Below are statements from elected officials around the state of Louisiana in response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address.
Sen. David Vitter
“I was very happy to see the president talk a fair amount about American energy as well as how it can grow American manufacturing. The question is if he’ll be serious about that and follow up with action. Here's my simple 3-point test:
“First, increase Gulf and other offshore production dramatically so we don’t see more rigs leave the Gulf, as 11 have already done since 2010. Get permitting in the Gulf UP 40 percent from before the BP spill rather than DOWN 40 percent, as it is now. Redo the 5-year offshore lease plan so that it's double the last, not half as much as it is now.
“Second, stop the EPA's unfounded, tabloid science attack on fracking. This is a process at the heart of the biggest U.S. natural gas and manufacturing opportunities of our lifetime.
“And third, build the Keystone XL pipeline NOW. This project is huge, especially for U.S. jobs and energy since it has needed on-ramps to get oil from the Dakotas and Oklahoma to Gulf Coast refineries.”
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Sen. Mary Landrieu:
“We can all agree that creating jobs and strengthening our economy is priority number one. While our economy has improved significantly over the last year - gaining more than 100,000 jobs in each of the last six months - we are still not nearly where we should be. To improve our economy, both in Louisiana and nationally, we must restore our coastal ecosystem, focus on producing more domestic energy and give our small businesses the support they need to grow and create jobs.
“I was glad to see the president focus on domestic energy production – it is something we have been focused on in Louisiana for decades and it is one of the reasons that our state unemployment rate is significantly below the national average. However, the pace of drilling permits for the OCS continues to be far too slow, maintaining uncertainly in an industry that employs hundreds of thousands of Louisianians and contributes billions of dollars a year to the U.S. economy. This is not good for our country and it is certainly not good for Louisiana. I have been pushing the administration to improve the speed, efficiency and transparency of drilling permits. I hope that the president is serious about improving this process so we can put America’s energy coast back to work, full steam ahead.
“Another major part of making the Gulf Coast stronger is the bipartisan RESTORE Act, which will dedicate at least 80 percent of BP’s Clean Water Act penalties to Gulf states for urgently needed ecological restoration and economic recovery. While I had hoped the president would address the RESTORE Act this evening, he has said previously that a significant portion of the BP fines should go directly to the coast - I hope he will focus on this moving forward. Restoring and rebuilding our coastal wetlands is not just a local issue; it is crucial to protecting commerce that flows through the Mississippi River, benefitting our entire nation. I will continue to work with the administration and the many bipartisan supporters of the RESTORE Act to see this legislation signed into law.
“I was happy to hear the president address ways to help spur innovation and entrepreneurship and assist small firms as they continue to grow and create jobs. We know that America is very good at creating new businesses, but we must work to be even better. As chair of the Senate Small Business Committee, I am constantly working to make the ecosystem for entrepreneurship even stronger in America and to support our small, start-up, fast growing businesses. I look forward to working with the president’s Startup America initiative to help spur growth and job creation in our country.
“I am confident that we can achieve all of these goals, keep our fiscal house in order and address the growing wealth gap in our nation. I believe strongly that we must reduce wasteful government spending, but I also support asking those who make over $1 million a year to contribute a little more in taxes. This is only fair and it is the right thing to do. Asking a bit more from those who make over $1 million a year will help release the squeeze on the middle class, strengthen our economy, reduce our deficit, and allow our country to make the investments we need for a successful future.”
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Rep. Steve Scalise:
“The state of our Union is in turmoil due to President Obama’s radical policies, and his speech is contradicted by his own actions which undermine his empty promises,” Scalise said. “This latest speech is another clear sign that President Obama is more concerned about dividing America because even he knows he cannot get reelected by running on the record of his first three year. President Obama needs to look in the mirror and recognize that his own failed policies, which have given us this Obama economy, have also led to record deficits and skyrocketing unemployment.
“If the President was sincere about increasing American energy production, he would have already started the process of reducing our dependence on Middle Eastern oil by ending the permitorium on offshore drilling, approving the Keystone XL pipeline, and rolling back the radical regulations by agencies like the EPA which threaten natural gas exploration. People are tired of President Obama giving political speeches touting American values and then pushing a radical agenda that undermines those values and saddles hard-working taxpayers with the Obama economy that includes high unemployment, record deficits, and failed leadership.”
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Rep. Jeff Landry:
“Americans are tired of campaign slogans; we need real solutions. When the President rejects the Keystone Pipeline, he refuses thousands of new jobs, cheaper energy, and greater national security. When the President and Senate block our jobs bills, they fail to give Americans the economic recovery we need. And when the President and Washington establishment do nothing to cure the government’s addiction to spending, they fail our future generations. It's time for them to be honest with the American people, balance America's budget, and end business as usual.”
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Mayor Mitch Landrieu:
“Last week, when I met with President Obama, he committed to continuing to rebuild the American economy by focusing on American manufacturing, American energy, education and skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values like support for the middle class. Tonight, President Obama demonstrated that he understands the needs of the American people and specifically those of us in cities across our country.
“We must continue to build an economy where everyone gets a fair shot and everyone plays by the same rules. We cannot go back to an economy based on outsourcing and bad debt. We need shared responsibility, shared sacrifice, and a commitment to rebuild the middle class.
“In New Orleans, where we are leading the nation on innovation and entrepreneurship, we are well-positioned to attract both high-tech manufacturing jobs and to grow jobs at home.
“Here, on America’s energy coast, we also know all too well that domestic energy production means jobs. It also means a stronger, more secure homeland, so I am pleased the President supports American energy production as a way to grow the economy.
“President Obama is a key partner in New Orleans’ renewal, and I look forward to working with him as we rebuild our city and this nation’s economy.”
