WASHINGTON – Congresswoman Renee Ellmers released the following statement following President Obama's State of the Union address from her office in Washington this evening:

"Four years ago, President Obama gathered before Congress and addressed the state of our union. Back in 2009, our country was facing an economic crisis with trillions of dollars in debt, rising unemployment, and an uncertain future. Four years later, little has changed."

"We are a proud nation, one that was founded on the principles of individual responsibility and unlimited opportunities. But each year, those freedoms and opportunities have been undermined by our president and manipulated in the pursuit of power and control. Instead of alleviating the burdens that have dragged down our economy, President Obama has attacked our job creators and provided perverse incentives to keep them from hiring. This is not who we are as a people and only restricts the American Dream."

"Here in the House, we will continue to fight for the policies that work and protect the dreamers and do-ers. We will lead the charge to get America working again and this begins with helping the small businesses that drive our growth and hire our workers. We will halt the wasteful spending that is robbing our citizens and making their lives harder. We will give all Americans the power to use their own hard earned income to make their lives better, instead of making the federal government stronger. The president's policies have failed them, but it is not too late."

We need to be bold, we need to be productive and innovate, create, and expand. This can happen, but over the past four years, it has only been happening within the federal government - with little economic growth to show for it. Our nation deserves better. But without a serious conversation about the threats facing our economy and its future, we face four more years of the same old song and dance."

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For more information, please visit Congresswoman Ellmers’ website at www.ellmers.house.gov or call (202) 225-4531.

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