2012 State of the Union address: on Principles & Values
Jill Stein:
Dems & GOP blame each other while both support establishment
We're here to talk about the actual state of our nation, and how we can reclaim the promise of our democracy and the peaceful, just green future we deserve. We have heard President Obama deliver his State of the Union Address. And we heard the
Republican response. Each claims to have the answer, and that the other was an obstacle to progress.But the truth is both sides--despite the rhetoric--are responsible for the harsh policies driving our economy and our democracy into deep crisis.
Simply put, they place the interests of Wall Street ahead of the needs of everyday people and the long term welfare of our nation.
[I want] to talk about the major problems that are not being solved by the political establishment.
And focus on key game-changing solutions that have been kept off the table for too long.
Source: Green Party 2012 People's State of the Union speech
Jan 25, 2012
Jill Stein:
Green New Deal: emergency 4-part anti-recession program
The political establishment is telling us there's little we can do to change our direction. I don't believe it and I suspect you don't either. It is time to break free from the old economy, and the old politics. It's time for a Green New Deal for
America.The Green New Deal is an emergency four part program of specific solutions for moving America quickly out of crisis into the secure green future.
- We will guarantee the economic rights of all Americans, beginning with the right to a job
at a living wage for every American willing and able to work.
- We will transition to a sustainable, green economy for the 21st century, by adopting green technologies and sustainable production.
- We will reboot and reprogram the financial sector so
that it serves everyday people and our communities, and not the other way around.
- We will protect these gains by expanding and strengthening our democracy so that our government and our economy finally serve We the People.
Source: Green Party 2012 People's State of the Union speech
Jan 25, 2012
Herman Cain:
Exceptional nation: put "united" back into the United States
The people of this country believe that we deserve better than what we have. Why? Because America is an exceptional nation. - We deserve a fairer and simpler tax code. We need a bold tax code, a bold solution, that starts with throwing out the
current tax code that we have and putting in a structure that is fair to everyone equally.
- We deserve an energy independence plan. "Made in America" is possible if we maximize all of our energy resources right here at home.
- We deserve a balanced
budget. We have been on this path of spending for decades now.
- We deserve a government that listens to its people rather than a government that ignores its people.
- We deserve a strong military, not a weakening military. Under this administration,
our military has been cut and cut and cut.
- We deserve a brighter future for our grandchildren instead of the nightmare scenario we are facing.
- We deserve as a nation to put the word "united" back into the United States of America.
Source: Tea Party response to the 2012 State of the Union speech
Jan 24, 2012
Mitch Daniels:
Government is meant to serve the people, not supervise them
When Pres. Obama claims that the state of our union is anything but grave, he must know in his heart that this is not true. The President did not cause the economic and fiscal crises. But he was elected on a promise to fix them, and he cannot claim that
the last three years have made things anything but worse: the percentage of Americans with a job is at the lowest in decades. One in five men of prime working age, and nearly half of all persons under 30, did not go to work today.
Source: GOP response to the 2012 State of the Union speech
Jan 24, 2012
Mitch Daniels:
No "have-nots": just "haves," and "soon-to-haves"
Those punished most by the wrong turns of the last three years are those unemployed or underemployed tonight, and those so discouraged that they have abandoned the search for work altogether. And no one has been more tragically harmed than the young
people of this country, the first generation in memory to face a future less promising than their parents did.As Republicans our first concern is for those waiting tonight to begin or resume the climb up life's ladder. We do not accept that ours will
ever be a nation of haves and have nots; we must always be a nation of haves and soon to haves.
In our economic stagnation and indebtedness, we are only a short distance behind Greece and other European countries now facing economic catastrophe. But
because the world uses our dollar for trade, we have a short grace period to deal with our dangers. But time is running out, if we are to avoid the fate of Europe, and those once-great nations of history that fell from the position of world leadership.
Source: GOP response to the 2012 State of the Union speech
Jan 24, 2012
Mitt Romney:
Obama's record: debt, decline, and disappointment
Tonight, the President will give a nice speech with a lot of memorable phrases. But he won't give you the hard numbers. Like $15 trillion--that's the size of our national debt.Instead, tonight, President Obama will make the opening argument in his
campaign against a "Do Nothing Congress." But for two years, this President had a Congress that could do everything he wanted.Did he fix the economy? Did he tackle the housing crisis? Did he get Americans back to work? No.
- He spent $787 billion
on a stimulus bill and put us on track to borrow and spend $5 trillion in just his first term.
- He forced through Obamacare--a trillion-dollar entitlement we can't afford.
- He took over auto companies and student loans.
- He's spearheaded one of the
largest expansions of government in American history. And he's paying for it with money borrowed from China.
President Obama has amassed an actual record of debt, decline, and disappointment.
Source: Prebuttal to 2012 State of the Union speech
Jan 24, 2012
Tea Party:
Tea Party message: we the people are coming
It was 1773 when the colonists got fed up with Old King George and the Brits, and their act of defiance was the Boston Tea Party. Two years later, we had the start of the American Revolution. Eight years later, we won.We can do it again.
We need another revolution. This time it will not be about bombs and bullets. It's going to be about brains and ballots. Washington is out of touch with the people because there are times they forget that they work for us. We must remind them.
We the people are coming. That's the Tea Party message to Washington, the President, and his administration. We the people are coming and we know that we are up against Goliath, but this is why the tea party movement will become not a single
David trying to slay Goliath. We will be an army of Davids. The Tea Party movement is alive and well, and it is going to continue to redefine the political landscape in 2012. We the people are coming. We want our power back.
Source: Herman Cain response to the 2012 State of the Union speech
Jan 24, 2012
Tea Party:
Many people are Tea Partiers and don't know it
Many people are probably Tea Party people and they don't know it. Because if you believe in less taxes, less government, the free market system, more individual responsibility, and enforcing the Constitution, you are a tea party person. But you may not
know it. A lot of people don't know that they are Tea Party people because the political elites, as well as the media elites, have tried to marginalize this movement. It will not be denied. It is stronger and growing as much as ever before.
Source: Tea Party response to the 2012 State of the Union speech
Jan 24, 2012
Tea Party:
Stop the blame game; start common sense solutions
On behalf of the Tea Party, with all due respect, Mr. President, the state of the union is not good. We want common sense solutions. That's how we do it outside of Washington. The American people, the Tea Party people, we know that this nation is broke.
And Washington is broken. Mr. President, stop the class warfare. Discourage your surrogates from making racial innuendos. Stop the attacks on citizens by making government too big. And Mr. President, most of all, stop the blame game.
Source: Tea Party response to the 2012 State of the Union speech
Jan 24, 2012
Page last updated: Feb 24, 2019