Back in 2009, much ado was made when Joe Wilson, Republican representative from South Carolina, heckled then-president Barack Obama during a joint session of Congress, shouting, “You lie!” during one of his claims. Wilson received bipartisan condemnation. He quickly atoned. Obama accepted it, saying, “He apologized quickly and without equivocation and I’m appreciative of that.”
Jump 13 years and incivility — and a lack of any apology, ever — is the norm in Congress. When President Joe Biden delivered his first State of the Union, on Tuesday night, he was met with not only House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy checking his phone. Biden also received loud interruptions from the expected suspects: Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert, the latter who actually heckled him while he was talking about his dead son Beau — not unlike what Trump did back in 2020.
Boebert and Greene kicked things off right away, defiantly turning their backs as Biden and team entered the House chamber and tooling around on their phones.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) turn their backs and refuse to applaud Biden's cabinet. #SOTU pic.twitter.com/bKzzT84IBS
— The Recount (@therecount) March 2, 2022
Around the halfway mark of Biden’s hour-long address, the two were identified as the lawmakers starting a failed group chant of “Build the wall” from within the chamber.
Boebert and Greene chanting build the wall pic.twitter.com/6KeXFSCnP5
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 2, 2022
Lauren Boebert just tried to get a "Build the wall" chant going. Marjorie Taylor Greene joined in at the last second as everyone begins to take their seat.
Someone on the Dem side says "sit down."
— Matt Fuller (@MEPFuller) March 2, 2022
Boebert repeated that one on Twitter during the speech.
I’ll say it louder for the folks in the back: BUILD THE WALL!!! #SOTU
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) March 2, 2022
But that was nothing compared to what happened later during Biden’s address. He was talking about soldiers who were killed by cancer. At that point, a voice quickly identified as Boebert’s was heard shouting about “13” soldiers, a reference to the soldiers killed during the evacuation of Afghanistan. As it happened, Biden had been right on the verge of mentioning his son Beau, whose cancer may have been caused during his service in the Iraq War. Boebert was promptly booed.
Rep Lauren Boebert gets booed after shouting while President Biden talks about his dead son Beau Biden. pic.twitter.com/dEEIYbAJzY
— Colby Hall (@colbyhall) March 2, 2022
Boebert later admitted to the heckle, saying that when Biden mentioned “flag-draped coffins,” she “couldn’t stay silent.”
When Biden said flag draped coffins I couldn't stay silent. I told him directly he did it. He put 13 in there.
Our heroic servicemen and women deserve so much better.
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) March 2, 2022
But to everyone else, it was even more disrespectful than she intended it to be.
Lauren Boebert just yelled out an attack on Biden while he was talking about his dead son.
Thankfully, she received bipartisan boos.
Absolute subhuman filth.
— Angry Staffer 🌻 (@Angry_Staffer) March 2, 2022
Lauren Boebert is absolute trash. The man was talking about the death of his son and so many of my brothers and sisters to burn pits and that horrid little bag of crap yelled out about 13 lost in combat. We've lost thousands and she never gave a god damn about them. https://t.co/I1LZAm89Cc
— Fred Wellman (@FPWellman) March 2, 2022
Lauren Boebert just heckled Biden while he was mentioning his son who passed away.
— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) March 2, 2022
Lauren Boebert interrupting President Biden while he’s talking about his veteran son who died isn’t a new low, it’s par for the course with these traitor Republicans. Vote them ALL out.
— VoteVets (@votevets) March 2, 2022
Lauren Boebert just yelled out an attack on Biden while he was talking about his dead son.
Thankfully, she received bipartisan boos.
Absolute subhuman filth.
— Angry Staffer 🌻 (@Angry_Staffer) March 2, 2022
Both Boebert and Greene have been in rare form lately. Boebert recently said America should be “liberated” like Ukraine, prompting furrowed brows. Greene, meanwhile, actually spoke at a white nationalist rally, prompting little pushback from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. They are indeed quite the pair.
From tonight, via @Reuters
L-@laurenboebert
R-@RepMTG pic.twitter.com/DumAhHpx1p— Robert Costa (@costareports) March 2, 2022
https://twitter.com/ampersand113/status/1498861221226987522?s=21
Joe Wilson, meanwhile, is still in Congress. It’s unclear whether or not he attended Biden’s first State of the Union, but if he did he kept quiet.