Obama's 2012 State of the Union -- no reason to hope

President Barack Obama is preparing to deliver his State of the Union address to Congress but one question looms overhead. Will this year's address be another litany of more unfulfilled visions, or will this year's address be different? 

WASHINGTON, DC (Catholic Online) - Obama's State of the Union track record is poor, suggesting that this year's speech won't have much impact on the coming year's policies either. Add the upcoming election, and political hardball rather than compromise is likely to be the order of the day.

The State of the Union address is a very important speech for a sitting President. The speech is delivered to both houses of Congress and aired live on prime-time TV. It is the president's annual opportunity to share a vision for the country and to make pledges about how the country will be led. 

Unfortunately, rather than being a legitimate progress report on the nation, the speech has become a regular political circus as each side works tirelessly to blame the other for the problems the country faces.

As for President Obama, he has made numerous State of the Union pledges that have gone unfulfilled. In previous speeches he has pledged to reform immigration laws, to meet with the leadership of both parties regularly, the elimination of oil subsidies, and the replacement of No Child Left Behind. And this is just the short list.

The prospect for this year is no better because this is also an election year. The government is bitterly divided and Republicans are desperate to retake the White House. So while Obama makes his case for more change, the political realities of Washington suggest that his plea will fall on deaf ears. 

Jack Pitney, political scientist at Claremont McKenna College put it well when he explained, "State of the Union Addresses are kind of like the foam rubber rocks they used on Star Trek - they look solid but aren't. Presidents talk about solving some policy problem, and then the bold language of the State of the Union address disappears into the messy reality of governing." 

One stark example was last year's address when Obama called for unity in government, following the assassination attempt of Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords. The goal was noble, but came to naught as politicians on both sides of the aisle refused to compromise on issues that were critical to national well-being. The climax of the division came in August as both parties flatly refused to agree on the debt ceiling debate nearly bringing the government to a standstill. 

This year's State of the Union will likely be less idealistic and focus on the political realities at hand. Obama is no longer a freshman President and he should have a good idea of what is politically feasible-and what is not. His speech will likely be less about lofty goals and more about setting realistic expectations for the year to come. 

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In any case, it would be ill advised to hold much hope for even the modest goals Obama presents during tomorrow's speech. This is going to be a tough year for Obama, and if Republicans have their way-it will also be his last. And the political conflict leading up to the election almost guarantees that it will also be a difficult year for the country as a whole. 

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