Many Democrats were up in arms after President Joe Biden was booed and heckled during his second State of the Union address on Tuesday.
But one former Biden administration official is perfectly fine with seeing his old boss face vocal opposition.
As John Wu put it on Twitter, being held accountable in public is simply part of the democratic process.
“Even though I worked for the guy, when it comes for the SOTU I have no real problem with the heckling, booing and so on,” Wu wrote. “It’s a democracy after all; he’s not a King, Emperor or Pope, though I would draw the line at throwing things.”
Even though I worked for the guy, when it comes for the SOTU I have no real problem with the heckling, booing and so on. It’s a democracy after all; he’s not a King, Emperor or Pope, though I would draw the line at throwing things.
— Tim Wu (@superwuster) February 8, 2023
Wu served as Biden’s special assistant for technology and competition policy from 2021 until just this past month.
No items were thrown and no speeches were ripped to shreds on Tuesday. But Biden faced the wrath of numerous congressional Republicans during remarks in which he lied about their intentions, exaggerated his own accomplishments and sidestepped all accountability for his many legislative failures.
During one moment Tuesday night, Biden repeated the old Democratic Party talking point that Republicans want to dismantle Social Security and Medicare.
Did Biden deserve to be heckled?
Yes: 100% (33 Votes)
No: 0% (0 Votes)
Republicans were vocal in their response:
Biden gets heckled after accusing “some republicans” of not wanting people to get healthcare. pic.twitter.com/kxA99kb518
— Bentley (@Bentleyawoods) February 8, 2023
Biden was also heckled after he invoked the fentanyl crisis his administration is allowing to kill thousands of Americans through an open border:
Biden heckled after saying Fentanyl kills more than 70,000 Americans a year.
“It’s your fault.”pic.twitter.com/bN9a1pIjHu
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) February 8, 2023
Many on the left clutched their pearls after all the shouting. But sitting in the Oval Office does not give a person a special privilege to lie without being questioned.
In a follow-up tweet, Wu mentioned the “rowdiness” that so often occurs in the House of Commons in the U.K.
And frankly, the House-of-Commons level of rowdiness makes for a better time.
— Tim Wu (@superwuster) February 8, 2023
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It is worth noting lawmakers across the globe get rowdy from time to time.
Biden was simply fact-checked in real-time.
