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| President Trump delivers the State of the Union Address on 30 January 2018, as Vice President Pence and Speaker of the House Ryan look on. |
In addition to the length of these annual speeches, they seem far too much like media events, and less like the substance-filled sessions I would think to be appropriate.
That said, I thought President Trump's first attempt to slay the SOTU dragon, wasn't bad at all. Okay, I know that Trump, like other presidents before him, didn't write the speech; all presidents in our era, like many 'lesser' public figures, elected and otherwise, has professionals to craft his speeches for him. But I'm reasonably certain that Trump, like his predecessors, did not first see the speech as it scrolled onto the Teleprompter Tuesday night; there was too much of Trump's own voice in the speech, to think that his writer(s) didn't work closely with him in ironing out what he would say. So I guess that credit is due, not only to the Commander-in-Chief, but also to his communications people who drafted and then worked collaboratively with him to produce the SOTU we saw and heard.
Much has been made, at least on Fox News and in the conservative blogosphere, of the Democratic response to the President's SOTU address. I don't mean the counter-speech, delivered soon afterwards by Congressman Joe Kennedy III. Or the other, 'unofficial' responses, delivered by other Democratic Party members. I mean the reactions, perhaps with some degree of spontaneity, to the speech while it was happening, by Democratic party members in the audience in the House of Representatives Chamber. The party 'in opposition' to the president always reacts with different degrees of disagreement to the SOTU. On occasions when I have watched the annual addresses, I've watched Republicans sour-pussed over Clinton's and Obama's addresses, and Democrats over Reagan's, both Bushes', and now Trump's. But the level of stony-faced refusal to applaud the successes of the American people that Trump, as well as Congress, have been privileged to preside over, has got to be the highest on record...as asserted by keener observers than me.
I don't expect observers to applaud accomplishments, with which they can't agree. But when you refuse to stand and applaud genuine American heroes when they are recognized, or genuine good news that one cannot possibly, logically, think badly of, then you leave me befuddled and thinking: WTF??! Just as an example of the more blatant of the latter, was when House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi looked like she was in danger of losing her lunch on hearing the President challenge legislators of both parties to work together for the good of the American people. Even Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, while sporting a bit of a smirk, at least applauded. And then, when Trump announced that African-American unemployment had hit an historic low, the angry glares and refusal to applaud of the Congressional Black Caucus, who made watching their reaction easy since they sat together and wore matching scarves and ties, gave me another WTF moment. Don't like the messenger? I get it. But c'mon, are you really unhappy that more or your ethnic brothers and sisters are happily and gainfully employed, just because you don't like the guy who's on watch when it happens??! Such moments, such images, leave me wonder when the Democratic opposition will, well, grow up.
And I think I have a bit of credibility to ask the question. I was a registered Democrat, and tended to vote Democratic, up to and including the November 2000 elections. After the attacks on America in 2001, shortly into the term of President George W. Bush, I watched the President - for whom I did not vote in that first election - react admirably to the challenge and danger facing the nation. And I did not appreciate the way he was opposed by the Democrats. I don't mean that, because there was danger, the Democrats were beholden to cave in to the President's every wish. I mean, rather, that the level of vituperative opposition to his efforts to keep America safe, was far in excess - I thought and still think - than what is reasonable. That's when I started to re-examine my own loyalties. But I didn't think at the time - and I still don't think - that I changed so much in ultimately switching party affiliations. Rather, I felt that the Democratic Party had changed so much that it left me feeling more at home as a Republican.
With that said, I thought the reactions from Democrats to Trump's first SOTU, were more than a bit over the top. But you don't have to take my word for it. As time goes by, more and more independent voters, notably those who did not vote for Trump, are registering approval over his accomplishments. I truly hope that the Democratic Party will, sooner rather than later, begin to formulate and communicate a more coherent vision of America, other than 'Trump and the Republicans are Evil.' Because if they don't, there will be no viable opposition in the government. And despite my happiness with what Trump and Republicans have started to achieve as we swing into the second year of the administration of the 45th President and of the 115th US Congress, I want there to be two strong and viable parties to maintain the balances of power that are the pride of American government. Please Democrats, get your act together!
And please, President Trump, try to be more concise next year!
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