A mismatched set of priorities
The dust has settled after the president’s State of the Union address, and most of the commentary seems to have settled on the observation that it was too long, that it was less partisan than expected and that it was largely forgettable because it was laid out in such broad terms.
There were, as to be expected, inspirational passages and moments, such as the point when President Barack Obama gave an uplifting and well-deserved tribute to a soldier in the audience who had been badly wounded overseas.
But in the end, it was a State of the Union address that was seen by just 33.3 million viewers, the lowest in 14 years, and well below Obama’s 2009 address, which attracted 52.4 million viewers.
Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan recently opined that people aren’t listening to Obama anymore. Well, based on the ratings that’s obviously part of what’s happening, but there’s more at play here. It’s arguable that the president isn’t talking about what people are really worried about.
A Quinnipiac poll taken shortly before the State of the Union address asked, “What do you think should be the top priority for President Obama and Congress in 2014?”
Income inequality earned a 1 percent response, gun control got 1 percent, immigration got 2 percent, and the environment, broadly seen as climate change, got only 2 percent.
Yet, those issues combined made up the biggest chunk of Obama’s address. They are indeed the issues of his core progressive base, and they have taken center stage among Democrats in Washington, but they do not reflect the top concerns of most Americans.
And those concerns are? According to Quinnipiac, the top priorities for poll respondents were the economy with 15 percent, jobs and unemployment at 16 percent, and health care in the lead with 18 percent.
Those concerns seem to conform with the real state of the Union. While Obama expectedly tried to highlight some bright spots regarding the economy, the reality is that huge swaths of the country are still immersed in economic malaise, particularly minority communities. The U-6 unemployment rate, which accounts for people who have dropped out of the labor force, is at 13.1 percent, and the labor participation rate is at a 36-year low. There are record enrollments for food stamps, not a sign of a healthy economy.
Yet, the president’s main economic proposals in the address involved extending unemployment benefits and raising the minimum wage for people who are contracted employees of the federal government. He talked broadly about creating more economic “opportunity,” and about giving Americans a raise, but there were no firm, effective proposals to stimulate economic growth and job creation.
It’s not surprising that “health care” is the top concern, because it is joined at the hip with the overall economic picture. And it is a big concern precisely because of the immense uncertainty created by Obama’s signature Affordable Care Act.
Obamacare surely has the attention of Americans who have lost their insurance, seen their premiums or deductibles rise, or if they’ve seen their working hours reduced to part-time as a result of the law.
Out-of-work Americans also might be understandably concerned about all the urgency surrounding immigration reform these days in Washington, D.C. They are justified in worrying about what flooding the country with millions of newly eligible workers might do to their job prospects.
They are also justified in worrying that, based on Tuesday night’s speech, the president’s priorities and policies simply are not addressing the most pressing concerns of the American people.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of the Daily Inter Lake’s editorial board.