“President Bush took the time tonight to put today’s world into perspective: We are living in historic times and the decisions we make today will shape the lives of our children and grandchildren.  And his leadership has been steady and effective.”

“America has a responsibility and we have always proven to be a leader, whether in the War on Terror by leading a coalition taking the fight to the enemy or as an entrepreneur developing new technologies and innovating the way everyone does business.  America should continue to lead and President Bush’s speech tonight laid out a plan for this, including making his tax cuts permanent – the same tax cuts that have kept our economy moving forward through difficult times, encouraging Health Savings Accounts so more Americans have access to health care, reducing America’s reliance on foreign oil and more.”

“In Congress we have also been debating and making significant steps with immigration reform.  We have made it tougher to get a driver’s license, which is the internal passport in America, funded more border patrol agents, and implemented the best state-of-the-art surveillance technology to protect our borders.  There is more work to do, however, and as Congress moves forward I hope the debate and progress continues.  We need to provide law enforcement with all the tools they need to protect Americans and enact laws that do not encourage illegal border crossing.”

“There is also a need for across-the-board reform of the federal government’s budget, which will not only make the government more efficient but also cut the deficit dramatically.  The Deficit Reduction Act, which will be considered in the House this week, does this by slowing the growth of the government’s budget, resulting in nearly $40 billion of savings.  This is the type of fiscal responsibility we need in Congress.”

“Tonight President Bush, only five years since the attacks on 9/11, reiterated to the American people how important our decisions are today because they will ensure the safety of Americans and provide for future generations.”