Here are my instant comments:
He supported hydro-fracking and "clean energy" a LOT (but without mentioning that label). He said he'll be opening up millions of acres of public lands for that purpose. The only caveat was that he'd require companies doing the fracking to reveal the chemicals they're using.
The Great Oz (Obama) also humbugged his way through proudly saying that more offshore oil is now being drilled than ever before, and he will expand that. The caveat was saying he'd close tax subsidies and loopholes for oil companies, who have been receiving them for a century.
He did not call for exonerating the student debt or even providing a moratorium on it as so many had hoped (though he packaged this as though he was making some great concession), but for stopping the increase in interest rates due this summer, leaving the current interest rates in place.
And he called for all millionaires to pay a 30 percent tax rate as Warren Buffet has written (as though that will generate any significant funds), but failed to mention that under FDR that was a 92 percent rate, and even under Kennedy is was over 70 percent.
Of course, as expected, he wrapped himself in the flag and rah-rahhed the extra-judicial murders of bin-Ladin and Qaddafi (instead of obtaining warrants and arresting them), and while praising himself for pulling back troop levels slightly in Afghanistan said nothing about the U.S. government's reliance on the vast increase in paid mercenaries there.
And, he talked about making the U.S. profitable for businesses to hire workers. He should have prefaced it by saying, "now that we've busted unions and are eliminating environmental regulations, and bailed out the banks and auto industry we can make U.S. corporations even more profitable." He also continues to support the so-called "free trade" agreements that sent millions of U.S. jobs abroad.
Hey, I didn't take notes. Those are just things I remembered, off the top of my head. So many people want to feel that they are part of something greater than themselves that they may again fall for Obama's rhetoric. Which would be unfortunate. The corporate TV pundits were harsher than usual, and pitched the whole speech -- without mentioning any of the specifics listed above -- in terms of his electoral fight with the Republicans: "Will it help him?" "He is drawing a line in the sand to challenge Romney or Gingrich." No analysis of the specific issues Obama brought up on behalf of his corporate masters, while seeming to be a populist.
At least that's my immediate read on his speech. What did others think?
Mitchel Cohen
Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack, a crack in everything, That's how the light gets in. ~ Leonard Cohen