U.S. President Joe Biden addresses a joint session of congress in the House chamber of the U.S. Capitol on April 28, 2021 in Washington, DC. On the eve of his 100th day in office, Biden was to speak about his plan to revive America’s economy and health as it continues to recover from a devastating pandemic. He was scheduled to deliver his speech before 200 invited lawmakers and other government officials instead of the normal 1600 guests because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. /Photo by Jim Watson – POOL photo
Arizona leaders reacted Wednesday evening to President Joe Biden’s first address to ajoint session of Congress, with their opinions on the speech being mostly split along party lines.
Biden focused on the message that “America is rising anew” while pointing to the nation’s emergence from the pandemic as a vital moment to rebuild the U.S. economy and fundamentally transform roles the government plays in American life.
He used the prime-time address to make his pitch directly to Americans for his expansive — and expensive — vision to rebuild the nation’s roads, bridges, water pipes and other infrastructure, bolster public education and extend other benefits for a wide swath of Americans.
Arizona’s senior Democratic U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema in a statement said she welcomed Biden’s continued focus on ending the COVID-19 pandemic and his commitment to “ensuring America wins the global competition with foreign competitors such as China.”
“Protecting jobs and expanding economic opportunities for everyday Americans are goals that unite all Americans,” Sinema said.
Fellow Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona echoed Sinema in welcoming Biden’s dedication to infrastructure and maintaining a competitive edge over China, but he was disappointed to see Biden didn’t put forth a plan during his first speech to fix the ongoing crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.
