I didn't watch Trump's first State of the Union speech live — it's been a long time since I watched any of these live and in full — but the post-speech analysis isn't screaming out any headlines. When the press all weighs in, those who lean left will say he seemed More Presidential Than Usual and maybe this will mark the start of a new, more dignified Trump. And those who lean right will say he's always been presidential and tonight, he really knocked it out of the park. And then within 48 hours, he'll say or do something outrageous to remind us that there will never be a new, more dignified Trump.
Around the time the speech was concluding I got a call from a pollster with a few topical questions, one being "Do you favor the erection of a wall on the Southern border of the United States to limit illegal entry into this country?" I was going to tell the lady I favor all erections but I figured if I was the twenty-fifth person she'd phoned to ask that question, I'd be the twenty-fifth person to say something like that.
She offered me three choices: Yes, no and I don't know. I said no but I'll bet the answer that would get the biggest vote would be if they offered Yes but only if Mexico really and truly pays for it. That part of the concept seems to have gone away, though.
In other news: A staunch reader of this site, Andy Rose, writes to tell me, "The old ballroom of the Hotel Pennsylvania (inspiration for Glenn Miller's "Pennsylvania 6-5000") was converted into TV studios more than a decade ago" and he sends this link to a page that describes what they have going there. Sounds like a great place to do a show. The last few times I stayed at that hotel, it wasn't a great place to stay and for a time, we were hearing reports that it would be torn down. I guess they wouldn't have built that studio if the hotel was going away.