The Four Things Mike Lee Blames for Creating ‘Real Inequality’

Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) responded to President Obama’s State of the Union address Tuesday night, and gave the American people his definition of “real inequality.”

According to Lee, the inequality crisis can be divided into three areas: immobility among the poor, who are trapped by big-government programs; insecurity in the middle class, full of families who can’t get ahead, and cronyist privilege at the top, where insiders are twisting government officials to “profit at the expense of everyone else.”

While Lee said the President’s “lofty rhetoric” ignores poor and middle-class families, he also blamed the GOP.

“To be fair, President Obama and his party did not create all of these problems,” Lee said. “The Republican Establishment in Washington can be just as out-of-touch as the Democratic Establishment.”

Lee’s 11-minute speech, which streamed live on Tea Party Express, defined several reasons the nation faces “real inequality.” Here’s four:

1. Government

“But where does this new inequality come from? From government – every time it takes rights and opportunities away from the American people and gives them instead to politicians, bureaucrats, and special interests.”

“Government-driven inequality is the reason why, as hard-working families across the country struggle to make ends meet, six of the ten wealthiest counties in America are now suburbs of Washington, D.C.”

2. Obamacare

“It’s guaranteeing insurance companies taxpayer bailouts if Obamacare cuts into their profits.”

“And of course, Obamacare – all by itself – is an inequality Godzilla that has robbed working families of their insurance, their doctors, their wages and their jobs.

3. Poor Education Reforms

“Inequality – real inequality – is trapping poor children in failing schools to benefit bureaucrats and union bosses.”

4. Obama’s Decisions

“It’s changing laws without congressional approval, and spying on American citizens without constitutional authority.”

The second half of Lee’s speech focused on different Conservative reforms that fix these problem areas. You can watch the full speech in the video above.

This story was produced by The Foundry’s news team. Nothing here should be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of The Heritage Foundation.