There was loud applause on one side of the chamber as President Obama called out Republican obstruction, ‘Wherever and whenever I can take steps without legislation to expand opportunity for more American families, that’s what I’m going to do.’
The president said called out GOP obstruction and said no more,
Let’s face it: that belief has suffered some serious blows. Over more than three decades, even before the Great Recession hit, massive shifts in technology and global competition had eliminated a lot of good, middle-class jobs, and weakened the economic foundations that families depend on.
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Today, after four years of economic growth, corporate profits and stock prices have rarely been higher, and those at the top have never done better. But average wages have barely budged. Inequality has deepened. Upward mobility has stalled. The cold, hard fact is that even in the midst of recovery, too many Americans are working more than ever just to get by – let alone get ahead. And too many still aren’t working at all.
Our job is to reverse these trends. It won’t happen right away, and we won’t agree on everything. But what I offer tonight is a set of concrete, practical proposals to speed up growth, strengthen the middle class, and build new ladders of opportunity into the middle class. Some require Congressional action, and I’m eager to work with all of you. But America does not stand still – and neither will I. So wherever and whenever I can take steps without legislation to expand opportunity for more American families, that’s what I’m going to do.
Consider yourself put on notice, Mitch McConnell and John Boehner. If you won’t work with President Obama, he is going to work around you. Some of the left will breathe a sigh and say it’s about time, but it looks like President Obama is embracing his executive power and running with it.
Republicans will howl that Obama is a dictator, and the truth is that there are limits to what any president can do on their own, but this SOTU marks a serious change in approach. President Obama moved in this direction last year, but it sounds like POTUS is going full throttle.
Obama isn’t going to take it anymore, and neither should the American people.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
