Joey Year 3

And much of a bump out of these State of the Union addresses, it's sort of an inside Washington phenomenon. But as many people have said tonight, this is so high stakes for this president. I think in the wake of last month's special counsel report, it really amplified so many concerns among voters across the board, among Democrats specifically, about the president's age, about his ability to perform. So if he's able to, as you said, hit it out of the park, perhaps that does make a difference. Perhaps that does reset the narrative for him. And of course, if he does stumble in some way, I think that could be absolutely disastrous. As we just saw, Marjorie Taylor Greene as well. Eugene Scott, you know, this is going to be a close election. Every poll shows that. The president having some issues with minority groups across the country, including Arab Americans, black Americans, Hispanics. Do you think he addresses any of those groups tonight? I think that's very possible. I mean, we know that he's going to talk about the conflict in Gaza. And this is something that many voters want to hear about, including young voters, a demographic that he needs to be victorious in many of those states that will determine who will win in November. We were just listening as they were announcing the Supreme Court is now entering, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, who will appear. There he is. Sonia Sotomayor, I believe, just behind him. Justice Gorsuch, Elena Kagan, Justice Kavanaugh as well. And I think we also have our first pictures of the beast that is carrying the president right now as it enters Capitol Hill and makes that left turn into a secure location where the president will be able to depart and enter the chambers, along with his wife, the first lady. They will split up for a short time so she can go off to the gallery and watch the speech with her invited guests. And Molly, something that I found interesting was that there will be a lot of important people that will be sort of acknowledged. There will be nobody from Israel, no Palestinian, nobody from Gaza. It seems they sort of avoided that when it came to guests. You know, this is a little bit of a different topic. But on the subject of the court, one thing we do know is that the president plans to call out the Supreme Court and talk about Roe v. Wade, specifically the decision that was made by the court and say, you know, the court said that women have political power and they've shown that in talking about his desire to see Roe reinstated. So, I mean, I think on Gaza it will be very interesting. Does he, does the president want to speak to that left wing of the party that has been protesting and we see protesting outside tonight? Or is he going to speak to the broad middle of the American electorate that is more favorable to Israel? I'll be very interested to know what he's going to strike by. As we see Justice Contagi Brown-Jackson, the Supreme Court will have such a significant role in this election as well. They already have, waiting on some of the court cases that involve former President Trump. Right now, all smiles. Sometimes we've had the justices not smiling during States of the Union. But we'll see what happens tonight. We're moments away from the president about to enter the chamber. We want to thank all of our guests tonight on this portion of our broadcast. But now we want to go to an NBC News special report. Tonight, President Biden on the State of Our Union. The president set to address a bitterly divided Congress, outlining the challenges facing Americans at home and abroad. The war in Ukraine now at a critical crossroads while fears remain of a wider war spreading in the Middle East. Here at home, despite an improving economy, Americans under pressure with the cost of living still stubbornly high. Plus, growing tensions over some key issues, including immigration and abortion rights. With eight months until the general election and his approval rating underwater, can the president make the case that the State of the Union is strong? From NBC News, President Biden's State of the Union. Live from Washington, here are Lester Holt and Savannah Guthrie. Good evening and welcome everyone to our NBC News coverage of President Biden's State of the Union address. Tonight is a pivotal night for the president as he prepares to deliver what could be the most important speech of his presidency. We are still eight months out from the general election, but with that rematch now set between him and former President Trump, tonight might be the president's best chance to get his message out there. Members of Congress already assembled on the House floor. The message is expected to address the most critical issues the country is facing, including immigration, the economy, and of course, two wars raging overseas. Our Capitol Hill correspondent, Ryan Nobles, is inside the chamber. Ryan, what are you seeing there as folks continue to file their way in? Well, Lester, we're already seeing members of Congress displaying messages that they want the world to see. Even though they're not going to have a voice in this room here tonight, they want to make sure the policy issues that they care about are front and center. Among them, you see a sea of white, and this is the women from the Democratic Caucus. They decided to band together to wear white in representation of women's rights, and in particular, reproductive rights. Something else to look for tonight is that some members purposely wearing yellow and blue to show their ongoing support of Ukraine and, of course, the push for that supplemental aid package to pass at some point. We're also noticing Republicans in the crowd today, many of them wearing white ribbons. This is their way of demonstrating their concerns about the ongoing border crisis and the violence that they believe is associated with it. Some also displaying pins with the name of Lakin Riley, who, of course, was that young woman who was allegedly murdered by an undocumented immigrant. You know, Lester and Savannah, it's important to point out that tonight that the president is entering what is really one of the most partisan House chambers in a generation. There's, of course, only just a few votes separating Republicans and Democrats. Those slim margins make it really difficult for Congress to get anything of substance accomplished, and because that partisanship is at an all-time high, there is, of course, the possibility of the president being heckled by members of his opposing party. Although the new speaker, Mike Johnson, who it's important to point out, he'll be sitting behind the president for the first time. He's only been in the job for a couple of months. He has instructed his members to abide by the House rules, and he's told them to display what he calls decorum. The other thing we'll be looking for tonight, Lester and Savannah, is that there's going to be several guests in the gallery. You well know, and I know you have these numbers memorized, so many of the metrics show an improving economy, and yet people don't say they feel it. And it comes down to inflation, and specifically the grocery store. Absolutely. The state of the American economy is strong. This should be a big advantage in the State of the Union address, but the state of the American psyche is skeptical or exhausted, depending on who you talk to, and it's exhausted by the three years of higher inflation. Inflation is moderating. You'll hear the president say that today. 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Hopefully I can hear a little bit better in the actual room, Savannah, but yes, it did appear as the President made his way down past the actual seating of the members. He's now, of course, making his way to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, just greeted members of the Supreme Court. But just as he got down to kind of the final stage before he heads up to the lectern, the Democratic members were chanting four more years and clapping loudly for the President. You know, it's interesting. It's really kind of stark to see him in a room like this where he is so brave one-on-one. That is what President Biden is known for, where perhaps sometimes in a big speech he's known for verbal gaps or other issues. When he's having a conversation with someone, he often makes that person feel like they're the most important person in the room. And even in a venue like this, where he has cameras staring at him, millions of people watching all over the world, he takes a moment with each and every person that he sees as he makes his way down the aisle and has that moment with them. In some cases, it's like he's seeing a friend he hasn't seen in a long time with a big hug, and it looks as though he's sharing some sort of moment with them. And just to get back to that moment with Marjorie Taylor Greene coming down the aisle, you know, we could see her don her hat, clearly looking to have a viral moment. She also had her camera phone pointed at the President the entire time, so I'm sure that's something that she's going to attempt to make a big deal of on conservative media. It didn't seem to bother the President at all. You couldn't tell from our vantage point whether or not he engaged with her or just kind of walked by as she was trying to get her message to him. So, this is, I would imagine, somewhat of a frustration for the planners of this event here tonight. I don't know if they've back-timed enough or worked up enough time for Joe Biden to greet all these folks. You know, I think there's a level of frustration for him as President that he doesn't have the opportunity to have these conversations as frequently as he did when he was a member of his Senate. Well, he's taking the bill here now. He'll be hearing from the President in a moment. And, Krista, Greg, we're pleased that you're watching a moment that was passed by members of the Supreme Court. And it made me wonder, at least, how many times will this Court potentially touch issues related to this race? Absolutely. We're waiting for the Supreme Court to let us know when something is on conservative media. We're waiting for a big trial, I think. Let's do it! Thank you. Thank you, too. Thank you. Good evening. Good evening. If I were smart, I'd go home now. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, Madam Vice President, members of Congress, my fellow Americans, in January 1941, Franklin Roosevelt came to this chamber to speak to the nation. And he said, I address you at a moment unprecedented in the history of the Union. Hitler was on the march. War was raging in Europe. President Roosevelt's purpose was to wake up Congress and alert the American people that this was no ordinary time. Freedom and democracy were under assault in the world. Tonight, I come to this same chamber to address the nation. Now, it's we who face an unprecedented moment in the history of the Union. And yes, my purpose tonight is to wake up the Congress and alert the American people that this is no ordinary moment either. Not since President Lincoln and the Civil War have freedom and democracy been under assault at home as they are today. What makes our moment rare is that freedom and democracy are under attack both at home and overseas at the very same time. Overseas, Putin rushes on the march, invading Ukraine and sowing chaos throughout Europe and beyond. If anybody in this room thinks Putin will stop at Ukraine, I assure you he will not. But Ukraine... Ukraine can stop Putin. Ukraine can stop Putin if we stand with Ukraine and provide the weapons that he has extended to us. That is all. That is all Ukraine is asking. They're not asking for American soldiers. In fact, there are no American soldiers who are in Ukraine, and I'm determined to keep it that way. But now, assistance to Ukraine is being blocked by those who want to walk away from our world leadership. It wasn't long ago when a Republican president named Ronald Reagan thundered, Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall. Now... Now my predecessor, a former Republican president, tells Putin, quote, do whatever the hell you want. That's a quote. A former president actually said that bowing down to a Russian leader, I think it's outrageous, it's dangerous, and it's unacceptable. America is a founding member of NATO, the military alliance of democratic nations created after World War II to prevent war and keep the peace. And today, we've made NATO stronger than ever. Welcome Finland to the alliance last year. And just this morning, Sweden officially joined, and their minister is here tonight. Stand up. Welcome. Welcome, welcome, welcome. And they know how to fight. Mr. Prime Minister, welcome to NATO, the strongest military alliance the world has ever seen. I say this to Congress, we have to stand up to Putin. Send me a bipartisan national security bill. History is literally watching. History is watching. If the United States walks away, it will put Ukraine at risk. Europe is at risk. The free world will be at risk, and bullying others to do what they wish to do is harm. My message to President Putin, who I've known for a long time, is simple. We will not walk away. We will not bow down. I will not bow down. In a literal sense, history is watching. History is watching. Just like history watched three years ago on January 6th, when insurrectionists stormed this very capital and placed a dagger at the throat of American democracy. Many of you are here on that darkest of days. We all saw with our own eyes the insurrectionists were not patriots. They'd come to stop the peaceful transfer of power, to oversteer the will of the people. January 6th lies about the 2020 election and the plots to steal the election posed a great, gravest threat to U.S. democracy since the Civil War. But they failed. America stood. America stood strong, and democracy prevailed. We must be honest. The threat to democracy must be defended. My predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth about January 6th. I will not do that. This is a moment to speak the truth and to bury the lies. Here's the simple truth. You can't love your country only when you win. As I've done ever since being elected to office, I ask all of you, without regard to party, to join together and defend democracy. Remember your oath of office of defending against all threats, foreign and domestic. Respect free and fair elections. Restore trust in our institutions. And make clear political violence has absolutely no place, no place in America, zero place. Again, it's not hyperbole to suggest history is watching. We're watching. Your children and grandchildren will read about this day and what we do. History is watching another assault on freedom. Joining us tonight is Latoya Beasley, a social worker from Birmingham, Alabama. Fourteen months ago, fourteen months ago, she and her husband welcomed a baby girl thanks to the miracle of IVF. She scheduled treatments to have that second child. The Alabama Supreme Court shut down IVF treatments across the state. Unleashed by a Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. She was told her dream would have to wait. What her family got through should never have happened. Unless Congress acts, it could happen again. So tonight, let's stand up for families like hers. Don't keep this waiting any longer. Guarantee the right to IVF. Guarantee it nationwide. Like most Americans, I believe Roe v. Wade got it right. I thank Vice President Harris for being an incredible leader, defending reproductive freedom over the world. My friend and sister came to us determined to see Roe v. Wade overturned. He's the reason it was overturned. And he brags about it. Look at the chaos that has resulted. Joining us tonight is Kate Cox, a wife and mother from Dallas. She's become pregnant again and had a fetus in a fatal condition. Her doctor told Kate that her own life and her ability to have children in the future were at risk if she didn't act. Because Texas law banned her ability to act, Kate and her husband had to leave the state to get what she needed. What her family got through should have never happened as well. But it's happening to too many others. There are state laws banning the freedom to choose, criminalizing doctors, forcing survivors of rape and incest to leave their states to get the treatment they need. Many of you in this chamber and my predecessor are promising to pass a national ban on reproductive freedom. My God, what freedom else would you take away? Look, it's a decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court majority, wrote the following. And with all due respect, Justices, women are not without electoral power. Excuse me, electoral or political power. You're about to realize just how much these people are alive. Clearly. Clearly. Those bragging about overturning Roe v. Wade have no clue about the power of women. But they found out when reproductive freedom was on the ballot, we won in 2022 and 2020, and we will again in 2024. If you, if you the American people, send me a Congress that supports the right to choose, I promise you, I'll restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again. Folks, America cannot go back. I'm here tonight to show what I believe in the way forward, because I know how far we've come. Four years ago next week, before I came to office, the country was hit by the worst pandemic and the worst economic crisis in a century. Remember the fear? Record losses. Remember the spikes in crime and the murder rate raging virus that took more than one million American lives of loved ones, millions left behind. A mental health crisis of isolation and loneliness. My president, my predecessor, failed the most basic presidential duty that he owes to American people, the duty to care. I think that's unforgivable. I came to office determined to get us through one of the toughest periods in the nation's history. We have. It doesn't make news, but news in a thousand cities and towns, the American people are writing the greatest comeback story never told. Let's tell the story here. Tell it here and now. America's comeback is building the future of American possibilities, building an economy from the middle out and the bottom up, not the top down, investing in all America and all Americans to make sure everyone has a fair shot. We leave no one, no one behind. The pandemic no longer controls our lives. The vaccine that saved us from COVID are now being used to beat cancer, turning setback into comeback. That's what America does. That's what America does. Folks, my heritage economy is on the brink. Now our economy is literally the envy of the world. Fifteen million new jobs in just three years, a record, a record. Unemployment. A 15-year low. A record 16 million Americans are starting small businesses. Each one is a literal act of hope. With historic job growth and small business growth for black and Hispanics and Asian Americans, 800,000 new manufacturing jobs in America and counting. We're in the race. We can't be the manufacturing capital of the world. We are. We will. More people have health insurance today. More people have health insurance today than ever before. The racial wealth gap is as small as it's been in 20 years. Wages keep going up. Inflation keeps coming down. Inflation has dropped from 9% to 3%, the lowest in the world, and 10 even lower. The landing is a little bit soft. And now, instead of importing foreign products and exporting American jobs, we're exporting American products and creating American jobs. Right here in America, where they belong. And it takes time, but the American people are beginning to feel it. Consumer studies show consumer confidence is soaring. Buy America has been the law of the land since the 1930s. Past administrations, including my predecessor, including some Democrats as well in the past, failed to buy America. Not anymore. On my watch, federal projects that you fund, like helping build American roads, bridges, and highways, will be made with American products and built by American workers. Creating good-paying American jobs. And thanks to our Chips and Science Act, the United States is investing more in research and development than ever before. During the pandemic, a shortage of semiconductors, chips, that drove up the price of everything from cell phones to automobiles. And by the way, we invented those chips right here in America. Well, instead of having to import them, private companies are now investing billions of dollars to build new chip factories here in America. Creating tens of thousands of jobs. Many of those jobs pay $100,000 a year and don't require a college degree. In fact, my policies have attracted $650 billion in private sector investment. And clean energy, advanced manufacturing, creating tens of thousands of jobs here in America. Thanks. Thanks to our bipartisan infrastructure law, 46,000 new projects have been announced all across your communities. And by the way, I know that some of you who strongly voted against it are there cheering on that money coming in. I'm with you. I'm with you. If any of you don't want that money in your district, just let me know. Modernizing our roads and bridges, ports and airports, public transit systems, removing poisonous lead pipes so every child can drink clean water without risking brain damage. Providing affordable high-speed Internet for every American, no matter where you live, urban, suburban or rural communities, in red states and blue states. Record investments in tribal communities. Because of my investment in family farms, because of my investment in family farms led by my Secretary of Agriculture, who knows more about this than anybody I know, we're better able to stay in a family for those farms and their children and grandchildren will have to leave, leave home to make a living. It's transformative. A great comeback story is Belvedere, Illinois, home to an auto plant for nearly 60 years. Before I came to office, the plant was on its way to shutting down. Thousands of workers feared for their livelihoods. Hope was fading. Then I was elected to office and we raised the Belvedere repeatedly with auto companies, knowing unions would make all the difference. UAW worked like hell to keep the plant open and get these jobs back. And together we succeeded. Instead of auto factories shutting down, auto factories reopening and a new state-of-the-art battery factory being built to power those cars there at the table. The folks at Belvedere, I say, instead of your town being left behind, the community is moving forward again. Because instead of watching auto jobs in the future go overseas, 4,000 union jobs with higher wages are building the future in Belvedere right here in America. Here tonight is UAW President Sean Fain, a great Spaniard and a great labor leader. Sean, where are you? Stand up. And Don, and Don Sip, a third-generation worker, UAW worker at Belvedere. Sean, I was proud to be the first president to stand on the picket line. And today, Don has a good job in her hometown, providing stability for her family and pride and dignity as well. Sean, once again, Wall Street didn't build America. They're not bad guys. They didn't build it, though. The middle class built the country. And unions built the middle class. I say to the American people, when America gets knocked down, we get back up. We keep going. That's America. That's you, the American people. It's because of you America's coming back. It's because of you our future is bright. It's because of you that tonight we can proudly say the state of our union is strong and getting stronger. Tonight, I want to talk about the future of possibilities that we can build together. A future where the days of trickle-down economics are over and the wealthy and the biggest corporations no longer get to allow the tax breaks. And by the way, I understand corporations. I come from a state that has more corporations invested than every one of your states in the United States combined. And I've represented for 36 years. I'm not anti-corporation. But I grew up in a home where trickle-down economics didn't put much on my dad's kitchen table. That's why I determined to turn things around so middle class does well. When they do well, the poor have a way up and the wealthy still do very well. We all do well. And there's more to do to make sure you're feeling the benefits of all we're doing. Americans pay more for prescription drugs than anywhere in the world. It's wrong and I'm ending it. So the wall, like a frozen sign, not one of your Republican buddies voted for it. We finally beat big pharma. Instead of paying $400 a month or thereabouts for insulin with diabetes, it only costs $10 to make. They only get paid $35 a month now and still make healthy profits. What to do next? I want to cap the cost of insulin at $35 a month for every American who needs it. Everyone. For years, people have talked about it, but finally we got it done. We got it done, gave Medicare the power to negotiate lower prices on prescription drugs. Just like the VA is able to do for veterans. That's not just saving seniors money. It's saving taxpayers money. We cut the federal deficit by $160 billion. Because Medicare will no longer have to pay those exorbitant prices to big pharma. This year, Medicare is negotiating lower prices for some of the costliest drugs on the market that treat everything from heart disease to arthritis. It's now time to go further and give Medicare the power to negotiate lower prices for 500 different drugs over the next decade. We're making a lot of money, guys. And they'll still be extremely profitable. It will not only save lives, it will save taxpayers another $200 billion. Starting next year, the same law caps total prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare at $2,000 a year. Even for expensive cancer drugs that cost $10,000, $12,000, $15,000. I want to cap prescription drug costs at $2,000 a year for everyone. Folks, I'm going to get in trouble for saying that, but if you want to get in the Air Force, you want me to fly to Toronto, Berlin, Moscow. I mean, excuse me. Well, even Moscow, probably. And bring your prescription with you, and I promise you I'll get it for you for 40% the cost you're paying now. Same company, same drug, same place. Folks, the Affordable Care Act and the old Obamacare is still a very big deal. Over 100 million of you can no longer be denied health insurance because of phasing conditions. Well, my predecessor and many in this chamber want to take this prescription drug away by repealing the Affordable Care Act. I'm not going to let that happen. It stopped you 50 times before it will stop you again. In fact, I'm not only protecting it, I'm expanding it. The enacted tax credits of $800 per person per year reduce health care costs for millions of working families. That tax credit expires next year. I want to make that savings permanent. Women are more than half our population, but research on women's health has always been underfunded. That's why we're launching the first-ever White House initiative on women's health research, led by Jill. Doing an incredible job. It passed my plan for $12 billion to transfer women's health research to benefit millions of lives all across America. I know the cost of housing is so important to you. If inflation keeps coming down, mortgage rates will come down as well, and the Fed acknowledges that. But I'm not waiting. I want to provide an annual tax credit that will give Americans $400 a month for the next two years as mortgage rates come down, to put toward their mortgage when they buy their first home or trade up for a little more space. That's in two years. And my administration is also eliminating title insurance on federally backed mortgages. When you refinance your home, you can save $1,000 or more as a consequence. For millions of renters, we're cracking down on big landlords who break antitrust laws by price-fixing and driving up rents. We've cut red tape so builders can get federally financing, which is already helping build a record 1.7 million new housing units nationwide. Now pass and build and renovate 2 million affordable homes and bring those rents down. To remain the strongest economy in the world, we need to have the best education system in the world. And I, like I suspect all of you, want to give a child, every child, a good start by providing access to preschool for 3 and 4 years old. I think I pointed out last year that children coming from broken homes where there's no books, not read to, not spoken to very often, start school, kindergarten or first grade having heard a million fewer words spoken. Well, studies show that children who go to preschool are nearly 50% more likely to finish high school, go on to earn a 2 and 4 degree, no matter what their background is. I met a year and a half ago with the leaders of the business roundtable. They were mad that I, they were angry, I said, well, they were discussing why I wanted to spend money on education. I pointed out to them, as vice president, I met with over, I think it was 182 of those folks, don't owe me the exact number. And I asked them what they need most, the CEOs. And you've had the same experience on both sides now, they say a better educated workforce, right? So I looked at them and I say, I come from Delaware. DuPont used to be the 8th largest corporation in the world. And every new enterprise they bought, they educated the workforce to that enterprise. But none of you do that anymore. Why are you angry with me, providing you the opportunity for the best educated workforce in the world? They all looked at me and said, I think you're right. I want to expand high quality tutoring and summer learning to see that every child learns to read by third grade. I'm also connecting local businesses and high schools. So students get hands on experience and a path to good paying job, whether or not they go to college. And I want to make sure that college is more affordable. Let's continue increasing the Pell Grants to working and middle class families and increase record investment. At HBCU, a minority serving institution, including a Hispanic institution. And I was told I couldn't universally just change the way in which you develop student loans. I fixed two student loan programs that already existed to reduce the burden of student debt for nearly four million Americans, including nurses, firefighters, and others in public service. Like Gene Jones, a public educator in Minnesota, who's here with us tonight. Gene, where are you? Gene, thank you. He's educated hundreds of students so they can go to college. Now he's able to help, after debt forgiveness, get his own daughter to college. Such relief is good for the economy because folks are now able to buy a home, start a business, start a family. While we're at it, I want the public school teachers a raise. By the way, the first couple of days, we cut the deficit. Now let me speak to the question of fundamental fairness for all Americans. I've been delivering real results in fiscally responsible ways. We've already cut the federal deficit. We've already cut the federal deficit by over a trillion dollars. I signed the bipartisan deal. We'll cut another trillion dollars in the next decade. My goal to cut the federal deficit another three trillion by making big corporations very wealthy, finally beginning to pay their fair share. Look, I'm a capitalist. You want to make a million or millions of bucks, that's great. Just pay your fair share in taxes. A fair tax code is how we invest to make this country great. Health care, education, defense, and so much more. But here's the deal. The last administration enacted a two trillion dollar tax cut. Overwhelmingly benefit the top 1%, the very wealthy, the biggest corporations. And exploded the federal deficit. They added more to the national debt than any presidential term in American history. Check the numbers. Folks at home, does anybody really think the tax code is fair? Do you really think the wealthy and big corporations need another two trillion dollar tax break? I sure don't. I'm going to keep fighting like hell to make it fair. Under my plan, nobody earning less than $400,000 a year will pay an additional penny in federal taxes. Nobody, not one penny. And they haven't yet. It's a fact. It's a fact. The child tax credit I passed during the pandemic cut taxes for millions of working families and cut child poverty in half. Destroy that child tax credit. No child should go hungry in this country. The way to make the tax code fair is to make big corporations and the very wealthy begin to pay their fair share. Remember in 2020, 55 of the biggest companies in America paid $40 billion and paid zero in federal income tax. Zero. Not anymore. Thanks to the law I wrote, we signed, big companies have to pay a minimum of 50%. But that's still less than working people pay in federal taxes. It's time to raise corporate minimum tax to at least 21%. So every big corporation finally begins to pay their fair share. I also want to end tax breaks for big pharma, big oil, private checks, massive executive pay, when it's only supposed to be a million dollars that can be deducted. They can pay them $20 million if they want, but deduct a million. End it now. You know, there are 1,000 billionaires in America. You know what the average federal tax is for those billionaires? No. They're making great sacrifices, 8.2%. That's far less than the vast majority of Americans pay. No billionaire should pay a lower federal tax rate than a teacher, a sanitation worker, or a nurse. I've approved minimum tax for billionaires of 25%, just 25%. You know what that would raise? That would raise $500 billion over the next 10 years. And imagine what that could do for America. Imagine a future with affordable child care. Millions of families can get the need to go to work to help grow the economy. Imagine a future with paid leave, because no one should have to choose between working and taking care of their sick family members. Imagine, imagine a future of home care and elder care. And people living with disabilities, so they can stay in their homes and family caregivers can finally get the pay they deserve. Tonight, let's all agree once again to stand up for seniors. Many of my friends on the other side of Iowa want to put Social Security on the chopping block. If anyone here tries to cut Social Security or Medicare or raise the retirement age, I will stop you. The wealthy people, the wealthy people who built this country, pay more into Social Security than millionaires and billionaires do. It's not fair. We have two ways to go. Republicans can cut Social Security and give more tax breaks to the wealthy. That's the proposal. Oh no? You guys don't want another $2 trillion tax cut? I kind of thought that's what your plan was. Well, that's good to hear. You're not going to cut another $2 trillion for the super wealth? That's good to hear. I'll protect and strengthen Social Security and make the wealthy pay their fair share. Look, too many corporations raise prices to pad their profits, charging more and more for less and less. That's why it's cracking down on corporations engaging in price gouging and deceptive pricing, from food to health care to housing. In fact, the snack companies think you won't notice if they change the size of the bag and put a hell of a lot fewer chips in it. Same size bag, put fewer chips in it. No, I'm not joking. It's called shrink-placing. Pass Bobby Casey's bill and stop this. I really mean it. You probably all saw that commercial on Snickers bars. You get charged the same amount and you got about, I don't know, 10% fewer Snickers in it. Look, I'm also getting rid of junk fees. Those hidden fees at the end of your bill, they'll be there without your knowledge. My administration announced we're cutting credit card late fees from $32 to $8. Banks and credit card companies are allowed to charge what it costs them to instigate the collection. And that's more hell of a lot like $8 and 30-some dollars. They don't like it. Credit card companies don't like it. But I'm saving American families $20 billion a year with all the junk fees I'm allowing. Folks at home, that's why the banks are so mad. It's $20 billion in profit. I'm not stopping there. My administration proposed rules to make cable, travel, utilities, online ticket sellers tell you the total price up front so they're no surprise. It matters. It matters. And so does this. In November, my team began serious negotiations with a bipartisan group of senators. The result was a bipartisan bill with the toughest set of border security reforms we've ever seen. Oh, you don't think so? Oh, you don't like that bill, huh? That conservatives got together and said it was a good bill? I'll be darned. That's amazing. That bipartisan bill would hire 1,500 more security agents and officers. 100 more immigration judges to help tackle the back load of two-minute cases. 4,300 more asylum officers and new policies so they can resolve cases in six months instead of six years now. What do you get? 100 more high-tech drug detection machines to significantly increase the ability to screen and stop vehicles smuggling fentanyl into America. That's killing thousands of children. It's still a safe ride. And they order the borders. It will also get me and any new president. A new emergency authority to temporarily shut down the border and the number of migrants at the border is overwhelming. The Border Patrol Union has endorsed this bill. The Federal Chamber of Commerce has endorsed it. Yeah, yeah. You're saying no. Look at the facts. I know. I know you know how to read. I believe that given the opportunity for a majority in the House and Senate, we'd endorse the bill as well. A majority right now. But unfortunately, politics has derailed this bill so far. I'm told my predecessor called members of Congress and the Senate to demand they block the bill. He feels a political win will be a political win for me and a political loser for him. It's not about him. It's not about me. I'd be a winner, not a loser. Lincoln, Lincoln Riley, an innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal. That's right. But how many of thousands of people being killed by illegals? To her parents, I say my heart goes out to having lost children myself. I understand. But look, if we change the dynamic at the border, people pay people. People pay these smugglers 8000 bucks to get across the border because they know if they get by, if they get by and get into the country, it's six to eight years before they have a hearing. And it's worth taking the chance of the 8000. But if it's only six months, six weeks, the idea is it's highly unlikely that people will pay that money and come all that way knowing that they'll be able to be kicked out quickly. Folks, I would respectfully suggest my republican friends over to the American people. Get this bill done. We need to act now. And if my predecessor is watching, instead of paying politics and pressuring members of Congress to block the bill, join me telling the Congress to pass it. We can do it together. But that's what he apparently hears what he will not do. I will not demonize immigrants saying they are poison in the blood of our country. I will not separate families. I will not ban people because of their faith. But like my predecessor on my first day in office, I introduced a comprehensive bill to fix our immigration system. Take a look at it as all these and more secure the border, provide a pathway to citizenship for dreamers and so much more. But unlike my predecessor, I know who we are as Americans. We're the only nation in the world with a heart and soul that draws from old and new. Home to Native Americans and ancestors who have been here for thousands of years. Home to people from every place on earth. They came freely. Some came in chains. Some came when famine struck like my ancestral family in Ireland. Some to flee persecution. To chase dreams that are impossible anywhere but here in America. That's America. And we all come from somewhere. And we're all Americans. We're all Americans. Look folks. It's been a simple choice. We can fight about fixing the border or we can fix it. I'm ready to fix it. Send me the border bill now. Transformational moment in history. Happened 58, 59 years ago today in Selma, Alabama. Hundreds of foot soldiers for justice marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Named after the Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan. To claim their fundamental right to vote. They were beaten. They were bloodied. And left for dead. Our late friend and former colleague John Lewis was on that march. We miss him. But joining us tonight are other marchers. Both in the gallery and on the floor. Including Betty Mae Fikes. Known as the voice of Selma. The daughter of gospel singers and preachers. She sang songs of prayer and protest on that bloody Sunday. To help shake the nation's conscience. Five months later, the Voting Rights Act passed and was signed into law. Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. But 59 years later, our force has taken us back in time. Voter suppression. Election subversion. Unlimited dark money. Extreme gerrymandering. John Lewis was a great friend to many of us here. But if you truly want to honor him and all the heroes that marched with him, then it's time to do more than talk. Pass the Freedom to Vote Act. The John Lewis Voting Rights Act. And stop denying another core value of America. Our diversity across American life. Banning books is wrong. Instead of erasing history, let's make history. I want to protect fundamental rights. Pass the Equality Act. Come on, get your fans into America. I have your back. Pass the Throw Act for workers' rights. Raise the federal minimum wage. Because every worker has a right to a decent living more than they make seven bucks an hour. We're also making history by confronting the climate crisis, not denying it. I don't think any of you think there's no longer a climate crisis. At least I hope you don't. I'm taking the most significant action ever on climate in the history of the world. I'm cutting our carbon emissions in half by 2030. Creating tens of thousands of clean energy jobs, like the IBEW workers building and installing 500,000 electric cable charging stations. Conserving 30% of America's land and water by 2030. Taking action on environmental justice, fence-line communities smothered by the legacy of pollution. In pattern after the Peace Corps and America Corps, I launched the Climate Corps to put 20,000 young people to work in the forefront of our clean energy future. I'll triple that number in a decade. Let's make the obvious. All Americans deserve the freedom to be safe. And America is safer today than when I took office. The year before I took office, murder rates went up 30%. 30% they went up. 90% were raped. 40% were raped. 50% were raped. 50% were raped. 50% were raped. 50% were raped. 90% were raped. 40% were raped. The biggest increase in history. It was then, through my American Rescue Plan, which every American voted against, I'm mad at, we made the largest investment in public safety ever. Last year, the murder rate saw the sharpest decrease in history. Violent crime fell to one of its lowest levels in more than 50 years. But we have more to do. We have to help cities invest in more community police officers. More mental health workers. More community violence prevention. Give communities the tools to crack down on gun crime, retail crime, and carjacking. Keep building trust with them and do it by taking executive action. For police reform. And calling for it to be the law of the land. Directing my cabinet to review the federal classification of marijuana and expunding thousands of convictions for the mere possession. Because no one should be jailed for simply using or having it on their record. Take on crimes of domestic violence. I'm wrapping up the federal enforcement of the Violence Against Women Act that I proudly wrote when I was a senator. So we can finally, finally end the scourge against women in America. There are other kinds of violence, but I want to stop. With us tonight is Jasmine, whose nine-year-old sister Jackie was murdered with 21 classmates and teachers in an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. Very soon after that happened, Jill and I went to Uvalde for a couple days. We spent hours and hours with each of the families. We heard their message. So everyone in this room, in this chamber, could hear the same message. The constant refrain, and I was there for hours meeting with every family. They said, do something. Do something! Well, I did do something by establishing the first ever Office of Gun Violence Prevention in the White House. Mr. Vice President was leading the charge. Thanks for doing it. Meanwhile... Meanwhile, my predecessor told the NRA, he's proud he did nothing on guns when he was president. When he was president. After another shooting in Iowa recently, he said, when asked what to do about it, he said, just get over it. There's his quote, just get over it. I say, stop it! Stop it, stop it, stop it! Stop it! I'm proud we beat the NRA when I signed most significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years because of this Congress. We now must beat the NRA again. I'm demanding a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Passed universal background checks. None of this! None of this! I taught the Second Amendment for 12 years. None of this violates the Second Amendment or vilifies responsible gun owners. You know, as he manages challenges at home, we're also managing crises abroad, including in the Middle East. I know the last five months have been gut-wrenching for so many people. For the Israeli people, for the Palestinian people, and so many here in Iraq. For the Jewish people, and so many here in America. This crisis began on October 7th with a massacre by a terrorist group called Hamas, as you all know. 1,200 innocent people, women and girls, men and boys, slaughtered after enduring sexual violence. The deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust. And 250 hostages taken. Here in this chamber tonight are families whose loved ones are still being held by Hamas. I pledge to all the families that we will not rest until we bring everybody and loved ones home. We also... Thank you. We will also work around the clock to bring home Evan and Paul, Americans being unjustly detained by the Russians and others around the world. Israel has a right to go after Hamas. Hamas ended this conflict by releasing hostages, laying down arms. Could end it by releasing the hostages, laying down arms and surrendering those responsible for October 7th. But Israel has a... Excuse me. Israel has an added burden because Hamas hides and operates among the civilian population like cowards. Under hospitals, daycare centers and all the like. Israel also has a fundamental responsibility though to protect innocent civilians in Gaza. This war... Has taken a greater toll on innocent civilians than all previous wars in Gaza combined. More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed. Most of whom are not Hamas. Thousands and thousands of innocents, women and children, girls and boys also orphaned. Nearly 2 million more Palestinians under bombardment or displacement. Homes destroyed, neighbors in rubble, cities in ruin. Banners without food, water, medicine. It's heartbreaking. I've been working nonstop to establish an immediate ceasefire that would last for six weeks to get all the prisoners released, all the hostages released. To get the hostages home. And ease the intolerable and heavy humanitarian crisis. And build toward an enduring, something more enduring. The United States and the leading international efforts to get more humanitarian assistance to Gaza. Tonight, I'm directing the U.S. military to lead an emergency mission to establish a temporary pier in the Mediterranean on the coast of Gaza that can receive large shipments carrying food, water, medicine and temporary shelters. No U.S. boots will be on the ground. A temporary pier will enable a massive increase in the amount of humanitarian assistance getting into Gaza every day. And Israel must do its part. Israel must allow more aid into Gaza and ensure humanitarian workers aren't caught in the crossfire. They're announcing they're going to cross into northern Gaza. To the leadership of Israel, I say this. Humanitarian assistance cannot be a secondary consideration or a bargaining chip. Protecting and saving innocent lives has to be a priority. As we look to the future, the only real solution to this situation is a two-state solution over time. And I say this. As a lifelong supporter of Israel, my entire career, no one has a stronger record than I do. I challenge any of you here. I'm the only American president to visit Israel in wartime. But there is no other path that guarantees Israel's security and democracy. There is no other path that guarantees that Palestinians can live in peace and dignity. There is no other path that guarantees peace between Israel and all of its neighbors, including Saudi Arabia, with whom I'm talking. Creating stability in the Middle East also means containing the threat posed by Iran. That's why I've built a coalition of more than a dozen countries to defend international shipping and freedom of navigation in the Red Sea. I've ordered strikes to degrade the Houthi capability and defend U.S. forces in the region. As Commander-in-Chief, I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and our military personnel. For years, I've heard many of my Republican and Democratic friends say that China is on the rise and America is falling behind. They've got it backwards. I've been saying it for over four years, even when I wasn't president. America is rising. We have the best economy in the world. And since I've come to office, our GDP is up, our trade deficit with China is down to the lowest point in over a decade. And we're standing up against China's unfair economic practices. We're standing up for peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits. I've revitalized our partnership and alliance in the Pacific. India, Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Pacific Islands. I've made sure that the most advanced American technologies can't be used in China, not allowing the trade in there. Frankly, for all this tough talk on China, it never occurred to my predecessor to do any of that. I want competition with China, not conflict. And we're in a stronger position to win the conflict of the 21st century against China than anyone else for that matter, than any time as well. Here at home, I've signed over 400 bipartisan bills. There's more to pass my unity agenda. Strengthen penalties on fentanyl trafficking. You don't want to do that, huh? Pass bipartisan privacy legislation to protect our children online. Harness the promise of AI to protect us in peril. Ban AI voice impersonations and more. And keep our truly sacred obligation to trade and equip those we send into harm's way and care for them and their families when they come home and when they don't. That's why this song supported help from Dennis, the VA. I signed the PAC Act. One of the most significant laws ever. Helping millions of veterans expose the toxins. We now are battling more than 100 different cases. Many of them don't come home. But we owe them and their families support. We owe it to ourselves to keep supporting our new health research agency called ARPA-H. And remind us that we can do big things like end cancer as we know it, and we will. And we will. Let me close with this. Yay! I know you don't want to hear any more of Lindsey, but I've got to say a few more things. I know it may not look like it, but I've been around a while. When you get to be my age, certain things become clearer than ever. I know the American story. Again and again I've seen the contest between competing forces and the battle for the soul of our nation. Between those who want to pull America back to the past and those who want to move America into the future. My lifetime has taught me to embrace freedom and democracy. A future based on core values that have defined America. Honesty, decency, dignity, equality. To respect everyone. To give everyone a fair shot. To give hate no safe harbor. And other people my age see it differently. The American story of resentment, revenge, and retribution, that's not me. I was born in mid-World War II when America stood for the freedom of the world. I grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania in Claymont, Delaware among working class people who built this country. I watched in horror as two of my heroes like many of you did, Dr. King and Bobby Kennedy, were assassinated. And their legacy inspired me to pursue a career in service. I left the law firm and became a public defender because my city of Wilmington was the only city in America occupied by the National Guard after Dr. King was assassinated because of the riots. I became a county councilman almost by accident. I got elected to the United States Senate when I had no intention of running at age 29. Then vice president or first black president. Now president of the first women vice president. In my career, I've been told I was too young. By the way, they let me on ascended elevators for votes sometimes. Not a joke. I've been told I'm too old. Whether young or old, I've always known what endures. I've known our North Star. The very idea of America that we're all created equal deserves to be treated equally throughout our lives. We've never fully lived up to that idea. And we've never walked away from it either. And I won't walk away from it now. I'm optimistic. I really am. I'm optimistic. My fellow Americans, the issue facing our nation isn't how old we are, it's how old are our ideas. Hate, anger, revenge, retribution are the oldest of ideas. But you can't lead America with ancient ideas and only take us back. You need America as a land of possibilities. You need a vision for the future and what can and should be done. Tonight you've heard mine. I see a future where we're defending democracy. We don't diminish it. We don't diminish it. I see a future where we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms, not take them away. I see a future where the middle class has finally had a fair shot and the wealthy have to pay their fair share in taxes. I see a future where we save the planet from the climate crisis and our country from gun violence. Above all, I see a future for all Americans. I see a country for all Americans. And I will always be president for all Americans. Because I believe in America. I believe in you, the American people. You're the reason we've never been more optimistic about our future than I am now. So let's build the future together. Let's remember who we are. We're the United States of America. And there's nothing, nothing beyond our capacity that we have together. God bless you all and may God protect our troops. Thank you, thank you, thank you. For more UN videos visit www.un.org