Sen. Katie Britt’s (R-Ala.) State of the Union statement sheds light on the GOP’s effort to connect with female voters ahead of the November elections.
The answer was met with a barrage of criticism for being out of touch, with many critics labeling Britt’s choice to deliver the address from a kitchen table as misogynistic.
According to political strategists and observers, Britt’s performance exemplifies her party’s struggle to attract female voters, particularly those in the suburbs, who have recently abandoned the party.
“Republicans have now chosen a young woman—llast year Sarah Huckabee Sanders, this year Katie Britt—tto try to shift the image of the Republican Party away from older white men, which is really quite the reality of the party,” said Debbie Walsh, executive director of Rutgers University’s Center for American Women in Politics (CAWP).
And there is little doubt that Britt is in the minority within her party in the Capitol. She is one of nine Republican women who serve in the United States Senate.
“It is the image they are trying to strike in an attempt to reach female voters in some way,” he said.
Republicans praised Britt for delivering the rejoinder, emphasizing the age difference between her and President Biden as well as her own Senate record. Last month, Britt played a key role in assisting Republicans in navigating her state’s Supreme Court finding that frozen embryos were considered children. She attempted to rally support for in vitro fertilization (IVF), as Democrats used the issue to attack Republicans.
Since former President Trump took office in 2016, the Republican Party has struggled to reach out to women, particularly those in suburban areas.
In the 2022 midterm elections, they helped Democrats score substantial victories in crucial swing states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Georgia. According to the Pew Research Center, Biden won 54 percent of suburban voters overall. In 2018, 53 percent of suburban women voters voted for Democrats, up from 47 percent in 2014 and 51 percent in 2016, according to CBS News exit polls.
“Not only do they have a problem appealing to women, but to suburban voters in general,” said Gunner Ramer, political director of the Republican Accountability Project, an anti-Trump right-leaning organization.
Britt’s reply portrayed her at her kitchen table, where she and her family debate problems that affect them, she explained. Critics on the left and even on the right chastised the senator for utilizing her kitchen backdrop, claiming that it perpetuated antiquated assumptions about female responsibilities at home. Britt defended the venue choice on “Fox News Sunday,” claiming, “Republicans care about kitchen table issues.”
“We care about our faith, family, and freedom. Britt remarked, “We are the ones talking about the economy and its real effects.”
Meanwhile, Britt’s performance was criticized during both a “Saturday Night Live” opener and comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s opening monologue at Sunday’s Academy Awards.
On top of that, Britt has taken criticism for a narrative she shared during the rebuttal of a lady who was sexually assaulted two decades earlier in Mexico.
In the same “Fox News Sunday” appearance, the senator defended the incident, claiming that it reflected Biden’s border policy, even though it preceded his administration.
However, the location choice, along with what many have characterized as Britt’s uncomfortable delivery, prompted critics to pounce.
“It felt a little Stepford Wife-ish: ‘Here’s how you can relate to me, because I’ll talk about my kids and I’ll reference my husband multiple times, and that’s how you’ll relate to me, not because I’m in the United States Senate and I know something,'” Walsh said to CNN.
Ramer cited a focus group that the Republican Accountability Project conducted with voters in competitive states the day after the State of the Union. They unanimously stated that the term “weird” best described their reaction to the address.
“It misreads the voters they need to win back, because appealing to the traditional woman voter sort of thing—aa lot of those voters are already going to support Trump,” Ramer told the audience. “What they needed to do was go after the suburban vote, and Katie Britt’s response didn’t do that, and I think we saw that reflected in the focus group we did.”
The State of the Union rebuttal is considered one of the most thankless professions in politics. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) notoriously gave one of the more embarrassing responses when he took a gulp of water mid-speech in 2013. In 2009, then-Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) appeared uneasy as he began his reply to then-President Obama with a “happy Mardi Gras.”
Not all State of the Union rebuttals have gone down in history. In 1995, then-New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman (R) responded to President Clinton’s State of the Union address from the state capital in Trenton.
“It conveyed her authority and position,” Walsh explained.
Following the address, many Republicans supported Britt, claiming she hit the correct notes in terms of policy and delivery for the voters the party is trying to reach.
“I didn’t listen to it live, and I heard the media comments before I listened to it,” said Kate Day, former head of Cheshire County Republicans in New Hampshire. “I was surprised it was the same speech. While her approach appeared more conversational, displaying sympathy and emotion that some have questioned, the content was perfectly correct.”
Republicans refer to Britt’s inclusion of subjects that are essential to their party and Americans in general, such as the border, the economy, and public safety.
“I look at all of these speeches from a policy standpoint,” explained Alice Stewart, a Republican strategist. “Joe Biden couldn’t have had more of a stellar backdrop, a more impressive venue and optics and location, but it was a terribly divisive, political, angry speech that didn’t sit well with many voters.”
When confronted about the criticism of Britt’s kitchen location, many Republicans responded, “Who cares?”
“I was attentive for the information she presented, so it makes no difference whether she was seated at her kitchen table or behind a podium.” Day said. “I hope it made every woman and mom think about the cumulative impact of Biden’s inflation on the higher weekly grocery bills we all face.”
Biden appeared to congratulate Britt when questioned about her answer on Friday.
“I thought she was a very talented woman, but I didn’t understand the connection she was making,” the president explained to reporters.
And, while Britt’s retort is making headlines right now, the speech itself is unlikely to have a long-term impact on the GOP’s appeal to women and suburban voters unless Britt is a leading contender to be Trump’s running mate.
“I think this will probably pass,” Walsh remarked. “It could come back up if she is considered as Donald Trump’s vice presidential candidate. Then it would show up in a greater way.”
