Udall Response to President’s State of the Union Address

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement in response to the president's annual State of the Union Address:

"Tonight, the president laid out a strategy that would help New Mexicans - and all Americans - address challenges like access to fair housing and education that we must meet in order to ensure everyone has a fair shot at the American dream. While the economy is much stronger nationwide, it is still lagging in New Mexico. I applaud the president for thinking about real solutions to persistent problems, and I agree that we need to do more to ensure that we keep faith with promise our nation was founded on: that if you work hard you can get ahead.

"We in Congress may disagree about the solutions, but I hope we can agree about the need to debate proposals like those the president proposed tonight: to guarantee all workers paid sick leave and a fair family leave policy, make college more affordable, and help establish the foundation to create more well-paying jobs - including by investing in infrastructure and guaranteeing access to broadband Internet no matter where you live.

"Our shared goal in New Mexico and across the nation should be ensuring that everyone who wants a job can get one. In New Mexico, that means stable federal budgets as well as the support necessary to build a vibrant private sector economy. But it also means ensuring families are secure - that children have enough to eat, safe housing and quality child care; improved access to education; workforce training; and quality health care in all of our communities, urban and rural. I'm going to keep pushing for these and other ways to help strengthen New Mexico families, and I look forward to working with the president and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle."