Basking in the victory of the Iraqi election last Sunday, President Bush delivered the State of the Union Wednesday night.
\The state of our union is confident and strong,"" Bush said.
Bush listed a number of achievements, such as tax relief, new markets abroad and 2.3 million new jobs created by Congress during the first term.
As anticipated half of the speech was devoted to domestic issues, with the focus on a reformation of the seven-decade-old Social Security system. The other half held the democratization of the Middle East as its centerpiece.
Though little was unusual about Bush's State of the Union address, his plan to reform Social Security evoked strong feelings among Democrats, who at one point yelled out loud in objection.
""I can't off-hand recall another incident with that sort of direct challenge to what the president was saying,"" G. Donald Ferree, UW-Madison sociology professor saidafter watching the speech.
Promising that there will be no change in the Social Security system for Americans 55 years of age and older, Bush suggested that a portion of young workers' taxes will go toward private investment funds. He did not mention how or how much the change would help the Social Security system itself.
""The notion behind the proposal is to be fiscally sound and incidentally give people more choice and ownership,"" Ferree said.
Democrats, however, do not think Bush's plan will make the Social Security system more stable but rather threaten its basic spirit, Ferree added.
Addressing international issues, President Bush focused on the democratic elections that recently took place in Iraq, Ukraine, the Palestinian Territories and Afghanistan.
The president asked Congress to approve $350 million to help create a free and democratic Palestinian state. He further stated, ""Human freedom is the only force to support democracy and end tyranny.""
The longest applause came toward the end of the address when the parents of an American soldier killed in Iraq received a hug from an Iraqi woman who had voted in last Sunday's election.
Bush closed his speech with words of the nation's big dreams turning into accomplishments, referring to Presidents Lincoln, Roosevelt and Reagan.
""All these presidents spoke eloquently and ultimately achieved success based on their policies. With Bush we don't know what the outcome is yet going to be,"" Stephen Lucas, UW-Madison communication arts professor said.
The Democratic response given by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Cal. suggested that much of what the president offered was not real answers. They strongly disagreed with the Bush's Social Security plan.
