Obama encourages Americans to reach for the stars in nation's "Sputnik moment"

BY KATIE QUINONEZ

            President Barack Obama encouraged Americans to reach for the stars Tuesday evening in his anual State of the Union address.

            Obama referred to this era as the nation’s “Sputnik moment,” hinting that this was the nation’s chance to become more competitive internationally in the fields of mathematics and science.  Obama incorporated this theme into both education and job creation.

            “Two years ago, I said that we needed to reach a level of research and development we haven’t seen since the height of the Space Race,” Obama said in his address. “In a few weeks, I will be sending a budget to Congress that helps us meet that goal.”

            Obama said there would be investments in biomedical research, information technology and clean energy technology.  These investments have the potential to not only make the U.S. competitive against countries such as India and China, but also create countless jobs.

            Obama encouraged college graduates to become teachers. This was a smart in his part because job creation methods impact voters strongly.  It also perpetuated his agenda of the nation’s competitiveness in science and mathematics.

            Obama said his ultimate goal is to add 100,000 new teachers to the education system in fields of mathematics and science. This is ironic considering the high amount of school closings and teacher layoffs.

            Obama used clean energy initiatives as a means to bolster the nation’s economy, increase competitiveness and create thousands of new jobs. Some concrete goals the president set were to have one million electric automobiles on the road by 2015 and to have 80% of Americans utilizing clean energy sources such as wind, solar, nuclear and clean coal, by 2035.

“With more research incentives, we can break our dependence on oil biofuels and become the first nation to have one million electric vehicles on the road by 2015,” the president said. “And to help pay for it, I’m asking Congress to eliminate billions in taxpayer dollars we currently give to oil companies. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but they’re doing just fine on their own.”

It would be interesting to see how the president plans to make electric cars more affordable for the nation. It might be smart to start another “cash for clunkers” initiative like the Car Allowance Rebate System in 2009. The system was a $3 billion program that provided economic incentives for U.S. citizens to drive more fuel-efficient and ecofriendly automobiles.

An important topic that affected every American was the budget deficit, now totaling well over $1 trillion.  Obama proposed to freeze domestic spending for the next 10 years and cut extra expenditures such as community action programs. This would reduce the deficit by more than $400 billion over the next decade.

“I’m willing to eliminate whatever we can honestly afford to do without,” Obama said. “But, let’s make sure that we’re not doing it on the backs of our most vulnerable citizens.”

The environment and job creation were not the only themes prevalent in Obama’s address. He encouraged unity between Republicans and Democrats and there was an overall message of bipartisanship. As expected, he credited the tragic shootings in Tucson, Ariz., to a heated political agenda between two opposing parties

            “There’s a reason the tragedy in Tucson gave us pause,” Obama said. “Amid all the noise and passions and rancor of our public debate, Tucson reminded us that no matter where we come from, each of us is a part of something greater- something more consequential than party or political preference.”

            It was wise of the president not to go too deep into the details of the shootings, as to not pinpoint blame on any one particular party. It was also wise, as well as unexpected, of him not to delve into gun control policies. If he did, he could have further divided Republicans and Democrats, as well as propose a solution to a problem in which there simply is not one.  He used the shootings in Tucson to encourage unity, not gun control legislation.
            I predicted that Obama would set a time line for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. Vice President Joe Biden said a week ago that troops from Afghanistan would be returning home in July. I expected Obama to address the ones in Iraq and he did.

            Overall, Obama showed sympathy for the working class, the citizens who have been affected by the recession most. He encouraged Americans to better themselves through means of education and technological advances. Obama recognizes that the U.S. needs to take major steps toward clean energy and protecting the environment. He showed a genuine interest in working with Republicans and Democrats alike to improve the nation.