2008 State of the Union address: on Budget & Economy
Barack Obama:
Bush stimulus plan leaves out seniors & unemployed
We heard the President say he has a stimulus plan to boost our economy, but we know his plan leaves out seniors and fails to expand unemployment insurance, and we know it was George Bush’s Washington that let the banks and financial institutions
run amok, and take our economy down this dangerous road. What we need to do now is put more money in the pockets of workers and seniors, and expand unemployment insurance for more people and more time. And I have a plan that to do just that.
Source: Response to 2008 State of the Union address
Jan 28, 2008
Hillary Clinton:
The economy is not working for middle class families
Tonight President Bush claimed that the state of our union is strong. But for too many American families, the true “state of their lives” is one of economic anxiety and uncertainty.After seven years of stagnant wages, declining incomes and increasing
inequality, our families are working harder and harder and still falling behind. President Bush had one final chance tonight to acknowledge what the American people have known for years: that the economy is not working for middle class families.
Unfortunately, what he offered was more of the same--a frustrating commitment to the same failed policies that helped turn record surpluses into large deficits, and push a thriving 21st century economy to the brink of recession.
We need a President who understands the urgent economic challenges our families face and who will work as hard for middle-class families as they work for America. I intend to be that President for the American people.
Source: Response to 2008 State of the Union address
Jan 28, 2008
Hillary Clinton:
We need immediate relief for home heating & housing crisis
While I was heartened to hear the President acknowledge the need for immediate actions to jumpstart our economy, it will take more than tax rebates to fix our economic crisis and rebuild our economy for the future.
We need immediate relief for people who are losing their jobs and facing skyrocketing home heating costs. And we need a comprehensive solution to the housing crisis. Every housing proposal the President made tonight,
I made several months--and hundreds of thousands of foreclosure notices--ago. For example, I have proposed to enable the Federal Housing Administration to function as an alternative to the subprime market; and I have proposed to empower state housing
finance agencies to help families refinance unworkable mortgages. But more is needed. So I have also called on the mortgage industry to observe a 90-day foreclosure moratorium on subprime mortgages and a 5-year freeze in rates on subprime loans.
Source: Response to 2008 State of the Union address
Jan 28, 2008
John Edwards:
We need bold solutions for people who can’t wait months
The president tonight renewed his call for an economic recovery plan. But the plan he and Congress have offered leaves out tens of millions of Americans who need help the most. This plan would take months to have any impact, and the people
I meet everyday on the campaign trail do not have months to wait. These people are hurting now and need this help now.
Over the past seven years, typical workers’ paychecks have failed to keep up with inflation, millions of families are facing the loss of their homes to foreclosures, health insurance premiums have doubled, and families are spending
$1,000 more a year on gasoline. The State of the Union may be interesting political theater, but until we find bold solutions to the challenges facing the country, we will be stuck with the same old small, Washington answers.
Source: Response to 2008 State of the Union address
Jan 28, 2008
John Edwards:
Washington is out of touch with what’s happening in country
In the chamber of the House of Representatives where the president speaks [gibing the State of the Union speech], even though this Congress stopped listening to him a while ago, they will still applaud and cheer him. The truth is that
Washington is out of touch with what’s happening across the country. Between now and January of 2009, Democrats must stand up to this president, stand up for what’s right, so he does not continue to forget about the middle class in this country.
Source: Response to 2008 State of the Union address
Jan 28, 2008
Kathleen Sebelius:
Economy requires urgent action & sustained attention
Our struggling economy requires urgent and immediate action, and then sustained attention. Families can’t pay their bills. They are losing their jobs, and now are threatened with losing their homes. We heard that Congress and the
President are acting quickly, on a temporary, targeted stimulus package. That is encouraging. But you and I know that a temporary fix is only the first step toward meeting our challenges and solving our problems. There is still more to be done.
Source: Democratic Response to the 2008 State of the Union address
Jan 28, 2008
Page last updated: Feb 24, 2019