‘Straight Out of a Utopian Faculty Lounge’: Congress Shrugs at Obama Call for Unity

After President Obama’s State of the Union speech, members of Congress dismissed his call for the restoration of a “better politics” in America.

“It was a walking contradiction in terms straight out of a utopian faculty lounge,” Rep. Dave Brat (R-VA) told Breitbart News in an interview after the speech. “Why all the dark metaphors about Republicans and left jabs and body blows during the whole speech?”

Brat said he was disappointed in the president for his negative lecture to Americans, particularly his message about American businesses. He thought that the country could have used a little more optimism– something that Obama was known for.

“It just hurts my brain, because he had such huge potential,” Brat said.

Obama criticized Republicans for suggesting that the American economy was suffering and that America was getting weaker during his presidency and mocked them for blocking elements of his agenda.

That didn’t sit well with House Majority Whip Steve Scalise.

“He gave a speech that probably spent 50 minutes trying to divide the country and divide Congress – and then at the end he wants to unite us –he’s got to start living that out,” he said to Breitbart News.

Rep. Charlie Dent (R-PA) agreed.

“His tone gets very aggressive,” he said. “Kind of like somebody gives you a stiff jab to the face and says, ‘Hey let’s collaborate a little better.’”

Dent was surprised that Obama mentioned things like green energy, climate change, and college affordability but had nothing to say about fixing the Department of Veterans Affairs.

“This requires strong presidential leadership. I’d be screaming from the hilltops that we need to integrate the civilian and veterans’ health systems for the sake of our veterans,” he said.

Even Democrats who admitted that while they appreciated the tone of the speech, they felt that Obama’s conciliatory tone was a little late.

“I think the tone he had tonight should have been the tone of the last six years,” Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said to Breitbart News, when asked about the president’s call for unity in Congress.

Republicans agreed that Obama’s last speech was a sign that he was eager to define his legacy before leaving office and had little interest in working together with Congress.

“He’s on his way out, he’s checking out, I think most of us are now preparing for the future,” Dent said.