The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
State of the Union brings some surprises
No matter one’s political persuasion, the annual State of the Union — when the President of the United States reports direct to Congress and the people — deserves attention.
President Donald J. Trump’s 82-minute speech was a melange of refreshing calls for unity; exaggerations about the economy and threats; meritorious goals, such as eradicating childhood cancers; and various contradictions.
Here are five unrelated observations:
⏩ Trump’s linking of wars and investigations as bad for the country was baldly self-serving. Wars are bad, yes; but investigations? They are “bad” only for those under investigation.
We are glad to be away from the moniker of Corrupticut, but imagine if there had been no investigation into allegations of wrongdoing by thenGov. John G. Rowland? Why, the former 5th District Congressman could have been back in Washington by now. His career was ascending.
Refusing to investigate an elected leader would not make Connecticut a better state.
Various aspects of Trump’s election are famously under investigation and the American people deserve to know the outcomes. It is disingenuous for the president to say: “If there is going to be peace and legislation, there cannot be war and investigation. It just doesn’t work that way!” He is wrong.
⏩ But he is right in calling for an end to the long war in Afghanistan. Too many lives and resources have been dedicated to this seemingly endless war with murky goals. The withdrawal of American troops must be done, however, with consideration for the safety of the Afghan people. We give President Trump credit for this action.
⏩ What will be an iconic moment of the night was the vision of freshmen Democratic representatives — wearing white in solidarity with suffragettes — erupting in cheers with other women when Trump touted: “No one has benefited more from our thriving economy than women, who have filled 58 percent of the newly created jobs last year.”
The irony that the mid-term elections brought a recordbreaking 117 women to Congress was delicious. Seemingly surprised by their exuberant reaction, Trump praised them. ⏩ Shamefully, not one word about gun safety was uttered. Just one year after the Parkland, Florida, high school shootings — and many other mass shootings since then — the American people needed to hear what the president would do to halt the violence.
It takes the political courage of a U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy to keep the quest for common sense gun legislation in the forefront; he has not let his foot off the gas pedal for the six-plus years since the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy. Gun safety is not a faraway problem.
⏩ And, of course, Trump talked about The Wall on the southern border. We will not debate the pros and cons here, but urge parties to heed Trump’s call for compromise and bipartisanship and reach an agreement that averts a second harmful shutdown next week. The president, himself, must remember what he told the nation and sign a compromise bill.