In the days since her televised takedown of President Joe Biden’s “wildly political” State of the Union address, a style and tone familiar to Alabamians made its nationwide debut, setting off a viral reaction from left-leaning pundits meeting U.S. Senator Katie Britt for the first time and conservatives appraising her status as a top contender 2024 GOP presidential ticket as Trump’s vice presidential pick.
This weekend, Saturday Night Live’s opening segment featured a take on her Thursday night GOP response to the State of the Union.
Britt (R-Montgomery), played by America’s highest-paid actress, Scarlett Johansson, was portrayed in largest measure for a mix between charisma, emotion, and dark themes evoked by an immigration crisis that, in reality, has metastasized into a “national security and humanitarian crisis,” Britt has repeatedly said.
“Good evening, America. My name is Katie Britt. And I have the honor of serving the great people of Alabama,” Johansson said as Britt. “But tonight, I’ll be auditioning for the part of ‘scary mom’ and I’ll be performing an original monologue called ‘this country is hell.’”
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Saturday Night Live itself has been a historic platform of political virality and legitimacy for candidates making a foray into the national spotlight with celebrity impressions of leaders on both sides of the aisle. Britt’s appearance is being argued as the latest instance of that.
Democrats’ reaction to Thursday’s State of the Union address by President Joe Biden – in which he admitted that 22-year-old Georgia student Laken Riley died brutally at the hand of “an illegal” – has turned sharply to a frame-by-frame criticism of Britt’s response.
RELATED: Britt challenges Biden’s policies in kitchen-table rebuttal to SOTU
Britt’s response on behalf of Republicans after the State of the Union was praised by former President Trump as “compassionate and caring” in contrast to the speech given by a leader who 6 in 10 American voters doubt the mental capability of.
“Katie Britt was a GREAT contrast to an Angry, and obviously very Disturbed, ‘President,’” Trump posted. “She was compassionate and caring, especially concerning Women and Women’s Issues. Her conversation on Migrant Crime was powerful and insightful. Great job Katie!”
On Sunday, U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) said while both speeches were “over-the-top” — “The media overreaction to hers not his tells us who liberals most fear as VP nominee.”
In a good way, the delivery was over-the-top, out of character—Biden’s, of course. Katie Britt’s too. The media overreaction to hers not his tells us who liberals most fear as VP nominee.
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) March 10, 2024
In weekend interviews, Sen. Britt said she’s focused on undoing Biden-era policies that allow drug and human trafficking to thrive, leaving Americans in its wake.
“We know that his policies, his decisions, the result of them, is what we’re seeing all across the country. It is everything from fentanyl overdoses and poisonings to brutal murders. And American people deserve better — and that’s all on him,” Britt told FOX’s Sean Hannity.
“He comes into office, and his first 100 days in office, he executes 94 executive orders to undo President Trump’s border policies. We had the most secure border ever — that’s what Joe Biden actually inherited — but he wanted to make a change. He did that on day one when he said ‘we are going to halt construction of the border wall, we’re going to stop deporting illegal aliens’ and he said, you know what, ‘we’re gonna give amnesty to millions.’”
“When he did that, and he changed these policies, they became a magnet for more and more people to come here,” Britt said.
In her Thursday night address, Sen. Britt encouraged Americans to “get into the arena.”
“I know you’re probably disgusted by most of what you see going on in Washington. And I’ll be really honest with you, you’re not wrong for feeling that way. Look, I get it. The task in front of us isn’t an easy one, but I can promise you one thing: It is worth it.”
“So I am asking you for the sake of your kids and your grandkids, get into the arena. Every generation has been called to do hard things,” Britt told viewers nationwide.
In her weekend interview, Britt said, “You know, Sean, last night I told people to get into the arena.”
“And when you get into the arena, you get arrows; they get thrown at you. But it is worth it when you’re fighting for the American people, when you’re fighting to make sure hard-working families, just like you said in your last segment, that they are seen, that they have a voice, that the things they are concerned about, that they’re worried about – that we’re actually talking about them,” Britt said.
“Things that we talk about around our kitchen table, Joe Biden seems to be detached from reality. Somebody needs to bring him back and quick.”
Grayson Everett is the state and political editor for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @Grayson270
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