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President uses State of the Union address to economic growth
Barack Obama has called for action to “reignite” the US economy. During his annual State of the Union address to both houses of congress, the President argued that the country had “cleared away the rubble of crisis, and we can say with renewed confidence that the state of our union is strong” and that it now needed to “reignite the true engine of America’s economic growth – a rising, thriving middle class”.
Following a convincing victory in the 2012 election the President used the address to set out a clear direction of travel and intention for his economic strategy, saying the country needed a “smarter government” that supported “the many, and not just the few”.
Leading Republican Senator Marco Rubio countered the President’s address saying that the opportunity for the middle class to “improve their life and give their children the chance at an even better one” was not “bestowed on us from Washington” before positing that opportunity “comes from a vibrant free economy where people can risk their own money to open a business”.
Mr Rubio further argued that with less interference from the government would allow the private sector was necessary as when businesses “succeed, they hire more people, who in turn invest or spend the money they make, helping others start a business and create jobs”.
Arguing that governmental support and the free market did not need to be in conflict, the President stressed that the middle-class should not be asked to shoulder the entire burden of deficit reduction while asking nothing more from the wealthiest and most powerful.
“We won’t grow the middle class simply by shifting the cost of health care or college onto families that are already struggling, or by forcing communities to lay off more teachers, cops, and firefighters”, the President said.
Outlining the need for a programme of infrastructure investment and an increase to the minimum wage the Democratic President was criticised by Senator Rubio who raised concern that Mr Obama has an “obsession” with taxes rises. During his speech the President refuted these concerns saying his proposed measure would not raise the country’s deficit “by a single dime”.
Addressing concerns about the US energy sector, seen as a key component in economic growth, the address said that its infrastructure was again and “badly in need of repair”.
Calling for market-based solutions the President stated that government investment in infrastructure would benefit the private sector and create new jobs, saying “Ask any CEO where they’d rather locate and hire – a country with deteriorating roads and bridges, or one with high-speed rail and Internet; high-tech schools, self-healing power grids. The CEO of Siemens America – a company that brought hundreds of new jobs to North Carolina – said that if we upgrade our infrastructure, they’ll bring even more jobs”.
