NYT Lead Editorial on SOTU: "rings hollow"

[nostamj]

When the president delivers his State of the Union address, we like to listen respectfully and respond politely. It is always easy to find things worth applauding. Last night, for instance, President Bush mentioned job retraining, immigration law reform and programs to help newly released prisoners re-enter society. The impulse is always to split the difference — to decry the ideas we disagree with and then note the ones we like. This time, such evenhandedness seems impossible. The president's domestic policy comes down to one disastrous fact: his insistence on huge tax cuts for the wealthy has robbed the country of the money it needs to address its problems and has threatened its long-term economic security. Everything else is beside the point.

<snip>

The idea that the cuts are a rough tool to shrink the federal government seems increasingly ludicrous, given the Republican Congress's determination to pork up every bill with new spending plans. There are only two reasons why Mr. Bush could be so determined to do the wrong thing: because his Congressional majorities mean that he probably can, and because the wealthy donors helping to underwrite his campaign expect that he will.

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[kentuck]

1. And this...

"It is actually a cruel hoax to pretend that Washington can afford to do anything new, even with the modest grab bag of small new initiatives and familiar retreads suggested by the president. In that context, his decision last night to re-endorse the Social Security overhaul plan from his last campaign was terrifying."

[Dudley_DUright]

6. The cruel hoax

is that Bush is actually president. In that context, everything he proposes is terrifying.

[diamond14]

2. the whole mis-admistration is a total disaster....send bush* back

to his 'prairie chapel ranch' in Crawford....

SHOW BUSH THE DOOR IN 2004

BOOT BUSH in 2004

[Bandit]

3. I don't understand your reference to the article "ringing hollow"

It seemed to me to be quite to the point and very hard hitting. I wish the newspaper would use bold letters more often like you did to high-light the meat of the article. Drip Drip Drip Drip.

[Tansy_Gold]

4. "rings hollow" was a quote from the editorial, not

a comment on it.

[nostamj]

5. what Tansy said...

sorry it wasn't clear...

[grasswire]

7. wow...

....he's 0-2. The Washington Post's editorial was also highly critical. Although not quite as bitter as this one is!