Last night marked a momentous occasion: President Obama’s final State of the Union address. As it always goes with the spectacle of American politics, Twitter was there to see us through. Here are the best highlights from the social media channel.
As President Obama prepared to get underway, he started his speech with a few of his trademark quips, promising to keep it short …
.@POTUS: "I know some of you are antsy to get back to Iowa." #SOTU https://t.co/gpdYYA3bEc pic.twitter.com/lHYT8e8kwC
— PBS NewsHour (@NewsHour) January 13, 2016
… and landing a well-timed barb directed at the two senators in the audience who are currenly campaigning: Bernie Sanders and Marco Rubio. Twitter noticed immediately.
Obama's highest scoring line with Republicans in my #SOTU focus group?
"I'm gonna try to keep this short." 📈
— Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) January 13, 2016
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After introducing the prez, newly instated House Speaker Paul Ryan appeared to be having a deep internal struggle for the rest of the night, providing rich fodder for the rest of us. You guys, there were so many jokes about Ryan and his facial paralysis. So. Many. Jokes.
The #SOTU is more fun to watch if you imagine Paul Ryan's smugness is actually him trying not to laugh as Biden tries to play footsie w him.
— Stephanie McMaster (@Smethanie) January 13, 2016
"Would you fellows like a Bloody Mary?"
Biden: "Yah! Spicy as hell!"
Ryan:"Just tomato juice please."@andreagrimes https://t.co/OaoYI9SwQW— Buffy's Blog (@BuffyBlogs) January 13, 2016
Ryan looks like he eats your lunch out of the office fridge
— The Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom (@tressiemcphd) January 13, 2016
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And it just wouldn’t be a presidential address without some commentary on good ol’ Uncle Joe:
Lmaoo “@SpencerAlthouse: Biden's face when Obama talks about him is the same when your crush texts you back.#SOTU pic.twitter.com/qsP3L4rg3y”
— Fafaaa 🇸🇳 (@fatimaaxo) January 13, 2016
People just couldn’t help but notice that some folks didn’t get up during the evening’s many standing ovations:
It's Catholic mass up in there with all this standing and sitting.
— roxane gay (@rgay) January 13, 2016
The fact that people were audibly disagreeing with the President saying "hey we should end gerrymandering" says a lot about Congress #SOTU
— Jesse Cox (@JesseCox) January 13, 2016
Dems getting a workout. Repubs in danger of deep vein thrombosis. #SOTU
— My Kojak Son (@j_catfish71) January 13, 2016
Apparently, Kim Davis made an appearance:
Maybe there will be magic in the air and traditional Christian marriage proponent Kim Davis will meet her 5th husband at the #SOTU tonight.
— Mike Polk Jr. (@mikepolkjr) January 13, 2016
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There was tons of love for some of the comments Obama made about everything from climate change to health care to the changing political climate. A few people chimed in with some “amens” or pointed out some overlooked points:
.@POTUS is right: Progress isn't inevitable. We have a choice between pushing forward—or undoing all the work we've done. #SOTU
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) January 13, 2016
I really like this president but
man
i got a uterus some people want ahold of
and so do eleventy others
let’s talk about it
— autumnal andrea grimes (@andreagrimes) January 13, 2016
After Obama said ask Osama Bin Laden #SOTU pic.twitter.com/qfQ96DapJm
— Travon Free (@Travon) January 13, 2016
Or maybe, also make it possible for every American to earn a living wage whether they attend college or not. Just an idea.
— roxane gay (@rgay) January 13, 2016
https://twitter.com/SaraJBenincasa/status/687101251905961985
As always, the evening culminated with a rebuttal, this time from North Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, and people chimed in on that.
Nikki Haley is just angry that Obamacare doesn't cover TMJ. #SOTU
— Ben Zelevansky (@BenZelevansky) January 13, 2016
Every STOU response speech feels like "Dick and Jane Get Reductive" and have production values that rival Romper Room
— Adam "A Little Rain Never Hurt No One" Sessler (@AdamSessler) January 13, 2016
All in all, a pretty good showing, though the president probably could have abbreviated the entire thing pretty easily:
If Obama really wanted a shorter speech, he would’ve just tweeted this gif, dropped a mic, & walked off. #SOTU pic.twitter.com/861LCeqqUV
— Rebecca Eisenberg (@ryeisenberg) January 13, 2016
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