Here are five things President Obama needs to do when he appears before Congress tonight for his State of the Union Address:
1. Take the voodoo out of your economics. Once and for all, explain to the country a coherent economic vision.
For the past year, your administration’s solution has been, “Spend for our lives!”
Now, suddenly, it’s “Batten down the spending hatches!”
Smart and honest people embrace the starkly divergent views about how to rescue a faltering economy, but you can’t head off in both directions at once.
2. Since you appear to suddenly care about the deep economic maw into which our deficits are dragging us, you must do so much more than “freeze” a small portion of federal spending.
If you had a friend who was hopelessly addicted to spending and had plunged himself so far into debt that he was in hock to armed loan sharks around the world and his children were sentenced to a life of indentured servitude, you would not tell him to continue spending at current levels. You would take away his credit cards and get him help.
3. Renew your vows to change the way Washington works.
Start by telling your fellow Democrats to knock off the shady backroom dealing that resulted in their Frankenstein health-care bill.
And warn your fellow party members that if they send you a health-care bill that isn’t exactly what you want, you will veto it.
4. Send a timber-quaking message to America’s enemies.
Those believing you don’t take the threat of terrorism seriously were given plenty of reason to think you really don’t by your disastrous handling of the crotch-bomb fiasco on Christmas Day.
You need to make clear to American voters and the terrorists around the world now plotting the next attack that, indeed, you do take terrorism seriously.
And, apparently, you need to make that clear to your own administration. You should start by firing Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano — right there from the rostrum.
5. When you arrive at Congress and after you have made your way down the center aisle of the chamber, but before you open your mouth, dismount from your high horse.
Please do not give us one of your law-school lectures.
And, whatever you do, don’t repeat your clueless, cocky claim this week that you would rather lose re-election if it meant you were able to cram down voters’ throats what they are just too stupid to understand is good for them.