Biden chats with Blumenthal after State of the Union
Sen. Richard Blumenthal was one of the first people to speak with President Joe Biden following Tuesday’s State of the Union address. TV cameras followed Biden as he stepped down from the dais and within seconds, he was being greeted by members of Congress, including the senator from Connecticut.
“Obviously he recognized me and started talking, as he does often, and about his son, Beau, whom I knew very well,” Blumenthal said Wednesday. “I worked with Beau when he was attorney general in Delaware, and we had a strong friendship. So there’s that kind of personal connection as well.”
“Beau is still very much top of mind and heart for him,” Blumenthal said. Beau Biden died of glioblastoma in 2015.
Blumenthal said the presidency has not changed Biden’s personality, calling him “authentic.”
“A lot of people may want him to change, but he still refuses to take ‘no’ for an answer. He will try to work across the aisle and overcome differences, sometimes to the frustration and misunderstanding of his allies,” Blumenthal said of Biden. “It’s part of his DNA. He tries to work with people who disagree with him, and frankly, it’s a great model for us at this moment in our history when we need to overcome our differences.”
Biden delivered his State of the Union address amid jeers from Republicans, including boos and yells to “secure the border” from House members including Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
But Blumenthal said Biden’s refusal to reply demonstrated the president’s desire for national unity.
“I think you saw that last night when there were really unfortunate disruptions,” he said. “He didn’t even try to answer in kind. Essentially, I think he extended the hand of cooperation.”
In addition to speaking about Beau Biden, Blumenthal said Biden “added some nice comments about the work that I’ve been doing.”
In particular, Blumenthal said the two discussed the senator’s Kids Online Safety Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tennessee, which would require social media platforms to protect children from “the toxic effects of online content about bullying and eating disorders.”
“That’s why I raised it with him, because he’s been supportive, and I think we can do it on a bipartisan basis,” Blumenthal said. “That’s the solution here, to overcome the partisan divide and divisiveness. We can’t let the story be, ‘Congress fractured by partisan differences.’ It has to be, ‘Congress surprises everyone by coming together and overcoming differences.’”
Sen. Chris Murphy, DConn., complimented the president in a statement Tuesday night following the address, calling the speech “a reminder of just how impressive his first two years in office have been.