Note: Click here to watch Senator Johnson’s video response.

Washington, D.C. – Senator Ron Johnson (WI) delivered the following remarks in response to the President’s State of the Union address:

“Hi, I’m U.S. Senator Ron Johnson. It is my honor to represent the great state of Wisconsin. 

“Tonight, America had the opportunity to watch President Obama give his State of the Union Address. He paid lip service to job creation by including it as a top priority, but we’ve heard that broken record before.  

“Once again, his proposed solution was a demand for increased spending – he called it investment.  He proposed paying for it by increasing taxes or just simply putting it on the national credit card.  You know, the one that already has a balance of $16.4 trillion.

“This is what President Obama calls his balanced approach.  He’ll grow the federal government, and the American people get to send more of their hard-earned money to Washington.

“That’s the role he expects you to play in his balanced plan.  He takes credit for being so compassionate, and you, your children, and grandchildren will pick up the tab.  

“Now, he’ll claim it’s just those rich, selfish folks – certainly not you – that will be asked to pay their ‘fair share.’  But that’s not true.  During his first term, he raised taxes on every American. 

“The trillion dollars of Obamacare taxes have just kicked in.  They will hit every man, woman, and child in America - either directly through taxes on your health care plan, or indirectly, through higher prices for health care in general.

“Higher taxes, increased spending, and more government control and intrusion into our lives, will not help our economy achieve its full growth and job creating potential.  Yet this is the path that President Obama has put America on. 

“The fact that median household income declined by more than $4,500 during President Obama’s first term, is grim evidence of the failure of his policies.  Instead of improving the lives and economic conditions of middle-income Americans, they will be penalized by President Obama’s vision of a bigger, more powerful Washington.

“If President Obama really was serious about economic growth and job creation, he would start working with Congress immediately to make America an attractive place for business investment and expansion.  He would push for pro-growth tax reform, allow America to use its energy resources, streamline regulations, and develop a credible plan to stabilize our debt by reducing the rate of growth in Washington’s out-of-control spending.

“We all want a prosperous nation, where every American has the opportunity to build a good life for themselves and their family.  You achieve that goal by growing the private, or productive sector of the economy, not government and its debt.

“I continue to stand ready to work with anyone who is willing to acknowledge the serious problems facing America, and sit down with me, in good faith, to develop real solutions.  It is my sincere hope that willing partners emerge before it is too late.”

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