Politics: Insider Trading and Spilled Milk

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Politics Insider Trading and Spilled Milk The juiciest moments of the State of the Union. By David Weigel Posted Wednesday, Jan 25, 2012, at 06:30 AM ET There are years when the State of the Union is used to gird America for war and years when it doesn't much matter. A long speech can pack in proposals that are law already (a ban on congressional insider trading!) and lines that were demo'd, then ignored, in old SOTUs. The expectations for Tuesday's speech were especially low. They got lower when Republicans pre-emptively called it "pathetic" (Rep. John Boehner) or the "final" SOTU of a one-term president (Rep. Jason Chaffetz). You can work with low expectations. The president's task was to give a speech that 1) made his general election argument while 2) portraying Republicans as unpatriotic obstructionists and 3) mentioning a couple of bills that may actually pass. For the last time this year, the opposition party had to sit there and take it. 8:43: The rows alongside the entrance to the House floor have been occupied for hours. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. Rep. Louie Gohmert. Rep. Jean Schmidt. It's the same people every year. There's Rep. Eliot Engel, who has admitted that the seat-squat makes him famous. "Six months from now, someone will say to me, 'Congressman, I saw you on TV,' " he said, "and I'll think it was in a brilliant interview ... what was I saying? And they'll say, 'No, no, you were shaking the president's hand.' " He didn't seem to be ashamed by this. Before the speech starts, he fields phone calls, settled in ... To continue reading, click here. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate What the Supreme Court Can Learn From Gabby Giffords and Jeff Flake's Tender Moment The New England Patriots Are Not Out for Revenge What Does Mormon Heaven Look Like? How About Mormon Hell?	Advertisement
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