Last week, President Barack Obama gave a very important speech, and many important Americans came to listen. Some wore red ties, some wore blue ties. They all wore nice American flag lapel pins.
The Republicans sat on one side, the Democrats sat on another, and (some of) the Supreme Court sat up front.
They came expecting great things, and seemed quite satisfied. During his 79-minute speech, President Obama was interrupted 75 times for applause, including almost 60 standing ovations. Even a Supreme Court Justice was moved to speak.
Of course, none of it was real.
No, Obama didn’t give them a dress code, no, he didn’t give them a seating chart, and no, he didn’t tell them anything they hadn’t heard before. Like many important speeches, it was a show where the audience was just as important as the speaker.
State of the Union addresses might be funny to watch if they weren’t such good representations of American politics. The posing and posturing shows us just how well our politicians respond to a camera. The problem for America is that these people are always on camera.
With a dozen TV channels covering politics around the clock, it’s no wonder lawmakers can’t seem to get anything accomplished. There is always a speech to give, always a stand to take, always something to champion, vilify, promote or obstruct. With approval ratings at stake, who has time to govern?
And yes, sadly, their behavior in Obama’s audience says a lot about what our good senators are doing in America’s government.
Republicans senators don’t like the healthcare bill — this we know. But they didn’t stand up for tax breaks either. When standing in support of their own favorite policies meant acknowledging some success in Obama’s first year, they took the low road. After all, what plays better on Fox than uncompromising partisanship?
Democratic senators, on the other hand, think the health care bill is great. Especially now that they’ve loaded it down with hundreds of millions in earmarks. Did they think it inconsistent to stand proudly for a bill they’ve helped to sabotage? Of course not, there were cameras rolling.
Obama may have spent 79 minutes delivering 30 minutes of information, but our public officials got 75 chances to be seen cheering for things like “businesses,” and “the troops.”
We’ve taught our leaders to pander to us; when we’re watching, they’ll do whatever silly things they think we want. But while they’re in character, there’s work not getting done.
Maybe if we turn them off, they’ll get back to their jobs.
Reach John at john.a.gaylord@asu.edu
