Barack Obama came off the bench and delivered something meaningful in the clutch. If anything is to be taken from the President’s Wednesday address to Congress, the key fact is that his performance was solid.
It would be convenient for Obama’s critics to decry him as ineffectual or incompetent. It would also be the only argument left, and totally subjective.
Obama came to the podium on top of his game. There was not time to act with deference toward his opponents, or balm the wounded sentiments of his party’s base. The President took his rhetoric to the audience he needed: the political center.
As suggested here on Tuesday, President Obama went into the language which has served him well. He spoke in the vernacular of moderates and conservatives, connecting his ideas to values which had been staked by Conservatives as their sole province.
President Obama was not an ideological Liberal when he spoke. His progressive friends- and they are many- may decry the President’s lack of traditional Liberal expressions. He sounded more like Rush Limbaugh in the tone of his discourse than the wild-eyed Liberal that Limbaugh portrays Obama to be.
That is a high complement. Limbaugh is not a very nice person, but he knows how to connect with an audience.
The speech masterfully connected the issue with themes of Patriotism, Family, Thrift, and Opportunity . The President called statements from his opposition as mendacious when he felt it to be necessary. Gracious acknowledgement was offered to his opponents in the rare instances when he felt they offered something of value to the debate.
From Obama’s end, there was only one minor misstep. His reference to the late Senator Kennedy’s role, and Senator Kennedy’s work across the aisle was justifiable. However, it went about 45 seconds too long.
No one is unaware of the gratitude Barack Obama owes to Ted Kennedy. But that part of the speech was a thudding minor chord in a program which was heavy with Obama’s joyous early hits.
It was like watching a Beatles reunion ditch I Wanna Hold Your Hand for a Yoko Ono song. One understands the outreach to Democrats, but not the method employed.
The Republican opposition was not as fortunate in their display as President Obama.
Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC) managed to start the clock on his 15 minutes of fame by interrupting the President and stating, “you lie.” This will not end well for Representative Wilson. On lists of things which will end a political career, interrupting a speaking President is just behind making a homemade adult featurette with a commode plunger, a wild animal, and Jane Fonda holding the wild animal.
It was not appropriate when Cindy Sheehan tried it on George W. Bush. Sticking an “R” after one’s name does not make it any better.
Just when Republicans didn’t think things could get much worse, Representative Charles Boustany (R-LA) gave the response to the President. It wasn’t just bad; it was the Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.
Representative Boustany used his teleprompter ineptly. His script appeared to have been written a year ago by a talk radio host who would be rated fourth in a two station market. One is not entirely certain that he did not mispronounce his own name.
However, there was one silver lining to Representative Boustany’s response to President Obama.
It was the funniest thing seen on CBS since WKRP in Cincinnati
REPORT CARD:
President Barack Obama: A-. It was a momentum changer for sure and at least tied the game.
Republican Response: F. Republicans came off like a bunch of crybabies who are not only petty and small, but also weak for their size.
Health care just became a sprint to the finish, a discipline where President Obama excels.
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