Kevin Bishop (864) 250-1417 or Lorcan Connick (202) 224-5972

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) today made this statement on the State of the Union Address.

"The President's address was a lost opportunity and shows a man out of touch on both domestic and foreign policy.

"On domestic policy, instead of laying out an agenda that would help garner bipartisan support, the President repeatedly chose to head down the partisan road. He apparently missed the November elections where Republicans won big -- in every corner of the country -- by campaigning against his ideas which were, in his own words, ‘on the ballot.'

"On the foreign policy front, the President is in denial and America is growing weaker under his leadership. Radical Islam, a term this President and Administration have been reluctant to use, is on the march. I fear the President's refusal to define the war for what it is is a mistake and dangerous.

"There are more terrorists, more organizations with more weapons, more safe havens and more terror capabilities now than there were before 9/11. And let's be clear, these groups would prefer nothing more than to hit us here at home - in the United States - than anywhere else in the world.

"President Obama should acknowledge radical Islam cannot be appeased. Radical Islamists have no limits when it comes to destruction and the taking of human life. They are motivated by a religious doctrine which requires them to convert or destroy all who are opposed to their religious views. In essence, they are pursuing a master religion for the world as the Nazi's tried to pursue a master race. Both concepts are inherently evil and should suffer the same fate.

"In addition, the Iranians continue to pursue nuclear weapons capability. A nuclear-capable Iran represents a threat to our strongest ally in the region, Israel, as well as to our own national security given Iran's record of sharing military technology with terrorist organizations.

"The question for the country now is - can a conservative, Republican Congress work with a liberal Democratic president to move our nation forward? The answer should be yes. I believe it must be yes.

"If we work together to find common ground, I believe we can achieve results for the American people. We can make our tax code flatter and simpler and address some of the many problems associated with our crumbling infrastructure. Working together, we can stop the Iranian nuclear threat and make America safe and secure from the threat of terrorism.

"I hope President Obama will decide to change course and work with Republicans in the Congress to address the great challenges we face, both here at home and abroad."

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