The Media Notes Obama's STOU Speech As A Campaign Kickoff

Toon by A.F. Tony Branco

Mr. Obama Has Shifted Into Full-Bore Campaigning,’ ‘That’s What The Speech Was All About’

‘He Didn't Just Dip Into Campaign Speech; He Was Swimming In It The Whole Night’JOHN HARWOOD, The New York Times: “State of the Union? More Like State of the Campaign. Republicans have good reason to believe that President Obama’s goals in his State of the Union address on Tuesday night were more partisan than presidential. Mr. Obama has shifted into full-bore campaigning.” (“State Of The Union? More Like State Of The Campaign,” The New York Times, 1/24/12)

HARWOOD: “He didn't just dip into campaign speech; he was swimming in it the whole night. Look, that was a campaign speech.” (MSNBC’s “The Daily Rundown,” 1/25/12)

JAKE TAPPER, ABC: “A very political State of the Union.” (ABC News, 1/24/12)

CHUCK TODD, NBC: “Obama signals re-elect message with State of the Union.” (NBC News’ “First Read,” 1/25/12)

DAVID GREGORY, NBC: “This was his pitch for re-election.” (NBC’s “Post State Of The Union Coverage,” 1/24/12)

SCOTT PELLEY, CBS: "And so ends the President's third State of the Union address. Might be considered an opening statement for the President's re-election campaign. Election Day just over 40 weeks from tonight." (CBS News, 1/24/12)

NORAH O’DONNELL, CBS: “Look, this was an election year State of the Union.” Ibid

RICK KLEIN, ABC: “Very clearly this was a political blueprint…” (Rick Klein, Twitter Feed, 1/24/12)

MICHAEL SCHERER, TIME: “If the speech has any lasting impact, it will likely be political. … the President laid out the central argument of his re-election campaign…” (“Obama’s State Of The Union: An Optimistic President Talks To A Pessimistic Nation,” Time, 1/25/12)

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: “Mr. Obama's laundry-list of initiatives… was aimed at buttressing a re-election message that posits him as defender of Americans beset by inequality in the tax code and broader economy.” (“Obama Makes Populist Pitch,” The Wall Street Journal, 1/25/12)

WASHINGTON POST: “Adding to the notion that the State of the Union address was, in effect, a campaign speech, Obama departs Wednesday morning on a three-day swing to five competitive states…” (“In State Of The Union Address, Obama Puts Focus On Economic Inequality,” The Washington Post, 1/24/12)

WASHINGTON POST: “In an election-year State of the Union message that will likely serve as the template for the months of campaigning ahead...” (“In State Of The Union, Obama Warns Economic Disparity Threatens Middle Class,” The Washington Post, 1/24/12)

HELENE COOPER, The New York Times: “his speech… served in many ways as a prime-time kickoff of his re-election campaign.” (“Obama Speech Makes Pitch For Economic Fairness,” The New York Times, 1/24/12)

JEANNE CUMMINGS, Bloomberg News: “It's the nature of the beast, it’s the launch of his re-election campaign, and that’s what the speech was all about.” (MSNBC’s “The Daily Rundown,” 1/25/12)

WALL STREET JOURNAL: “President Obama delivered a State of the Union address Tuesday night that by the account of his own advisers is more campaign document than a plan for governing.” (“Editorial, The State of His Policies,” The Wall Street Journal, 1/25/12)

RON FOURNIER, National Journal: “In a veiled plea for reelection, President Obama presented his formal response to Republicans accusing him dividing the nation by economic class. His answer, delivered in a politically charged State of the Union address Tuesday night, amounted to this…” (“Obama: I Am Not A Class Warrior,” National Journal’s “2012 Decoded,” 1/24/12)

E.J. DIONNE JR., The Washington Post: “Much will be made, and properly so, of President Obama’s State of the Union address as a campaign message…” (“The Bipartisan Side Of A Campaign Speech,” The Washington Post’s “Post-Partisan” Blog, 1/24/12)

AP: “Obama speech puts him in campaign arena.” (“Analysis: Obama Speech Puts Him In Campaign Arena,” AP, 1/24/12)

THE HILL: “The address has been dubbed as the president’s first major stump speech of the year…” (“Obama Cranks Up Populist Pitch,” The Hill, 1/24/12)

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