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State of the Union

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I thought it was a very good address that Obama delivered, touching almost all the key points that have come to shape the "national debate" over the past 6 months.  I liked the way he defined the debt, making it clear how much was his due to the Recovery Plan, and how much he inherited.  I also liked the way he defined the Recovery Plan, noting how much it has helped America stave off what very easily could have been another Great Depression.

Sadly, much of what he said probably went unheard by the Conservative Right, as witnessed in the GOP response to Obama's address.  It seems this is a party that simply refuses to acknowledge past mistakes, as it just keeps repeating the same old message.  To hear the Republicans picking up on the national debt theme again would make me laugh if it wasn't for the sad fact that many fools out there will buy into it.  Until the GOP acknowledges that its policies over the last 30 years contributed to the situation we currently find ourselves in, I don't see any point in entertaining them.

Obama calling for monthly meetings with the Democratic and Republican Congressional leaders isn't going to bridge the ideological divide, which he noted.  The Democrats need to act on their sizable majority in Congress while they still have it.

Comments

  1. avrdsJanuary 28, 2010 at 4:29 PM

    Well, then, if the republicans weren't listening, I hope the democrats were! It's use it or lose it as they say. I'll be watching the news closely this week.

    ReplyDelete
  2. avrdsJanuary 28, 2010 at 4:32 PM

    By the way, the "response" was written in advance. When asked why they don't actually respond to a state of the union, Chris Matthews said neither party has a speaker sharp enough to actually listen to a speech and respond to it in real time. So Olbermann called for a non-partisan new way of doing these.

    It would seem like that's in everyone's interest. Otherwise they just come out sounding like dolts.

    ReplyDelete
  3. MartiJanuary 29, 2010 at 3:02 AM

    I didn't realize that Av (that Republican response was written in advance). Thought the response was way off topic. Also didn't appreciate the staging in the state house with the adoring crowd and the four behind him being one black woman, one Asian man and a military man (and one blonde to try to prove that having the other three didn't mean a thing).

    ReplyDelete
  4. James FergusonJanuary 29, 2010 at 3:06 PM

    Even funnier is that it was McConnell, who recently won a governorship. I half expected them to present Scott Brown, but I guess the Virginia state house provided a more "presidential" backdrop.

    I'd like to think Americans see through these thin veneers, but many probably don't.

    ReplyDelete
  5. James FergusonJanuary 30, 2010 at 8:12 PM

    Obama's meeting with the House Republicans in Baltimore took alot of guts, and he amply held his own. Nice to see that some of the Republicans were serious, but it seem most of them just used the opportunity to vent in front of the camera.

    ReplyDelete
  6. avrdsJanuary 30, 2010 at 9:22 PM

    I agree. He was amazing. The republicans only seemed interested in getting on camera with their talking points. He showed amazing patience listening to them.

    ReplyDelete
  7. James FergusonJanuary 31, 2010 at 12:54 PM

    One of the criticisms this past year was that Obama wasn't quick on his feet. I think this face-off with House Republicans disproved that. The guy never lost his cool and had ready responses for all their criticisms, plus showed an amazing amount of good humor given all the pointed comments.

    ReplyDelete
  8. avrdsJanuary 31, 2010 at 5:24 PM

    From what I've read about him in Game Change, he's not quick to make a move. And that's frustrating for everyone.

    But when he does, he not only seems to rise to the occasion, but rise above it.

    He's definitely brilliant, but that may not be enough. If anything, it may hurt him at times. But I'm still hopeful he can turn this around.

    ReplyDelete

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