Giving Context To Pres. Obama’s State of the Union (And Reactions)

• “The more that TV pundits reduce serious debates into silly arguments, and big issues into sound bites, our citizens turn away. No wonder there’s so much cynicism out there. No wonder there’s so much disappointment.” (Barack Obama, State of the Union: 1/27/10)

On Wednesday night President Barack Obama delivered the State of the Union Address after his first tumultuous year in office. In just over an hour, the President touched upon some of the most trying issues facing the United States at the moment; 10% unemployment, a growing foreign debt, bank bailouts, health care, two wars, and of course the quagmire that is TV punditry. That’s right, Barack Obama took the time to call out the talking heads and place some of the blame for national disillusionment with his administration on them. He blamed the media outlets for bickering, simplifying politics, and seeking sound bites instead of hard news. Get with the times Pres! It’s 2010. Unfortunately over 4,000,000 (you read that right) people consider their daily dose of news a Twitter update by Ashton Kutcher. The talking heads and other media outlets might not always get it right, but they’re trying to appeal to an audience who is too busy to even write out “by the way” and prefer bells, whistles, and big personalities, to the newsmen of old. This became evident in the minutes, hours, and days following President Obama’s call to TV pundits btw, when they hit the airwaves with silly arguments, sound bites, and cynicism.

• “I thought (President Obama’s speech) was extremely partisan. I thought he regurgitated all the old lines of old speeches, doubled down cap and tax and on tax increases, more stimulus spending, (and) a (spending) freeze but the freeze doesn’t start for another year.” (Hannity: 1/27/10)

Sean Hannity hit the airwaves on the Fox News Channel following the State of the Union, and let his dissatisfaction with Obama’s address be known. In the days leading up to the State of the Union, many conservatives wanted President Obama to shift his policies towards the center, and with the election of Senator Scott Brown in Massachusetts last week, that seemed entirely feasible. Clearly it still wasn’t centered enough for Mr. Hannity. Hannity does, however, touch on an interesting issue. A year ago, Barack Obama could read the back of cereal box and draw tears of rejoice from an audience. His message was rejuvenating, inspiring, and hopeful. A year into his presidency, Barack Obama’s eloquence and candor have taken a backseat to his lack of productivity. Obama did reiterate the message that he’s spread since taking the oath of office last January, but the American people are ready for the actions to follow. It’s safe to assume all people, whether liberal, moderate, conservative, or Sean Hannity are ready to see this promise of “change” which swept Barack Obama into office come to fruition.

• “It hasn’t been a matter of (President Obama) not being able to explain his policy with government take over and mandation of health care, but Americans understanding what is in there, not liking it and sending that message via the three recent republican sweeps in Virginia, New Jersey (and Massachusetts).” (Sarah Palin on Hannity: 1/27/10)

Apparently Sarah Palin thinks that President Obama has been so eloquent in explaining his agenda that the American public completely understand and subsequently reject his ideas. However, Palin has also complained about the President’s hidden agenda that hasn’t been visible to the public. Could both be correct? Maybe in Palin’s world. The real point is that the recent Republican victories have sent a huge ripple effect throughout Washington D.C., whether “mandation” is a word or not. This is America, where football is king, apple pies are queen and words get made up all the time. Just ask President Bush (43). If Sarah Palin really wanted to have an influence on the President’s ideas and policies, why didn’t she maintain her post as Governor of Alaska? Oh, that’s right, because working as a political correspondent/professional brownnoser gives Palin more of a platform with a wider audience. She may create her own words from time to time, but she ain’t stupid.

•“I forgot (President Obama) was black tonight for an hour.” ((Hardball with Chris Matthews: 1/27/10)

Let’s be honest, President Obama’s speech was convincing and tried to straddle party lines, but it wasn’t that convincing. Maybe he was taking a shot after every standing ovation and that led to this inane comment, but Chris Matthews brought a backlash upon himself that is far from over. Just when Matthews thought race was becoming less of an issue among the voting public, his comments bring back the wrath of the past few hundred years. How ironic. Maybe he was listening on the radio.

•“Increased insurance competition, stopping crazy lawsuits and mandating strict rules for insurance companies might be a partial solution to the health care debacle. It’s not going to solve everything but it’s a heck of a lot more efficient than what Mr. Obama wants, which is a fiscal nightmare.” (The O’Reilly Factor: 1/28/10)

Rather than analyzing President Obama’s State of the Union Address, Bill O’Reilly took it upon himself to solve the country’s problems in less than 70 minutes! What a bonus. Maybe Sarah Palin is rubbing off on him. From his high horse, O’Reilly admits that his own suggestions wouldn’t solve everything, which must have been tough for his ego. Even O’Reilly is admitting that all of the problems facing this country can’t be solved, at least not right now, but before he can give Obama a pat on the back, the fiscal nightmare seems to give credibility to his argument.

• “The President used his State of the Union message to address his decrease in popularity, and the sense that his administration might be adrift. In a nutshell his speech boiled down to – F*** me? No, no, no, my friend. F*** you.’” (The Daily Show w/ Jon Stewart: 1/28/10)

Funnyman Jon Stewart focused his critique of the State of the Union on the defensive tone taken by Barack Obama, and his eagerness to pass the blame of his administration’s shortcomings thus far. It’s no secret that Obama’s approval rating of 50% is the lowest that it has been since he took office one year ago. The American people wanted change and instead had to settle for stagnation and the same old politics. To recapture the allure of the American populous, President Obama did what any responsible person in his position would do, he passed the blame to others. Obama was quick to mention that he inherited a lot of the nation’s problems from former President George W. Bush, who would’ve killed for a 50% approval rating, and his administration. The President was also critical of Republican Senators who seem to be unwilling to negotiate, and more prone to just saying ‘No.’ Obama also created a breach in etiquette by criticizing the recent ruling of the Supreme Court which will allow corporations to fund campaigns for Presidential candidates, which led to Justice Samuel Alito‘s headshake heard around the world. Perhaps the President feels that campaign funds should come from private citizens, like Oprah Winfrey, Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck, and the other small town Americans. When the ‘blame game’ was over, Obama swore to finally bring about this ‘change’ everyone’s been talking about, and if it doesn’t happen by next year, there’ll be a whole new list of people to blame. This Presidency thing is tough!

• “(The State of the Union) was more like watching Fabio stare at himself and then that Randy Macho Man Savage part of (President) Obama educate America on how great he is.” (Glenn Beck Program: 1/28/10)

To some critics of President Obama it often seems that he is a man more concerned with image than action. This is a criticism that has, of course, also been made of Italian male uber-model Fabio Lanzoni. However, despite the fact that President Obama has kept more late night appearance dates than political promises (he’s been on Leno and Letterman but Guantanamo Bay is still open) his State of the Union address reinforced that he is hard at work trying to solve the myriad of problems which plague this great nation. Essentially, overcoming the bipartisanship that Washington denies still exists is taking longer than expected. Meanwhile many Americans are saying “I can’t believe it’s not better!” The comparison to professional wrestler Randy Savage is a little more difficult to comprehend. The President can usually be seen in well-fitting suits, while Macho Man often appeared in neon bikinis, cowboy hats, sunglasses and jackets with an incredible amount of fringes and streamers. President Obama is a symbol and an advocate of change while Macho Man Randy Savage is a symbol and an advocate of Slim Jims.

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