Obama Counterattacks

Reducing the deficit is the focus of a State of the Union address intended to win back voters.

Barack Obama has given his third State of the Union address, aware that the race to obtain a second term has entered a critical period. After the defeat of the Democrats in the November elections, he can’t make even one error; every political wing will make him pay for it. But a merely defensive attitude would not be enough to win back the majority of one who arrived at the White House with a reformist ideology — the balance of which, up until now, has produced disappointment in its ranks and the mobilization of its adversaries.

The political margin that Obama had available to stay loyal to his original program and introduce the necessary changes was reduced. Nonetheless, in his speech he discovered a way to find a line of argument to go on the offensive. The reforms, the president really says, are the response that the United States needs to hold its position at the head of the emerging powers — China, in particular. Obama promises to maintain the investment in sectors such as vocational training, education and health, but he anticipates criticism for the sum of the deficit, announcing cuts in public spending (military spending included) and freezing investment in non-priority programs for up to five years. This equilibrium will not avoid the collision with the Republicans, but it may be able to help disprove that the debate takes place between those who do not worry about the deficit and those who propose to reduce it. Obama has resolutely shown himself to be in the latter camp, although he disagrees with the opposition as to the sectors in which saving should occur.

In foreign policy, the presidential program starts from the new international reality created by the emerging countries, in which Washington is obligated to reformulate its analysis and its lines of action to maintain supremacy. After the recognition of China’s role on the occasion of Hu Jintao’s visit, Obama wants to reinforce ties with Latin America, where Brazil is another principal player of the new reality. Obama’s clear support of the Tunisians that overthrew Ben Ali’s dictatorship contained a double message; the United States continues to be committed to the promotion of democracy, but not by means of wars like the ones that his predecessor in the White House launched. There was no word, however, about the one-time priority of the future Palestinian state.