State of the Union guests highlight Biden’s efforts on gun violence, climate and more

The White House guest list for President Biden’s State of the Union address will highlight some of his administration’s biggest achievements, from student debt cancellation to NATO expansion.

But even as he announces his achievements, the guest list will highlight the persistent challenges his presidency continues to face, including pervasive gun violence and the enormous problem of climate change.

Among the 20 guests who will watch the speech with the first lady, Jill Biden, is Jazmin Cazares, the sister of a 9-year-old victim of the 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where a shooter killed 19 people. children and two teachers.

After Uvalde, Mr. Biden signed the first gun safety legislation in decades — a measure he signed into law last year during his State of the Union address, when he also called on Congress to enact an assault weapons ban. In September, he announced the creation of the Office of Gun Violence and Safety Prevention, led by Vice President Kamala Harris, at the White House.

But since the start of 2024, there have been 10 mass shootings in the United States, according to an analysis by The New York Times, which tracks shootings that killed four or more people, not including the attacker, and that occurred in a public place. without connection with any other crime. Violence involving children, which has increased sharply since 2011, remains a major concern: since the beginning of 2024, 10 school shootings have resulted in injuries or deaths. an analysis from Education Weekthat gun violence in schools follows.

Mrs. Cazares, 18, who was honored by Mrs. Biden at a White House event in the fall, has become an activist for gun violence prevention and spent her senior year of high school traveling the country advocating for laws that could have protected her sister, Jackie Cazares.

For other advocates, her presence at the State of the Union is a reminder of the work the president still has to do on an issue of critical importance to the young voters who helped send him to the White House — especially if he wants they help with that. so again.

Ryan Barto, spokesman for March for Our Lives, the group founded by students who survived the 2019 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre in Parkland, Florida, said young voters are calling on Mr. Biden “to get the job done ‘. He noted that no legislation addressing gun violence has been passed in 2023.

Last month, Mr. Biden announced an executive order to promote safe gun storage, citing statistics that show gun violence is the norm main cause of child deaths in America.

Mr. Barto said young voters want Biden to use his pulpit and executive power more forcefully, and to tackle gun violence in a more “holistic way,” linking it to the shrinking social safety net, the rise of white supremacy. and a lack of federal funding for research.

“We need him to take charge of this issue – he needs to talk about this issue,” Mr Barto said. He added: “It’s fine to use his words to make a speech, but it’s only after he leaves the stage and what he does that really matters.”

Other guests on Thursday evening include the prime minister of Sweden – which officially joined NATO just hours before Mr Biden’s speech, a major foreign policy victory for the president – ​​and people affected by waivers student debt, jobs programs and recent national debt rollbacks. reproductive rights.

There will also be guests who reflect Mr. Biden’s energy and climate change agenda — and underscore his message that tackling global warming creates jobs.

Shawn Fain, president of the United Automobile Workers, will be one of them. Mr. Biden won the UAW’s endorsement after standing on the picket line of a union strike that ultimately led to new contracts with General Motors, Ford and Stellantis.

Mr. Fain’s presence also suggests that the union is likely to support finalization this spring of a major Environmental Protection Agency regulation to curb car tailpipe emissions.

The rule is intended to entice Americans to switch to electric vehicles from gas-powered cars. Unions are wary of the rule because electric vehicles require fewer workers to gather.

The Biden administration is making changes to the proposed rule that address some of the UAW’s concerns, including giving automakers more time to ramp up sales of electric vehicles.

Mr. Biden likes to say that when he thinks about climate change, he thinks about jobs. And he’ll have two people in the audience to prove his point.

Natalie King, a Detroit woman described by the White House as the first Black woman to launch an electric vehicle charging manufacturing company, and Rashawn Spivey, the owner of a Milwaukee plumbing company that replaces lead pipes, will attend the speech .

The Biden administration has set a goal of installing 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations nationwide and replacing every lead pipe by 2030, and has poured millions of dollars into both goals.