While the president laid out a series of lofty goals for moving the nation forward \u2013 including building upon his own achievements \u2013 Republicans in Colorado\u2019s delegation took issue with his defense of what they perceived as failed policies.<\/p>\n
In a video response following the president\u2019s address, U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., said that Obama only presented \u201cmore of the same\u201d rhetoric.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe many challenges that the United States is facing, both at home and abroad, know no partisan ideology, and our strategy to address them shouldn\u2019t either,\u201d Gardner said.<\/p>\n
Gardner was especially critical of the president\u2019s willingness to rely on executive actions, saying Obama should use the last year of his presidency to work with Congress to address issues impacting the nation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no question our country has made progress, thanks to the incredible and unyielding spirit of the American people,\u201d Gardner said. \u201cBut the road to a full recovery still lies ahead. During his last year in the presidency, I urge President Obama to work with Congress, instead of against the people\u2019s representatives, to create more opportunities for Americans everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a show of opposition to the president\u2019s proposed plan to transfer the remaining prisoners from Guantanamo Bay to America, Gardner sat with Sens. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Pat Roberts, R-Kan., during the address. All three of the senators represent states that have been discussed as potential locations to move prisoners.<\/p>\n
Although Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act in 2015, which included language blocking the transfer of detainees to the U.S., the senators continued to voice their opposition to his plan.<\/p>\n
U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, was particularly critical of Obama for \u201cminimizing the threat of terrorism.\u201d Tipton said that Obama\u2019s statement that \u201cISIL does not threaten our national existence\u201d undermined the very real threat of terrorism.<\/p>\n
\u201cI sat beside the police chief out of San Bernadino, California, who expressed the challenges that they face from terrorism attacks here on American soil,\u201d Tipton told The Durango Herald following the president\u2019s remarks. \u201cTo minimize this thing as two people in a garage working on a computer, scaring and maybe hurting civilians, minimizes the threat that Americans feel, and we need to be very mindful that it\u2019s not isolated here.\u201d<\/p>\n
U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet also stressed the need to remain vigilant to threats while celebrating our economic recovery, saying that \u201cWe must also keep Americans safe.\u201d The State of the Union occurred the same day that 10 U.S. sailors were taken into custody by Iran.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe must also keep Americans safe,\u201d Bennet said. \u201cThat means moving aggressively to defeat ISIS, continuing to hold Iran accountable and deterring North Korea from further hostilities.\u201d<\/p>\n