Following President Obama's State of the Union address, two conservative congressional figures took the national stage to express their views on the status of the government.
Congressman Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, delivered the official Republican response. Ryan is the chair of the House Budget Committee, and the focus of his remarks was on federal spending, the national debt and fiscal responsibility.
Traditionally, there is only one response to the president's remarks, but Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, R-Minnesota, made news when she announced she would deliver the Tea Party's response. Bachmann also addressed economic issues facing the country.
Ryan's response was more formal and straightforward, and the issues he addressed aligned with the national Republican platform. Bachmann also used background images and charts to highlight her speech.
Ryan took aim at Obama's health care reform act, which House Republicans voted to repeal last week.
"Health care spending is driving the explosive growth of our debt. And the president's law is accelerating our country toward bankruptcy," Ryan said.
The health care law has also been a target of the Tea Party. Many Tea Party-backed freshmen members of Congress who were voted in on a wave of anti-government sentiment campaigned hard against the law, and Bachmann urged the president to support the repeal.
Bachmann and Ryan also emphasized the core conservative values of limited government and individual liberties.
"We believe in lower taxes, a limited view of government and the exceptionalism of America. And I believe America is the indispensable nation," Bachmann said.
Ryan expressed his belief that the federal government has grown too large during President Obama's tenure, and outlined his vision for the new budget.
"Our forthcoming budget is our obligation to you—to show you how we intend to do things differently, how we will cut spending to get the debt down, help create jobs and prosperity and reform government programs," Ryan said.
