McKINLEY ON PRESIDENT’S STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS: THE RIGHT WORDS, BUT WHERE’S THE ACTION?
 

Washington, D.C. - Following this evening’s State of the Union address by President Barack Obama, Rep. David B. McKinley, P.E. (R-WV) offered the following comments:

“West Virginia along with the entire nation is looking for assurance from the president during these bleak economic times,” said McKinley. “President Obama’s State of the Union was full of a lot of encouraging things tonight and I agree that we need to increase our competitiveness with the rest of the world. I support creating jobs that jump start the construction and manufacturing industries while updating our infrastructure. We need to get Americans back to work, and fast. We all agree on that. But I remain skeptical that the president will follow through – and in the right way.”

McKinley noted that while the president’s speech was encouraging it is also time for serious action. Since becoming a member of the 112th Congress, he has advocated for the president to stop the War on Coal while allowing American job creators and workers to thrive.

“Over the last two years, the Obama administration’s policies have diverged wildly from his rhetoric. While I might agree with 80% of what he’s said, I haven’t agreed with 80% of what he’s actually done.

“For example: just as the president called tonight for greater American competitiveness, West Virginia is struggling with the aftermath of the Obama EPA’s historic decision to revoke an already-approved coal mine permit. This action alone will eliminate 250 West Virginia jobs while discouraging job creators everywhere from investing here. And just last week, the president hosted a state dinner for the president of China, while refusing to take meaningful action against unfair Chinese trade practices that have contributed to the decline of our steel industry.

“As for his call tonight for new spending to create jobs? Well, we saw what happened the first time. Though it may have included some worthy programs, the stimulus was largely wasted on ideologically-driven projects that didn’t create jobs but did explode the deficit. Unless the process and the product are much different this time, I would have a hard time supporting it.

McKinley concluded, “President Obama said the right things tonight. But will he do the right things? We’ll be trying to make sure he does, because it doesn’t matter to me what party you’re from – if we can work together to create jobs for West Virginia, let’s do it.”

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