First-term U.S. Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama delivered the Republican response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Thursday night, and laid blame on Biden for a host of national and international crises — what she said is chaos at the border, in cities, in the economy and among U.S. allies.
Britt stuck mostly to familiar GOP talking points. She panned Biden’s handling of immigration, the economy, crime and foreign policy, while questioning if the 81-year-old is up to the challenge of leading the country.
But the Alabamian delivered some critiques in a more congenial Southern manner than many other national Republicans are prone to use.
Biden warns ‘freedom and democracy are under attack’ in fierce State of the Union address
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“The American people are scraping by while the President proudly proclaims Bidenomics is working,” she said. “Goodness, y’all. Bless his heart. We know better.”
Seated at a kitchen table, Britt said her most important job was as “a wife and mother to two school-aged children,” and framed much of her criticism as anxiety about her children’s generation.
Biden has overseen an eroding American dream, Britt said, delivering in gentler language a central campaign theme for presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
“The country we know and love seems to be slipping away,” she said. “It feels like the next generation will have fewer opportunities — and less freedom — than we did. I worry my own children may not even get a shot at living their American dreams.”
The country can “do better,” Britt said.
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Coming eight months before a presidential election, the State of the Union and Britt’s response were marked by heavy doses of campaign rhetoric, and Britt asked voters to reject Biden at the ballot box.
“There is no doubt we’re at a crossroads. We all feel it,” she said.
“But here’s the good news: We the people are still in the driver’s seat. We get to decide whether our future will grow brighter, or whether we settle for an America in decline. Well, I know which choice our children deserve — and the choice the Republican Party is fighting for.”
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Immigration, foreign policy
As Trump and other Republicans have for the past year, Britt made a surge of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border a central criticism of the president.
Biden came into office with “the most secure border of all time,” but squandered it with a host of executive orders meant to soften the approach to immigration Trump, his predecessor, oversaw, Britt said.
Britt said fentanyl and coming across the border and “senseless murders” were responsible for “empty chairs at kitchen tables just like this one.”
Britt cited Laken Riley, a nursing student in Georgia killed by a Venezuelan immigrant with a previous conviction for shoplifting.
Biden mentioned Riley during his address, which still didn’t satisfy Republican critics who urged him to “say her name.”
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“Tonight, President Biden finally said her name,” Britt said. “But he refused to take responsibility for his own actions. Mr. President, enough is enough.”
Biden also squandered U.S. geopolitical advantages, Britt said, first with a chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and then by entertaining a new deal to prevent Iran from gaining nuclear weapons.
“We’ve become a nation in retreat,” she said. “And the enemies of freedom see an opportunity.”
She described an unsafe world stage, highlighting U.S. casualties in the Middle East since war between Israel and the militant group Hamas began in October. She referenced the deaths of three U.S. soldiers in Jordan and two Navy seals off the coast of Somalia in January.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine also showed world affairs were dangerous, Britt said.
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But she did not address Biden’s call roughly an hour earlier for Congress to approve funding for Ukraine. Republicans in Congress have stymied the administration’s request for additional aid to help Ukraine fight Russia’s invasion.
IVF, economy and crime
Britt said Republicans support nationwide access to in vitro fertilization, a common fertility treatment that has been in the national spotlight for more than a week after the Alabama Supreme Court issued a decision holding that excess embryos routinely created during IVF had the same legal rights as children.
“We strongly support continued nationwide access to in vitro fertilization,” Britt said. “We want to help loving moms and dads bring precious life into this world.”
While the president pointed to dropping unemployment, flattening inflation and rising wages, Britt said Biden’s message was divorced from the reality for families still “struggling to make ends meet” with the high costs of necessities such as housing and childcare.
Britt also played on voters fears’ of crime, blaming a perceived rise in violence on a liberal political ideology that accepts criminality and opposes police funding.
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“For years, the left has coddled criminals and defunded the police – all while letting repeat offenders walk free. The result is tragic but foreseeable—from our small towns to America’s most iconic city streets, life is getting more and more dangerous.”
The actual crime statistics painted a less clear picture. While the interview-based annual criminal victimization survey conducted by the federal Bureau of Justice indicated an increase in violent crime from 2021 to 2022, FBI crime statistics compiled from local police reports across the country showed a drop in the national violent crime rate and the murder rate.
Unifying all of Britt’s criticisms of Biden’s policy choices was the idea that Biden was a weak leader, perhaps hobbled by age.
“Right now, our Commander in Chief is not in command,” she said. “The free world deserves better than a dithering and diminished leader.”
Launching pad?
The State of the Union response, delivered by a member of the opposing party to the president, is seen as a plum assignment for young politicians with ambitions beyond their current office.
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Florida Republican Marco Rubio delivered a response in 2013, two years before he’d run for president.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s response to Donald Trump in 2020 raised her national profile enough that Biden reportedly vetted her as a running mate that year.
And South Carolina’s Tim Scott gave the response to Biden in 2021, two years before announcing his White House run.
Britt’s response was likely the largest audience she’s addressed since succeeding longtime Sen. Richard Shelby in 2023. Britt, 42, worked for Shelby for five years, including two as the powerful appropriator’s chief of staff.
VERMILLION, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – An impeccable day on Senior Day inside the DakotaDome resulted in a pair of touchdowns in the final four-plus minutes as the No. 4-ranked University of South Dakota football team (9-2, 7-1 MVFC) took down No. 1-ranked North Dakota State (10-2, 7-1 MVFC), 29-28, to lay claim to the program’s first-ever Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) and end the regular season undefeated in the Dome.
It was a fast start for the Coyotes inside the Dome with the Yotes jumping out to a quick 14-0 lead and the Coyote defense forcing Bison punts on their first four drives of the contest. The offense also out of the gate hot put together back-to-back touchdown drives of 80 and 73 yards.
South Dakota would win the coin toss and, as usual, Coach Nielson elected to trust his elite defense and make the Bison deal with the student section on the south end of the Dome. In the first three plays of the contest, Mi’Quise Grace (So., Cincinnati, Ohio) would get home twice for a pair of sacks as he notches his second 2+ sack game in the last three games.
Behind a rocking crowd, the Coyote offense would take to the field for the first time as Travis Theis (Sr., Pratt, Kan.) would get the first offensive touch from scrimmage, taking it nine yards. The first explosive play for the Yotes would come soon after when Aidan Bouman (Jr., Buffalo, Minn.) would find Theis out of the backfield for a 23-yard pickup and into Bison territory for the first time on the day in just three plays.
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More chunk plays as a 29-yard connection between Bouman and Carter Bell (Sr., Bettendorf, Iowa) would put the Yotes in the Red Zone. Not wasting any time, a pass to Keyondray Jones-Logan (So., Orlando, Fla.) would put USD at the 1-yard line with Theis punching it in for the first score of the day.
The Yote defense would follow the touchdown drive with their second-straight three-and-out. The offense would come back on the field and march 73 yards in seven plays to increase their lead up to 14-0 with Theis capping it off with his second rushing score of the day from 14 yards out.
Soon thereafter, North Dakota State would show why they entered the contest ranked No. 1 in the FCS and had won all 10 games against FCS opponents up to today. The Bison would close out the first half, stealing away the momentum the Yotes had built up with back-to-back scoring drives to knot things up at 14-14 just before the halftime break.
The Coyotes would get the ball first out of the locker room. Pushing it inside the Bison 30-yard line, the drive would stall out, but Will Leyland (Jr., Souderton, Pa.) would convert on his ninth field goal of the season with a 37-yard field goal to give the Yotes the 17-14 lead.
Yet again, the Bison would show fight and put up 14 unanswered points to end the third quarter and into the final frame. But it would be Javion Phelps (Orlando, Fla.) who completely took over the game in the fourth quarter, and the final five minutes. The junior wide out brought down all three of his receptions on the game in the final 15 minutes, including the go-ahead touchdown grab with seconds left on the clock.
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Seemingly taking the life out of the Yotes and the Dome, the Bison would punch in a touchdown score from one-yard out with 4:10 left on the clock to take a 28-17 lead utilizing a 20-play, 99-yard drive.
Down, but not out, the South Dakota offense would take the field trailing by 11 with just over four minutes remaining. The first three passes of the drive would hit the turf as USD was faced with a fourth-and-10. Having the utmost faith in his receivers, Bouman would find Phelps open for a 31-yard completion down to the NDSU 40-yard line. Two plays later, Bouman would find Jack Martens (Jr., Cumberland, Wis.) for a 40-yard touchdown strike, Martens first touchdown grab of the season. After a failed two-point conversion, the Yotes would find themselves trailing 28-23 with 3:20 to go.
A beautiful kickoff from Zeke Mata (Jr., San Marcos, Calif.) would be downed at the NDSU 1-yard line, pinning the Bison deep. Needing a stop to have a chance and the Bison potent rushing game, it would be a clash of the titans.
NDSU would pick up a first down with 1:33 on the clock. A Grace tackle for loss on first down would set up the Bison with a second-and-long, as USD took their first time out. Two more Bison rushes with their backs would see it be fourth down and six to go on the NDSU 16-yard line.
The defense doing their job and winning the battle of the titans in the trenches, Bouman and company got the ball back at the South Dakota 42-yard line with 1:20 left and no time outs.
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Bouman, setting out to lead a game-winning score, would methodically pick apart the North Dakota State secondary as the first play would be a nine-yard completion to Quaron Adams (So., Phoenix, Ariz.) to push into Bison territory.
With under a minute left and the crowd on their feet, Bouman would find Phelps open again on the NDSU sideline. Despite the call on the field being incomplete, upon further review Phelps got a foot down with possession of the ball, for a 23-yard completion and the clock stopped with 51 ticks left.
North Dakota State would get pressure the very next play and bring Bouman down for a sack and a loss of nine yards back to the NDSU 25-yard line. Rushing up to the line, Bouman would snap the ball, and instead of spiking it, look down field to, again, find a wide open Phelps at the four-yard line that he’d take into the endzone for the game-winning score with 12 seconds left.
North Dakota State would get two snaps off, trying a lateral on the final play of the game, but Nate Ewell (Sr., Waterloo, Iowa) would end that threat as the Coyotes take down the Bison, 29-28, in an instant classic as the Yotes erased the 11-point deficit with a pair of touchdowns in the final four-plus minutes to take home (a share of) the MVFC title for the first time in program history.
It’s the first South Dakota win over NDSU in the DakotaDome since 2002 and the first win over a No. 1-ranked team since 2011 (Eastern Washington).
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Up Next: South Dakota will await their NCAA FCS Playoff seed, set to be announced tomorrow morning at 11:30 a.m. on ESPNU. Updates will be provided tomorrow on GoYotes.com and the South Dakota football social channels.
Copyright 2024 Dakota News Now. All rights reserved.
Missouri State football coach presser before South Dakota State
Missouri State football coach Ryan Beard previews the Bears’ season finale against No. 3 South Dakota State.
Missouri State football will play its final game as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and as an FCS program when it hosts the two-time defending champion this weekend.
FCS No. 18 Missouri State (8-3, 6-1 MVFC) will host FCS No. 3 South Dakota State (9-2. 6-1 MVFC) on Saturday at 2 p.m. at Plaster Stadium. The game will be the Bears’ finale, as they are ineligible to qualify for the postseason because of NCAA rules regarding their move to the FBS.
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South Dakota State continues to be a national championship contender with their lone FCS loss this season coming Oct. 19 in a 13-9 loss to FCS No. 1 North Dakota State. The Jackrabbits also lost on opening day in a 44-20 defeat at FBS Oklahoma State.
Missouri State has an outside chance at still winning a share of the MVFC. The Bears would have to beat SDSU while requiring North Dakota State to lose to FCS No. 4 South Dakota.
More: Missouri State football vs South Dakota State: Scouting report, score prediction for Saturday
Missouri State football score vs South Dakota State: Live updates
North Dakota State is almost at the finish line, looking to complete the season with just one blemish on its record.
The Bison lost the season-opener against Colorado but have since been perfect and are 10-1 heading into the final regular-season game. A Missouri Valley Football Conference title is in their sights.
South Dakota is also one of the top teams in the MVFC, posting an 8-2 record but just one conference loss. The Coyotes are looking to knock off the Bison and force a tie for first place in the conference.
South Dakota has the luxury of playing at home in the most important game of the regular season.
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The Sporting News has all the details on how to watch South Dakota vs. North Dakota State.
What channel is South Dakota vs. North Dakota State on today?
TV channel: N/A
Live stream: ESPN+
South Dakota vs. North Dakota State won’t be broadcast on TV. Instead, it will be exclusively streamed. ESPN+ has fans covered with the live stream.
For a limited time get 12 months of ESPN+ for the price of 9 with the purchase of an annual plan. Stream your favorite teams live and enjoy more sports anywhere with an ESPN+ subscription.
South Dakota vs. North Dakota State start time
Date: Saturday, Nov. 23
Time: 2 p.m. ET
South Dakota vs. North Dakota State kicks off on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 2 p.m. ET in South Dakota.
South Dakota schedule
Date
Game
Time (ET)
Nov. 23
vs. North Dakota State
2 p.m.
North Dakota State schedule
Date
Game
Time (ET)
Nov. 23
at South Dakota
2 p.m.
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