Rep. Rick Allen Responds to the President's Final State of the Union Address

Statement

Congressman Rick Allen (R- Ga.-12) issued the following statement in response to the President's final State of the Union address:

"Tonight, Americans heard the same flowery language as they have for the last seven years, but it's all the same--empty words. Americans, myself included, are tired of words. Words will not secure our border, words will not create jobs or grow the economy and they definitely will not protect our nation and defend our citizens. It has been an incredibly frustrating seven years and after tonight, it is evident that year eight will be no different.

While I hoped the President would take this time to finally provide the country with a strategy on combatting ISIS, one of the most pressing issues facing our country, he again failed to do so. Not only that, but his continued effort to try and shutdown Guantanamo Bay jeopardizes the safety of our country.

This Administration needs to stop trying to only keep campaign promises and pander to the left, but listen to the will of the American people. The American people want the Keystone Pipeline, but this Administration formally rejected it. The American people are concerned about their security and supporting our troops, yet this President vetoed the National Defense Authorization Act. The American people are crying out because of the cost of their healthcare plans, yet the President continues to choose his political legacy over the middle class. And yet tonight, the President bragged about his climate change agreement, reinventing our energy sector and creating more government programs in the name of growing an economy that works better for everybody. This only further proves how out-of-touch this President is and remains.

It was made clear tonight that there will be no new leaf turned over in the final year of this Administration. Refusing to admit failure, President Obama will stay the course championing his political legacy over each and every American. As long as the President has his pen and his phone, with unelected, agency bureaucrats on speed-dial, he will continue to legislate around Congress and ignore the Constitution and the will of the people. Thus it is blatantly evident that the best way to end gridlock in Washington is with a new president. Georgians of the 12th District, you can rest assured that although the President's history of working with Republicans is bleak, I will not let his veto power dictate my agenda or priorities. I will fight hard for an agenda that is built from the bottom up where the American people drive the political calendar, not Washington."

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