"We Will Rebuild"

Once again, our charismatic leader woos us with hope and faith that our country will emerge out of the dismal hole we crawled into for the past few years.

Economic issues. Healthcare reforms. Education. The war. He covered pertinent topics to Congress and the United States people in his first presidential address to Congress last night.

And he did so with conversational yet emphatic tone and approximately 36 standing ovations (not including those for television viewers.) I myself was captivated by his convincing speech and the overall theme of governmental accountability.

But is this a dream? It all sounded too good to be true. He acknowledged the following (in more graceful terms, of course):

• we've been putting off these social and political problems years ago until they're now biting us in the ass.
  
• This rebuilding will not be overnight, and it will be hard for a lot to swallow.
  
• It's time for honest and accountable government.
  
• The budget proposal does not solve every problem-- it's what he inherited.

"It's not about helping banks, it's about helping people," Obama strongly chanted several times.

All the points he raised last night seemed to be exactly what I was thinking about the problems of government and what we're facing now.

• That thing's can't just fix themselves--Obama "refuses to believe" that.
  
• Companies should not be outsourcing their jobs to other countries, when we have such crushing unemployment rates. The President doesn't believe in this profit maximization tactic either--he calls to end tax cuts for companies that do so.
• "School's don't need more resources--they need more reform."
• The days of CEOs' lavish spending "are over." Take that Northern Trust.
• The accountability theme not only prevailed in politics but in parenting as well; for Obama is not only a government official but a father.

For the millions that follow him, he is seen as geniune. I find myself believing that most of the time. Then reality sets in: he's a politician. And a President at that.

I cringe at this thought. Obama's budget goals fit the country's needs for increasing the quality and decreasing the cost of energy, healthcare, and education.

His stimulus plan seems to address our current troubles on the surface:

• increasing jobs
  
• cutting taxes for 95 percent of American households
  
• launching housing initiative to help those with declining house values
  
• holding accountable banking lending

But is it realistic? Will it work? Is it possible? In his address last night, President Obama appeared to recognize the issues we face and had confidence in his proposed solutions. Only time will tell now.

Photo Credit: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Associated Press