Go, Joe, go!

I just watched a replay of President Biden's State of the Union speech, and he won my vote for reelection. This was the Biden we wanted to see: tough, unapologetically progressive, ticking off all his accomplishments and fighting to finish the job. Against Big Oil and Big Pharma and Big Tech and all the billionaire tax cheats who game the system and screw the people.

Biden targeted all the right enemies -- police vigilantes, assault weapon manufacturers, insulin price gougers, etc. But he did it while employing charm and a bit of Aikido, turning the angry outbursts of Republican hecklers against his opponents. When Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and other Republicans shouted he was a "liar" for accusing them of trying to cut Social Security and Medicare, Biden smiled and told them he welcomed their "conversion." He cleverly completed his checkmate by calling on his Republican detractors to "stand up for the seniors" and declare that Social Security and Medicare were "off the table."

All in all, it was a masterful performance. I haven't seen this Biden in years, maybe ever.

Biden showed the same winning charm as Ronald Reagan. Unlike Biden, Reagan pushed policies that were detrimental to the public good, but he did it with a seductive smile and shake of his head. Reagan even persuaded the Democratic Speaker of the House, Tip O'Neill, to sometimes politically partner with him.

Biden displayed the same skill Tuesday night. He made his ideas about climate change and labor organizing and tax reform and gun control seem like common sense. In contrast, his Republican naysayers seemed juvenile and unhinged.

"Capitalism without competition is extortion." If Bernie Sanders (the only one in the cavernous room to wear a mask) had said it, he would've sounded radical. But Biden said it, and it sounded all-American.

"Do something... finish the job... prove that America can still do big things..." These were not just Biden catch phrases during his State of the Union speech. They were what millions of Americans want and demand from their political system. They are what the waitress at my favorite diner told me during lunch after she watched the president's forceful speech.

Biden won her over. Me too. Reelect Joe Biden in 2024. He might be the oldest president in history. But he showed that he can still fight and win.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene goes mental during President Biden’s State of the Union speech.