Obama Looks To Bait GOP

“No drama-Obama” is walking into the lion’s den Tuesday — and he couldn’t be happier about it.

President Obama will use this year’s State of the Union Address to draw a clear line between himself and congressional Republicans. He’s looking forward to a slew of television shots showing grim-faced GOP lawmakers reacting with stony silence to policy pitches he hopes will resonate with middle-class voters in an election year.

The White House has said in no uncertain terms that Obama’s path to another term will be cleared by open conflict with a Republican-controlled House that is deeply unpopular with voters, so observers expect a pugnacious Obama to take the lectern in his last State of the Union Address before the November election.

“President Obama’s approval ratings may not be great, but Congress’s hover near single digits — so if there’s one slam-dunk opponent for Obama to take on this fall, it’s the 535 men and women who will be sitting in front of him,” said David Meadvin, the president of Inkwell Strategies. Meadvin is a former speechwriter for both Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Attorney General Eric Holder.

“As we saw back in 2010 when Obama used his speech to take the Supreme Court to task, Obama has no problem defying tradition or ruffling some feathers,” he added. “He only stands to gain politically by picking a fight with Congress.”

Though Obama did attack the court last year over a campaign finance decision he disliked, the president’s last State of the Union was wrapped in conciliation. In the days after the attempted assassination of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), lawmakers in both parties sought to cool tensions — with Republicans and Democrats sitting side-by-side in some cases to highlight the mood.

Opponents said they’re confident that Obama will take shots at Republicans throughout an address they suggest is more about the state of the president’s campaign than the union.

“I don’t think there’s any question that this is another stump speech,” said Republican strategist Doug Heye. “He’s been in full on-campaign mode. The campaign has been a part of every planned activity that has come out of the White House, and the State of the Union is a part of that.”

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