President's words aren't represented by his actions

Over the past 35 months, our nation’s unemployment rate has consistently remained above eight percent. Over 14 million Americans are searching for employment while 46 million Americans are living in poverty and relying on government assistance for survival. As I listened to the president’s State of the Union Address, it became increasingly clear to me that his words do not resemble his actions, not even by the slightest bit.

Throughout the past three years, this administration has made higher taxes and government regulation a destructive trend instead of encouraging job creation and capitalism. Giving taxpayer money to politicians does not create jobs. Overregulation is the reason why these companies chose to relocate overseas.

Over the past year, the president and his Big Labor Bully allies at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) have threatened thousands of jobs at Boeing in Charleston, SC. Additionally, the president’s opposition to the Keystone Pipeline, a project expected to create 120,000 jobs without costing taxpayers a single dime, destroys jobs in the Second District of South Carolina, the area I am proud to represent. Michelin Automotive in Lexington produces 12 feet-tall tires, costing approximately $60,000 dollars a piece, and MTU Diesel in Aiken creates engines that are shipped to Canada to be used for the recovery of petroleum. Instead of helping to create jobs readily available within the United States, the president has placed politics over effective policy and delayed the decision to invest in the environmentally sound project until after the 2012 elections.

In his 2008 campaign, during an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, the president promised energy rates “would necessarily skyrocket” under his policies. However, during his speech, the president finally adopted an all-of-the-above energy plan in hopes to make America more energy efficient and less dependent on foreign oil. Over the past three years, the price of gas has increased $1.54 dollars per gallon. In recent months, Americans have been exposed to the president’s decision to expedite the Solyndra loan, which lead to hundreds of millions of our hardworking taxpayer dollars being given to an unsuccessful energy company through the president’s failed stimulus. It is clear that rather than promoting safe energy production, the president believes in supplementing scandalous energy alternatives which can be directly connected to political contributions.

On the issue of our national security and defense, the president correctly praised the success of our troops. Since September 11, 2001, our armed forces and their families have sacrificed their lives to defend this great nation from the threat of global terrorism. The president’s new defense strategy in addition to the cuts that are expected as a result of sequestration will cause financial ruin for the Department of Defense and will decimate our defense capabilities. General Raymond Odierno, the Army Chief of Staff, has stated, “Cuts of this magnitude would be catastrophic to the military.” Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has said that under the large reductions of sequestration, “we would have to reduce the size of the military sharply. Rough estimates suggest after ten years of these cuts, we would have the smallest ground force since 1940, the smallest number of ships since 1915, and the smallest Air Force in our history.” The fact that the president refused to address this pressing issue in his State of the Union Address is another clear example of how he fails to lead our great nation. In order to protect our military families and veterans, we must continue to possess the strongest and most capable military in the world and provide peace through strength.  

Higher taxes, more government regulations and a reduced military are not part of the solution to ending our recession. Over the last year, my colleagues and I have passed over thirty job-creation bills with bipartisan support. Sadly, 27 of them remain stalled in the Senate. These pieces of legislation allow for job creation by removing barriers to allow for private sector growth. Because of the gridlock in the Senate and the president’s failed promises, the American people are losing faith in their government officials. It is my hope that over the next year, the president and the liberal Senate will work with House Republicans and find ways to help restore the people’s faith in government by putting Americans back to work.

Rep. Joe Wilson (R - S.C) serves on three committees in the House of Representatives: Armed Services, Foreign Affairs and Education and Workforce.

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