Joni Ernst made history when she became Iowa’s first female Senator, and just a few months later she was tapped to give the Republican response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address. The military veteran garnered national attention during her seat race due to her viral “castrating hogs” campaign commercial and her stump speech regarding Agenda 21.
In the Joni Ernst State of the Union (SOTU) response speech, the Iowa Senator told the audience that she was a solider, a mother, and recently-elected lawmaker before noting that it is “important to hear different points of view in this great country.”
here is an excerpt from the Joni Ernst SOTU Republican response.
“Tonight though, rather than respond to a speech, I’d like to talk about your priorities. I’d like to have a conversation about the new Republican Congress you just elected, and how we plan to make Washington focus on your concerns again. We heard the message you sent in November loud and clear. And now we’re getting to work to change the direction Washington has been taking our country. The new Republican Congress also understands how difficult these past six years have been. For many of us, the sting of the economy and the frustration with Washington’s dysfunction weren’t things we had to read about. We felt them every day.”
Ernst went on to note that she grew up in a small town on the family farm and learned first hand about hard work and the value of living simply and not wasting the gifts earned from the fruits of your labor.
The Iowa Senator worked at a local Hardees as a teenager in order to raise money to attend college.
“You see, growing up, I had only one good pair of shoes. So on rainy school days, my mom would slip plastic bread bags over them to keep them dry. But I was never embarrassed. Because the school bus would be filled with rows and rows of young Iowans with bread bags slipped over their feet. Our parents may not have had much, but they worked hard for what they did have.”
Joni Ernst went on to state that American families now feel like they are forced to work harder and harder with a lot less to show for their efforts.
“We see our neighbors agonize over stagnant wages and lost jobs. We see the hurt caused by canceled healthcare plans and higher monthly insurance bills,” Ernst said. “We see too many moms and dads put their own dreams on hold while growing more fearful about the kind of future they’ll be able to leave to their children.”
During the Republican State of the Union response Joni Ernst said there is a lot that elected officials can accomplish if they work together. She added that President Obama will soon have many decisions to make, including whether or not he will sign the bi-partisan Keystone Pipeline bill into law and allow the private sector to generate sustainable jobs.
What did you think of President Obama’s State of the Union address and the Joni Ernst Republican response?
[Image via: Liberty News]