Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) endorsed Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) for the Republican Party’s vice presidential pick. Romney’s endorsement comes amid the reaction Britt received for her State of the Union rebuttal, a reaction the Utah lawmaker believes is a proof of “who liberals most fear as VP nominee.”
In a post to X on Sunday, the Senator wrote, “In a good way, the delivery was over-the-top, out of character — Biden’s, of course. Katie Britt’s too. The media’s overreaction to hers, not his, tells us who liberals most fear as VP nominee.”
In a good way, the delivery was over-the-top, out of character—Biden’s, of course. Katie Britt’s too. The media overreaction to hers not his tells us who liberals most fear as VP nominee.
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) March 10, 2024
In an highly-scrutinized rebuttal, Britt delivered a response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union on Thursday. Her video, which was shot in the kitchen of her home in Alabama, sparked a lot of criticism on both sides of the political aisle, with some describing it as “cringe” and off-putting.
While she hit some major Republican concerns, including the immigration crisis, rise in crime and rising costs, in her 17-minute speech, she was largely criticized for her delivery which was a mix of hushed tones, breathy speech, random pauses and emotional switches.
Commentator and staunch Trump ally Charlie Kirk took to X to say, “I’m sure Katie Britt is a sweet mom and person, but this speech is not what we need. Joe Biden just declared war on the American right and Katie Britt is talking like she’s hosting a cooking show whispering about how Democrats ‘dont get it.’”
I'm sure Katie Britt is a sweet mom and person, but this speech is not what we need. Joe Biden just declared war on the American right and Katie Britt is talking like she's hosting a cooking show whispering about how Democrats "dont get it."
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) March 8, 2024
According to Rolling Stone, a Trump adviser said, “What the hell am I watching right now?” while “a lawyer in the Trump orbit” called the speech “cringe” and suggested that it is NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” material.
The show did spoof the senator’s reaction in its cold opening, in which actress Scarlett Johansson played Britt.
With a kitchen background, Johansson said in part, “..I’ll be auditioning for the part of scary mom. And I’ll be performing an original monologue called ‘This country is hell…’ I’m worried about the future of our children, and this is why I have invited you into this strange empty kitchen because Republicans want me to appeal to women voters and women love kitchens.”
Sen. Katie Britt delivers the Republican response to President Biden’s State of the Union Address pic.twitter.com/x7mDzO1sWP
— Saturday Night Live – SNL (@nbcsnl) March 10, 2024
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) was however one of the ones who saw the good in Britt’s delivery, as he told HuffPost that she did a good job.
“I thought the delivery was good. People were going to make fun of anybody. Some people like it, some people don’t,” he said.
“Somebody who sees it from a different perspective, you know ― education, family, all those things. … I mean, she did what she was asked to do. I thought she did a good job. And it’s hard when you’ve never done anything like that,” he also said.
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) also spoke in her defense, explaining that the kitchen setting was meant to highlight the disparity between Biden’s office and the kitchen table which symbolizes working families.
“I think her point though was to sort of discern or differentiate between the big podium and the kitchen table topics is what she was aiming for. Whether she struck that, I don’t know, but I’m quite certain the audience she was aiming at wasn’t Charlie Kirk’s audience ― swing voters in swing states, probably suburban professional women,” Cramer stated.
