Half Truths and Lies - Live Blogging SOTU

I am listening to the State of the Union address tonight. A few things struck me.

Obama called on us all to be like members of the armed forces, working together to overcome problems. Really? We all get meager pay and lose many of the rights that citizens take for granted.

Pretty sure his proposal for a minimum tax on international corporations would violate treaty and generally accepted accounting principles.

Took credit for Ford's success? Last I checked, they weren't bailed out.

Taking on China? Who do you think you owe all that swag to?

As with previous Presidents, Obama also wants to be head of your Community College District Board. He is also the webmaster for America's community colleges.

Talking about teacher pay, but state's won't pay for them? Calling for rewards to teachers and flexibility. Called for replacing bad teachers. Hard to believe he's serious, but I am glad he brought it up.

Here it comes, more demagoguery on college student loans. However, Obama actually calls for keeping college costs down, glad to hear it.

Oh no, here comes the DREAM Act stuff. Takes on illegal immigration, but calls for comprehensive immigration reform. Fix the border and we'll talk, sir.

Equal pay for equal work? More interference in the free market.

Obligatory Steve Jobs reference. Tear down regulations? Just do it sir, many of them are of your creation. No need for Congress to put it in a bill. What a bald-faced lie to claim you are seeking to reduce regulation. What was Obamacare all about?

Government R&D led to new jobs? It wasn't private companies that created the new products on which prosperity depends.

Opening 75% of offshore resources to oil exploration. The same 75% you previously closed?

Apparently, Obama discovered the oil coming out of the ground in North Dakota. Now he is in favor of natural gas, oh wait, he's not; proposing new regulations for natural gas producers.

This is getting boring. Renewable energy, Solyndra, blah, blah, blah.

Energetics, wind turbine manufacturer, the next Solyndra?

Clean energy tax breaks, more swag to favored groups.

Differences in this chamber too deep, whaaa. More unilateral action, shredding the constitution, Navy purchase of clean energy. Was that authorized? If not, impeach; if yes, how do you take credit for unilateralism.

He keeps using the line, "send me a bill." No, you already sent us the bill.

Here comes the infrastructure bit. More executive orders? Removing red tape? I doubt it, and the press won't hold him accountable.

Now he's going to interfere in the housing market and interfere in sound lending. Directing the banks to renegotiate mortgages? Welcome back from the dead, Juan Peron.
[Post speech note; Romney can hammer on the theme that government caused this housing bubble in the first place, more intervention props up a market that still needs to deflate.]

Smart regulation to prevent irresponsible behavior, but what new is needed? Now he's the de-regulator in chief. Taking credit for the milk spill deregulation.

Safe food, clean water, and evil health insurance practices. I will not go back to . . . I have restored everything good. Big banks won't be bailed out? Wasn't that the exact result of Dodd-Frank? Making it harder for Americans to get credit by regulating credit card companies, in the name of preventing unsavory practices.

Now he is asking for more legislation on banking. So much for deregulation.

Pay down our debt? No way, immediately on to tax hike prevention, or do you mean blowing a bigger hole in Social Security?

Here comes the tax rate demagoguery. Hey, no applauded the Warren Buffett secretary tax rate lie line. (It is a lie, because Buffet's income is first taxed at a corporate tax rate.) Fair share, blah, blah. Even Dems can barely muster applause.

Millionaire bashing, no real new ideas here. Yes, sir, I am calling this class warfare, because it is built on a foundation of lies. The rich pay twice, first on corporate taxes then on gains. He envisions a nation of dependents, whose lives depend on taxes from the rich. What a poverty of imagination, if that were true we would truly be a nation in poverty.

What are we thinking? Who will win the Super Bowl?

Bemoaning partisanship. Corrosive influence of money in politics. Banning insider trading by members of Congress? Ain't happening.

Going after the cloture rule in the Senate? Really? Don't recall him being for that when he was in the Senate. Asking for a simple up or down vote on nominees? Be careful what you ask for, there will be a Republican President some day.

Building consensus? Quoting Lincoln? Huge lie, Obama has been the chief contributor to partisan fighting. He then talks about the health care bill, the epitome of partisan and lobbyist driven legislation.

I think he's finishing. Terrible speech. Nope, back to taking credit for being Commander-In-Chief. Hey, where's the talk about engagement in Iran? Now he's talking Arab Spring and whacking Ghadaffi. He's going to whack Assad too? Who'd have thunk it, a dude named Barack Hussein Obama is all about whacking Arabs?

Iran isn't going to get a nuke according to Obama, no options off the table. Of course he should say it, even if we aren't really going to bomb them. Oh no, now he's Bibi's his best friend, or at least Israel's.

America is back! Hey, I agree that we are not in decline, but I think he is targeting Romney. Opinions of America in other countries are higher than in years? Don't think so, will look it up later. American exceptionalism.

Budget cuts for the military, cyber threat legislation. Waiting for the other shoe to drop on this issue. Already let the first one fall at the start of the defense review this month. VA spending going up. Veterans rebuilding this nation, with tax credits for veteran hiring. Hey, I'm a veteran, and honestly this all feels like pandering after a while.

Back to the topic of learning from the servicemen and women, we are all in it together, serving one nation. More bin-Laden and flag waving, almost literally. Am I awesome as CINC or what? Mission only succeeded because of ME, is the not so subtle subtext of recounting SEAL speech. More fascist rhetoric about how we all work together as a team. Sorry, we are no longer in the service, as I opined before.

Finally, no mention of Obamacare, expected; but also not much about Defense budget, which I had expected.