This just in ... Republicans want to do something about Income Inequality and helping the middle class -- they just want to "advance their own solutions" (and ignore the President's proposals, of course).
Republican Solution 1) Rail against "punishing success" (aka. Taxing the Wealthy)
Republicans Reject Obama’s Main Economic Proposals
by Kristina Peterson and Siobhan Hughes, WSJ.com -- Jan. 20, 2015
WASHINGTON -- Congressional Republicans rejected the central economic proposals underpinning President Barack Obama ’s State of the Union address Tuesday night, saying they want to advance their own solutions aimed at spurring economic growth for all income groups.
[...]
Republicans and the White House remained far apart in their strategies for overhauling the tax code, with GOP lawmakers spurning Mr. Obama’s plan as a big-government handout to less affluent households. The White House proposal, released over the weekend, would raise taxes by $320 billion over 10 years on high-income Americans to fund initiatives to benefit those at lower income levels.
“This president seeks to punish success and redistribute wealth on the federal government’s terms,” said Senate Budget Committee Chairman Mike Enzi (R., Wyo.).
Republican Solutions to end Income Inequality 2, 3 & 4) Repeal Obamacare; pass Keystone; lower tax rates.
The Grand Old Party … for the poor?
by Suzy Khimm, msnbc.com -- 01/21/15
[... Republican Senator Joni] Ernst went on to describe the “stagnant wages and lost jobs” that continue to hold back ordinary Americans, then brought her speech back to her own humble roots. [...]
In terms of solutions, Ernst rehashed the main pillars of the Republican agenda: push back against Obamacare, create the Keystone Pipeline, and lower tax rates by simplifying the tax code.
[...]
In his own State of the Union response, Sen. Mike Lee of Utah focused on the “inequality crisis” that has punished the poor as well as the middle class. Lee, however, maintains that the government is responsible for killing economic mobility among the poor, whom he describes as “being trapped in poverty by big-government programs.” Lee’s proposed reforms include cutting benefits through means-testing welfare, among other changes.
Republican Solution 5, proposed by Republican Sen. Mike Lee) Cut Benefits that only pretend to 'help' the Poor.
That'll learn em. (... not to be Poor, anymore.)
Republican Solution to ending Income Inequality 6) Tax Credits -- long as the Rich don't have to pay for them ...
Obama’s Tax Trap
The president’s tax proposal will expose Republicans’ unwillingness to do anything meaningful for the poor.
by Alec MacGillis, slate.com -- Jan 21, 2015
[...]
Some of these Republicans’ proposals -- to expand the earned income tax credit or child tax credit, for instance -- hold real promise. But there is a big problem with this new anti-poverty, anti-inequality platform, one that gives all this new rhetoric an air of unreality: The party remains at its core committed to fighting solutions that would come at the expense of the very wealthiest Americans, even at a time when that upper-upper echelon is achieving truly historic levels of affluence.
[...]
Romney was hardly the only figure on the right being provoked into a clarifying response by Obama’s speech and proposal. Jeb Bush declared on his own Facebook page that it was “unfortunate President Obama wants to use the tax code to divide us -- instead of proposing reforms to create economic opportunity for every American.” [...]
Republican Solution 7 & 8, from Jeb) Stop "Dividing Americans" --
and give "Opportunity" to Everyone!
And this sure-fire Solution for ending Income Inequality in America -- from Speaker John Boehner himself:
WASHINGTON -- Expressing their commitment to helping average American families get a leg up, leaders of the Republican party addressed the nation’s growing income inequality Wednesday by offering the middle class a hot stock tip. “Look, you guys didn’t hear it from us, but we have it on good authority that now’s the time to hop on the IPG Photonics train,” said Speaker of the House John Boehner [...]
Republicans Address Income Inequality By Offering Middle Class Hot Stock Tip
theOnion.com -- Jan 21, 2015
That last one is just a joke ... (from The Onion).
But considering the rest of "their Solutions," one could in all seriousness, ask -- What's the Difference?