State of the Union Reaction: What Was Left Unsaid

Last night, President Barack Obama delivered his first State of the Union address. During his speech, the President addressed a number of pressing domestic and international issues, ranging from the establishment of a commission to address the national debt, progress on health care reform and the looming withdrawal of American forces from Iraq.

Unfortunately, in a change from past speeches, President Obama did not mention specifics on how the United States will respond to the upcoming elections and ongoing conflict in Sudan, continued suppression of ethnic minorities and pro-democracy activists in Burma and the high levels of atrocities in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

While we are disappointed that the President omitted these important issues, Genocide Intervention Network hopes that he will soon announce a genocide prevention strategy independent of the priorities laid out in his State of the Union Address. We also hope to work with Congress and the Administration to improve the American reaction to mass atrocity events around the world, as well as specific action to address ongoing challenges in Sudan, Burma and our other Areas of Concern.

For more information on translating the relatively brief international relations points made in the State of the Union Address, please read Foreign Policy’s blog, The Cable. To read the full transcript of the President’s State of the Union, please visit the White House webpage.