The following is a statement from Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20), a member of the House Committees on Intelligence and Foreign Affairs and First Vice Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, issued in response to last week’s State of the Union address.
There were few surprises in President Trump’s State of the Union address. It was heavy on partisan promises, called for swift action without concrete details, and described a country, and political system, that is prospering.
Having experienced America’s promise firsthand, I know my constituents and our country deserve an Infrastructure of Opportunity that will help them achieve their own American dreams.
The President touted job creation even though less jobs were created in 2017 than the past six years. He boasted about the new White House Framework on Immigration Reform and Border Security that holds 3.6 million dreamers hostage to a laundry list of hardline requests and will inevitably rip families apart. He described an ‘America First’ global view that challenges our pivotal international alliances, strategic foreign aid, and the existing status quo. And called for a return to detention and torture practices ultimately harming U.S. national security.
But perhaps most disturbing is what the President left unsaid: Russia’s 2016 interference in our election; the #MeToo movement which highlights a disturbing wave of sexual violence in Congress and elsewhere; the dangerous pace of climate change and its effect on our national security; and the need to sensibly address gun violence despite 11 school shootings around the country this year alone.
Having experienced America’s promise firsthand, I know my constituents and our country deserve an Infrastructure of Opportunity that will help them achieve their own American dreams. From strong public schools beginning in Pre-K through university, a comprehensive health care system, well-paying jobs, affordable housing, we must do whatever we can to ensure a better future for all those in this country. But tonight’s address failed to deliver details on this presidential obligation and I remain focused on finding bipartisan solutions to make our country—and the world—brighter.
Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) is a member of the House Committees on Intelligence and Foreign Affairs and First Vice Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
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