Tuesday, January 25, 2011

What are you looking for in the State of the Union?

What to Look for Tonight

First Read: "Many of the themes that President Obama is expected to discuss tonight in his State of the Union address -- the future and competitiveness, job creation, deficit reduction, investments in infrastructure, civility in politics -- aren't new. In fact, they were parts of the State of the Union speech he delivered a year ago. (One example: 'What the American people hope -- what they deserve -- is for all of us, Democrats and Republicans, to work through our differences...') But while tonight's words might not change much, the political environment certainly has. For starters, Republicans now control the House (so it will be John Boehner, not Nancy Pelosi, standing behind Obama tonight), and they've gained additional seats in the Senate, which makes it all but impossible for Democrats to enjoy the same legislative successes they had in '09 and '10.

"The Note: "The White House has also indicated that the president will continue to defend the health care reform law, which Republicans have been seeking to dismantle. The speech will clearly focus on domestic policy, but expect a mention of the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan as well as other looming international and national security issues."See more...

29 comments:

Mr. Bretzmann said...

The White House sends over excerpts of President Obama's State of the Union address, as prepared for delivery.


Excerpts from President Obama's State of the Union Address

With their votes, the American people determined that governing will now be a shared responsibility between parties. New laws will only pass with support from Democrats and Republicans. We will move forward together, or not at all - for the challenges we face are bigger than party, and bigger than politics.

At stake right now is not who wins the next election - after all, we just had an election. At stake is whether new jobs and industries take root in this country, or somewhere else. It's whether the hard work and industry of our people is rewarded. It's whether we sustain the leadership that has made America not just a place on a map, but a light to the world. We are poised for progress. Two years after the worst recession most of us have ever known, the stock market has come roaring back. Corporate profits are up. The economy is growing again.

But we have never measured progress by these yardsticks alone. We measure progress by the success of our people. By the jobs they can find and the quality of life those jobs offer. By the prospects of a small business owner who dreams of turning a good idea into a thriving enterprise. By the opportunities for a better life that we pass on to our children. That's the project the American people want us to work on. Together.

...

Half a century ago, when the Soviets beat us into space with the launch of a satellite called Sputnik¸ we had no idea how we'd beat them to the moon. The science wasn't there yet. NASA didn't even exist.

But after investing in better research and education, we didn't just surpass the Soviets; we unleashed a wave of innovation that created new industries and millions of new jobs.

This is our generation's Sputnik moment.

KSASS said...

While watching the State of the Union I primarily was looking for the direction that the President wants our nation to move towards. However, what I found was an unclear attempt to state a direction, and more of a cooperative tone between the two parties in Congress. I still lack the information that would explain what President Obama’s new plan will be, but now my memory has been refreshed that we are a country that likes to “do big things.” I didn’t know that the State of the Union was more of a past-year recapture and a history lesson.

Ecotton said...

Hour 2

My reaction to the President's speech was a positive one. The President indicate he wanted our country to move forward. President Obama also try to convey a sense of hope for the American people. He was (as most presidents are) quite vague on the details of what he wanted to do. The speech over all was a hopeful one. I did also like the seating arrangement. It was really refreshing to see all parties clapping as opposed to just divided applause.

LWundrock said...

In the State of the Union address I was hoping to hear an exact or somewhat detailed and specific plan as to what President Obama planned to do in these next few months. There is no question of his amazing speaking abilities, and most would agree that he is very powerful with his words. However, as the president, he cannot use his speaking skills in an attempt to dance around the issues. Yes, it's important to put faith back into your people and get them excited and uplifted, but at the end of the night I felt that he gave a roundabout speech that was inspiring, yes, but it did not give me specifics about the future and what he intended to do. I'm glad that he wants both Houses to work together, but America's citizens also need the confidence that things are actually going to get done. While a great speaker, I was somewhat disappointed that he didn't address issues head-on and clearly.

dboyce said...

The president made it cleaer that both parties will have to work together and whatever bills get passed will have to have the approval of both parties. The president was pretty general of his plans to move forward. The president obviously wants the people to have faith in him, but he didn't seem to know just how the nation will become better.

cziolkowski said...

The State of the Union adress was presented excelent by the great speaking skills of President Obama. The context of the speach was what our country will need to do in the future. But he did not really say how exactly he was planning on doing it. I think if both parties work together, they can get some good ideas to help our nation. Overall the speach was what our county needed and I hope the citizens of the United States will come together and make our contry better than it is today.

M. Francis said...

I didn't take away much from Obama's State of the Union speech. Actions speak louder than words. Thus far, Obama hasn't made any attempts to work cooperatively with the GOP. I don't see him keeping this promise.
I found his speech to be rather flat. He has lost that positive energy that he had in his speeches during the 2008 campaign: the magic is gone. He can't keep fooling the American people with his illusions of a 'competetive' America and 'investments' (A.K.A. MORE SPENDING). Unless he can wave his magic wand and make the deficit disappear, make Obamacare vanish behind a door, and pull more liberal constituents out of a hat, his act will be up in 2012.

MAnderson said...

WELL, I was very proud to say that I actually watched the State of the Union! I felt that he never really directly said his plans. He talked of many possibilities, but I didn't really see much proof of putting the possibilities into realities

jwaltz said...

Before the State of the Union Address, I didn't have an exact idea of what I was looking for. However, I was very impressed that both political parties were civil and honored Representative Gabby Giffords by sitting mixed together. President Obama's speech was motivational and hopeful. Although he wasn't specific with his plans or actions, I am confident that he will show the citizens of this country that the U.S. can move forward in a positive and efficient way for our future.

ckruesel said...

I did not get a chance to watch President Obama’s State of the Union Address. I hope that he talked about settling some of the bitterness between the Democrats and Republicans as well as issues that are important to the nation and not just political parties.

GLeGros said...

It became clear relatively quickly, what President Obama's goal was within his State of the Union address, and that, was just a campaign for 2012. Restating many of the previous topics that were covered last year, Mr. Obama's speech, in my opinion, gave nothing more than a list of tasks that won't be completed. Based on what has been accomplished thus far in his presidency, I believe that unless real changes are made, and he is able to convince the majority of the American people through these changes, he is going to be in hot water for the 2012 election.

DWayer said...

After seeing excerpts and hearing critics views on the President's State of the Union, I found what I expected to see, which was that that he was interested in working together with the Republican Party. This comes as no surprise as he needs to boost his approval ratings and have a shot at the 2012 election. But I do agree with others as well, all of his proposed actions could benefit the country, but he will first need to actually accomplish these goals in order to be viewed in a better light.

Nklinka said...

President Obama did exactly what he needed to do in the State of the Union Address. He gave a speech that was able to rouse some emotion into much of the United States masses and give them the sort of general direction that inspires them to support him and his leadership. He gave most of the public exactly the words they wished to hear. However, it is the small minority of people who are educated and knowledgeable enough in politics who realize what little value this speech had in terms of what the future of America will actually hold. While President Obama gave some broad generalizations, he never shared the type of details about he intended to complete his plans that would prove he had the foresight to get them done. While this may be good to the common public because it prevents them from being bored in details when they simply wish for concepts, it was difficult for me to enjoy because I instead found he had ideas without a clue of how to pursue them. His concepts of bipartisanship is great, but he has never been able to enforce it before so why should he be able to change how things are now when the numbers in the house are against him? I guess my opinion was that the State of the Union served its purpose in sharing the state of the union and increasing support among the general public; however, in my opinion it also opened up holes in his plans that can only be plugged through actions.

eboecker said...

I was hoping for a clear-cut speech on the issues Obama wanted to address, as well as how he planned on addressing them. He only succeeded in voicing his concerns, but I kind of expected that. I remember him saying how he would create a total of 325,000 jobs in some form or fashion. When there are more than 30 million people unemployed in this country (our population's over 300 million with an unemployment rate of over 10 percent), he should have just left the numbers out. Despite that picky detail, I liked his concept of a bipartisan legislature coming together to compromise on issues. My favorite line of his speech was, when addressing education reform, he said,"We need to teach our kids that it's not just the winner of the Super Bowl who deserves to be celebrated, but the winner of the science fair." Overall it was a very uplifting and inspiring speech, definitely what this country needs to hear in these times.

JBerlyn said...

Before watching the State of the Union address I was mainly concerned with the nations continually increasing deficit and the plan to continue fixing the unemployment rates. Obama definitely spoke of his plans to help continue stimulate the economy by providing more jobs but was vague in doing so. I also believe he will have to work with republicans in order to cut down on spending and work to eliminate the debt but he did not exactly describe his proposed actions. I am hopeful for the accomplishment of these goals but I think both parties will have to work together if these are to be achieved.

KRodenbeck said...

President Obama's State of the Union Address was another Raa-Raa speech to try and convince America that its not as bad as we think it is...... Paul Ryan's rebuttal is what everyone should have watched.

moconnor said...

I found the State of the Union to be rather disappointing. President Obama kept talking about "what" the problems are in the United States but never explained "how" he was going to fix them. Sure he said some general statements about how to fix the problems. Statements like "the republicans and democrats need to work together" and "America needs to rebuild from the bottom up." I found these kinds of statements rather boring because I was hoping to hear some specific details about President Obama's plans for the next year or two. I think that this year's State of the Union turned out to be more of a pep rally for America than anything else.

J.Sardina said...

While many were dissatisfied with President Obama's State of the Union address, I happened to enjoy it. The oratorical skills of the President alone are impressive. (His comedic skills, not so much). However, I do not believe they overshadowed his message. I agreed with his urgency in encouraging bipartisanship, and I believe that nothing will happen if the hostilities between Democrats and Republicans aren't set aside. I also strongly agreed with the President's plan to encourage our advancement as a nation in clean energy and innovation in technology. Overall, I was pleased with the address.

JHoltman said...

I felt that President Obama's State of the Union address was very positive and hopeful. I thought he had some good ideas in spending money on things that will help "Win the future" like clean energy programs and better educational programs. He clearly showed his love for his country, but I feel that he left some Americans uncertain about his policies. Conservatives hear the word "investing" and assume that more money will be spent. President Onama needed to explain how the "investing" will help the American people. Overall I felt the President gave a very good speech, as he always does.

bradysims said...

Barrack Obamas State of the Union speech was rather boring. He just told us things that we already know.. He should have gave us more of his plan to fix things. I was very disappointed. All i can say is that if Paul Ryan decides to run for office against barrack, he will win because he knew what he was talking about in this speech after Obamas State of the Union speech

bradysims said...

Barrack Obamas State of the Union speech was rather boring. He just told us things that we already know.. He should have gave us more of his plan to fix things. I was very disappointed. All i can say is that if Paul Ryan decides to run for office against barrack, he will win because he knew what he was talking about in this speech after Obamas State of the Union speech

Anonymous said...

It seemed to me that President Obama used the State of the Union address as a motivational speech. He seems more concerned with educating our kids and sharing inspiring stories of other individuals than fixing our multi-trillion dollar deficit. Our competition against other countries is important, but any education reforms will result in spending more money our country doesn’t have. Obama did a good job of inspiring America with his persuasive rhetoric. His plan to “freeze all spending” is one of the only solutions he gave; however, he didn’t give specifics for his plans to do that and he was criticized for not actually planning to cut spending. Paul Ryan’s rebuttal was concise and to the point. I believe this statement from representative Ryan sums up the real state our union: “we are at a moment, where if government's growth is left unchecked and unchallenged, America's best century will be considered our past century.”

Bkraussel said...

I was looking for President Obama to demonstrate what he is trying to accomplish in the next year. Instead it seemed to me that he took his oppurtunity and used it to motivate? I thought this was a dumb idea considering all the problems our country is enduring. We need to stop avoiding problems. Obama is a great speaker, but he needs to speak about the right things.

RPawlow said...

Everything Obama was saying has been said before in one way or another. The speech was long; the speech was dry; the speech collapsed under the weight of its own let's-do-this-TOGETHER intonations. I really don't care how flowery or heartfelt a speech gets when substance is missing. And so it was repeated: team work leads to progress. I'm pretty sure I was taught that at my kindergarten arts and crafts table, but thanks for the reiteration, Obama.

MKonicke said...

Mr. Obama's State of the Union address was what we have heard from him during his whole term. I believe he shouldn't have been so vague with his plans. We all know the main goals he has wanted to accomplish so, instead of repeating them during his whole term he could have told us the plan he was going to take.

CAbbey said...

The State of the Union address was insignificant and somewhat of a waste of time. He presented no clear direction of America and just told us what we already knew. It also doesn't help that that the speech was rather boring and put me to sleep. Maybe if he spiffed it up a bit, it would have had a bigger impact. Or just completely talked about something else. Like tell me about the state of the union, what's going on in our country. Good news wouldn't kill someone seriously. I don't know why everything is always bad this, bad that, not enough this. I don't know, I thought it was a waste of time. I kind of give on Government and Politics, its an endless cycle of everyone not agreeing, seem's like a lot of wasted effort if you ask me.

Unknown said...
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rrantala said...

In the State of the Union I was looking to see what President Obama would say in order to take steps forward and get our country back on track. I believe, by the things he had said, we will be able to do so. But now it is a matter of following through with these things and we will see if he holds true to that over the next months.

msenk said...

After listening to the state of the union address i noticed a few clear things. 1) The president is able to clearly articulate his ideas in a manor that doesn't really answer the problems and 2) that he is able to bring America together as a country and unite us under exceptionalism.
I would have wanted to hear a more in depth plan of action but that is just be and we will see what the coming months bring.