If you think British politics is broken, just look across the Atlantic to see how dysfunctional things can really become. Since the Republicans seized control of the Senate in November, the gridlock in Washington has become even worse. The Republican-controlled Senate and House of Representatives are set to spend time and money debating legislation, only for the White House to veto it.
In his sixth State of the Union (SOTU) address last night — the rough equivalent of the Queen’s Speech here — Barack Obama killed off any hopes of bipartisanship. The president pointed to the priorities set out by the Republicans and set out why he doesn’t intend to work with them.
On the construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada, a long-held priority for Republicans, Obama said ‘let’s set our sights higher than a single oil pipeline.’ On Iran, the president said new sanctions passed by Congress ‘will all but guarantee that diplomacy fails — alienating America from its allies and ensuring that Iran starts up its nuclear program again.’
On cyber warfare, he urged Congress to ‘finally pass the legislation we need to better meet the evolving threat of cyber-attacks.’
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