GOP: We Have To Be A Proposition Party
House Speaker Paul Ryan delivered this week’s Republican address and discussed the GOP’s planned five-point agenda for 2016.
Ryan was Tuesday’s KVML “Newsmaker of the Day”. Here are his words:
“Here in Baltimore, over the last few days, Republicans have been talking about ideas to address the big challenges facing our country.
Right now, Americans are anxious about their security and their futures.
We want to save the American Idea for the vast majority of Americans who believe it’s just not there for them anymore. We want America to lead again. We want America to be confident again. That is our mission.
To do that, we can’t just be an opposition party. We have to be a proposition party. If we do not like the direction the country is going in – and we do not – then we have an obligation to offer an alternative.
So in the coming months, we will put forward a bold, pro-growth agenda. It will show where we stand.
By giving the people a clear choice in 2016, we will seek a mandate to do big things in 2017 and beyond. The process will be driven by the people’s representatives.
Every representative – and their constituents – will have a chance to provide their say. These discussions will focus on five areas.
First, national security. How do we go about building a 21st-century military? What do we need to do to make sure we’re equipped to defeat ISIS and the threat posed by radical Islamic terror? How do we make sure we are secure here at home?
Next, jobs and economic growth. Our economy is far from its potential. Wages are still stagnant. How do we fix our tax code? How do we rein in our regulatory state? How do we maximize our energy potential?
Third, health care. Obamacare has driven up premiums, limited choices, and taken away access. These are not signs of success – they are signs of failure. If and when we repeal Obamacare, what solutions will lead to lower costs and a truly patient-centered health care system?
Fourth, poverty and opportunity. There are 46 million Americans living in poverty today, and a big part of the reason is we have a safety net that catches people falling into poverty. How do we lift people up, bring them back into the workforce, and restore upward mobility?
The last piece of this agenda – and it’s so critical to all the others – is restoring the Constitution. The president’s executive overreach has undermined the Constitution and damaged the people’s trust. What needs to be done to restore the separation of powers and protect our constitutional liberties?
These are the ideas that we will be advancing.
We’ve got a big job ahead of us, but this is nothing short of a generational defining moment.
Everything is at stake.
There is a real hunger for solutions – for a nation that unifies and reaches its potential.
We see it as our duty here in the people’s house to offer real ideas, to tackle the real issues head on.
We want a confident America. Now it’s time to get to work.”
The “Newsmaker of the Day” is heard every weekday morning on AM 1450 KVML at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 AM.
