About 40 people gathered in Ohio University's Walter Hall last night to watch President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address, which called Democratic and Republican lawmakers to move forward together or not at all.
The watch party was one of 30 in the state sponsored by Organizing for America, an organization in support of Obama that works to involve community members in passing legislation, said Nick Tuell, an OU sophomore studying political science.
Tuell coordinated the Athens event with Patrick Duffy, an OU junior also studying political science.
The turnout was great
Tuell said. We had a number of elected officials and students.
In attendance at the watch party were three city officials and two county officials, Tuell said.
During his address, Obama unveiled an agenda of carefully balanced political goals - a burst of spending on education, research, technology and transportation to make the nation more competitive, to cut the deficit and smack down spending deemed wasteful to America.
I was surprised by the breadth (of topics) he discussed said Athens City Councilman Elahu Gosney, D-at Large, who is also an OU graduate student. I appreciated his supports of tax cuts for tuition.
The future is ours to win Obama told lawmakers regarding the overarching theme of his speech.
Obama entered the House chamber to prolonged applause, and to the unusual sight of Republicans and Democrats seated next to one another rather than on different sides of the center aisle.
What comes of this moment will be determined not by whether we can sit together tonight but whether we can work together tomorrow
Obama said.
Although Obama called Democrats and Republicans to work together, some viewing the address in Walter Hall questioned whether working together is a possibility.
I'm curious to see if the bipartisan efforts will amount to anything
said John Calhoun, a graduate student studying sociology. We need them to (work together).
Overall, Obama's address pleased most in attendance at the party.
I personally find Barack Obama inspirational
said Ashley Gammella, a senior studying journalism. He keeps everyone's interest in mind. He has made progress and has many more ideas for the future.
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