SOTU: Ironically, maybe the news isn't so bad after all

"The cause of America is, in a great measure, the cause of all mankind. Many circumstances have, and will arise, which are not local, but universal, and through which the principles of all lovers of mankind are affected, and in the event of which, their affections are interested." Introduction to Thomas Paine's Common Sense, 1791.

"Reaganism won out, and the Republican Party are moving back toward becoming a pro-freedom, anti-Washington party once again," writes p.r. specialist Craig Shirley in the Washington Times. Good news and just in time, given the "frightening and dangerous spectacle" of "Obama's Politially Adolescent America," as Dan Riehl explains in a powerful essay vivisecting the beating heart of darkness that was on display for all to see last night at the President's first State of the Union Address, where the Leader of the Free World "demagogued the First Amendment" in front of the world. First the good news:

Of late, "security" replaced freedom for a time as the essential philosophy of Republicans, but with the departure of George W. Bush a year ago, a struggle took place inside the party. Did it stand for Reaganism or Bushism?

Did it stand for the top-down conservatism of Edmund Burke or the bottom-up conservatism of Thomas Paine?

The results were never really in doubt, helped by Mr. Obama's unexpected headlong rush toward big-government liberalism.

Not to mention the Tea Partiers' under-the-radar disintermediation of the old-boy network via the internet. Now the bad news, all over the blogosphere and twittersphere and Fox News last night and spilling out into the day, Dan's "frightening and dangerous spectacle" of President Obama criticizing the Supreme Court's campaign finance decision in such a distastefully unpresidential manner:

Chuck Schumer sat right behind the justices and couldn't wait to spring to his feet and begin clapping over them. That seemed to be the case for many Democrats, all too happy to flaunt Obama's words over the Roberts court that mostly sat stoically silent as the adults they should be. And all that due to an apparently misinformed Obama who, while a candidate, maintained a web donation set-up that made it hard, if not impossible, to track foreign donations.

We liked Ann Althouse's take on Judge Samuel Alito's mouthing of the words "not true" as his black-robed colleagues held their tongues and took it:

Isn't it fascinating that the lengthy, amplified, magnified speech of the most powerful man in the world with his big captive audience — in the magnificent room and in smaller rooms all over the country — are outweighed by one man's headshake and silent mouthing of 2 or 3 words?

And isn't it ironic that, right when we saw the judge's minimalist expression that overwhelmed the President's torrent of words, Obama was railing about the "powerful interests" that would use their great wealth to speak far too much during election campaigns?

It's not how much or how loud you speak that counts, is it?

Maybe the news isn't so bad after all.

Update: Dan links. So does Michelle Malkin's Buzzworthy. Thanks, guys!

Comments

[goomp]

Just right.

[goomp]

One great danger is the supreme ignorance of the educated class. They do not understand that the USA is the freest and most prosperous country that ever existed and how it became so.

[Gayle Miller]

And when, pray tell, is Scott Brown going to take his seat?

Not only was President Obama RUDE to the Supreme Court but he also LIED about the effect of that decision he was criticizing.

What's really interesting is now American corporations can speak with the same sized voice as that p.o.s. George Soros can - that's what's really upsetting our President.

[brooklyn]

Another fine post...

However, the GOP never stopped being the "a pro-freedom".

Anti-Washington sentiment is interesting, populism will always sell.

I think it is important to be more clear, instead of the fashion we see peddled with is so often confused.

GW Bush and the Republicans took aggressive and admirable steps to fight for freedom around the World, it is one of the GOP's finest characteristics.

But the Bush Administration did a vast number of outstanding 'pro-freedom' efforts on the Domestic side, which helped all Americans, including those wonderful Tax Cuts.

Alito and Roberts, another product of the Republican Tenure in the Executive Branch, just shot down the oppressive nature of a very misguided McCain-Feingold censorship of free speech.

My humble point is, we will always have misguided fashion followers like McCain, but the following of a simplistic conservative fashion, can be just as counter productive as well.

Concepts that the Republicans abandoned their convictions are largely overblown. Most foolishly grew reactionary after 2004, primarily due to fears about Iraq, and some actually enabled the opposite of what they wanted - enabling the likes of Mrs. Pelosi, Mr. Reid, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Obama, etc.

Mr. Brown, Mr. Christie, Mr. McDonnell, etc., are all evidence the voters may be returning to sanity. I just feel, Voters don't view all in a vacuum, they remember the Republican offering in the past, and the Republican Majority from 2002 to 2006, coupled with the Bush Administration's fine leadership, is such an attractive alternative to the Democratic Disaster we see today.

Encouraging more sound policy and representation in a sincere conservative effort is wonderful, just I truly believe the Republicans got a very bad rap from some very emotive sources.