The State of the Union 2015 – theater, traditions, politics

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Matthew Hale, Seton Hall University; Daniel P. Franklin, Georgia State University; J Michael Hogan, Penn State; John G. Geer, Vanderbilt University; Michael Cornfield, George Washington University, and Tom Cronin, Colorado College

(THE CONVERSATION) Editor’s note: “The state of the union is good,” and the attitude of President Barack Obama in his annual speech to Congress was upbeat. Good economic news and no more election campaigns were the backdrop to the president’s “ambitious agenda” and “assertive” call to action. Here scholars from around the US give their reactions to...