America’s Reaganesque Mom: How to Praise Katie Britt Even Before She Speaks

Senator Katie Britt’s team hopes viewers will find her response to President Biden’s State of the Union address as Reaganesque — but also deeply motherly.

Before President Biden even arrived at the Capitol on Thursday night, a close ally of the Alabama Republican sent a talking points document to conservative influencers, suggesting words of praise they could utter after Ms. Britt’s speech.

“She came across as the mother of America – she gets it,” the document helpfully suggests. ‘She’s one of us. That will be the takeaway for families when they see this.

But Ms. Britt also came across as Ronald Reagan, it was stated. “The conclusion of her border section was a real ‘Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall,’ moment,” said another talking point, referring to Reagan’s historic speech in Berlin.

Ms. Britt, who at 42 years old is the youngest Republican woman ever elected to the Senate, is on Donald J. Trump’s short list of potential running mates, according to two people with direct knowledge of the list.

The talking points compared her State of the Union response to some of the most famous oratorios in American history, calling it “reminiscent of Reagan’s message from that shining city upon a hill.”

Comparing Ms. Britt to Mr. Biden, the document suggested that “it wasn’t just the huge age difference/contrast between the two,” but that Ms. Britt “exposed a gap in relatability – a true generational schism.”

Mr. Biden is 81. Mr. Trump is 77.

A spokesperson for Ms. Britt did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“His speech was tone deaf,” the interlocutors declared, before Mr. Biden or Ms. Britt had said a word. “Hers was the perfect pitch.”