U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL14) released the statement below following tonight’s State of the Union address by President Obama:

“The State of the Union in America is ‘resilient.’ America has fought its way back from the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. I will never forget how so many of our Tampa Bay neighbors struggled to keep their jobs and save their homes. Now in 2016, because of extraordinary changes under President Obama's leadership, we can reflect on the progress we have made together and America's promise:

• The unemployment rate was 10 percent.  Now, it’s 5 percent.
• The deficit was $1.4 trillion. Now, it’s $439 billion, down by a trillion dollars.
• The stock market was under 7,000. Now, it’s over 16,000.
• We’ve created more than 14.1 million new private sector jobs in 70 months – the longest uninterrupted stretch of private sector job growth in our history.
• Nearly 18 million previously uninsured Americans now have affordable, dependable health coverage through the Affordable Care Act.

“The President acknowledged that we can do more to ensure that all of our neighbors continue to have a shot at the American Dream. He called on Americans to take greater responsibility for our democracy and future.

“His words should inspire us to take on those who have so much influence in Washington and Tallahassee – special interests and those who tell us to fear the future. For example, while Florida leads the nation in enrollment under the Affordable Care Act, Florida’s leaders refuse to bring $50 billion of our tax dollars home for more than 500,000 of our state’s working neighbors under Medicaid.

“As the President said, ‘because we saw opportunity where others saw only peril’ we have made progress, but it comes with a reminder of the work we still have to do. We must still fight those who would in the President’s words ‘slam the brakes on change.’ Marriage equality is now the law of the land, a historic advancement of equal rights. But we must now address the 600,000 of our Florida neighbors, who have paid their debt to society yet unable to exercise their constitutional right to vote in the last election due to Jim Crow-like laws imposed by Gov. Scott and the Florida Clemency Board. Infrastructure investments, like the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, bolster our economy and create jobs. The massive I-4/Selmon Expressway Connector project failed to get off the ground until $105 million from the Recovery Act gave the project new life. Our communities will stall and fall behind the global economy if we don’t prioritize these types of investments. The Tampa Bay area has been a leader in charting a new course on Cuba policy; now Congress must act to completely remove the restrictions on commerce and travel that remain as barriers to progress and to the liberty of American citizens.

“I am pleased that the President struck a clear alternative, optimistic tone on the big things that will guarantee an even stronger, better, more prosperous America for our kids. This is a stark contrast to the sour, ominous and gloomy themes dominating the presidential primary contests so far. The President voiced an optimism that America is great and will stay great -- an optimism brought about by his confidence in the American people and the many times we as Americans have banded together to overcome huge and sometimes terrible challenges. As the President said so well, ‘the future we want -- opportunity and security for our families; a rising standard of living and a sustainable, peaceful planet for our kids – all that is within our reach.  But it will only happen if we work together.  It will only happen if we can have rational, constructive debates.’”

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