Perhaps President Obama is already so comfortable in his second term that his State of the Union speech Tuesday night failed to excite me as much as his past speeches.
Don’t get me wrong, there were some key statements during his speech that really resonated with me, but the rest…well, it just sounded like a compilation of some of his old campaign speeches.
Nonetheless, Obama is still considered one of the great orators in my book and his ability to appeal to so many different types of people is an incredible gift that few presidents have possessed.
Here are some highlights from the president’s speech that captured my attention – if only momentarily.
On partisan politics
“Let’s set party interests aside,” said Obama. “(Let’s) work to pass a budget that replaces reckless cuts with smart savings and wise investments in our future. And let’s do it without the brinksmanship that stresses consumers and scares off investors.”
The fact that Democrats were the primary people who applauded during this portion of the speech does not give me a confident feeling about the probability of increased bipartisanship. It actually offers the alternative. A more confident Obama and a Republication-controlled Congress is the prefect recipe for an intense and even combative session.
On minimum wage
“Tonight, let’s declare that in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty,” said the president.
With the cost of inflation rising, I could not agree more. The minimum wage rate needs to increase, but what are the chances?
Well, if history is an indicator, probably slim to none.
Though Democratic lawmakers have introduced several bills on the issue – including one last year that proposed increasing the rate to $9.80 by 2014 – nothing has taken effect. The last wage increase was actually in 2009 when the rate went from $5.15 an hour to the current rate of $7.25.
Hearing Obama advocate for wage increases so early in his second term is promising, though it is important to note that during his 2008 campaign, the then Sen. Obama pledged to raise the federal minimum wage rate to $9.50 by 2011.
Obama on preschool
“I propose working with states to make high-quality preschool available to every single child in America,” Obama said. “Every dollar we invest in high-quality early education can save more than $7 later on — by boosting graduation rates, reducing teen pregnancy, even reducing violent crime.”
I never quite understood why lawmakers approve more money to be spent on prisons than they do on early childhood education. Data show there is a direct correlation between kids who enter first grade prepared to learn and those who don’t. Generally the latter are more likely to be in jail later in life. It was refreshing to see Obama push Congress to expand access to preschool to all 4-year-olds from low-moderate families. He also wants to create a spin-off to his Race to the Top initiative that encourages high schools to adopt a curriculum that more adequately prepares students for jobs upon graduation.
On gun control laws
During the most touching part of his State of the Union address, Obama called for tougher gun control laws. He did this while simply, yet passionately saying “They deserve a vote,” as he called off names of some of the attendees who were directly impacted by gun violence.
Included in the list were former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head while at a constituents’ gathering in her home district in Arizona; the families of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting victims; and the parents of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton. Pendleton, a Chicago native, was randomly shot in a park by two males who mistakenly thought she was a member of a rival gang. The Chicago teen had participated in the parade during Obama’s inauguration in Washington, D.C.
Obama mentioned specifics of his plan to curb gun violence, which included universal background checks on all firearm sales, banning semi-automatic weapons, and limiting ammunition magazines to 10 rounds.
You can email comments to Shannon Williams at shannonw@indyrecorder.com.
