On the day after the president’s State of the Union message, we expect everyone with an opinion and an outlet to express it will do so. In this blog, I have chosen this president as my subject more than once, and as you might expect, will do so today. But I will not attempt to analyze his forgettable speech itself, except to note that it illustrated once again the alternative reality in which this man lives.

Of course he boasted. This is what he does best. Of course he took credit for achievements not his own. Of course he exaggerated, deceived, lied and attacked others. We expected this, and he obliged.

He showed America, and others in the world who were watching, that he actually could read from a a script written for him by others. This is a useful skill for a president whose usual style is to express himself more candidly in his own words, as we and the world has learned in this seemingly interminable year.

For me, the most fascinating aspect of the evening was not the speech but the appalling behavior of his well-dressed audience, representatives and leaders of our legislative, judicial and executive branches of our federal government, who leapt to their feet to applaud wildly nearly every statement that came from the mouth of this man-child.

A convention of hypocrites had taken over the august chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives. Our president beamed at every ovation, joining in the applause to heap praise on himself. These people, whom we elected to represent us as citizens of this great nation, outdid themselves in stroking the inflated ego of our man-child president. Enough. I turned to another channel. My stomach could take no more.

We will remember them next November when we vote.