State of the Union 2013: Will Obama Answer Our Questions, Or Dodge With More Rhetoric?

Impact

The election is over and the inauguration is behind us. During the election season, President Obama was able to focus on rhetoric that could appeal to the masses. In his inaugural speech, he was able to speak in a way that pulled on our emotional strings and gave us hope for the next four years. The time for that is done.

With the first State of the Union of his second term, President Obama does not need to pull on our heart strings or use rhetoric to give us hope. What is needed is a clear policy plan to get us moving in the right direction. Even those of us who supported his re-election have questions; will he provide the substantive answers on policy solutions we need or continue his trend of focusing on rhetoric?

During the campaign season the foreclosure crisis was treated as an afterthought. Will the president provide a clear plan for dealing with the crisis? We have heard Obama’s immigration plan; will he talk about the differences between his plan and that of the “Band of Eight” and how to work out their differences? Even though we have temporarily avoided the fiscal cliff and the debt ceiling, will he finally acknowledge our spending problem and discuss ways to cut spending? Will he lay out a specific plan to create jobs? Will he commit to ensuring that we have a budget in place, unlike during his first term? These are all questions that even his supporters have, or should have. The question is whether this State of the Union address will be his avenue for answering these questions, or it will be more of the same.

Follow Michael's LIVE coverage of the State of the Union here.