This week I sat in the U.S. House Chamber and listened to the last State of the Union from President Barack Obama. What Americans needed to hear was a plan to turn our economy around, tackle an ever mounting federal debt, details of how to increase families take home pay, and a clear strategy on how we will finally defeat the threats posed by ISIS, the Taliban and other organizations of terror in order to keep Americans safe.
Unfortunately, we heard none of that.
Walking out of the House Chamber, my biggest frustration was the lack of attention to the national security issues perilously facing our country. The primary job of the U.S. Government is to keep Americans safe and secure. The State of the Union was the president’s chance to show he understands the challenges and threats facing our country, yet there was no mention of how we will defeat ISIS. Perhaps, more appalling was that he did not even acknowledge the 10 U.S. Navy sailors who were being detained by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard at the time of his speech, nor the fact that North Korea was claiming it had tested a weapon of catastrophic proportions earlier in the week or even the acts of terror which recently occurred in places like Paris and California. We heard nothing about these incidents that could have a direct impact on our national security, no details, no explanation, and no plan to keep American families safe, sound, and secure. Simply put, the president continues to lead from behind on our nation’s national security.
The State of the Union was the president’s chance, his moment, to use his most public forum to reassure Americans that our government will meet a hostile and changing world with the same security and leadership we have known for generations. It was the president’s opening, during a prime time delivery, to provide strong reassurance to Americans that we will defeat ISIS, prevent a nuclear Iran, and won’t back down to aggressors such as North Korea, China and Russia. It was hard for me to take a State of the Union serious which failed to address the issues at the forefront for millions of American families - national security and safety of their loved ones.
Worst yet, the president actually congratulated himself for spending billions of taxpayer dollars to prop up solar energy while vilifying as “dirty energy” the very sources of energy like coal which keep the lights on in Missouri. Regulations put out by this president like his new ‘power plan’, coal ash restrictions, ambient air standards, costly new permitting requirements, and a rejection of the job creating keystone pipeline are killing the sources of inexpensive energy which millions of American families and businesses have relied upon for years to warm their homes while keeping their utility bills low. Obama’s new ‘power plan’ alone is projected to triple the cost of the average utility bill for a family in Missouri. Businesses in the 8th district are being forced to shed their workforce, cut back, and lay off hard working Missourians because new government regulations like these are suffocating either their lines of business directly or those they work with - higher rent, higher energy bills, escalating utility rates, increasing material costs, expensive environmentally compliant land acquisitions, costly construction permitting and the list goes on.
The State of the Union was the president’s opportunity to show he understands the issues American families are facing and highlight a path for moving forward. Unfortunately, we heard another speech filled with the type of rhetoric that shows how truly adamant this president is about cementing his legacy as the most liberal and unconstitutional president in American history. The truth is, and it's unfortunate to say, this State of the Union may actually end up being my favorite because it was this president’s last.
