CNN has a small sampling of memorable past State of the Union addresses. The "Interactive: Past addresses" link in the box on the right pops up a gallery of quotes.

I thought this one was rather poignant:

"I ask this Congress to be responsive. If it is, then the 92nd Congress -- your Congress -- our Congress -- at the end of its term will be able to look back on a record more splendid than any in our history. This can be the Congress that helped us end the longest war in the nation's history, and end it in a way that will give us at last a genuine chance to enjoy what we have not had in this century: a full generation of peace."
Richard M. Nixon, 1971

Didn't turn out that way...

A dozen years ago George Bush I had this to say on the eve of Gulf War I:

"Halfway around the world, we are engaged in a great struggle in the skies and on the seas and sands. We know why we're there. We are Americans -- part of something larger than ourselves. For two centuries we've done the hard work of freedom. And tonight we lead the world in facing down a threat to decency and humanity. What is at stake is more than one small country, it is a big idea -- a new world order, where diverse nations are drawn together in common cause to achieve the universal aspirations of mankind: peace and security, freedom and the rule of law. Such is a world worthy of our struggle, and worthy of our children's future."
George Bush, 1991

--Robert