A Socialist Agenda? What's wrong with that?

President Obama's 2nd State of the Union address tackled so many topics- illegal immigration, education, jobs, deficits, health care, and more. He addressed the shooting in Arizona and a divided Congress. He shared stories of successful Americans, and the camera showed them to us from the audience. Obama said we'll be moving No Child Left Behind out with RACE, a more flexible program that will work to fill in the flaws of NCLB. He called us to respect and consider teachers "nation-builders" as they do in South Korea. Obama desires to tackle illegal immigration in the next year, sharing the example of children who live the same as other Americans, but have this unfair disadvantage that will keep them away from college and their full potential. (whitehouse.gov live broadcast, nytimes.com)

John Nichols' blog on thenation.com addresses how Paul Broun, during the State of the Union, tweeted "Mr. President, you don't believe in the Constitution. You believe in Socialism." Broun told CBS that "Mr. Obama believes in central government where the federal government controls everything in our lives. That's socialism." Because Broun noticed picked up on a desire to save Social Security, invest in education and care for the vulnerable, Broun considered it "secret socialist messaging."

According to a CBS poll, 91% of State of the Union viewers thought postively of Obama's prosposals, leaving Nichols to conclude that "that's how it goes with State of the Union addresses: Sneak a little socialism in and you're going to get called on it by Congressman Broun. But you'll earn the approval of the American people."

I was wowed by the State of the Union and felt warm and happy patriotic tingles, which is not common for me. My feelings likely stem from the "socialist messaging." There are disadvantaged, vulnerable people in our country that may not be a priority for Mr. Broun, but they are a priority to me. As a future ESL teacher, I find his reforms for both education and immigration very personal and important.

Mr. Broun, where is the justice for Maria Martinez, an honors student at Harrisonburg High School who, due to factors beyond her control, cannot stay in the country where she was raised and go to college, but must be deported back to Mexico? It was not her decision to come. We are losing valuable, bilingual citizens. We are turning our backs on the vulnerable. As Obama said, let's decide to tackle this issue of illegal immigration this year. Putting it off doesn't help the vulnerable, valuable people like Maria. It only helps the industries staffed by cheap illegal labor, and you certainly don't want that, do you, Broun?