It really is just extraordinary. It is a special opportunity for the president. He is not going to change very many minds, there are not going to be any grand initiatives. It is to try to divine the contours of the next 10 months and the final chapters of his presidency. Is he facing a more challenging environment right now . It is a very challenging environment. Much more challenging than he faced last year and he didnt have a very good year last your. Fax can he get much a compass tear . I think this is a chance to reset his image after the setbacks he has had from the National Security leaks, the obamacare rollout. He can come out looking like a guy who has a plan to move the country forward. A lot of people are very frustrated right now. We have looked at the stock market that has soared more than 25 in 2013. We have seen the Unemployment Rate to a certain extent come down but there is frustration and fear that it is just people perhaps giving up and getting out of the workforce. What can he say tonight to make americans feel better about the direction the economy is going in . I think that is exactly right. That is why the buzzword is going to the opportunity for all. The president needs to not just list executive actions, but he also needs to show their is going to be followthrough, that this is going to be a year of action with a concrete plan. That is part of the challenge. Youre looking at a lameduck president dealing with a dysfunctional congress. In terms of an agenda, what can be accomplished this year . It is tough. We learned last year that he is not going to get a lot through congress. Control of congress hasnt switched. Republicans arent going to be won over. Basically he has to make the case that he can do things by executive action that can achieve some of the things he wants to achieve and the ones he cant, he can at least shape the National Dialogue around things like opportunity, higher minimum wage, things like that that might set off a public discussion that could lead to something better. I agree. Theyutive actions are going to do a minimum wage for federal workers. That is really chump change. The immigration tonight will be very interesting to watch his tone. He has a chance to get that. He has to challenge congress but he cant offend republicans in doing so. He has to try to be much more moderate on that. I think he will be. What else might we hear from him . Anything related to healthcare. Gov . I think there probably will be. After the debacle of the rollout and the press conference where he basically flagellate it himself and apologized, now the site is working. People are signing up in pretty substantial numbers. There are some people in the audience who are going to be pointed to who have been helped by the Health Care Law. I think he will use this as a chance to turn the narrative on the Health Care Law from an albatross to something that has given people positive benefits. And the governor of kentucky, one place where it is working. We have Midterm Elections coming up. Is tonight going to help set the stage for what we might see for the Democratic Party in the month ahead . It begins the dialogue. Inreally will play a role whether democrats start off on the defensive or whether they have some issues which they can put republicans on the defensive. I think josh is right. Not so much to get legislation through but to set the agenda for this year. President sally the Approval Rating correlates fairly strongly with how his party performs in the Midterm Elections. There is a danger that if they dont improve between now and november democrats could lose control of the senate which would put a damper on this last years in office. The white house has been saying that over the past few weeks, the liaison to capitol hill who is newly installed, she has been spending a lot of time meeting with senate democrats, running through some of these messages, making sure that everyone is on board heading into 2014. With the 23fic note Democratic Senators that are up for reelection, they think focus on will last Economic Issues, ensuring upward mobility either for middleclass americans that that is going to be a key theme for 2014. I just want to reference what we are look yet. Looking at. We are waiting on the sergeant at arms to introduce the president of the United States as he begins his state of the Union Address. We are watching some of the cabinet never stick to their seats right now. As we await the president , we are discussing the Economic Issues at stake. When you look at his Approval Ratings, it is somewhat surprising. We have an economy that has improved. Improved,s have unemployment has come down, the stock market is up. Yet the president s Approval Rating has not. And peoples attitudes about the economy are decidedly negative. I think the answer to your question is, people dont feel it. The average folks dont feel the economy getting better. They think it is topheavy. Their wages havent gone up. There is still apprehension about layoffs or not getting back to work or overtime. That thisot a sense economy is doing as well as the numbers suggest. It is tough. On one hand, he should be able to get out there and rejoice in this good economic news. On the other hand, politically, that could be a disaster. That is the danger. To a certain segment of americans, they are doing very well area very well. If you are a working american or an unemployed american or somebody working on a minimum wage, feelings arent good. It is tough. You have to walk a delicate line of claiming credit for the good things without seeming as though you are not paying attention to the plight of people who are separate. The person who did that in 2012 was not barack obama but William Jefferson clinton. He was able to do it and he did it artfully because he wasnt the president. He was as good as anybody in american politics. He made that case which was much harder for obama to make. He called it the hourglass economyf with a lot of people on top, a lot of people on the bottom and middle class really feeling the squeeze. How do you change that . How do you Institute Policy on a night like tonight that actually makes a difference . I think part of it is basically publicrelations, giving people getting dispirited americans the sense that there president does have a plan. If you get down into particulars of what that is and how much can be a conflict with executive order, it is maybe not that exciting. Part of this is setting the tone for the country, setting the tone for the economy, making eagle feel making people feel optimistic. Julianna, you have so many sources in the white house. What are you hearing in terms of the tone we will hear tonight . As al was just saying, it is going to be a nuanced message. On one hand he is standing up giving his fifth state of the union speech whereas the economy has been not been better under his presidency. When you look at the other structural issues, longterm unemployment has never been worse. He is going to be setting a tone, trying to work with congress but saying where we cant work with congress, where they have pushed back or obstructed efforts of hours to help the jobless, we are going to try and go around him. White house officials have been really adamant leading up to this speech, saying that he does not want to be a confrontational president tonight. He wants to find areas where they can work with congress. I think what you might hear is that in areas where the white house thinks there might be some openings for congress, maybe on Immigration Reform, the president is going to step back and say a little less. For example, make the case for Immigration Reform but making sure that he can give john boehner the space he needs to maneuver within his caucus. Julianna brings up an interesting point. The idea that he is not going to really jam it down the republicans throat. He recognizes if he wants to get something done on immigration, he has to be careful at this moment. Hold on one second. Lets listen in. [applause] [applause] there he is making his way towards the podium. A lot of handshaking at this moment going on. A lot of hellos. This is this ritual. There are members there who got there three or four hours ago so they could shake the hands of the president , the scene on television who just yesterday were saying he is the worst thing since attila the hun. Tomorrow they will say the same thing. Tonight, we celebrate. This is something that happens in this country every year, the state of the union. Going all the way back to george washington. He didnt use to give it in person. Occasionally remember the congressman from South Carolina a couple years ago who yelled out, you are a liar or something. That really is rare. There is a respect of the office for this evening. That you have any sense the political situation is improving in washington . That there is maybe more of an effort for bipartisanship . You can make an argument that it can. It began at the end of last year with the budget deal that was negotiated between paul ryan and patty murray. It stands as a model for what obama is going to need to do this year. He stepped back, let members of Congress Step forward. I think he realizes now, he is too much of a controversial figure to lead the way and bring republicans along on Something Like a budget or Immigration Reform. We did pass a twoyear budget. It looks like we are going to get a farm bill. But years are starting to function again. I think there is a real limit to what he can achieve. Earlier we spoke earlier about president clinton and some of his speeches. Was able about what he to accomplish in his second term. You think of the challenges that a lameduck faces. Does he have the opportunity to get much done in the next two years . He can get one or two big things. He can get some things that are part of that economic inequality equation. He could get the earned income tax credit has bipartisan support. Minimum wage. Things like education. There are things he can get, not a huge package. Too is heer thing needs to protect his Health Care Law. I get more people to signup, get the right mix of people to sign up, keep touting that. I dont think he is quite out of the woods on that. We are waiting on Speaker Boehner to introduce him. Julianna, go ahead. The modest list of proposals the president is putting out tonight also reflects the need for him to focus on implementation of the Affordable Care act, of wall street reform, of these key initiatives from the last few years. Lets listen into the president of the United States. [applause] thank you. Members of congress, i have the high privilege and distinct honor of presenting to you the president of the United States. [applause] Speaker Boehner introducing the president of the United States. Thank you so much. [applause] thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Speaker, mr. Vice president , members of congress, my fellow americans, today in america a teacher spent extra time with a student who needed it and did her part to lift americas Graduation Rate to its highest levels in more than three decades. And after burner flipped on entrepreneur flipped on the light in a tech startup and did her part to add to the more than 8 million new jobs created over the past four years. [applause] and autoworker finetuned some of the best, most fuelefficient cars in the world and did his part to help america wean itself off foreign oil. Springr prepared for the after the strongest fiveyear stretch of farm exports in our history. A rural doctor gave a young child the first prescription to treat asthma that his mother could afford. [applause] a man took the bus home from the graveyard shift bone tired dreaming big dreams for his son. In tightknit communities all over the country, fathers and mothers will talk in their kids, put an arm around their spouse, remember fallen comrades and give thanks for being home from a war that after 12 long years is finally coming to an end. [applause] tonight, this chamber speaks with one voice to the people we represent. Make you, our citizens who the state of our union strong. [applause] results of your efforts. The lowest Unemployment Rate in over five years, a rebounding Housing Market [laughter] [applause] a Manufacturing Sector that is adding jobs for the First Time Since the 1990s. More oil produced at home then we buy from the rest of the world, the first time that has happened in nearly 20 years. [applause] deficits, cut by more than half. [applause] and for the first time in over a decade, Business Leaders around the world have declared that china is no longer the worlds number one place to invest. America is. [applause] that is why i believe this can be a breakthrough year for america. Grit ande years of determined effort, the United States is better positioned for the 21st century than any other nation on earth. The question for everyone in this chamber, running through every decision we make this year , is whether we are going to help or hinder this progress. For several years, this town has been consumed by arod by an argument over the proper size of the federal government. It is an important debate. One that dates back to our very founding. When that debate for events us from carrying out even the most basic functions of our democracy , when our differences shut down government or threaten the full faith and credit of the United States, then we are not doing right to the American People. [applause] as president i am committed to make washington work better. Rebuilding the trust of the people who sent us here. I believe most of you are too. Last month, thanks to the work of democrats and republicans, with as finally came up budget that undoes some cuts to education. Nobody got everything they wanted. We can still do more to invest in this countrys future while bringing down our deficit in a balanced way. The budget compromise should leave us freer to focus on creating new jobs, not new crises. [applause] , lets seeng months where else we can make progress together. Lets make this a year of action. That is what most americans want. For all of us in this chamber to focus on their lives, their hopes, their aspirations. What i believe unites the people of this nation regardless of race or region or party, young or old, rich or poor is the simple profound belief in opportunity for all. The notion that if you work hard and take responsibility, you can get ahead in america. [applause] belief hasit, that suffered some serious blows. Over more than three decades, even before the Great Recession hit, massive shifts in technology and competition had eliminated a lot of good middleclass jobs. It weakened the economic foundations that families depend on. Today, after four years of economic growth, stock prices have rarely been higher. Those at the top have never done better. But average wages have barely budged. Inequality has deepened. Upward mobility has stalled. Fact is that even in the midst of recovery, too Many Americans are working more than ever just to get by, let alone get ahead. Too many still arent working at all. [applause] so our job is to reverse these trends. It wont happen right away and we wont agree on everything. What i offer tonight is a set of concrete practical proposals to speed up growth, strengthen the middle class and build new letters of opportunity into the middle class. Some require congressional action. I am eager to work with all of you. America does not stand still and neither will i. Takever and whenever i can steps without legislation to expand opportunity for american families, that is what i am going to do. [applause] as usual, our first lady sets a good example. Michelle [applause] michelles lets move partnership with schools, businesses, local leaders has helped bring down Childhood Obesity rates for the first time in 30 years. That is an achievement that will improve lives and reduce Health Care Costs for decades to come. The joining forces alliance that michelle and joe biden launched has encouraged employers to hire or train nearly 400,000 veterans and military spouses. [applause] taking a page from that playbook, the white house just organized a College Opportunity summit where already 150 universities, businesses and nonprofits have made concrete commitments to reduce inequality and access to Higher Education. And to help every hardworking kid go to college and succeed when they get to campus. Across the country we are partnering with mayors, governors and state legislatures on issues from homelessness to marriage equality. Millions is, there are of americans outside of washington who are tired of stale political arguments and are moving this country forward. They believe and i believe that here in america, our success should depend not on accident of birth but the strength of our work ethic and the scope of our dreams. It is what drew our forbearers here. That is how the daughter of a factory worker is ceo of americas largest automaker. [applause] how the son iv barkeep is speaker of the house. [applause] how the son of a single mom can the president of the greatest nation on earth. [applause] opportunity is who we are. The defining project of our generation mus