Bobby Jindal, Civility, and the State of the Union

"We are seekers of the truth, but we do not embody the truth. And in humility, we should recognize that the same can be said about our most ardent foes." - former U.S. Senator John Danforth

Yesterday, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal received nearly as much press coverage as President Obama, as political junkies pondered what his response would be to the new President's first State of the Union address.

Jindal gave the follow-up response to the President.

Many points were covered in Obama's first speech to Congress. As expected, he spoke at length about the economy and celebrated the passage of the stimulus bill, a piece of legislation on which Obama worked relentlessly to get passed. Parts of his speech also focused on inspiring confidence in the American banks, as well as American consumers.

One of my favorite lines, which Obama repeated twice on Tuesday, was, "It's not about helping banks -- it's about helping people." (Of course, "Nobody messes with Joe!" was another one of my favorites, too.)

Toward the end of the address, the President also discussed the future of American prosperity.

America must focus on energy, health care, and education if it hopes to remain competitive in a globalized society, said Obama.

About 20 minutes later, Jindal was on.

Before the 2008 presidential elections, I didn't know who Bobby Jindal was from Adam. After hearing he was a potential running mate of John McCain's, though, I was prompted to do some research.

Like President Obama, Governor Jindal is an Ivy League graduate. Whereas Obama received his bachelor's from Columbia, Jindal received his from Brown.

Jindal is also a Rhodes Scholar who passed up the opportunity to attend Yale Law School and Harvard Medical School, so he could pursue a master's in political science overseas at Oxford University.

Like Obama, Jindal also seems to have that "picture-perfect" family. His wife Supriya is gorgeous. He and his wife are also young like the Obamas. In fact, Bobby Jindal's only 37, Supriya Jindal 36!

Jindal's acumen, I believe, is what leads people to compare him to the President. They're both intellectuals. Still, their politics differ.

Jindal's a Republican.

For this reason, it came as no shocker that in spite of his clear respect for President Obama, as well as their shared experiences (i.e. immigrant story), Jindal disagreed with the policies set forth by the President.

Now lest I'm accused of indicting all Republicans, I want to be clear that I wasn't surprised by Jindal's response solely because of his party affiliation. I just knew the chances of him simply saying "I agree with everything President Obama said" were slim to none.

After all, none of the Republicans in Congress voted to support the new stimulus package, in spite of President Obama's good faith efforts to aggressively court members of the party. Sure, they sat down, exchanged banter, and drank tea with the President inside the White House.

Yet, in the end, the President's plan was saved by the three Republican senators who decided the bill could do some good in their states. Overall, the GOP probably wished the 600-and-something pages of legislation was used to start a bonfire.

Nonetheless, I wrote this post because I noticed some of my Facebook friends had updated their statuses with vitriolic messages aimed at the Louisiana governor. (And these are people who I believe are good-natured and well-intentioned.)

Folks, not everyone in America -- or the world, for that matter -- shares the same mind. That said, people are entitled to disagree, especially in politics. My pet peeve, however, is when we vilify those with different opinions.

For the record, I'm a registered Democrat, and Governor Jindal's message was somewhat partisan. The whole "I-reject-this-stimulus-money-coming-to-my-state" concept is something for which I'm sure he has good reasons or knows more about than me. (At least I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt.)

Notwithstanding, I believe Jindal delivered his message in a fair and civil manner. I also liked the stories he shared about his father and the New Orleans sheriff. Moreover, although his "Americans Can Do Anything" refrain wasn't exactly a "Yes, We Can," it was still a very inspiring refrain.

And Wonderfully American.

Which brings me to my next point.

Politics is, or at least should be, about ideas. Calling people out of their names has no place in meaningful political discourse.

Disagreement comes with the territory.

If we're going to disagree with one another about how we ought to lead this country, so be it -- let's just do so in a way that's productive.

Admit it or not, that's precisely what Bobby Jindal did in his speech on Tuesday.