Originally Posted by Pete F.
Don't they all
Last night marked President Barack Obama's eighth and final State of the Union address (full text here), a historic moment for the United States and a huge personal achievement for the embattled president, who has faced gun violence, terrorism, a flailing economy, and a hostile Congress during his two terms in office.
That hostile Congress was out in full colors last night, displaying a shocking level of disrespect for the Commander in Chief, and Speaker Ryan, who remained largely inert on the rostrum behind the president, was first in line — while even the most reluctant of his Republican fellows got up to applaud for lines supporting veterans, the "cancer moonshot," and American military strength, Ryan at one point actually twiddled his thumbs. His continual anxious shifting, on display to the nation, also included moves like crossing his legs, adjusting his jacket, fiddling with his ear, and wringing his hands. Perhaps he just really needed to tinkle.
He also — or, rather, his interns and staff — tweeted during the State of the Union with a line of commentary demonstrating his sheer level of disdain for the president.
He wasn't the only one. While the GOP isn't required to like the State of the Union, and is in fact encouraged to respond with a rebuttal — provided this year by South Carolina governor Nikki Haley — a modicum of respect is a reasonable expectation in the halls of Congress, and the behaviors seen on display last night were nothing short of childish.
Similarly, large swaths of the GOP chose to remain seated with increasingly bored expressions — some even appeared to nod off — during the speech, including during segments that would have provoked thunderous GOP applause had they come from a Republican president. Instead, they evidently so greatly feared appearing supportive of anything coming out of the president's mouth that they opted to sit still through the president's commentary on issues like better benefits and support for military and veterans, bootstrapping recommendations to work harder in order to achieve dreams, and improving conditions for business, all popular GOP topics. We couldn't expect them to stand up for the class war segment of the evening or their sound spanking on failure to act on Daesh and curbing Islamophobic sentiment, but come on, they couldn't rise for curing cancer?
|