What Biden said to Suozzi in the MAGA zone
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, wearing her MAGA hat, seated behind Rep. Tom Suozzi, bottom left, gestures as President Joe Biden delivers his State of the Union address Thursday. Credit: The Washington Post/Jabin Botsford
Daily Point
Newest House member and MTG's hat
At some moments during Thursday’s State of the Union address, Tom Suozzi, newly returned to the House of Representatives, looked like an aggrieved Mets fan sitting with the Phillie Phanatic behind him.
The mocking MAGA mascot that is Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene wore, against the House decorum rules, a signature red “Make America Great Again” hat and repeatedly tried to provoke President Joe Biden during his speech.
Suozzi told The Point he and other Democrats sitting nearby asked her to take off her hat. She refused, replying, “I’ll pay the fine.”
The back of Greene’s cap read “Trump 2020.” When Suozzi remarked, “He lost,” Greene shot back, “No, he didn’t.”
Photos and video of Greene’s heckling of Biden during the speech and the president stopping as he walked into the chamber expressing a wide-eyed look of bemusement at her glaring outfit, became defining images of the annual event.
Suozzi said he arrived around 6 p.m. to get a seat near the aisle but there “were no other good seats left” except in the Freedom Caucus section near Greene. And that’s where the cameras were focused for reaction shots.
Despite having distanced himself from Biden during his special election campaign in February, Suozzi was pleased that his location enabled him to take a selfie with the president as Biden moved to the podium, a shot he quickly posted to social media.
The president looked at the cluster of members reaching into the aisle and said, “Where’s Tom Suozzi,” and when Suozzi identified himself, the president said jokingly, “I know who you are. Congratulations. Good job.”
Perhaps even better than the photo and the compliment, Suozzi had to be pleased with Biden’s speech. During his remarks about problems at the southern border, Biden echoed a version of Suozzi's ubiquitous campaign slogan, “We can fix it. I’m ready to fix it.”
For Suozzi, who left Congress in 2022 for an unsuccessful run at the Democratic gubernatorial nomination — a move that allowed George Santos to claim the 3rd District seat — the night indeed was “let’s fix it.”
— Rita Ciolli rita.ciolli@newsday.com
Pencil Point
Not again!
Credit: PoliticalCartoons.com/Dave Granlund
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Final Point
Santos taking his show to CD1
If the disgraced George Santos is at all serious with his surprise bid to run for Congress again — this time against incumbent Nicholas LaLota in the 1st Congressional District GOP primary — he will certainly have his work cut out for him.
For starters, Santos, who was expelled from his 3rd Congressional District seat in December, has no chance of gaining any support from Suffolk Republican leader Jesse Garcia. Garcia greeted Santos’ candidacy with as much warmth as an Arctic blast.
“The people have no appetite for this bad comedy show to continue,” said Garcia in an emailed statement to The Point. “His candidacy and whatever petitions he might file will have the same level of credibility as the degree he claimed to have received from Baruch College.”
Santos faces a 23-felony-count indictment on charges of laundering money for personal expenses and other federal corruption charges. His trial in Central Islip is set for September.
Now, going into a grudge match against LaLota, Santos brings with him little money from his congressional campaign fund. According to federal election records, Santos’ campaign committee had only $28,115 in cash on hand, with $776,000 in debt and loans as of Dec. 31, 2023. By comparison, LaLota’s campaign committee had $1.283 million in cash on hand, with no debt.
How much money Santos might be able to raise before the June 25 congressional primary is unclear. And will he use any of it to pay his legal fees? Nevertheless, Santos has proved himself an ace at attracting free media attention. His surprise announcement on Thursday night was timed to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech, which Santos was able to attend in Washington as a former House member. He sat in the same chamber where he vowed never to return when he was expelled in December. Santos says he intends to portray himself to voters as more conservative than LaLota.
The two Democrats vying for their party’s 1st District nomination, Nancy Goroff and John Avlon, greeted Santos’ entry into the race with their own dubious comments about the expelled former congressman, along with LaLota.
But Garcia, whose GOP organization will have the muscle needed in low-turnout primaries, is not giving Santos an inch. He certainly is not helping Santos get the necessary signatures to get on the primary ballot. Garcia said, “I’m confident the people of the First District will continue to overwhelmingly support Nick LaLota at the ballot box.”
— Thomas Maier thomas.maier@newsday.com
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