SOTU Reactions… From the Left, Center, and Right

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The president delivered his State of the Union speech last night (2/5/19) under a different set of circumstances… with a new speaker of the House in Nancy Pelosi and a Democratic-led House of Representatives, not to forget a government shutdown looming, all eyes were on Trump. The fear of socialism, immigration, and the border wall were just a few of the many topics he spoke about.

We asked a few of our contributors to weigh in and this is what they had to say…

“In regards to the State of the Union address, I had a hard time deciphering if it was truly the annual update on the process of our Nation or a cameo-filled tribute to the President by the President, flashing all the cool things he has done. One thing I will say is the President has improved his cadence while speaking, as I thankfully didn’t cringe during the entire speech. He hid his usual brash outbursts; however, his viewpoints, particularly on the issues of the Southern border and international relations, were not the most unifying. I found it particularly offensive that he did not address, or better yet THANK, all the federal employees and contractors who worked for 30+ days without getting paid. I pray for the sake of our Nation that the President and Congress come to a middle ground so we don’t have a second government shutdown.” – Left Healthcare Professional 

“Listening to the SOTU left me angry and confused.  It felt like a lot of fluff about unity and being morally correct in the same speech he demonized immigrants.  Once again #45 finds way to instill fear instead of understanding just in an effort to get his way. I would have loved to hear about a real threat to America, such as gun control, our crippling education system, immigration reform, and police brutality.  But none of that was mentioned, just another way to push his agenda of fear.”  – Center Single Mom 

“It was much less divisive than anything we have seen from DC in months. The president remains at odds from the House, but undoubtedly he’s going to get a bounce off the floor he’s been on since January. I don’t know that it changes much in the long-term. The wall is coming – and with it will be the court challenges of what’s pretty certain to be an executive action. The Mueller probe will likely bring a House effort against the president no matter what the findings, and polarization is likely to get more poignant rather than less. But for now, the president has some breathing room, and there is still a lot left of his agenda that’s out there to capture. ” – Right Army Veteran   

Perspectives are important, from the Left, Center, and Right. We should not focus on Trump’s approval rating, which will get an inevitable bump similar to most presidents after they rally the country in their SOTU speech. Instead, we should focus on the citizens who are impacted by his leadership and the gridlock in Washington.

Do you agree with our perspectives?

Progressive Woman Responds to SOTU

by with One Comment FeaturedPolitics

Last night, I went through a wide range of emotions watching the State of the Union address. I typically enjoy listening to this address, as it provides a high level report card on what the President and Congress have accomplished the previous year. I knew to expect some Republican propaganda, as all State of the Union addresses are heavily influenced by the party of the sitting President. However, something about last night was different causing the up and down of emotions I experienced.

President Trump touched on a wide variety of topics, from taxes to nuclear weapons and immigration to the opioid crisis. Unfortunately the common theme used when talking about the majority of the topics was fear. In his speech, Pres. Trump continuously pitted immigrants against Americans; environmentalists versus the coal industry; and the rich versus those who are less fortunate. Comments such as “Americans are Dreamers too;” “clean coal;” and everything he said about MS-13, though reports show White male Nationalists have killed the most Americans than any other political, ethnic or religious group in recent years, shed light on the fear he is striking in America, but packaging under the “Make America Great Again” theme.

Lastly, the showcasing of the many anomalies with all the guests in the audience he told stories about felt more like reality TV than true appreciation and/or sympathy. The Pres. and his team purposely sought out the most extreme examples and shamelessly used the grief of these families to drive his point home. Why did these families subject themselves to such a spectacle, I will probably never understand.

Conversative Vet Responds to SOTU

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The nature of the state of the union speech, with its widely disseminated advance copies and formal nature, proved to be the most presidential delivery of any speech the president has given since his inauguration speech. While he seemed bored at times he did appear presidential. Still, it was a good moment for him (if only by comparison).

Nonetheless, it appeared that there were a number of cases he could have made stronger.

The power of that platform, speaking directly to the American people gave him a window to appeal for this wall – and for his amnesty plan… the great compromise that he’s proposed still needs a horse to drive through the legislature, and this was the perfect time to  demand the masses to be that horse – possibly sealing the issue and easily skirting another impending shutdown.

It was a missed opportunity that will likely gain even more attention should we be back again looking at a closed government with Schumer sitting on his hands.

His comment on Apple’s $350bn also seemed odd – while it’s a large number, it seemed to me that it was the first offer to see if the IRS of the new regime would accept that as “enough” as a strategy to onshore corporate income under the new tax reform laws. By touting it in his speech, he may have possibly intended to set the model for other US multinational companies, but he likely gave Apple an early pass before their time.

He generally made a good case for the economy, which is likely his most compelling argument and point of strength. I wonder, though, if he has the ability to stay on message and for how long.

Tonight our government felt sort of normal for the first time in a while… but I admit, I’m waiting with bated breath for the other shoe (or tweet) to drop.