In years past, I’ve chosen to forego attending President Obama’s annual State of the Union speech, and instead focused on interacting with my constituents through live, virtual town halls while I watched the speech in my office. This wasn’t out of disrespect, but because I wanted to see real-time responses from Georgians and to get their ideas for what might jumpstart our economy.

This year, I decided to attend the State of the Union in hopes that the president might have learned something from his failed policies and for a change in direction in this particular speech. I went with my colleagues to the House floor and awaited the president’s arrival, hoping that he would deliver a speech that would give us real, honest solutions to get our economy going and create jobs outside of government.

Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Last night, we got nothing more than a campaign speech from President Obama that outlined his plans to further divide America for political gain. The State of the Union revolved around raising taxes, increasing spending, and enacting more government regulations – nearly all in conflict with the original intent of our Constitution.

President Obama, his administration, and most of my Democrat colleagues have it all wrong. More taxes, more spending and more government regulation will never be the solutions to our fiscal crisis. Real American growth and lasting prosperity will only prevail through the successes of the private sector. The president’s “Blueprint for an America Built to Last” has a serious, fundamental flaw: You can’t build a sturdy structure on a cracked foundation.

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