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U.S. lawmakers who serve Greater Williamsport have drawn lines of demarcation in the sand after President Joe Biden's State of the Union address.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, and Reps. Glenn "GT" Thompson, R-Howard and Dan Meuser, R-Dallas, each responded after the speech with statements.
During the speech, Biden lauded "Bobby Casey," crediting Casey for his legislation to control forms of price gouging known as "greedflation," but also observing how shrinkflation was occurring.
"As the president declared tonight, the state of the American economy is strong, with record high job creation and record low unemployment," Casey said.
Casey acknowledged that corporations have squeezed American families, citing his introduction of the Shrinkflation Prevention Act, which penalizes corporations that deceive consumers by selling smaller sizes of their products without lowering the prices.
Biden also pointed a finger at these companies, even citing how there are fewer chips in a bag.
Thompson and Meuser each blasted Biden's domestic and foreign policy at a recent Lycoming County Republican Committee Lincoln Day Dinner in Williamsport, and were equally critical of Biden's delivery to the nation.
"Tonight, the president attempted to gloss over the past three years of his policy failures, treating the State of the Union like a campaign stop on the road to the November election," Thompson said. "America needs less lip service and more action."
"I had hoped to hear President Biden offer a course correction tonight that would get our country moving in the right direction again," Meuser said. "Instead, he offered no solutions to the issues most concerning to the American people and blamed Republicans and businesses for the failures of his administration."
Although U.S. Sen. John Fetterman's statement did not arrive in time for the publishing of this article, Fetterman, D-Braddock, has previously publicly cast blame on private companies for unnecessarily raising prices. "When Americans can't afford basic needs like groceries because of price gouging, big corporations revel as they line their own pockets," he wrote.
Reactions to job numbers,
border security and crime
The president "refuses to take responsibility for many self-created crises, which are a direct result of misguided policy decisions," Meuser said. "From soaring inflation and the catastrophe at our southern border, to an assault on American energy, rising crime and geopolitical chaos, the state of our union is in decline under this administration."
Casey, as Biden does, views an American economy on the rebound after three years of COVID-19 pandemic setback.
Casey recently toured the Greater Williamsport levee project, announcing an $8 million congressional earmark that was available through bipartisan congressional effort set aside for the levee repair.
The levee is a multi-million dollar recertification and accreditation process involving the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Federal Emergency Management Agency.
After the address, Casey discussed Democratic landmark investments available because of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act.
Meuser said those in his district don't see the strong economy as declared by Biden in his address to the nation.
"My constituents do not agree," said Meuser, who represents the 9th Congressional district, which includes parts of Williamsport and eastern Lycoming County. "The American people do not agree. They feel the cost of inflation, largely caused by Biden's excessive spending, whenever they check out at the grocery store."
"They feel his anti-American energy agenda whenever they pay their home heating bills or fill up their gas tanks, as they remember early January 2020 prices," Meuser said.
Casey said it is through the Biden administration and Democratic efforts that "seniors on Medicare are paying no more than $35 a month for insulin and, over the coming months and years, prescription drug prices will continue to be ratcheted down."
Supporting allies in Ukraine, Israel and border issues
Funding packages for Ukraine, Israel and border security are pending and held up, Biden said, because of politics.
"We need to support our allies in Ukraine and Israel as they take on threats from Putin and Hamas, while ensuring that all innocent civilians caught in the crosshairs of war get the humanitarian aid they need," Casey said.
Meuser said district residents see the failures as they watch millions of migrants illegally cross the nation's open border, and they worry as they watch the world thrown into global conflict as Biden appeases the nation's adversaries.
In matters of urban crime, Meuser added how the president "is even so blind he read what his out-of-touch staff wrote on crime, claiming it is improving -- not only is crime not down, it is out of control as Americans see criminals being released in droves without prosecution."
Casey has, for years, warned about the growing illegal drug trafficking.
"We need to secure our border and stop the flow of fentanyl that is ravaging cities and rural areas alike," Casey said. "Solving these problems shouldn't be partisan, and I call on Congress to work together and take action in the weeks and months to come."
But Meuser said the president can't play a blame game and expect compliance.
"Tonight, the president needed to acknowledge the realities of the circumstances our nation faces," he said. "But instead of taking stock of the crises he created, he gaslit Americans, making the people feel as if their struggles were of their own making. The only thing I found inspirational about this speech was that it spurred a renewed determination to fight for real American leadership and a course correction for our future."
Meuser said the speech was not one that drew Americans or those on his side of the aisle in the chambers any closer.
"There has never been such a partisan, divisive speech; like a rooster trying to take credit for the dawn and pointing fingers for crises created," he said.