Regional SOTU Reactions January 21, 2015

Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill:
“The President outlined some commonsense ideas and opportunities for bipartisan cooperation, tonight, including tax cuts aimed at bolstering our middle class. We’ve made a great deal of progress for working families in the past few years—with a growing number of folks back to work at millions of more jobs, a much smaller deficit, and plunging energy costs—but there’s still more work to do. And I’m eager to roll up my sleeves with my Republican and Democratic colleagues to keep strengthening our middle class.”

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Kansas Representative a Lynn Jenkins:
“President Obama used this evening to appease his political base and focused on dividing our Nation and using bureaucratic control to run our country with top-down Washington-centered solutions. I believe the key to growing a healthy economy begins by strengthening the paycheck of hard working Americans, putting more money into Kansans pockets, and growing our economy from the bottom-up. ”

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Missouri Representative Sam Graves:
“The American people spoke loud and clear this past November in opposition to President Obama’s failed policies of the last six years,” said Rep. Graves. “The American people sent us here to forge a new direction in finding solutions to the problems facing our nation,” he continued. “Tonight, the President has once again shown that he plans to ignore the will of the people in order to push his big government agenda.”

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Missouri Representative Vicky Hartzler:
“t is disappointing that President Obama has rejected an opportunity to reach out to and cooperate with Congress, preferring instead to outline an ill-conceived vision that continues to expand the reach, size, and scope of the federal government. The simple fact is that our country cannot tax and spend itself into prosperity. Government must get out of the way and allow the American people to pursue their dreams.”

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Jackson. County Democratic Chairman Tom Wyrsch:
“We thank the President for his leadership in rebuilding our economy over the past six years. Our economy is now working better for the middle class than it ever was during the previous Republican administration. Our economy is growing again and industry is picking up, much due to the leadership of our President, the policies of the Democratic Party, and the continuing hard work and vigor of the American people.”

Blunt, McCaskill & Hartzler Get New Committee Assignments December 15, 2014

Missouri Republican senator Roy Blunt has been reappointed to the Senate Intelligence Committee, according to a statement from his office.
Blunt served on the same committee in 2011 and 201. He was also a member of the Permanent Select Committee on intelligence when he served in the House.
““I look forward to building on my experience working on these issues in the House and Senate. I also plan to stay fully engaged in the discussion surrounding the relocation of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and working to ensure that facility stays in Missouri,” Blunt said in a Statement.
Blunt has also served on the Senate’s Armed Services Committee.
With two major military bases in Missouri, the Army’s Ft. Leonard Wood and the Whiteman Air Force Base, military spending is important to the US economy.
Both Blunt and Missouri Democrat Claire McCaskill have served on the Armed Services Committee together.
McCaskill today announced she would be the new ranking Democrat on the Senate’s Aging Committee. Democrats will be in the Senate minority for the next two years after the party losses in November.
Western Missouri Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler was appointed to lead the House Armed Services Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee.
That panel will study and investigate problems of waste and abuse in the nation’s military.
” “I look forward to working with Chairman Thornberry as we work to make sure that our armed forces remain the best in the world,” Hartzler stated in a news release.

Local Members of Congress and the Senate Split on Partisan Lines Over SOTU January 29, 2014

Here are some of the reactions to the President’s State of the Union Speech from members of the Kansas and Missouri Congressional delegations.

Kansas Senator Jerry Moran is leading the GOP effort to win control of the Senate.
“The President and Senate Democrats have done next to nothing to promote pro-growth policies that would truly help individuals reach their full potential.
Senate Democrats have prevented action on measures that could provide an immediate boost to the economy at little or no cost to the American taxpayer. Americans deserve better from their elected officials in Washington. Growing our economy, getting people back to work, and making certain all Americans have the ability to climb the ladder of success are all reasons why we seek a Republican majority in the Senate.”

Kansas Senator Pat Roberts is seeking re-election this year.
““We heard more of the same from the President: more taxes, more spending, more bypassing the Congress to enact his agenda, and more big government.
“After five years of these policies what do we have? We have Americans who have given up even looking for a job, businesses regulated to death and families burdened by Obamacare.
“And now the President wants to double down and continue to push this agenda through executive order and regulation.
“The only difference that I see now is that he is finally being upfront about it.
“I will continue to fight these orders and regulations and thinly disguised attempts to redistribute hard working Kansans’ income.”

Missouri Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill:
“We’ve made a lot of progress these past few years, creating millions of jobs and pulling our economy out of the ditch—but there are an awful lot of commonsense ideas still sitting on the table that could build on that success, if elected leaders stop kowtowing to the political extremes and start working toward compromise to get things done. Raising the minimum wage for working families, building innovative private-public partnerships to invest in our roads and bridges, making the tax code fairer, and fixing our broken immigration system aren’t partisan initiatives. They’re commonsense goals that we should all be ready to rally behind to strengthen America’s middle class families.”

Ks-2 Representative Lynn Jenkins is part of the House GOP Leadership. She was on the official escort committee that brought the President into the House Chamber.
“I know that consensus building is hard, but just because it is difficult does not mean the President is entitled to work around us instead of with us to lower health care costs, improve education, and help Americans take home more of their paychecks.
“In order to rebuild our American dream, Washington must rise above the dysfunction, put divisive rhetoric aside, and come together to do the right thing for our country. President Obama can spend the final years of his presidency with a “pen and a phone” or he can work with our duly-elected House Republican majority to create opportunity for all families, to foster upward mobility, and to deliver higher take-home pay to the American people.”

Missouri Congressman Sam Graves is the Chairman of the House Small Business Committee.
“The president spoke about income inequality tonight, but failed to mention his own role in making that gap wider. Five years into his presidency, the labor force participation rate is at its lowest point since the late 1970s. There are four million Americans who have been unemployed for at least six months, and another eight million Americans who are working part-time because they still cannot find a full-time job. Two of every five Americans say they are worse off financially than they were a year ago, according to a recent Gallup poll. The president’s policies have not helped. Yet year after year he proposes more big-government solutions that have never worked and will never work.”

Kansas City Democrat Emanuel Cleaver:
“This country was founded on the notion that if you work hard and play by the rules, you should have the opportunity to succeed,” Cleaver said. “It’s past time to make that happen. It is absurd for Members of Congress to dig into political positions and refuse to work in a bipartisan manner. It’s time to stop digging — and start building.”

Ks-3 Congressman Kevin Yoder represents Johnson and Wyandotte counties:
“Many of the President’s ideas require bigger government requiring more spending, higher taxes, and more burdensome mandates and regulations.
A growing government means shrinking opportunities.”

West Missouri Representative Vicky Hartzler:
Hartzler:
“The President stated early in his speech that he believes the American people are united by the belief in opportunity for all – regardless of race or religion or party, young or old, rich or poor – and the notion that if you work hard and take responsibility, you get ahead. But if he really believes this, why doesn’t he get government out of the way to allow American individualism and ingenuity to flourish.”
Missouri Senator Roy Blint delivered the Republican weekend speech last Saturday. He says Senate Democrats are a big part of the problem.
He has a news conference with Missouri reporters on Wednesday.

Hartzler Moves Away From Obama Photo for TV Interviews December 18, 2013

(AP) – Missouri congresswoman Vicky Hartzler is a frequent critic of President Barack Obama. Her concern apparently also extends to his image.

After a visit Tuesday to the Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital in Columbia, Hartzler was looking for a place to do interviews with reporters.

The Columbia Daily Tribune reports that Hartzler asked an aide to move a U.S. flag away from a portrait of Obama – apparently so that the president’s picture wouldn’t be in the background of television camera shots.

Hartzler is a Republican who represents the 4th Congressional District in west-central Missouri. She has frequently criticized the Democratic president for his policies on health care, taxes and spending and the federal deficit

Comments from Area Senators & Congressmen on Shutdown October 1, 2013

Ks-3 Congressman Kevin Yoder called for compromise to end the government shutdown. But the Johnson County Republican did not lay out where that compromise is at this point.
"As we lurch from defaults, to fiscal cliffs, to government shutdowns, I know most of the country is fatigued and frustrated with the inability of Washington to work together to solve big problems. There is a reasonable compromise here and I hope both sides will tone down the rhetoric and work towards finding a balanced approach to solving our problems."
Kansas City Democrat Anurl Cleaver says the shutdown is hurting thousand of his constituents.
"“Today, our public servants and the people who depend on them for many kinds of services are being punished because Washington has wasted time yet again,” stated Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, II. “In Missouri’s Fifth District, the federal government employs nearly 45,000 people —many of whom have already been injuriously impacted by sequestration– who will now be furloughed. They are not the only ones who will be affected, but their sacrifices will be the most severe,".
KS-2 Rep Lynn Jenkins says Senate is to blame for not offering individual mandate delay.
"“What we are suggesting at this point is that there be no special carve outs for the very wealthy, the big business. The president has given waivers to big businesses as it relates to ObamaCare. He has given members of Congress special treatment, and so our only ask at this point is that we stop those carve outs and provide fairness for everyone. Put an end to the special carve outs for members of Congress, and let my constituents, the hardworking mothers in Kansas, the small businesses, get the same delay in the enforcement mechanism on the individual mandate piece,".
Northern Missouri Republican Congressman Sam Graves says his staff and offices remain open during the shut down.
He, too, blames the Democratic majority in the Senate.
"“I am tremendously disappointed that the Senate has failed to pass legislation keeping the government open. At every step of the way, the House has attempted to find common ground and has passed legislation that is good for the American people. Yet, on the other side of the Capitol, Senate leadership refused to budge an inch. Additionally, the president failed to play any kind of constructive role in this process. He has the bully pulpit, and he chose to use it for political grandstanding, rather than engaging with the Congress."
Kansas Senator Pat Roberts:
“In the past 72 hours, Republicans have offered up three different solutions to give the American people what they want — a government that works for the people and protection from the health care law that is hurting patients and the economy,".
Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill:
“It is completely unacceptable that U.S. House Republicans are willing to shut down the government. This will upset our economic recovery and cause thousands of Missourians real pain. They know that the President will not back up on his work to provide affordable and accessible health care. They know that the Senate will not overturn these reforms. A decision was made at the ballot box last November, and supporters of the Affordable Care Act were returned to office by the American people. We can negotiate federal spending and the budget. We should not negotiate on keeping our government functioning and paying our bills. It is time for Speaker Boehner to allow the House to vote on a clean government funding bill without the unrealistic and irresponsible political posturing."