On SOTU day, the key words are ‘reset’ and ‘presidential’

You’ll be seeing plenty of pixels spilled today on what to look for in Donald Trump’s State of the Union speech tonight, so we’ll add our own tip: the pre- and post-game analysis will have a familiar ring.

New York Times columnist Charles M. Blow tweeted yesterday, “Let me throw down the gauntlet NOW: If anyone comes on my tv tomorrow night after the SOTU saying whatever speech Trump READS somehow makes his sound good/presidential/unifying, I’m turning you off and never listening again.”

Oh, Charles, whatever will you do with your new free time?

Last year, in advance of the speech, Politico told us, “Trump looks for a reset with his address to Congress.”

Afterward, commentary seemed to suggest Trump had pulled it off:

“Trump, in Optimistic Address, Asks Congress to End ‘Trivial Fights,’” the Times said.

Stephen Collinson, in a piece headlined “Presidential Trump,” wrote on CNN.com:

“President Donald Trump reached for poetry and conjured a vision of common national purpose Tuesday during his first address to Congress, shifting his tone from the dark, searing approach of his previous big speeches to the nation.

“Trump adopted a statesmanlike cadence, hitting notes of inspiration. For once, this most unorthodox of politicians struck a conventional presidential posture as he sought to stabilize his administration after a tumultuous five weeks in office.”

No one topped Van Jones on CNN, however.

Trump had acknowledged the presence of a guest in the House chamber, the widow of a recently killed Navy Seal, leading Jones to say: “He became President of the United States in that moment, period. … If he finds a way to do that over and over again, he’s going to be there for eight years.”

Following that accolade, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told Anderson Cooper: “I find myself in agreement with Van Jones, for the first time in my political life.”

That was early in 2017. Remember 2017?

Back to 2018.

On Saturday, The Washington Post posted a story headlined, “Trump’s first State of the Union: Can a divisive president flip the script?”

Karen Tumulty and Philip Rucker wrote:

“With its bumper-sticker-ready theme of ‘building a safe, strong and proud America,’ the address is expected to resemble the vision of a ‘renewal of the American spirit’ that Trump offered in his well-received speech to a joint session of Congress last February. It also will come on the heels of the pragmatic, upbeat speech he delivered Friday to a skeptical audience at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.”

Since Trump wasn’t booed until he attacked the press during the question and answer period, which followed his “pragmatic, upbeat speech,” we probably shouldn’t carp.

And we shouldn’t be surprised if, by this time tomorrow, we are awash in talk of the “presidential,” “well-received” speech that tells us absolutely nothing about the state of the union or what to expect in the year ahead.

This appeared originally as the column One Dog Barking on CitizenCartwright.com.