Free Republic

At one time, opposition parties had to demand air time for responses to presidential speeches given to joint sessions of Congress. Those mainly consisted of State of the Union rebuttals, because Presidents don’t normally ask for joint sessions except to speak on matters of high moment, such as declaration of wars or celebrating the end of them. Now, however, the rebuttal speech has become such a pro forma event that a waiver sends a message all its own (via the Drudge Report): Boehner spokesman Mike Steel said Obama’s proposals on Thursday “will rise or fall on their own merits,” suggesting...