On January 28, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), chair of the Republican Conference, and former co-chair of the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues, delivered the Republican response to President Obama’s State of the Union address.
The highest-ranking Republican woman and second woman to hold the position of Republican Conference chair, Rep. McMorris Rodgers focused her remarks on the economic empowerment of American families. She shared a “more hopeful, Republican vision” that “empowers you, not the government. It’s one that champions free markets – and trusts people to make their own decisions, not a government that decides for you. It helps working families rise above the limits of poverty and protects our most vulnerable.”
With regard to income inequality, Rep. McMorris Rodgers said, “[O]ur mission, not only as Republicans, but as Americans, is to once again ensure that we are not bound by where we come from, but empowered by what we can become. That is the gap Republicans are working to close…The president talks a lot about income inequality. But the real gap we face today is one of opportunity inequality. And, with this administration’s policies, that gap has become far too wide. We see this gap growing every day.”
Rep. McMorris Rodgers noted that the Republican party has plans to improve the nation’s economy: “Too many people are falling further and further behind because, right now, the president’s policies are making people’s lives harder.” She added that “Republicans have plans to close the gap…plans that focus on jobs first without more spending, government bailouts, and red tape…We have plans to improve our education and training systems so that you have the choice to determine where your kids go to school, so college is affordable, and skills training is modernized.”
Rep. McMorris Rodgers also addressed the issue of health care, saying, “No, we shouldn’t go back to the way things were, but this law [the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) (P.L. 111-148)] is not working. Republicans believe health care choices should be yours, not the government’s. And that whether you’re a boy with Down syndrome or a woman with breast cancer you can find coverage and a doctor who will treat you.”
In closing, Rep. McMorris Rodgers said, “So, we hope the president will join us in a year of real action, by empowering people, not making their lives harder with unprecedented spending, higher taxes, and fewer jobs. As Republicans, we advance these plans every day because we believe in a government that trusts people and doesn’t limit where you finish because of where you started. That is what we stand for – an American that is every bit as compassionate as it is exceptional.”
