Combative Biden Overcomes State Of The Union Hurdle

Washington, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Mar, 2024) Many expected -- or feared -- Joe Biden would stumble as he addressed Congress in his final State of the Union address before the November election. Instead, the oldest-ever US president came out swinging.

With jokes, retorts to hecklers, soaring rhetoric and a minimum of his customary mangled phrases, Biden defied critics.

Each stammer, slip of the tongue or confused look by Biden tends to be intensely scrutinized in the United States as he runs for reelection -- with Republicans painting each error as evidence that he cannot govern.

On Thursday, Biden got cheers from his Democratic party members.

"Four more years!" they chanted as Biden hammered his Republican rivals and laid out the case for a second term with a pugnacious energy that seemed to bely his 81 years.

To the great relief of lawmakers in his party, acutely aware of how heavily his age is weighing in the presidential race, Biden was in rare form, showing stamina in an hour-plus speech, speaking in a clear tone and quick clip, taking jabs at Republicans, and offering sprinkles of humor.

"I know it may not look like it, but I've been around a while," he grinned.

His Democrats, many of them dressed in white in honor of women's rights, lapped it up. They rose to their feet as Biden spoke, with the president even getting compared later to a fiery Baptist preacher.