This was the best speech Barack Obama has given in a year, both politically as he made his case for his economic program, and rhetorically. That, in itself, will give him some momentum in the weeks ahead.

The bottom line, as we've said before, is whether the economy begins to pull out of the slump within the next 6-9 months.

It's not really the State of the Union speech (newly elected presidents don't deliver them). But it's pretty much the same thing. And it is important -- for the reason we said the inauguration address wasn't that important a little over a month ago. It's in prime time, meaning the audience will be huge.

Obama's goal is to reassure the nation both that his economic plan will work and (related) that the future for the country is still bright.

There's a palpable sense among among many liberals that Barack Obama is not turning out to be the progressive they'd hoped. John Judis had a great piece last week in the New Republic explaining one of the reasons why. While there are a host of conservative organizations and forces in the culture to apply pressure on him and on Congress, there are very few comparable liberal ones.

Both Mickey Kaus and Michael Barone argue, persuasively I think, that the stimulus bill essentially repeals the popular Clinton '96 welfare reform bill. The merits aside -- which we'll take up later -- this part of the bill is bound to be enormously unpopular politically over time and is bound to be a major issue in the 2010 campaign and beyond.

How to become an Amercan hero Judd Gregg style:

1. Get yourself appointed to a cabinet job in an opposing administration that from Day 1 it is clear you have no interest in having both by virtue of ideology and the fact that you once voted to dissolve the Department you seek to lead. (Why Obama went along with this charade is another matter .