February 24, 2009 - WASHINGTON, D.C. — Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.) released the following statement on President Obama’s speech to the Joint Session of Congress.

“I welcome President Obama’s message of cooperation and partnership and I stand ready to work with him to tackle the difficult economic problems facing this country. We will have our differences, however. As a small business owner in Oregon for over 21 years, I never found that you could borrow your way into prosperity. Raising taxes on small businesses during a recession will cost jobs, especially in Oregon.

“For bipartisanship to work, Speaker Pelosi needs to reconsider the closed process she’s used and give members of both parties, the press, and the public a reasonable opportunity to participate in the process. It was irresponsible when Republican leaders rushed certain bills to the floor as the majority party, and it’s still irresponsible when Democrats do it today. Americans have rightly rejected the old ways of Washington, D.C., and have made clear their desire to have us work together to solve the country’s problems.”

Representative Greg Walden represents the Oregon’s Second Congressional District, which is comprised of 20 counties in eastern, southern, and central Oregon. He is a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.