By Mr. Curmudgeon

After suffering a stunning defeat to impose government-run health care on the American people, President Bill Clinton quickly changed direction, announcing in his 1996 State of the Union address “the era of big government is over.” Bubba was a realist, which saved his presidency and gained him a second term in office. President Obama, however, is a utopian. The New York Times reports, “When Mr. Obama presents his first State of the Union address on Wednesday evening, aides said he would accept responsibility, though not necessarily blame, for failing to deliver swiftly on some of the changes he promised a year ago. But he will not, aides said, accede to criticism that his priorities are out of step with the nation’s.”

Tonight’s State of the Union address will be entertaining in one important regard: the president will stand before Congress and the nation in an attempt to convince us that we need him more than he needs us. This is sweet music to the ears of the Tea Party.