President Joe Biden listed his administration’s accomplishments and goals to provide a contrast between himself and former President Donald Trump in his 2024 State of the Union address.

The speech on March 8 was less than 36 hours after Nikki Haley withdrew from the GOP primary, making Trump the presumptive nominee to challenge Biden’s re-election. Trump defeated Haley on Super Tuesday in 14 of 15 states, losing only in Vermont.

Biden referred to his “predecessor” and campaign rival 13 times in his speech, which lasted one hour and eight minutes.

He opened his speech by addressing threats to democracy, claiming that “freedom and democracy are under attack both at home and overseas at the very same time.” He cited Trump’s comments that he would encourage Russia to “do whatever the hell they want” if a NATO member state did not pay the organization for military readiness.

He then condemned Trump and members of Congress who “seek to bury the truth about Jan. 6,” and told them, “You can’t love your country only when you win.”

On Roe v. Wade, Biden criticized Trump for appointing justices who overturned it in 2022. He also accused him of abdicating “the duty to care” when handling the COVID-19 pandemic, rising crime, mental health and other crises in 2020.

Immigration was a contentious topic in his address. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA-14) gave Biden a pin commemorating Laken Riley as he walked to the rostrum before his speech. 

Riley was killed in Georgia on Feb. 22. A 26-year-old Venezuelan who illegally entered the country was charged with felony murder, false imprisonment and kidnapping. The House of Representatives passed the Laken Riley Act on March 7, with all Republicans and 37 Democrats voting for it. 

When Biden discussed immigration, Greene heckled Biden and told him to “Say her name.” Biden then mistakenly called her “Lincoln Riley,” before affirming Greene’s second comment that Riley was killed “by an illegal.” He also criticized Republicans for blocking a bipartisan immigration bill that Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) sponsored. 

Greene spoke despite reports from unnamed Republican lawmakers claiming that Speaker Mike Johnson told his colleagues, “Decorum is the order of the day,” and urged against heckling and interrupting during a closed-door conference meeting, according to The Hill.

Biden was later heckled from the gallery. Steve Nikoui, an attendee who Rep. Brian Mast (FL-21) invited, is the father of Kareem Mae'Lee Grant Nikoui. Nikoui’s son was among 13 U.S. soldiers who were killed at Abbey Gate in Kabul, Afghanistan, from a suicide bombing on Aug. 26, 2021.

Nikoui was arrested for disrupting the joint session of Congress by Capitol Police.

Biden also celebrated his administration’s efforts to combat the NRA, as opposed to Trump and his support for the organization. Biden urged a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, as well as universal background checks. 

On Israel and Gaza, Biden claimed, “Israel has a right to go after Hamas,” after the Oct. 7 massacre of over 1,000 Israeli civilians. He also said Israel is obligated to protect civilians and wants to facilitate a six-week ceasefire. 

“As we look to the future, the only real solution to the situation is a two-state solution over time,” he added.

Biden praised his record on China through a lower trade deficit, promoting peace in the Taiwan Strait and strengthening cooperation with neighboring countries.

In his last comparison against Trump, he said, “For all his tough talk on China, it never occurred to my predecessor to do any of that.”

He gave a warning to Americans at the end of his speech, “Hate, anger, revenge, retribution are the oldest of ideas, but you can’t lead America with ancient ideas that only take us back,” but added that he is optimistic about the country’s future because he believes in the American people.

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