In Tuesday night's State of the Union address, President Obama is expected to focus on the crisis of widening inequality in America.
This is good. And it's no surprise. Over the last few years, he has tried to draw attention to the decimation of the middle class over recent decades. He's explained the scope of the problem -- that the
severity of today's inequality is akin to what preceded the Great Depression. He's adopted a catchphrase -- prosperity from the "middle out" -- and forced Republicans to talk about the issue. And he's proposed policies to address it.
But in his SOTU speech, and in the bigger scope of his presidency, Obama must do more than unfurl a list of policy remedies. He first has to acknowledge and then reckon with the conflicting emotions Americans have about "falling behind."
This is good. And it's no surprise. Over the last few years, he has tried to draw attention to the decimation of the middle class over recent decades. He's explained the scope of the problem -- that the
severity of today's inequality is akin to what preceded the Great Depression. He's adopted a catchphrase -- prosperity from the "middle out" -- and forced Republicans to talk about the issue. And he's proposed policies to address it.
But in his SOTU speech, and in the bigger scope of his presidency, Obama must do more than unfurl a list of policy remedies. He first has to acknowledge and then reckon with the conflicting emotions Americans have about "falling behind."
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