Selecting Stacey Abrams to give the response was a brilliant move by Pelosi and Schumer

[Honeycombe8]

38. I'm sure you'll like it. But the response to the SOTU is successful if it's not memorable.

The ones that people remember are those that were particularly bad or something funny happened, like Rubio reaching off camera awkwardly to get his glass of water. Or Joe Kennedy's chapsticked lips (although he did a fine response).

It's an honor, and I'm sure Abrams will do fine. But it won't be a springboard to anything, IMO. A speech at the convention is, if she gets that. This may be a test for that.

Why the State of the Union response is always so bad

Supposedly, we are to believe, this is an honor. It has been framed by party leaders and pundits as a path to stardom, a sign that Ernst has some standing and a future in her party. Don't believe it. She has a future, but her response won't likely be a memorable launching pad.

People only remember the response to the State of the Union when it goes badly. (It's kind of like NFL refereeing -- memorable only in its poor execution.) Like it did for Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal who displayed about as much charisma as Steve Urkel when he delivered the response in 2009. And of course Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) had his bottled water moment. (Rubio's internal thought process: "If I maintain eye contact with the camera, then maybe nobody will notice that I'm about to grab this tiny bottle of water and take a tiny sip" ). ***

The SOTU response is also supposed to be political theater. But it comes after what is typically a long (hour plus) speech and well past 10 pm on the East Coast. So, no one pays much attention to start.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/01/20/why-the-state-of-the-union-response-is-always-so-bad/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.31f630cc3f06

The State of the Union response — and why it's always terrible — explained

On Tuesday, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley will deliver the response to the president's State of the Union address. It's an honor and a national platform for a Republican rising star. But it's also a very, very tough job.

Opposition parties have been trying to craft an effective State of the Union response for 50 years, and they've hardly ever succeeded. The most-remembered State of the Union responses are instead the ones that go awry....

https://www.vox.com/2015/1/20/7860325/state-of-the-union-response