A TIFM Review: The State of the Union

Did you know that President Bush gave a speech last night? It was a pretty big deal being that it was his seventh State of the Union. Also, it was his first in front of a Democratic Congress, ready and willing to fight the President on any number of issues. So, the State of the Union was a chance for Bush to convince the American people he is right. Methinks he really didn't do that.

President Bush tried hard to not make this speech a repeat of his speech a couple of weeks ago in which he said he would increase the troop level in Iraq by about 20,000 solders in hopes to do the "hard work" and win a battle against the "war on terror." So, the first half of his speech was devoted to domestic issues. This is what I will focus on. I'll provide the comments Bush said and then, my awesome commentary.

"First, we must balance the federal budget. We can do so without raising taxes."
It is definitely a nice idea, George W. The problem with balancing the federal budget without a tax hike is that the money has to come somewhere. It is on par with taking out a sizeable loan, but not getting a better job to pay it. What gets cut? I support you fully on balancing the budget, but here is why I think you mentioned it. With your support so incredibly low, you wanted to throw out a nice little olive branch to your Republicans. "Look, I'm trying to be a conservative!" You know perfectly well with the US spending $6.4 billion a month in Iraq (number will probably rise with more troops) that it will be impossible to balance the budget without raising taxes unless you convince the Democrats to make sizable cuts to Medicare, Medicade, Social Security, and other programs. It's a bluff. Make cuts to programs that voters love to balance the budget which voters think is a good idea...talk about your election suicide. The budget will not be balanced anytime soon.

"In 2005 alone, the number of earmarks grew to over 13,000 and totaled nearly $18 billion. Even worse, over 90 percent of earmarks never make it to the floor of the House and Senate — they are dropped into Committee reports that are not even part of the bill that arrives on my desk."
Full support. But these are typically the policitian's dream. Throw our something that is retarded on the surface, but never change it.

"We must increase funds for students who struggle — and make sure these children get the special help they need. And we can make sure our children are prepared for the jobs of the future, and our country is more competitive, by strengthening math and science skills. The No Child Left Behind Act has worked for America's children — and I ask Congress to reauthorize this good law."
Honestly, the No Child Left Behind Act leaves a lot of children behind. It was modeled after schools in Texas that, to make sure no child was left behind, pushed kids toward G.E.D.'s earlier to bring up the GPA of the school. See the difference between a school doing well and looking like it is doing well? From my own experience, the "accountability" laws that are in place seem to push teachers to prepare students for standarized tests with number two pencils rather than inspiring kids to go out and learn new information. Maybe there is no perfect way, but I have yet to see the "good law" the President speaks of.

"Tonight, I propose two new initiatives to help more Americans afford their own insurance. First, I propose a standard tax deduction for health insurance that will be like the standard tax deduction for dependents."
George loves a tax break/tax deduction. I am not sure who wrote this and then put these two sentences together. How will this help someone who doesn't have health insurance be able to afford it. They still have to pay for it for the first part, right?

"To secure our border, we are doubling the size of the Border Patrol — and funding new infrastructure and technology."
Awesome. How are you find the people to double the size of the Border Patrol and fund new infrastructure and technology when you are balancing the budget without a tax raise? Hot air.

"We must continue changing the way America generates electric power — by even greater use of clean coal technology ... solar and wind energy ... and clean, safe nuclear power. We need to press on with battery research for plug-in and hybrid vehicles, and expand the use of clean diesel vehicles and biodiesel fuel. We must continue investing in new methods of producing ethanol — using everything from wood chips, to grasses, to agricultural wastes."
This was the beginning of Bush's latest attempt at throwing the environmental lobby a bone. He has done this seemingly every year, but does anything change? No. Hard to trust a man who, as Jon Stewart put it, pisses oil. If you want to reduce gas consumption by 20%, mean it. Don't just say it. I remember falling for this about four years ago when he started to talk about putting more money into hybrid cars. He did, but it was like throwing a five dollar bill at college. Sure, it's a start, but it won't do much. We need serious change in this area and I am waiting on it.

Well, that's about it on the domestic agenda. I am more and more discouraged.