Good grief! I'll be waking up 3 am hearing the clapping of the US Congress.... The pounding of Congress clashing their hands together every 5 seconds, a nightmare I want to avoid. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was the worst! She helped Joe Biden keep in tip-top shape. Speaker Pelosi and poor VP Biden sat with an American flag as the background for Pres. Obama. Everytime Obama said a sentence she would jump up and clap. Someone from CNN called her a cheerleader. Everytime Pelosi stands up poor Biden had to follow suit. How would it look if the House Speaker gives a standing ovation but the VP doesn't. I could just see it on Biden's face "...she is standing up again... &%$#". A couple times she stood up so fast I thought she would just shoot through the roof.
Each department came into the room in a line shaking hands and talking to the wall of people on the sides. It reminded me of a football team rushing through shaking hands and high-fiving fans. Wolf Blitzer as the sports announcer and each department was a different team... The sports analogy seems appropriate for the way these departments have been battling each other lately. Of course, President Barack Obama walks in shaking hands, smiling, and giving small pecks on the cheek. With all the shaking hands and talking, it took forever for him to get on stage. While many people were thinking how momentous this occasion was, I was thinking that his hand is probably the dirtiest hand in the world. Shaking hands with all those people. You know politicians... they don't wash their hands after using the bathroom. The Congress are sitting on upraised platforms, similar to bleachers. Except instead of a foam finger or football jerseys they hoot and hola in crisp designer brand clothes. Apparently some of them were waiting there since 8 am to get that seat. That one moment with the President... Yea sure Congress! Don't worry about the economy or thousands of people loosing their jobs, that Kodak moment with the President is much more important...
Forced smiles, Rogaine hair, and crispy snazzy clothing... No, last night was not Bingo Night. It was the President's Address to Congress. A very interesting speech. Here are my notes:
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Pres. Obama's priorities:
Energy Healthcare and Education
Energy:
Started the topic with acknowledging China, Japan, and Korea. "It is time for America to lead once again". "We will double this nations supply in the next 3 years." "Profitable energy solution." "The nation that invented the automobile cannot walk away from it."
Healthcare:
Cure for cancer. Largest investment in preventive care. New incentives for teacher performance. Innovative programs. Expand commitment to charter schools. Commit to one year or more of high education. More than a high school education. HS dropouts. "It is quitting on the country. [...] We need the talents of every American." Highest of college graduates.
Parents:
Responsibility for our children's education starts at home. American Issue. Another responsibility, a debt they cannot repay. (The one thing they seemed to agree on)
With the deficit we inherited.
Education:
Half of the students who start college don't finish. Every child has access to a complete and competitive education. From the day they are born.
"Its not about helping banks, its about helping people."
Larry King:
John McCain's (Sen. Arizona) view: Social Security should have been talked about more.
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The President should have had Hugh Jackman do the opening of his speech. Now that would have been way cooler! Instead the show started with a raving and endless applause for Pres. Obama. When they finally shut up, Nancy Pelosi rattlde them all up again by introducing the President. ... seriously? If they don't know who the President is, they really shouldn't be in Congress. Anyway, with the anger and controversy amongst all politicians these past months, their clapping just seemed like an endless applause of lies. Sen. McCain, for example, was applauding Pres. Obama when he was talking about the troops. Sen. McCain later told Larry King that he did not agree with President Obama bringing more troops into the Middle East. Through all the two-faced applauding, it was interesting how President Obama was not afraid to point out the weakness of Congress and the problems of disagreement they have been having. He, of course, followed each of those comments with a general uniting comment.
[Update: Apparently McCain is now saying that its not a bad idea... bad example for me to use...]
Thoughts on Gov. Jindal's speech?
(R) Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's rebuttal:
Gov. Jindal spoke on behalf of the Republican party after the President's speech. He spoke about how he is against the bill and it is full of wasteful spending. I looked up some CNN discussion on Facebook and many people did not like his speech. The most common complaint was that he talked down to the American people. As if he were reading a children's book. Do you feel that way? Also keep in mind, the job he was handed was a very hard job. Confronting the people of America and disagreeing with America's first Black president. Is he the Republican's best hope for redemption?
All in all, the speech was interesting and gave a good summary for his plans. It showed his optimism and goals, which got CNN asking "Is he too ambitious?" "Can he really do all that?".
On a different note, lets talk about the Oscars. I love the fact that Slumdog Millionaire won Best Picture. Well deserved I thought. Yes, the hype is big and maybe getting to a point where it is overrated, however look at Benjamin Button. Slumdog was a unique story and I hope this encourages more movies on diversity. I mean in 1973 Marlon Brando rejected his award for Best Actor because of the movie industries treatment towards American Indians. Sacheen Littlefeather went on stage to give her speech for Mr. Brando and got boo-ed off stage. Now an Indian film wins Best Picture. What a journey.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QUacU0I4yU
I loved Hugh Jackman's performances. My favorite was his performance with Anne Hathaway. Amazing! Favorite speech of the night was, of course, Dustin Lance Black. The writer of Milk. If you haven't seen his acceptance speech then look it up. A must see.
I feel the Disney stars had every right to be there. As presenters, I welcome them but I will side with the rest of the country and say the HS Musical songs should not have been added into the performance. Stick with the classics.... And no Rent songs were even played... ugh... As for the live blogging on CNN. Frustrated me from the beginning. These people were entertaining to watch, bickering back and forth while gawking over all the anchors in a O-so creepy way... But you disagree with me on Beyonce's dress and thats it! Now its just irking. Especially when the whole thing turned out to be a promotion for blog and twitter sites... Jeez. What happened to the 'no links' rule?
As you can see I am particularly moody. No more free cable for me. So now I'm stuck in my room with no Lie to Me or AC360 ... boo!
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