The State Of The Union

Courtesy: Tom Williams/Roll Call/Getty Images

Over the past several years, I have been paying really close attention to the President's State Of The Union address. Yes, that even means President Bush's back in the day. I don't know if it's the journalist in me or what but I've even been taking some notes while watching.

This is especially true for this year and, overall, I liked what President Obama had to say. No, I'm not just saying that because I'm a Democrat, but also because I want change to our country. Here are some key points presented in his speech...

The Economy

• The President really harped on the fact that consumers need to be protected and everyone needs to play by the rules
• "America is a greater nation if everyone plays by the rules"

• He said it "makes no sense" to give tax breaks to those who ship jobs out of the country
• The President also complimented the car industry for its efforts to get back on track
• Mentioned how there are numerous jobs emerging in science/technology sector but not enough people with the skill sets to fill them
• Wants to train Americans for skills that will lead to jobs
• Turn "unemployment" to "reemployment"

Education

• Commented on how other countries are "doubling down" on education, America is laying off teachers
• Wants to give resources to schools so they can keep teachers and reward those who do well
• Wants to create incentives for every state to require high school students to stay in school and not drop out until they graduate or turn 18
• For college the President wants to increase student aid and make college more affordable
• He gave a stern warning to colleges/universities that if they can't find a way to keep tuition from going up, tax payer support (i.e. dollars) will decrease

Immigration

• Challenged Congress to get comprehensive immigration reform passed now
• Said we should give a way for people who are not citizens (brought in by family at young age) but who want to invest, work, or fight for our country a way to earn citizenship

Energy

• The President said his administration has opened 75% of American offshore oil/natural gas reserves
• He wants to "develop every available source" of American energy
• The President also said that a cleaner, cheaper energy industry will add about 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade

Infrastructure

• Pres. Obama said he signed an Executive Order that cuts through the red tape that's delaying construction work
• Challenged Congress to use part of the money spent on the war in Iraq and give towards our infrastructure building in America

Challenges To Congress

• Congress didn't get off easy. They were basically lectured to about not getting the job done in Washington
• The President compared the divide between Washington and the rest of the country to the  divide between Wall St. and Main St.
• The President did blame both parties and urged them to fix their problems

I know it's long but those are some of the key points from Pres. Obama's speech. There was a Republican response. The one thing I found in that was the speaker said that "Steve Jobs created more jobsin America than the President's stimulus packages." God rest his soul but I learned in class just today that most Apple jobs (like phone manufacturing, etc.) are in China and Pres. Obama even asked Jobs how he could get more Apple jobs back in America.

Overall, it was a very good speech and I hope that Congress will take what the President called them out on to heart!