Posted on 01/29/2018 7:33:17 PM PST by Liberty7732
Normally this is where I’d rattle off a few paragraphs advancing my argument, to wit, that the State of the Union is the lamest official event in American politics (the lamest unofficial event is the White House Correspondents Dinner), enjoyed by no one and valued by attendees only for the opportunity it presents for halfwit virtue-signaling on the cheap.
Do I have to make that argument, though? You’ve all endured this miserable spectacle at some point in your lives. You know firsthand how insufferable it is. Instead of me having to convince you, the burden should be on you to convince me: Why wouldn’t America be better off with the president submitting a written statement to Congress in lieu of a speech, as presidents did for nearly the entire 19th century? It was Thomas Jefferson, a man remembered for his many great ideas, who ended the practice of SOTU oratory. It was Woodrow Wilson, a man remembered for his many terrible ones, who brought it back. Presidents change but the speech is invariably boring, too long, and irrelevant politically despite the massive audience and even more massive hype for it year after year. The tradition of oratory continues because every White House views it as a chance to deliver its message directly to the people at a scale unmatched by anything outside of Super Bowl Sunday. But the idea of the SOTU as a potential gamechanger is a myth. Ariel Edwards-Levy, HuffPost’s chief poll analyst, has written a post every year for the past four years around this time reminding readers that the SOTU never affects the polls. Certainly never long-term. It’s a total nothingburger.
(Excerpt) Read more at hotair.com ...
With a non-performing media, this in one way to get his agenda out to the people. The President has given some very good speeches and he’s getting better all the time.
Yup; once a successful conservative president starts to give SOTU speeches, they suddenly need to be cancelled.
How did this happen to the Democrats? Poor Hillary didn’t win and now everything has gone haywire. The media is lost in space. They are deeply resentful, angry and out of control.
I think the media is afraid that President Trump is going to read the Nunes memo to Congress tomorrow. LOL.
First of all, the SOTU is a great venue to reach past the media into regular folks living rooms.
Secondly, that Joe Wilson “You Lie!” thing was awesome.
Hot gas is a liberal site, so of course they want it ended now that we have a conservative president who actually needs the platform to report the news that our fake media is too busy suppressing. You know, things like killing off ISIS in record time and record low unemployment levels for women and minorities.
Analpundit is the most loathsome stooge over there, peddling Russian Bot conspiracies for explaining the demand for the fisa memo.
That used to be a daily site for me. It’s not even in my browser history anymore.
The previous 8 SOTU speeches though - oh noes, if you didn’t tune in, you were a racist, birther pig! Why, you should be forced to watch our beloved 1st biracial President.
The President can’t. The SOTU is mandated by the Constitution, but not described as to how. It could be just a quick letter of a long drawn out speech, but reporting the State of the Union must be done by the President.
Wonder who is behind it?
I'm certain the Democrats will yell the same — or worse — tomorrow night.
It’s an attempt to get people not to watch it.
Yeah, but it won’t be truth to power.
Hard to yell “You Lie!” when anyone can fact check the comment 2 seconds.
...but I get your point.
do you think Sheila J-L will push people aside to get to the end of the aisle to kiss the president when he goes by. She has an 7 year streak
Cancel it? Like hell. After the events of today I’d crawl over broken glass to hear it. MAGA!
a speech is not mandated the president has to report to congress from time to time
He could tweet it every Monday if he wanted to.
The formal basis for the State of the Union Address is from the U.S. Constitution: The President “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.” Article II, Section 3, Clause 1.”
George Washington delivered the first regular annual message before a joint session of Congress on January 8, 1790, in New York City, then the provisional U.S. capital. In 1801, Thomas Jefferson discontinued the practice of delivering the address in person, regarding it as too monarchical (similar to the Speech from the Throne). Instead, the address was written and then sent to Congress to be read by a clerk until 1913 when Woodrow Wilson re-established the practice despite some initial controversy. However, there have been exceptions to this rule. Presidents during the latter half of the 20th century have sent written State of the Union addresses. The last President to do this was Jimmy Carter in 1981.[8]
Article II Section 3 Clause 1. This could be once per congressional term, once per presidential term, or once per month.
Well, Trump might be the man to do it, the written statement, but I would think it’s a paramount opportunity for him to get an unfiltered message out over 184 characters, so let him at it.
They may exceed in vulgarity what they have ever done before. Lets BRING la RAZA into the chambers. How fun it will be!
It hit me that Obama spent his time, his whole time, trying to make the USA a place that was ungovernable. That is largely what we are combating today.
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