Washington, D.C. – Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade, today issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s State of the Union address:

This morning, I was in the audience in my home state of Texas as our new governor, Greg Abbott, delivered his inaugural address. This evening, I was in Washington as our president delivered his sixth State of the Union address. 

The marked differences in their speeches – and their approaches to governing – come as no surprise. On the one hand, Texas is an economic success story; on the other, the policies of this administration continue to present persistent headwinds to the vitality of the U.S. economy. 

Consider the contrasts: Governor Abbott pointed out that Texas is number one in job creation. President Obama still refuses to build the Keystone pipeline, which would create thousands of new jobs. 

Governor Abbot stressed that the government is the servant of the people, not the other way around. President Obama continues to dismiss the separation of powers and govern by executive order. 

Governor Abbott said Texans are tired of seeing our state sovereignty and the rule of law ignored by a federal government that refuses to secure our border. President Obama acted unilaterally to turn the Texas border from “porous” to “wide open,” endangering the lives of tens of thousands of innocent children in the process.

Governor Abbott said he will place a greater value on hiring excellent teachers in our schools. President Obama, by contrast, has a plan to spend billions of tax dollars to make community college free for all, thereby diminishing the value of good vocational jobs.

Governor Abbott described the rags-to-riches assent of successful Texans like Dan Duncan and Colleen Barrett. President Obama described his plan to issue even more government handouts, thereby removing the dignity that comes from hard work and the hope to one day achieve more than we are born with. 

Governor Abbott ended his speech by saying that even the future is bigger in Texas. Under the policies of President Obama, all that is bigger are our taxes, our deficit and our ideological differences. Until the Obama administration adopts the “Texas model” of economic governance, we can only expect more of the same.

                                                                                                           ###