President Barack Obama touted smarter, not larger, government during his State of the Union address in Washington on Tuesday night.
West Virginia lawmakers had mixed feelings regarding the president’s approach.
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin wasn’t necessarily happy with all the policies presented in the speech, though he liked the “bipartisan tone” of it.
“It had an All-American tone, a worrying-about-the-next-generation tone and fixing the finances, which I’ve been harping about since Day 1 since I arrived here,” Manchin said.
U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller called it “encouraging to see that our national agenda touches on so many of the issues I hear about from West Virginians every day.” He said the focus of the President and Congress “must remain on creating jobs, building up our middle class, and supporting families who struggle”
U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito of the 2nd District said she didn’t hear anything new in the speech.
“We have economic issues that jobs are not being created — there’s a lot of unemployed people — but that’s kind of where our common thinking was,” said Capito. “He still was advocating for raising taxes, growing government, and he didn’t mention reining in spending in any significant way.”
In the economic portion of the speech, Obama proposed raising the minimum wage to $9 an hour and tying it to the cost of living. He stressed that the true engine of America’s economic growth was a rising, thriving middle class.
Obama also focused on clean energy, looking for ways to prevent further damage to the climate. He stressed a plan to drill for more natural gas and use it to fuel the nation’s vehicles. Capito liked that idea.
“He still was advocating for raising taxes, growing government, and he didn’t mention reining in spending in any significant way.” — U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito
“I hope he’s correct here because that will help West Virginia and it will help the nation,” said Capito. “I liked his mention of using natural gas as a transportation fuel.”
There was no mention of coal, however, which worries Capito.
“It’s obvious that he wants to move in a direction that will endanger the use of coal in energy generation,” said Capito.
Capito would have preferred to hear the President discuss ways to make coal production cleaner and more efficient, and Manchin agreed.
“You would think that if he was really concerned about the climate, we would be looking at ways to find new technology that would help us be able to use the resources that we have, not only in this nation but that is being burned around the world,” said Manchin.
“(Obama’s address) had an All-American tone, a worrying-about-the-next-generation tone and fixing the finances, which I’ve been harping about since Day 1 since I arrived here.” — U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin
Manchin adds that the United States is responsible for less than one-eighth of the world’s coal consumption, whereas China burns more than 4 billion tons a year. He said he plans to work with the energy committee on an all-in policy that looks at a balanced approach with all the current resources.
But the most emotional topic of the Obama’s address regarded gun control, during which the President advocated more background checks and figuring out ways of keeping guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill. Manchin said that is the key question that needs to be answered in order to prevent gun violence.
“How do we keep big guns out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them, the criminals, people with mental illness,” said Manchin. “That’s what we should be working to find a way to do that.”
Capito said she doesn’t know what direction they are heading in, but the fundamental right of citizens to bear arms needs to stay intact regardless of what happens.
Obama also addressed implementing immigration reform, addressing rising healthcare costs and seeking ways to make education more affordable. He also proposed a plan to have the military out of Afghanistan by the end of next year.
The President assured both parties that everything he outlined in his speech was not expected to increase the nation’s deficit by a single dime.
Rockefeller’s full response
Rockefeller issued the following statement after the address:
“Tonight, it’s been encouraging to see that our national agenda touches on so many of the issues I hear about from West Virginians every day and priorities I have long fought for. Our focus must remain on creating jobs, building up our middle class, and supporting families who struggle.
“There are so many proven ways to accomplish this – many of which were mentioned tonight. We need to boost our workforce by investing in education so students can afford to get a degree or the best training for the jobs of today and tomorrow. We need to invest in manufacturing to help local businesses grow and hire more workers. And we need to invest in infrastructure to make sure our country and state have the transportation and technology to compete globally.
“I’m also encouraged that the President agrees it’s time to bring more troops home. I have long urged the President to reduce our troops in Afghanistan in a safe and responsible way, so we can focus our resources on other urgent threats, like cybersecurity.
“In West Virginia we also agree that we need to reduce our deficit, and that it is past time to ask large corporations and the wealthiest Americans to do their part to help keep our country strong.
“I’m hopeful that this year and moving forward Congress can work together more productively. The American people expect and deserve nothing less. And I am as determined as ever to fight for the people of West Virginia and the causes that matter so much here at home.”