Opinion

Thomas Jefferson Street Blog

Wit and wisdom from all sides of the political spectrum.

 
Susan Milligan »
State of the Union Bipartisan Seating Made a Difference 02:22 PM ET

It was a show. A charade, arguably. A public relations ploy that was all about trying to look bipartisan in the wake of the Tucson tragedy, without the true substance of cross-party cooperation behind it.

And I still loved it.

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Alvin Felzenberg »
Obama's State of the Union Was Tantamount to Plagiarism 02:05 PM ET

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, what can be said of plagiarism? President Obama’s second State of the Union address contained enough recycled ideas and lines lifted from speeches of others to make historians wince. I suppose this is what one does when one not only has nothing new to say, but is required by custom and Constitution to come forth with a report of some kind by a certain time and day.

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Robert Schlesinger »
Instant Polls Very Positive for Obama State of the Union 07:22 AM ET

The insta-returns are in and the president knocked the State of the Union out of the ballpark.

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Robert Schlesinger »
Obama's Not the First to Use 'Sputnik Moment' 12:24 AM ET

Sputnik is back, baby. In one of the State of the Union sound bites leaked ahead of time, and one of the lines for which the speech will be remembered, President Obama said that this generation is encountering its “Sputnik moment”--a shocking turning point which spurs the country to step up its efforts to meet an unforeseen, startling challenge.

It’s a theme that the president has toyed with on and off for some time, and it’s one that other pols—including Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney--have used for several years as well.

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Jamie Stiehm »
To Succeed, Obama's State of the Union Needs Optimism Yesterday

To be magisterial, President Obama must speak from his head and his heart tonight in the Capitol as he addresses Congress and the nation in the annual State of the Union speech.

To give a great soaring speech, he must blend poetry into the prose.

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Kevin Huffman »
Obama Should Call for Restructuring of Education Funding Yesterday

As the president addresses the nation tonight and proposes domestic spending freezes among other centrist initiatives, he will also urge Congress to pass the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (the reconstructed and rebranded version of No Child Left Behind). Obama likely will note that there is a broad middle ground on education policy, and that we must reform our schools if we wish to maintain our global competitiveness.

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