Russ Feingold has posted
his response to the State of the Union speech on his senate website. The winner of today's dKos
Presidential Straw Poll starts off strongly by tearing into Bush's Iraq failures:
The President failed tonight to present to the American people a flexible timetable for bringing our troops home from Iraq. By focusing too much on Iraq, the President has taken his eye off the emerging threats around the world. Without a plan to finish the military mission in Iraq and focus on those threats our national security will only be further jeopardized.
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Next he lays into what is the most egregious abuse of power by any admin in modern times:
The President also asked Congress to pass a flawed Patriot Act reauthorization without the much-needed, bipartisan changes that every single member of the Senate supported. And he failed to justify his warrantless domestic spying program, but instead continued down the road of trying to defend a program that is clearly illegal. We need to fight a successful war on terrorism without compromising our rights and freedoms.
He continued by referencing the issue that actually mattters most to the majority of Americans but that Bush just glanced over:
Health care is the issue most people in Wisconsin have mentioned to me at the over 900 Listening Sessions I've held around the state. But while the President spoke about health care, he did not acknowledge the need for all Americans to be guaranteed the health care they deserve, and his proposal does not assist those who need help the most.
His summation:
Finally, I was deeply disappointed that the President continues to ignore the flawed economic and trade policies that have helped ship thousands of American businesses and jobs overseas. The legacy of lost firms and lost jobs can be seen in communities around Wisconsin and the entire country, and we will only see more of the same if those reckless policies aren't turned around.
By not adequately addressing the issues people are facing across America, the President missed an opportunity to provide needed leadership at one of the most critical times in our history.