Obama Aims State of the Union Address at the Working Class

During his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Obama primed the electorate with a speech that cast him as a champion of the American middle class—a wise, albeit predictable move during a year in which he’ll seek re-election. In their response, Republicans timidly disagreed that the economy has improved under his watch. —ARK

The New York Times:

“The state of our union is getting stronger,” he declared in time-honored tradition. “In the last 22 months, businesses have created more than three million jobs.” He pointed to renewed hiring by American manufacturers and — borrowing the “built to last” phrase from the auto industry he helped save — he sketched out, albeit vaguely, what he called a blueprint for economic growth in which the wealthy play by the same rules as ordinary Americans.

Republicans challenged Mr. Obama’s assessment of the economy, and asserted that his policies had made the situation worse. But with their own poll numbers diving, Congressional Republicans were subdued in their response to the speech, careful not to boo or seem disrespectful. And the president disputed their claim that he was practicing the politics of division.

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AP / Saul Loeb

Borrowing a phrase from the auto industry he helped save, Obama repeatedly referred to a country and an economy “built to last.”