Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) castigated President Obama's policies as "pro-poverty" and extreme in his response to the State of the Union address.
The Indiana governor, who considered a run for the White House before deciding last year against a campaign, knocked Obama for imposing regulations on business and for rejecting the proposed Keystone oil pipeline.
He labeled Obama’s policies as "pro-poverty and extremism that stifles the development of homegrown energy, or cancels a perfectly safe pipeline that would employ tens of thousands, or jacks up consumer utility bills for no improvement in either human health or world temperature."
Daniels said Obama's "trickle-down government" policies has restrained the country's economic growth.
Daniels also criticized Obama for trying to divide people with class warfare. "No feature of the Obama presidency has been sadder than its constant efforts to divide us, to curry favor with some Americans by castigating others," he said.
Daniels attacked Obama for his criticism of congressional Republicans. Obama has repeatedly argued House Republicans have been at the core of Congressional obstruction from getting anything passed in their chamber.
Daniels said that it’s "not fair and it’s not true" for the president to attack Republicans in Congress as obstacles. Daniels said it was important not to blame Republicans as a party unfairly fighting to help the rich. He said that the government needed to stop providing the wealthiest Americans "so many tax preferences that distort our economy and do little or nothing to foster growth."
Daniels said Congressional Republicans were the only members of Congress who have worked to help the economic recovery. "They and they alone have passed bills to reduce borrowing, reform entitlements, and encourage new job creation, only to be shot down time and time again by the president and his Democratic Senate allies," Daniels said.
Obama in his State of the Union called for an end to George W. Bush era tax rates on the wealthy, which were passed as temporary tax relief. This will also be a key part of Obama’s presidential campaign this year.
This story was originally posted at 8 p.m. and has been updated.
