The Chamber’s traditional setup, which feeds the partisan climate, has Democrats on one side and Republicans on the other. During the address, the party opposing the president makes a statement by not responding at all to his agenda, while the supporting party hoots and hollers everytime he parts his lips. Last night was no different.
As president Obama reported on the condition of the nation and outlined his legislative agenda and priorities, Republicans sat stoicly, only letting escape occasional murmurs (no “you lie!” this go ’round), if any audible response at all. But like a true champ, the president forged ahead with his address and took subtle jabs at the Repubs wherever he could get them in; a questionable move with his push for “reaching across the aisle.”
The president started his eloquently delivered speech true to tradition by speaking to the harsh realities of where we are today as a nation. He cited the high unemployment rate and business failures, among other economic frailties we’re facing, but made clear that he was handed a near-catastrophic mess he that he had to work to dig us out of. That said, he quickly moved to infusing hope by illuminating what his administration has done to stave off a complete collapse of our financial system. He specifically pointed to the stimulus package, acknowledging that it was an unpopular move, but a necessary one given the economy saving results. Housing stabilization, no new taxation, and lowered health care costs for some families were thrown in for good measure. Now the good part.
When the time came to discuss where we’re going, murmurs from the Repubs got a little louder and Dems just about blew the roof off the joint as he began rolling the things we have to look forward to. His laundry list included creating jobs, reducing spending, attacking Wall Street and taking care of the middle class. Points of special interest were his plans to take some of the money paid back by large banks that were bailed out and give it to community banks that would lend to small businesses, putting a cap on student loan debt and pay back terms (forgiveness after 20 years and 10 percent of income max payments), and 10K tax credits for college attendance. He went right for the heart of our country, the middle class, vowing to give them much-needed relief. And about that small matter called health care reform, he made it clear that he would not walk away from it and made an attempt at shaming the holdouts into giving in, one of the only moments that garnered near unamimous applause.
The president’s speech was full of candor but mixed with humor, causing several moments of laid-back laughter from the audience, hardly what one might expect during a usually tense State of the Union address. The light-heartedness of his speech and his stellar oratorical skills almost made you forget about the onslaught of doubt and fear that he has been facing since the loss of the critical Senate seat to Republicans in Massachussets. His resolve was firm and his hand seemed steady, but something tells me the divisions that existed before he mounted the podium will exist as soon as he steps down; the spell of his undeniable charm will have worn off by morning. The political jockeying will resume. –gerald radford
