Obama. Results.

On January 12, the President of the United States delivered his eighth and final State of the Union address.

In Russia, this message was hardly noticed, and it was not the policy of the Obama administration, which began the reset at the time, that led to this result, but Russia's self-isolation due to the conflict in Ukraine and internal frosts.

Meanwhile, it was an important speech. The American president summed up the historical results of his reign and tried to set the political agenda for the next 5-10 years. Well, among other things, inflict maximum damage on the Republicans, while simultaneously strengthening the position of the Democrats in the presidential race.

To have time to do all this in just one hour, including 15 minutes of applause, would seem to be “mission impossible”. But the president managed to emphasize that America experienced economic growth during his term. And, of course, it was no coincidence that he talked about income inequality, the availability of higher education (Obama proposes making the first two years of community colleges free of charge), and medical services: these issues are the foundation of the Democratic candidates' campaign programs.

The President did not bypass health issues, announcing a new national initiative to fight cancer. The country's research centers will receive strong federal support. Vice President Joe Biden, who recently lost his son Beau to brain cancer, has been appointed to oversee the program. The President expressed the hope that the United States will become a country where cancer will be defeated "once and for all." Unfortunately, such an initiative is doomed to become long-term, like the "war on drugs" or the "war on poverty." If only because the genetic nature of cancer has not been fully explored, not to mention the decades required for the development of innovative drugs.

Obama also touched upon the Republican-sick sphere of global warming. He outlined the importance of investing in renewable energy sources and noted that the problem of climate change is already a fact, not a matter of controversy. The owner of the White House demanded to stop "subsidizing the past" and start "investing in the future" more actively. On January 15, as if to confirm these words, Obama by his decree suspended the leasing of federal land for coal mines.

The President resolutely rejected the rhetoric of the Republicans, exaggerating the theme of the "economic decline" of the United States. In fact, America, the president proclaimed, is the most powerful country in the world. Here everyone applauded him - both liberals and conservatives.

The president mentioned national security after the economic one: today the United States is threatened not so much by the "evil empire" as by failed states, engulfed in chaos. One way or another, Obama believes, Congress should show unity on international issues, whether it's the war on ISIS or the lifting of the half-century-long trade embargo on Cuba that is being thwarted by the Republicans.

But Russia, rapidly returning to the Soviet past, was mentioned only once. Even though Russia's economy is in decline, the Kremlin continues to spend resources to prop up its "client" countries Ukraine and Syria, which Obama says are escaping Moscow's influence. Obviously, in the case of Ukraine, the president made a slip of the tongue…

Immediately after Obama's address to the nation, on January 13, he had a telephone conversation with Putin. The leaders talked about sore points - Ukraine and Syria. Obama insisted on the early holding of local elections in the Donbass, Putin responded with a demand for constitutional reform in Ukraine with the granting of a special status to the eastern regions of the country. On Syria, they agreed only that a political solution that would suit everyone is needed. A complete concurrence of positions was revealed only on North Korea: the presidents condemned nuclear tests in North Korea as violating UN Security Council resolutions.

That's where they parted...

* "Islamic State" (ISIS, ISIL, DAISH) is a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation.