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Analysis: Obama To Channel Clinton In State Of The Union

(CBS) - The speechwriters are working overtime at the White House, preparing Tuesday night's State of the Union address.

This is the beginning of campaign 2012. Bill Clinton began his re-election campaign in the 1995 State of the Union with a move toward the center and a call for welfare reform.

Tuesday night, the President will move right and embrace bigger budget cuts than anyone could have imagined. He will also have an opportunity to unify the nation which is still stunned following the Tucson tragedy.

In a way, Obama is getting ready to replay the Clinton script, which is a move away from extreme positions of both parties. He is hoping that if he reclaims the middle, he will get back those independent voters who put him there in the first place.

The script is still being written, but you can guarantee deficit reduction, a hand across the aisle, a pro business drift, and the President stressing that it's too late to reverse the health care legislation.

Reported by Larry Kane, KYW Newsradio

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