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Howard Fineman: Sputnik II And The State Of The Union

[Howard Fineman is the Senior Political Editor of the Huffington Post.]

WASHINGTON -- In 2008, Barack Obama's supporters saw him as Franklin Roosevelt reincarnate: the smiling, amendable guy who wanted to use Big Government to pull the nation out of its misery, New Deal-style.

As President Obama prepares for his State of the Union address to Congress next Tuesday, his aides are looking toward a different Democratic president as a political template: John F. Kennedy.

Appropriately enough, this week marks the 50th anniversary of JFK's "New Frontier" inauguration in 1961.

Rather than focus on new government programs, the president will highlight targeted tax cuts, spending restraint and the need to rebuild our technological and educational base for the long term....
Read entire article at Huffington Post