First off, I don't really like talking about politics because I think it's one topic that always starts arguments because two people rarely have the same political views. I also think at sometimes people can be very critical and judgmental about Presidents, when many don't truly know how hard it is to be President. Come on people, think about it.
Anyway, I rarely watch State of the Union Addresses so I'm not a genius on the topics he spoke about and I try to stay away from politics. Yes, I know I should be up-to-date on what is going on, but, anyway, these are just my thoughts and views on what happened.
I really liked that the Democrats and Republicans sat together, elbow to elbow, though I know this was probably set up. I think it was a great way to start his speech about unity and about Democrats and Republicans working together for once and actually getting something done. They both need to set aside their differences because each party doesn't matter, America and the Americans matter. Suck it up and work together to make this place better! Stop being high schoolers with years of grudges, get over it, and move on to make this place a better place to live in. I feel like having the parties also makes some voters forget about the other parties and only vote for theirs, just because they're Democratic or Republican; sometimes they have biased opinions.
From what I viewed of the other people, I didn't see too many giveaways. Some people stood up and some didn't. Some people clapped and some didn't. One time McCain even stood up and clapped, whether that was as a "wow, can't believe you decided to do that" or a slam against the President, I don't know.
Throughout the speech, he spoke about America and about what we've been able to overcome. I think it was a great way to lift the spirits of the people who are worried and it gives us hope in some ways. It makes us think "yes, we can do this!" He also spoke a lot about real-life experiences of people who met and spoke to.
He spoke a lot about reforming the government and taking care of the deficit to make it better for the children of the world. Within the government's bills, he spoke about rules that would be fixed if they put an unnecessary burden on business. He also spoke about how he wouldn't hesitate to protect the American people: whether that will be from another financial crisis or preventing health insurance agencies from exploiting patience. He spoke about being open to idea about the healthcare. Hopefully this is true since many don't like the idea of universal healthcare. To make the deficit better he spoke about cutting excess weight, what's spent that doesn't need to be spent, cutting loopholes, and making millionaires give up their tax breaks (which many have talked about before and it's never really happened?). Something I also liked was that he spoke about the Government living within their means and not spending more than they need, which I think is a good idea. Usually this doesn't happen though. Another thing I liked was that he said that they are going to put up a website so that Americans can see where their tax dollars are going, though this could be false and it might be faked, hopefully it's not! Another large thing he said was that if any bills come to him with earmarks than he'll veto the bill immediately (this is the spot that McCain actually stood up and clapped!). He also said how No Child Left Behind is being replaced by something called Race to the Top, which brings about innovative projects from each state that have to do with teaching students better. So we'll see how well this goes. I don't think we're anyway near to a bill like this being perfect -- we're still in the test runs.
Like many Presidents, Obama spoke about education. How he would like to give every child a chance to succeed in life and be able to pursuecollege and finish high school. One thing I liked was that he spoke about how education should be celebrated, not just sports, which is big in our country. Sports are given a lot of media and encouragement in many schools, and the education is rarely even cared about. I know just before I left high school banquets were just being given for Academics, even though banquets for sports had been going on for years! He spoke about how teachers should be given more respect, which I agree with wholeheartedly. They are the ones who shape the people of America, it all starts with them! But he said that we should be preparing new teachers in science, technology, engineering, and math, which I understand because they are important. But what happened to English and the Creative Arts? I believe that they are important as well, especially since many jobs depend on workers who are both creative and intelligent. They need both qualities and by just focusing on one side of education, it won't help balance the US or future workers.
The President spoke about much more, the troops coming home (which has been said many times before) and about researching clean energy. I have not more room and this is already long enough, so I'm just going to say that he madea lot of good points. I feel that he was more speaking of the future in general and not what was going to happen in the next two years of his Presidency. He could also have been sending out his thoughts for if he was elected for four more years? But I feel like he knows this can't be done in the next two years, of course he knows that! He's always said that, but I feel like it was a way to show America that it can be done if we just stick to a plan and try to endure.
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