Marathon Pundit: IL GOP statements on State of the Union

Fulton, IL, 16th cong. district

Some Illinois Republican members of the House of Representatives have issued statements about tonight's State of the Union address.

First, Rep. Don Manzullo of Egan:

If the president is serious about wanting to help our employers put Americans back to work, he must stop talking about the two things that will keep Americans on the unemployment lines and extend our difficult times – tax increases and excessive government regulations. Employers are not going to create jobs when they could face huge tax increases and unnecessary regulatory burdens in the near future. We need to reduce the cost of doing business in this country and help make our employers more competitive so they can expand and create jobs. My American Jobs Agenda offers solutions that would put our great nation back on the path to prosperity.

The president also needs to get serious about cutting wasteful Washington spending and shrinking the size of government so we can strengthen our economy and give our employers the confidence they need to invest in their businesses. Today marks the 1,000th day the Senate has gone without passing a budget. That's unacceptable. I strongly encourage the president and Senate Democratic leaders to take a look at a budget I supported last year – the Republican Study Committee budget – that would have cut $9.1 trillion over the next 10 years while strengthening Social Security, saving Medicare, reforming the tax code, and balancing the budget in 9 years. It's time for Washington to start living within its means and end the massive borrowing from China and other countries that is saddling future generations of Americans with massive debt.

From Robert Dold of Kenilworth:

"Coming from a large manufacturing district, I was pleased that the president focused on manufacturing and job-training. I was also pleased to hear the president mention Master Lock, headquartered in Illinois' 10th District, for their work to bring jobs home," said Dold. "Everyone can agree that jobs and the economy are the most important issue facing our country today, so now is the time to work together, find common ground, and start moving our nation forward. The president must work to unite the country, not divide it. We need to focus on putting Americans back to work and start putting people before politics and progress before partisanship."

And finally, from the House Chief Deputy Whip, Peter Roskam of Wheaton:

I was hopeful for tonight's speech, but unfortunately, it was a missed opportunity to turn the page on three years of broken promises and failed policies. Rather than commonsense solutions, Americans heard a campaign speech of broad platitudes supporting the same policies that have made our economy worse. The President spoke about American energy yet didn't reverse his indefensible decision to deny the creation of 20,000 new private-sector union jobs from expanding the Keystone Pipeline. And while he spoke about taxes and jobs, he missed an incredible opportunity to push for comprehensive tax reform – a proven solution that could unite this entire country and unleash American business innovation – last passed in an election year. Republicans stand ready to work the White House and Senate Democrats on genuine solutions that would help small businesses. A good place to start is with the nearly 30 House-passed jobs bills gathering dust in the Senate.

UPDATE 11:10pm CST:

I'm going to have more from him in a few minutes, but Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Manteno also released a statement tonight.

Under the Obama Administration, our national debt has increased by $4.6 trillion – which means every man, woman and child’s share has increased by nearly $14,000 since Obama took office.

In his 2011 State of the Union speech, President Obama warned that "at stake is whether new jobs and industries take root in this country, or somewhere else." This is a fear I hear nearly every day in Illinois. That's why I was deeply disappointed to see the president's administration block the Keystone XL Pipeline - particularly after his own jobs council yesterday called for an "all-in approach" to energy policy that incorporates expanded oil and gas drilling in addition to advancing energy projects such as pipelines.

This pipeline would directly create 20,000 manufacturing and construction jobs and 118,000 total jobs. In addition, we would see 830,000 barrels of safe and secure oil each day from our friends to the north, which means we will need less oil from countries we can no longer rely on and are not friendly to the interests of the United States.

Unfortunately, like tonight's State of the Union address, the Keystone pipeline is a missed opportunity and is yet another major example of the President placing politics before the people. The fact is that someone will benefit from the oil out of Alberta. If it's not the United States, it will be China - and it will be American businesses and consumers who will suffer the consequences from our inaction.

We can't continue to follow the same failed agenda that has driven job creators further into doubt and uncertainty. The road to refueling our economy and creating jobs means tackling our debt head on, simplifying the tax code, reducing onerous regulations, and increasing domestic energy production, making our nation more energy secure, which would help lower costs at the pump and create jobs here at home.

In just one year, the new House Republicans have fought to put the brakes on the Obama administration's spending spree. We've changed the conversation from how much to spend to how much to cut. We've also made clear to the president that it is high time that we cut up the government's credit cards and draw a hard line to stop the government from overspending, which is hampering our economy's ability to grow and thrive. We must get the government to stop spending more money than we take in and focus our efforts toward growing the private sector, where jobs are created.