A Tale of Two Countries
Joe Biden and the GOP offer Two Very Different Views of America
I am not a fan of drawing huge conclusions about the State of the Union speeches. To do so is kind of like saying a team is going to win the Championship based only on a single random play in a single random game. They tend to get overblown out of proportion, and spun out of whack by professional pundits. Most people don’t watch them and even fewer change their minds about how they feel about the President following them.
This year, I didn’t catch it live and didn’t watch any of the spin following it.1 So while relaxing on my couch on the afternoon following, I spent two hours watching Biden’s State of the Union and Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ “response.”2 Most of both were the type of bland pablum one can expect from these speeches. However, there was a chasmic gap between the tone of the speeches and the decorum on display.
Biden was Biden. He was the President and fits into the role fine. One wishes the Biden of 10-20 years ago were+. President, but as the Emeritus in Chief, he still reflects an intelligent calm, courtesy and charisma lacking in modern generations. What he discussed was nothing unusual for a Democratic President; protecting Social Security and Medicare, health care blah, blah, blah. He did fine. An occassional Bidenism here and there, along with the nods and gestures to special visitors in the Gallery, and that was that. Biden also understands there are loads of available votes in the middle, primarily in Midwestern states, who want to see government work for them, and he made broad appeals to bring them into the Democratic camp. If he’s successful then he has the capacity to reshape politics in much the same way Reagan did in the ‘80s. Basically, he looked Presidential; his conduct was impeccable, his words were well scripted (including some obvious traps Republicans were all too eager to leap into) and he exuded command to stay above the fray.
And how big was that fray? For that, let’s talk about the Republicans. Holy Shit. I have never seen a more childish group of elected officials in my life. In 2009 at a Joint Session of Congress, while President Obama was talking about his Health Care bill, Rep. Joe Wilson shouted out “You lie!” which was a very serious break of decorum at the time; even Republicans groaned at the outburst. Joe Wilson is now the spirit animal of this GOP. While Biden acted like the Teacher in class, giving instruction and trying to get things done, the Republicans acted like the class clowns throwing spitballs and just daring to be sent to the Principal’s office like little delinquents.
It was a galling display, led by one of the GOP’s most galling members, Marjorie Taylor Greene. Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy gave her a sideways look at first like a concerned parent but as she continued he kind of threw up his hands like an entitling parent saying “Kids! What can you do!?” Republicans made the most demonstrative case of what is wrong with government today, and put up a huge neon sign with an arrow pointing to them. Time and again they shouted down Biden for saying things they themselves would approve of had they been said by a Republican President.3 Their whole schtick was to be bomb throwing and divisive and it was on full display for the entire American public.
And then there was Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ response to the SOTU. Ugh. All the things I hate about this unnecessary speech rolled into one. This was the epitome of why we media should never cover this scripted “response.” However, I didn’t think it could get any worse than the normal ones we see and somehow Sanders managed. She offered no vision for the future, no plans for government at all. No, all she did was spend time cultivating a culture war. Most all the items she brought up didn’t even relate to federal issues and had no business being in an national speech about the direction of the federal government. She lambasted social justice warriors and coastal elites pretty much just for being from N.Y or California. Does wokism go too far? Sure. Is it the biggest issue in front of America today? Not even close. The GOP made a bare majority by pushing inflation and economic issues to the front, and not once did she mention either (because Biden is actually doing a good job on this now). It was a repugnant display by a woman whose last boss was a repugnant human being.
And this is the crux of it all. Too many people pick a side saying “the other side is for this and I’m against it!” or “I support this and that’s what this party does!” Something that gets overlooked far too much is seriousness. If you say you are for Issue A but lack any seriousness about getting anything done about it, what good are you? Today, in America, we have two parties; one is serious about what it wants to do, receptive to ideas and working together in bipartisan ways, and has a leader who demonstrates that, while the other is just unserious cabal, run by a bunch of class clowns, who can only point at everyone else and spew hatred, largely for their own failures.
The choice right now could not be clearer.
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Once again, Jonathan V. Last nails it.
PurpleAmerica Cultural Criticism Corner
As I mentioned earlier in a footnote, I watched the 2016 modern western “Hell or High Water” with Jeff Bridges on a flight home rather than watch the SOTU. Far more entertaining than the State of the Union.
It’s easily Chris Pine’s best role, Ben Foster is a gem in every movie he’s in and Jeff Bridges is a national treasure. Strongly recommend.
Outstanding Tweet
For those of you who saw what Kyrsten Sinema was wearing last night, I give you:
We’re not fans of Sinema at all at PurpleAmerica. You can read about it here:
Parting Thoughts
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I was actually traveling and the last thing I want to do half asleep is watch a State of the Union speech; I watched Hell or High Water instead. Jeff Bridges is a national treasure.
In actuality, they would’ve given him a standing ovation. Such is the stupid subjective nature of the State of the Union speech.