Commentary: U.S. Senator Tom Udall issued the following statement on President Trump’s State of the Union Address:
“After he dragged our country through the longest government shutdown in American history, President Trump had an opportunity tonight to show people in New Mexico that he would change course. Unfortunately, the president seems committed to the same destructive tactics that caused 35 days of hardship, pain, and fear for families across our state and the country.
“The president’s appeals to unity rang hollow, because he insists on sowing hatred, fear, and division – with rhetoric demonizing immigrants and spreading misinformation about our border. And his administration’s cruel legacy of family separation and other blatant anti-immigrant policies still haunt us and violate our values as a nation. As New Mexicans know, the president’s fear-mongering and out-of-touch characterization of the border does not match the reality on the ground, and the president’s simplistic solution – a massive, wasteful wall – is not a realistic or effective approach to keeping our nation secure. We do face complex challenges at our southern border, and those challenges demand serious solutions that I have long supported and will continue to support in the future. I hope Congress can move beyond the president’s message of division and work toward those meaningful solutions.
“Meanwhile, the president continues to ignore the real pain that his needless shutdown caused families all across this country. And his administration continues to ignore the real needs and priorities of the American people – on health care, education, climate change, immigration reform, and so many other critical matters – instead listening to the special interests, billionaire campaign donors, and insider lobbyists. New Mexicans look at the dysfunction and the backwards agenda of the Trump administration, and they see a government that just isn’t answering to the American people. That’s why my top priority in this Congress is fighting for badly-needed reforms – to fix our democracy and return it to its rightful owners, the people.”