Former Biden White House press secretary and MSNBC host Jen Psaki praised President Biden’s passionate State of the Union speech the night before and mentioned that his anger towards the Supreme Court justices for overturning the right to an abortion could be strongly felt by viewers.
“I found the Supreme Court abortion moment to be very interesting,” Psaki said. “President Biden values tradition and institutions, especially in our judicial system.”
“And you could sense his anger over Dobbs and recent actions of the Supreme Court. I believe that was a particularly impactful moment,” she added.
During his speech, Biden criticized the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, which gave authority on abortion back to individual states.
The president stated, “Look, the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the majority wrote the following — and with all due respect, justices — ‘Women are not without electoral — electoral power’ — excuse me — ‘electoral or political power.’”
“You’re about to realize just how much you were right about that,” he added.
One of the president’s distinguished guests was Katie Cox, a woman who relocated from Texas to obtain the necessary abortion care without facing legal consequences.
Several Supreme Court justices were seated in the front row on the House floor during the speech.
Biden’s statements come shortly after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are considered children and clinics can be held responsible for wrongful death if the embryos are destroyed. This reignited nationwide discussions about in vitro fertilization (IVF) and reproductive rights post-Roe.
The president indicated that the state court’s ruling was a direct consequence of the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Biden also invited to the address Latorya Beasley, an Alabama resident who had her first child through IVF in 2022 and was undergoing another round of treatment that was canceled after the ruling.
