Huffman: President Obama's Address Outlines a Strong Forward Agenda

“Tonight’s speech built on the promise of President Obama’s second inaugural speech last month,” said Huffman. “This is a President who is taking charge and leading on the urgent issues of our day.”

 

“I heard a confident second-term President outlining a strong forward agenda for our country, with solutions that are broadly supported by the American people:  a balanced long-term plan to fix the budget without breaking our promises to seniors; an emphasis on job creation and economic growth through investments in infrastructure, clean energy, research, and education; a bold and clear commitment to addressing climate change; comprehensive immigration reform; and common sense measures to protect our communities from gun violence." 

 

"Pretending we can just cut our way to prosperity is not an economic strategy or vision for the future; it's denial of economic reality and a recipe for recession.  Nor can we achieve a robust economic recovery if Congress continues to govern by short-term gimmicks and manufactured crises.  The President has spoken clearly and directly to the challenges we face today -- and that threaten our children and grandchildren if we fail to act.  Congress should get to work now to move this agenda forward."   

 

“I am also pleased to see the President keeping his promise to draw down troops in Afghanistan, although I believe we can and should move faster and bring all of our troops home now."

 

“Tomorrow I will be participating in my first Budget Committee hearing, and, building on the President’s address tonight, I will be looking for opportunities to work across the aisle to solve our budget challenges in a balanced and meaningful way – without kicking the can down the road, stripping benefits away from seniors, or sending the economy back into recession and worsening our fiscal problems through an austerity overdose.”

 

Huffman serves on the Committee on the Budget and the Natural Resources Committee, and represents California’s Second Congressional District in the 113th Congress.