Last night, President George W. Bush delivered his final "State of the Union" address. While the annual speeches are traditionally quite symbolic and largely full of platitudes and self-congratulation with little substance, President Bush did announce new initiatives for his final year in office. Bush said that he wants to work with Congress to make his tax cuts permanent, that he wishes to finish negotiations to pass the stalled Doha round of the World Trade Organization (WTO), pass new trade agreements, and cut government spending by $18 billion. Moreover, he trumpeted his the so-called "Surge" in Iraq, continued to take a strong stance towards Iran, and use the familiar "America is a force of hope" rhetoric.

Despite his new programs and limited defense of controversial components of his agenda, local reporting on his address was largely stenographic in nature--reporting his comments as they were said--and short on analysis. The Grand Rapids Press published two articles on the State of the Union online. The Press reprinted an article from the Associated Press that largely reported on what Bush said, offering little analysis and providing little substantive verification of his claims. Reporter Ted Roelofs weighed in with local "reaction" to the State of the Union, reporting--based some calls to individuals involved with political campaigns and people hanging out at a local bar--that people were too caught up in the presidential election and skeptical of Bush too pay much attention.

While the Press did report that Grand Rapids area Congressional Representative Vern Ehlers said "I don't expect any earth-shaking things" and that Holland area Representative Pete Hoekstra said it is difficult for a president to do much in their final year. In a round-up of reaction from Michigan legislators, the Associated Press reported that Ehlers reacted to the speech saying "I am pleased that he emphasized increasing scientific research in the United States because science is the beginning of the creative process for a number of fields, especially manufacturing. Michigan needs this spark perhaps more than any other state, and I am happy that the president is fully committed to increasing funding for scientific research and development." The Press also did not include statements from Michigan Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow both of whom issued statements in response to the speech. Levin's statement criticized Bush's failure to announce more manufacturing investment, his failure to extend unemployment insurance benefits instead of giving tax rebates, and Bush's claims about Iraq. Stabenow also criticized Bush on unemployment insurance and aid to manufacturers. Moreover, she raised the fact that the trade agreements sought by Bush have been devastating to Michigan's workers.

Beyond including reactions from local lawmakers, the Press' coverage would have benefited from including some independent analysis of Bush's speech. The news program Democracy Now! invited various guests onto its show to talk about different areas of the speech, focusing on Iraq, warrantless domestic surveillance, and economic inequality.

In addition, the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, a progressive think-tank, released a report analyzing Bush's speech. In an analysis that looked at Bush's comments on the economy, the budget, energy and the environment, health care, education, veterans, immigration, and warrantless surveillance to conclude:

"The President continues to proclaim the foundation of our economy sound when so many current and aspiring middle-class Americans are losing their spot in the American Dream. He prioritizes ideology over proven methods of stimulating the economy and providing health care. He uses the language of consumer choice to dress up what really amounts to unbridled corporate power and profiteering. He continues to assert that the market will right itself, if only people understand it more and restrict it less, despite all of the evidence to the contrary.

Despite the praise-worthy components of President Bush's address tonight - his signing of the Energy Independence and Security Act, his cooperation with Congress to pass a stimulus reform that would include millions of low-income Americans he initially intended to exclude, his newfound interest in supporting military families - his approach reflected a commitment to ideology, as opposed to willingness to see how that ideology has actually impacted current and aspiring middle-class Americans."

In addition to the report from the Drum Major Institute, the blog ThinkProgress also has an extensive analysis of the State of the Union speech.

Both of these resources offer an alternative to what is being reported in the corporate media about Bush's speech.