Obama #SOTU excerpt released by WH: "It’s not a bigger government we need, but a smarter government.."
Rubio #SOTU response excerpt: "I hope the President will abandon his obsession with raising taxes and instead work with us.."
And right on cue, Sen. Marco Rubio has released some excerpts of his response to tonight's address.
"This opportunity - to make it to the middle class or beyond no matter where you start out in life - it isn't bestowed on us from Washington. It comes from a vibrant free economy where people can risk their own money to open a business. And when they succeed, they hire more people, who in turn invest or spend the money they make, helping others start a business and create jobs. Presidents in both parties - from John F. Kennedy to Ronald Reagan - have known that our free enterprise economy is the source of our middle class prosperity. But President Obama? He believes it's the cause of our problems."
***
"Mr. President, I still live in the same working class neighborhood I grew up in. My neighbors aren't millionaires. They're retirees who depend on Social Security and Medicare. They're workers who have to get up early tomorrow morning and go to work to pay the bills. They're immigrants, who came here because they were stuck in poverty in countries where the government dominated the economy. The tax increases and the deficit spending you propose will hurt middle class families. It will cost them their raises. It will cost them their benefits. It may even cost some of them their jobs. And it will hurt seniors because it does nothing to save Medicare and Social Security. So Mr. President, I don't oppose your plans because I want to protect the rich. I oppose your plans because I want to protect my neighbors."
***
"Economic growth is the best way to help the middle class. Unfortunately, our economy actually shrank during the last three months of 2012. But if we can get the economy to grow at just 4 percent a year, it would create millions of middle class jobs. And it could reduce our deficits by almost $4 trillion dollars over the next decade. Tax increases can't do this.Raising taxes won't create private sector jobs. And there's no realistic tax increase that could lower our deficits by almost $4 trillion. That's why I hope the President will abandon his obsession with raising taxes and instead work with us to achieve real growth in our economy."
***
"The real cause of our debt is that our government has been spending 1 trillion dollars more than it takes in every year. That's why we need a balanced budget amendment. The biggest obstacles to balancing the budget are programs where spending is already locked in. One of these programs, Medicare, is especially important to me. It provided my father the care he needed to battle cancer and ultimately die with dignity. And it pays for the care my mother receives now. I would never support any changes to Medicare that would hurt seniors like my mother. But anyone who is in favor of leaving Medicare exactly the way it is right now, is in favor of bankrupting it."
***
"Despite our differences, I know that both Republicans and Democrats love America. I pray we can come together to solve our problems, because the choices before us could not be more important. If we can get our economy healthy again, our children will be the most prosperous Americans ever. And if we do not, we will forever be known as the generation responsible for America's decline."
President Obama is set to deliver his fourth State of the Union address tonight. He has spoken to a joint session of Congress six times previously, including addresses on the economy in February 2009 and health care in September 2009 and his prior State of the Union remarks.
RT @JenGranholm: .@VanJones68 @jaketapper @donnabrazile Big night for political junkies & our nation.Look fwrd 2 seeing you tonight ...
RT @storyofstuff: Our friend @vanjones68 on why President Obama needs to lay out a plan on the climate crisis in tonight's #sotu: http:/ ...
He likes the way he works it #nodiggity #nodoubt RT @Brendan_Buck: Also, FYI, Senator Rubio is going to absolutely crush it tonight.
#SOTU2013 is still hours away. POTUS will focus on growing the economy, job creation and will lay out specific proposals. #tweetoftheunion
Forget politics/State of the Union. Let's pray for the officers putting their lives at risk & hope there is no more loss of life.
Senator Rubio’s was one of just 22 senators — all male and all Republican — who voted against the Violence Against Women Act. #SOTU2013
RT @AprilDRyan: 1997 Bill Clinton SOTU was split screen with OJ Simpson Civil verdict. will Dorner episode be over by 9PM for Obama SOTU?
RT @CNNPolitics: JUST IN: In tonight’s State of the Union speech, President Obama will say his economic proposals will not increase the ...
RT @woodhouseb: Rubio is going to talk abt the middle class tonight but his voting record shows he's the wrong messenger for that. http: ...
RT @EleanorNorton: Sent White House many examples of Dem & Repub presidents who mentioned DC in #SOTU speeches. Want same from #Obam ...
Come on, twitter, find me a video or screen grab of the 1997 State of the Union with the split screen of OJ civil verdict
Gotta wonder if president makes reference to CA stand-off in State of the Union
Joining @CNN for their #SOTU coverage tonight starting at 8pm ET. Hope you'll tune in.
As @GlennThrush wrote, one Obama aide close to the drafting process quoted Sun Tzu: "Build your enemy a golden bridge on which to retreat."
Getting ready to go live on @CNN for their State of the Union coverage. Joining the broadcast around 8 p.m. Tune in #SOTU #CNN
What will Obama say during tonight's speech? Here are some preliminary excerpts of his speech, as released by the White House:
“It is our generation’s task, then, to reignite the true engine of America’s economic growth – a rising, thriving middle class.
It is our unfinished task to restore the basic bargain that built this country – the idea that if you work hard and meet your responsibilities, you can get ahead, no matter where you come from, what you look like, or who you love.
It is our unfinished task to make sure that this government works on behalf of the many, and not just the few; that it encourages free enterprise, rewards individual initiative, and opens the doors of opportunity to every child across this great nation of ours.”
…
“A growing economy that creates good, middle-class jobs – that must be the North Star that guides our efforts. Every day, we should ask ourselves three questions as a nation: How do we attract more jobs to our shores? How do we equip our people with the skills needed to do those jobs? And how do we make sure that hard work leads to a decent living?”
…
“Tonight, I’ll lay out additional proposals that are fully paid for and fully consistent with the budget framework both parties agreed to just 18 months ago. Let me repeat – nothing I’m proposing tonight should increase our deficit by a single dime. It’s not a bigger government we need, but a smarter government that sets priorities and invests in broad-based growth.”
New 3 amigos? I'm told Chuck Schumer will sit with John McCain and Lindsey Graham to stand and applaud together for immigration reform
RT @TheDailyShow: Obama lipsyncs the whole thing #SOTUpredictions
The tweet below is from Bobak Ferdowsi, the flight director for the Mars Rover who's a guest in the first lady's box at tonight's speech
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