Dr. Johnson is authority for the proposition that in the composing of lapidary inscriptions, a man is not upon his oath. This same gentle exemption applies to the honorifics of parliamentary speech, by which every incompetent becomes distinguished, and every rogue a statesman. The rule reaches, indeed, to all forms of political address, and it particularly encompasses the high-flown rhetoric of a State of the Union message.
Like poetry, such messages demand the willing suspension of disbelief. It is not expected of a President on these occasions that he speak truth; it is generally thought sufficient if a President arrives on time, limits himself to 45 minutes, and does not palpably insult the opposition. Otherwise a President is restrained only by his own sense of self-restraint, which in the case of most Presidents is not remarkably large.
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