Notations On Our World: On The Aftermath of #SOTU (First in a Series)

As President Obama spoke, the office of the House Speaker released the following in rebutttal to the President's remarks: 

We Can Do So Much Better... January 12, 2016 | Speaker Ryan Press Office | View Online | http://spkrryan.us/1ZrxQ1Z We’re about 30 minutes into President Obama’s final State of the Union address and it isn’t going so well. Lofty platitudes and nostalgic rhetoric may make for nice soundbites, but they don’t explain how to defeat ISIS, fix our critical safety net programs, and get our economy back on track. This isn’t a real path forward to restore a confident America. We can do so much better. By listening and bringing people together, here are just some of the things we’ve accomplished over the last two months: We boosted funding for our military to ensure our troops are well-equipped to accomplish their mission. We passed a bill requiring the president to put forward a real, comprehensive strategy to defeat ISIS. We replaced No Child Left Behind with an educational system that gives power back to the states. We made a down payment on tax reform by making permanent key tax breaks to foster certainty for hardworking families and business. We overhauled our customs laws for the first time in a generation so that American businesses can compete globally on a level playing field. We lifted the outdated, 40-year ban on crude oil exports, which will create an estimated 1 million American jobs and add $170 billion annually to our GDP. And we're only getting started. Already in 2016, we’ve put a bill on the president's desk to repeal Obamacare, showing that there’s a clear path to do this without 60 votes in the Senate.Tomorrow, we’ll send a bill to the president’s desk that rejects one of his most harmful regulations, the EPA’s Waters of the U.S. rule. This is just the beginning of a year in which we’ll present a bold, pro-growth agenda to address the big challenges the country is facing. Because, frankly, the American people deserve much better than what we’ve heard so far tonight. For a positive vision of America’s future, be sure to tune in to Nikki Haley following the President’s address at www.sotu.gop.gov.

--it was also of note that some of the more conservative elements within the Republican Party attacked the Governor of South Carolina as outlined below:

• Breitbart headlined its story: “Republican Party Uses State Of The Union Response To Attack Trump.”
• “Trump should deport Nikki Haley,” Ann Coulter wrote in one ofsix-anti Haley tweets.
• Radio host Laura Ingraham chimed in:  “The country is lit up w/ a populist fever & the GOP responds by digging in, criticizing the GOP candidates dominating polls?! NOT SMART.”
• Former Ted Cruz aide Amanda Carpenter wrote: “Haley’s speech would’ve been good except for the GOP self-loathing.”

The "establishment" within the GOP was different: 

• Charles Krauthammer, on a Fox News panel, called it the best State of the Union response he can ever recall hearing.
• The Washington Examiner’s David Drucker said Haley’s response “will likely elevate her to the top of the list of potential vice presidential contenders.”
• National Review editor Rich Lowry said it’s “always a tough assignment”: “Haley was a little shaky at beginning, but moving treatment of Charleston shooting and nice riff on GOP agenda.