State of the Union
February 03, 2005 @ 06:16 AMState of the Union
Alright, so here’s my rapid-review of the State of the Union. Firstly, I thought Bush did a great job just speaking. It’s no secret he’s not a fantastic speaker, but he did quite well. Now, on to the things he said, in no particular order:
Constitutional amendment banning gay marriage
– I understand what he’s trying to accomplish with this, but it really makes the Republicans look like they’ve jumped off the deep end. As someone who opposed gay marriage, I’m also against this particular policy. Gay marriage decisions must be left to the states. That said, the reason behind the push for the amendment still exists. Activist judges are still overturning the will of the majority in some states, and this must not happen. Up or down votes by the people of each state should be carried out on this issue as they see fit, and the courts must not interfere.Social Security
– The Dems obviously did not like the use of the word "bankrupt" to describe the Social Security system in 2050, but the effect is the same regardless of wording. In 2050, Social Security will no longer be able to pay out the obligations it has. I think Bush’s largest flaw here is he seems to imply that the Social Security problem necessitates a private solution. That’s not necessarily true, and it does seem to back the Dems into a corner. Bush, I think, needs to do a better job of explaining why privatization is a BETTER SOLUTION than any others on the table. He tried to do that last night, but I think he invalidated that effort by using language the Dems obviously object to and is simply not necessary. Also, the Bush budget deficits make it extremely hard to justify more borrowing, even though Social Security is something we SHOULD be willing to borrow for if the solution is permenant.The Culture of Life
– Of course, even mentioning that term immediately puts the abortion and stem-cell people at alert. I think mentioning it but not diving into the specifics was a good strategy.Iraq
– Was anyone’s mind changed? Probably not. But at least I hope people will start to acknowledge that some good can come from this. Everyone knows Iraq is a mess. Most people believe it was a mistake. That’s fine. But I hope the euphorea of a successful election will get the radical lefties off the "Bush lied" bandwagon. He didn’t. Let it go. Move on.Federal Budget Deficit
– By FAR my biggest beef with the current administration. The current budget decifits are out of control, and make it extremely difficult to justify more important things like the Social Security reform. Bush must absolutely get spending under control. I DO support the tax cuts, however. So we must begin to trim government programs. This needs to happen NOW. And it’s not easy, I know. Everyone has a program they think "should be funded." I, personally, have recently discovered AmTrak. I LOVE riding AmTrak. I plan on taking it down to Portland as often as I can! It’s MUCH nicer than driving. AmTrak, however, is currently subsidized some $1 billion plus by the federal government. Bush is proposing eliminating that funding. As much as I love AmTrak now, we simply do not have the money to support it any longer. That’s just one example.
That’s pretty much the extent of the major issues he discussed. For a VERY FUNNY spoof on last years State of the Union, check this out.