Local lawmakers are reacting to President Trump’s State of the Union address.
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-3rd, who represents Pennsylvania’s third congressional district and is a Butler native, said the address was a celebration because America is “winning again.” He went on to tout the economy and American confidence, pointing to the stock market and unemployment numbers.
Kelly also said the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has led to four-figure bonuses, pay raises and benefit increases for more than three million American workers. He said several companies in the third district have announced they will give bonuses to their employees.
“Tonight’s address was a celebration of the state of our union, and rightly so,” Kelly said in a statement. “As President Trump made clear, by every measurement, the United States is racing full force in the right direction again. Our economy is roaring and American confidence is soaring. The stock market has reached an all-time high and unemployment is at a 17-year low. Thanks to the historic enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, hundreds of billions of dollars are being brought back to our country and more than three million American workers are already receiving four-figure bonuses, pay raises, benefit increases, and more. Overseas, thanks to a bold new foreign policy and military strategy, the Islamic State’s deadly caliphate has been obliterated. Once far-fetched goals are now a reality. The state of our union is truly as strong as Pittsburgh steel.”
Rep. Kelly continued, “President Trump’s vision for the year to come, and beyond, is ambitious, essential, and fully achievable. His words tonight were a challenge to every member of Congress to put the strength, safety, and economic security of our country and its citizens before petty political differences. It’s a challenge I intend to meet head-on. I particularly look forward to playing a pivotal role in devising and delivering, in the president’s words, ‘the safe, fast, reliable, and modern infrastructure our economy needs and our people deserve.’ If the past year’s examples of shattered records and surpassed expectations are any indication, the stronger, prouder, and more prosperous America that our president envisions will be realized.”
U.S. Senator for Pennsylvania Bob Casey said Trump’s presidency has been a series of broken promises to the middle class and workers, and Tuesday’s address did not change that. Casey said his state of the union guest was Anna Corbin from Hanover, Pennsylvania, who has two disabled children. Casey said Anna would be devastated by the cuts to Medicaid that Republicans in Washington are pursuing.
“This Administration talks about helping workers and middle class families, but when it comes to actions, it’s all extreme right economics and decimating health care,” Casey said in a statement. “After passing into law massive tax giveaways to the wealthiest and biggest corporations, Republicans in Congress now want to tackle “entitlement reform,” which is nothing more than the clever phrasing of a scheme to cut Social Security, Medicaid and Medicaid.”
Sen. Casey continued, “Congress should immediately pass a bipartisan infrastructure plan that actually invests in our communities, instead of just giving more tax cuts to wealthy developers and big corporations. Congress should also pass commonsense, bipartisan legislation to reduce the cost of health care instead of sabotaging the current system and plotting to decimate Medicaid. The people of Pennsylvania have heard enough talk from Republicans in Congress and this Administration, it’s time for action on an agenda that raises their wages, creates jobs and reduces the cost of living for the middle class.”
