Entitlements and a cure for America’s long-term fiscal imbalance, once ostensibly key Obama concerns, no longer rank as priorities. And in a speech devoted overwhelmingly to domestic issues, Mr. Obama spent just enough time on foreign policy to demonstrate again his determination to limit U.S. commitments in the Middle East. He stressed the end of U.S. military interventions, particularly in Afghanistan, and he vowed to veto any move by Congress to sanction Iran pending his top priority, negotiations on its nuclear programs. He had little to say about ongoing turmoil in Egypt and even less about growing tensions in East Asia.
Read it all. Also, I thought Dana Milbank’s analysis was interesting: “The address was an implicit acknowledgment that his once-grand legislative ambitions are over.” You may find the text of the speech itself here.
I will take comments on this submitted by email only to KSHarmon[at]mindspring[dot]com.