WASHINGTON, D.C. — Tonight, before a divided Congress and the American people, President Joe Biden delivered his first State of the Union address. After a year in office, the state of the union is weak, progress is stalled, and many U.S. citizens are experiencing more harm than good.

Looking back on Biden’s first year, Heather R. Higgins, CEO of Independent Women’s Voice, said, “President Biden was elected on the promise of bringing Americans together. But over the last year, Biden bowed to the wishes of the progressive left again and again, rather than the exhausted majority that elected him. Sadly, tonight he’s trying to sound like a pro-American conservative while sticking to the same policies that have been so expensive to American families and enabling of Putin’s aggression.”

Carrie Lukas, vice president at Independent Women’s Voice, added: “President Biden has talked about helping families, but in fact he has been making our lives harder. Today, we face skyrocketing costs for heating, gas, food, and just about everything else. We routinely see empty shelves in our grocery stores and restaurants too short staffed to provide service. It didn’t have to be this way. This is the result of bad policy decisions which throw money at problems and layered on government red tape. 

“Parents around the country are waking up to what’s been happening for too long. Finally people are being allowed to unmask, but parents wonder why the CDC and so many of our political leaders ignored the overwhelming data about children and COVID and the negative effects of masking. Why don’t they trust parents to make decisions for their own kids? 

“Americans are fortunate that Build Back Better did not pass, since the childcare provisions in Build Back Better would have brought all of the problems we see in our K-12 public schools today to our daycare and preschool facilities. That’s the wrong direction for our country.

“On the energy front, the Biden administration has continued on its path, set on day one of his presidency, of blindly pushing America to convert to renewable energy, nevermind what this does to energy costs for the American people and our economy. Prior to President Biden taking office, the United States was energy independent and a net energy exporter. Yet this administration immediately crippled our domestic energy sector by shutting down the Keystone XL pipeline and preventing domestic drilling and oil sales. As a result, the United States now has to turn to countries like Russia for our energy needs. Biden’s misguided energy approach not only has weakened our energy sector but has diminished America’s national security and ability to impact events on the world stage.” 

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Independent Women’s Voice fights for women and families by effectively expanding support among women, independents, and millennials for policy solutions that aren’t just well intended, but actually enhance freedom, opportunities, and well-being.