  FUN WITH THE RANDOM QUOTE GENERATOR Patriot on the SOTU Address When I clicked on the link to Angel Brewer's urlLink State of the Union piece ,  the random quote was:  " Government does not solve problems;  it subsidizes them.  -
Ronald Reagan Heh.  You know,  if Reagan were still with us -  he must be dead,  cuz that's why conservatives wanted him on the dime -  he might've had something to say about all those fancy and far-
fetched spending proposals Brewer gushes about.  After declaring that “ drug use in high school has declined by eleven percent over the last two years,  he insisted that an additional $ 23 million would be needed to employ drug testing at school sites as an “ aggressive,
 community- based strategy.  When he announced that in 2006,  seniors would be able to obtain prescription drug benefits through the Medicare program,  he also proposed that tax credits be granted so Americans could buy their own basic health care services.  Other suggestions for domestic strengthening were geared towards doubling federal funding for teenage abstinence programs,
 protecting marriage between a man and a woman,  “ opening billions of dollars in grant money”  for accessibility to faith- based charities,  and a four-
year $ 300 million “ prisoner re- entry initiative to expand job training and placement services,  to provide transitional housing,  and to help newly released prisoners get mentoring,
 including from faith- based groups.  Brewer refers to these programs as " honorable"  thereby endorsing the solving of problems by government.  Two interesting bits about the Patriot recap of the speech.
 First,  a chunk of their recap concerns things that,  well,  didn't make it into the speech.  Brewer spends an entire paragraph on Bush's Mars program,  which didn't make it into the speech,
 probably because it's urlLink opposed by almost two thirds of Americans .  Second,  while Brewer is ultimately critical of Bush's proposed increases in domestic spending -  there are quotes from Stephen Moore and the Heritage Foundation -  the piece tactfully omits the important bit of in- speech context that makes his new spending ideas outrageous from the eyes of fiscal conservatives.
 From urlLink the speech itself :  In two weeks,  I will send you a budget that funds the war,  protects the homeland,  and meets important domestic needs,  while limiting the growth in discretionary spending to less than 4 percent.
 ( Applause.  This will require that Congress focus on priorities,  cut wasteful spending,  and be wise with the people's money.  By doing so,
 we can cut the deficit in half over the next five years.  ( Applause.  ( emphasis CPW's)  Between all the new spending proposals,
 recent revelations that Bush's Medicare " reforms"  will cost urlLink a lot more than previously thought,  Bush's aim to make the 2001 tax cuts permanent ( as well as future reforms of the alternative minimum tax)  and inevitable future spending in Iraq and Afghanistan,
 this is pure fiction.  The Club for Growth knows this.  The Heritage Foundation knows this.  Grover Norquist,  despite everything,  knows this.
 urlLink Even Andrew Sullivan gets it ( subscription req'd)  For Brewer to omit that from her analysis is very,  very telling,  because doing so paints Bush as " bold and compassionate"
 rather than " full of shit"  Lastly,  a minor quibble from the final graf:  While the annual speech this year did much to encourage and embolden the spirit of America in terms of foreign policy and security,  it also created a sense of anxiety for conservatives with their eyes on his monetary policy.
 I do believe you mean fiscal policy.
