Chairman Goodlatte Statement on President Obama’s State of the Union Address
Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) issued the statements below on several issues following President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address.
Economy: “Politics and excuses have blocked real progress for Americans in need of jobs. Despite promise after promise from the President, our nation’s economy remains relatively unchanged – it has failed to grow strong enough to bounce back after economic setbacks or provide sustainable growth for Americans. And instead of solving the problem of a failing economy, the President continues to push his failed policies in the faces of the American people and lay blame on others for his actions. In stark contrast to the President’s approach, in the House Judiciary Committee we have already started passing bills this Congress to jumpstart the economy and cut government red tape. We look forward to continuing to pass powerful regulatory reform this Congress and providing real relief for Americans.”
Cybersecurity: “Cybersecurity is critical both to Americans’ privacy and our national security. Every day, cyber-criminals attempt to hack into computer networks in order to steal sensitive personal and financial information from American companies and our citizens. Additionally, we’ve now experienced a state-sponsored cyberattack intended to intimidate the American people and undermine our values. We need to be ever diligent and attentive to these threats. The House Judiciary Committee will continue working to ensure our laws are as robust as possible and work with other Committees on this important issue.”
Immigration Reform: “The debate last Congress showed that there is a willingness and a need to reform our nation’s immigration laws. Many of my colleagues and I are working to fix our broken immigration system, starting with enforcement first. However, President Obama’s pattern of executive overreach has added a layer of distrust to the debate. Time after time, President Obama has bypassed many opportunities to work constructively with Congress and has instead legislated from the Oval Office by executive decree. These actions are a threat to the separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution and imperil individual liberty. Additionally, they have undermined the American people’s trust in the President’s willingness to enforce the laws passed by Congress. If the President is serious about immigration reform, then he needs to start enforcing our existing laws to rebuild trust with the American people and with Congress. Meanwhile Congress must pass enforcement laws that take the power away from the President to unilaterally refuse to enforce our immigration laws.”
FISA Reform: “I agree with the President that we need to reform the bulk collection program under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act so that we protect Americans’ civil liberties while ensuring that the traditional capabilities of our intelligence-gathering programs are not disturbed, and I am committed to working on this issue. Last Congress, the House passed comprehensive legislation to do just that, but the Senate failed to act. The USA PATRIOT Act is set to expire on June 1, 2015 and it is imperative that we reform these programs before then.”
Net Neutrality: “While I agree with President Obama's call for a free and open internet, the reality is that the President's policies will have the opposite effect, significantly diminishing innovation on the Internet. President Obama’s so-called ‘solution’ for net neutrality is to impose decades-old regulations designed for old, monopolistic long-distance telephone lines on one of the most dynamic and competitive marketplaces in history. As confirmed by experts at our Judiciary Committee hearing last Congress, this type of regulatory approach would have disastrous results on the Internet. Instead of jumpstarting the economy and ensuring fair principles to safeguard consumers, the President’s approach would leave consumers with fewer choices and higher prices, the antithesis of net neutrality. A better way to ensure net neutrality is to turn to vigorous enforcement of our nation’s time-tested antitrust laws. These laws have consistently demonstrated their ability to prevent discriminatory and anti-competitive conduct and would be the most efficient way to achieve an open and competitive Internet.”
Abusive Patent Litigation: “I am disappointed the President failed to mention the importance of passing legislation to stop abusive patent litigation. Last Congress, the House overwhelmingly passed the Innovation Act, a bipartisan bill that takes meaningful steps to address the abusive practices that have damaged our patent system and resulted in significant economic harm to our nation. Businesses both large and small are affected by this growing problem and the enactment of the Innovation Act is central to U.S. competiveness, job creation, and our nation’s future economic security. Unfortunately, the Democratic-controlled Senate failed to act on the legislation but I am hopeful that with the new Republican-controlled Senate and the President’s support patent litigation reform legislation will be signed into law this Congress.
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