Representative Mike Levin Statement in Response to the State of the Union Address
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Mike Levin issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s State of the Union Address tonight:
“While I am hopeful that the president’s calls for bipartisanship were made in good faith, the substance of his address was woefully out of touch with the current state of our union. The most glaring omission from his address was any serious proposal to combat climate change, which is already having a significant impact on our country, including more intense wildfires and rising sea levels. He also failed to take responsibility for his harmful anti-immigrant rhetoric or acknowledge that any proposal for comprehensive immigration reform must include a permanent path to citizenship for Dreamers like my guest tonight, UCSD student Lucero Sanchez. If he is truly interested in compromise, I hope he will work with Democrats on smart border security solutions and will drop his threats to shut the government down again over his ineffective, wasteful border wall.
“As Chair of the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, I was also hoping for a greater emphasis on the struggles America’s veterans still face to achieve economic success in their civilian life. We must do more to improve veterans’ access to quality education, job opportunities, and affordable housing. The president’s address fell short in many ways, but I will continue to reach across the aisle on policies to combat climate change, enact comprehensive immigration reform, support our veterans, and more.”
Representative Levin’s guest to the State of the Union was Lucero Sanchez, a Dreamer and UC San Diego Environmental Science student who was inspired to become politically active last year after observing President Trump’s rhetoric toward immigrants and his backward policies on immigration and border security.
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