What Went Down During President Biden’s Speech To Congress

That speech was well to the left of Obama on economics — the list of plans, the spending, etc. It was probably to the left of Obama on racial issues, too. It was very “Biden,” with some economic populism for the Warren/Sanders crowd and the broadest base of voters, hitting core Democratic issues for the base and an emphasis on American democracy that appeals to the “Never Trump” Democrats/Republicans.

The big question going forward is how much of the stuff in the first 45 minutes and the economic plan actually passes. Most of the stuff in the second half of the speech has no chance of passing, as long as the filibuster remains in place.

It was a focused speech, and Biden touched on a lot of hot-button issues: guns, immigration, raising the minimum wage, voting rights, COVID-19, vaccine distribution, the economy, etc. But I can’t help but come back to the fact that Biden’s remarks about race and police reform were relegated to the tail end of his speech.

My takeaway is pretty similar to Galen’s. You could imagine a situation in which this was a different kind of speech, which emphasized more systemic issues or the threats to democracy. This was a very standard format. But the content of the economic agenda was stunning: a strong defense of unions and a straightforward attack on inequality.