On this day in history, January 4, 1965, LBJ touts utopian 'Great Society' in State of the Union address

President Lyndon B. Johnson touted a "Great Society" in his State of the Union address of Jan. 4, 1965, proposing the federal government as the solution to human ills.

It was the first televised State of the Union, delivered in primetime directly to the American people, not just to both chambers of Congress as the Constitution requires.  "The Great Society will not be the gift of government. It will require of every American … to make the journey." — President Lyndon B. Johnson "The War on Poverty was destined to be one of the great failures of 20th-century liberalism." — Allen J. Matusow, historian "Throwing money at the problem has neither reduced poverty nor made the poor self-sufficient." — Michael D. Tanner, Cato Institute Kerry J. Byrne is a lifestyle reporter with Fox News Digital.

"The Great Society asks not how much, but how good; not only how to create wealth but how to use it; not only how fast we are going, but where we are headed," the president added, while imploring all Americans to action.