Following are experts who can discuss the various issues expected to be addressed by President Bush in his State of the Union address, including: the ongoing war in Iraq; economic growth; reducing health care costs, including tax-free health savings accounts and Medicare financing; making tax cuts permanent; setting limits on lawsuit liability; and restricting federal spending, among others. Also included in the round-up are experts who can weight in on Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine's State of the Union rebuttal, which is likely to focus on ethics in government:
**1. DONNA R. HOFFMAN, assistant professor of political science at the UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA, recently co-authored the book "Addressing the State of the Union: The Evolution and Impact of the President's Big Speech": "The State of the Union address is important both substantively and symbolically. The president highlights the policy proposals he wishes Congress to enact in the coming year and takes credit for past accomplishments. In addition, we see the president take center stage as he acts as chief legislator, elevating public expectations about what can be accomplished."
**2. MORRIS L. REID, managing director of WESTIN RINEHART, is a former Clinton Administration senior staff aide to the late Commerce Secretary Brown and HUD Secretary Cuomo who can address what issues and groups Bush left out in the State of the Union. Reid was also director of Vice President Al Gore's office at the 1996 Democratic Convention and deputy director of Vice Presidential Operation for Clinton/Gore '96. Reid is a frequent political and business marketing commentator on many leading television news networks, including FOX News, ABC News, CNN, CNBC and MSNBC, and leading newspapers and magazines, including the New York Times, USA Today, Details and Forbes magazines.
**3. WILLIAM GROVER, political scientist at SAINT MICHAEL'S COLLEGE and author of "The President as Prisoner": "The 2006 State of the Union requires a presidential spectacle beyond the gravest fears of Orwell. The president needs to achieve a stratospheric level of deception and willful neglect of the obvious sufficient to avoid the stark reality of how tattered our democracy has become. To even turn on the TV set will require something approaching an act of depravity, necessitating as it would a measure of complicity with moral and political decay that should make all Americans shudder. Do something patriotic; don't watch. Instead, read the Constitution."
**4. ED BARKS, president of BARKS COMMUNICATIONS and author of "The Truth About Public Speaking": "The stakes are particularly high for Gov. Kaine. As a fresh face to the American public, he carries a heavy burden not only for the Democrats, but also for his own political career. Kaine must use his talents, both verbal and nonverbal, to demonstrate both knowledge and likeability. If he delivers a winning presentation, he scores points for the Democrats while leaping several rungs up the political ladder. But if he blows this one, he will have to work very long and very hard to have any chance of restoring his public image."
**5. PHILIP KLINKNER, James S. Sherman Associate Professor of Government at HAMILTON COLLEGE: "Hope springs eternal for presidents preparing for their State of the Union address, but unfortunately for President Bush, most Americans won't be listening to what he has to say. Presidents have tried to use the address to set the political agenda in their favor and to boost their poll ratings. A new Pew Center poll shows that only 30 percent of Americans think the State of the Union address will be more important than in previous years. That's down from 54 percent in 2002, when Bush gave his first address after the Sept. 11 attacks."
**6. JOHN KENNETH WHITE, presidential scholar and professor of politics at THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA, is available to comment on the challenges President George W. Bush will face during his State of the Union address: "It is my view that Bush is in serious trouble and that the address will do little to cure what ails his administration. Iraq is front and center, and it is through that prism that the public views Bush. The result is a presidency that is in trouble because this president cannot change the subject."
**7. STEPHEN SLIVINSKI, director of budget studies at the CATO INSTITUTE: "The Republican Party needs to convince voters that they, despite substantial evidence to the contrary, are still the party of small government. In his State of the Union speech, Bush needs to put forward a plan to cut government spending -- not simply one that lowers the rate of growth, but one that will institute an outright decline in discretionary spending. By the White House's own estimates it will take no less than that to cut the deficit in half in the next four years. The fortunes of this president and his place in history -- and in the hearts of fiscal conservatives -- will depend on what he proposes in his last few budgets."
**8. JOHN GEER, professor of political science at VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: "George Bush has an important primetime opportunity to regain presidential momentum by delivering a compelling State of the Union address. Political observers will look to see if Bush, who has given strong State of the Union speeches in the past, decides to play offense or defense. I believe that if Bush proposes major policy initiatives in areas such as Social Security and health care, he will be working to control the national agenda for the remainder of his term. However, he could play defense by not making many new proposals and just trying to protect existing accomplishments."
**9. CHRISTIAN GROSE is a VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY assistant professor of history whose research includes elections, campaigns, legislative representation, and Congress and the president. Democrats are expected to blast the president on several issues after his State of the Union address in hopes of weakening him -- and weakening his party for the November elections, says Grose, an expert on Congress: "Specifically, they will likely focus on Bush's and the Republican Party's perceived weaknesses: ethics problems in the wake of the Abramoff scandal, mismanagement after Katrina, the ongoing war in Iraq and the privacy issues raised by alleged government snooping." Democrats may also criticize Bush about implementation problems with the new Medicare prescription drug plan, adds Grose. (Note: Vanderbilt has a broadcast facility with a dedicated fiber-optic line for live TV interviews and an ISDN line for radio.)
**10. DANIEL GRISWOLD, director of the CENTER FOR TRADE POLICY STUDIES: "President Bush should commit his administration to achieving free trade in agriculture, first to save American families and taxpayers billions of dollars a year but also to promote a global trade agreement in the WTO to further open up markets at home and abroad for all goods and services. He should also call on Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform to curb illegal immigration, to secure our borders and to allow American companies to hire the workers they need to compete in the marketplace."
**11. DR. JANE ELMES-CRAHALL, professor of communication at WILKES UNIVERSITY: "This will be the first State of the Union when we will hear how this president handles being on the defensive. Too many controversies are swirling around him for him to preach at us as a primary rhetorical strategy. He needs to convince people that he is aware how unhappy they are with the performance of this Administration. Based on past performances, Bush is not comfortable accepting criticism or blame. It will be interesting to see how he tries to level the playing field in the midst of rising criticism over Iraq, before the hearings on domestic spying, performance of federal operations and issues of integrity involving his office."
**12. SEAN ADAY, assistant professor at GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY's School of Media & Public Affairs, is an expert on political communication; media coverage of war, politics and foreign policy; and media effects and public opinion, including political and international trust. His work focuses on the intersection of the press, politics, and public opinion. He is the co-author of "Framing Politics: The Role of the Press in Covering Elections, Policy Making and Political Crises," Oxford Companion to Politics of the World, 2nd Edition with Kathleen Hall Jamieson.
**13. IVA DEUTCHMAN, professor of political science at HOBART AND WILLIAM SMITH COLLEGES, can offer general commentary on the address, reflection on the media's coverage of the address and also provide insight into the women's perspective. Deutchman is an expert on women and politics, and women in government. She is the author of "Capital Sex: Gender in State Legislature."
**14. DEWAYNE LUCAS, assistant professor of political science at HOBART AND WILLIAM SMITH COLLEGES, can offer general commentary on the address, as well as expert opinion on the impact the address may have on various constituent groups. Lucas studies the trends in House partisanship and in redistricting. He is acutely aware of voting trends in regions of the country and the how changes in congressional districts affect representation in the House.
**15. BARBARA KASOFF, president of WOMEN IMPACTING PUBLIC POLICY, represents 535,000 women business owners nationwide and is the bi-partisan voice in Washington, D.C., for 38 business women organizations. Kasoff can respond to the SOTU in regards to affordable health care plans as the number one concern of women business owners, as well as permanent repeal of the estate tax.
**16. BILL BALLENGER, Griffin Endowed Chair in American Government at CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY, is a lifelong political "junkie" and knows Michigan politics inside and out. His weekly newsletter, Inside Michigan Politics, is a must-read for anyone involved in state government. Ballenger is also very knowledgeable about voting behavior, trends, elections, campaigns and issues.
**17. DAVE POLLAK, president and founder of DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP FOR THE 21ST CENTURY, a grassroots organization with over 10,000 members in NYC, is frequently quoted in local and national news outlets and is available to give a local New York response to the issues discussed in the SOTU.
**18. MICHAEL HUTTNER, attorney and executive director and founder of PROGRESSNOWACTION.ORG, a model for new media organizing: "There is a reason why President Bush and the failed policies of his administration have the lowest approval ratings of any president in more than 30 years. The top one percent is wealthier and wealthier under this administration, while the average American has seen little relief in his/her pocketbook." As a private political consultant, Huttner helped spearhead Colorado's legislative efforts in 2004. He is an adjunct professor at the University of Denver College of Law, teaching legislation and lobbying. Huttner worked as policy advisor to Governor Romer and clerked at the White House for the Office of the Counsel to the President.
**19. STEVEN KELLER, assistant professor of media and public affairs at GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, is a leading expert on political communication. He was MSNBC's expert analyst for the Kerry and Bush presidential debates, and has provided insights and commentary on the Democratic and Republic National Conventions and the presidential and vice presidential debates of 1996 for the Baltimore Sun, Talk Radio Network and Investor's Business Daily. He provided analysis of British election campaign rhetoric and discussed pitfalls of a potential debate between Prime Minister Major and Labor candidate Tony Blair for BBC Television's "NewsNight."
**20. ANNE WARFIELD, president of IMPRESSION MANAGEMENT PROFESSIONALS, has been utilized by ABC, CBS and NBC, as well as the major publications for all State of the Union speeches and debates, from Reagan on. Her expertise in body language and communication gives you the unique perspective of the "real message" being sent. Warfield's unique ability to listen beyond what a person says to hear what they mean makes her constantly in demand with Fortune 100 companies and the media for her negotiation insight.
**21. JOYCE GIOIA (joy-yah), president of THE HERMAN GROUP and a workforce specialist, can offer commentary on issues like training initiatives, trends, labor shortages, skill shortages, off-shoring, etc., to reporters covering President Bush's State of the Union Address.
DEFENSE
**22. IVAN ELAND, senior fellow at THE INDEPENDENT INSTITUTE: "Bush will 'stay the course' in Iraq, but with a small force drawdown in an attempt to save Republicans in the election. But the U.S. doesn't have enough forces to defeat the insurgency. It is unlikely that the U.S.-trained Iraqi security forces, with less competence, will be able to do it either. The country is already effectively partitioned, with militias in various regions. The threat of U.S. withdrawal would give Kurds and Shi'a, who don't want to be in a unified Iraq, an incentive to give the Sunnis oil, which would allow them to be independent too. A partition would be stable because there would be no fear that any group would use the central government to oppress the others."
**23. THOMAS ALAN SCHWARTZ, professor of history at VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: "'Stay the course' won't cut it when President Bush discusses U.S. foreign policy in Iraq during his State of the Union address. The president must convey the message that significant progress has been made and we are on the road to reducing the number of troops in Iraq. Continuing violence makes that a controversial message, but the president is likely to emphasize the recent election and efforts to form a government that includes the Sunnis. He will need to be careful not to promise more than can be accomplished if he decides to mention troop withdrawal in Iraq."
**24. C. HOLLAND TAYLOR, CEO of the LIBFORALL FOUNDATION, is an expert on Islamic extremism and can offer analysis and commentary about the ideological struggle with Islamic extremists. As co-founder of an Indonesian and U.S.- based organization focused on repudiating extremism in favor of moderate models of Islam, he is uniquely credentialed to share his thoughts about the war on terror, the co-opting of Islam by extremist clerics, and the promotion of tolerance in the Muslim world. Additional areas of expertise include roots of Islamic extremism, the failure of conventional approaches to combating extremism, and long-term approaches to eradicating the roots of extremism and terrorism.
**25. CHRISTOPHER PREBLE, director of foreign policy studies at the CATO INSTITUTE: "President Bush could explain that a major reduction in the number of U.S. military personnel in Iraq is underway, and that Iraq is being handed over to the new Iraqi government. The president should also declare that there would be no permanent or quasi-permanent U.S. military garrisons on Iraqi soil. Such clear and decisive statements would enable and empower the newly elected Iraqi government to assume still more responsibility for their country's security, and should set the stage for the complete removal of all U.S. forces from Iraq by the end of 2007, at the latest."
**26. TIMOTHY LYNCH, director of the PROJECT ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE: "President Bush is likely to reiterate what he has been saying in recent days about his controversial NSA spying program -- that he believes it is legal and necessary to protect the country from terrorist attacks. But simply declaring that program legal does not make it legal. Congress should proceed with oversight hearings and closely examine Attorney General Gonzalez and the sweeping claims of executive power that the administration is advancing."
**27. Former Iraqi General GEORGES SADA, author of "Saddam's Secrets: An Insider Exposes Plans to Destroy Israel, Hide WMD's and Control the Arab World," says President Bush's 2002 State of the Union speech was a wake-up call for the Middle East, and would like to see another bold and decisive speech by the president: "In his State of the Union address, given Jan. 29, 2002, President Bush identified Iraq, Iran and North Korea as an 'axis of evil.' For many of us [in Iraq], it was a clear signal that America was finally getting the message. It's very troubling to me that President Bush is under attack for his decision to wage a preemptive war against terrorism. Your president and his commanders understand that the terrorists are determined, ruthless and relentless. The men who want to destroy your culture were not satisfied with 9/11, and they're going to attack again if they possibly can. The only way to prevent that from happening is to go now and find these people, wherever they are, and stop them. I can assure you that the people who are intent on destroying America won't be stopped by appeasement. They are not interested in political solutions. They understand only one thing, total and complete conquest of the West."
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