photo: vincent gallegos/ BY-NC

I’m a people watcher. Always have, always will be. I like watching crowds, watching folks check out people. It's how I get a sense of a room, an office, a club. What excited me about last night's State of the Union address wasn’t just what President Obama said, but what others were doing – or not doing- when he said certain things. Clapping or not. 

For instance, I was excited when Mr. Obama mentioned that $30 billion dollars the banks repaid back to the the government from the bailout will go to community banks. Those smaller banks need to build and invest in their communities. They have more of an opportunity to help neighborhoods than the big banks. But I noticed, however, a section of faces weren’t clapping after that proposal. Their dissatisfaction doubled my satisfaction. This happened throughout the speech. President Obama acknowledged the government will save $20 billion by eliminating tax breaks to oil companies, investment fund managers, and citizens earning over $250k per year. It went right by me until I heard the thunderous applause.

Then there was a point in which Obama came down on the nature of Washington- how it does business. He said it has caused  a “deficit of trust” among Americans. His call for curbing lobbyists and disclosing earmarks garnered a loud response. Both sides of the aisle--both parties--were clapping. I’m sure some of the people on the left AND the right were clapping/gesturing for the cameras. Can you blame them?  

Politics is a stage.