President Biden's 2023 State of the Union address

The parents of Tyre Nichols received an extended standing ovation during the State of the Union address, marking an emotional moment for police reform during the president’s prime-time address. 

“Public safety depends on public trust. But too often that trust is violated,” Biden said. “Joining us tonight are the parents of Tyre Nichols, who had to bury him just last week.”

RowVaughn and Rodney Wells, who came as first lady Jill Biden's guests, stood up and received bipartisan applause.

“There are no words to describe the heartbreak and grief of losing a child. But imagine what it’s like to lose a child at the hands of the law,” he added. 

Biden sought to use his remarks to make the case for police reform, using the bully pulpit as his advisers said he would, to pressure Congress into getting something passed though reform faces an uncertain path.

The president spoke of his own privilege of not needing to have “the talk,” with his children, that “so many Black and Brown families have had with their children.

Bipartisan support for his remarks began building when Biden touched on the shared values members have for public safety.

“What happened to Tyre in Memphis happens too often. We have to do better. Give law enforcement the real training they need,” he said. “Hold on to higher standards. Help them succeed in keeping us safe.”

Biden received another standing ovation when he said, “cops are good people."

Nichols' parents stood up to applaud when Biden said, “when police officers or police departments violate the public trust, they must be held accountable.” A tear was visible on RowVaughn Wells’ face.

Biden erroneously called Tyre “Tyler,” but called on Congress to commit themselves to making her words come true: “Something good must come from this.”

In a statement after the president's speech, the NAACP said Black Americans need "more than words."

Marjorie Taylor Greene repeatedly yelled back at President Joe Biden throughout the speech — on everything from his comments on fentanyl to entitlement cuts.

She yelled out “liar” at Biden over suggesting some Republicans wanted cuts to Medicare to Social Security.

She also stayed seated when Biden introduced Tyre Nichols’ parents and the Ukraine ambassador.

White House officials are thrilled by the off-script back and forth between President Joe Biden and Republicans. 

“Couldn’t have written a better moment,” one official said.

More than the substantive back and forth, one official notes how it appeared to animate Biden in real time

But to watch it happen during the speech, on the biggest prime-time stage of the year, was a moment White House officials are basking in right now.

Some background: The president was speaking about the national debt – a debt he said took “200 years to accumulate,” but was increased by 25% under the last administration. 

“Those are the facts, check it out,” Biden said, as boos and chatter started in the chamber. “Check it out!” he continued over the ruckus. 

Democrats cheered while Republicans quieted. But when the president accused some Republicans of wanting to cut Social Security and Medicare, the protests erupted again.  Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green appeared to stand and shout, “you lie.” 

The White House has repeatedly accused Republicans of wanting to make cuts to Social Security and Medicare, but McCarthy explicitly said recently that those cuts were off the table. 

The president said he was “glad to see” the reaction, adding, “I enjoy conversion.”

People had doubts about President Joe Biden going into the State of the Union address and the president proved himself, according to CNN political commentator Van Jones.

He described Biden as "strong-minded" and relatable in the speech.

"I thought Joe Biden did really well tonight relating to the American people and if you had doubts about him, look, he was as sharp tonight as he could be," he said. "I thought he did a great job."

But the most powerful aspect of Biden's speech, Jones said, was his ability to invoke reactions out of Democrats and Republicans.

"He got both parties on their feet, not once but twice, on police reform," he said. "The open wound on this country is police reform and Republicans and Democrats stood together twice to honor the family and also to honor policies that would make a difference. That was unexpected."

President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address drew mixed reactions from the lawmakers in the room.

Here are some scenes from the inside of the House Chamber:

We tracked the approximate length of President Joe Biden’s second State of the Union speech. By CNN’s tally, the president was about 15 minutes shy of Bill Clinton’s 2000 address, the longest in recent history.

Here is how Biden's address compares to past presidents:

President Joe Biden concluded his second State of the Union address with a message about the current state of the country.

During the more than hourlong speech, Biden appealed to bipartisanship, telling Republicans he wants to work together instead of “fighting for the sake of fighting."

President Joe Biden addressed US-China relations following last week's incident involving a suspected Chinese spy balloon — and he gave Beijing a warning.

More background: US military fighter jets shot down the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon over the Atlantic Ocean off the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed Saturday.

The operation ended a remarkable public drama that prompted a diplomatic fallout between Washington and Beijing, as the American public tracked the balloon from Montana all the way to the Carolinas.

Biden approved the downing of the balloon, Austin said in a statement, which a US official previously told CNN was a plan that was presented and supported by US military leaders.

CNN's Zachary Cohen, Kevin Liptak, Oren Liebermann and Phil Mattingly contributed reporting to this post. 

President Joe Biden reiterated his calls for Americans to bolster democracy and speak out against extremism, discussing how a recent politically motivated attack against Paul Pelosi, the husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, "never should have happened."

In the room where he was speaking, Biden recalled, democracy "has been threatened and attacked, put at risk," when insurrectionists stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Just a few months ago, Biden said, an assailant "unleashed political violence" in Pelosi's home, using "the very same language the insurrectionists used as they stalked these halls and chanted on January 6th."

The attack "never should have happened," Biden said.

Pelosi, who was severely injured during the attack, sat above the House chamber as a guest in the first lady's box during the State of the Union.

"We must all speak out. There is no place for political violence in America," the president continued, later adding that "we must give hate and extremism in any form no safe harbor."