U.S. Rep. Doug Collins’ response to the State of the Union address came in the form of a constituent.
The Gainesville Republican invited as his guest Sarah Beth Schulte, a woman without health insurance who says she is afraid to sign up for coverage under the Affordable Care Act on healthcare.gov — or even find out if she’s eligible for a federal subsidy — for fear of identity theft.
Although the site has not been hacked, some outside experts and Republicans in Congress, including Collins, have warned that it could be vulnerable.
Collins said his message to President Barack Obama was: “Look at the eyes of the folks who have been hurt and say, is this what you intended? I don’t think so, Mr. President.”
Georgia Republican U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson made a different point with his guest: Savannah Mayor Edna Jackson, a Democrat.
“I’m honored that he asked me to be his guest for this evening, particularly because I am a very strong Democrat,” Jackson said. “And I have always felt that people should be able to work across the lines in order to accomplish whatever you have to accomplish. And of course in this situation it’s about doing good for the residents of Savannah.”
Jackson said she and Isakson have worked together on initiatives to deepen the Port of Savannah and cope with across-the-board military cuts.
Jackson said she backed Obama’s biggest pre-speech announcement: an increase of the minimum wage to $10.10 for new workers on government contracts, which the president can accomplish by executive order.
Many Democrats cheered the move, announced early Tuesday, as a sign of actions Obama can take without a gridlocked Congress.
“That’s just going to enhance the ability of people to regain a foothold” in the middle class, said DeKalb County Democratic U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson. “And it’s going to encourage multitudes of people about the prospects of getting a job with a decent living wage. And so as the country rebounds that means that all ships, all boats will rise as well.”
Rep. Sanford Bishop, an Albany Democrat, praised Obama’s focus on executive action in a prepared statement.
“The president delivered an impressive, sincere, and realistic speech about the executive branch’s plans to meet and overcome many challenges our nation faces,” Bishop said.
“Laying out a set of practical proposals to grow the economy and support the middle class, the president called for an increase in the minimum wage, improved access to a college education, jobs in high-tech manufacturing, affordable housing, enhanced retirement security, and other presidential initiatives.”
Collins pointed out that talk of executive branch aggressiveness comes at a time when Congress, for the first time in years, brought some order to the budgeting process, passing a budget outline in the fall and a detailed spending bill for the year this month.
“No matter if there’s a Democrat or a Republican in the White House, if Congress doesn’t assert its role over the financial well-being of our country, then you’re going to have presidents continually say, ‘Well, I’ll do it without you.’”
Aside from the state’s members of Congress and their guests, one prominent Georgian scored a seat in First Lady Michelle Obama’s box. Antoinette Tuff, the DeKalb County bookkeeper who talked a would-be school shooter into surrendering to police last year, scored an invite.
Tuff was one of about two dozen people – from a wounded warrior to an unemployed worker – in the box, in a tradition started by President Ronald Reagan to highlight anecdotes from ordinary Americans in the State of the Union address.
About the Author
