Representative Derek Kilmer released the following statement after attending President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address.

Representative Kilmer was glad to hear more from the President on how we can replace looming across-the-board cuts with a balanced deficit reduction plan that includes retaining key investments to create jobs, and protect the middle class.

Last month, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard had to postpone a job fair because of budget uncertainty and a plunge in military spending may have caused our economy to dip slightly in the fourth quarter of 2012.

“Job growth doesn’t happen in the halls of the Capitol, it happens at home on Main Street,” said Representative Kilmer.  “As the President pointed out, Congress should be working to improve our economy and helping small businesses in our region create good high-paying jobs.

“The postponement of the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard career fair and the latest dip in the economy show that Congressional inaction is making it harder to move our nation forward. That’s why we need to stop these nonstrategic, across-the-board cuts and replace them with a smart, balanced approach to reduce our deficit and get our economy growing.”