Biden has failed at inflation, energy and the border and he must deliver solutions at State of the Union
Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo)
Fox News
February 6, 2023
President Joe Biden will deliver the annual State of the Union address Tuesday night. All three branches of government — and plenty of television cameras — will be on hand for one of our nation’s most hallowed traditions.
The president is likely to subject the nation to his usual misleading explanations of his administration’s many failures. Sadly, at every stage of his term in office, Biden has bragged, boasted and tried to shift blame. Biden called inflation “transitory” and his surrender to the Taliban “an extraordinary success.” There has been no presidential failure — no matter how embarrassing or how destructive — that he has not called a victory.
The American people see right through it. They see the cost of inflation every time they go to the grocery store. They see the shocking toll of the fentanyl crisis and crime every time they turn on the evening news. The American people do not want more cheap talking points. We want real solutions that will make a difference in people’s lives.
No matter what Biden says Tuesday night, here’s the reality.
Democrats had complete control of Washington for two years. In those two years alone, they added $3 trillion in government spending. They caused the national debt to balloon to $31 trillion — larger than our entire economy. Under Biden we have seen the worst inflation in 40 years, the worst energy crisis in 40 years, and the worst border crisis in American history.
The American people are focused on three issues right now, and they are the three biggest failures that Biden doesn’t want to discuss.
1. Biden’s inflation crisis
The first is inflation. Under Biden prices have risen by a total of more than 13%. As a result, the American people have effectively lost one out of every eight dollars in their pockets and in their savings accounts. A recent study shows the average family has lost more than $10,000 to higher prices just since Joe Biden took office.
2. Biden’s energy crisis
Inflation is largely being driven by the second major Biden crisis — and that is his war on American energy. Since the day Biden took office, he has put a stranglehold on American energy production.
The U.S. is now producing 2 million fewer barrels per day of oil less than we should be. As a result, the cost of heating oil is up by two-thirds, the price of natural gas is up by half, and electricity is up by more than 20 cents on the dollar. These prices are adding up, and more than 20 million American households have now fallen behind on their utility bills.
3. Biden’s border crisis
The third major issue of our time is the crisis at the southern border. It is the worst in history. On Biden’s first day in office, he stopped all deportations, stopped building the wall, and ended the Remain in Mexico policy. Ever since then, our southern border has been a 2,000-mile gaping wound. More than four and a half million illegal immigrants have been caught crossing the border since Joe Biden took office. Border patrol agents have also seized enough drugs to kill every man, woman, and child in this country.
Biden doesn’t want to talk about any of these crises Tuesday night, and especially not his role in creating them. Yet he can’t run from them. These are the top issues facing the American people every day, and all of them were created by the president and his Democrat allies.
In November the American people elected a Republican House as an emergency brake to end one-party rule in Washington, DC. The Republican House will prevent the next two years from being like the last two.
Under Biden we have seen the worst inflation in 40 years, the worst energy crisis in 40 years, and the worst border crisis in American history.
Two out of three Americans say our nation is on the wrong track, and just four in 10 Americans approve of the job Biden is doing in office. It’s time for Democrats to listen to the American people and move to the middle.
Senate Republicans are united behind the priorities of the people. We want to stop the reckless spending, unleash American energy and secure the border. If Democrats are willing to do these things, then we will work with them. Yet if Democrats continue to drag our country to the far left, then we will do everything we can to stop them.
Tuesday night I will listen respectfully to the president’s speech. Yet in this time of crisis, the American people aren’t looking for empty words read from a teleprompter. We’re looking for serious action on inflation, border security, and public safety. It’s time for Joe Biden to stop the blame game and stop the radical left-wing policies that are hurting this country.
John Barrasso, a Republican, represents Wyoming in the U.S. Senate, and is a medical doctor. Barrasso is the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference and ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.