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Obama Trying To Rekindle Hope In State Of The Union Speech, but Faces Tough Time Implementing Ideas

01/24/09-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
President Barack Obama is planning to give the American people a clear message when he delivers his State of the Union speech. He is planning to say ‘I understand the message you are sending.’ The recent electoral defeat of Martha Coakley in Massachusetts comes as health care reform enters its final stretch, and many attribute her loss as much to Obama’s inability to control the debate as they to her inability to wage an effective campaign. The central theme of Obama’s upcoming speech is job creation. This has been one of the central issues of concern for people angry with his lack of leadership in nearly every aspect of policy in his first year. For all the tempest that the Tea Party’s corporate and special interest sponsors wanted to create, there is a real sense of anger in the country when it comes to the economy. President Obama has failed to live up to his promises on a wide range of issues from job creation, Wall Street and financial corruption, political immobility and partisanship, closing Gitmo, ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and addressing substantial LGBT issues. In many cases, people do not feel that Obama has gone far enough, or that the policies he let Congress craft did not go far enough. For instance, Massachusetts voters rejected the Senate and House health care bills because they are far worse than what Massachusetts already has.

As much as President Obama understands the need for economic reform, he left the economic sectors to largely do what they wanted for the last year. This has lead to a lot of job loss and a lot of people feeling angry not only at Obama and Washington, but at the corporate sector. The recent Supreme Court ruling opening the spigot of corporate money into the political arena could backfire badly. After all, imagine having a politician who is openly supported by Bank of America. The fact that former Representative Harold Ford currently holds a job at Bank of America may be enough to turn the electorate against him in a very distinct manner.

Despite the fact that President Obama pledged to end Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and that move is backed by the majority of the American people, Obama has been loathe to push that legislation through Congress in any meaningful manner. For a man who rose to office on the heels of a President many saw as being unable to walk and chew gum at the same time, Obama seems to be unable to do more than one policy task at a time. Comedian Jon Steward of the Daily Show remarked that ending DADT was small compared to health care reform, and something that he could do easily. Obama has also alienated the LGBT Community due to the Justice Department’s firm commitment to defending the Defense of Marriage Act, often in a very biased manner.

President Obama is starting to see the boiling frustration of the American public. His State of the Union speech will, in all likelihood, be a well crafted piece intended to bring the people back to supporting him. He will try to cast his oratory magic once again and try to woo the American people in order to get them to support him. He will talk about health care reform, immigration reform, Wall Street reform, and try to tie all of his policies into one economic package.

The problem for Obama is not so much that he can give great speeches. Obama is great at speeches. Reagan, Roosevelt, and Kennedy were gifted with oratory as well. Parts of their speeches resonate even today. After all, how many people know the phrase “We have nothing to fear but fear itself.” The problem for Obama moving forward is not his speaking ability or the ability of his people to craft a message, but that he needs to show real leadership. Obama can no longer be the person standing aloof hoping that Senate Majority Harry Reid and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi follow his vision of America. He needs to get into the trenches. If he does not get down into the trenches, no amount of speeches will be able to bring about better hopes for the Democratic Party.