The State of Our Union

Last night, President Obama did his Constitutional duties from "time to time" of giving Congress, "Information on the State of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient." The scenario is as such: usually Democrats and Republicans are seated on opposites sides of the house, one party will clap and the other will sit when they agree with the President, and the dichotomies between the two parties are so blatantly obvious that it appears a miracle that any legislation is ever passed. However, yesterday was different. The parties mingled in what was referred to as "date night" for Congress (Dems. and Rep. sitting next to each other as opposed to across the aisle). Democrats and Republicans talked and there was an eagerness in the air to hear what the President had to say.

President Obama was staunch, but imperative in tone and broke his speech into four topical areas about how to improve our nation: 1) Encouraging American innovation, 2) Education, 3) Idea of Rebuilding America, and 4) Eliminating the National Deficit.

Obama declared that the creativity and imagination of the American people needed to be sparked and that government needed to invest in a new age of research and development within the fields of biomedicine, clean energy technology, and information technology. He declared that this is "our generation's Sputnik moment." A moment where advancements in research and development need to reach a new level not seen since the Space Race. He also said that he would like to "eliminate billions of tax dollars to oil companies and invest in tomorrow's energy."

The president also discussed new educational reforms in order to help prepare kids for a future in the technological age. He outlined programs like Race to the Top which allow states to come up with innovative plans to reform education. He also outlined his hope to replace No Child Left Behind using the Race to the Top approach making a more flexible law. Finally, he proposed making permanent a tuition tax credit up to $10,000 for four years of college.

His third point focused on the rebuilding of America. He hopes to put Americans on rebuilding jobs and knock down barriers for businesses by lowering the corporate tax rate without raising the national deficit. He promised that he has a committee reviewing government regulations for business and removing unnecessary laws to save businesses money. He also hopes to work across the aisle to help improve the Health Care Reform Bill, a major topic of debate in the House and Congress.

Finally, Obama's last topic was trying to lift the burden of the national deficit. His means of attaining this goal was to propose a freeze on annual domestic spending for the next five years. This includes freezing government workers salaries, cutting community action programs and cutting portions of defense spending (which amounts to .20 of the federal dollar).

All of this sounds great and hopes are high that the President will accomplish all of this, but how? And what does it mean? First of all, President Obama's State of the Union Address was a very political speech. He appeared to be moderate on many of the major divisive issues that are problems within Congress. He made his appeal to Congress and to the people of the United States by Kernell's theory of "Going Public." President Obama and many of the Presidents before him have televised and broadcasted their addresses so that the American public will place pressure on their legislators to push policy through. The question still remains: How will President Obama achieve his objectives? His enumerated powers in the Constitution are very limited, therefore the majority of his objectives will be achieved through informal power. As President, Obama assumes the role of chief lobbyist and party leader. He has the power to persuade Congress, and especially those in his own party, to do things merely because he is president. This idea is in direct relation to Neustadt and his theory of Presidential power through persuasion. A second informal power of use is the President's control of the "bully pulpit." President Obama is in the highest commanding position in the country which serves as a platform to spread his ideas and policy. The President can also use the media as an instrument to help influence the public to pressure their legislators, directly coinciding with Kernell's theory.

Final thoughts: Although the President's role is vital to the American public, what concerns me the most is the lack of bipartisanship between members of Congress. Both Democrats and Republicans have not been willing to compromise and negotiate to help pass legislation. The Senate itself has turned into a tug of war to display who has the most power and the most control. Only time will tell if President Obama's words will make a difference and help bring the parties closer together, or if party politics will rule as usual.