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Crisis atmosphere prevailed at Reed’s first SOTU

WPRI.COM

Ted Nesi

Updated: Jan 25, 2011 3:19 PM

WASHINGTON — As he prepares to attend what will be his 20th State of the Union since entering Congress, U.S. Sen. Jack Reed still vividly recalls the first one he went to as a newly elected lawmaker back in 1991.

In Rhode Island, new governor Bruce Sundlun had closed 45 troubled banks and credit unions, freezing more than $1 billion in assets, just hours after taking office on New Year’s Day. Overseas, allied forces had begun bombing Iraq on Jan. 17 after months of escalating tensions in an effort to drive Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait.

“You’re sitting in a situation where you’ve got a severe crisis at home and the specter of a major confrontation [abroad], and that’s in the first 24 hours of your term,” Reed, 61, told me this afternoon during a half-hour interview in the Capitol building.

Those serious matters weighed on Reed’s mind as he listened to President George H.W. Bush deliver the annual address in the House chamber on Jan. 29. The previous fall, he had won the election to succeed Republican Claudine Schneider as the congressman from Rhode Island’s 2nd District.

Much of Reed’s early attention was focused on working with Rhode Island officials to craft a solution to the credit union crisis. “I was 24/7 trying to figure that out,” he said. But Bush’s call for the United States and its allies to deal with “the challenge in the Gulf” resonated with the former Army Ranger.

Bush’s speech came at “exactly the same time” as the escalation of the first war in Iraq, “so it was all within the context of that,” he said.

Despite those issues, though, the young congressman – he was 41 that January – was still awed to find himself sitting on the House floor at the State of the Union that January day in 1991.

“I was extremely impressed with the pomp,” Reed recalled. “It was an overwhelming sensation. You sort of pinch yourself – my goodness gracious, here’s the president of the United States, and you’re sitting there just a few weeks after you’re sworn in.

“You just go, wow – that is great,” he said.

As for tonight’s speech, Reed echoed others by saying he expects President Obama to use the opportunity to pivot from his own efforts to deal with the immediate crises he faced on entering office, notably the recession, toward laying the foundation for dealing with the broader economic challenges the nation faces in the 21st century.

He also expects the president to defend the legislation passed during his first two years in office, notably health reform, financial regulation and changes to the student loan program. But the most important priority for the president must be getting Americans back to work, Reed said.

“All we do is going to be measured by the American people in terms of jobs and opportunities for their children,” he said, adding that special attention must be made to ensuring there are opportunities for manufacturing workers as well as knowledge-industry ones.

I’ll have more highlights from the interview here on Nesi’s Notes today – if I get time – and throughout the week.

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