“He [the President] shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient…”
This excerpt from Article 2, Section 3 of the United States Constitution is the section of our founding document that orders the regular delivery of the President’s State of the Union Address. Since George Washington’s presidency, “Information of the State of the Union” has been delivered annually, typically in January. The speech is a means of recapping the past year and setting clear goals for the year to come. However, in more recent years, the weight of the State of the Union has wavered as politicians increasingly use it as means to gain a few points in the polls rather than as an opportunity for a holistic conversation about who we are and where we are headed.
At the start of 2014, 21% of Americans said they felt that our federal government had the consent of the governed. This means that the other 79% of citizens feel disconnected from their elected officials– from their very own representatives. With this statistic looming over the political stagnancy of 2013, one would expect this year’s State of the Union address to be one of strong reassurance to Americans that those in Washington are listening to them. However, this past Tuesday, we witnessed something quite different—a repetition of the talking points from last year’s address.
President Obama opened his speech this week by proclaiming that 2014 will be a “break through year.” The graduation rate is at its highest level in three decades. We have the lowest unemployment rate in five years. The housing market is rebounding. Jobs are being created in the manufacturing sector. The deficit is cut in half. We produce more oil at home than we purchase abroad. And, we finally achieved a business-friendly reputation on a global scale. All of these accomplishments are excellent news for Americans, whether you work as a CEO, a part-time minimum wage employee, or a general manager.
Following the uplifting introduction, President Obama proceeded to roll out his agenda for 2014: one that looked shockingly like the one from last year’s State of the Union. How can a President’s “To-Do List” look almost exactly the same as it did a year ago? Well this question is not too difficult to answer. 2013 was a year of political battles that rendered Congress useless and slowed the lawmaking process to a stop in October, when the government shut down for 15 days. Gridlock between the President and Congress severely impeded the act of governing, as well as diminished most Americans’ trust in their government. In last year’s address, President Obama put forth no less than 41 proposals for the new year. However, looking back on what actually was accomplished this year, we discover that only two became law, leaving the rest to be recycled into this year’s speech.
This year the President plans to launch six more “hubs” for high-tech manufacturing training in an effort to prepare America’s workforce for the new types of jobs that are being created. He also hopes to convince Congress to repeal the cuts made to federally funded research projects that slowed the progress of innovation that is expected to build new industries. The President called Congress to act to close tax loopholes for companies that burn excessive fossil fuels, reform the job training process to make the community college experience even more valuable, restore unemployment insurance to long-term unemployed Americans, come up with a comprehensive bill to fix our immigration system, guarantee equal pay for women, raise the minimum wage to $10.10, cap monthly student loan payments to 10% of the student’s income, expand and reform Social Security to allow people without pensions or 401ks to live off it, close Guantanamo Bay, and come up with effective and sensible gun control legislation. America also heard the President’s interests in broader, global goals, such as keeping nuclear weapons out of Iran and continuing our support for peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Despite the number of requests the President made of Congress, he was able to deliver some positive news– his evidence that 2013 was not a total waste. He reported that all of our troops, besides a small training and anti-insurgency force, would be out of Afghanistan by the end of the year. He announced that a bipartisan commission on voting reform was hard at work to keep wait times short and the voting process easier, and he gave himself and John Kerry a pat on the back for negotiating and carrying out the destruction of chemical weapons out of Syria, an effort that saved thousands of lives.
Though much of the content of this year’s State of the Union was a repetition of last year’s address, the President’s delivery was starkly different. Last year he spoke with a slow, confident rhythm and a tone that made Americans feel that he had everything under control. This year, however, we received the address from a frustrated President. The cadence of his words was at a faster pace and he was less inclined to take long pauses to let his words sink in. Rather, he moved swiftly between ideas, perhaps a demonstration of his impatience with his direct audience: Congress. Last year, President Obama proclaimed “we have cleared away the rubble of crisis,” but it seems that after losing so many legislative battles over political pettiness that there are still stumbling blocks on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Let us move forward through 2014 with swiftness and grace to leave behind the anxiety, frustration, and stagnancy of 2013 by placing “our collective shoulder to the wheel of progress” and pressing on towards a brighter future for our nation and ourselves. It is time to remember to put the country before the party and get to work.
If you enjoyed the recap, but want more, watch the full State of the Union below!