Bill Clinton isn’t often wrong when it comes to politics, but his assertion in his 1996 State of the Union address that “the era of big government is over” was a bit premature. In light of President Obama’s second inaugural address, the era of big government has just begun.

The reliably liberal columnist Dana Milbank of the Washington Post exhibited refreshing honesty when he wrote of Obama’s speech, “[It] failed to rise to the moment.” The president’s address was more campaign rhetoric than vision. He even lowered himself to reference Mitt Romney’s inelegant remark about “takers” versus makers. Obama’s comment was petty and beneath the grandeur of the moment.