The House is lifting its mask mandate ahead of President Biden’s State of the Union address this week, making mask wearing optional throughout the Capitol complex.
Biden points to historic nature of madame vice president — It s about time thehill.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thehill.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Moments later, Cheney fist-bumped Biden as he walked down the aisle to the dais.
The contrast between Biden and his more polarizing predecessor could not be more stark. At the State of the Union address just a year ago, Pelosi was so furious with what she called the “manifesto of mistruths” she ripped up a copy of Trump’s speech as he stood a few feet away.
If he did anything during his speech, Biden lowered the temperature in the Capitol and in Washington. At one poignant moment, the president personally thanked McConnell for naming a cancer research bill after his son, Beau Biden, who died of brain cancer. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle applauded the line.
Speaking on the 99th day of his presidency in a chamber overrun by insurrectionists just more than three months ago, Biden laid out an ambitious legislative agenda before an audience of lawmakers severely limited by the coronavirus pandemic.
Biden used his address to tout his efforts to get the nation back to normal after the pandemic and the divisive presidency of Donald Trump. He made no direct mention of his predecessor, but argued those present had a responsibility to prove democracy still works and our government still works and we can deliver for our people.”
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“We have stared into an abyss of insurrection and autocracy of pandemic and pain and ‘We the People’ did not flinch,” Biden said. “At the very moment our adversaries were certain we would pull apart and fail. We came together.”
The meeting, which was first reported by Bloomberg News on Wednesday afternoon, represents Biden’s latest effort to reach across the aisle amid high partisan tensions in Washington. Biden campaigned on being able to work with Republicans, but thus far he has not struck any deals with the opposing party.
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“The President looks forward to building on that engagement by having a dialogue with Leader Schumer, Leader McConnell, Speaker Pelosi, and Leader McCarthy about policy areas of mutual agreement and identifying common ground on which they can work together and deliver results on the challenges facing American families,” the White House official said.