By Bob Howell – WSFA 12 News Anchor, Montgomery, AL

The first of many responses to the President’s State of the Union…this one from GOP candidate Robert Bentley:

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A Year of Unfulfilled Promises 

MONTGOMERY – Dr. Robert J. Bentley, Republican candidate for Governor, made the following comments after watching President Barack Obama’s first State of the Union Address to Congress”  

“For our nation, it has been a difficult year.  Our leaders have let us down, our economy has been struggling to recover, and our national debt continues to spiral out of control.  For Alabama, it has been especially difficult to deal with budget shortfalls, rising unemployment, and unfunded federal mandates.  But for our Commander-in-Chief, it has been a year of unfulfilled promises.” 

“Every incoming executive, whether in the private sector or in government, assumes office facing problems not of their own making.  This was true of Presidents Nixon, Reagan, and George W. Bush.  History judges them not by the excuses they make, but by the solutions they engineer.  President Obama’s first priority should have been crafting a bill that creates an environment where businesses can thrive and Americans can go back to work, not to sign “The Freedom of Choice Act,” as he repeatedly stated on the campaign trail.”

“For example, to get our economy moving, Congress and the Obama Administration already could have:

One: cut the capital gains rates to zero for two years, which would immediately increase investment into the corporate, job-creating sector of our economy.

“I’m glad that Scott Brown’s come-from-behind victory in Massachusetts has caused President Obama, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to re-evaluate their approach to reforming our nation’s health care system.  I remain opposed to federal intrusion on state sovereignty over issues such as regulating health insurance.  I remain concerned that any Obama-Pelosi health reform plan will violate our 10^th Amendment rights under the Constitution.” 

“President Obama’s decision to freeze non-defense discretionary spending is a good first step, but this spending freeze will result in only $250 billion less spending over the next 10 years. This is a drop in the bucket when, based on current trends, federal spending will exceed $10 trillion over that same time period.  This amount does not even include the off-budget spending Congress fails to plan for every year to address natural disasters.  Given that there is a natural disaster or other emergency every year, it is irresponsible not to budget for emergencies.” 

“While I support the concept of establishing a bi-partisan debt reduction commission, I have strong reservations.  My first concern is that these commissions are intentionally designed for elected officials to shirk their responsibilities.  If Speaker Pelosi would simply invite House Republican Leader Boehner into her office for serious negotiations, we wouldn’t need a commission.  My second concern is that with the exception of BRAC these types of commissions have a poor track record of producing results that Congress will act on.  The Bi-Partisan Medicare Commission created in the 1990s never produced the supermajority vote it needed to forward its recommendations to Congress and force and up or down vote.  Congress and both the Bush and Obama Administrations even ignored many recommendations of the 9/11 Commission that Congress created to examine the failures that lead to the terrorist attacks of that terrible day.”

“I was pleased to learn of President Obama’s support for making American energy independent. I hope that he will work hard to persuade his liberal allies in Congress that America needs to increase domestic oil and gas exploration and drilling, as well as build more refineries in addition to pursing innovations in green technology.  Additionally, I was happy to note that President Obama was careful not to mention his cap-and-tax program while promoting green jobs and energy independence.  This is a step in the right direction.  There were many components of the Pelosi-Waxman American Clean Energy and Security Act which may result in increased jobs in the green sector, but cap-and-tax is not one of them.  In fact, cap-and-tax is a job killer for Alabama and every other Southern state.”

“It is no secret that the Republican Party lost its way in the last decade and the American people punished us for it. However, we are once again finding our voice and returning to our core principles, as demonstrated by the recent victories of Senator Brown.”

“As a Party, we are winning the battle against the onslaught of liberal mandates: socialized medicine, cap-and-tax, amnesty for illegal aliens, and abortion on demand. But as conservatives, we should be relentless in the return to our core principles: following the pursuit of liberty, exerting fiscal discipline, increasing transparency, limiting the size and scope of government, protecting the lives of the unborn, and defending the traditional values we hold dear.  We must also continue to build on our recent success and not count on Democrats to embrace these common sense ideas.”

“To my fellow Alabamians, I know things are tough right now. If we work hard and elect leaders who understand how to cure our economic ailments, prosperity will return more quickly than we ever thought possible.”

“I believe better days are ahead.” 

“Thank you. Good night. And may God bless Alabama and the United States of America.”

Filed under: Elections