State of the Union

I liked the speech. The State of the Union is generally a few nice thoughts and a laundry list of to-do items (Instapundit has a roundup here). I think the President tried to be conciliatory and the Democrats were not. I think it made them look bad, such as when they applauded the failure of Social Security reform. Once again, their biggest claim to fame is obstructionism, not accomplishment.

Over the past several years I have been disappointed with some things the President has failed to accomplish, and I think it is due to a Republican Congress that has failed to back him up. I am hopeful that some of the more important initiatives (Social Security and Immigration) will get some substantive work. I also love the idea of the Line Item Veto and the permanence of the tax cuts.

I think the energy part was interesting. The focus on alternative forms of fuel does not signal a departure from efforts to drill in ANWR. Those are more immediate needs, whereas alternative fuels will fill future needs. We will see how this shakes out over the coming months.