Lloyd Smith, Executive Director of the Missouri Republican Party, issued the following statement regarding the State of the Union address:

“Barack Obama’s State of the Union address was defined by his stubborn refusal to admit that he was wrong to spend the past twelve months attempting to exploit the economic crisis to pass his liberal agenda. 2009 will be remembered as the year that Americans revolted against tax increases, massive deficits, skyrocketing debt, and countless big-government proposals—but clearly, Barack Obama has not gotten the message. Instead, he spent more than an hour defending the Democrats’ health care boondoggle, the failed stimulus, and his proposed national energy tax.

“After a year of electoral defeats and failed policy initiatives, now is not the time for more empty promises and big-government proposals. Instead, we must get back to fiscal responsibility, force government to live within its means, and embrace conservative solutions that don’t require massive taxing, spending, and borrowing.”