It looks like Utah's Huntsman was right. The GOP in Congress is inconsequential.

The always hyper cautious Candy Crowley tried to downplay the poll numbers by telling us that mostly Democrats watched, the poll skewed Democratic, bla bla bla.   As if this very first address to Congress at an enormously pivotal time was not watched by virtually anyone who was near a TV set, regardless of party affiliation?

 They keep trying their best to blow smoke up the American people's a$$es, but they don't seem to have much luck these days.

What he said was fine, but how he said it was the clincher.  He projected complete confidence and control.  The GOP must be out of their mind figuring out how they are going to break his stride.

We are a nation that has seen promise amid peril, and claimed opportunity from ordeal.

Beautifully put. And then the transition to energy issues. Bravo!

 cannot. snark. i'm melting. melting...

Obama hit a home run with his speech. It was brillant and ambitious - something we have not heard in 8 LONG years. I loved that he was sooooo ambitious and put it all on the line: healthcare reform being the essence which sent a "thrill up my leg" I must say. The fact that he didn't back off of healthcare reform is awesome because it flies in the face of what some would perceive as being too costly "right now" - yet he explained how it is tied in DIRECTLY with the economic plan and the same with energy alternatives. A less ambitious President might say we have to put this on hold right now, but Obama ties it all in directly with the economic plan and did so brilliantly.

Jindal looked like an idiot. Was he kidding? He spoke to the public like we were stupid, chastising democrats, claiming a volcano erupting tracking system was "pork". Are these people real? They spent TRILLIONS on a war we didn't need. And I LOVE that Obama will get the REAL COST of the war out there.

I cannot imagine that anyone listening to both speeches and parties could be moved by Jindal whereas Obama laid it all out PERFECTLY in my opinion.

OK. Obama's speech was, as usual, articulate, inspiring, genuine and unifying. What's new? So let's talk about Jindal's incredible response to the President's speech. Wow. I just have one question: Is Jindal the governor of a state or a 1st grade teacher? While I was watching him, I worried that he was going to lapse in baby-talk... goo-goo, ga-ga, Obama poopy. Seriously, have you ever seen such a simplistic, patronizing and manipulative performance by any politician? If Jindal was the GOP's rising star, we just saw it collapse into a black hole. "We believe in you"? That is called a platitude. And, when Jindal stated that the Republican Party doesn't agree that government is the solution for our problems, he was ignoring a gaggle of Nobel Prize-winning economists. He was also implying that Obama's solution simply calls for bigger government, i.e. socialism. This, of course, was a distortion of the truth. Most of the programs in the stimulus will be executed by the private sector and involve projects from which the public will greatly benefit. So, what we saw Jindal do was attempt to spin the President's speech in a typically partisan manner. So, we are left with the kind of double-speak we are accustomed to hearing from the GOP-- "We are ready and willing to work with the President to solve the nation's problems, but...".  

As much of a partisan fan I am of the president, I think he is in danger of making the same speech over and over again.  Hopeful but a not necessarily helpful in explaining this crisis and how we get out of it.

Bob Griendling
www.CommonwealthCommonsense.com