Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels delivered the Republican Party response to the president's Syaye of the Union speech Tuesday evening. He mirrored Obama's opening, saluting him for taking down Osama bin Ladden and other Al-Qaeda officers and talked about other political things before denying the positive messages of Obama's speech. Daniels said Obama was not responsible for the economic problems the US has faced, but he did allege that Obama has done nothing that improved economic conditions durring his three years in office. Daniels also announced opposition to the growing gap between the top and bottom of the income ladder before saying the US was likely to follow the economic path of Greece and Spain if no new action is taken.
A notable political point Daniels made regarding helping his state: "First, make money. Be successful. If you make a profit, you'll have something left to hire someone else, and some to donate to the good causes we love."
Daniels talked about opposition to "extremism" regarding energy policies and called for greater private sector activity to create jobs and a simplied tax code to minimize loophole abuse and be less favorable to the rich. He called for Medicare and Social Security reform. He also blamed the Democrats of the Senate for all the gridlock in Congress and said that the Republicans were responsible for anything Congress managed to accomplish.
He ended his speech saying that Republicans can restore America from the damage done and make "our 'city on a hill' shine once again."
I was bothered that there were no details regarding Social Security and Medicare reform. I also feel that he was too extreme in saying the US could follow in the footsteps of Greece and Spain. Both this spreech and Obama's seriously bothered me as they both projected American exceptionalism.
So AP Gov folks, what do you think of the GOP response?
Open Thread: Big Talk Butters No Parsnips
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