Rep. Rob Bishop Responds to President’s
State of the Union Address
WASHINGTON—Republican Congressman Rob Bishop (UT-01) today issued the following statement in response to President Barack Obama’s 2015 State of the Union Address:
ON THE OVERALL SPEECH
“The President had a chance to reach out and say he heard the American people in the last election, but he didn't. Instead, he stuck with rhetoric and retreads that won’t help American families, won’t solve problems, and won’t pass Congress. Fortunately, we have solutions that will help families and can pass Congress, and I look forward to working on those in the coming weeks.”
ON TAXES AND THE ECONOMY
“Even though the economy seems to be getting better, there are danger signs the President is clearly ignoring. His tax proposal is a naive approach that would harm people. You don't improve the lives of some by making the lives of others less successful.”
“It also appears that he is basically proposing a second death tax. The death tax is a tax on money that has already been taxed and it’s immoral. It’s harmful to small businesses, like families who farm or ranch or run a dry cleaners or a small grocery store. Instead of trying to increase the death tax, we should eliminate it altogether.”
ON NATIONAL SECURITY
“I would have liked to have heard more details on strengthening our military and national security, particularly in light of recent world events, but the President’s foreign policy seems to ignore realities. Our military has gone through too many rounds of cuts. Instead of stretching them too thin, we should ensure we are giving our fighting men and women everything they need to keep America secure and continue to be the best military force in the world.”
ON EDUCATION
“President Obama’s community college plan sounds nice but in reality is expensive, unworkable and, if implemented, would represent a major shift of education power back to Washington. The critical thing that education needs to succeed is freedom - freedom to be creative and responsive to local needs.”
