Obama slams Republican rhetoric against Muslims

President Barack Obama sharpened his State of the Union warning against divisive politics Wednesday, using a campaign-style rally in Nebraska to deride politicians like Republican front-runner Donald Trump who he claimed was using fear as a tool to gain votes.

President Obama’s last State of the Union speech didn’t draw a lot of support from Western New York’s two Republican members of Congress.

President Obama also cited a key ACA provision – one that created public health insurance exchanges – that assures availability of coverage to the uninsured. He said investments have to made in alternative energy production in light of climate change and oil turmoil.

In his final State of the Union Address, President Obama largely avoided requests for Congress to approve specific programs, instead focusing on broad themes about America’s future.

“When politicians insult Muslims… that doesn’t make us safer”, he said, drawing applause from the crowd in the House of Representatives chamber. That’s not telling it like it is. The president took responsibility for failing to achieve his goals, particularly when it came to smoothing partisan politics. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who was not in Washington for the speech, said that it was less a State of the Union and more a state of denial. Sen.

He said that ISIS must be dealt with immediately, defending his approach to taking on the terror group and said that it poses a risky threat to the nation.

The most recent jobs report places the national unemployment rate at five percent and says the USA added 292,000 jobs in December, but some economists say the unemployment rate is actually much higher and the country is experiencing slow growth.

To help Americans prepare for the new economy, he called for a continued reform of the US education and training system, strengthening social security and medicare, as well as adjusting the role of government to make sure the system is not rigged in favor of the wealthiest and biggest corporations. I’m with him. Please join us.

-On policies regarding ISIS/ISIL: “Priority No. 1 is protecting the American people and going after terrorist networks”.

“Over-the-top claims that this is World War III just play into their hands”, he said.

-Calling for “rational, constructive debates” in a political environment that is tempestuous at best, Obama noted: “Democracy does require basic bonds of trust between its citizens”.