A CONSTITUTIONAL RESPONSE TO THE 2006 STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS - Part VIII

“A hopeful society expects elected officials to uphold the public trust. Honorable people in both parties are working on reforms to strengthen the ethical standards of Washington -- I support your efforts. Each of us has made a pledge to be worthy of public responsibility -- and that is a pledge we must never forget, never dismiss, and never betray.”

Who are these honorable people? They need to stand up and be counted. They need to adopt ethical standards that we can expect them to fully endorse and pass through congress. We need both houses of congress to reform the rules regarding earmarks and the way amendments are attached to proposed legislation. We need campaign finance reform and laws that make bribery and violation of election laws punishable with long prison sentences and stiff financial penalties. We need the members of our government to adhere to standards that set the example for the entire nation and encourage active participation in government. Quite frankly, we need to create an environment where ethical, principled people will run for office. We all recognize that we have not had principled people running the government for some time… otherwise the scandals we have experienced would not have occurred.

“A hopeful society gives special attention to children who lack direction and love. Through the Helping America's Youth Initiative, we are encouraging caring adults to get involved in the life of a child -- and this good work is being led by our First Lady, Laura Bush. This year we will add resources to encourage young people to stay in school, so more of America's youth can raise their sights and achieve their dreams.”

These are good goals and objectives. We could applaud them if we had not heard these promises before. As a social worker I worked with the foster care system, the systems that deal with juvenile delinquency, and the systems that deal with families in need. I have worked with mental health and substance abuse treatment programs. These systems are broken. They do not work effectively or efficiently. As a teacher, I worked with K-12 schools, private schools and post-secondary education. These systems, too, are broken. They do not work effectively or efficiently.

But we have heard the rhetoric, promises and propaganda before. In fact, we have heard them in several previous State of the Union addresses… from George W. Bush…. from Bill Clinton… from George H.W. Bush (“a kinder, gentler nation” and “a thousand points of light”)… from Ronald Reagan. The last president that followed through with such promises was LBJ. But the world was a different place then and promises meant something. There was reason to be hopeful.

“A hopeful society comes to the aid of fellow citizens in times of suffering and emergency -- and stays at it until they're back on their feet. So far the federal government has committed $85 billion to the people of the Gulf Coast and New Orleans. We're removing debris and repairing highways and rebuilding stronger levees. We're providing business loans and housing assistance. Yet as we meet these immediate needs, we must also address deeper challenges that existed before the storm arrived.”

How dare the president use the aftermath of Katrina and Rita as an example of good work. We all know it is a failed effort that has suffered setback, scandal and more setbacks. Is George W. Bush in touch with reality? The people of the Gulf Coast are still suffering months later, we have seen poor planning, poor responses, and wasteful spending.

“In New Orleans and in other places, many of our fellow citizens have felt excluded from the promise of our country. The answer is not only temporary relief, but schools that teach every child, and job skills that bring upward mobility, and more opportunities to own a home and start a business. As we recover from a disaster, let us also work for the day when all Americans are protected by justice, equal in hope, and rich in opportunity.”

Yadaa, yadaa, yadaa! Meaningless drivel that is out of touch with the realities faced by those that have been displaced, those that have taken in the displaced, and those that are still waiting for the local, state and federal governments to step up to the plate and do the job effectively and efficiently. Did this really get applause?

“Lincoln could have accepted peace at the cost of disunity and continued slavery. Martin Luther King could have stopped at Birmingham or at Selma, and achieved only half a victory over segregation. The United States could have accepted the permanent division of Europe, and been complicit in the oppression of others. Today, having come far in our own historical journey, we must decide: Will we turn back, or finish well?”

Nice rhetoric. Very nice words. But taken in context of the whole address, the realities that don’t seem to be reflected in the speech, and the domination of our political agenda by cronyism, scandal and ultra-conservative religious ideology, they are empty words… misleading and less than truthful… they ring hollow throughout the land.

“Before history is written down in books, it is written in courage. Like Americans before us, we will show that courage and we will finish well. We will lead freedom's advance. We will compete and excel in the global economy. We will renew the defining moral commitments of this land. And so we move forward -- optimistic about our country, faithful to its cause, and confident of the victories to come.”

Can we be optimistic in the context of our rights being abrogated? Our constitution is under attack from within our own government? Under attack by our own president? Supported by our own scandalous congress? President Bush is correct, we do need courage, freedom and leadership… the courage to speak out against the unethical conduct of our leadership, the freedom to take action against that leadership, and new leadership that acts with vision, ethics and first principles.