WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Congressman Bill Flores (R-Texas) issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s State of the Union address:

“In this evening’s address, President Obama emphasized the need to improve our economy and create jobs. Yet, the solutions that were set forth are just more of the same rhetoric that we have heard over the last four years of his presidency. When President Obama took office back on 2009, he promised to cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term. He did not come close. In fact, the deficit is now larger than our GDP. Our economy continues to struggle due to the inherit weakness of the president’s economic policies and trillions of dollars of additional federal debt.

“Once again the president has put forth spending more money on stimulus policies, much like the failed stimulus of 2009 that cost the American taxpayers over $800 billion. Given that it did not work the first time around, it is beyond me why we would again squander hard-working American tax dollars. The president told Americans that his 2009 stimulus plan would reduce unemployment to 5.9 percent by now; unfortunately his plan failed and unemployment remains close to 8 percent. The current economic recovery under his policies is the worst in our country’s history since World War II and is less than half the recovery we experienced under the policies of Ronald Reagan.

“As opposed to the big-government, tax and spend polices that the president favors, it is time that we address the root of the problem – the unprecedented out-of-control federal spending. Reducing our national debt will produce a stable environment for job creation. We can improve our economy and increase job creation through ‘Main Street’, common-sense solutions that work toward controlling spending, reducing the federal debt without raising taxes. In addition, we need to reform our broken tax system to make America competitive, reform the heavy hand of federal regulation that is killing American jobs, and promote an ‘all-of-the-above’ approach to grow American jobs and reduce the cost of energy for economic growth. These improvements can expand opportunities so that all Americans can prosper and have a fair shot at achieving their individual American Dream.”

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