Daines responds to State of the Union Address

Republican Rep. Steve Daines release the following statement in response to President Obama’s State of the Union address:

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Last year, the chairman of the Crow Tribe, Darrin Old Coyote, was my guest of honor for the State of the Union.

The Crow Reservation faces high unemployment and poverty — and when asked what the three things the Crow people needed most, his answer was simple: “Jobs, jobs, and jobs.” I did not hear that tonight from the President.

It’s time for the President to take action on the Keystone XL pipeline, which would create 800 good Montana jobs and help keep energy prices low for hard-working Montana families.

It’s time to rein in the overreaching regulations that are hurting Montana’s coal industry and the hundreds of Montana union jobs that our coal-fired power plants support.

Chairman Old Coyote recently testified before the House Natural Resources Committee and stated “the war on coal is a war on our families and our children.” It’s time for President Obama to stop his war on coal and allow Montana’s energy sector — allow Montanans — to grow and create jobs.

We also must fight for our veterans and work to ensure they can put their skills to use when they return home from battle. I believe that we must work to protect the benefits that our veterans have earned and ensure that our wounded warriors have access to the quality care they deserve.

I’ve heard a lot from Montanans that it’s time to stop the NSA’s mass data collection program and implement new safeguards that protect Montanans’ privacy from big government overreach and broken government websites.

President Obama and I agree — it is the American people and their determined spirit that indeed make our nation strong. But the American people deserve real solutions that provide good paying jobs for our families, and grow opportunity.