Speaker Paul Ryan on Thursday will outline a GOP vision that will include a promise of a “bold, pro-growth agenda,” that will restore the confidence of Americans.
Ryan, who was elected Speaker in October, plans to deliver a major policy address Thursday at the Library of Congress.
While lacking specifics, the speech will hint at a Republican agenda that addresses jobs, entitlement programs, taxes and the national debt.
“We want to see progress and have pride,” Ryan will say, according to excerpts of the speech obtained by the Washington Examiner. “We want people to believe in the future again. We want a country where no one’s stuck, where no one settles, where everyone can rise.”
Ryan will say the principles of the GOP agenda include a range of reforms, including welfare and strengthening the military.
“We need to build a 21st century military,” Ryan will say. “And I don’t mean just pour more money into the Pentagon. We have to reform the Pentagon, so it can adapt to new threats. Acquire new capabilities more quickly-whether it’s advanced missile defense or directed energy weapons.”
Ryan will point to the successful welfare reform achieved in the 1990s, and said he’ll push those reforms further.
“That was just one program,” Ryan will say, referring to the 1996 law requiring welfare recipients to work. “We have to fix all the others now. I’d combine a lot of them and send that money back to the states for better poverty-fighting solutions. Require everyone who can to work. Let states and communities try different ideas. And then test the results.”
The agenda does not require complete GOP control, Ryan will say, but can be achieved with bipartisan compromise. He will reference the bipartisan highway trust fund legislation that will pass the House and Senate this week.
“We can make progress on issues where there’s bipartisan agreement, like rebuilding our roads and bridges or bringing some certainty to the tax code,” Ryan will say.
