In my previous post I had written about Obama's State of the Union, dubbed by myself as the "State of Our World" (as well as all State of the Unions since the 1950s till today). This is a continuation of that post for analysis of the criticism and support that has already built up. I also want to take a look at the Republican response and the "Tea Party" response. To read that post first, just scroll down to it or click here.
For further analysis of the President's speech, here are 5 political analysts that state their opinion in very short messages. Convenient if you aren't big on time right now, if you are, click below to read more!
We've already gone over the content and tone of the Presidents' State of the Union, so let's look at the Republican response given by Rep. Paul Ryan from Wisconsin and the Chairman of the House Budget Committee. Here he is in his own words, in the 11 min response (click here for the full transcript):
Like anyone, the Representative spent the first minute on giving his hope and prayer on Rep. "Gabby" Giffords. I've never seen this guy before and my first impression was that he looked a bit like Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation (Star Trek fans?). The Rep. makes good points about his intent to work with the President to restrain federal government spending (this shows he is bipartisan). He also uses a smart speaking tactic of relating the spending to his children and by referring to himself as "a father." This helps him build a connection with any and all parents watching (a lot of people). He then calmly attacks the president of over spending and under-presenting (not enough bang for the bucks, or return on massive government investment).
He makes a smart remark by highlighting that no one is really happy with either party and so tells us the Republican beliefs on the role of government. However, I do see a lot of his speech on the size of government as just ideological talk and not anything really substantive. Yes government is huge and spending is out of control, but the vagueness of his words don't hold much ground with me. Give me a bit more details not broad visions (Obama did the same except he gave a bit more details). Understandably, he only has a 10 min window to talk while the President had 60 mins, so perhaps I shouldn't hold them to the same standard in which case, we will have to wait to see in the next few months where Republicans lead by turning those vague ideals to finer details.
In what is probably a sign of the times, or just a joke, Rep. Michele Bachmann delivered the Tea Party response. I already have heard the Representative talk, and stubbornly so, so I already had an idea of what's she'd say. Here it is in a short 7 min response (here's the transcript):
Interestingly, one of the first things she established was that the point of her response was not to challenge the official Republican response. This addresses the much hyped question of whether the Tea Party is part of the Republican fabric or a strand of its own; we see that the former is true. In her remarks, she's implying that the "spike" (it was a decline not spike) in economy recession in the past 2 years was the result of the spending and/or Obama, which of course isn't true. I also noticed that the camera angle was a bit annoying; she was reading of text in the back, but it doesn't really look like she is looking at the viewer (just an observation!).
To be honest, I barely got through the entire thing. She is so idealistic and unpractical. Her argument is that, we either have to repeal the health care law (since it apparently has no benefits) or we die. I was also surprised that she characterized us as the nation with the "finest" health care in the world!!!! Statistically, that isn't true. Yes we are in the top of the world, but we are far from the "finest." I'm actually questioning whether this woman is sane, or whether her speechwriter was puffing the magic dragon when they wrote this. The vagueness isn't what gets me, at one point, she compares the struggle against a totalitarian government in Europe to the fight they have today, and the only separative statement? "That's a little different." I pray for this country and the Republicans that doesn't become the leader of their party, or anything really.
The Representative may not have intended to overshadow the Republicans, but her response gained most of the media attention online and in the news. For better or worse, she was the face of the conservative movement.
Now I'm not one to usually post Bill O'Reilly, however I do follow him sometimes and I didn't find this Talking Points to be that bad. Yes I disagree with his conclusion of the role of government, or at least with his more extreme side, but this 3 min video is worth watching because it points out some important points and highlights the differences in vision.
Interesting point to remember: Today, on Jan 27th, the President will be having a live Youtube interview by answering questions sent by readers (questions are chosen based on the number of "thumbs up" they get. The top liked questions are then asked to the President). Speaking of interviews, on Sunday Feb. 6th, Obama will be having an interview with Bill O'Reilly! This should be interesting because the two obviously oppose each other politically but have never sat down for an interview! Put it on your calendars!
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