Rep. Joe Kennedy Joseph (Joe) Patrick KennedyMassachusetts town clerk resigns after delays to primary vote count Bogeymen of the far left deserve a place in any Biden administration Hillicon Valley: Election officials prepare for new Russian interference battle | 'Markeyverse' of online fans helps take down a Kennedy | GOP senators unveil bill to update tech liability protections MORE III (D-Mass.) said in a new interview that reaction to his State of the Union response was "disappointing," adding that his critics are looking for a way to deflect from his message.

"We've kind of got to push through it," Kennedy told Politico's "Off Message" podcast, set to be released next week.

"I’d like to think that part of the message I tried to deliver last night was an important one. Easy to understand why the people I was criticizing would look for any way to deflect it," he added.

Republicans and critics were quick to point out that Kennedy appeared to be wearing what looked like gloss on the corners of his mouth Tuesday evening, and mocked him on social media.

Lay off the Carmex, man. — Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) January 30, 2018

Joe Kennedy needs to ease up on the lip gloss and the pre-speech Red Bull. — Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) January 30, 2018

Wonder if Kennedy's lip gloss will be mocked like Rubio's dry mouth? — Alice Stewart (@alicetweet) January 30, 2018

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His speech was widely praised by Democrats and other viewers for its energetic and hopeful tone, however.

While Kennedy painted a dark picture of the U.S. under President Trump Donald John TrumpHR McMaster says president's policy to withdraw troops from Afghanistan is 'unwise' Cast of 'Parks and Rec' reunite for virtual town hall to address Wisconsin voters Biden says Trump should step down over coronavirus response MORE, he also expressed hope ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.

“Have faith: the state of our union is hopeful, resilient and enduring," he said.

“That is our choice. That is who we are. And it's time to fight for it.”