'Sad and unnecessary': Biden's State of the Union hecklers face internal GOP groans
House Republicans' repeated outbursts at President Biden's State of the Union address on Thursday were met with discomfort and disapproval from GOP colleagues.
Why it matters: Heckling has become a hallmark of Biden's addresses to Congress, with the president even getting into back-and-forth interactions with specific lawmakers.
- Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) frequently disrupted the speech, including getting Biden to reference Laken Riley, a nursing student from Georgia killed by an undocumented immigrant.
- Biden was repeatedly heckled by lawmakers on immigration, gun control, taxes — and even by a guest who yelled about Afghanistan.
What they're saying: One House Republican called Biden's speech "loud and angry," but told Axios they felt the heckling was "sad and unnecessary."
- "What the heck is going on in this place," the GOP lawmaker exclaimed.
- Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.) told Axios "there were times when I was sitting there like, 'this is awful,' and wanting to say things," but "I don't think it's appropriate."
- "There's some implicit respect for the president that you should have," Graves added.
The backdrop: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told colleagues in a closed-door GOP conference meeting on Friday that they should refrain from heckling Biden and show "decorum" throughout the speech.
- Part of the concern was the risk of playing into Biden's hands and allowing him to score points off exchanges with members.
- Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.), who had warned ahead of the speech about blowback from heckling, told Axios afterwards, "I wouldn't have done it. Show respect."
- "You've got to remember where you're at – you're in U.S. history and you're in the United States Congress," Burchett said.
The other side: Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), who yelled, "lies!" at one point in the speech, told reporters it was "shameful for the president to show up here and hold a campaign rally as opposed to an address."
- Rep. Brian Babin (R-Texas) said he did not participate in the heckling, but "it's hard to sit there and listen to an abject obvious lie ... if there was anybody doing that, I can understand it."
Go deeper: Katie Britt slams Biden on border in SOTU response
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to say that Rep. Derrick Van Orden is from Wisconsin, not Ohio.