Mitt Romney slams Biden for wanting to ‘crack down on rich people’

Republican Senator Mitt Romney is not happy with what President Biden had to say in his State of the Union address, calling the president’s domestic policy the ‘same liberal playbook.’ The Utah senator was in attendance for the president’s fiery speech to a joint session of Congress Thursday night where he was seen sitting with another retiring senator, Democrat Joe Manchin of West Virginia.

After the speech, Romney shared his review in a video posted on X. ‘There was some new chapters, but the same idea which is here’s some things I’m gonna give you, here’s some more things I’m going to give you. Here’s how I’m going to crack down on big companies and rich people,’ the senator said.

Romney said he thinks people have gotten tired of that message and know the president cannot deliver on those promises. ‘Any promise he makes have to get Republican votes, and he’s not going to get Republican votes for those things,’ Romney stated.

Romney also said people know the ‘cheap shots on Republicans are probably missing the mark.’ In his speech, Biden warned many Republicans want to put Social Security ‘on the chopping block.’ Romney insisted there is not a Republican in the House or the Senate who is talking about cutting Social Security or in favor of cutting Social Security.

For years some Republicans have argued benefits need to be reexamined and some even recently have suggested raising the retirement age, but many in the GOP have backed off such ideas as Biden seized on the issue in last year’s address as well. ‘That’s just off the mark,’ Romney said. The multimillionaire senator also clapped back on Biden’s claim billionaires only pay a tax rate of about 8 percent, calling it ‘just wrong.’

Biden engaged in a call and response with lawmakers over whether the tax code was fair and argued billionaires and big corporations need to ‘pay their fair share.’ Biden has called for the corporate tax rate to be increased to 28 percent, the corporate minimum tax to 21 percent, for a 25 percent income tax for those with more than $100 million and ending other tax breaks for the rich to help pay for his priorities.

But Romney’s biggest complaint was he was ‘disappointed’ that Biden didn’t get ‘more serious’ about the deficit and the debt. ‘The debt is enormous, it poses a threat to us,’ Romney warned. ‘The interest payments are now going to exceed this year our military spending. This is a problem.’

The U.S. national debt has reached more than $34 trillion. The White House said Biden’s proposed tax hikes targeting billionaires and the largest companies would reduce the deficit by $3 trillion over 10 years. ‘He had a couple of quick things, “we’re going to get corporations to pay a certain amount, we’re going to try and raise taxes on billionaires,” those things aren’t going to happen,’ Romney said. ‘They’re not realistic.’ But it was not all criticism from the outgoing senator.

‘I think on foreign policy he did a good job,’ Romney said. ‘It is very much in America’s interest to see Ukraine push back against Putin .’ ‘Putin is a awful guy, a bad guy,’ Romney continued. ‘And keeping Putin from invading not just other parts of central Europe but NATO nations that might involve us in conflict is an American interest.’ Romney also liked what the president had to say on Israel and Gaza.

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