Scott Tibbs
blog post
February 2nd, 2005

Back to Archived blog posts.

What is the State of the Union?

Tonight, President George W. Bush will give the annual "State of the Union" speech to the Congress. As the President advocates for his domestic and foreign policy agenda, it is a good idea to consider what the state of the union is.

Right now, the United States is in a good position. We are rebounding from a recession that began in the last few months of the Clinton administration and was deepened by September 11. While the war in Iraq has certainly been bumpy, free elections were held this week for the first time in decades and the US is making progress in the War on Terror.

But while things are good, those good times are precarious. To help the economy continue to recover, Congress needs to pass more tax cuts to help take the tax burden off the private sector. As we saw in the 1980's, cutting taxes can actually increase revenue to the Treasury by spurring economic growth. While the President's tax cuts were a good start, he must work for more tax relief.

Our civil liberties are in danger. While the intent behind the "Patriot Act" and similar measures is good, the methods are not. We cannot sacrifice individual liberties to fight a war on terror. The ironic thing about curtailing freedom to more effectively fight terror is that the monsters who struck on 9/11 were enemies of freedom.

Our right to freedom of speech is in peril as well. Some members of Congress are chomping at the bit to pass more restrictions on the content of political speech (as they did with the "McCain-Feingold" act) in the name of "clean campaigns". They got away with using the Orwellian tactic of limiting freedom to "clean up politics" before; they must not be allowed to do so again.

The federal government continues to expand at too rapid a pace. A more conservative Congress may help to reign that in. Indiana has strong fiscal conservatives in Congress who will work to ensure that freedom is protected by limiting the federal government.

The coarsening of the American culture continues to be a concern, with sexual immorality becoming more and more brazen and the slaughter of 1.2 million unborn babies every year. This is a problem government cannot solve; Christians must be more aggressive in being "salt and light" and spreading the truth of God's Word to a nation that has forgotten Him.

Conservatives did well in 2004, but more needs to be done to preserve freedom and prosperity for future generations. Now is a good time to start.