Alabama Senator Katie Britt has been under fire ever since she spoke in response to Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. The elected Republican, who was responsible for the traditional protest response, has been accused of multiple perjury and mocked for her overplayed video filmed in the kitchen. A performance that tarnishes the image of this rising figure in the party.
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It’s in an unusual setting that Alabama Senator Katie Britt chose to respond to Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech. In a video published on Thursday March 7, the Republican-elect spoke in a refined kitchen to respond to the American president’s remarks in the congressional chamber.
In a very dramatic tone, Katie Britt made a significant criticism of the White House tenant’s immigration policy and emphasized her attachment to traditional values when addressing American families. “Right now, our commander-in-chief is not in charge. The free world deserves better than a degenerate and weak leader.”, she declared.
Despite the current state of our union, I firmly believe that our best days are yet to come. It’s our turn to stand up and prove ourselves worthy of saving the American Dream. Together we can rekindle the heroic spirit of a great nation. pic.twitter.com/VN6neGCTF4
— Senator Katie Boyd Britt (@SenKatieBritt) March 8, 2024
The senator also called Biden an “out of touch” professional politician and said the country is increasingly dangerous. “For years, the left has incarcerated criminals and protected the police — while letting repeat offenders go free,” Britt said in his response. “The result is tragic but predictable: From our small towns to America’s most iconic streets, life is becoming more and more dangerous.”
“Creepy Mom Role”
His performances, especially with theatrical accents, did not fail to provoke a reaction. Very quickly, parodies mocking the facial expressions and setting proliferated on the Internet. In an order published on
But it’s Scarlett Johansson’s imitation that has made the rounds on social networks with more than seven million views since its release on March 10. On the famous show Saturday Night Live, the actress dressed up as Katy Britt and recreated the speech in her own way. “Tonight I’m auditioning for the role of queer mom,” she said, underscoring the Republican-elect’s queer attitude. “I invited you into this empty kitchen because Republicans want me to appeal to women voters and women love kitchens,” she quipped. “I’m not just a senator. I’m a wife, a mother and the craziest dog in the supermarket parking lot,” said the Hollywood star, who wore a cross around her neck like a senator.
Scarlett Johansson also mentioned an encounter with a woman who was a victim of human trafficking and forced prostitution, which Katie Britt described in her speech. “Every little detail is true, except for the year, where it happened, and who was president at the time,” joked Scarlett Johansson.
Speech full of lies
In his video, the senator actually referred to an interview with a woman, “forced into prostitution by the cartels at the age of 12”, giving harrowing details. “We will not accept this happening in a third world country. We are in the United States and it is time to act,” she added. But the American media quickly established that the story took place twenty years ago in Mexico, not in the United States under Joe Biden’s orders.
In a viral video posted on TikTok, independent journalist Jonathan Katz claimed she was referring to Carla Jacinto Romero, who testified before Congress that she worked in Mexican brothels between 2004 and 2008, while George W. Bush was president. After dissecting her speech, the Washington Post awarded the Republican elected official four Pinocchios, according to its rating system for detecting misinformation. “In a high-profile speech like this, a political figure shouldn’t mislead voters with emotionally charged language. Romero’s story is tragic and may inflame other Mexican young women who are trafficked in this country. But that wasn’t the topic. Cross-border trafficking — and Her story has nothing to do with Biden,” opined the American daily.
In response to these criticisms, Katy Britt awkwardly defended herself on Fox News on Sunday. She refused to hide the fact that the rape and sex trafficking case she was referring to was actually George W. Happened during Bush’s presidency. “It is abhorrent to want to silence the voice that tells us what human trafficking is for sexual purposes,” she asserted, without giving a clear answer to the accusations of lies.
Considered one of the rising stars of the Republican Party, Katie Britt sees her reputation tarnished by this devastating speech. At the age of 42, the representative elected from Alabama, supported by Donald Trump during his election in 2022, was still on the rise: the youngest elected Republican to enter the Senate, she was chosen by her party to give a traditional answer to the opposition. US President’s State of the Union address. This practice has been in existence since 1966. Republican Senator Everett Dirksen and Representative Gerald Ford then appeared on television to respond to Democratic President Lyndon Johnson.
Since then, this response from the opposition party has changed its form a lot. In 1985, Bill Clinton participated in a surprise version. Then the governor of Arkansas, the future Democratic president was responsible for responding to Republican Ronald Reagan’s speech. In a video with the feel of a television report, he appeared to moderate a discussion group made up of ordinary Americans and politicians. In 2017, Kentucky’s Democratic Governor Steve Bescher also appeared at a table in a restaurant surrounded by ordinary citizens.
Springboard or brake
Historically, this opposition response has mainly served as a springboard for promising political figures, as CBS News recalls. In 2011, the young Paul Ryan, a Republican elected from Wisconsin, was selected for this exercise under the orders of Barack Obama. He later became the Republican nominee for Vice President of the United States and Speaker of the House of Representatives. Five years later, it was South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley who spoke and took advantage of the national spotlight. The Republican-elect has since become a key figure in his party, facing Donald Trump during the Republican campaign for the 2024 presidential election.
But this speech can also be a trap. Several political figures have paid the price this year, like Katy Britt. In 2009, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal also received much criticism as his performance was considered poor and disastrous. Four years later, young Republican Party leader Marco Rubio became the subject of mockery in return for grabbing a bottle of water and taking a few sips during an odd break during his benefit. In 2019, the social network was also unkind to Robert Kennedy’s grandson Joe Kennedy III, who was chosen by the Democratic Party to answer to Donald Trump. Internet users only saw saliva at the corner of her lips.
Katy Britt, however, can rest easy. As the Washington Post notes, “Although it has a reputation as one of the worst jobs in politics, this speech isn’t necessarily a career killer.” As proof, Marco Rubio is still a Republican senator and Joe Kennedy III, currently the United States special envoy to Northern Ireland, is considered the political heir to the family dynasty.
America
