Kathleen Sebelius in 2008 State of the Union address

On Budget & Economy: Economy requires urgent action & sustained attention

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.

On Health Care: First step of overhaul: health care to 10 million children

We know that caring for our children, so they have a healthy and better start in life, is what grownups do. A large majority of the Congress are ready, right now, to provide health care to 10 million American children, as a first step in overhauling our health care system.

On War & Peace: Chart a new course: Soldiers can’t solve political disputes

We stand ready in the heartland and across this country, to join forces with peace-loving nations across the globe and to fight the war against terrorists, wherever they may strike. But our capable and dedicated soldiers can’t solve the political disputes where they are, and can’t focus on the real enemies elsewhere.

Congress and the vast majority of Americans are ready to chart a new course. If more Republicans in Congress stand with us this year, we won’t have to wait for a new President to restore America’s role in the world, and fight a more effective war on terror.

The last five years have cost us dearly--in lives lost; in thousands of wounded warriors whose futures may never be the same; in challenges not met here at home because our resources were committed elsewhere. America’s foreign policy has left us with fewer allies & more enemies.