Reaction to State of the Union Address - Talk is Cheap

Yahoo News asked readers and contributors to briefly respond to passages from Barack Obama's State of the Union address. Here's one reaction.

Obama on gun violence: "It has been two months since Newtown. I know this is not the first time this country has debated how to reduce gun violence. But this time is different. Overwhelming majorities of Americans - Americans who believe in the 2nd Amendment - have come together around commonsense reform - like background checks that will make it harder for criminals to get their hands on a gun."

My response: President Obama also said that "Gabby Giffords deserves a vote. The families of Newtown deserve a vote. The families of Aurora deserve a vote." In response to his proposals, I would say that our Constitution and countless thousands who have used firearms, including "assault weapons" to save their lives, the lives of their loved ones and property also deserve a vote! Re-instituting an assault weapons ban or even limiting the number of bullets a magazine can hold will simply ensure that only criminals will have these weapons, creating more victims. Give children the same protection we provide our politicians and put armed resource officers in every school rather than take away our right and ability to defend ourselves.

Obama on the economy: "A year and a half ago, I put forward an American Jobs Act that independent economists said would create more than one million new jobs. I thank the last Congress for passing some of that agenda, and I urge this Congress to pass the rest. ? Our first priority is making America a magnet for new jobs and manufacturing."

When President Obama was first elected, he promised that he would focus first on our biggest problem - the lack of jobs and the economy. He failed to keep that promise, meeting only rarely with his "jobs creation council" in four years. During that same time he's almost doubled our debt, making it more difficult for our economy to recover from the Great Recession and for hiring to resume. It is past time for him to stop blaming Bush and accept responsibility - he may not have created the problem, but his policies and inaction have contributed to prolong it. The President needs to realize that his talk is cheap when his actions don't back up his words.

Obama on climate change: "I urge this Congress to pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few years ago. But if Congress won't act soon to protect future generations, I will. I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy.

Like many Americans, I do believe that we need to take steps that will encourage businesses and individuals to do more to use and develop environmentally-friendly forms of energy. We have a legal process to accomplish this and other changes that should be made, through our Congress. It is past time that President Obama realizes he is not a "king" and he should stop issuing royal edicts and decrees through "executive orders" that bypass our legal process. Laws are created by congressional representatives who answer to the people to ensure that the will of the people is done, not the will of president or "king."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/reaction-state-union-address-talk-cheap-181100690.html

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