This past Tuesday night, Obama delivered his sixth annual State of the Union Address before a joint session of Congress. Here are 10 things about his speech that you might have missed:
1. The President began by declaring, “The State of the Union is strong.” Something that may have seemed slightly odd considering this is the first time Obama has faced a majority republican Congress during his time in office. Following the government shutdown during the fall of 2013, bipartisanship has been a pressing concern.
2. He then moved on to discuss the economy before sharing a quick wink with the American people. “We’ve seen the fastest economic growth in over a decade; our deficits cut by two-thirds, a stock market that has doubled, and health care inflation at its lowest rate in fifty years. This is good news people. [Insert wink from your President here].”
3. Later, Obama gave a shout-out to Captain Scott Kelly, who will be spending a year on the International Space Station starting this spring. The President’s words of advice: “make sure to Instagram it.”
4. Obama championed the American Dream by asking his fellow politicians, “Will we commit ourselves to an economy that generates rising incomes and chances for everyone who makes the effort?”
5. The President gave Congress a heads up that in the coming months, he’s going to ask them to help him ensure women receive equal pay to their male counterparts, raise the minimum wage, allow all U.S. workers to earn paid sick- and maternity-leave, increase cyber security, and provide higher education (community college) for free “to anyone willing to work for it.”
6. Obama addressed recent terrorist attacks when he stated, “we stand united with people around the world who’ve been targeted by terrorists — from a school in Pakistan to the streets of Paris. We will continue to hunt down terrorists and dismantle their networks.” Along the same lines, the President also asked Congress to grant approval for military action against ISIL -or, more commonly known- “ISIS.” According to the Washington Post, this distinction is worth noting, as it shows the President was hesitant to draw attention to a terrorist organization associating itself with Syria, another sensitive topic in current international relations.
7. He also dissed Russia a little bit in stating, “We’re upholding the principle that bigger nations can’t bully the small – by opposing Russian aggression, supporting The Ukraine’s democracy, and reassuring our NATO allies… today, it is America that stands strong and united with our allies, while Russia is isolated, with its economy in tatters.”
8. He let us know he’s not a scientist, but he knows a lot of good ones at NASA and that “the Pentagon says that climate change poses immediate risks to our national security. We should act like it.” When NASA and the Pentagon are telling us something, we should ideally listen.
9. After a vote of confidence for American Values, tolerance, and the importance of a united America as a global superpower, Obama mentioned the approaching end of his second and final term as President. This was met with applause from a room full of republicans. Regardless, he promised to “seek to work with [Congress] to make this country stronger.”
10. The President wrapped up his speech by asking citizens of the Land of the Free and Home of the Brave to assist him, and his fellow lawmakers in writing a brighter future for “this country we love.”