The Most Alarming Omission In Obama's State Of The Union

After a year plagued by fractious partisan politics, national security leaks, and with his approval ratings among the lowest they’ve been since he took office, President Obama took a surprisingly safe approach to his State of the Union address Tuesday night, running back a familiar economic and foreign policy agenda without offering much in the way of substantive policy proposals. But in a speech that was full of omissions—Democratic staples like gun control, drug policy, and the environment were largely absent—perhaps the most remarkable was the president’s failure to give more than a passing reference to the growing scandal over the National Security Administration’s sweeping surveillance powers.

In his nearly 7,000 word speech, Obama devoted just one sentence to his proposed NSA reforms, giving just a cursory nod to the broader debates over privacy and civil liberties:

So, even as we aggressively pursue terrorist networks—through more targeted efforts and by building the capacity of our foreign partners – America must move off a permanent war footing.  That’s why I’ve imposed prudent limits on the use of drones—for we will not be safer if people abroad believe we strike within their countries without regard for the consequence.  That’s why, working with this Congress, I will reform our surveillance programs – because the vital work of our intelligence community depends on public confidence, here and abroad, that the privacy of ordinary people is not being violated.

Obama’s silence on the surveillance issue is perhaps unsurprising. In a speech earlier this month, the president outlined moderate reforms he would like to see at the NSA, including installing a public advocate on the FISA court and moving the agency’s phone records database out of the government’s control. On Monday, the administration announced an agreement that will allow tech companies to disclose some details about the surveillance requests they receive from the government. But the flood of leaks from former federal contractor Edward Snowden helped to derail the White House’s political message in the second half of 2013, and Congress remains divided over how to reform the NSA’s mass surveillance programs.

Conveniently, though, the speech came just one day after a fresh raft of reports on the government’s secret spying efforts, including a revelation from the New York Times and other publications that American and British intelligence agencies have attempted to collect personal data from Google Maps, Angry Birds, and other "leaky" smartphone apps. With new leaks trickling out on an almost weekly basis, it seems likely that the debate over the government’s unchecked spying powers will be a defining issue of Obama’s second term, and one of the most contentious policy debates that Congress will have to grapple with over the coming year. So it probably warrants more than a fleeting mention in the president’s annual address to the nation.

Obama’s brief mention of privacy issues is likely to spark the ire of would-be NSA reformers in Congress, many of whom have already criticized him for not going far enough in his proposals to rein in the agency. In separate responses to the State of the Union on Tuesday night, Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Mike Lee (R-UT) both cited the NSA’s surveillance programs as examples of big government overreach into American lives.

On Monday, just one day before the State of the Union, a bipartisan group of House members sent a letter to the White House urging Obama to “take immediate and effective safeguards" to reform the NSA, including firing National Intelligence Director James Clapper. (Clapper, if you recall, told Congress early last year that the NSA doesn't spy on Americans, an assertion that obviously turned out to be false.) The letter adds that the president's prescriptions for overhauling the NSA "fall short," and specifically highlight Obama's failure to address revelations that the NSA has intentionally tried to undermine encryption standards.

Beyond the NSA controversy, Obama paid little attention to broader issues surrounding data security and cyber war—a marked contrast to last year’s State of the Union address, in which Obama warned America of the “rapidly growing threat” from cyber attacks and announced that he had signed an executive order to strengthen the country’s digital defense systems. But like much of the Obama’s 2013 agenda, the White House is still working on implementing the cyber security initiatives announced last year.

Tuesday’s speech did touch on a handful of other issues related to the tech industry, including patent reform, the biggest tech issue facing Congress this year. Although it was only a one-line mention, supporters hope that Obama's call for ending "costly and needless" patent lawsuits will prompt the Senate to start moving on legislation. “This gives it momentum. This is important. I think we can get it done," New York Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer, one of the Senate's most vocal proponents of patent reform, told Politico Tuesday night.

On a feel-good note, Obama also announced that he would use executive action to expand broadband access to more than 15,000 schools over the next two years, through a new partnership between the Federal Communications Commission and major tech companies, including Apple, Microsoft, Sprint, and Verizon. But despite last year’s calls for increased funding for scientific and technological research—and praise for the wonders of 3D-printing—Obama steered clear of declaring any futuristic designs for the country in 2014.