Bush actually said this in his State of the Union address:

We will insure that decisions about your medical care are made in the privacy of your doctor’s office, not in the halls of Congress.

I’ll respond with four words: Terri Schiavo, Jane Roe.

Our Daily Froomkin is exceptionally tasty. Item one: are we on track to the shortest State of the Union experience in memory?

The pomp of the State of the Union address and the deference given to Bush’s office will prevent the night from turning into an outright rout.

But as a defensive measure, White House speechwriters are said to have crafted a speech that avoids the traditional laundry list of proposals and applause lines that would almost surely have fallen flat — or even led to boos and groans — given Bush’s new circumstances.

Heh. Note to Sen. Webb and those advising him on his SOTU Response: write longer. You may get an unexpected amount of time to fill.  Read more