The SOTU Overview

Pretty mundane, on the whole. A very spirited defense of foreign policy, more watered down on the domestic stuff.

Some commentators have argued that the speech was insufficiently conservative, citing the government programs being enumerated -- massive spending on alternative fuels, only one line about making the tax cuts permanent.

To me, this isn't necessarily a dealbreaker. In fact, it could be argued that it makes sense from a strategic point of view. People don't actually tune in to hear the President all that often, relying mostly on second or third hand characterizations and accounts. In a divided country, where people regularly hear the President being demonized, it makes sense, I believe, for him to avoid rhetoric that could be easily incorporated into a Democratic caricature. And it's sheer genius to put in applause lines that force the Democrats either to rise and applaud, or to risk looking repugnantly partisan (e.g. "we will never surrender to evil").

In choosing red state governor Tim Kaine (D-VA) to offer their response, the Democrats were certainly operating on the principle of putting their "moderate" face forward for the American people. In fact, it reminds me of a little child trying to act as though he behaves well, during the few minutes when he knows his parents' eyes on upon him.

That being said, it seems to me that Presidents do well when they speak out in full throated advocacy for conservative policies and programs, and I would have liked to heard more in that vein. And, frankly, the Democrats have more need to try to hew to the center (and hide their ideologicsl predilections) than the Republicans do.