GOP lawmakers predict what's in Biden's State of the Union address: 'Probably torn up the draft they had'

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GOP lawmakers anticipate 'torn up' State of the Union address

Sen. Marsha Blackburn and Reps. Greg Steube and Jody Hice share their expectations for President Biden's upcoming address.

ORLANDO, Fla. - Russia's invasion of Ukraine has likely upended President Biden's original State of the Union, Republican lawmakers agreed at the 2022 Conservative Political Action Conference.

"I think they've probably torn up the draft they had for the State of the Union and are realizing that issues are getting away from them," Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., told Fox News Digital. . "And that they're going to need to buckle down and do some hard work on these foreign policy issues. We've got a lot of countries now that are very upset with the U.S. because we've appeared weak and indecisive about how we were going to move forward against aggressors." 

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, U.S., February 24, 2022.  (REUTERS/Leah Millis)

Russia invaded eastern Ukraine last week following a lengthy speech by President Vladimir Putin in which he recognized the so-called Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic as independent. In his remarks, Putin argued Ukraine is historically part of Russia and the current government in Ukraine is illegitimate. U.S. lawmakers have since accused Biden of not acting quickly enough to impose sanctions on Russia before Putin's aggressive action. 

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With such an overseas mess, Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, expected Biden to pivot to his domestic agenda on Tuesday.

"I don't know what he was planning to talk about initially, but he's obviously going to have to focus a lot on what's going on, on the world stage," Jackson told Fox News Digital. "And I doubt that he'll focus on the fact that the incompetence in his own White House has led us to where we're at right now. They could've done a lot to stop this. We're demonstrating incredible weakness globally right now and foreign affairs is just a total mess." 

"I'm sure he'll try to turn it around and talk about his intent to Build Back Better," he continued. "Whatever they're going to do with that, I don't know if they're going to try to resurrect that. But they still talk about these things, even though most of us know that that kind of stuff is dead in the water, and it's not going anywhere. So we'll wait and see." 

President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020, as Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., watch. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

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Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., provided a list of items he'd like Biden to address, but didn't expect to hear.

"I'm sure," Steube said when asked if the original draft has been trashed. "Because if he doesn't mention Ukraine at this point, he's absolutely going to have to start with that, given what's going on there. What I'd like to hear is that he's going to reinstitute domestic production of oil, which he's not going to, but that would be a great step to buffer, not only the inflation that we're seeing but the rising prices of oil and gas. We can produce our own domestic supply of that product right here in the United States, and he shut that down on day one of his presidency. That would help on so many different levels. Why are we right now bringing in Russian oil to this country? That's what I'd like to hear." 

Steube said he's also like to hear the president take a "strong stance" against the Taliban. 

"That we're going to go out there and get all our citizens out," the congressman said. "We're going to go in there and do away with the $80 billion worth of military equipment of weapons that we left, but we know that that's not going to be talked about either." 

Ukrainian servicemen stand by a destroyed house near the frontline village of Krymske, Luhansk region, in eastern Ukraine, Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022.  (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

"It will be interesting to see what he actually does talk about that he thinks is positive because nothing that has happened in his first few - a little over a year in office has been positive for this country," Steube added.

"I would assume they're trying to rewrite it so that they can paint a flowery picture that doesn't exist," Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., said of the State of the Union. "But the people of the United States are not fools. They will get what's going on in this country, and it seems as though there has not been one decision made under this administration since inauguration that's really been in the best interest of the United States. And that same type of pattern exists in his foreign policy decisions as well." 

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Putin announced his intention on Sunday to soon boost Russia's nuclear arsenal. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who has been heralded a hero by many for remaining in Ukraine despite instructions to evacuate, told UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson that the next 24 hours will be crucial in the fight against the Russian invasion.