State of the Union and all that jazz.....

Last week, President Obama gave his State of the Union address before Congress. Now, I must say that at this point I'm still some what skeptical of the President's ability to lead instead of follow Congress, but this speech was definitely a step in the right direction. The major theme of the speech was, drumroll please, JOBS, JOBS, JOBS!!! The president outlined several bills and initiatives that he would like to see approved by Congress to aid in job creation. This included my personal favorite which is giving money to small, community banks to loan to small businesses. I believe that the administration did a good job in salvaging the big banks. However, the big banks are still steam rolling over the middle class. Therefore, I think that it is time for Americans to take their money and put it in credit unions and smaller banks, effectively pulling the plug on the steam rollers. For Americans to have trust and confidence in many of these smaller banks, they will need to be shored up by Washington. The President also used his SOU time to talk about healthcare (really there was only about 5 minutes on this issue), he discussed the military policy of keeping homosexuals in the closet (aka Don't Ask, Don't Tell), and he even took a swipe at the Supreme Court (yes, apparently even the mighty 9 can be dressed down). As pleased as I am by Obama's speech, actions speak louder than words, and the American people are ready for more than just lip service out of Washington.

Now, I would like to give a high five, dap, fist bump, and a h*ll yeah to our Commander in Chief. More impressive than the SOU speech, has been the President's Q & A sessions with Republicans and Democrats (see links below). The first session was held with Congressional Republicans, and it was anything but nice for the Republicans. They hurled thinly veiled attacks at Pres. Obama in the form of legitimate policy questions and concerns. Due to his cool demeanor, this is the arena in which Obama absolutely shines. He not only answered each question and addressed each concern, but he did it in such a way as to depict the Republicans as clearly the party of No, uh-uh, and all out obstructionism. The beauty of this little chat fest was that the President requested that it be aired on television which was a stroke of pure, political genius (I must say this is one of those rare instances where Republicans were actually caught being off their game). In the same spirit, he discussed policy issues with his own fellow Democrats on the air, and he wasn't any easier on his former colleagues in the Senate. He let them know in no uncertain terms that Americans are tired of the constant political BS in Washington, and they needed to be about the business when it comes to resolving many of the challenges faced by American citizens (he also laid this out to the Republicans. Of course, I giving the general gist of his conversation). For a political junkie such as myself, it was fascinating and interesting television. These are the types of transparent conversations that Obama needs to have more often so that the American people can actually understand why nothing can be accomplished in D.C. However, he still needs to drag defecting members of his own party (mostly Democratic Senators who are in hot water at home) into his office for a private chat. My suggestion would be that he let these particular Democrats know that he helped many of them get into office, and if they expect his help come November (and they most definitely will need his help), they better get in line behind his policies because there are bills which need to be passed immediately (in short, get 'er done!). If the threat of no campaign help doesn't work, he will have to utilize the big guns which would be basically the threat of a slash and burn campaign on any "pet projects" the Senator may hold dear. The bottom line is that before bipartisanship can be adopted, the Democrats still have to get their own house in order. The Q & A sessions at least show that the train is starting to roll out of the station, and this folks could be a very good thing, a very good thing indeed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1-jasxb7NY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AsM7bQ_JTU