FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 13, 2016
Contact: Paul Marchione, 202-601-7869, [email protected]

WASHINGTON — NETWORK was heartened by much of the message of President Obama’s final State of the Union. President Obama echoed Pope Francis that we must be a people of justice and mercy, unarmed truth and unconditional love. This is seen in the past seven years of President Obama’s leadership, which has led to health coverage for millions of Americans, unemployment cut in half, and a reduced national deficit.

NETWORK shares the vision of President Obama and Speaker Ryan, that if we are to truly focus on the future of our nation we must end poverty. “Our new economy must be one of inclusion,” says NETWORK Executive Director Sister Simone Campbell, SSS, paraphrasing Pope Francis, “an economy that mends the gap in income and wealth disparity, ensures no voice or community is disenfranchised, and values the contribution of immigrants to the success of our nation.”

While NETWORK agrees with President Obama on his stated domestic policy, we have grave concerns about the foreign policy agenda. President Obama’s misguided support of the Trans-Pacific Partnership hinders our national economy and ability to provide for those at the economic margins. Further, we should not feel pride that “we spend more on our military than the next eight nations combined.” It is wrong that the United States would respond to those who oppose us with “we have to take them out.”

We are hopeful that the president’s echo of Pope Francis’s address to Congress, “to imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place,” is a reminder that peace and responsible engagement remains the most effective way forward.

“The state of our union may be strong, but there is still much work to be done in 2016,” says Sister Simone. “This year should not be a year focused solely on the inflammatory rhetoric of electoral politics, but one in which we seize the opportunity to bridge divides and achieve meaningful steps to end poverty now. Bipartisan engagement and agreement on this key issue can be accomplished this year. We look forward to working with President Obama, Speaker Ryan, and the rest of Congress to accomplish this critical task.”

NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby, which educates, organizes, and lobbies for economic and social transformation, has a more than 40-year track record of lobbying for critical federal programs that support those at the margins and prioritize the common good.

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