View source for Democratic response to the 2006 State of the Union address

{{Short description|Speech by Virginia Governor Tim Kaine}}
{{Original research|date=January 2009}}
The '''response to the 2006 State of the Union Address''' was delivered by [[Virginia Governor]] [[Tim Kaine]] on January 31, 2006, after [[President of the United States|United States President]] [[George W. Bush]] delivered [[2006 State of the Union address|his 2006 State of the Union address]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Mooney |first=Alexander |title=Turning to a rising star |url=http://edition.cnn.com/POLITICS/blogs/politicalticker/2007/01/turning-to-rising-star.html |access-date=2007-10-11 | work=CNN}}</ref> The theme of Kaine's speech, "''A Better Way''", advocates the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party's]] policies and [[states' rights]].<ref>{{Citation |title= Democrats respond: 'There is a better way' |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/01/31/dems.response/ |access-date=2007-10-11 | work=CNN}}</ref> Kaine delivered the speech from Virginia's historic [[Executive Mansion (Virginia)|Executive Mansion]] in [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] and the speech was televised nationwide.
{{wikinews|President Bush delivers 2006 State of the Union Address}}{{wikisourcehas|source texts related to this article|
*[[s:George W. Bush's Sixth State of the Union Address|George W. Bush's Sixth State of the Union Address]]
*[[s:Democratic Response to George W. Bush's Sixth State of the Union Address|Democratic Response to George W. Bush's Sixth State of the Union Address]]}}{{clear|left}}
==Introduction==
Kaine begins his speech by recalling his work as a [[Catholicism|Catholic]] [[missionary]] in [[Honduras]] where he learned the [[Value theory|value]] of measuring one's "life by the difference [one] can make in someone else's life." Kaine mourns the loss of [[Coretta Scott King]], as Bush did in the introduction of his speech, who "embodied that value."
Kaine's [[diction]] emphasizes the role of [[elected official]]s as [[public servants]], portraying the duties of office as a "higher calling" and referring to the [[federal government of the United States|federal government's]] duty to "serve the [[United States|American]] people" as a frustrated "mission" due to the [[George W. Bush administration|Bush administration]]'s "poor choices and bad management."
==Criticism of government policies==
Kaine attacks the government's most controversial actions and positions; the Federal response to [[Hurricane Katrina]],<ref>See also: [[Criticism of the government response to Hurricane Katrina]]</ref> "Families in the Gulf Coast see [the government's mistakes] as they wait to rebuild their lives", the [[United States economy]], "Americans who lose their jobs see [the government's mistakes] as they look to rebuild their careers", the [[Iraq War]], "and our soldiers in [[Iraq]] see that as they try to rebuild a nation".
===Bipartisan cooperation===
Both Bush and Kaine emphasize the need for [[bipartisan]] cooperation.
Kaine, "As Americans, we do great things when we work together. Some of our leaders in Washington seem to have forgotten that."
Bush, "... even tough debates can be conducted in a civil tone... our differences cannot be allowed to harden into anger... we must act in a spirit of good will and respect for one another."
==Kaine's theme: "A better way"==
Kaine offers "good news", stating that "[[Virginia]] and other states" were succeeding "by focusing on service, competent management and results", the theme of his speech. He also points out that, under previous Governor [[Mark Warner]], Virginia was voted "Best Managed State", in order to draw a stark contrast with the financial state of the nation, saying a citizen has "a right to expect that your government can deliver results".
He then poses a series of hypothetical situations, linked through the [[Anaphora (rhetoric)|anaphoric]] repetition of the word "When", invoking the [[September 11, 2001 attacks]], [[Hurricane Katrina]] and attacking the quality of [[Education in the United States]]. He particularly criticizes the government's [[fiscal policy]], insisting that citizens "have a right to expect [the] government to be fiscally responsible, pay the bills and live within its means", a criticism of governmental [[Political corruption|corruption]] and the [[1000000000000 (number)|trillion]] dollar "staggering [[budget deficit|national debt]]". Kaine accuses Bush mismanagement, citing his [[tax cut]]s, and paralleling the "huge [[Economic surplus|surplus]]es" of the [[Clinton administration]] with the "massive deficits" of the [[George W. Bush administration|Bush administration]].
Kaine asks [[rhetoric]]ally, "Why should we allow this administration to pass down the bill for its reckless spending to our children and grandchildren?" and repeats his theme, "There's a better way."
==Success in Virginia==
Kaine switches his focus from an international level to a state level, discussing the fiscally successful budget reached "Two years ago in Virginia" by Republican legislators and former Democratic [[Governor of Virginia|Virginia governor]] [[Mark Warner]]. Kaine's first points attack inadequate "service... management and results." The second part of the speech is outlined by Kaine's success on a state level and Bush's mistakes on a national level, "By focusing on results we were able to... protect the essential services that families rely on: education, [[health care]], law enforcement."
===Education===
Kaine denounces the [[No Child Left Behind Act]] for "wreaking havoc on local [[school district]]s" and blames Bush for allegedly underfunding the act while "refusing to let states try innovative alternatives" and "cutting billions of dollars from the student loan programs."
He repeats his theme a third time and recalls how "governors from across the country worked together in a bipartisan fashion to reform the senior year of high school", a sentence that repeats the bipartisanship, working, and reform emphasized in his comment on the Virginia budget, "Democrats and Republicans worked together to reform our budget".
He notes how states "are working to make... [[pre-kindergarten]] accessible to every family."
Announcing a Democrat plan "to educate 100,000 new engineers, scientists and mathematicians in the next four years", Kaine proposes an alternative policy to the Bush administration. However, his statement remains vague as he never actually states the Democrat's plan. Instead, he points to "record investments in education... [resulting in] more accredited schools [and] better student test scores", and attributes this to Virginian bipartisan cooperation.
==Political significance==
The success of Democrats in Virginia, notably Kaine's election as Governor,<ref>{{Citation |last=Snow |first=Tony |title=Tony's Take |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/lessons-from-virginia |access-date=2007-10-11 |publisher=[[Fox News Channel]] | date=2005-11-11}}</ref> provided a success story for national Democrats to begin 2006,<ref>{{Citation |last=Jenkins |first=Chris L. |title=Obama Rallies N.Va. Democrats Behind Kaine |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/21/AR2005072100007_pf.html |access-date=2007-10-11 | work=The Washington Post }}</ref> which was to be a year of a Congressional midterm election.  The success of Kaine and Warner in rebuilding the Democratic Party in the Republican-leaning state was rewarded with Kaine's response to President Bush, which highlighted the competence of Virginia's Democratic administration with the perceived incompetence of the Bush Administration in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.  The political success and strength of Virginia Democrats would be heightened the following January, when newly elected Virginia Senator [[Jim Webb]] would be chosen to deliver the Democratic response to the [[2007 State of the Union address]].  In continuing the tradition of a Democrat from a red state delivering the Democratic response, Kansas Governor [[Kathleen Sebelius]] gave the response to the 2008 State of the Union address.<ref>{{Citation |last=Shear |first=Michael D. |title=Va.'s Webb Offers a Blunt Challenge to Bush |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/23/AR2007012301080.html |access-date=2007-10-11 | work=The Washington Post | date=2007-01-24 }}</ref> Webb's election over incumbent Senator [[George Allen (U.S. politician)|George Allen]] in the [[Virginia Senate election, 2006|2006 Virginia Senate election]] tipped control of the [[United States Senate]] to the [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] for the first time in four years and, with the election of a Democratic majority in the [[US House of Representatives]], resulted in the first Democratic-controlled Congress in twelve years.<ref>{{Citation |title=Senate Tips Democratic |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/senate-tips-democratic/ |access-date=2007-10-11 |work= [[CBS News]] | date=2006-11-07}}</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Tim Kaine}}
[[Category:2006 in American politics]]
[[Category:2006 in Virginia]]
[[Category:2006 speeches]]
[[Category:Democratic Party of Virginia]]
[[Category:Political events in Virginia]]
[[Category:History of Richmond, Virginia]]
[[Category:January 2006 events in the United States]]
[[Category:Presidency of George W. Bush]]
[[Category:Reactions to 2000s events]]
[[Category:Tim Kaine]]