The most remembered quote from the 2015 State of the Union; “I have no more campaigns to run. I know because I won both of them” was about the only thing I heard students talking about following the annual address. While Obama supporters around applaud the president’s snarky ability to silence an audience, other things were brought out in the speech that should be acknowledged, and not forgotten. It is easy to forget the issues he spoke of, especially for busy students like us who think and work on a day-to-day basis, but something as monumental as the State of the Union should not be placed on the backburner.
Because Obama indeed does not have another campaign to run, his time in office, time availability for getting the important things done is dwindling. Unfortunately, with only a year left, it is unlikely that Obama will be able to end world hunger, eliminate the wage gap, or make politics less political and more just. Despite this, the SOTU serves as a good reminder of the major issues of this year, and the things that we need to keep our eyes fixed on when it comes to policies and campaigning, regardless of the gender. If you go on to the White House blog website, you can see an article that sums up the ‘can’t miss moments of the 2015 State of the Union Address.’ These involve not just gender equality, but also an effort to boost the middle class. This effort includes child care revisions, and paid leave at work.
Tying in to the helping hand for the middle class is the conscious effort to eliminate the tax loopholes abused by the one percent, specifically the trust fund loophole. Obama also discussed the importance of the effort to decrease the pace of climate change, explaining the science behind the issue; it is no longer a political matter, but something that needs to be addressed and resolved for the betterment of the world. Another monumental issue that was brought up was education. Obama discussed plans for eliminating any costs to attend community college.
Regardless of one’s political affiliation or sentiments on the current president, I believe these have all been hot topics over the past couple years, and that is enough reason to pay attention to the State of the Union Address. Obama may not be able to achieve everything over the next year, but these issues that affect everyone in this country should not be forgotten in the hustle and bustle of the upcoming election. It isn’t necessarily the face of the president, their religious practices, or how much money they have in their bank that we should care about; it is who is going to be most successful, efficient, and productive in remembering the issues that need to be addressed more extensively than just in a brief statement at the State of the Union.