“Well, for the first time in memory the president outlasted the House session,” said C-SPAN host Peter Slen during live video footage as the session was adjourned. “They turned down the lights, and President Biden took over half an hour to work his way off the House floor.”
Known to particularly enjoy face-to-face engagements on the campaign trail and at public events, Biden joined selfies, enthusiastically took at least one impromptu video call to say hi to a person’s niece, and even discussed the Israel-Gaza war — until he was told his microphone was still on — as he meandered toward the door.
The president remained in the Capitol until after 11 p.m. and was still making his exit even as Sen. Katie Boyd Britt (R-Ala.), was making her party’s rebuttal to the president’s State of the Union address in remarks from her kitchen in Alabama.
According to NBC, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) at one point was caught tapping his watch as Biden looked over at him — a universally recognized symbol that it’s time to go.
As he inched closer to the door, his Secret Service guards were heard instructing him to exit. “Straight out, straight out,” they advised, before Biden stopped to compliment someone’s suit and was drawn into a photo — and then another selfie.
The president was also still wearing his mic on his way out.
Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Tex.) was heard telling Biden: “You were on fire tonight,” before Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) joked with the president: “Nobody is going to talk about cognitive impairment now.” Biden, 81, who has sought to downplay criticism about his age, can be heard jibing back: “I kind of wish sometimes there was cognitive impairment.”
Biden was also overheard telling Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Secretary of State Antony Blinken about discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza — before Biden’s bodyguard rushes over to tell him he was wearing a hot mic and he stops talking and moves on.
Biden’s speech touched on issues such as immigration, reproductive rights, foreign policy in Ukraine and Israel — and made swipes at former president Trump, without naming him, as the pair face an expected rematch in 2024.
Biden also made jokes, invited audience participation and engaged in some call-and-response throughout the evening, capitalizing on interruptions from lawmakers to pivot to Democratic talking points.
State of the Union addresses have historically been shorter affairs. From Lyndon B. Johnson through George Bush administrations, presidents averaged between 35 and 50 minutes, according to the University of California at Santa Barbara, which tracks this data. Since President Bill Clinton’s administration, the average has been more than an hour — presidents averaged anywhere from 52 to 80 minutes.
Biden’s address this year lasted 67 minutes, compared to 73 last year.
So, on some fronts, Biden is speeding up.
Missy Khamvongsa, Michael Scherer and Yasmeen Abutaleb contributed to this report.