The president came across as battle-weary, on the whole, but he still managed to slip in a few particularly egregious remarks:
1. Referring to Iran as “The Islamic Republic of Iran.” It is a slap in the face to the democrats in Iran who struggle against those who have kept their country mired in its current “Islamic republican” state. Would Obama refer to North Korea as the “Democratic People’s Republic”?
2. Saying that the answers from the Republican Party to help reduce our deficit will be: “Don’t invest in our people… maintain the status quo.” That’s the Republican argument? “Don’t invest in our people?” And then, without skipping a beat, he quickly pivoted and spoke about how he wants to return respect and civility to the chamber.
3. The problem with the healthcare debate, said the president, was that he “didn’t explain it well enough” to the American people, who were too busy asking, in Obama’s words, “What’s in it for me?” But Obama, good and just, will not turn his back on them. The man is a saint.
4. The turn to protectionism is frightening. He says that he plans to create millions of jobs via export-driven work, and that he will raise taxes on companies that outsource work. Is he trying to raise prices? Does he want to start a trade war?
5. “I’m not interested in punishing banks,” he said, ten minutes after saying that banks have “behaved badly.” So either we don’t want to punish bad behavior, or…well, I won’t say it.
5 responses so far
1 Kanzeon // Jan 27, 2010 at 11:55 pm
I missed the speech. So, the worst of it was:
1. He called Iran by its official name;
2. He said something dismissive about Republicans;
3. He took personal responsibility for the problems of the healthcare reform bill;
4. He doesn’t want to ship jobs overseas; and
5. He said to the banks, what my parents said to me long ago: “this hurts me more than it hurts you.”
2 kevin47 // Jan 28, 2010 at 1:01 am
That’s some nice spin, Kanzeon. Your number 5 is just wrong, though (I mean as in literally inaccurate, but also on other levels).
3 Kanzeon // Jan 28, 2010 at 1:16 am
You mean it didn’t hurt my parents more than it hurt me?
My illusions shattered after all these years….
4 kevin47 // Jan 28, 2010 at 12:24 pm
No. Obama said he had no interest in punishing banks. It would be ridiculous for your parents to have said they had no interest in punishing you, and then proceed to do so.
5 Kanzeon // Jan 28, 2010 at 12:43 pm
kevin47:
But the point is, people do it all the time. It’s a rhetorical device, to convey a veneer of evenhandedness:
“I don’t mean to cause offense, but….”
“I really appreciate all you’ve done for the team, but….”
“I am a staunch defender of the First Amendment, but….”
“I have no interest in punishing anyone, but….”
It’s commonplace, hardly egregious.
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