Out Of Touch 

Last night's State of the Union address was vintage President Obama. He sprinkled references to bi-partisanship, cooperation and working together throughout his hour-long speech. And he insisted that he would offer "practical, not partisan ideas." 

Yet by the time Obama finished, he had set a record for the number of veto threats issued in a State of the Union address. Obama made it clear that he would tolerate no changes to banking regulations, Obamacare, his executive amnesty for illegal immigrants or new sanctions on Iran. It was his way or the highway. 

Obama touched on all the issues sure to bring the country together. In spite of votes in more than 30 states, Obama rubbed judicially imposed same-sex marriage in the public's face. 

He again vowed to close the terrorist detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba -- a position supported by only 29% of likely voters according to the latest Rasmussen poll. Let me remind you that Gitmo remains open because Senate Democrats in 2009 blocked Obama from shutting it. That's bi-partisanship! 

On a night when Yemen was falling to a radical Islamic revolution, Obama never once mentioned Al Qaeda or radical Islam. (By the way, just a few months ago, Obama pointed to Yemen as an example of his successful anti-terrorism efforts.) He is perhaps the last world leader unwilling to call the enemy what it is. But he did manage to defend Islam against "inappropriate stereotypes of Muslims." 

Even some leading Democrats had trouble with the president's remarks. Liberal pollster Douglas Schoen writes that Obama focused "on his agenda exclusively and not a bi-partisan agenda . . . ignoring the will of the American people. . . The speech was out of step with the wishes of the American people and the realities we are facing at home and abroad." 

On MSNBC last night, Chris Matthews asked Andrea Mitchell, "How close was the president to reality, overall globally, tonight?" Mitchell said, "I think that on foreign policy, his projection of success against terrorism and against ISIS in particular . . . is not close to reality. They have not come up with a strategy."

Our Greatest Threat? 

One example of Obama's disconnect from reality was this claim: "And no challenge -- no challenge -- poses a greater threat to future generations than climate change." Excuse me?

There is a vicious, evil enemy marauding across the Middle East and much of Africa. Iran is aggressively pursuing nuclear weapons. Obama has doubled the national debt and is still running deficits of half a trillion dollars a year. And he thinks climate change is our greatest threat. 

The American people don't see it that way. According to a recent Pew survey, Americans ranked terrorism as the most pressing concern, even ahead of the economy and jobs. Global warming finished 22nd out of 23 issues polled. 

An Earnest Response 

Freshman Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa delivered the Republican response to the president's State of the Union address. It is perhaps the toughest political act to follow. You've got just a few minutes to make your case. There's no audience and no standing ovations to highlight your best lines.

Senator Ernst stressed the GOP's commitment to lowering taxes, fighting wasteful spending and resisting executive overreach. I was also pleased with her pledge that the new Congress would defend the sanctity of life. 

Tehran's Talking Points 

Obama's defiant remarks last night about negotiating with Iran's hardline regime were certain to frustrate conservatives. But they also angered a key congressional Democrat. 

Senator Robert Menendez, (D-NJ) the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, ripped into Obama's naive rhetoric during a hearing this morning, saying: 
 

"The more I hear from the administration . . . the more it sounds like talking points that come straight out of Tehran. And it feeds to the Iranian narrative of victimization, when they are the ones with original sin, an illicit nuclear weapons program going back over the course of 20 years that they are unwilling to come clean on. So I don’t know why we feel compelled to make their case."

Good for him! 

Meanwhile, on the other side of Capitol Hill, House Speaker Boehner announced today that he invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint session of Congress next month about "the grave threats radical Islam and Iran pose to our security and way of life." 

The prime minister has accepted and will speak on February 11th. National Journal notes, "The date is significant: It's the 36th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution." 

The White House is fuming. Press Secretary Josh Earnest complained that Boehner's invitation was a breach of protocol since he didn't clear it with the White House first. 

But Boehner isn't backing down. During a press conference this morning, Boehner told reporters: "[Obama] expects us to stand idly by and do nothing while he cuts a bad deal with Iran. Two words: 'Hell no!' We're going to do no such thing." 

Of Beards And Abortions 

Yesterday the Supreme Court ruled 9-to-0 that the state of Arkansas could not require a Muslim prisoner to shave his beard. The court was not swayed by concerns over safety and contraband. 

So every justice on the court -- even liberal Justices Breyer, Kagan, Sotomayor and Ginsburg -- believes that the Constitution's guarantee of religious liberty protects a convict's right to lengthy facial hair.

Yet those same left-wing justices felt that Christian business owners (Hobby Lobby) had no protection whatsoever from government demands to pay for other people's abortions. 

Whether it's building a mosque at Ground Zero, prohibiting surveillance of mosques or protecting beards, it seems that the only religious liberties many on the left care about are those of Muslims.