President Biden … you are about to receive some more unsolicited advice from little ol’ me, one of your many supporters who wants to see you re-elected in November.
House Speaker Mike Johnson invited you to speak to a joint congressional session about the State of the Union. I am delighted you accepted the March 7 speaking engagement.
Be prepared, sir, to be heckled, harangued and harassed by a handful of MAGA morons sitting on the Republican side of the House chamber. You have a marvelous message to deliver. The state of our Union is strong. I expect that declaration to come with force during your speech.
It won’t matter to the likes of Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Paul Gosar, Matt Gaetz, Lauren (The Carpetbagger) Boebert, Sens. Ted (the Cruz Missile) Cruz or John (no, not that …) Kennedy.
They will hoot, holler and hiss as you extol the virtues of your term in office.
The challenge, Mr. President, will be in how you deal with it in the moment. One of your predecessors, President Obama, had a masterful sense of timing as he swatted away such idiocy arising from the GOP side of the chamber. Some advice? Why not call the man you call your “brother” and ask him for a tip on how to handle such juvenile behavior. Hey, no one needs to know you made the call.
Use your personal cell phone. Slip him a text message. He’ll call back, right?
Yes, this speech will be seen through a political lens. You know that, as you have sat through many other such SOTUs as senator and vice president.
As you declare the strength of our Union, though, it is imperative that you deal forthrightly with some of the issues that do plague this great nation. You know what I am talking about: the southern border crisis stands out; a solution to that difficult matter can come from you and the SOTU is an ideal forum to offer it. Wars in Israel and Ukraine also are deep concern for your fellow Americans. We need some glimmer of an “end game” strategy and again, the SOTU can provide the venue for it.
I am delighted with the state of our economy and you need to remind Americans that the recession the “experts” predicted hasn’t come … and isn’t likely to come.
And, finally, you need to frame this upcoming campaign as a battle to retain our cherished democracy and resist the rants of those who want to turn the presidency into an autocracy.
I am with you, Mr. President.
As for the delinquents in the crowd who will toss decorum into the dumper as you stand before the nation, you’ll know how to handle them, too.