SOTU Thoughts
I didn't watch the actual State of the Union Speech, as prolonged exposure to President Bush's semi-coherent ramblings gives me headaches. As a good citizen, though, I took the time to read his speech as well as Sen. James Webb's rebuttal.
A one-word reaction? Yawn. Aside from the proposal to reduce gas consumption, there was precious little new material to chew on. Iraq was obviously the elephant in the room and I found it telling that Bush waited until the second-half of his speech to mention the war. Once again, the president's take on the war seems to be this: "Iraq is a real shitstorm but if we leave, you and your family will be killed in a terrorist attack. So we can't leave".
'tis remarkable to think back to the 2002 SOTU. Bush, buffeted by greater than 80% approval ratings, confidently declared Iraq, Iran, and North Korea to be part of an "axis of evil" and made it clear that Afghanistan would not be the only battle in the War on Terror. Five years later, with his popularity hovering in Nixon/Carter territory (~30%), Bush lacks the political capital to do much about Iraq anymore, other than hope this "surge" idea bears fruit.
January 26th, 2007 - 01:49
My personal favorite was when he pointed out Dikembe Mutumbo. Not quite as captivating as the Iraqi woman with fresh ink on her hand from voting that he brought out at the last SOTU address (or was it two years ago?). I mean, Dikembe Mutumbo? He looked awesome next to the woman next to him who didn’t even reach his waist. I wish they had interviewed him afterward. Listening to him speak is one of my favorite things in the world.