What the heck? President Bush's State of the Union

A preview of President Bush's speech on the State of the Union tonight follows my comments. Courtesy of Newsmax.com

I am confused. Why does the State of the Union not include the state of our Union. The administration is ahead of schedule in plans to balance the budget, we have extremely high employment numbers, inflation is low, oil prices are down due to guess what? the laws of supply and demand and there are good things going on in Iraq. He should say these things to us.
The state of the Union is fine, great even.

Yes we need energy independence, so why doesn't he tell us that his administration has paved the way for new Nuclear Power plants? As a matter of fact a 'new' one is due to "Go live" in May. Yay cheaper electricity with which to heat our houses, Yay less dependence on oil! And there are a couple dozen more out there being planned.

He should let us know that this administration is (has?) revoking a policy put in by the Carter administration that prohibits reprocessing of reactor fuel leaving us with massive clean-up woes re-using the waste would drop the half life from 10's of 1000's of years to 10's of years.
Look ma no "sacrifice zones", areas that are contaminated and unusable.

He should tell us of the good things happening in Iraq, and remind us that if we do not fight to the end on foreign soil our Grandchildren will be fighting the war here.

He should tell us we can be left to educate our children without government interference.

Instead we are getting talk of steps into socialized health care and leaving no child behind. Apparently whether it takes a 'village' or not we are going to get one.
We are going to be offered a tax credit to ensure we can afford health insurance and then getting that coverage taxed. All the while telling us that he has a plan to balance the budget without new taxes. No new taxes! Oh right, we aren't going to have higher taxes just a higher tax bracket due to adding in our health coverage.

I'll listen, but I will be praying that we will hear something else. Maybe even just the true State of the Union.





Bush Speech to Challenge Iraq Critics, Call for Energy Independence
In his State of the Union address, President Bush will propose a wide range of initiatives for reducing America’s dependence on foreign countries for oil.
The U.S. currently imports 60 percent of its oil, and Bush will point out that this leaves the country at the mercy of dictators from the Middle East to Venezuela.
Bush will outline ways to make cars more fuel efficient. He will cite a number of technological advances, such as improved ways to make cellulosic ethanol, as ways to lessen dependence on foreign oil over the next 10 years. Cellulosic ethanol is a type of ethanol that is produced from waste from urban, agricultural, and forestry sources.

In the 40-minute speech, Bush will also unveil new initiatives for making health insurance available to those who are currently uninsured. Bush will propose a tax deduction of $7,500 for individuals and $15,000 for families regardless of whether they buy their own health insurance or receive medical coverage at work. Health care insurance would be considered taxable income, and people with more generous policies could face tax increases unless they change plans.
The idea is to create a financial incentive for the estimated 46 million to 48 million Americans who lack health insurance to buy it. The plan would rein in the soaring cost of health insurance by encouraging workers in high-priced plans to seek more modest coverage.
Bush will also describe what will be called Affordable Choice, a way to provide health insurance to those who cannot afford it. Pioneered by Mitt Romney when he was governor of Massachusetts, this approach cobbles together existing funds paid to hospitals to cover care for the uninsured. As Romney has, Bush will tout the plan as a way to use market forces to cover the uninsured efficiently without government intrusion.
About half the speech will be devoted to the need to win in Iraq. Bush will challenge congressional critics of his plan to increase troops in Iraq to come up with their own path to victory.
Bush will also touch on the need to curtail congressional earmarks for pet projects and the need to extend the No Child Left Behind At to help kids learn to read. In three speeches to be given next week, Bush will outline details of his budget plan aimed at balancing the budget without raising taxes in five years.
Ronald Kessler is chief Washington correspondent of NewsMax