I watched President Bush’s State of the Union address last night as well as the Democratic reaction and found the contrasts to be striking.
Bush’s speech, while “laundry list”-ish at points, was sweeping and inspiring. As many other pundits have noted, the two most successful and moving moments of the speech actually had little to do with speaking; rather, the images of the Iraqi voter standing, fingers raised with tears in her eyes and of the same voter hugging and thanking the parents of a fallen US Marine were incredibly touching. My wife and I both had tears in our eyes as we watched those women break down in tears of their own as the waves of applause washed over them.
The Democratic reaction, in comparison, seemed cheap and complaining. “Dusty” Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi offered weak criticisms of Bush’s plans, primarily complaining about a lack of specifics while offering none of their own. They continually referred to “real ideas” and “real solutions” that the “Democrats” have “offered”. Well, Senator and Representative, where’s your proof? Your “real ideas” seem to be limited to “!Bush” and nothing more. America needs to have a serious opposition party willing to offer valid ideas and alternatives, not simply opposition.
Who among the Democrats will stand up and swing their party back into viability and ideological vitality? Who has the courage to speak out? More importantly, just how many others can they get to listen?
3 Comments
I spared myself the agony of listening the Democratic response. I have no idea where they should go with their message, as apparently they don’t either. Most of their goals are more inline with what the EU is attempting. Unfortunately the EU economy is in a sad state.
And why is the EU’s economy sluggish? There are too many entitlements, excessive tax burdens, and tiny rewards for entrepreneurship.
To the ears of many, the Democratic goal is akin to jumping onto a sinking ship.
I had to work last night. So, I got home right as W was walking out. Then, I made the mistake of listening to part of the Dem’s response. It just made me agitated. Not angry, just annoyed.
As Rush pointed out today, the same democrats who were givin the cold shoulder to the new social security plan that Bush is offering were the same ones that were applauding Bill Clintons same idea 10 years ago….yeah nice consistency Dems.