A State of the Union we’d like to hear.

In a diner in a mid-sized Midwestern city, a man stops mopping and looks into a television camera. Sweat glistens off his forehead and he lacks the makeup the politicians in Washington wear while giving their televised speeches. He looks into the camera, sighs and begins to speak from the heart:

Good evening. My name is Rusty Warren.  I’m 47-years old and have lived in this mid-sized Midwestern city  for most of my life.  Five years ago, I had a great-paying middle management job, health insurance and a nice home.  And then the wheels came off the economy.

Life hasn’t been the same since.

I’m here tonight to give the real State of the Union.  Why you ask? Well, as much as the folks in Washington think they know what it’s like for us in the middle class, they don’t  The Great Recession never hit Washington, D.C.  It has devastated my city, my career and my family. But I’m proud to report tonight, that like so many other Americans, I am surviving.

I was laid off in 2008 and I got a small severance.  Each round of layoffs paid less and less — and honestly, you wanted to stay on the boat as long as you could.  By the time I was given my pink slip, it was one week of supplemental pay per year of employment. I refused two buyouts — No one wanted to get thrown into the water.  But in the end, the unthinkable happened. I was tossed overboard.  I remember my wife crying that day. Who could forget that?

I remember how cold my boss was when he laid me off.  He wouldn’t look me in the eye. I will never forget that, either.  Of course, right after I carried my box out of the building, the CEO of the company got a $10 million dollar bonus.  I thought in America you were rewarded for building things, not destroying them. I thought wrong.

I was unemployed for eight months, bleeding our savings and 401K. But we survived.

I finally found another job, but for half  the salary what I made before.  Of course, none of my payments went down, so I had to get busy and find other work.  My house lost a third of its value, but I kept it. I continued to find a way to send my daughter to college, even though it got more expensive every year. I didn’t complain, I didn’t whine. I took this job at night and my wife took another job, too.  I’m now becoming an entrepreneur. We’re getting by and we’ll succeed. That’s the American way.

Now, I understand that there is another artificial financial crisis looming in Washington called a sequester.  It threatens to throw us back into another “recession.”  I wish the “leaders” in Washington would realize we’re doing our part out here to turn this economy around. Now it’s their turn.  I know it’s important for them to play to their bases and raise money for the next election. I just wish they had to give an oath like doctors to “do no harm.”

I’m clawing back. I’m thankful I can do that in a country as great as the United States of America. While we are not perfect, I wouldn’t live anywhere else.

Now if you will excuse me, my break is over. I need to get back to work so I’m not fired.

God bless this economic recovery. God bless our leaders and give them wisdom. And God bless America.