State of the Union Econ Highlights

"The state of the union is iffy,
As I stand here tonight looking spiffy.
The economy's slow
To get up and go,
And Congress is fiscally cliffy."

"The minimum wage in the nation
Should be tied to the rate of inflation,
So that all may enjoy,
While in private employ,
Relief from the grip of privation."

"America, please hear my sermon:
The Yank should be more like the German,
With apprenticeship skills
That fix our job ills,
As numerous studies determine."

"The number-one US priority
Is the growth of the fact'ry sorority,
So we can bring back
The fam'ly of Mac,
If not all, then at least a minority."

"Of course, I must certainly preface it
As a President these days professes it:
These are policies which,
By taxing the rich,
Will not add a dime to the deficit."

President Barack Obama's latest State of the Union address, the first of his second term, was mostly prosaic, at least in its economic prescriptions.  The poetry came at the end, when the President invoked the victims of gun violence in the House chamber, repeatedly intoning: "They deserve a vote!"  Also, the sight of 102-year-old Desiline Victor, who Mr. Obama cited for her waiting six hours to vote (presumably for him), was enough to make one verklemmt.

Here is the full prepared text of the speech.

Industrialist Obama

"To create better jobs in the shorter view,
Manufacturing needs the support of you,
For to firm up the health
Of our national wealth,
We must build some more cars and export a few."

President Barack Obama, in his State of the Union address on Tuesday night, predicted that manufacturing products for export would turn the US economy around. The President singled out companies such as General Motors and Master Lock as examples of this potential. Such rhetoric made Marketplace reporter Heidi Moore wonder whether we could build enough stuff to fill the financial hole left by crisis-riven banks. After all, the financial sector accounted for one third of US corporate profits before the bubble burst. Responded University of Maryland economics professor Peter Morici:

"We cannot succeed as an economy without a strong manufacturing base." While Wall Street has made a lot of money, Morici says, "It's nothing compared to the wealth generated by labs that come out of manufacturing."

State of the Union: Commando-In-Chief

"Though obstructionists threaten to ruin it,
Those who know what they say don't impugn it:
When I sound the attack,
Our economy's back
Like the Navy SEAL Bin Laden unit."

US Pres. Barack Obama, seeking to tie his military successes to hopeful signs in the economy, gave his economic-themed State of the Union address a military motif. The speech began with a salute to returning Iraqi war veterans, and ended with a tribute to the amazing teamwork of the Navy seal unit that killed Osama bin Laden. These twin martial references helped the president emphasize two key points: first, that there is much on which the President and Congress can work together as a team for the good of the American people; second, that there is much that I, as Commander-in-Chief, can order without you.

State of the Union 2011

Yesterday's Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC FM featured our "State of the Union" limerick from 2010, which seems even more appropriate this year:


Said the President, wagging a finger:  
"Unemployment no longer may linger;  
So, to send a jobs bill  
To my desk from the Hill  
Is the task of each left- and right-winger."    


Here is the audio podcast, with the limerick at 1:15.

A tip of the hat to the most prolific limericist on the interwebs, Mad Kane.

State of the Union

Said the President, wagging a finger,
"Unemployment no longer may linger.
So, to send a jobs bill
To my desk from the Hill
Is the task of each left- and right-winger."