State of the Union Address

Floor Speech

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Ms. GARCIA of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate President Biden and the significant accomplishments he shared with us during last night's State of the Union address.

Last year, together with President Biden, we made a promise that Democrats would deliver for the people; and that we have. Thanks to our President's bold leadership and our work in Congress, we have been delivering. Let's look at a few areas.

Jobs, jobs, and more jobs. As was mentioned last night by President Biden, in his first year, 6.7 million jobs were created, marking the strongest year of job growth in history. In my home State of Texas alone more than 37,600 manufacturing jobs were created. These are good, well-paying jobs that are putting Texans back to work. Our economy is on the rise. Wages are strong. The unemployment rate is low.

Another area is our Nation's GDP. While GDP dropped 3.4 percent in 2020, it was able to shoot up to 5.7 percent in 2021--the highest rate since 1984. Simply put, the economy has rebounded during President Biden's first year in office.

Another very important area to all our working families is our public schools. I am proud of the significant progress that has been made in our public schools during the President's first year. We have made huge strides in reopening our schools and keeping them open safely.

One year ago, Mr. Speaker, merely 46 percent of schools were open because it just wasn't safe for teachers, students, and faculty due to COVID. Today, 99.9 percent of schools are safely opened. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act as well as the American Rescue Plan both provided schools the necessary funds they needed to stay open and make up for lost learning time.

Another very crucial area, vaccination rates. One year ago today, only 15 percent of the U.S. population was fully vaccinated against COVID-19, today that number is 65 percent. The massive increase in vaccinations is the direct result of the President and this Congress' leadership to tackle this virus. Even today we do not have to wear our masks this morning.

Let's look ahead. Action from the Biden administration and Congress has already resulted in significant progress on the supply chain challenges. The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will improve and protect supply chains and reduce reliance on foreign oil immensely for years to come. It will help lower costs and inflation rates with time. As President Biden said last night, the plan is to lower your costs, not your wages.

There is a lot more President Biden and Democrats are working on in building a better America, like investments in affordable childcare and paid and universal pre-K that would allow more working families to participate in the economy.

It is those very workers and everyday hardworking Americans who deserve the greatest praise of all.

Our hometown heroes have braved through this pandemic and powered through many challenges. They have been the muscle and the backbone of our Nation's record-breaking economic growth and recovery from the pandemic and we thank them.

With President Biden's leadership, Congress' partnership, and the support of the American people, there is truly no limit as to what we can achieve together in building a better America.

Finally, Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell the people of Ukraine that we stand with them. I stand with them. ``Yes, we can,'' ``si se puede.'' I want the people of Ukraine to know that we see you, we hear you, and we love you. And Russia, who has purposely invaded your homeland has been--well, I should not say the word I really want to say on the floor--but they have been inhumane, cruel, and just beyond the pale. We will not stand for this.

We will stand with Ukraine. Again, ``yes, we can,'' ``si se puede.'' We stand with you.

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