State of the Union Liveblog
Tuesday, January 23, 2007 at 6:34 pm
- 44 Comments
9:25 PM: We’re done. Grades: Webb, A+–the best response I’ve ever seen. Bush? F. This was lousy. When the Fox can’t spin it, it’s grim.
Incidentally, as I leave for the night, Rudy Giuliani is arguing Bush gave a good speech. I would tend to disagree.
9:24 PM: Wow. This is the first time in my life that I’ve seen an opposition response work better than the SotU. Even Britt Hume and Fred Barnes say so.
9:23 PM: Tying back to Teddy Roosevelt? Comparing corporations to robber barons? Noting he was a Republican? Super-priceless.
Oh, snap! He’s citing Ike on Korea!
9:20 PM: Webb’s story about his father being in the Air Force is unbelievable, and perfect, and perfectly illustrative. And it’s brutal.
“The President took us into this war recklessly.”
He’s crushing right now.
9:18 PM: “Not Wall Street, but Main Street.” Nice.
9:17 PM: Coming out strong on wage disparity? Priceless. He’s laying out the case for the “great” economy not being “great” in easy, simple-to-understand terms.
9:15 PM: Jim Webb! Hey, Jamestown is 400 years old? Yoinks!
Webb noted New Orleans. Bush did not.
9:12 PM: Mort Kondracke and Britt Hume can’t understand why Bush’s fake insurance plan just isn’t getting any love on the hill. They blame the unions. Plus car companies give their employees too much insurance. The bastards!
9:07 PM: Michele Bachmann is hugging Bush! Michele Bachmann is hugging Bush!
Seriously, she kept her hand on him for a solid minute. Laura had best watch out.
9:05 PM: I’m going to go grab a pop before Webb. Hang loose, everyone.
9:04 PM Think Progress is fact-checking. Bush had ten fewer applause breaks than usual.
9:02 PM: We’re done! The State of our Union is “Strong.” Is it ever not strong? Wouldn’t it be nice just for once for a President to say the State of the Union is cruddy?
9:00 PM: A winner of the Silver Star. I agree, he deserves respect, but I though Republicans believed that award to be just a fabrication?
If he runs for President in 2032, will he be Swift-Boated?
8:59 PM: New York Subway Guy!
Will he next bring out Jared, the weight-losing Subway guy?
8:58 PM: Baby Einstein, making really bizarre movies since the mid-90s. Seriously, parents, back me up, those videos are crazy freaky.
8:56 PM: Dikembe Mutombo! Dude could block a shot!
I’m disappointed that when it was noted that Mutombo’s now a citizen that they didn’t cut to Tancredo.
8:55 PM: Fighting AIDS, one of the few sort-of-good things Bush has done. Oh, sure, he’s preaching abstenence to South African prostitutes, but you know, at least we’re giving some money to something not involving MOABs.
8:53 PM: Let’s have a nukular-free Korean Peninshula. And let’s do something about Darfur. What should we do? Um…something.
8:52 PM: We need a volunteer civilian reserve corps. They’re like the army reserves, but…well… not. Until they are.
And our diplomatic strategy is working! Obviously! After all, look at all of our progress…with…the…uh…borders of Lichtenstein!
8:51 PM: Let’s establish a council with members of both parties, both the Republican and Connecticut for Lieberman parties. Together, we can invade Iran.
8:49 PM: We went into this united. Remember? You totally gave us the go-ahead. This is your screw-up too, you hear me? Support the troops!
8:48 PM: You know, maybe I’m just ignoring the lessons of 9/11 and inviting tragedy, but I’m just not feeling it.
Incidentally, neither is the majority party.
8:47 PM: We discussed every possible approach. In the end I chose this route because what the heck, I got nothin’.
8:45 PM: Terrorists, insurgents, and roaming death squads? Sounds like an easy country to stabilize.
And nobody applauded the “driving al Qaeda out of Afghanistan” line. Ouch.
8:43 PM: Stay the course–that line would’ve drawn crazy applause from the right any time before, but not this year.
8:42 PM: Iraqi and Afghani elections would be more impressive if Iraq wasn’t engaged in a violent civil war and northern Afghanistan wasn’t under control of the Taliban.
8:41 PM: Free people are not drawn to malignant ideologies? How does one then explain 2004?
8:38 PM: Okay, the Shi’as and the Sunnis would not be happy to hear they’re just two sides of the same coin. If that was the case, Iraq would be a happy place.
By the way, terror is bad, m’kay?
8:36 PM: Perhaps it’s just Bush Derangement Syndrome, but at this point in the speech my eyes have glazed over. Wake me up when we move on from Bush’s greatest hits.
8:35 PM: “To win the war on terror, we must take the fight to the enemy.” That’s why we’re fighting in Iraq, a country that had, well, nothing at all to do with 9/11. Victory is ours!
8:34 PM: First mention of 9/11. Who had 8:34 in the pool?
8:33 PM: Hell freezes over, Bush admits global warming tied to gasoline.
And we’re on to confirming judges! There wasn’t even a hint of a segue there.
(Big shock–GOP is all about that, Dems are not.)
8:32 PM: Farmers cheer the increase in ethanol and biodiesel.
CAFE standard change? Bush says yes, but I misdoubt Cheney say no.
Oh, and let’s drill in ANWR!
8:31 PM: Woodchips! Grasses! Uranium! Hydrogen! Magic beans!
Hey, let’s reduce gasoline useage by 20%! How? Uh…
8:30 PM: And now, energy. Is it me, or are the segues really rough in this speech?
8:29 PM: Everyone’s applauding immigration reform! That will not be the case in three months.
8:27 PM: Immigration. Ooh, scary kids. Bush calling for temporary worker program. Tom Tancredo is not amused.
8:26 PM: Told ya!
8:25 PM: Affordable choices grants for the Governors to zzzzzzz…..
Oh, and more HSAs for America! Association Health Plans! Other GOP Buzzwords! Let me call tort reform now!
8:23 PM: Democrats more enthusiastic than GOP in applauding Health Care. Bush proposing new initiatives that will help everyone. Will they actually help everyone? Sadly, no!
Interestingly, Pelosi is not applauding this. Sensible, as this should be DOA in Congress.
8:21 PM: Says No Child Left Behind is teh awesome, but now we need to add vouchers, too, because…uh…because.
Math is fundamental!
John McCain looks a mite uncomfortable.
8:20 PM: Bush courageously comes out against earmarks after Congress already changed the system.
Also, Bush is back arguing for Social Security reform. Pack a lunch, Mr. President.
8:18 PM: Balance the budget, you say? Without raising taxes, you say? Through magic ponies that excrete gold, you say? Sounds sensible to me.
Also, it would be more impressive if the federal government hadn’t grown more under Bush than any president since Roosevelt.
8:17 PM: Honestly, paens to bipartisanship would mean more if you could pronounce the party’s name right.
Bush seems a mite defensive about the economy.
8:15 PM: It’s Democratic majority, Mr. President.
8:14 PM: “The rite of custom brings us together at a defining hour.” That’s a really bad opening line. What does that even mean?
8:13 PM: Bush with a nod to Pelosi. That gets everyone on both sides of the aisle up. It’s actually a nice touch.
8:11 PM: How nice! Bush went to FedExKinko’s and got copies of the speech for the Veep and the Speaker.
So far, Democrats are doing everything as kabuki dictates; standing and applauding the office.
8:09 PM: And here comes Dubya! He’s not being booed, so that’s a good sign for him. People are shaking his hand, but not with a lot of fervor. No kisses from Joe Lieberman.
Bush is wearing a light blue tie and dark blue suit; a nod to bipartisanship, perhaps? Cheney is wearing cloven hooves. I didn’t notice what Pelosi was wearing.
8:03 PM: SCOTUS? Check. Cabinet? Check. People are actually shaking Condi’s hand.
Dick actually looks a mite peeved. Not sure that it’s any more than usual.
It feels like the applause is dying out awfully quickly tonight. Usually they keep the standing ovation going for a while for each group. But tonight, it’s applaud and stop dead. This is going to be a tough crowd.
8:01 PM: Laura Bush in da house! It ain’t a party ’til Laura shows up.
8:00 PM: Did anyone know we had a Dean of the Diplomatic Corps? Who is this guy?
7:57 PM: House in order! Now all the leaders on both sides of the aisle from both houses get the great honor of walking with Bush while he walks in. No, seriously. It’s an honor. Really.
7:55 PM: According to Pat Buchanan, Bush’s speech is lame, and Webb’s response is killer. Of course, that’s Pat Buchanan’s take, so one can’t rule anything out.
7:41 PM: So if Osama bin Laden has secretly hidden a nuclear bomb in the Rostrum of the House of Representatives that will detonate at 8:25 PM Central Standard Time, who will become President? Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, everyone’s favorite sitting Attorney General and torture apologist.
Meanwhile, the members of the Senate are on their way in, to tepid applause. Vice President Cheney has the same crooked grin he usually sports; evidently he is unconcerned that Scooter Libby is evidently working to torpedo him.
7:39 PM: The Senate is preparing to adjourn and walk over to the House. Traditionally, Senators are given the priviledge of being announced as a group by the House Doorkeeper.
6:22 PM: I will be liveblogging the State of the Union tonight.
As of right now, talking heads are talking. Nothing to report, will be back at about 7:50.
44 Comments
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 8:21 pm
Play Nice Katie (CBS) just said that the Dems are under strict orders to play nice during the speech.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 8:28 pm
Did you see Bachmann all in white? She was like an angel, she was…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 8:47 pm
segues.. Granted I’m on my second drink.. but yeah somebody dropped the ball on the transitions. It feels like he is trying to speed through it. No dramatic pauses and barely giving the “canned” applause time to respond. (e.g. it feels more so this year then in the past like they are prepped and times as to when to clap.)
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 8:48 pm
applause Republicans seem to be applauding things they don’t really agree with. I’m starting to wonder if they aren’t listening, they just applauded because someone else did.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 8:51 pm
Ahh… Now that were on to the “war on terror” his stride is back. So… “I gotta talk about this odd domestic crap, well if I speed through it to the stuff I like…” seems to be the though pattern.
And yeah the Republicans seem to be phoning this one in…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 8:54 pm
woot At least McCain (sp?) is getting an f’n nap!
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 8:55 pm
I saw that too to be fair, he had this weird winking thing going on before, so maybe he’s just trying to rest his eyes.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:01 pm
ummm… fall of a capital city.. chaos… some other country a threat…
I’ve heard this all before somewhere… mmm… must be deja vu.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:02 pm
“whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure” nope, but somehow they got it anyway…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:11 pm
nice shout outs what up, Tom Brady running away from the president, too?
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:13 pm
well.. My two watch the Disney Little Einsteins… it’s o.k. But we never did the Baby Einsteins.
Next two intros are good also… to bad we had to suffer through the “war on evil” speech to get there.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:21 pm
3 minutes of Bachmann on Camera Did anyone else see her talk to the President, then keep her hand on his shoulder for about 2 minutes as he talked to someone else, then pull him back and kiss him and get his autograph? Then she still had her hand on him until he finally just walked away.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:25 pm
Laura had best watch out. Seriously, Michele obviously assumes that “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife” doesn’t apply when genders are reversed.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:31 pm
Does Edwards get a kickback since Webb invoked two Americas…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:41 pm
I thought that was her! Saw her at the very beginning when he was coming out of the tunnel. Wasn’t sure it was her until they showed her again at the end.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:47 pm
The games they play Nice job. Two things though, and not to be nit-picky, but oh, the semantic games they play… he did not mention “global warming,” he said global climate change, and there was no mention of raising CAFE standards. IF he acts on what he says, he’ll set a goal through the Renewable Fuel Standards Program, but won’t push for an increase in the CAFE standards.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:48 pm
What nerve! Thanks to TIVO I went back and looked for that on the CSPAN feed. Almost creepy. Seems so wrong our out of place. She didn’t want him to get away so she could get that ‘kiss’ and whisper some sweet nothings, and even then didn’t want to let go till he was out of reach.
Before that I noticed a quick visit by Coleman with the President. All Normy was doing was nodding his head in the afirmative. I see a commercial in the future with that clip, ‘forward and back’ and all you see is Norm smiling at the President nodding his head yes over and over again!
Flash
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 9:49 pm
to follow up on what you said he also stated we need to increase fuel efficiency, but made no actual proposal for new standards…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 2:21 pm
Play Nice Katie (CBS) just said that the Dems are under strict orders to play nice during the speech.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 2:28 pm
Did you see Bachmann all in white? She was like an angel, she was…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 2:47 pm
segues.. Granted I'm on my second drink.. but yeah somebody dropped the ball on the transitions. It feels like he is trying to speed through it. No dramatic pauses and barely giving the “canned” applause time to respond. (e.g. it feels more so this year then in the past like they are prepped and times as to when to clap.)
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 2:48 pm
applause Republicans seem to be applauding things they don't really agree with. I'm starting to wonder if they aren't listening, they just applauded because someone else did.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 2:51 pm
Ahh… Now that were on to the “war on terror” his stride is back. So… “I gotta talk about this odd domestic crap, well if I speed through it to the stuff I like…” seems to be the though pattern.
And yeah the Republicans seem to be phoning this one in…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 2:54 pm
woot At least McCain (sp?) is getting an f'n nap!
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 2:55 pm
I saw that too to be fair, he had this weird winking thing going on before, so maybe he's just trying to rest his eyes.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:01 pm
ummm… fall of a capital city.. chaos… some other country a threat…
I've heard this all before somewhere… mmm… must be deja vu.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:02 pm
“whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure” nope, but somehow they got it anyway…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:11 pm
nice shout outs what up, Tom Brady running away from the president, too?
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:13 pm
well.. My two watch the Disney Little Einsteins… it's o.k. But we never did the Baby Einsteins.
Next two intros are good also… to bad we had to suffer through the “war on evil” speech to get there.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:21 pm
3 minutes of Bachmann on Camera Did anyone else see her talk to the President, then keep her hand on his shoulder for about 2 minutes as he talked to someone else, then pull him back and kiss him and get his autograph? Then she still had her hand on him until he finally just walked away.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:25 pm
Laura had best watch out. Seriously, Michele obviously assumes that “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife” doesn't apply when genders are reversed.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:31 pm
Does Edwards get a kickback since Webb invoked two Americas…
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:41 pm
I thought that was her! Saw her at the very beginning when he was coming out of the tunnel. Wasn't sure it was her until they showed her again at the end.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:47 pm
The games they play Nice job. Two things though, and not to be nit-picky, but oh, the semantic games they play… he did not mention “global warming,” he said global climate change, and there was no mention of raising CAFE standards. IF he acts on what he says, he'll set a goal through the Renewable Fuel Standards Program, but won't push for an increase in the CAFE standards.
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:48 pm
What nerve! Thanks to TIVO I went back and looked for that on the CSPAN feed. Almost creepy. Seems so wrong our out of place. She didn't want him to get away so she could get that 'kiss' and whisper some sweet nothings, and even then didn't want to let go till he was out of reach.
Before that I noticed a quick visit by Coleman with the President. All Normy was doing was nodding his head in the afirmative. I see a commercial in the future with that clip, 'forward and back' and all you see is Norm smiling at the President nodding his head yes over and over again!
Flash
Comment posted January 23, 2007 @ 3:49 pm
to follow up on what you said he also stated we need to increase fuel efficiency, but made no actual proposal for new standards…
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