Long Island

Politics

ny-posotu0127-sg

After the theatrics and the rhetoric and the canned responses, two questions remain from President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a>'s first State of the Union address: Did he succeed in persuading nervous <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> not to cut and run on his presidency; and will he succeed in making <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> think twice about their united opposition to almost all things Obama? 
Those were certainly the underlying objectives of Obama's speech Wednesday night. He needed to stiffen the spines of <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a>, who are justifiably worried about surviving the wrath of a disgruntled electorate in November. He wanted to challenge Republicans by warning that voters may hold them as responsible as Democrats for the breakdown of functioning government in Washington. And he needed to reconnect with the voters after a year in which he became a virtual prisoner of the machinations on Capitol Hill. 
The State of the Union speech is a president's best opportunity to speak to the country, and there was much in Obama's address aimed at all Americans. His concentration on jobs and the economy was a tardy admission that he and the Democrats had become so consumed with health care that they had taken their focus off the main worry of average families and paid a political price for that lapse. 
His proposals spanned the ideological spectrum to lock in on disparate groups of voters: more tax cuts for small business; more nuclear power plants and offshore drilling for conservatives; more education spending for suburban families; a spending freeze for deficit hawks; a renewed pledge to end "don't ask, don't tell" for the left. And, for anyone willing to listen, there was the promise to keep fighting for health care. 
<a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a> officials, looking at their post-speech analysis and the instant polls, concluded that Obama had helped his cause, particularly with independent voters. Advisers saw the speech as a circuit breaker after the tumult of the loss of the <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> seat in <a href="/topics/Massachusetts">Massachusetts</a> and, at least temporarily, something that will bring Democrats back together as they start the election year. 
The key to this is what Obama does next. What was most striking about Wednesday's speech was the long closing section on the country's broken politics, delivered to a hushed chamber. This was Obama seeking to regain the footing of his successful campaign, this time as a chastened leader rather than the rock-star politician who swept into national consciousness with such clarity of voice and vision. 
It was almost as if he were speaking to himself as he closed out his speech. "I campaigned on the promise of change - change we can believe in, the slogan went," he said. "And right now, I know there are many Americans who aren't sure if they still believe we can change - or that I can deliver it." 
That is the challenge he faces, the core issue one year into his presidency. Can he deliver? 
 &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728532">Obama's proposals </a>&gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728197">Republican response</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728448">Full transcript of the State of the Union Address</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728562">Poll: What did you like best?</a> &gt;&gt;<a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1713189"> Obama's five challenges</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728563">Michelle Obama's look on Wednesday night</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1726224">Complete coverage: Obama's 2010 State of the Union address</a>

News

Nation/World

USASSE29

Questions remain after Obama's State of the Union speech

ap.org:951c478495a24992b155383b63b6d805

WASHINGTON - In his first address to a joint session of <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> in a year, President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> Wednesday returned in the role that won him the presidency - as the agent of change. 
But Obama also decided to step back and take aim at the branch of government that has frustrated his ambitions and led his <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democratic Party</a> to a potentially disastrous result in this year's midterm elections. 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/news/president-barack-obama-1.238"> &gt;&gt; PHOTOS: See photes of Barack Obama from his State of the Union speech and more</a> 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/video-embattled-obama-declares-in-speech-i-don-t-quit-1.1728891">&gt;&gt; VIDEO: Embattled Obama delivers State of the Union</a> 
After allowing <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> to take the lead on his most important priorities - the health care overhaul, <a href="/topics/Global_Warming">climate change</a>, energy bills and restructuring immigration - Obama appeared to be signaling that he would now take on more of a role as advocate and challenger. 
"People are out of work. They are hurting," Obama said. ". . . And I want a jobs bill on my desk without delay." 
He sought to enlist the help of the voters, who appear to be increasingly impatient with <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> and its inability to deliver on legislation. 
"I know there are many Americans who aren't sure if they still believe we can change - or at least that I can deliver it," he said. "But remember this - I never suggested that change would be easy, or that I can do it alone." 
Outlining a series of new initiatives to create jobs, give added security to the middle class, expand education and reduce the deficit, Obama repeatedly put the onus on <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>. 
And he repeatedly blamed the politics of destruction, the never-ending campaign, the desire to score points rather than pass legislation, as the cause of the gridlock that was leading Americans to cynicism. 
"Rather than fight the same tired battles that have dominated Washington for decades, it's time for something new. Let's try common sense," he said. 
"To do that, we have to recognize that we face more than a deficit of dollars right now," he said. "We face a deficit of trust - deep and corrosive doubts about how Washington works that have been growing for years." 
Looking ahead, Obama outlined a series of reforms <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> must enact - posting all earmarks on one Web page, for example. 
Obama had to shake up his image to give his administration a chance to regroup and to give many in his own party who are disillusioned with him another reason to support him. 
It was a necessary pivot, New York political consultant Hank Sheinkopf and other <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> said, especially after voters in <a href="/topics/Massachusetts">Massachusetts</a> sent shock waves with the upset victory of a <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republican</a> to replace the Democratic lion, Sen. <a href="/topics/Edward_M._Kennedy">Edward Kennedy</a>. 
But Obama walked a fine line at times Wednesday night, calling for bipartisanship while loading blame on <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> and the <a href="/topics/George_W._Bush">Bush</a> administration for leaving him with $1 trillion in debt, two wars and a financial crisis. 
And he may again have fallen short by trying to find a middle ground on a complex economic problem - offering to freeze the nondefense budget for three years, a move that neither <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> nor <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> respect. 
And Obama took aim at influences that create disillusionment. "Each time lobbyists game the system or politicians tear each other down instead of lifting this country up, we lose faith," he said. "The more that TV pundits reduce serious debates into silly arguments, and big issues into sound bites, our citizens turn away." 
 &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728532">Obama's proposals</a><a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728532"> </a>&gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728197">Republican response</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728448">Full transcript of the State of the Union Address</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728562">Poll: What did you like best?</a> &gt;&gt;<a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1713189"> Obama's five challenges</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728563">Michelle Obama's look on Wednesday night</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1726224">Complete coverage: Obama's 2010 State of the Union address</a>

USANAL28X

Obama's State of Union: People are hurting

On Tuesday, Newsday asked several Long Islanders what they hoped to hear in President Barack <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Obama</a>'s State of the Union speech. Wednesday night, the same residents gave their thoughts on whether <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Obama</a> met their expectations. 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/news/president-barack-obama-1.238"> &gt;&gt; PHOTOS: See photes of Barack Obama from his State of the Union speech and more</a> 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/video-embattled-obama-declares-in-speech-i-don-t-quit-1.1728891">&gt;&gt; VIDEO: Embattled Obama delivers State of the Union</a> 
Alexandra Boccio, 20, <a href="/topics/Commack%2C_NY">Commack</a>, student at <a href="/topics/Stony_Brook_University">Stony Brook University</a> 
"I am blown away. Amazing. It met my expectations and exceeded them beyond my wildest imagination. I have to say I love his personable and joking approach to some of it. It made me feel I could sit and relate to him. But what really got me were his quotes, 'I will not walk away from these Americans' when talking about health care reform. And of course his ending, 'We don't quit. I don't quit.' Simple, to the point and very strong. 
&nbsp; 
Nancy Levine, late 40s, <a href="/topics/Roslyn_Heights%2C_NY">Roslyn Heights</a>, works in office of husband, an endodontist 
"I found his speech uplifting and positive toward health care reform. He took the blame on not explaining the health care bill clearly and I think in the next few months I would like to hear him explain because no one is clear on what it is. A big thing he didn't talk about is dealing with tort reform. . . . I think he's on the right track, but I'm still skeptical about whether he'll be able to implement all the changes he proposed. 
&nbsp; 
Nicole Fraser, 35, <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a>, hospital patient registrar 
"Yes, I'm liking what he's saying about the small-business tax credit because I'm also one of those people that's an entrepreneur. . . . I manufacture all natural products for your hair and skin. . . . He's just reassured me about the future that he has for us, for the college students, giving college students a break. That's something I'm looking forward to. . . . I have a daughter going to college. . . . I'm happy that he's trying to build new jobs." 
&nbsp; 
Star Davis, 39, <a href="/topics/Copiague%2C_NY">Copiague</a>, owner of Sittin Pretty Hair Salon in <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a> 
"He got everything on point. Everything that I wanted to hear, I heard. He's trying to create more jobs for the people. Health care reform, if I get sick, I want to be able to go to the doctor, the hospital, and get some care without being told, 'No, you can't have this, you can't have that.' It all sounds good. But we just have to wait and see. You have to have faith." 
&nbsp; 
Phillip Cuiffo, 66, <a href="/topics/Northport%2C_NY">Northport</a>, owner of Residential Appraisal Services in <a href="/topics/Northport%2C_NY">Northport</a>: 
"It's pretty much expected. He's talking mostly about the economy. And he's very eloquent, as usual. Actions speak louder than words. He's going to put a lot of things in place to help the economy, and we'll see if they come to fruition. He knew he has to address the economy and lighten up on the issue of health care, though it seems he still wants to keep that in play." 
&nbsp; 
Souleymane Lo, 38, <a href="/topics/West_Babylon%2C_NY">West Babylon</a>, owner of <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a> Kicks, an athletic clothing store in <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a> 
"I liked this speech especially because he started talking about the economy and how he's going to help small businesses. Last year they spent a lot of money bailing out the banks and he's saying some of the money they recouped they are going to use to help small businesses. People like me can get credit and loans so we can buy inventory. We will have more resources to spend. I hope it will help us create jobs." 
&nbsp; 
<a href="/topics/Adam_Goldberg">Adam Goldberg</a>, 43, <a href="/topics/Franklin_Square%2C_NY">Franklin Square</a>, owns an ultrasound service company, a small family business 
"It's refreshing. It's like having the president that I voted for. He's hitting all of the points that he campaigned on. . . . I think it's energizing. . . . Health care reform - he understands how hard it is to get these things done, but isn't going to give up." 
 &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728532">Obama's proposals </a>&gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728197">Republican response</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728448">Full transcript of the State of the Union Address</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728562">Poll: What did you like best?</a> &gt;&gt;<a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1713189"> Obama's five challenges</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728563">Michelle Obama's look on Wednesday night</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1726224">Complete coverage: Obama's 2010 State of the Union address</a>

LISTAT28

LIers react to State of the Union speech

President Obama delivered an urgent plea for unity last night during his first State of the Union address, seeking to recapture the energy that propelled him into office — and reverse his party’s trajectory on the heels of recent setbacks. 
 Obama refocused his agenda on the economy and jobs, casting himself as the advocate of average citizens. 
 &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728532">Obama's proposals </a>&gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728197">Republican response</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728562">Poll: What did you like best?</a> &gt;&gt;<a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1713189"> Obama's five challenges</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728563">Michelle Obama's look on Wednesday night</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1726224">Complete coverage: Obama's 2010 State of the Union address</a> 
 But even as he returned to his campaign theme of hope, Obama summoned the frustration with government that drove his candidacy in the first place. Disparaging “the same tired battles that have dominated Washington for decades,” he demanded new cooperation from <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>. 
 “Let’s try common sense,” the president said. 
 Among his proposals: &nbsp; Jobs Obama told <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> that creating jobs must be its No. 1 focus this year. Saying businesses are the engine of job creation, he proposed that <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> take $30 billion from the <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> bailout to help community banks make loans to small businesses. He also is proposing a small business tax credit that would help a million small businesses, as well as eliminating capital gains taxes on small business investment. &nbsp; Health Care Hoping to rescue his health care overhaul, Obama appealed for support for the plan that is in severe danger in <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>, urging dispirited <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> not to abandon the effort. 
 “By the time I’m finished speaking tonight, more Americans will have lost their health insurance,” Obama said. “Patients will be denied the care they need. Small-business owners will continue to drop coverage altogether. I will not walk away from these Americans. And neither should the people in this chamber.” &nbsp; Education Obama urged the spread of school reforms across the country and said the nation’s students need to be inspired to exceed in math and science. 
 He also called on <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> to finish work on a measure to revitalize community colleges. And he called for a $10,000 tax credit to families for four years of college, and an increase in Pell Grants. He also said college students should only have to devote 10 percent of their post-college income to repaying student loans. &nbsp; Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Reaching out to a skeptical gay community, Obama urged <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> to repeal the ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military. &nbsp; Other highlights include: Financial overhaul: Urged the <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> to follow the House and pass a financial overhaul bill to protect consumers from industry abuses and make sure they have the information they need to make decisions about what to do with their money. 
 Federal spending: Proposed a three-year freeze on most domestic spending, beginning in 2011. Spending on national security, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security would be exempt. 
 Open government: Called for requiring lobbyists to report each contact with his administration or <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>. Urged lawmakers to pass a bill to undo a recent Supreme Court ruling that allows companies and labor unions to spend freely on campaign ads that promote or target particular candidates by name. 
 Energy: Urged <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> passage of comprehensive energy and climate legislation to help the country shift toward cleaner energy sources. &nbsp; 
 &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728532">Obama's proposals </a>&gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728197">Republican response</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728562">Poll: What did you like best?</a> &gt;&gt;<a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1713189"> Obama's five challenges</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728563">Michelle Obama's look on Wednesday night</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1726224">Complete coverage: Obama's 2010 State of the Union address</a>

ny-usobam28-manual

Obama’s focus: Jobs, health care, education

US-POLITICS-OBAMA-STATE OF THE UNION

Text of President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a>'s first State of the Union speech, as prepared for delivery on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 and provided by the <a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a>. 
___ 
Madame Speaker, Vice President Biden, members of <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>, distinguished guests, and fellow Americans: 
Our Constitution declares that from time to time, the president shall give to <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> information about the state of our union. For 220 years, our leaders have fulfilled this duty. They have done so during periods of prosperity and tranquility. And they have done so in the midst of war and depression; at moments of great strife and great struggle. 
It's tempting to look back on these moments and assume that our progress was inevitable, that America was always destined to succeed. But when the Union was turned back at Bull Run and the Allies first landed at Omaha Beach, victory was very much in doubt. When the market crashed on Black Tuesday and civil rights marchers were beaten on Bloody Sunday, the future was anything but certain. These were times that tested the courage of our convictions and the strength of our union. And despite all our divisions and disagreements, our hesitations and our fears, America prevailed because we chose to move forward as one nation and one people. 
Again, we are tested. And again, we must answer history's call. 
One year ago, I took office amid two wars, an economy rocked by severe <a href="/topics/Economic_Recession">recession</a>, a financial system on the verge of collapse and a government deeply in debt. Experts from across the political spectrum warned that if we did not act, we might face a second depression. So we acted immediately and aggressively. And one year later, the worst of the storm has passed. 
But the devastation remains. One in 10 Americans still cannot find work. Many businesses have shuttered. Home values have declined. Small towns and rural communities have been hit especially hard. For those who had already known poverty, life has become that much harder. 
This <a href="/topics/Economic_Recession">recession</a> has also compounded the burdens that America's families have been dealing with for decades — the burden of working harder and longer for less, of being unable to save enough to retire or help kids with college. 
So I know the anxieties that are out there right now. They're not new. These struggles are the reason I ran for president. These struggles are what I've witnessed for years in places like Elkhart, Ind., and Galesburg, Ill. I hear about them in the letters that I read each night. The toughest to read are those written by children asking why they have to move from their home, or when their mom or dad will be able to go back to work. 
For these Americans and so many others, change has not come fast enough. Some are frustrated; some are angry. They don't understand why it seems like bad behavior on <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> is rewarded but hard work on Main Street isn't, or why Washington has been unable or unwilling to solve any of our problems. They are tired of the partisanship and the shouting and the pettiness. They know we can't afford it. Not now. 
So we face big and difficult challenges. And what the American people hope what they deserve is for all of us, <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> and <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a>, to work through our differences, to overcome the numbing weight of our politics. For while the people who sent us here have different backgrounds, different stories and different beliefs, the anxieties they face are the same. The aspirations they hold are shared: a job that pays the bills, a chance to get ahead. Most of all, the ability to give their children a better life. 
You know what else they share? They share a stubborn resilience in the face of adversity. After one of the most difficult years in our history, they remain busy building cars and teaching kids, starting businesses and going back to school. They're coaching Little League and helping their neighbors. As one woman wrote me, "We are strained but hopeful, struggling but encouraged." 
It is because of this spirit, this great decency and great strength that I have never been more hopeful about America's future than I am tonight. Despite our hardships, our union is strong. We do not give up. We do not quit. We do not allow fear or division to break our spirit. In this new decade, it's time the American people get a government that matches their decency, that embodies their strength. 
And tonight, I'd like to talk about how together, we can deliver on that promise. 
It begins with our economy. 
Our most urgent task upon taking office was to shore up the same banks that helped cause this crisis. It was not easy to do. And if there's one thing that has unified <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> and <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a>, it's that we all hated the bank bailout. I hated it. You hated it. It was about as popular as a root canal. 
But when I ran for president, I promised I wouldn't just do what was popular — I would do what was necessary. And if we had allowed the meltdown of the financial system, <a href="/topics/Unemployment">unemployment</a> might be double what it is today. More businesses would certainly have closed. More homes would have surely been lost. 
So I supported the last administration's efforts to create the financial rescue program. And when we took the program over, we made it more transparent and accountable. As a result, the markets are now stabilized, and we have recovered most of the money we spent on the banks. 
To recover the rest, I have proposed a fee on the biggest banks. I know <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> isn't keen on this idea, but if these firms can afford to hand out big bonuses again, they can afford a modest fee to pay back the taxpayers who rescued them in their time of need. 
As we stabilized the financial system, we also took steps to get our economy growing again, save as many jobs as possible and help Americans who had become unemployed. 
That's why we extended or increased <a href="/topics/Unemployment">unemployment</a> benefits for more than 18 million Americans, made health insurance 65 percent cheaper for families who get their coverage through COBRA and passed 25 different tax cuts. 
Let me repeat: we cut taxes. We cut taxes for 95 percent of working families. We cut taxes for small businesses. We cut taxes for first-time homebuyers. We cut taxes for parents trying to care for their children. We cut taxes for 8 million Americans paying for college. As a result, millions of Americans had more to spend on gas, and food and other necessities, all of which helped businesses keep more workers. And we haven't raised income taxes by a single dime on a single person. Not a single dime. 
Because of the steps we took, there are about 2 million Americans working right now who would otherwise be unemployed — 200,000 work in construction and clean energy, 300,000 are teachers and other education workers, tens of thousands are cops, firefighters, correctional officers and first responders. And we are on track to add another one-and-a-half-million jobs to this total by the end of the year. 
The plan that has made all of this possible, from the tax cuts to the jobs, is the Recovery Act. That's right — the Recovery Act, also known as the <a href="/topics/Economic_Stimulus">stimulus bill</a>. Economists on the left and the right say that this bill has helped saved jobs and avert disaster. But you don't have to take their word for it. 
Talk to the small business in <a href="/topics/Phoenix">Phoenix</a> that will triple its work force because of the Recovery Act. 
Talk to the window manufacturer in <a href="/topics/Philadelphia">Philadelphia</a> who said he used to be skeptical about the Recovery Act, until he had to add two more work shifts just because of the business it created. 
Talk to the single teacher raising two kids who was told by her principal in the last week of school that because of the Recovery Act, she wouldn't be laid off after all. 
There are stories like this all across America. And after two years of <a href="/topics/Economic_Recession">recession</a>, the economy is growing again. Retirement funds have started to gain back some of their value. Businesses are beginning to invest again, and slowly some are starting to hire again. 
But I realize that for every success story, there are other stories, of men and women who wake up with the anguish of not knowing where their next paycheck will come from — who send out resumes week after week and hear nothing in response. That is why jobs must be our number one focus in 2010, and that is why I am calling for a new jobs bill tonight. 
Now, the true engine of job creation in this country will always be America's businesses. But government can create the conditions necessary for businesses to expand and hire more workers. 
We should start where most new jobs do — in small businesses, companies that begin when an entrepreneur takes a chance on a dream or a worker decides it's time she became her own boss. 
Through sheer grit and determination, these companies have weathered the <a href="/topics/Economic_Recession">recession</a> and are ready to grow. But when you talk to small business owners in places like Allentown, Pa., or Elyria, <a href="/topics/Ohio">Ohio</a>, you find out that even though banks on <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> are lending again, they are mostly lending to bigger companies. But financing remains difficult for small business owners across the country. 
So tonight, I'm proposing that we take $30 billion of the money <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> banks have repaid and use it to help community banks give small businesses the credit they need to stay afloat. I am also proposing a new small business tax credit — one that will go to over 1 million small businesses who hire new workers or raise wages. While we're at it, let's also eliminate all capital gains taxes on small business investment and provide a tax incentive for all businesses, large and small, to invest in new plants and equipment. 
Next, we can put Americans to work today building the infrastructure of tomorrow. From the first railroads to the interstate highway system, our nation has always been built to compete. There's no reason <a href="/topics/Europe">Europe</a> or <a href="/topics/China">China</a> should have the fastest trains or the new factories that manufacture clean energy products. 
Tomorrow, I'll visit <a href="/topics/Tampa">Tampa</a>, Fla., where workers will soon break ground on a new high-speed railroad funded by the Recovery Act. There are projects like that all across this country that will create jobs and help our nation move goods, services and information. We should put more Americans to work building clean energy facilities and give rebates to Americans who make their homes more energy efficient, which supports clean energy jobs. And to encourage these and other businesses to stay within our borders, it's time to finally slash the tax breaks for companies that ship our jobs overseas and give those tax breaks to companies that create jobs in the United States of America. 
The House has passed a jobs bill that includes some of these steps. As the first order of business this year, I urge the <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> to do the same. People are out of work. They are hurting. They need our help. And I want a jobs bill on my desk without delay. 
But the truth is, these steps still won't make up for the 7 million jobs we've lost over the last two years. The only way to move to full employment is to lay a new foundation for long-term economic growth and finally address the problems that America's families have confronted for years. 
We cannot afford another so-called economic expansion like the one from last decade — what some call the lost decade — where jobs grew more slowly than during any prior expansion, where the income of the average American household declined while the cost of health care and tuition reached record highs, where prosperity was built on a housing bubble and financial speculation. 
From the day I took office, I have been told that addressing our larger challenges is too ambitious — that such efforts would be too contentious, that our political system is too gridlocked and that we should just put things on hold for awhile. 
For those who make these claims, I have one simple question: 
How long should we wait? How long should America put its future on hold? 
You see, Washington has been telling us to wait for decades, even as the problems have grown worse. Meanwhile, <a href="/topics/China">China</a>'s not waiting to revamp its economy; Germany's not waiting; <a href="/topics/India">India</a>'s not waiting. These nations aren't standing still. These nations aren't playing for second place. They're putting more emphasis on math and science. They're rebuilding their infrastructure. They are making serious investments in clean energy because they want those jobs. 
Well I do not accept second place for the United States of America. As hard as it may be, as uncomfortable and contentious as the debates may be, it's time to get serious about fixing the problems that are hampering our growth. 
One place to start is serious financial reform. Look, I am not interested in punishing banks, I'm interested in protecting our economy. A strong, healthy financial market makes it possible for businesses to access credit and create new jobs. It channels the savings of families into investments that raise incomes. But that can only happen if we guard against the same recklessness that nearly brought down our entire economy. 
We need to make sure consumers and middle class families have the information they need to make financial decisions. We can't allow financial institutions, including those that take your deposits, to take risks that threaten the whole economy. 
The House has already passed financial reform with many of these changes. And the lobbyists are already trying to kill it. Well, we cannot let them win this fight. And if the bill that ends up on my desk does not meet the test of real reform, I will send it back. 
 &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728532">Obama's proposals </a>&gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728197">Republican response</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728562">Poll: What did you like best?</a> &gt;&gt;<a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1713189"> Obama's five challenges</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1728563">Michelle Obama's look on Wednesday night</a> &gt;&gt; <a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/1.1726224">Complete coverage: Obama's 2010 State of the Union address</a>

State of the Union text

FULL TEXT: Obama's State of the Union address

state of the union

Vowing to deliver the changes he promised, President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> urgently implored <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> and <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> in his State of the Union address Wednesday night to overcome a “deficit of trust” in government and come together to fix the nation’s broken health care system, soaring deficits and polarized politics. 
 His No. 1 demand was for lawmakers not to walk away from his prized health care overhaul, which is in severe danger in <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>. 
 “We face big and difficult challenges,” Obama said, according to excerpts of his State of the Union address released in advance by the <a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a>. “What the American people hope — what they deserve — is for all of us, <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> and <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a>, to work through our differences, to overcome the numbing weight of our politics.” 
Obama was looking to change the conversation from how his presidency is stalling — over the messy health care debate, a limping economy and the missteps that led to Christmas Day’s barely averted terrorist disaster — to how he is seizing the reins on the economic worries foremost on Americans’ minds. 
In his speech, the president is devoting about two-thirds of his time to the economy, emphasizing his ideas, some new but mostly old and explained anew, for restoring job growth, taming budget deficits and changing Washington’s ways. These concerns are at the roots of voter emotions that drove supporters to Obama but now are turning on him as he governs. 
Indicating he understands Americans’ struggles to pay bills while big banks get bailouts and bonuses, Obama is prodding <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> to enact a second <a href="/topics/Economic_Stimulus">stimulus package</a> and to provide new financial relief for the middle class. 
Acknowledging frustration at the government’s habit of spending more than it has, he is seeking a three-year freeze on some domestic spending (while proposing a 6.2 percent, or $4 billion, increase in the popular arena of education and supporting the debt-financed jobs bill) and is announcing he is creating a bipartisan deficit-reduction task force. 
“Let’s try common sense,” Obama said in the speech excerpts. 
“Let’s invest in our people without leaving them a mountain of debt.” Positioning himself as a fighter for the regular guy and a different kind of leader, he urged <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> to require lobbyists to disclose all contacts with lawmakers or members of his administration and to blunt the impact of last week’s Supreme Court decision allowing corporations greater flexibility in supporting or opposing candidates. 
“I don’t think American elections should be bankrolled by America’s most powerful interests, and worse, by foreign entities,” he said. 
Even before Obama spoke, some of the new proposals, many revealed by the <a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a> in advance, were being dismissed — on the right or the left — as poorly targeted or too modest to make a difference. 
And in the <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republican</a> response, Gov. <a href="/topics/Bob_McDonnell">Bob McDonnell</a> of <a href="/topics/Virginia">Virginia</a> showed no sign of his party capitulating to Obama. In fact, the choice of McDonnell to represent <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> was symbolic, meant to showcase recent <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">GOP</a> election victories by him and others. 
McDonnell reflected the anti-big government sentiment that helped lead to their wins, saying in excerpts from his own post-speech remarks that Americans want good health care they can afford, just not by turning over “the best medical care system in the world to the federal government.” With State of the Union messages traditionally delivered at the end of January, Obama had one of the presidency’s biggest platforms just a week after <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> scored an upset takeover of a <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> seat in <a href="/topics/Massachusetts">Massachusetts</a>, prompting hand-wringing over his leadership. 
With the turnover erasing <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a>’ <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> supermajority needed to pass most legislation, it also put a cloud over health care and the rest of Obama’s agenda. 
<a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> allies, for instance, said Wednesday that a sizable, debt-financed package containing the proposals Obama wants is out of the question in the new climate and that they plan a trimmed-down measure with tax breaks for small businesses and help for state and local governments. 
The president stood before a country gloomy over <a href="/topics/Unemployment">unemployment</a> in double digits and federal deficits soaring to a record $1.4 trillion. He also faces a <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democratic Party</a> increasingly concerned about the fallen standing of a president they hoped would lead them through this fall’s midterm elections. 
He aimed beyond the usual presidential laundry list for a more cohesive, plainspoken narrative, hoping to tell his presidency’s story — looking forward and back — in a way that would rekindle the energy of his historic election. The president clearly had a lot to say, as aides worked to whittle down the speech and still expected it to run as much as 75 minutes, an extraordinary length that could tax viewers’ patience and rival any State of the Union since the <a href="/topics/Bill_Clinton">Clinton</a> era. 
Obama planned to acknowledged missteps since taking office in explaining his agenda and connecting with voters. At the same time, he planned an unapologetic defense of pursuing the same agenda on which he won. 
That includes the health care overhaul, as well as an aggressive approach to <a href="/topics/Global_Warming">global warming</a>, sweeping changes to address the millions of illegal immigrants and radical reforms of how <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> is regulated and children are educated. 
Obama was urging lawmakers to enact far-reaching health care legislation rather than a smaller-bore solution — though it’s not clear there is a viable path for this in <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>. However, sticking to his well-established pattern, Obama will not offer lawmakers a specific prescription for salvaging a bill, said <a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a> senior adviser <a href="/topics/Valerie_Jarrett">Valerie Jarrett</a>. 
“By the time I’m finished speaking tonight, more Americans will have lost their health insurance,” Obama said. “Patients will be denied the care they need. ... I will not walk away from these Americans. And neither should the people in this chamber.” In a remarkable shift from past addresses, and notable for a president whose candidacy first caught fire over <a href="/topics/Iraq_War">Iraq war</a> opposition, foreign policy is taking a relative back seat. 
The section will come behind the economy and be largely devoid of new policy, with Obama providing an update on the <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a> escalation he just ordered, looking ahead to the end of U.S. combat in <a href="/topics/Iraq">Iraq</a> and his hosting of an international nuclear weapons summit, and promising an aggressive fight against terrorists. 
In a signal the Obama team considers itself at a turning point, it is reverting to techniques that successfully galvanized the grass roots during his campaign. 
Obama’s political arm-in-waiting, Obama for America, which has assumed a low profile since his election, texted watch-party information to supporters. The <a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a> also solicited follow-up questions on YouTube.com/CitizenTube — saying Obama will answer them online next week. 
The president was keeping to the tradition of taking his themes on the road. He will travel to <a href="/topics/Florida">Florida</a> on Thursday to announce $8 billion for high-speed rail development, to <a href="/topics/Maryland">Maryland</a> on Friday to speak to a House <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republican</a> retreat, and to <a href="/topics/New_Hampshire">New Hampshire</a> Tuesday for a jobs-focused event. Cabinet officials were fanning out too. 
On Monday, Obama’s priorities get another burst of attention, as he submits them in detail to <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> in his 2011 budget request.

ny-obama state of union-0128

Obama appeals for revived health care support

Barack Obama

They want to hear about jobs, economic security and health care reform. 
That's what Long Islanders said when asked two questions this week: 
What are their concerns right now? 
And what do they want President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> to say Wednesday night, when he delivers his first State of the Union address? 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/long-island/politics/state-of-the-union-live-coverage-1.1727754">Join our live chat with Newsday politics columnist Dan Janison, which is already in progress.</a> 
The president will be speaking to a nation buffeted by <a href="/topics/Economic_Recession">recession</a> and a generally sour, dour mood that has tarnished the glow of his early months in office. 
He'll be met with skepticism, as expressed by Alexandra Boccio, 20, of <a href="/topics/Commack%2C_NY">Commack</a>, who supported him in the election because he said he'd bring the troops home: "It's hard to think of anything he could say to change my mind about the economy, health care and the war because he's already said so much and I haven't seen any of that happen yet." 
And with forbearance: "People want things, want change, to happen very quickly, which just isn't a reality," said <a href="/topics/Adam_Goldberg">Adam Goldberg</a>, 43, of <a href="/topics/Franklin_Square%2C_NY">Franklin Square</a>. "I'm very patient with him. He's got a tremendous amount on his plate." 
Here are responses from 10 Long Islanders: 
&nbsp; 
<a href="/topics/Adam_Goldberg">Adam Goldberg</a>, 43, <a href="/topics/Franklin_Square%2C_NY">Franklin Square</a>, owns an ultrasound service company, a small family business: 
"He got us out of the banking crisis. [Now] I think he needs to go back to the campaign message, which was jobs. I'd really like to hear him say he understands <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republican</a> concerns, but he's not going to give up on health care reform. . . . I'm starting to see the economy come back slowly. He has to make that case, and I think he can. . . . He needs to get back out there with the people again." 
&nbsp; 
Souleymane Lo, 38, <a href="/topics/West_Babylon%2C_NY">West Babylon</a>, owner of <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a> Kicks, an athletic clothing store in <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a>: 
"Right now the economy is the biggest thing on my mind. If you ask anyone what's on their mind, it's the loss of jobs, the increase in the cost of living, there is no job security. It's a lot to be concerned about. I want to hear from him by what measure is the economy getting better? I'm a small-business man and I don't see it. Credit is very tight, so it's hard to borrow money so you can't buy inventory. I think he spent too much time on health care. If there are no jobs, how would you pay for health insurance? I'm looking for him to explain how he is going to make it better for small businesses and create more jobs. For us , it's impossible to get loans." 
&nbsp; 
Nancy Levine, late 40s, <a href="/topics/Roslyn_Heights%2C_NY">Roslyn Heights</a>, works in office of husband, an endodontist: 
"I want to hear what he's going to do about health care reform. It's in serious trouble. . . . My husband is a small business [man] and our insurance went up by $5,000 last year. . . . We're supposed to be the upper middle class and it's getting unaffordable for us. I want to hear what's going on with terrorism. I'm very nervous about it. I didn't vote for Obama. Everyone thought he would come in and do magic, but I'm not surprised at what is happening. I don't blame it on him. Anyone would have had a hard time, but he's inexperienced. . . . He's got to talk about what he's going to do and he's got to get something done." 
&nbsp; 
Alexandra Boccio, 20, <a href="/topics/Commack%2C_NY">Commack</a>, student at <a href="/topics/Stony_Brook_University">Stony Brook University</a>: 
"I went to the <a href="/topics/Obama_Inauguration">inauguration</a> and after that I expected to hear so much good, but unfortunately, so much bad came instead. I don't blame him, but I do want to see him make more of an effort with this health care stuff, and bringing our troops home. The economy . . . it's very hard to find a place that's affordable. What I would like to hear him say is he'll do what he can to make living in America more desirable. It's hard to think of anything he could say to change my mind about the economy and health care and war because he's already said so much and I haven't seen any of that happen yet." 
&nbsp; 
Jim Leonard, 53, <a href="/topics/Lake_Ronkonkoma%2C_NY">Lake Ronkonkoma</a>, construction worker: 
"I'm not too happy with what's going on. People are out of work, taxes going up. I work two jobs just to make ends meet. It's been like that since my daughter went to college in 1999, and it's not getting any better. The truth: He inherited a horrible situation, but we're not going to help it just by throwing money away." 
&nbsp; 
Nicole Fraser, 35, <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a>, hospital patient registrar: 
"It's going to take more time to rebuild [the economy], and the things he's doing now will take time. It will work. He should reassure the people. . . . People want it to be quick and fast and they need to be more patient. I don't really understand the entire concept of health care reform. I'm new to this and to fully understand I would need to educate myself on what was going on before, and he needs to explain his vision in a simple format." 
&nbsp; 
Elvis Nunez, 29, <a href="/topics/Freeport%2C_NY">Freeport</a>, in-hospital Medicaid specialist: 
"I'm really getting into the federal budgets, and it concerns me. I'm wondering how we'll be able to pay for things. I see regular Joes who lose their jobs, collect <a href="/topics/Unemployment">unemployment</a> but don't qualify for Medicaid, and can't afford to cover their medical bills, so I definitely support the health care bill. But I'm concerned with overall spending. I agree with tax credits to help the middle class. I am the middle class. . . . He needs to assist local businesses and create incentives for more jobs." 
&nbsp; 
Star Davis, 39, <a href="/topics/Copiague%2C_NY">Copiague</a>, owner of Sittin Pretty Hair Salon in <a href="/topics/Amityville%2C_NY">Amityville</a>: 
"People complain about the bailouts, but they were necessary. The economy is in a bad place right now: People are losing jobs, they're outsourcing jobs overseas, the dollar has weakened and we're not creating any new industries in this country to get people jobs. . . . He needs to focus on getting affordable health care for everyone. I make too much for assistance, but I don't make enough to pay for private health care. I want and need health insurance. How can he have spent too much time on health care when there is not yet a passable bill? It was time well spent. People have to understand that you have to put the work in; change is not going to happen overnight." 
&nbsp; 
Phillip Cuiffo, 66, <a href="/topics/Northport%2C_NY">Northport</a>, owner of Residential Appraisal Services in <a href="/topics/Northport%2C_NY">Northport</a>: 
"I think the State of The union is confusion. They took their eye off the ball and spent too much time on this health care issue and not enough time on the basics. I think the economy and the wars are the most unsettling situations now. As for the bailouts: I think they had no choice. I think both sides of the aisle had to do what they felt was best and they had to act quickly. Time will tell. I can't accuse anyone of not doing the right thing. Who knows what's the right thing to do? When the bottom falls out like that, you do the best you can." 
&nbsp; 
Fleming Hansen, 46, <a href="/topics/Centerport%2C_NY">Centerport</a>, owner of <a href="/topics/Copenhagen">Copenhagen</a> Bakery in <a href="/topics/Northport%2C_NY">Northport</a>: 
"The economy is going to take a long time to turn around. It's very hard to borrow money right now - for some, I would say it's impossible, and that is especially bad for small businesses. A lot of people don't have jobs, so they don't spend, and businesses fail and there is a loss of tax revenue. The bad economy feeds off itself. Obama really needs to talk about jobs. I can't say that enough. With credit still frozen, it's going to take a lot longer than people think for things to look better. But we need to give it time. I don't necessarily believe in bailing out private companies, but I guess it was necessary. Some people would have lost their jobs, but no one is coming to bail me out. That's just not the American way - to bail out companies. Both sides did it, so who am I to say what should be done." 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/news/nation/president-barack-obama-one-year-in-1.1706030"> &gt;&gt; PHOTOS: Click here to see notable moments from President Obama's first year</a> 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/news/president-barack-obama-1.238"> &gt;&gt; PHOTOS: Click here to see the latest photos of President Obama</a> 
&nbsp; 
&gt;&gt; TALK ABOUT IT: Join Newsday political columnist Dan Janison for a live chat with Long Islanders during and after tonight's State of the Union address -- click in below to send yourself a reminder to attend 
<iframe src="http://www.coveritlive.com/index2.php/option=com_altcaster/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=3c3528b982/height=550/width=470" height="550px" width="470px" allowtransparency="true" scrolling="no" frameborder="0">&lt;a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php?option=com_mobile&amp;task=viewaltcast&amp;altcast_code=3c3528b982"&gt;LIVE: Obama's State of the Union address&lt;/a&gt;</iframe>

LISTAT27.WEB

What LIers want to hear from Obama's address

WASHINGTON - Now it's time for President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> to deliver. 
That's a message <a href="/topics/Economic_Recession">recession</a>-weary Americans, many of them still fearful for their jobs, are sending Washington in recent elections, sparking a political volatility across the country, several analysts said. 
Wednesday night, in his first formal State of the Union speech before a joint session of <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>, Obama must address that message, and provide assurances that he has a coherent, workable plan to bring back jobs and boost the economy. 
"Now's the time for straight, clear talk and decisive action," said <a href="/topics/Thomas_Mann">Thomas Mann</a>, a scholar at the <a href="/topics/Brookings_Institution">Brookings Institution</a>, a nonpartisan think tank here. 
That includes, Mann said, "explaining and defending his stimulus, financial stabilization and health reform, and the additional steps he proposes to take to rev up jobs." 
Wednesday night's nationally televised speech, which gives Obama a platform to reach Americans directly, comes at another crucial juncture in his presidency. As with previous speeches, expectations for his performance are running high. 
Here are five issues he must take on: 
Jobs, jobs, jobs 
Obama must demonstrate he is focused on creating jobs and lowering the 10 percent national <a href="/topics/Unemployment">unemployment</a> rate. 
"Everything is related to pocketbooks. Jobs. The economy. Taxes," said Steven Greenberg, spokesman for the Siena Research Institute poll at Siena College in Loudonville, N.Y. 
In the past week, Obama has highlighted a series of economic initiatives: a populist attack on big banks, programs to provide security to the middle class, plans to create jobs and a three-year freeze on discretionary spending to reduce the deficit. 
Wednesday night, Obama must outline these measures and convince viewers he can actually pass them in a <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> of skittish <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> and a steadfast <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">GOP</a> opposition. 
A clear path ahead 
Obama needs to clarify his message about the way ahead. 
Some <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> are urging Obama to inspire, but also to stick to a practical agenda - big ideas with small, doable programs. 
Right now, many people are confused, said Jeffrey Cohen, a political scientist at <a href="/topics/Fordham_University">Fordham University</a> in the Bronx. 
Obama is standing by <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> figures he put in charge of overseeing <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a>, for instance, as he launches a populist salvo at big banks, Cohen said. 
"Why doesn't he have a consistent message?" he said. "What are his policies?" 
Given the <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">GOP</a> opposition and aggressive attacks on Obama's programs, Mann said, "It is not at all clear that he can succeed in resolving the tensions and avoiding sending mixed signals." 
To counter that problem, New York Democratic political consultant Hank Sheinkopf said, Obama should avoid lofty ideas and offer specifics that people can grasp: "It's called tangible, tangible, tangible." 
Redirect anger 
Obama rode the economic crisis and populist anger to the <a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a>. But in the past year, he conceded in recent interviews, he has appeared to lose touch. 
He retains personal popularity, but his positives are slipping and his negatives are growing. 
Many of those turning away from Obama, pollsters say, are the same white, working-class people he had trouble connecting with during the early part of his presidential campaign. 
But Obama also is angering supporters on the left over what they see as his failure to change how Washington works, another shortcoming Obama recently conceded. 
"He's got to figure out," Sheinkopf said, "how to make himself believable." 
Sell year one 
As Obama lays out what he hopes to accomplish in his second year, he also must make sure he doesn't lose the battle with his critics and <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> over defining what he did during his first year. 
That means defending the bailout of <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> and the automakers, the $787 billion <a href="/topics/Economic_Stimulus">stimulus package</a> and his expansion of the war in <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a>, said a New York <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democratic Party</a> official. 
It also means explaining what happened to his signature legislation - the stalled measure to restructure the nation's health care system - and what he plans to do about it. 
Platform to win 
Wednesday night, <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> and <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> will be watching closely for how Obama sets up his policies and politics for the midterm elections on Nov. 2. 
Will he tack toward the middle or move to the left? Will he embrace <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> or move away from it? Will he appeal to his base or to independents? 
With his speech, Obama will provide his party - and his opponents - a political road map and a platform for what looks to be a tough election year for Congressional <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a>. 
&gt;&gt; TALK ABOUT IT: Join Dan Janison for a live chat following tonight's State of the Union address.

USFIVE27.WEB

Critics: State of Union is time for Obama to deliver

Barack Obama 

President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> will face the static of the union tonight as he tries to symbolically stare down the economic insecurity that sweeps the land. 
"He's given speeches before that were considered comeback moments," said one Democratic congressional staffer. "Maybe he can do that again. If he taps into a populist message, you'll hear support from the New York delegation. Listen for a big idea or two." 
But annual addresses such as these have a way of proving almost as perishable as sour cream on a grocery shelf. President <a href="/topics/George_W._Bush">George W. Bush</a> told the same room in 2002: "Terrorists who once occupied <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a> now occupy cells at Guantánamo Bay. And terrorist leaders who urged followers to sacrifice their lives are running for their own . . . " 
Eight years later, of course, <a href="/topics/George_W._Bush">Bush</a>'s successor will be mentioning the latest military escalation in <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a>. 
For practical impact, Obama's budget proposal, due next week, will speak louder than his words Wednesday. And what the House and <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> plan to do with that proposal will speak even louder than that. 
Preliminary leaks - always part of this majestic ritual - feature tax breaks such as child-care credits and such measures as income caps on student loans. 
Obama will seek to reassure those of us rattled by the huge federal deficit with a partial spending freeze - which <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> already decry as inadequate. 
Obama will also be seeking an endgame for - or exit strategy from - the domestic quagmire of the past year known as health-care reform. 
The electoral context for all this has less to do with Obama than with all the senators and congressmembers on the ballot in the fall. Remember: At the midpoint of his own first term, President <a href="/topics/Bill_Clinton">Bill Clinton</a> saw both houses of <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> turn <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republican</a>. 
New <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">GOP</a> Sen. <a href="/topics/Scott_Brown">Scott Brown</a>'s special election in <a href="/topics/Massachusetts">Massachusetts</a> - combined with other evidence of anti-incumbent sentiment - clearly gives jitters to <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> with something to lose in November. 
On Long Island, a lot of "targeting" talk has been directed toward the 1st Congressional District represented by fourth-term Rep. <a href="/topics/Tim_Bishop">Tim Bishop</a>. Elsewhere in the state, rookies draw interest, including first-term <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> <a href="/topics/Michael_McMahon">Michael McMahon</a> of Staten Island and Scott Murphy of Glens Falls, who succeeded <a href="/topics/Kirsten_Gillibrand">Kirsten Gillibrand</a> in a razor-close special election. And several other seats are now considered in play as well, with candidates coming forward as challengers. 
Tea Party activists and <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> alike seek to play up the state of "buyers' remorse" over Obama. Even New York City <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> who are considered safe bets for re-election have been critical, if only of Obama's tactics, showing the degree to which the bloom is off the Rose Garden. 
Rep. <a href="/topics/Jerrold_Nadler">Jerrold Nadler</a> (D-<a href="/topics/Manhattan">Manhattan</a>), for one, told Fox News, "The president's mistake, and it was a mistake, was to underestimate how bad the situation was we inherited under <a href="/topics/George_W._Bush">Bush</a> because he should not have said that <a href="/topics/Unemployment">unemployment</a> would peak at 8 percent when <a href="/topics/Mark_Zandi">Mark Zandi</a>, [Sen. John] <a href="/topics/John_McCain">McCain</a>'s [R-Ariz.] adviser, was saying it would be going to go to 12 percent without the stimulus and 10 percent with the stimulus." 
In a political environment ruled by economics and emotion, maybe Obama can call his new program something catchy - like, say, the War on Worrying Economically, with an entertaining acronym, WWE. That's the kind of symbolism these speeches are about. 
&gt;&gt; TALK ABOUT IT: Join Dan Janison for a live chat with Long <a href="/topics/New_York_Islanders">Islanders</a> during and after tonight's State of the Union address -- click in below to send yourself a reminder to attend 
<iframe src="http://www.coveritlive.com/index2.php/option=com_altcaster/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=3c3528b982/height=550/width=470" height="550px" width="470px" allowtransparency="true" scrolling="no" frameborder="0">&lt;a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php?option=com_mobile&amp;task=viewaltcast&amp;altcast_code=3c3528b982"&gt;LIVE: Obama's State of the Union address&lt;/a&gt;</iframe>

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POJANI27

Obama must blend symbolism with his substance

The day before President <a href="../../../../topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> delivers 
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</style>his State of the Union address, he outlined plans to help people struggling to pay bills and care for their families.  
Here is what <a href="/topics/Long_Island%2C_NY">Long Island</a>ers thought of Obama's economic plan for the middle class: 
Boost child care tax credit 
The proposal: Nearly double the tax credit that families making under $85,000 can receive for child care costs, with some help for families earning up to $115,000, too. 
One reaction: "I feel it's not really helping most people," given the cost of living on <a href="/topics/Long_Island%2C_NY">Long Island</a>. "I'm probably the norm on <a href="/topics/Long_Island%2C_NY">Long Island</a>, where you need to make more than $115,000 to live." It would have been better to increase the cutoff to $160,000 to $175,000. 
- Rick Rosa, 32, father of two and a certified public accountant in <a href="/topics/Woodbury%2C_NY">Woodbury</a>, who makes just over the cutoff figure for a tax advantage. 
Working family child care funds 
The proposal: Add $1.6 billion in child care funding to provide subsidies for an additional 235,000 children from low-income working families. 
One reaction: "We are very, very excited by this. . . . We haven't had an increase in over eight years. If you don't have child care, you can't work." 
- Janet Walerstein, executive director of Child Care Council of <a href="/topics/Suffolk_County%2C_NY">Suffolk</a>, Inc. in <a href="/topics/Commack%2C_NY">Commack</a>, who said helping families afford child care would in turn help the local economy. She said it would help hundreds of <a href="/topics/Suffolk_County%2C_NY">Suffolk</a> families on waiting lists. 
Saving for retirement 
The proposal: Requiring employers who don't offer 401(k) retirement plans to offer direct-deposit IRAs for their employees, with exemptions for the smallest firms. 
One reaction: "I think that the existing plans are satisfactory and suitable and that the government should not be involved in operating a business or mandating a retirement system. The government has already provided several types of retirement plans and it's up to the individuals if they want to participate." 
- Albert F. Coletti, president of The Design Capital Planning Group Inc. in <a href="/topics/Smithtown%2C_NY">Smithtown</a>, a financial planning company. 
TAX INCENTIVE FOR SAVING 
The proposal: Saver's tax credit match of 50 percent of the first $1,000 that families earning up to $65,000 contribute to a retirement account, with a partial credit going to those earning up to $85,000. 
&nbsp; 
One reaction: "I think it would be tremendously helpful. I don't think it's ever too early to start planning ahead for your future." 
- Michael D. Hoffman, 32, office communications supervisor for SafeGuard Credit Counseling Services, Inc., <a href="/topics/Hauppauge%2C_NY">Hauppauge</a>, who invests in the stock market and is about to open an IRA. 
Care for elderly relatives 
The proposal: $102.5 million for programs that provide temporary respite care and transportation, adult day care and in-home aide services. 
One reaction: "Sounds good. . . . If there was more access to in-home health aides, transportation," that would be helpful. "Or if you can show that you're financially assisting a parent and [receive] some kind of tax break or incentive, that would be helpful as well." 
- Sharon Robinson-Clayton, 37, of <a href="/topics/Valley_Stream%2C_NY">Valley Stream</a>, who is helping to support her mother, who is recovering from a stroke. In addition to paying bills for the skilled nursing facility, she also maintaining her mother's home. 
STUDENT LOAN RELIEF 
The proposal: Cap student loan payments to 10 percent of the student's income above a basic living allowance. 
One reaction: "It sounds really nice, but I would have a lot of questions." For instance, "who determines how much I live on each month?" And if the payments are drawn out over a longer period, is there a cap on interest payments? 
- Meaghan Davidson, 23, a public relations account associate in <a href="/topics/Manhattan">Manhattan</a> and May graduate of <a href="/topics/Hofstra_University">Hofstra University</a>, who's just started paying $550 a month toward her student loan debt.

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LIers react to Obama's plan to help the middle-class

President Barack Obama

An Army war vet from Holbrook who lost both legs in <a href="/topics/Iraq">Iraq</a> is set to attend Wednesday's State of the Union as a guest of Rep. <a href="/topics/Steve_Israel">Steve Israel</a>.
The Army corporal, Christopher Levi, has been recuperating from war wounds at <a href="/topics/Walter_Reed_Hospital">Walter Reed Army Medical Center</a> in Washington, D.C., after he lost both legs and suffered serious injuries to his right arm in a 2008 attack. Doctors at Walter Reed have performed multiple surgeries in an effort to restore the use of his right hand.
"I can't think of any guest who deserves the honor of witnessing history more than Christopher Levi," <a href="/topics/Israel">Israel</a> (D-<a href="/topics/Huntington%2C_NY">Huntington</a>) said Tuesday. "I want him at the State of the Union as a reminder to all of my colleagues about the true heroes in our country."
Members of <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a> may invite a guest to sit in the House gallery during the president's annual address to the joint session.
Rep. <a href="/topics/Tim_Bishop">Tim Bishop</a> (D-<a href="/topics/Southampton%2C_NY">Southampton</a>) offered his invitation to Army Sgt. 1st Class Gary Richard of <a href="/topics/Hauppauge%2C_NY">Hauppauge</a>, who is among a growing number of troops who say their lungs may have been damaged by exposure to smoke from burning waste at military bases in <a href="/topics/Iraq">Iraq</a> and <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a>.
Last week, Bishop introduced legislation that would further restrict the use of "burn pits" to dispose of plastics, medical waste and other toxins in combat zones.
"His presence will remind those attending of the great sacrifices made by our men and women in uniform today and the great responsibility our nation has to ensure their safety," Bishop said of the invitation. 
Sen. <a href="/topics/Kirsten_Gillibrand">Kirsten Gillibrand</a> (D-N.Y.) invited Teamsters Union Local 237 president <a href="/topics/Gregory_Floyd">Gregory Floyd</a>, whose 24,000 members work for government agencies in New York City and <a href="/topics/Long_Island%2C_NY">Long Island</a>.
Rep. <a href="/topics/Carolyn_McCarthy">Carolyn McCarthy</a> (D-<a href="/topics/Mineola%2C_NY">Mineola</a>) offered her invitation to a member of her staff, as she has done in years past.
Rep. <a href="/topics/Peter_King">Peter King</a> (R-<a href="/topics/Seaford%2C_NY">Seaford</a>) offered his to a staffer's mother from <a href="/topics/Long_Beach%2C_NY">Long Beach</a>.
Although Levi could not be reached for his reaction to the invitation, his mother said she was surprised, pleased, but maybe a little embarrassed for him.
"I'm totally in shock," Debbie Levi said from Holbrook. "It's nice that he is going, but the only thing is I have all of his suits here. I just got them out of the dry cleaners."

Nassau

LILEVI27

Holbrook veteran to attend State of the Union address

WASHINGTON - Declaring America's middle class is "under assault," President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> unveiled plans yesterday to help hurting families pay bills, save for retirement and care for kids and aging parents. His comments previewed tomorrow's State of the Union Address.
Obama's proposals won't create jobs, but he said they could "re-establish some of the security that's slipped away." His remarks aimed to lift the nation's dour mood and show he is in touch with the struggles of Americans as resentment runs high about lost jobs and the economy.
<a href="/topics/Long_Island%2C_NY">Long Island</a>'s congressional delegation logged mixed reactions to the proposal, but all of the legislators said they felt something has to be done to give the middle class an economic safety net - and quickly.
The initiatives amount to a package of tax credits, spending expansions and new mandates on employers to encourage retirement savings by workers. Most of them will be included in Obama's budget for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1, and will require approval from <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>. Obama will release that budget Feb. 1. Obama will ask Congress to freeze spending for some domestic programs for three years beginning in 2011, administration officials said yesterday. 
The president's latest rollout of ideas served as a preview of his prime-time State of the Union address. The economic elements of that speech will also cover Obama's plans to boost job creation and reduce swelling budget deficits - areas of concern to the public.
The <a href="/topics/White_House">White House</a> said it is imperative to create jobs. 
What matters to people, Obama said, is "whether they see some progress in their own lives. So we're going to keep fighting to rebuild our economy so that hard work is once again rewarded, wages and incomes are once again rising, the middle class is once again growing."
Less clear was how much the programs would cost or where the money would come from. 
That irked Rep. <a href="/topics/Peter_King">Peter King</a> (R-<a href="/topics/Seaford%2C_NY">Seaford</a>) who said the proposal was short on details.
"These are worthwhile concepts but clearly more detail is needed," he said. "The president is ignoring the most obvious need of the middle class, which is job creation."
But Democratic Sens. <a href="/topics/Kirsten_Gillibrand">Kirsten Gillibrand</a> and <a href="/topics/Charles_Schumer">Charles Schumer</a> of <a href="/topics/New_York%2C_NY">New York</a> said the plan smacks of initiatives they both have embraced in the past.
Schumer said the president needs to focus on jobs "like a laser" and suggested using bailout funds banks have paid back.
Rep. <a href="/topics/Tim_Bishop">Tim Bishop</a> (D-<a href="/topics/Southampton%2C_NY">Southampton</a>) called the plan "five or six very good suggestions that will help to enhance economic security for the middle class." 
With Zachary R. Dowdy

BZECON26

Obama to seek budget freeze, policies to help middle class

WASHINGTON - Seizing a chance to reconnect, President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> will use his first State of the Union address to try to persuade the people of a frustrated nation he's on their side, with a familiar-sounding agenda recast to relate better to everyday struggles.
In a time of deep economic insecurity, Obama will use this stage on Wednesday to offer hope after a grueling, grinding first year of his presidency, aides say. For the many who think the United States is still on the wrong track, Obama will attempt to present a clearer sense of how everything he's pursuing fits together to help.
And for jittery <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> facing re-election this fall, Obama will seek to give them an agenda they can sell to voters. Obama will propose ways to help the middle class. But any new ideas probably will play a supporting role to the plainspoken story he wants to tell, that his agenda works for people despite their growing doubts. 
What to expect in the speech, which comes during a rocky period for Obama? Heavy doses of health care - despite the setbacks of the past week - and job creation. Obama will address the budget deficit, his bid to take on the financial industry, energy, education and immigration. All those issues, he says, fit into his plan to rebuild the economy.
On national security, he will address terrorist threats, the wars in <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a> and <a href="/topics/Pakistan">Pakistan</a> and nuclear disputes with <a href="/topics/Iran">Iran</a> and North Korea.
Recent big events won't escape notice, such as the crisis in <a href="/topics/Haiti">Haiti</a> and the Supreme Court ruling allowing businesses and labor unions more power to influence elections.
Obama will directly confront a seething frustration with Washington, evident in <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republican</a> <a href="/topics/Scott_Brown">Scott Brown</a>'s <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> victory in <a href="/topics/Massachusetts">Massachusetts</a> that rattled Democrats and cost Obama the voting bloc he needed in the Senate.
It all points to the message the president wants to convey: Yes, I get it. Obama is emerging from a year in Washington that, he now says, has left the public with a sense of "remoteness and detachment" from what he's been trying to do. 
The president says his agenda is not about him. But in important ways, this speech will be. 
Moments like this are opportunities for presidents to take or lose command. Obama's poll numbers on how he handles major issues have been dropping; less than half the people support his management of the economy, taxes and other issues. <a href="/topics/Unemployment">Unemployment</a> is in double digits and terrorism fears are rising. 
To regain his footing, Obama is putting himself on the side of the people, challenging special interests on health care and banking and reminding people that while he got an <a href="/topics/Economic_Stimulus">economic stimulus</a> plan through, he bailed out <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> and the auto industry only by necessity.

USSOTU24

Obama's State of the Union an attempt to reconnect

WASHINGTON - It only gets harder. 
As President <a href="/topics/Barack_Obama">Barack Obama</a> starts his second year in office Wednesday, he faces what looks to be a tougher year than the hard one he just finished. 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/news/ap-gfk-poll-obama-approval-at-56-1.1714069">&gt;&gt;VIDEO: One year later, what is Obama's approval rating? Click here to find out</a> 
Not only has he lost the glow from his historic election, but now he takes responsibility for the country's problems while pursuing his agenda in a partisan and complicated <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>. 
"The greatest challenge of the second year is that you have to move beyond promises and demonstrate the political skills to get things done," said Meena Bose, a presidential scholar at <a href="/topics/Hofstra_University">Hofstra University</a>. 
A week from Wednesday, Obama will outline what he hopes to accomplish in the year ahead in his first official State of the Union address, and in two weeks he will submit his budget to <a href="/topics/U.S._Congress">Congress</a>, laying out his priorities and spending cuts. 
Those events will chart the course Obama hopes to follow in 2010. He faces many challenges, which can either stymie him and his party, or, if he's successful, strengthen his hand. 
<a href="http://www.newsday.com/news/students-talk-about-president-obama-s-first-year-in-office-1.1714688">&gt;&gt;VIDEO: How do LI kids feel about Obama and the work he has been doing this past year? Click here to find out</a> 
Here are five to watch. 
&nbsp; 
SLUGGISH ECONOMY 
The economy, and more specifically jobs, tops everyone's list as an issue that needs to be addressed for 2010. 
That includes Obama. 
Adviser <a href="/topics/David_Axelrod">David Axelrod</a> Tuesday said Obama aims to pivot to jobs, the economy and the needs of the middle class. 
Obama pushed a $787 billion <a href="/topics/Economic_Stimulus">stimulus package</a>, bailed out carmakers and extended TARP, staving off a depression, Axelrod said. "But the storm has left a great deal of wreckage," said Axelrod, and the millions of jobs lost are a "focus for us in this new year." 
But <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a> attack him as a big spender who has grown the deficit and killed jobs. 
Obama's approval ratings on the economy are at 40 percent, the <a href="/topics/Gallup">Gallup</a> Poll said. People are more likely to say the economy is getting better, the poll said, but still give dour assessments of current conditions. 
Obama must turn that view around, a tough task when he cannot control the economy. 
&nbsp; 
TOUGH WAR YEAR 
Now that Obama has decided to launch a surge of 30,000 U.S. troops into <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a> to beat back the <a href="/topics/Taliban">Taliban</a> and <a href="/topics/Al-Qaeda">al-Qaida</a>, he must steel himself and hope for the best. 
Americans will be watching over the next nine months as the troops deploy and meet resistance from a determined foe - resulting, Joint Chiefs Of Staff Chairman Admiral <a href="/topics/Michael_Mullen">Michael Mullen</a> said last month, in an increase in American casualties. 
"On <a href="/topics/Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a>, he's really in a bind," said <a href="/topics/Stony_Brook_University">Stony Brook University</a> professor Helmut Noporth. "He doesn't have his own party behind him, so he'll have to rely on <a href="/topics/U.S._Republican_Party">Republicans</a>." 
&nbsp; 
DISILLUSIONMENT 
Obama's numbers are down below 50 percent in some polls, and <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> are restless. 
Even the "sure-thing" <a href="/topics/Massachusetts">Massachusetts</a> special election to replace the late Sen. <a href="/topics/Edward_M._Kennedy">Edward Kennedy</a> wasn't a sure thing. 
Bose said Obama has not made any significant mistakes, but the mood has turned somber as he shifts from campaign to the harder job of governing. 
Some say Obama could be losing his liberal base with his cool, cautious and centrist tack on health care and the Afghan war. A liberal Huffington Post writer pleaded: "Be audacious again. Give us more of the Obama we fell in love with." 
But Obama, Axelrod said, is not likely to significantly change course by becoming more combative, a strategy that will be tested this year. 
&nbsp; 
AMBITIOUS AGENDA 
Health care. Climate control. Financial reform. Immigration. 
Like baggage on a train, Obama loaded up his agenda in his first few months. Now he has to unpack, say analysts. 
First, he must finish health care, said Dan Schnur, director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at the <a href="/topics/University_of_Southern_California">University of Southern California</a>. 
"The best thing about getting health care reform done is just that it will be out of the way," Schnur said, and that will free Obama to talk to voters about the economy. 
But beyond that, Obama must weigh what he'll push, beyond new <a href="/topics/Wall_Street">Wall Street</a> regulations and jobs bills. 
&nbsp; 
MID-TERM ELECTIONS 
The success, or failure, of Obama's second year will be summed up on the night of Nov. 2, when all of the House and a third of the <a href="/topics/U.S._Senate">Senate</a> are up for re-election. 
Newport of <a href="/topics/Gallup">Gallup</a> expects Obama to lose 5 percentage points in his popularity, making Democratic losses almost certain this year. 
The question instead is how big the losses will be, and whether <a href="/topics/U.S._Democratic_Party">Democrats</a> will lose control of the House. 
In politics, though, 10 months is an eternity, political analysts say. 
And Newport, who relies on polling data, agrees. 
"It's too early to tell," he said. "We won't know before the summer."

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The five biggest challenges Obama faces this year

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