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California Republicans respond to Biden's fiery State of the Union speech

President Joe Biden delivers a fiery State of the Union speech
President Joe Biden delivers a fiery State of the Union speech 09:45

California Republicans claimed President Joe Biden was setting American on the wrong path after his fiery State of the Union address Thursday. 

"The State of the Union is weaker today thanks to the failed leadership of President Joe Biden, and tonight, Biden doubled down on the same radical policies that have launched our nation down the wrong track," California GOP Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson wrote in a statement. 

The 46th President of the United States transformed the annual address into a campaign stump speech, making an energetic case that he deserved a second term in the White House. 

Biden went on the attack early in the speech accusing former President Donald Trump, though never referencing him by name, of being a continued threat to democracy.

"My predecessor, and some of you here seek, to bury the truth about Jan. 6," Biden said. "I will not do that. This is a moment This is a moment to speak the truth and bury the lies."

As expected, Biden blasted Republicans for targeting IVF and attacking Trump for his efforts to overturn Roe v. Wade. He also invited a Texas woman who could not get an abortion after carrying a non-viable fetus. She had to travel out of the staet to get reproductive care. 

"My predecessor came to office to see Roe v. Wade overturned and he brags about it," Biden said. "Many of you in this Chamber and my predecessor are promising to pass a national ban on reproductive freedom. My God, what freedoms will you take away next?" 

President Biden delivers the State of the Union address at the Capitol on Thursday, March 7, 2024.
President Biden delivers the State of the Union address at the Capitol on Thursday, March 7, 2024. Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images

One of the hot-button issues Biden covered was the situation at the nation's southern border. 

"Millions of illegal crossings through our open Southern border have turned every state into a border state," Millan Patterson said. 

Biden criticized members of the GOP for blowing up a bipartisan border security deal in order to help Trump. 

"The result was a bipartisan bill with the toughest set of border security reforms we've ever seen in this country," he said. "That bipartisan deal would hire 1,500 more border security agents and officers. 100 more immigration judges to help tackle a backload of 2 million cases."

Senate candidate and former Los Angeles Dodger Steve Garvey agreed with Biden that inaction would only cause more problems. 

"As Californians, we see firsthand the consequences of inaction. Our communities, our economy, and our safety are at stake," he said. "I stand ready to work with the President and anyone else who is serious about turning these words into reality. Let's secure our border, not tomorrow, not soon, but now. For the good of California and for the good of our nation."  

Biden also tauted his economic policies, citing the six point drop in inflation — something that the California GOP slammed him for. 

"The American people are struggling under the weight of Bidenflation," Millan Patterson wrote. 

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