now and the room erupted from that, hard to make it more clearer than that when he said White Supremacy is terrorism. He adlibbed to those remarks making that incredibly pourl statement. When he said to all to the Transgender Americans watching at home especially the young people who are so brave i want you to know your president has your back. That will land like a proverbial bomb on lgbtq communities across america. Its huge to have the president not just sort of name check you but put it in those terms and that sort of in those sort of personal guarantee terms. I think thatll be a very powerful moment for all the scope and all the policy that he talked tonight. That ones going to stick. You know, and i think youre pulling the thread that was so brilliantly woven through this speech. I mean the speech was crafted obviously by him and his staff. And every adlibbed line was him, and theres one adlib line he wrote down and said i dont want to get confrontational with you. Its around gun control. His connections to the people in this room, he does not care. He gives to them the benefit of the doubt, the benefit of his good will. I thought it would be a hard speech to make optimistic and with my black sharpy i i think i wrote all the way through to the table this whole section about the insurrection and i think that to come out of a section about our enemies, the autocrats who wish to see our democratic experiment fail will not win. When you come out of that darkness of what happened in that chamber is so remarkable. I have to say one other thing. I was thinking of the two people who have shaped him so much who werent in the room. His son beau biden and his friend john mccain who made one of the book ends in this speech when he talked about the ideologies that would end up in the ash heap of history. I think hes trying to put those dark days behind us. The autocrats of the world are betting that our democracy cannot deliver. They believe were too full of division and anger and its proof the sun is setting on american democracy. They are wrong and we have to prove them wrong. We have to prove democracy still works. I mean the part he said i spent a lot of time with president xi and these autocrats are convinced democracies by definition can accomplish things because theres too much definition, he did say our constitution is open to the line of the people and i think it was important in this sort of place that had to be evacuated because of an insurrection i feel like government came back and occupied it, and biden occupied it with a kind of politics that is bread and butter real working class politics. And he was just asking the question are we still capable of doing big things together, are we broken as a society we cant do big things like eisenhower did with traversing the country with the railroads, et cetera . It was an optimistic speech because it was about things the government can deliver to you, specific you can see, you can feel that are visceral it isnt against them, but whether its africanamericans hearing the president say i get it, i understand the real terrorism is this White Nationalism that threatens your vote and your ability to be full citizens or just saying, look, we can build stuff, we can still do that. And he does a kind of nustalgia. Saying were still capable of doing big things and we can be bigger than this messiness. I think its important for people to hear that. I feel this speech with working class and not just working class white voters, democrats have issues with working class black and brown voters, too. Am i going to be able to get a decent job anymore, am i going to be competing with workers in low wage countries and are my jobs going to get exported . So working class in general hes saying, yeah, we are going to take care of you. Theyre talking about millions of jobs and he says if you are hearing this right now and youre wondering whether that is about you, let me talk to you at home and let you know the vast majority of these jobs you do not need a College Degree, even an associates degree, this is about the middle class and about good well paying jobs, building stuff thats going to make america a better place and make us compete competitively. And its an economic populism that i think a lot of democrats have been wanting to hear from the top levels of the party for quite some time. But to pair that with what youre talking about, nicole, in terms of that darkness and light. Weve stared into the abyss of pandemic and pain and we the people did not flinch at the very poemt our adversaries were certain wed pull apart and fail we came together. Its him talking about where weve been pretty unflinchingly. Its him taking really the inverse view of the country as the previous guy. Correct. The president s first speech was american carnage but at the beginning. I thought it would be a challenge to balance the clarity, the cleareyed nature of what this threat was with this forward looking view, but every page and every couple minutes its littered with extensions and if you dont pass my bill, send me something. She gave a shout out to the republican, very paired down approach to infrastructure we talked about. He is willing to cast in good faith anything from the republicans, and it brings into sharp relief what theyre doing. They have redefined with the public things to have bipartisan support in the country. They are the First White House to make that they have redefined bipartisanship for the first time. And he used it to the most effect tonight around gun control debate. He didnt put the 85 americans, he put gun owners, and thats always been what i thought should have cross pressured the nra. Can we talk about the things we talked in the background were going to see what the republicans were standing up and cheering for, but he put some things out there that would be very hard, and he said were going to build millions of americans jobs. I dont know if they stood up, but hes presenting a platform that is so basic, just sort of basic jobs, jobs, jobs politics and its going to be difficult. A lot of what he said president obama said, but because joe biden is joe biden, an older white guy, it comes across differently to the country. It doesnt come across as super academic or whatever it is or its not a black guy, right . I seem to understand every time he speaks why donald trump was afraid of him, why he feared that guy being the nominee because that is a very difficult politics to oppose. Were about one minute or perhaps less out from the republican response from South Carolina senator tim scott. Any thoughts from you before we hear from him hes at the table negotiating Police Reform. Folks im talking with in South Carolina even democrats who know tim scott and oppose him on lots of policies do believe hes sincere and believe he sees this as a chance to make his mark, something he hadnt done up to now. And with that the clock, by the way, started when joe biden exited the chamber. That is the exact 5minute warning to the start of the response. As weve been saying it will be senator tim scott of South Carolina. Lets go to that now. Good evening. Im senator tim scott from the great state of South Carolina. You just heard President Bidens first address to congress. Our president seems like a good man. His speech was full of good words, but President Biden promised you a specific kind of leadership. He promised you a United Nation to lower the temperature to govern for all americans no matter how we voted. This was the pitch. You just heard it again. But our nation is starving for more than empty platitudes. We need policies and progress that brings us closer to together, but three months in the actions of the president and his party are pulling us further and further apart. I wont waste your time with finger pointing our partisan bickering. You can get that on tv anytime you want. I want to have an honest conversation about common sense and common ground. About this feeling that our nation is sliding off its shared foundation and how we move forward together. Growing up i never dreamed i would be standing here tonight. When i was a kid my parents divorced, my mother, my brother and i moved in with my grandparents, three of us sharing one bedroom. I was disillusioned and angry and i nearly fell out of school, but i was blessed. First with a praying mom and let me say this to the single mothers out there working their tails off, trying to make ends meet wonder if its worth it, you can bet it is. God bless your amazing effort on the part of your kids. I was also blessed by a chickfila operator that finally with a string of opportunities that are only possible here in america. This past year ive watched covid attack every rung of the ladder that helped me up. So many families lost parents and grandparents too early. So many Small Businesses have gone under. Becoming a christian transformed my life before months too many churches were shutdown. Most of all, im saddened that millions of kids have lost a year of learning when they could not afford to lose a single day. Locking vulnerable kids out of the classroom is locking adults out of their future. Our Public Schools should have reopened months ago. Other countries did. Private and religious schools did. Science has shown for months that schools are safe. But too often powerful grown ups set science aside and kids like me were left behind. The clearest case ive seen for School Choice in our lifetimes because we know that education is the closest thing to magic in america. Last year under Republican Leadership we passed five bipartisan covid packages. Congress supported our schools, our hospitals, saved our economy and funded operation warp speed in record time. All five bills got 90, 90 votes in the senate. Common sense found common ground. In february republicans told President Biden we wanted to keep working together to finish this fight. But democrats wanted to go it alone. They spent almost 2 trillion on a partisan bill, but the white house bragged was the most liberal bill in American History. Only 1 went to vaccinations, no requirement to reopen schools promptly. Covid brought congress together five times. This administration pushed us apart. Another issue that should unite us is infrastructure. Republicans support everything you think of when you think of infrastructure, roads, bridges, ports, airports, waterways, highspeed broadband. Were in for all of that. But, again, democrats want a partisan wish list. They wont even build bridges to build bridges. Less than 6 of the president s plan goes to roads and bridges. Its a liberal wish list of Big Government waste plus the biggest job killing tax hikes in a generation. Experts say when all is said and done it will lower wages of the average American Worker and shrink our economy. Tonight we also heard about a socalled family plan. Even more taxing, even more spending to put washington even more in the middle of your life from the cradle to college. The beauty of the American Dream is that families get to define it for themselves. We should be expanding opportunities and options for all families not throwing money at certain issues because democrats think they know best Infrastructure Spending that shrinks our economy is not common sense. Weakening our southern borders and creating a crisis is not compassionate. The president is also abandoning principles hes held for decades. Now he says your tax dollars should fund abortions. Hes laying ground work to pack the supreme court. The this is not common ground. Nowhere do we need comen ground more dres prtly that in our discussions of race. Ive experienced the pain of discrimination. I know what it feels like to be pulled over for no reason, to be followed around a store when im shopping. I remember every morning that the Kitchen Table my grandfather would open the newspaper and read it i thought, but later i realized hed never learned to read it. He just wanted to set the right example. Ive also experienced a different kind of intolerance. I could call it uncle tom and the nword by progressive, by liberals. Just last week a paper said my familys power was privilege because a relative owned land generations before my time. Believe me i know firsthand our healing is not finished. In 2015 after the shooting of walter scott i wrote a bill to fund body cameras. Last year after the deaths of Breonna Taylor and george floyd, i built an even bigger Police Reform proposal but my democrats colleagues blocked it. I ex10ed an olive branch, i offered amendments but to use a filibuster to block the debate from evening happening, my friends across the aisle seem to want the issue more than they wanted a solution. But im still working, and im hopeful this will be different. When america comes together weve made tremendous progress, but powerful forces want to pull us apart. 100 years ago kids in classrooms were taught the color of their skin was their most important characteristic. And if they looked a certain way they were inferior. Today kids are being taught that the color of their skin defines them again and if they look a certain way theyre an oppressor. From colleges to corporations to our culture people are making money and gaining power by pretending we havent made any progress at all by doubling down on the divisions weve worked so hard to heal. You know this stuff is wrong. Hear me clearly, america is not a racist country. Its backwards to fight discrimination with different types of discrimination, and its wrong to try to use our painful past to dishonestly shutdown debates in the present. Im an africanamerican whos voted in the south my entire life. I take Voting Rights personally. Republicans support making it easier to vote and harder to cheat. And so do the voters. Big majorities of americans support early voting. And big majorities support voter i. D. Including africanamericans and hispanics. Common sense makes common ground. But today this conversation has collapsed. The state of georgia passed a law that expands early voting, preserves no excuse mailin voting and despite what the president claimed did not reduce election day hours. But if you actually read this law its mainstream. It will be easier to vote early in georgia than in democrat run new york, but the left doesnt want you to know that. By yelling about a law they havent even read. Fact checkers have called out the white house from the statements. The president absurdly claims that this is worse than jim crow. What is going on here . Ill tell you. A washington power grab. This misplaced outrage is supposed to justify democrats new sweeping bill that would take over elections for all 50 states. It would send public funds to political campaigns you disagree with and make the bipartisan federal Elections Commission partisan. This is not about civil rights or our racial past. Its about rigging elections in the future. And the same filibuster President Biden and president obama praised when they were senator wheres, the same filibuster democrats used to kill my Police Reform bill last year has not suddenly become a racist relic just because the shoe is now on the other foot. Race is not a political weapon to sell every issue the way one side wants. Its far too important. This should be a joyful springtime for our nation. This administration inherited a tide that had already turned. The coronavirus is on the run. Thanks to operation warp speed and the Trump Administration our country is flooded with safe and effective vaccines thanks to our bipartisan work last year job openings are rebounding so why do we feel so divided, anxious . A nation with so much cause for hope should not feel so heavy laden. A president who promised to bring us together should not be pushing agendas that tear us apart. The American Family deserves better. And we know what better looks like. Just before covid we had the most inclusive economy in my lifetime. The lowest unemployment rates ever recorded for africanamericans, hispanics and asians and they said in a year nearly for women. Wages were growing faster at the bottom than at the top. The bottom 25 saw their wages go up faster than the top 2 . That happened because republicans focused on expanding opportunity for all americans. In addition to that we passed opportunity zones, criminal Justice Reform and permanent funding for historically black colleges and universities for the first time ever. We fought the drug epidemic, rebuilt our military and cut taxes for working families and single moms like the one that raised me. Our best future will not come from washington schemes or socialist dreams. It will come from you, the American People. Black, hispanic, white and asian. Republican and democrat, Brave Police Officers in black neighborhoods. We are not adversaries. We are family. We are all in this together, and we get to live in the greatest country on earth, the country where my grandfather in his 94 years saw his family go from cotton to congress in one lifetime. So i am more than hopeful, i am confident that our finest hour is yet to come. Original sin is never the end of the story. Not in our souls and not for our nation. The real story is always redemption. I am standing here because my mom has prayed me through some really tough times. I believe our nation has succeeded the same way because generations of americans in their own ways have asked for grace and god has applied it. So i will close with a word from a worship song that really helped me through this past year of covid. The music is new but the words draw from scripture. May the lord bless you and keep you, make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May his presence go before you and behind you and beside you in your weeping and your rejoicing. He is for you. May his favor be upon our nation for a thousand generations and your family and your children and their children. Good night and god bless the United States of america. One of the most difficult jobs in all of american politics is to follow the imputed majesty of a state of the Union Address with a response delivered somewhere else. Its hard when its a democratic responding to a republican president. Its hard when its a republican responding to a democratic president. But that was senator tim scott of South Carolina with the response to the president s joint address to the congress tonight. I may be wrong, but i believe that was a longer response than were used to getting in term of the opposition partys response. I think that senator scott is incredibly talented at delivering these sort of things. I do think its going to be hard for most people who arent paying attention to politics to swallow the republican support making it easier to vote line and the long passage he had about how democrats are the ones blocking Police Reform. Theres some stuff there that may make sense in a sliver of republican world. But in the news world i dont think will ring. This is a speech delivered from a planet where facts dont matter which is where the Current Republican Party resides, so its not really his fault. But it is his responsibility to get his facts straight. 4,000 a people a day were dying in january, so i dont know again on what planet we had rounded the bend. And operation warp speed didnt do anything to get a needle into an arm. So a lot of disinformation. It felt almost scripted by someone close to the president who wanted that revision president trump. Correct. I think the most reprehensible thing in the eyes of cleareyed people of any party about the georgia law, the reason Major League Baseball left isnt because it makes it easier to vote in georgia than in democrat run new york. Again, if your so proud of a lie tell the truth about it. The lie would have removed republican Brad Raffensperger from a Decision Making place. So its just disingenuous to say the law is so good, were so proud of it. If its that good Major League Baseball wouldnt have moved their game. So it wasnt true in my view was the biggest flaw. He event went back to the old republicans saved historically black colleges. That is not republicans saving black colleges. They keep on using that line. It was i was surprised to be honest with you. This was standard republican pabalm. This could have been delivered by tom cotton or pat lee. Im not sure what his purpose was. His audience to me appeared to be conservative white republicans who are angry over certain things, of cancel culture and the same sort of cultural nods that we hear on fox news. And he was out here to throw them a lifeline. It was disappointing. He had an opportunity to really speak about his work on the you know, on the george floyd act and what hes trying to do to offer his own amendments to it. He didnt. He just came out and talked about the amendments he tried to offer before which were seen as inadequate by mainstream people involved in trying to do criminal Justice Reform, saw his previous bill as inadequate yet it failed a cloture vote. He said nothing about the work he wants to do on this act for which id just given him credit before he started speaking in which hes getting credit from democrats who are working with him. People see him as trying to be genuine working on criminal Justice Reform. And he came out and lied about the georgia bill saying its easier to vote in georgia than in new york. I am i am shocked and a bit embarrassed for him. This was a lost opportunity. Tim scott has an opportunity to make his mark on criminal Justice Reform, and this aint going to do it. This wasnt it. Lets bring into the conversation our friend and colleague lawrence odonnell. Lawrence, youve been watching along side us tonight watching both the president s address and that response. What do you think tonight . I just want to say one thing about the response and thats the first sentence of it. And its a concept that joe biden would never use. Tim scott said these were his exact words our president seems like a good man. Now, he couldnt bring himself to say to Republican Voters who he wants to raise money from, our president is a good man. Yeah. If you ask joe biden about tim scott theres no circumstance in which joe biden wouldnt say tim scotts a good man and then hed go onto talk about his disagreements. But that construction is a 21st century republican construction in that sentence about a democratic president of the United States. Our president seems like a good man, and then the rest of the paragraph is dismantling this fraud put up on the stage for you. Thats 21st century republicans. Joe bidens speech, rachel, was really fascinating for me because joe biden by my rough count has been to about 50 addresses to the congress by president s. 44 state of the Union Addresses as a senator, Vice President. Another probably halfdozen special addresses to congress by president s of different times and crisis and other times. And now we know now we know what joe biden was thinking every single time he was sitting there listening to those speeches. I want to hear more about jobs. I want to hear more about jobs. And so i mean this is someone who he talked about Climate Change in a short passage about it and he said the most important word about Climate Change is jobs. He discussed this infrastructure bill which is the most complex infrastructure bill thats ever been introduced as it should be because its 21st century infrastructure, which includes elements that we didnt have in the 21st century in our infrastructure. And the name of that bill is the american jobs bill. The name of the infrastructure bill during the Clinton Administration was the intermodal surface transportation act. So joe biden has been paying attention, and the simplicity of the language in every single line, i never lost my place in this speech. There was no soaring rhetoric, really, but there was heart and there was feeling. Barack obama could deliver the most beautiful paragraphs of soaring rhetoric in speeches like this. Joe biden didnt attempt that. But every single sentence had a very clear point to it. And every line of it had that biden humility in it, which is a very hard thing to convey when you are president of the United States. Fair point. Im going to ask the control room a second to do this, but the sound lawrence is talking about is the third piece of sound on tape. Ill give the control room a chance to turn that around before we go to next break. That moment he talked about what Climate Policy is jobs and the room erupted. I want to make sure we turn that around in just a second. Were going to bring into the conversation now congresswoman karen bass of california who has been working with senator cory booker, democrat of new jersey, and senator tim scott, republican of South Carolina we just heard on the George Floyd Justice and policing act. Its great to see you tonight on this big night. Thank you so much. Thank you. So talk to us a bit about what we just heard from senator scott. My beloved colleague here joy reid was just expressing her disappointment she didnt hear more substance from senator scott on whats possible in Police Reform and what he wants to do and what could happen in the future. It sounded to me like he was just saying democrats are against policing reform. As somebody whos intimately involved with this issue how did you hear it, and what should we know . Well, i heard him probably speaking on behalf of his caucus and his party. But i will tell you in my conversations with him in the meetings and discussions that weve been having he has been very open, very inclusive. And at the end of the day says i am a republican, i am a conservative but i am a black man who has experienced harassment and being pulled over and stopped by police and wants to get this on President Bidens desk. So although i didnt have the opportunity to hear all of it because i was working over from hearing the president , what i did hear it sounds like he was speaking the party and not the man. In terms of the president s remarks tonight they were emotional remarks and vivid remarks talking about the knee on remarks talking about the knee on the neck of africanamericans, talking about White Supremacy as terrorism. The president had in his prepared remarks a very powerful section of writing on this topic, but he diverted from his prepared remarks to give even more emotional, Even Stronger remarks on the subject. Can you talk at all about the support or interaction that you have with the administration, with the executive branch in terms of trying to get this done . It seems like this is something that means a lot to both the president and Vice President. Well, the administration has been very clear they want it done. They want it done quickly. They have been extremely accessible and helpful in providing us information and anything that we needed to help get this across the finish line. And so i was happy to hear him talk about it because what a relief it it was. I mean, it was an uplifting presentation. I love the way he connected climate to jobs. I think its something that democrats have not done enough and the way he even talked about how the jobs that would be available you dont necessarily need a College Degree for, maybe not even a Community College degree. And so to me all of those issues are interconnected because when you look at employment, where is the employment very high . Which is in the black and brown communities. So and so he talked about racial inequity. He talked about White Supremacy, just like he did in his inauguration speech, and i think for africanamericans and other people of color, its just an opportunity to exhale and to relax, especially after four years of somebody who spent every day of his presidency trying to foment racial division. Congresswoman karen bass of california, it is such a pleasure to have you with us tonight, maam. Thank you for taking the time. I know its a celebratory night and a big night tonight. Thank you so much for being here. The Justice Department has just taken all of these very dramatic actions on policing. In police, the george floyd case and the Daunte Wright case, pattern of practice investigation in louisville, a federal civil rights investigation into what happened in North Carolina with elizabeth city, North Carolina, hate crimes charges today against three georgia men in the Ahmaud Arbery killing. Weve got news tonight out of minneapolis about a potential civil rights indictment of Derek Chauvin and three other officers. We saw georgia sheriff indicted on federal civil rights charges for mistreats prisoners in his care. Thats all happened in the week since demon coe has been the number two of the Justice Department. To have that kind of energy from the Justice Department along side this legislative effort, boy does it feel like a different world. I dont mean to pick on tim scott but that is why this is easy. Convicting Derek Chauvin, that wasnt hard. They had ten Police Officers testify against him, including the chief. That was not a difficult decision to come to. Policing reform at this point, police need credibility in order to do their jobs. You cannot police a community that doesnt trust you, that wont talk to you. That sees you as an invading army. Theres an opportunity here. I would urge people like tim scott to lean into that right now. I think what karen bass just alluded to was that she heard tim scott totally different than we did. She heard him speaking on behalf of his caucus, and his caucus may very well be where he communicated from tonight with that narrow understanding of what happened in georgia. What i heard her say is maybe shes seeing a very earnest and open person. Thats all i heard from behind the scenes. Hes honestly negotiating. Maybe hes speaking what mike lee and tom cotten had said. Lets bring into the conversation our beloved colleague chris hayes, the host of msnbcs all in who has been working his thumbs overtime tweeting tonight. I know a little bit about what you think you saw. What is your takeaway from these speeches . I find the joe biden presidency pretty fascinaing and in some ways unexpected in surprising ways. It is you know, the british politician wrote a novel in which he coined this phrase, tori men and wig measures. That was the sweet spot, the torrey men and wig measures, people wouldnt be scared off. You had good tried and true conservatives actually doing reformist liberal things. I feel like thats been a little bit of the joe biden approach here. Heres joe biden 40 years in the spotlight, 40 years, as the center of the democratic caucus. Someone who voted for the iraq war and was on the side of bankruptcy reform and these things. Hes never been a radical. As he said, i beat the socialists trying to push through a social democratic agenda in america that is very popular and has been defeated in the past by a lot of sort of cultural wedge issues. I just find it very effective. Theyre picking things that are good substantively that biden clearly believes in, that the Democratic Coalition is behind and things polling at 60, 65 . If you say to america, what do you think about getting rid of all the lead pipes in america. How does that poll . Should we not run the risk of brain poisoning our children and loved ones . Lets do it, right . And then you see counter to that in tim scott the utter ideological exhaustion of conservatism in this moment. There was a time conservatives would have licked their chops at the sheer scope of the agenda biden is proposing in these two packages and scott spent a few minutes on it and then he got into the things conservatives care about which is like the culture and what theyre teaching you in school about american racism and restricting voting. Theres no substantive ideological agenda about the Big Questions of political economy in American Life anymore. Theres none. Theres nothing there. They dont have arguments on the other side anymore. They forgot how to make them. The postpolicy era in Republican Party politics. Chris, im going to let you go now because i know you are coming back live for an hour at midnight eastern time. Were going to let you go to prep for ha. Were going to bring in Hakeem Jeffries, a member of Nancy Pelosis leadership team. We appreciate you being here. Thank you so much. Great to be with you. Weve seen the response from senator tim scott from South Carolina. His response to the president s address tonight. The president s address just over an hour, laying out his very ambitious agenda. What do you think is the most important thing people should take away from these speeches tonight. That joe biden recognizes that we have big problems in america. Its a big moment for this country and it requires Big Solutions. Joe biden is not running away from the Big Solutions that are necessary. Hes running toward them and laying them out in a very clear and simple, yet compelling fashion. Both as it relates to what we have already done, the American Rescue plan as well as what is necessary in terms of how we want to move forward the american jobs plan in terms of infrastructure, broadly defined, and of course the American Families plan. In terms of the relationship between the two parties, this chief critique that we saw from senator scott tonight and that i think is the chief critique from the republicans, although i wouldnt put words in their mouth has been that they themselves do not support his legislative agenda. They themselves do not support covid relief. They themselves do not support the things hes doing and therefore those things are not good because they are not bipartisan endeavors. What is your response to that . They believe the American Public wants to see both parties working together to pass things to improve conditions in the country. I think the American People definitely would prefer to see democrats and republicans working together when ever and wherever possible, and thats exactly what joe biden has been trying to do and will continue to try to do, and he expressed that very clearly during his remarks tonight. The Republican Party has lapsed into a very familiar playbook, which always occurs when they have a democratic president. Thats obstruction today, obstruction tomorrow, obstruction forever, and try to prevent and deny the democratic president from solving challenges on behalf of the American People. Wu with joe biden, its just not working because the things that he has proposed are broadly supported by the American People, and i also think, rachel, that the way that he laid things out today and tim scotts response, showed the difference between democrats and republicans. Republicans tried to convince the American People that we are competing against each other. Thats part of the effort to divide us. Joe biden made it clear that were in this together. If were competing with anyone, its rest of the world, particularly the autocrats who think that democracy is about to sin set. And so he rallied the American People together both in terms of the principles of american exceptionalism but also by leaning into the challenges of the working families, the middle class. Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of new york, thank you so much for being with us on this big night, sir. Its a real pleasure to have you here. Thank you so much. A special edition of the 11th hour with Brian Williams starts right now. Thank you for being with us tonight. Our live coverage here on msnbc continues. And good evening, once again. Day 99 of the Biden Administration on this eve of his 100th day in office, which arrives technically at the end of this hour. President biden delivered his first address to a joint session of congress. Tonight looked much different than previous president ial addresses in that huge house chamber. Only