Tonight, after the
President finishes his State of the Union Address to a joint session of Congress,
Massachusetts Congressman Rep. Joe Kennedy III will give the official English
language Democratic response in front of an assembled crowd at a technical
school in his district. Newly-elected State Delegate Elizabeth Guzman, D- Va.,
will give the official Spanish language Democratic response.
These official
opposition party rebuttal speeches date back to 1966. They’ve taken a variety
of formats, ranging from call-in shows, to press conferences, to focus groups.
Regardless of how they’re delivered, they always aim to give the other party a
chance to offer their two cents. In the modern era, there are typically one or
two official rebuttals, as well as a couple unofficial ones. They are often
short speeches which are written in advance, and thus, don’t directly address
the President’s remarks. While these speeches have next to no policy
importance, they can give a young up-and-coming elected official a chance to
speak to a large audience. Just ask Bill Clinton.
Unfortunately for
those up-and-comers, in recent years there has been something of a “career
curse” on the person chosen to deliver the remarks. Louisiana Governor Bobby
Jindal’s poorly received 2009 speech damaged his career. Florida Senator Marco
Rubio had a case of cottonmouth and was forced to swig water in the middle of
his remarks. The clip went viral on YouTube and became a not-so-complimentary
point in his opponents’ speeches during the campaign. One can imagine the
37-year-old Congressman Kennedy is hoping to break the curse. Stay tuned!
- By Jared Payne
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