As the youngest Republican woman ever elected to the U.S. Senate, Alabama Sen. Katie Britt is widely seen as a rising star in the GOP.
That status was all but confirmed earlier this year when the first-term lawmaker was tapped to deliver the Republican response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. But the speech got mixed reviews, including from Megyn who found it to be “over the top.”
On Monday’s show, Megyn sat down with Britt for the first time to discuss legislation she introduced with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) to protect IVF and to learn what happened on State of the Union night.
State of the Union Fallout
To recap, Britt delivered a 17-minute rebuttal to Biden’s State of the Union from the kitchen table of her Montgomery, AL, home. The substance of the speech sought to paint Biden as a career politician with little understanding of life for average Americans and criticize his policies on immigration, economics, crime, and foreign policy.
The 42-year-old mom of two – who was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2022 – was seemingly chosen for the notoriously unforgiving post in an effort to appeal to women and families, but her delivery was dinged for being performative and, in Megyn’s words, “totally cringe.”
On Monday, Megyn asked Britt whether it was nerves or something else that got the best of her. “I guess, I mean, I gave it all I’ve got,” the senator shared. “I mean, that is a really high honor and I felt very passionately about it. I’m passionate about these issues.”
Britt said that watching Biden’s speech prior to delivering her own left her frustrated. “When you watch him yell for over an hour and also just take shots… and just be dishonest, it’s incredibly frustrating,” she explained. “But certainly I was honored to do it and I look forward to keep fighting for the very things that we talked about – one of which was IVF.”
The Veepstakes
Prior to the speech, Britt was believed to be on Donald Trump’s shortlist for vice president. Megyn revealed the senator was, in fact, the promising young politico she was teasing the former president may pick as his running mate.
Megyn’s prediction for this particular election changed after the State of the Union, but she has little doubt Britt’s name will be in the mix for years to come. The senator said she was honored to be part of the conversation. “I appreciate you even thinking that I would be capable of something like that, truly,” she said. “To be mentioned as someone who could lead potentially now or in the future is always really an honor and humbling.”
Even so, Britt believes she has much to accomplish in the Senate. “We have done a lot of good things in the first 17 months, but I think there is a lot more work to do,” she explained. “I stand alongside [Sen. Cruz] here figuring out how we can do everything possible not only to make sure that President Trump takes back the White House but we take back the Senate, which I think is critically important to us preserving the country.”
And for those like Megyn who were left scratching their heads after the State of the Union, Britt had a message: “I do hope that people honestly take time to get to know me… and get to know the work that I’ve done, the relationships I’ve built with my colleagues, the issues I stand on,” she shared. “I am a passionate person, I am unafraid to fight for the things that I care about, and I am going to keep doing it.”
You can check out Megyn’s full interview with Sen. Britt by tuning in to episode 796 on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen. And don’t forget that you can catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM’s Triumph (channel 111) weekdays from 12pm to 2pm ET.