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Full Text Obama Presidency May 5, 2013: President Barack Obama’s Commencement Address to Ohio State University’s Class of 2013

POLITICAL TRANSCRIPTS

OBAMA PRESIDENCY & THE 113TH CONGRESS:

Here’s What President Obama Told the Class of 2013 at The Ohio State University

Source: WH, 5-5-13

President Barack Obama delivers the commencement address during The Ohio State University (May 5, 2013)President Barack Obama delivers the commencement address during The Ohio State University commencement at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, May 5, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

The Ohio State University is an institution that dedicates itself to “Education for Citizenship” — the Buckeye motto emblazoned on the school seal.

So when President Obama spoke to the Class of 2013 at the school’s graduation, citizenship was his theme….READ MORE

Remarks by the President at The Ohio State University Commencement

Source: WH, 5-5-13 

Ohio Stadium
Columbus, Ohio

1:00 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Hello, Buckeyes!  O-H!

AUDIENCE:  I-O!

THE PRESIDENT:  O-H!

AUDIENCE:  I-O!

THE PRESIDENT:  O-H!

AUDIENCE:  I-O!

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, thank you so much.  Everybody, please be seated.  Thank you, Dr. Gee, for the wonderful introduction.  I suspect the good President may have edited out some other words that were used to describe me.  (Laughter.)  I appreciate that.  But I’m going to let Michelle know of all the good comments.

To the Board of Trustees; Congresswoman Beatty; Mayor Coleman; and all of you who make up The Ohio State University for allowing me to join you — it is an incredible honor.

And most of all, congratulations, Class of 2013!  (Applause.)  And of course, congratulations to all the parents, and family, and friends and faculty here in the Horseshoe — this is your day as well.  (Applause.)  I’ve been told to ask everybody, though, please be careful with the turf.  Coach Meyer has big plans for this fall.  (Laughter.)

I very much appreciate the President’s introduction.  I will not be singing today.  (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE:  Aww — (laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT:  It is true that I did speak at that certain university up north a few years ago.  But, to be fair, you did let President Ford speak here once — and he played football for Michigan!  (Laughter.)  So everybody can get some redemption.

In my defense, this is my fifth visit to campus in the past year or so.  (Applause.)  One time, I stopped at Sloppy’s to grab some lunch.  Many of you — Sloopy’s — I know.  (Laughter.)  It’s Sunday and I’m coming off a foreign trip.  (Laughter.)  Anyway, so I’m at Sloopy’s and many of you were still eating breakfast.  At 11:30 a.m.  (Laughter.)  On a Tuesday.  (Laughter.)  So, to the Class of 2013, I will offer my first piece of advice:  Enjoy it while you can.  (Laughter.)  Soon, you will not get to wake up and have breakfast at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday.  (Laughter.)  And once you have children, it gets even earlier.  (Laughter.)

But, Class of 2013, your path to this moment has wound you through years of breathtaking change.  You were born as freedom forced its way through a wall in Berlin, tore down an Iron Curtain across Europe.  You were educated in an era of instant information that put the world’s accumulated knowledge at your fingertips.  And you came of age as terror touched our shores; and an historic recession spread across the nation; and a new generation signed up to go to war.

So you’ve been tested and you’ve been tempered by events that your parents and I never imagined we’d see when we sat where you sit.  And yet, despite all this, or perhaps because of it, yours has become a generation possessed with that most American of ideas — that people who love their country can change it for the better.  For all the turmoil, for all the times you’ve been let down, or frustrated at the hand that you’ve been dealt, what I have seen — what we have witnessed from your generation — is that perennial, quintessentially American value of optimism; altruism; empathy; tolerance; a sense of community; a sense of service — all of which makes me optimistic for our future.

Consider that today, 50 ROTC cadets in your graduating class will become commissioned officers in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines.  (Applause.)  A hundred and thirty of your fellow graduates have already served — some in combat, some on multiple deployments.  (Applause.)  Of the 98 veterans earning bachelor’s degrees today, 20 are graduating with honors, and at least one kept serving his fellow veterans when he came home by starting up a campus organization called Vets4Vets.  And as your Commander-in-Chief, I could not be prouder of all of you.  (Applause.)

Consider that graduates of this university serve their country through the Peace Corps, and educate our children through established programs like Teach for America, startups like Blue Engine, often earning little pay for making the biggest impact.  Some of you have already launched startup companies of your own. And I suspect that those of you who pursue more education, or climb the corporate ladder, or enter the arts or science or journalism, you will still choose a cause that you care about in your life and will fight like heck to realize your vision.

There is a word for this.  It’s citizenship.  And we don’t always talk about this idea much these days — citizenship — let alone celebrate it.  Sometimes, we see it as a virtue from another time, a distant past, one that’s slipping from a society that celebrates individual ambition above all else; a society awash in instant technology that empowers us to leverage our skills and talents like never before, but just as easily allows us to retreat from the world.  And the result is that we sometimes forget the larger bonds we share as one American family.

But it’s out there, all the time, every day — especially when we need it most.  Just look at the past year.  When a hurricane struck our mightiest city, and a factory exploded in a small town in Texas, we saw citizenship.  When bombs went off in Boston, and when a malevolent spree of gunfire visited a movie theater, a temple, an Ohio high school, a 1st grade classroom in Connecticut, we saw citizenship.  In the aftermath of darkest tragedy, we have seen the American spirit at its brightest.

We’ve seen the petty divisions of color and class and creed replaced by a united urge to help each other.  We’ve seen courage and compassion, a sense of civic duty, and a recognition we are not a collection of strangers; we are bound to one another by a set of ideals and laws and commitments, and a deep devotion to this country that we love.

And that’s what citizenship is.  It’s at the heart of our founding — that as Americans, we are blessed with God-given talents and inalienable rights, but with those rights come responsibilities — to ourselves, and to one another, and to future generations.  (Applause.)

Now, if we’re being honest with ourselves, as you’ve studied and worked and served to become good citizens, the fact is that all too often the institutions that give structure to our society have, at times, betrayed your trust.  In the run-up to the financial crisis, too many on Wall Street forgot that their obligations don’t end with what’s happening with their shares. In entertainment and in the media, ratings and shock value often trump news and storytelling.

In Washington — well, this is a joyous occasion, so let me put it charitably — (laughter) — I think it’s fair to say our democracy isn’t working as well as we know it can.  It could do better.  (Applause.)  And so those of us fortunate enough to serve in these institutions owe it to you to do better every single day.

And I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how we can keep this idea of citizenship in its fullest sense alive at the national level — not just on Election Day, not just in times of tragedy, but all the days in between.  And perhaps because I spend a lot of time in Washington, I’m obsessed with this issue because that sense of citizenship is so sorely needed there.  And I think of what your generation’s traits — compassion and energy, and a sense of selflessness — might mean for a democracy that must adapt more quickly to keep up with the speed of technological and demographic, and wrenching economic change.

I think about how we might perpetuate this notion of citizenship in a way that another politician from my home state of Illinois, Adlai Stevenson, once described patriotism not as “short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.”  That’s what patriotism is.  That’s what citizenship is.  (Applause.)

Now, I don’t pretend to have all the answers.  I’m not going to offer some grand theory on a beautiful day like this — you guys all have celebrating to do.  I’m not going to get partisan, either, because that’s not what citizenship is about.  In fact, I’m asking the same thing of you that President Bush did when he spoke at this commencement in 2002:  “America needs more than taxpayers, spectators, and occasional voters,” he said. “America needs full-time citizens.”  (Applause.)  And as graduates from a university whose motto is “Education for Citizenship,” I know all of you get that this is what you’ve signed up for.  It’s what your country expects of you.

So briefly, I’ll ask for two things from the Class of 2013: to participate, and to persevere.  After all, your democracy does not function without your active participation.  At a bare minimum, that means voting, eagerly and often — not having somebody drag you to it at 11:30 a.m. when you’re having breakfast.  (Laughter.)  It means knowing who’s been elected to make decisions on your behalf, and what they believe in, and whether or not they delivered on what they said they would.  And if they don’t represent you the way you want, or conduct themselves the way you expect, if they put special interests above your own, you’ve got to let them know that’s not okay.  And if they let you down often enough, there’s a built-in day in November where you can really let them know it’s not okay.  (Applause.)

But participation, your civic duty, is more than just voting.  You don’t have to run for office yourself — but I hope many of you do, at all levels, because our democracy needs you.  And I promise you, it will give you a tough skin.  I know a little bit about this.  (Laughter.)  President Wilson once said, “If you want to make enemies, try to change something.”

And that’s precisely what the Founders left us — the power, each of us, to adapt to changing times.  They left us the keys to a system of self-government, the tools to do big things and important things together that we could not possibly do alone — to stretch railroads and electricity and a highway system across a sprawling continent.  To educate our people with a system of public schools and land-grant colleges, including The Ohio State University.  To care for the sick and the vulnerable, and provide a basic level of protection from falling into abject poverty in the wealthiest nation on Earth.  (Applause.)  To conquer fascism and disease; to visit the Moon and Mars; to gradually secure our God-given rights for all of our citizens, regardless of who they are, or what they look like, or who they love.  (Applause.)

We, the people, chose to do these things together — because we know this country cannot accomplish great things if we pursue nothing greater than our own individual ambition.

Unfortunately, you’ve grown up hearing voices that incessantly warn of government as nothing more than some separate, sinister entity that’s at the root of all our problems; some of these same voices also doing their best to gum up the works.  They’ll warn that tyranny is always lurking just around the corner.  You should reject these voices.  Because what they suggest is that our brave and creative and unique experiment in self-rule is somehow just a sham with which we can’t be trusted.

We have never been a people who place all of our faith in government to solve our problems; we shouldn’t want to.  But we don’t think the government is the source of all our problems, either.  Because we understand that this democracy is ours.  And as citizens, we understand that it’s not about what America can do for us; it’s about what can be done by us, together, through the hard and frustrating but absolutely necessary work of self-government.  (Applause.)  And, Class of 2013, you have to be involved in that process.  (Applause.)

The founders trusted us with this awesome authority.  We should trust ourselves with it, too.  Because when we don’t, when we turn away and get discouraged and cynical, and abdicate that authority, we grant our silent consent to someone who will gladly claim it.  That’s how we end up with lobbyists who set the agenda; and policies detached from what middle-class families face every day; the well-connected who publicly demand that Washington stay out of their business — and then whisper in government’s ear for special treatment that you don’t get.

That’s how a small minority of lawmakers get cover to defeat something the vast majority of their constituents want.  That’s how our political system gets consumed by small things when we are a people called to do great things — like rebuild a middle class, and reverse the rise of inequality, and repair the deteriorating climate that threatens everything we plan to leave for our kids and our grandkids.

Class of 2013, only you can ultimately break that cycle.  Only you can make sure the democracy you inherit is as good as we know it can be.  But it requires your dedicated, and informed, and engaged citizenship.  And that citizenship is a harder, higher road to take, but it leads to a better place.  It’s how we built this country — together.

It’s the question that President Kennedy posed to the nation at his inauguration.  It’s the dream that Dr. King invoked.  It does not promise easy success or immediate progress — but it has led to success, and it has led to progress.  And it has to continue with you.

Which brings me to the second thing I ask of all of you — I ask that you persevere.  Whether you start a business, or run for office, or devote yourself to alleviating poverty or hunger, please remember that nothing worth doing happens overnight.  A British inventor named Dyson went through more than 5,000 prototypes before getting that first really fancy vacuum cleaner just right.  We remember Michael Jordan’s six championships; we don’t remember his nearly 15,000 missed shots.  As for me, I lost my first race for Congress, and look at me now — I’m an honorary graduate of The Ohio State University.  (Applause.)

The point is, if you are living your life to the fullest, you will fail, you will stumble, you will screw up, you will fall down.  But it will make you stronger, and you’ll get it right the next time, or the time after that, or the time after that.  And that is not only true for your personal pursuits, but it’s also true for the broader causes that you believe in as well.

So you can’t give up your passion if things don’t work right away.  You can’t lose heart, or grow cynical if there are twists and turns on your journey.  The cynics may be the loudest voices — but I promise you, they will accomplish the least.  It’s those folks who stay at it, those who do the long, hard, committed work of change that gradually push this country in the right direction, and make the most lasting difference.

So whenever you feel that creeping cynicism, whenever you hear those voices saying you can’t do it, you can’t make a difference, whenever somebody tells you to set your sights lower — the trajectory of this great nation should give you hope.  What generations have done before you should give you hope.  Because it was young people just like you who marched and mobilized and stood up and sat in to secure women’s rights, and voting rights, and workers’ rights, and gay rights — often at incredible odds, often at great danger, often over the course of years, sometimes over the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime — and they never got acknowledged for it, but they made a difference.  (Applause.)

And even if their rights were already secured, there were those who fought to secure those same rights and opportunities for others.  And that should give you some hope.

Where we’re going should give you hope.  Because while things are still hard for a lot of people, you have every reason to believe that your future is bright.  You’re graduating into an economy and a job market that is steadily healing.  The once-dying American auto industry is on pace for its strongest performance in 20 years — something that means everything to many communities in Ohio and across the Midwest.  Huge strides in domestic energy, driven in part by research at universities like this one, have us on track to secure our own energy future.  Incredible advances in information and technology spurred largely by the risk-takers of your generation have the potential to change the way we do almost everything.

There is not another country on Earth that would not gladly change places with the United States of America.  And that will be true for your generation just as it was true for previous generations.

So you’ve got a lot to look forward to, but if there’s one certainty about the decade ahead, it’s that things will be uncertain.  Change will be a constant, just as it has been throughout our history.  And, yes, we still face many important challenges.  Some will require technological breakthroughs or new policy insights.  But more than anything, what we will need is political will — to harness the ingenuity of your generation, and encourage and inspire the hard work of dedicated citizens.  To repair the middle class, to give more families a fair shake, to reject a country in which only a lucky few prosper because that’s antithetical to our ideals and our democracy — all of this is going to happen if you are involved, because it takes dogged determination — the dogged determination of our citizens.

To educate more children at a younger age, and to reform our high schools for a new time, and to give more young people the chance to earn the kind of education that you did at The Ohio State University, and to make it more affordable so young people don’t leave with a mountain of debt — that will take the care and concern of citizens like you.  (Applause.)

To build better roads and airports and faster Internet, and to advance the kinds of basic research and technology that’s always kept America ahead of everybody else — that will take the grit and fortitude of citizens.

To confront the threat of climate change before it’s too late — that requires the idealism and the initiative of citizens.

To protect more of our kids from the horrors of gun violence — that requires the unwavering passion, the untiring resolve of citizens.  (Applause.)  It will require you.

Fifty years ago, President Kennedy told the class of 1963 that “our problems are manmade — therefore, they can be solved by man.  And man can be as big as he wants.”  We’re blessed to live in the greatest nation on Earth.  But we can always be greater.  We can always aspire to something more.  That doesn’t depend on who you elect to office.  It depends on you, as citizens, how big you want us to be, how badly you want to see these changes for the better.

And look at all that America has already accomplished.  Look at how big we’ve been.  I dare you, Class of 2013, to do better. I dare you to dream bigger.

And from what I’ve seen of your generation, I’m confident that you will.  And so I wish you courage, and compassion, and all the strength that you will need for that tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.

Thank you.  God bless you, and God bless these United States of America.  (Applause.)

END
1:26 P.M. EDT

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by bonniekgoodman on May 5, 2013  •  Permalink
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Political Headlines May 5, 2013: President Barack Obama Gives Commencement Address at Ohio State University

POLITICAL HEADLINES

http://historymusings.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/pol_headlines.jpg?w=600

OBAMA PRESIDENCY & THE 113TH CONGRESS:

THE HEADLINES….

Obama Gives Commencement Address at Ohio State University

President Barack Obama joins The Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee, left, and others in the processional before the start of commencement at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, May 5, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Source: ABC News Radio, 5-5-13

In his first commencement address of this year’s graduation season, President Obama encouraged more than 10,000  graduates gathered at Ohio State University to pay heed to their duty as citizens and become active participants in their country in the years ahead.

“This democracy is ours. As citizens, we understand that it is not about what America may do for us. It’s about what can be done by us, together, through the hard and frustrating but absolutely necessary work of self-government and to the class of 2013 you have to be involved in that process.”…READ MORE

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by bonniekgoodman on May 5, 2013  •  Permalink
Posted in Education, Obama Administration, Political Headlines, President Barack Obama
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Posted by bonniekgoodman on May 5, 2013

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Full Text Obama Presidency February 15, 2013: President Barack Obama’s Speech on Strengthening the Economy For The Middle Class & Gun Violence at Hyde Park Career Academy Chicago, Illinois

Giving Every Child a Chance in Life

Source: WH, 2-15-13

President Obama at the Hyde Park Career Academy Chicago, Illinois, Feb. 15, 2013President Barack Obama delivers remarks to discuss proposals unveiled in the State of the Union Address that focus on strengthening the economy for the middle class and those striving to get there, at Hyde Park Academy, Chicago, Ill., Feb. 15, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

President Obama was in Chicago on Friday to talk about the importance of making sure every child in America has every chance in life to succeed. Speaking at the Hyde Park Career Academy, which is less than a mile from the Obama’s home in that city, the President discussed the recent death of Hadiyah Pendleton, a Chicago teenager who was shot just days after attending the 57th Presidential Inauguration in Washington, DC.

Hadiyah’s parents were guests of First Lady Michelle Obama at the State of the Union address on Tuesday, where President Obama discussed the need to prevent this kind of senseless violence and protect American children. But the important goal of  keeping guns out of the hands of criminals is not enough to ensure a bright future for all of our children, and the President also laid out a plan to rebuild ladders of opportunity for every American who is willing to work hard and climb them. This includes making sure every child in America has access to high-quality pre-K, and raising the minimum wage so that no family that works hard and relies on a minimum wage is living in poverty. But creating a path into the middle class also means transforming high-poverty communities into places of opportunity that can attract private investment, improve education, and create jobs, and President Obama talked about his plan to make that happen:

And that’s why on Tuesday I announced — and that’s part of what I want to focus on here in Chicago and across the country — is my intention to partner with 20 of the hardest-hit communities in America to get them back in the game — get them back in the game.

First, we’ll work with local leaders to cut through red tape and improve things like public safety and education and housing. And we’ll bring all the resources to bear in a coordinated fashion so that we can get that tipping point where suddenly a community starts feeling like things are changing and we can come back.

Second of all, if you’re willing to play a role in a child’s education, then we’ll help you reform your schools. We want to seed more and more partnerships of the kind that Rahm is trying to set up.

Third, we’re going to help bring jobs and growth to hard-hit neighborhoods by giving tax breaks to business owners who invest and hire in those neighborhoods.

Fourth, and specific to the issue of violence — because it’s very hard to develop economically if people don’t feel safe. If they don’t feel like they can walk down the street and shop at a store without getting hit over head or worse, then commerce dries up, businesses don’t want to locate, families move out, you get into the wrong cycle. So we’re going to target neighborhoods struggling to deal with violent crime and help them reduce that violence in ways that have been proven to work. And I know this is a priority of your Mayor’s; it’s going to be a priority of mine.

And finally, we’re going to keep working in communities all across the country, including here in Chicago, to replace run-down public housing that doesn’t offer much hope or safety with new, healthy homes for low- and moderate-income families.

Learn more about President Obama’s plan for a strong middle class and a strong America:

Remarks By The President On Strengthening The Economy For The Middle Class

Hyde Park Career Academy Chicago, Illinois

3:31 P.M. CST

THE PRESIDENT: Hey, Chicago! (Applause.) Hello, Chicago! Hello, everybody. Hello, Hyde Park! (Applause.) It is good to be home! It is good to be home. Everybody have a seat. You all relax. It’s just me. You all know me. It is good to be back home.

A couple of people I want to acknowledge — first of all, I want to thank your Mayor, my great friend, Rahm Emanuel for his outstanding leadership of the city and his kind introduction. (Applause.) I want to thank everybody here at Hyde Park Academy for welcoming me here today. (Applause.)

I want to acknowledge your principal and your assistant principal — although, they really make me feel old, because when I saw them — (laughter) — where are they? Where are they? Stand up. Stand up. (Applause.) They are doing outstanding work. We’re very, very proud them. But you do make me feel old. Sit down. (Laughter.)

A couple other people I want to acknowledge — Governor Pat Quinn is here doing great work down in Springfield. (Applause.) My great friend and senior Senator Dick Durbin is in the house. (Applause.) Congressman Bobby Rush is here. (Applause.) We’re in his district. Attorney General and former seatmate of mine when I was in the state senate, Lisa Madigan. (Applause.) County Board President — used to be my alderwoman — Tony Preckwinkle in the house. (Applause.)

And I’ve got — I see a lot of reverend clergy here, but I’m not going to mention them, because if I miss one I’m in trouble. (Laughter.) They’re all friends of mine. They’ve been knowing me.

Some people may not know this, but obviously, this is my old neighborhood. I used to teach right around the corner. This is where Michelle and I met, where we fell in love –

AUDIENCE: Aww –

THE PRESIDENT: This is where we raised our daughters, in a house just about a mile away from here — less than a mile. And that’s really what I’ve come here to talk about today — raising our kids.

AUDIENCE: We love you!

THE PRESIDENT: I love you, too. (Applause.) I love you, too.

I’m here to make sure that we talk about and then work towards giving every child every chance in life; building stronger communities and new ladders of opportunity that they can climb into the middle class and beyond; and, most importantly, keeping them safe from harm.

Michelle was born and raised here — a proud daughter of the South Side. (Applause.) Last weekend, she came home, but it was to attend the funeral of Hadiya Pendleton. And Hadiya’s parents, by the way, are here — and I want to just acknowledge them. They are just wonderful, wonderful people. (Applause.)

And as you know, this week, in my State of the Union, I talked about Hadiya on Tuesday night and the fact that unfortunately what happened to Hadiya is not unique. It’s not unique to Chicago. It’s not unique to this country. Too many of our children are being taken away from us.

Two months ago, America mourned 26 innocent first-graders and their educators in Newtown. And today, I had the high honor of giving the highest civilian award I can give to the parent — or the families of the educators who had been killed in Newtown. And there was something profound and uniquely heartbreaking and tragic, obviously, about a group of 6-year-olds being killed. But last year, there were 443 murders with a firearm on the streets of this city, and 65 of those victims were 18 and under. So that’s the equivalent of a Newtown every four months.

And that’s precisely why the overwhelming majority of Americans are asking for some common-sense proposals to make it harder for criminals to get their hands on a gun. And as I said on Tuesday night, I recognize not everybody agrees with every issue. There are regional differences. The experience of gun ownership is different in urban areas than it is in rural areas, different from upstate and downstate Illinois. But these proposals deserve a vote in Congress. They deserve a vote. (Applause.) They deserve a vote. And I want to thank those members of Congress who are working together in a serious way to try to address this issue.

But I’ve also said no law or set of laws can prevent every senseless act of violence in this country. When a child opens fire on another child, there’s a hole in that child’s heart that government can’t fill — only community and parents and teachers and clergy can fill that hole. In too many neighborhoods today — whether here in Chicago or the farthest reaches of rural America — it can feel like for a lot of young people the future only extends to the next street corner or the outskirts of town; that no matter how much you work or how hard you try, your destiny was determined the moment you were born. There are entire neighborhoods where young people, they don’t see an example of somebody succeeding. And for a lot of young boys and young men, in particular, they don’t see an example of fathers or grandfathers, uncles, who are in a position to support families and be held up and respected.

And so that means that this is not just a gun issue. It’s also an issue of the kinds of communities that we’re building. And for that, we all share a responsibility, as citizens, to fix it. We all share a responsibility to move this country closer to our founding vision that no matter who you are, or where you come from, here in America, you can decide your own destiny. You can succeed if you work hard and fulfill your responsibilities. (Applause.)

Now, that means we’ve got to grow our economy and create more good jobs. It means we’ve got to equip every American with the skills and the training to fill those jobs. And it means we’ve got to rebuild ladders of opportunity for everybody willing to climb them.

Now, that starts at home. There’s no more important ingredient for success, nothing that would be more important for us reducing violence than strong, stable families — which means we should do more to promote marriage and encourage fatherhood. (Applause.) Don’t get me wrong — as the son of a single mom, who gave everything she had to raise me with the help of my grandparents, I turned out okay. (Applause and laughter.) But — no, no, but I think it’s — so we’ve got single moms out here, they’re heroic in what they’re doing and we are so proud of them. (Applause.) But at the same time, I wish I had had a father who was around and involved. Loving, supportive parents — and, by the way, that’s all kinds of parents — that includes foster parents, and that includes grandparents, and extended families; it includes gay or straight parents. (Applause.)

Those parents supporting kids — that’s the single most important thing. Unconditional love for your child — that makes a difference. If a child grows up with parents who have work, and have some education, and can be role models, and can teach integrity and responsibility, and discipline and delayed gratification — all those things give a child the kind of foundation that allows them to say, my future, I can make it what I want. And we’ve got to make sure that every child has that, and in some cases, we may have to fill the gap and the void if children don’t have that.

So we should encourage marriage by removing the financial disincentives for couples who love one another but may find it financially disadvantageous if they get married. We should reform our child support laws to get more men working and engaged with their children. (Applause.) And my administration will continue to work with the faith community and the private sector this year on a campaign to encourage strong parenting and fatherhood. Because what makes you a man is not the ability to make a child, it’s the courage to raise one. (Applause.)

We also know, though, that there is no surer path to success in the middle class than a good education. And what we now know is that that has to begin in the earliest years. Study after study shows that the earlier a child starts learning, the more likely they are to succeed — the more likely they are to do well at Hyde Park Academy; the more likely they are to graduate; the more likely they are to get a good job; the more likely they are to form stable families and then be able to raise children themselves who get off to a good start.

Chicago already has a competition, thanks to what the Mayor is doing, that rewards the best preschools in the city — so Rahm has already prioritized this. But what I’ve also done is say, let’s give every child across America access to high-quality, public preschool. Every child, not just some. (Applause.) Every dollar we put into early childhood education can save $7 down the road by boosting graduation rates, reducing teen pregnancy, reducing violent crime, reducing the welfare rolls, making sure that folks who have work, now they’re paying taxes. All this stuff pays back huge dividends if we make the investment. So let’s make this happen. Let’s make sure every child has the chance they deserve. (Applause.)

As kids go through school, we’ll recruit new math and science teachers to make sure that they’ve got the skills that the future demands. We’ll help more young people in low-income neighborhoods get summer jobs. We’ll redesign our high schools and encourage our kids to stay in high school, so that the diploma they get leads directly to a good job once they graduate. (Applause.)

Right here in Chicago, five new high schools have partnered with companies and community colleges to prepare our kids with the skills that businesses are looking for right now. And your College to Careers program helps community college students get access to the same kinds of real-world experiences. So we know what works. Let’s just do it in more places. Let’s reach more young people. Let’s give more kids a chance.

So we know how important families are. We know how important education is. We recognize that government alone can’t solve these problems of violence and poverty, that everybody has to be involved. But we also have to remember that the broader economic environment of communities is critical as well. For example, we need to make sure that folks who are working now, often in the hardest jobs, see their work rewarded with wages that allow them to raise a family without falling into poverty. (Applause.)

Today, a family with two kids that works hard and relies on a minimum wage salary still lives below the poverty line. That’s wrong, and we should fix it. We should reward an honest day’s work with honest wages. And that’s why we should raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour and make it a wage you can live on. (Applause.)

And even though some cities have bounced back pretty quickly from the recession, we know that there are communities and neighborhoods within cities or in small towns that haven’t bounced back. Cities like Chicago are ringed with former factory towns that never came back all the way from plants packing up; there are pockets of poverty where young adults are still looking for their first job.

And that’s why on Tuesday I announced — and that’s part of what I want to focus on here in Chicago and across the country — is my intention to partner with 20 of the hardest-hit communities in America to get them back in the game — get them back in the game. (Applause.)

First, we’ll work with local leaders to cut through red tape and improve things like public safety and education and housing. And we’ll bring all the resources to bear in a coordinated fashion so that we can get that tipping point where suddenly a community starts feeling like things are changing and we can come back.

Second of all, if you’re willing to play a role in a child’s education, then we’ll help you reform your schools. We want to seed more and more partnerships of the kind that Rahm is trying to set up.

Third, we’re going to help bring jobs and growth to hard-hit neighborhoods by giving tax breaks to business owners who invest and hire in those neighborhoods. (Applause.)

Fourth, and specific to the issue of violence — because it’s very hard to develop economically if people don’t feel safe. If they don’t feel like they can walk down the street and shop at a store without getting hit over head or worse, then commerce dries up, businesses don’t want to locate, families move out, you get into the wrong cycle. So we’re going to target neighborhoods struggling to deal with violent crime and help them reduce that violence in ways that have been proven to work. And I know this is a priority of your Mayor’s; it’s going to be a priority of mine. (Applause.)

And finally, we’re going to keep working in communities all across the country, including here in Chicago, to replace run-down public housing that doesn’t offer much hope or safety with new, healthy homes for low- and moderate-income families. (Applause.)

And here in Woodlawn, you’ve seen some of the progress that we can make when we come together to rebuild our neighborhoods, and attract new businesses, and improve our schools. Woodlawn is not all the way where it needs to be, but thanks to wonderful institutions like Apostolic Church, we’ve made great progress. (Applause.)

So we want to help more communities follow your example. And let’s go even farther by offering incentives to companies that hire unemployed Americans who have got what it takes to fill a job opening, but they may have been out of work so long that nobody is willing to give them a chance right now. Let’s put our people back to work rebuilding vacant homes in need of repair. Young people can get experience — apprenticeships, learn a trade. And we’re removing blight from our community. (Applause.)

If we gather together what works, we can extend more ladders of opportunity for anybody who’s working to build a strong, middle-class life for themselves. Because in America, your destiny shouldn’t be determined by where you live, where you were born. It should be determined by how big you’re willing to dream, how much effort and sweat and tears you’re willing to put in to realizing that dream.

When I first moved to Chicago — before any of the students in this room were born — (laughter) — and a whole lot of people who are in the audience remember me from those days, I lived in a community on the South Side right up the block, but I also worked further south where communities had been devastated by some of the steel plants closing. And my job was to work with churches and laypeople and local leaders to rebuild neighborhoods, and improve schools, and help young people who felt like they had nowhere to turn.

And those of you who worked with me, Reverend Love, you remember, it wasn’t easy. Progress didn’t come quickly. Sometimes I got so discouraged I thought about just giving up. But what kept me going was the belief that with enough determination and effort and persistence and perseverance, change is always possible; that we may not be able to help everybody, but if we help a few then that propels progress forward. We may not be able to save every child from gun violence, but if we save a few, that starts changing the atmosphere in our communities. (Applause.) We may not be able to get everybody a job right away, but if we get a few folks a job, then everybody starts feeling a little more hopeful and a little more encouraged. (Applause.) Neighborhood by neighborhood, one block by one block, one family at a time.

Now, this is what I had a chance to talk about when I met with some young men from Hyde Park Academy who were participating in this B.A.M. program. Where are the guys I talked to? Stand up you all, so we can all see you guys. (Applause.) So these are some — these are all some exceptional young men, and I couldn’t be prouder of them. And the reason I’m proud of them is because a lot of them have had some issues. That’s part of the reason why you guys are in the program. (Laughter.)

But what I explained to them was I had issues too when I was their age. I just had an environment that was a little more forgiving. So when I screwed up, the consequences weren’t as high as when kids on the South Side screw up. (Applause.) So I had more of a safety net. But these guys are no different than me, and we had that conversation about what does it take to change. And the same thing that it takes for us individually to change, I said to them, well, that’s what it takes for communities to change. That’s what it takes for countries to change. It’s not easy.

But it does require us, first of all, having a vision about where we want to be. It requires us recognizing that it will be hard work getting there. It requires us being able to overcome and persevere in the face of roadblocks and disappointments and failures. It requires us reflecting internally about who we are and what we believe in, and facing up to our own fears and insecurities, and admitting when we’re wrong. And that same thing that we have to do in our individual lives that these guys talked about, that’s what we have to do for our communities. And it will not be easy, but it can be done.

When Hadiya Pendleton and her classmates visited Washington three weeks ago, they spent time visiting the monuments — including the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial just off the National Mall. And that memorial stands as a tribute to everything Dr. King achieved in his lifetime. But it also reminds us of how hard that work was and how many disappointments he experienced. He was here in Chicago fighting poverty, and just like a lot of us, there were times where he felt like he was losing hope. So in some ways, that memorial is a testament not to work that’s completed, but it’s a testament to the work that remains unfinished.

His goal was to free us not only from the shackles of discrimination, but from the shadow of poverty that haunts too many of our communities, the self-destructive impulses, and the mindless violence that claims so many lives of so many innocent young people.

These are difficult challenges. No solution we offer will be perfect. But perfection has never been our goal. Our goal has been to try and make whatever difference we can. Our goal has been to engage in the hard but necessary work of bringing America one step closer to the nation we know we can be.

If we do that, if we’re striving with every fiber of our being to strengthen our middle class, to extend ladders of opportunity for everybody who is trying as hard as they can to create a better life for themselves; if we do everything in our power to keep our children safe from harm; if we’re fulfilling our obligations to one another and to future generations; if we make that effort, then I’m confident — I’m confident that we will write the next great chapter in our American story. I’m not going to be able to do it by myself, though. Nobody can. We’re going to have to do it together.

Thank you, everybody. God bless you. God bless the United States of America. (Applause.)

END        3:58 P.M. CST

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Political Headlines February 15, 2013: President Barack Obama touts preschool initiatives in State of the Union tour

POLITICAL HEADLINES

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OBAMA PRESIDENCY & THE 113TH CONGRESS:

THE HEADLINES….

Obama touts preschool initiatives in State of the Union tour

Source: Chicago Tribune, Reuters, 2-15-13

President Barack Obama turned his State of the Union roadshow to the topic of education on Thursday with a trip to Georgia, where he touted proposals to provide preschool access to all four-year-olds across America….READ MORE

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Full Text Obama Presidency February 14, 2013: President Barack Obama’s Speech on Early Childhood Education & Universal Preschools at Decatur Community Recreation Center in Decatur, Georgia

POLITICAL BUZZ


OBAMA PRESIDENCY & THE 113TH CONGRESS:

Remarks by the President on Early Childhood Education — Decatur, GA

Source: WH, 2-14-13

Decatur Community Recreation Center
Decatur, Georgia

1:28 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, everybody!  (Applause.)  Well, it is great to be in Georgia!  (Applause.)  Great to be in Decatur!  (Applause.)

I can’t imagine a more romantic way to spend Valentine’s Day — (laughter) — than with all of you, with all the press here.  Actually, Michelle says hello.  (Applause.)  She made me promise to get back in time for our date tonight.  (Laughter.)  That’s important.  That’s important.  I’ve already got a gift, got the flowers.  (Applause.)  I was telling folks the flowers are a little easier, though, because I’ve got this Rose Garden.  (Laughter.)  Lot of people keeping flowers around.

I want to acknowledge a few people who are here — first of all, Congressman Hank Johnson is here.  Where’s Hank?  (Applause.)  Your Mayor, Jim Baskett, is here.  (Applause.)  Another Mayor you may know — Kasim Reed snuck in here.  (Applause.)  I want to acknowledge the Decatur School Board, who I had a chance to meet and has helped to do so much great work around here.  (Applause.)  Folks right here.

And of course, I want to thank Mary for the wonderful introduction and for teaching me how to count earlier today.  (Laughter.)  I’ve got to tell you it was wonderful to be there.  I want to thank all the teachers and the parents and the administrators of Decatur City Schools, because behind every child who is doing great there is a great teacher, and I’m proud of every single one of you for the work that you do here today.  (Applause.)

Now, on Tuesday, I delivered my State of the Union address.  And I laid out a plan for reigniting what I believe is the true engine of America’s economic growth, and that is a thriving, growing, rising middle class.  And that also means ladders for people to get into the middle class.  And the plan I put forward says we need to make smart choices as a country — both to grow our economy, shrink our deficits in a balanced way by cutting what we don’t need but then investing in the things that we do need to make sure that everybody has a chance to get ahead in life.

What we need is to make America a magnet for new jobs by investing in manufacturing, and energy, and better roads and bridges and schools.  We’ve got to make sure hard work is rewarded with a wage that you can live on and raise a family on.
We need to make sure that we’ve got shared responsibility for giving every American the chance to earn the skills and education that they need for a really competitive, global job market.

As I said on Tuesday night, that education has to start at the earliest possible age.  And that’s what you have realized here in Decatur.  (Applause.)  Study after study shows that the earlier a child begins learning, the better he or she does down the road.  But here’s the thing:  We are not doing enough to give all of our kids that chance.  The kids we saw today that I had a chance to spend time with in Mary’s classroom, they’re some of the lucky ones — because fewer than 3 in 10 four-year-olds are enrolled in a high-quality preschool program.

Most middle-class parents can’t afford a few hundred bucks a week for private preschool.  And for the poor children who need it the most, the lack of access to a great preschool education can have an impact on their entire lives.  And we all pay a price for that.  And as I said, this is not speculation.  Study after study shows the achievement gap starts off very young.  Kids who, when they go into kindergarten, their first day, if they already have a lot fewer vocabulary words, they don’t know their numbers and their shapes and have the capacity for focus, they’re going to be behind that first day.  And it’s very hard for them to catch up over time.

And then, at a certain point — I bet a lot of teachers have seen this — kids aren’t stupid.  They know they’re behind at a certain point, and then they start pulling back, and they act like they’re disinterested in school because they’re frustrated that they’re not doing as well as they should, and then you may lose them.

And that’s why, on Tuesday night, I proposed working with states like Georgia to make high-quality preschool available to every child in America.  Every child.  (Applause.)

Every dollar we invest in high-quality early education can save more than seven dollars later on — boosting graduation rates, reducing teen pregnancy, reducing violent crime.  In states like Georgia that have made it a priority to educate our youngest children, states like Oklahoma, students don’t just show up in kindergarten and first grade more prepared to learn, they’re also more likely to grow up reading and doing math at grade level, graduating from high school, holding a job, even forming more stable families.

Hope is found in what works.  This works.  We know it works.  If you are looking for a good bang for your educational buck, this is it right here.  (Applause.)

That’s why, even in times of tight budgets, states like Georgia and Oklahoma have worked to make a preschool slot available for nearly every parent who is looking for one for their child.  And they’re being staffed with folks like Mary — qualified, highly educated teachers.  This is not babysitting.  This is teaching.  (Applause.)

So at the age that our children are just sponges soaking stuff in, their minds are growing fastest, what we saw in the classroom here today was kids are taught numbers, they’re taught shapes, but also how to answer questions, discover patterns, play well with others.  And the teachers who were in the classroom, they’ve got a coach who’s coming in and working with them on best practices and paying attention to how they can constantly improve what they’re doing.

And that whole playing well with others, by the way, is a trait we could use more in Washington.  (Applause.)  So maybe we need to bring the teachers up — (applause) — every once in a while have some quiet time.  (Laughter.)  Time out.  (Laughter.)

So at the College Heights Early Childhood Learning Center that I visited earlier today, nearly 200 little kids are spending full days learning in classrooms with highly qualified teachers.  (Applause.)  And so I was working with them to build towers and replicate sculptures and sing songs.  And, look, I’ve got to admit, I was not always the fastest guy on some of this stuff.  (Laughter.)  The kids were beating me to the punch.  But through this interactive learning, they’re learning math, writing, how to tell stories.

And one of the things that you’ve done here in Decatur that’s wonderful also is, is that you’ve combined kids from different income levels; you’ve got disabled kids all in the same classroom, so we’re all learning together.  (Applause.)  And what that means is, is that all the kids are being leveled up, and you’re not seeing some of that same stratification that you see that eventually leads to these massive achievement gaps.

So before you know it, these kids are going to be moving on to bigger and better things in kindergarten, and they’re going to be better prepared to succeed.  And what’s more, I don’t think you’ll find a working parent in America who wouldn’t appreciate the peace of mind that their child is in a safe, high-quality learning environment every single day.  (Applause.)

Michelle and I remember how tough it can be to find good childcare.  I remember how expensive it can be, too.  The size of your paycheck, though, shouldn’t determine your child’s future.  (Applause.)  So let’s fix this.  Let’s make sure none of our kids start out the race of life already a step behind.  Let’s make it a national priority to give every child access to a high-quality early education.  Let’s give our kids that chance.

Now, I do have to warn the parents who are here who still have young kids — they grow up to be, like, 5’10” — (laughter) — and even if they’re still nice to you, they basically don’t have a lot of time for you during the weekends.  (Laughter.)  They have sleepovers and — dates.  (Laughter.)  So all that early investment — (laughter) — just leads them to go away.  (Laughter.)

Now, what I also said on Tuesday night is that our commitment to our kids’ education has to continue throughout their academic lives.  So from the time our kids start grade school, we need to equip them with the skills they need to compete in a high-tech economy.  That’s why we’re working to recruit and train 100,000 new teachers in the fields of the future — in science and technology, and engineering and math where we are most likely to fall behind.

We’ve got to redesign our high schools so that a diploma puts our kids on a path to a good job.  (Applause.)  We want to reward schools that develop new partnerships with colleges and employers, and create classes that focus on science and technology, and engineering and math — all the things that can help our kids fill those jobs that are there right now but also in the future.

And obviously, once our kids graduate from high school, we’ve got to make sure that skyrocketing costs don’t price middle-class families out of a higher education — (applause) — or saddle them with unsustainable debt.  I mean, some of the younger teachers who are here, they’ve chosen a career path that is terrific, but let’s face it, you don’t go into teaching to get rich.  (Laughter.)  And it is very important that we make sure that they can afford to get a great education and can choose to be a teacher, can choose to be in a teaching profession.  (Applause.)

So we’ve worked to make college more affordable for millions of students and families already through tax credits and grants and loans that go farther than before.  But taxpayers can’t keep subsidizing ever-escalating price tags for higher education.  At some point you run out of money.  So colleges have to do their part.  And colleges that don’t do enough to keep costs in check should get less federal support so that we’re incentivizing colleges to think about how to keep their costs down.

And just yesterday, we released what we’re calling a new “College Scorecard” that gives parents and students all the information they need to compare schools by value and affordability so that they can make the best choice.  And any interested parent, by the way, who’s out there can check it out at Whitehouse.gov.  (Applause.)

Now, in the end, that’s what this is all about — giving our kids the best possible shot at life; equipping them with the skills, education that a 21st century economy demands; giving them every chance to go as far as their hard work and God-given potential will take them.

That’s not just going to make sure that they do well; that will strengthen our economy and our country for all of us.  Because if their generation prospers, if they’ve got the skills they need to get a good job, that means businesses want to locate here.  And it also means, by the way, they’re well-equipped as citizens with the critical thinking skills that they need in order to help guide our democracy.  We’ll all prosper that way.  That’s what we’re fighting for.  They’re the ones who are going to write that next great chapter in the American story, and we’ve got to make sure that we’re providing that investment.

I am so proud of every single teacher who is here who has dedicated their lives to making sure those kids get a good start in life.  I want to make sure that I’m helping, and I want to make sure that the country is behind you every step of the way.

Thank you, everybody.  God bless you.  God bless America.  (Applause.)

END
1:45 P.M. EST

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by bonniekgoodman on February 14, 2013  •  Permalink
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Political Headlines February 14, 2013: Details Emerge on President Barack Obama’s Call to Extend Preschool

POLITICAL HEADLINES

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OBAMA PRESIDENCY & THE 113TH CONGRESS:

THE HEADLINES….

Details Emerge on Obama’s Call to Extend Preschool

Source: NYT, 2-14-13

President Obama’s plan to expand preschool to all 4-year-olds would involve working with states to help low- and moderate income families get access to such schooling….READ MORE

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Legal Buzz October 10, 2012: Fisher v. University of Texas: Supreme Court Poses Tough Questions in Affirmative Action Case

LEGAL BUZZ

COURT AND LEGAL NEWS:

Supreme Court Poses Tough Questions in Affirmative Action Case

Source: ABC News Radio., 10-10-12

 At the Supreme Court Wednesday, the conservative justices had questions for a lawyer defending the University of Texas’ plan that takes race into consideration in the admissions process.
One of their main concerns goes to the heart of the case: at what point does the court stop deferring to a university’s judgment that the consideration of race is still necessary?“I understand my job under our precedents is to determine if your use of race is narrowly tailored to a compelling interest,” Chief Justice John Roberts said to Gregory Garre, a lawyer representing the University of Texas. “The compelling interest you identify is attaining a critical mass of minority students at the University of Texas, but you won’t tell what the critical mass is. How am I supposed to do the job that our precedents say I should do?”…READ MORE

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by bonniekgoodman on October 10, 2012  •  Permalink
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Full Text Campaign Buzz October 3, 2012: First Presidential Debate Transcript — President Barack Obama vs. Mitt Romney Debate in Denver, Colorado

CAMPAIGN 2012

CAMPAIGN BUZZ 2012

THE HEADLINES….

Live! Barack Obama and Mitt Romney in the first U.S. Presidential debate

Presidential Debate Transcript

Source: ABC News, 10-3-12

The full transcript of the Presidential Debate from Denver, Colo. below, updated every 15 minutes throughout the debate….READ MORE

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by bonniekgoodman on October 3, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Barack Obama, Campaign & Elections News, Campaign 2012, Campaign Speeches & Statements, Debate Transcripts, Domestic Policy, Economy, Education, General Election 2012, Health Care Plan / Obama Care, Mitt Romney, Presidential Campaigns & Elections, Presidential Debates
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Full Text Campaign Buzz September 25, 2012: Mitt Romney’s Speech at Education Nation — We Must Have The Best Teachers

CAMPAIGN 2012

CAMPAIGN BUZZ 2012

THE HEADLINES….

Mitt Romney: We Must Have The Best Teachers

Source: Mitt Romney Press, 9-25-12

“Education is about teachers, great leadership and parents. And the union has a different objective. I understand, it’s fine for them to promote it. It’s not fine for us just to go along with it.”– Mitt Romney

Education Nation
New York, NY
September 25, 2012

Click Here To Watch Mitt Romney

MITT ROMNEY: “Teaching is a profession. I understand the interest of the teachers union, and the teachers union has every right to represent their members in the way they think is best for their members. But we have every right to in fact say, no, this is what we want to do which is in the best interests of our children. And I believe in the best interests of our children is to recognize that teaching is a profession, like your profession, like my profession, like lawyers like doctors. And the very best are more highly compensated and rewarded and measured. We don’t just presume that because we’ve been here for a certain number of years we should get more and more pay every year. Instead, we get measured. And if teachers say, well, there’s no good measurement system, we say, well, let’s look for one. Let’s see what does work. Let’s see if we can agree on some kinds of measures and learn from those things. But I want the best teachers to be highly compensated. I want starting teachers, particularly those that have extraordinary records who have a track record in school of excellence and learning, I want them to be well compensated, to be drawn into the profession. Education is about teachers, great leadership and parents. And the union has a different objective. I understand, it’s fine for them to promote it. It’s not fine for us just to go along with it.”

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by bonniekgoodman on September 25, 2012  •  Permalink
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Full Text Campaign Buzz September 20, 2012: Mitt Romney’s Speech at a Campaign Event in Sarasota, Florida — “I Will Change Washington”

CAMPAIGN 2012

CAMPAIGN BUZZ 2012

THE HEADLINES….

Mitt Romney: “I Will Change Washington”

Source: Mitt Romney Press, 9-20-12

“[President Obama] can’t do it. His slogan was ‘Yes, we can.’ His slogan now is ‘No, I can’t.’ This is time for a new president.” – Mitt Romney

Remarks
Sarasota, FL
September 20, 2012

Click Here To Watch Mitt Romney

MITT ROMNEY: “Now the country faces major challenges, you know that we face massive debt, trillion-dollar deficits. We face a Washington that’s broken – that can’t get the job done. The President today threw in the white flag of surrender again. He said he can’t change Washington from inside. He can only change it from outside. Well, we’re going to give him that chance in November. He’s going outside. I can change Washington. I will change Washington. We’ll get the job done from the inside – Republicans and Democrats will come together. He can’t do it. His slogan was ‘Yes, we can.’ His slogan now is ‘No, I can’t.’ This is time for a new president.”

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by bonniekgoodman on September 20, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by bonniekgoodman on September 20, 2012

http://historymusings.wordpress.com/2012/09/20/full-text-campaign-buzz-september-20-2012-mitt-romneys-speech-at-a-campaign-event-in-sarasota-florida-i-will-change-washington/

Full Text Campaign Buzz August 21, 2012: President Barack Obama’s Speech at a Campaign Event in Truckee Meadows Community College Reno, Nevada — Shifts Aim to Mitt Romney-Paul Ryan Education Plan

CAMPAIGN 2012

CAMPAIGN BUZZ 2012

THE HEADLINES….

Remarks by the President at Campaign Event – Reno, NV

Source: WH, 8-21-12

Truckee Meadows Community College
Reno, Nevada

4:44 P.M. PDT

THE PRESIDENT: Hello, Reno! (Applause.) Hello, hello! It is good to be back in Nevada! (Applause.)

Well, listen, first of all, can everybody give Alejandra a huge round of applause? (Applause.) She did a great job. We’re very proud of her. She was outstanding.

I also want to acknowledge a dear friend, a great friend of working people not just here Nevada but all across the country, your Senator, Harry Reid, is in the house. (Applause.) Where is Harry? There he is.

It’s good to see all of you. (Applause.) And let me just point out, every time I come here the weather is really good. (Applause.) I mean, you guys have a pretty good deal here. It is beautiful. And as we were flying in, we flew over Tahoe — (applause) — I’d like to pretend that there is a big campaign event there — (laughter) — but I can’t really pretend that that’s the case.

But it is wonderful to be in the state. It is great to be at Truckee Meadows Community College. (Applause.) And I came here today to talk about what students are doing here every single day. Your education is the single most important investment you can make in your future. That’s true for Alejandra; it is true for every single student here. It’s true whether you are talking about a community college or whether you’re talking about a four-year college or university.

And I’m proud of all of you who are doing what it takes to make that investment — not just the money, but also the long hours in the library — at least I hope you’re spending some long hours in the library — (laughter) — and in the lab, and in the classroom. Because it’s never been more important.

But the degree students earn from this college is the surest path you will have to a good job and to higher earnings. (Applause.) It’s the best tool that you’ve got to achieve that basic American promise, that simple idea that if you work hard in this country, you will be rewarded. The basic bargain that says if you work hard, if you’re willing to put in the effort, then you can do well enough to raise a family, you can own your home, you can put a little away for retirement, you won’t have to worry about being bankrupt if you get sick; maybe you can take a vacation once in a while. And most importantly, you know that you’ll be able to pass on to your kids more opportunity and the possibility that they can do things that you couldn’t even dream of. (Applause.)

That’s what America is all about — making sure those doors of opportunity are open to everybody. That’s the reason I ran for President. That’s what my presidency has been about. That’s why I’m running for a second term as President of the United States. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: Now, here is the thing, though — your education is not just important to you, it’s important to America’s success. When we invest in your future, we’re investing in America’s future. The fact is that countries that out-educate us today, they’ll out-compete us tomorrow. We cannot afford to lose that race to make sure we’ve got the most highly educated, most-skilled workforce in the world. (Applause.) And when companies and businesses are looking to locate, that’s what they’re looking for. And I don’t want them looking any farther than Reno, Nevada; the state of Nevada; the United States of America. (Applause.) We’ve got the best workers in the world, and I want to keep it that way. (Applause.)

And your education is just getting more important. I’m not telling you anything you don’t know. More than half of the new jobs over the next decade will require some form of higher education. And I don’t think it’s also any news to you that higher education is getting harder and harder to afford. It is tough for a lot of folks.

Over the past couple of decades, over the last 20 years, tuition and fees at America’s colleges and universities have more than doubled. The average student who borrows to pay for college now graduates with about $26,000 in student loan debt. And living with that kind of debt means you’ve got to make tough choices, especially when you’re first starting out. It may mean putting off starting a family or buying a home. It may mean you don’t have enough savings to try to start that new business idea that you’ve got.

When a big chunk of each paycheck goes just towards servicing your loan debt, that’s not just tough for middle-class families that are trying to make it, it’s also not good for the economy, because it means you’re not spending that money with local businesses.

And I want you to understand I speak from experience here. (Applause.) Michelle and I know about this firsthand. We didn’t come from wealthy families. My mom was a single mom. Michelle’s dad was a blue-collar worker. Her mom was a secretary. Michelle’s parents never went to college. Both of us graduated from college and law school with a mountain of debt. So when we got married, we pooled our liabilities, not our assets. (Laughter.) We got poorer together, not richer. In fact, we paid more for our student loans than we paid on our mortgage each month when we finally were able to afford to buy a condo. And then, once we had Malia and Sasha, now we’re supposed to be saving for their college education, but we’re still paying off for our college educations.

And, look, we were luckier than most. We had landed good jobs with steady incomes. Even with that, though, we only but finished paying off our student loans about eight years ago. Now, think about that — I became President three and a half years ago. (Applause.) I was a U.S. senator about seven years ago. So I had been working and Michelle had been working for over a decade before we got all our loans paid off.

But here’s the thing. I’m only standing here before you today because of the chance that that education gave me. So I think I can speak with some experience and say, making higher education more affordable for our young people is something I’ve got a personal stake in. It’s not something I believe in abstractly. It’s something Michelle has a personal stake in. We believe in it because we’ve been in your shoes. We know what it’s like. (Applause.) We understand that unless you provide those rungs on the ladder of opportunity, then young people — many of whom are more talented than Michelle and I — may not get a shot.

And that’s why I’ve made this one of the top priorities of my presidency. It’s part of what’s at stake in this election. When all of you walk in to that voting booth in November, you’re going to have a choice. And part of it is the choice of how we treat education in this country. And I say this because putting a college education within reach for working families does not seem to be a priority that my opponent shares.

Look, a few months ago, Governor Romney told a crowd of young people, just like you, that if you want to be successful, if you want to go to college or you want to start a business, then you can just — and I’m quoting here — “borrow money if you have to from your parents.”

AUDIENCE: Booo –

THE PRESIDENT: Harry, did your parents have a whole bunch of money to lend you?

AUDIENCE: No!

THE PRESIDENT: My parents didn’t have a lot of money to lend me. I bet a bunch of your parents don’t have a lot of money to lend. It’s not because they don’t want to — they don’t have it.

When a high school student asked Governor Romney what he would do to make college more affordable for families, Governor Romney didn’t say anything about grants or loan programs that have helped millions of students earn a college education. He didn’t say anything about work-study programs, or rising college tuition. He did not say a single word about community colleges, or how important higher education is to America’s economic future. Here’s what he said: “The best thing I can do for you is to tell you to shop around.” (Laughter.) To shop around.

So this is his plan. That’s his answer to a young person hoping to go to college — shop around and borrow money from your parents if you have to.

AUDIENCE: Booo –

THE PRESIDENT: Now, that’s not an answer. That’s not even — not only is not a good answer, it’s not even an answer. There is nothing a parent wants to do more than to give their kids opportunities that we never had. (Applause.) There are very few things more painful than a parent not being able to do it.

But we’re still fighting back from the worst economic crisis in our lifetimes. There are a lot of parents out there who are working really hard but still struggling to make ends meet. And I do not accept the notion that we should deny their children the opportunity of a higher education and a brighter future just because their families were hard hit by a recession. (Applause.)

Think about all the discoveries, all the businesses, all the breakthroughs that we wouldn’t have had if we had told every American that wanted to go to college, “tough luck, too bad, you’re on your own.”

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Shop around!

THE PRESIDENT: Shop around. This country has always made a commitment to put a good education within the reach of all who are willing to work for it. That’s part of what made us an economic superpower. (Applause.) That’s what kept us at the forefront of business and science, and technology and medicine.

And this is not just a new commitment we’ve made. My grandfather had the chance to go to college because after fighting on behalf of America in World War II, he came back to a country that decided, you know what, we’re going to make sure every veteran should be able to afford college. (Applause.)

My mother was able to raise me and my sister by herself and go to college because she was able to get grants and work her way through school. Michelle and I would not be here without the help of scholarships and student loans. (Applause.) We are only here because the chance our education gave us, and I want every young person to have that chance.

And listen, government can’t help folks who won’t help themselves. Parents have to parent, and young people have to stay disciplined and focused. But if you’re willing to work hard, a college education in the 21st century should be available to everybody, not just the wealthy few. (Applause.) That’s what I believe. Whether it’s a 4-year education, a 2-year program, higher education is not a luxury, it is a necessity. (Applause.) And every American family should be able to afford it.

That’s what’s at stake in this election, Nevada. It’s one of the reasons I’m running for President.

And listen, I want you to understand — I’m not just talking the talk. I’m not just making promises. Since I took office, we’ve helped over 3 million more students afford a college education with grants that go farther than they did before. (Applause.) Now, unfortunately, the economic plan of Governor Romney could cut our investments in education by about 20 percent. So the grants that we’ve used that Alejandro may be taking advantage of, many of you may be taking advantage of — those grants could be cut so deeply that 1 million of the students who would have been helped would no longer get scholarships. It would cut financial aid for nearly 10 million students a year.

Now — and here’s the worst part. They’re not making these cuts to create reduce the deficit. They’re not making these cuts so they can create more jobs. They’re doing it to pay for a new $5 trillion tax cut weighted towards the wealthiest Americans.

AUDIENCE: Booo –

THE PRESIDENT: Does that sound like a plan for a better future for you?

AUDIENCE: No!

THE PRESIDENT: It’s a plan that says we can’t afford to help the next generation, but we can afford massive new tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires. We can’t offer our young people student loans because we’ve got to protect corporate tax loopholes. It’s a vision that says we can’t help young people who are trying to make it because we’ve got to protect the folks who already have made it. That’s not a vision we have to accept.

Governor Romney likes to talk about his time as an investor as one of the bases for his candidacy, but his economic plan makes clear he doesn’t think your future is worth investing in. And I do. That’s what’s at stake in this election. That’s the choice this November. (Applause.)

We are going to make sure that America once again leads the world in educating our kids and training our workers. (Applause.) There are business owners across the country who say they can’t fill the skilled positions they have open, and you’ve got millions of people who are out there looking for work. So I want to give 2 million more Americans the chance to go to community colleges just like this one to learn the skills that local businesses are hiring for right now. (Applause.)

Community colleges like Truckee Meadows educate the backbone of our workforce. (Applause.) This is where young people and some not-so-young people can come and get trained as nurses and firefighters and computer programmers and folks who manufacture clean-energy components. And these are the vital pathways to the middle class, and we shouldn’t weaken them; we should strengthen them. (Applause.)

Earlier this summer, Harry Reid and I, we fought to make sure the interest rate on federal student loans didn’t go up. (Applause.) We won that fight. (Applause.) The Republican plan in Congress would have allowed those rates to double, costing more than 7 million students an extra thousand dollars a year. With the help of Harry Reid we set up a college tax credit so that more middle-class families can save up to $10,000 on their tuition over four years. (Applause.) Governor Romney wants to repeal it.

AUDIENCE: Booo –

THE PRESIDENT: In 2008, I promised we would reform a student loan system that was giving tens of billions of taxpayer dollars to big banks and lobbyists instead of giving it to students. So they were taking a cut out of the student loan program even though they had no risk, because the federal government was guaranteeing the loans — $60 billion worth. So we said, no, let’s cut them out; let’s give this money directly to students. (Applause.) We won that fight. That’s what we used to double the grants for students who are in need.

My opponent is running to return the system back to the way it was. He wants to go backwards to policies where banks were taking out billions of dollars out of the student loan program. He wants to go back to policies that got us into this mess in the first place. That is the choice in this election. I want to move forward; he wants to go backwards. We are not going to let him. That’s what’s at stake in this election. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: Four years ago, I promised we’d end the war in Iraq. (Applause.) And we promised we’d go after al Qaeda and bin Laden. (Applause.) We promised to blunt the momentum of the Taliban and then start turning over security responsibilities to the Afghans so we can start bringing our troops home. We are keeping these promises because of the tremendous sacrifice of our men and women in uniform. (Applause.)

So, today, all of our troops are out of Iraq, and we are winding down the war in Afghanistan. But we’ve got to make sure that we keep faith with those folks who fought for us. (Applause.) So we’ve made sure to keep the Post-9/11 GI Bill strong. Everybody who has served this country should have a chance to get their degree, and as long as I am Commander-in-Chief, this country will care for our veterans and serve them as well as they have served us. (Applause.) Nobody who fights for this country should have to fight for a job, or fight for a college education, or fight for a roof over their heads when they come home. (Applause.) That’s part of what’s at stake in this election.

Now, I have to tell you, over the course of the next two and a half months, the other side will not talk much about education because they don’t really have a plan. They won’t be talking about much, but they will spend more money than we’ve ever seen on ads that just try to repeat the same thing over and over again: The economy is not doing as well as it should, and it’s all Obama’s fault. (Laughter.) It’s like going to a concert and they just keep on playing the same song over and over again. (Laughter.) And the reason they’ve got to try to just repeat that over and over again is because they know their economic plan is not popular. They know that the American people are not going to buy another $5 trillion tax cut, most of which goes to wealthy Americans and that will be paid for by you.

AUDIENCE: Booo –

THE PRESIDENT: They know gutting education to pay for a massive new tax cut for millionaires and billionaires is not going to sell. So since they can’t advertise their plan, they’re going to bet on the fact that you get discouraged, that you get cynical, that you decide your vote doesn’t matter. They’re betting that each $10 million check from some wealthy donor drowns out millions of voices. They don’t see that as a problem; that’s their strategy.

I’m counting on something different. I’m counting on you. (Applause.) See, part of what you taught me in 2008 is that when the American people join together, they can’t be stopped. (Applause.) When we remember our parents and our grandparents and great-grandparents and all the sacrifices they made, and we’re reminded that this country has always risen and fallen together; when we remember that what makes us special is the idea that everybody gets a fair shot and everybody does their fair share and everybody is playing by the same set of rules — when that’s our focus, you can’t be stopped. (Applause.)

So here’s what I’m going to need from everybody: First of all, you’ve got no excuse not to register to vote. We’ve got staff and volunteers who are here. They will grab you at the door. You won’t be able to escape. This young lady right here, she’s ready to register some voters. (Applause.) And if somehow we miss you, or if you decide you want to help your friends and your neighbors and fellow students to get registered, you can do it online at GottaRegister.com. Now, I want — I know this is an educated place, but “gotta” is spelled g-o-t-t-a. (Laughter.) This is GottaRegister.com. So you’ve got to — you’ve “gotta” not just register; you gotta grab some friends. You gotta grab some neighbors. You gotta take them to the polls. You gotta vote. (Applause.)

Let’s prove the cynics wrong one more time. Let’s show them your vote counts. Let’s prove your voice is more powerful than lobbyists and special interests. Let’s keep the promise of this country alive — that no matter what you look like or where you come from, you can make it if you try. (Applause.) We’ve come too far to turn back now. We’ve got more students to educate, more teachers to hire, more troops to bring home, more schools to rebuild, more jobs to create, more homegrown energy to generate, more doors of opportunity to open for everybody who’s willing to work hard. (Applause.)

And if you’ll stand with me like you did in 2008, if you’re willing to do some work and knock on doors and make phone calls, we will win Washoe County. We will win Nevada. We will win this election. We’ll finish what we started, and remind the world why the United States of America is the greatest nation on Earth.

God bless you. God bless America.

END
5:10 P.M. PDT

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by bonniekgoodman on August 21, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Barack Obama, Campaign & Elections News, Campaign 2012, Campaign Speeches & Statements, Campaign Trail, Economy, Education, General Election 2012, Presidential Campaigns & Elections
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Posted by bonniekgoodman on August 21, 2012

http://historymusings.wordpress.com/2012/08/21/full-text-campaign-buzz-august-21-2012-president-barack-obamas-speech-at-a-campaign-event-in-truckee-meadows-community-college-reno-nevada/

Full Text Campaign Buzz August 21, 2012: President Barack Obama’s Speech at a Campaign Event at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio — Shifts Aim to Mitt Romney-Paul Ryan Education Plan

CAMPAIGN 2012

CAMPAIGN BUZZ 2012

THE HEADLINES….

President Obama Shifts Aim to Mitt Romney-Paul Ryan Education Plan

Source: ABC News Radio, 8-21-12

JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/GettyImages

President Obama kicked off a two-day campaign swing through Ohio and Nevada Tuesday by shifting the focus of his attacks from Medicare and taxes to education, slamming the Mitt Romney-Paul Ryan plan to cut student aid.
“Whether it’s a four-year college [or] a two-year program, higher education is not a luxury, it is an economic necessity that every family in America should be able to afford. And that’s what’s at stake in this election,” the president told supporters.

Obama’s education pitch, which he is outlining in visits to two colleges and a high school in critical battleground states, is part of a broader effort to show how the Romney-Ryan budget cuts would negatively impact Americans….READ MORE

Remarks by the President at a Campaign Event — Columbus, OH

Source: WH, 8-21-12 

Capital University
Columbus, Ohio

1:00 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Ohio!  (Applause.)  Hello, Crusaders!  (Applause.)  Oh, it is good to be back in Columbus!  (Applause.)  The sun came out for us.  (Applause.)  It’s a good sign.

It is fun to be back in Ohio, and it is great to be here.  I just want to acknowledge a few people.  First of all, give Steven a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  He was explaining to me what it’s like being a BMX driver — rider.  And he said that — he said, well — I asked him, because I’d seen those guys in the Olympics, and I said, it seems like you guys fall a lot.  (Laughter.)  And he says, “No, no, I learned how to fall on my shoulder.”  I said, well, is that good?  He said, “Well, I broke my shoulder four times.”  (Laughter.)  But he looks okay to me.  He’s doing great.

A couple other people I want to acknowledge — your outstanding Mayor, Michael Coleman is in the house.  (Applause.) There he is.  And we’ve got congressional candidate — Joyce Beatty is here.  (Applause.)  And all of you are here.  (Applause.)

How many students do we have here?  (Applause.)  You guys are excited about school starting up?  (Applause.)  Everybody was saying yes except this one guy over here.  (Laughter.)  He was shaking his head.  Come on, man, it’s going to be great.  (Applause.)

Well, I am glad we’ve got some students here because I came to Columbus today to talk about what most of the students here are doing every day.  Your education is the single most important investment that you can make in your future.  And I’m proud of all the students who are here doing what it takes to make that investment — the long hours in the library — except for this guy.  (Laughter.)  Working in the lab, being in the classroom — even when your classes start a little earlier than you had planned — because your education has never been more important.

The degree that you earn from this university is the surest path that you will have to a good job and to higher earnings.  It’s the best tool you’ll have to achieve what is the core promise of this country — the idea that if you work hard, your work will be rewarded.  The basic bargain that says if you’re willing to put in the effort, you can do well enough to raise a family and have a home that you call your own, have some security, put a little away for retirement, and most importantly, make sure that your children, your grandchildren can do even better and dream even bigger than you did.  (Applause.)  That’s the hope that your parents had for you.  That’s the hope I have for Malia and Sasha.  That’s the hope that you’ll someday have for your own kids.

But here’s the thing.  This is about more than just your own success.  Now, more than ever, your success is America’s success, because when we invest in your future we’re investing in America’s future.  The fact is that countries that out-educate us today, they’ll be able to out-compete us tomorrow.  Businesses are mobile in the 21st century economy; they can locate anywhere. So they’re going to create jobs and they’re going to hire wherever they find the best educated, most highly skilled workers.  And I don’t want them to have to look any further than right here in Columbus, right here in Ohio, right here in the United States of America.  (Applause.)

And because the economy has changed, over the coming decade more than half of new jobs will require some form of higher education.  It may not be a four-year college degree, but you’re going to need to have gone to a community college or a technical school to get the skills you need to get hired — and this is not breaking news to any of you.  What’s also not breaking news is the fact that higher education has gotten a lot harder to afford; it’s gotten more expensive.  Over the past two years — excuse me, over the past two decades, tuition and fees at America’s colleges have more than doubled.

The average student who borrows to pay for college now graduates with about $26,000 worth of student loan debt.  (Laughter.)  What, that sounds low to you?  (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

THE PRESIDENT:  I just said the average.  (Laughter.)  For a lot of young people it’s a lot higher, and that kind of debt means pretty tough choices when you’re first starting out.  It might mean putting off starting a family or buying a home, or putting off chasing that great idea that you’ve got for a small business.  When a big chunk of each paycheck goes towards paying off your loan debt, that’s not just tough for middle-class families that are trying to make it and young people who are trying to get started; it’s also painful for the entire economy because that means that money you might be spending on buying a new home or doing something else with it, it’s going to that check that you’re writing every single month.  It’s not going to the local business.

And I have to say, this is something Michelle and I know firsthand about.  I’m not speculating on this, because we’ve been in your shoes.  Neither of us came from wealthy families.  Both of us graduated from college and law school with a mountain of debt.  When we married, we got poor together.  (Laughter.)  We combined our liabilities into one big liability.  (Laughter.)  We paid more for our student loans than we paid on our mortgage each month, and that went on for years.  And then, once we had Malia and Sasha, we needed to start saving for their college educations but we were still paying off our college educations.

Now, keep in mind we were lucky enough to land good jobs, we had steady incomes, but we did not finish paying off our student loans until about eight years ago.  Think about that.  I’m not –

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  You got an education.

THE PRESIDENT:  I got an education and it worked out pretty good.  (Laughter and applause.)  But the point I’m making is, I’m only standing before you because of the chance that my education gave me.  So I can tell you, with some experience, that making higher education more affordable for our young people — it’s something I’ve got a personal stake in; it’s something that Michelle has a personal stake in.  We believe in it because we’ve been there and we know that unless you provide those rungs on the ladder of opportunity, young people who are more talented than we are may not get a shot.  That’s why I’ve made it a top priority of my presidency.  And, Ohio, that is something that is at stake in this election.  That’s part of the reason why November is so important.  (Applause.)

And I say this because putting a college education within reach for working families just doesn’t seem to be a big priority for my opponent.  A few months ago, just up the road, in Westerville, Governor Romney said, if you want to be successful, if you want to go to college or start a business, you can just — and I’m quoting here — “borrow money if you have to from your parents.”

AUDIENCE:  Booo –

THE PRESIDENT:  When a high school student in Youngstown asked him what he would do to make college more affordable for families like his, Governor Romney didn’t say anything about grants or loan programs that are critical to millions of students to get a college education.  He said nothing about work-study programs or rising college tuition.  He didn’t say a word about community colleges or how important higher education is to America’s future.  He said, the best thing you can do is shop around.

AUDIENCE:  Booo –

THE PRESIDENT:  The best thing I can do for you is to tell you to shop around.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  That’s it!

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s it.  That’s his plan.  That’s his answer to young people who are trying to figure out how to go to college and make sure that they don’t have a mountain of debt — shop around and borrow more money from your parents.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  What are we going to do?  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, I’ve just got to — I want to make sure everybody understands. Not everybody has parents who have the money to lend.  (Applause.)  That may be news to some folks, but it’s the truth.  (Laughter.)

So what Governor Romney is offering is not an answer.  There’s nothing a parent wants more than to give opportunities to their kids that they never had.  And it’s pretty painful for a lot of parents if they can’t do that.  But as we’re fighting back from the worst economic crisis of our lifetimes, you’ve got a lot of parents who are out there struggling just to make ends meet.  And I don’t accept the notion that we should deny any child the opportunity to get a higher education.  If they’ve been working hard, if they’ve got the grades, if they’ve got the determination to get a better future for themselves, I don’t want them to be prevented just because their families were hit hard by a recession.  (Applause.)

That’s not who we are.  That’s not what America is about.  We give everybody a fair shot.  Think about all the discoveries, all the businesses, all the breakthroughs that we would not have made if we told every young person who has got the drive and the will and the grades to go to college, “tough luck, too bad, you’re on your own.”  We’ve always made a commitment to put a good education within the reach of everybody who is willing to work for it.  That’s part of what makes us special.  That’s what keeps us at the forefront of business and science and technology and medicine.

And this dates back for decades.  Some of you know my grandfather fought in World War II.  When he came back, he had a chance to go to college because this country decided every returning veteran of World War II should be able to afford it.  (Applause.)  My mother was able to raise me and my sister because she was able to get grants and work her way through school.  Michelle and I would not be here today without the help of scholarships and student loans.  And I know Steve wouldn’t be here either and neither would a lot of you.  (Applause.)

So in a 21st century economy, a college education should be available for everybody — not just the wealthy few.  Whether it’s a four-year college, a two-year program, higher education is not a luxury, it is an economic necessity that every family in America should be able to afford.  And that’s what’s at stake in this election.  It’s one of the reasons I’m running for President of the United States for a second term.  (Applause.)

AUDIENCE:  Four more years!  Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT:  And I want you to know that I have not just talked the talk; we have walked the walk.  (Applause.)  Since I took office, we have helped more than 3 million additional students afford a college education with grants that go farther than they did before.  The economic plan my opponent has would cut our investment in education by nearly 20 percent.

AUDIENCE:  Booo –

THE PRESIDENT:  It would cut those grants so deeply that 1 million of those students who we have helped would no longer get a scholarship at all.  It would cut financial aid for nearly 10 million students a year.

And keep in mind they’re not making these cuts to create jobs.  They’re not proposing these cuts to pay down the deficit. Governor Romney is proposing these cuts to pay for a new $5 trillion tax cut that’s weighted towards the wealthiest Americans.

AUDIENCE:  Booo –

THE PRESIDENT:  Does that sound like a better plan for America?  Does that sound like a better plan for you?

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  A plan that says that we can’t afford to help the next generation earn an education, but we can afford massive new tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires?  A plan that says we can’t afford our young people — to offer our young people student loans because we’ve got to protect corporate loopholes?  It’s a vision that says we can’t help young people who are trying to make it because we’ve got to protect the folks who already have made it.

Michelle and I are going to be able to send Malia and Sasha to college.  We don’t need an extra tax break.  You do.  (Applause.)  Their vision is wrong for moving America forward.  It’s not a vision you’ve got to accept.  That’s why November is important, and that’s why I’m running for a second term as President.  (Applause.)

Governor Romney makes his time as an investor in the private sector the basis of his candidacy.  That’s how he says he’s going to fix the economy – “I was in the private sector.”  And his economic plan makes one thing clear:  He does not think investing in your future is worth it.  He doesn’t think that’s a good investment.  I do.  That’s what’s at stake in this election.  That’s the choice in November.  That’s why we fought to make sure the interest rate on federal student loans didn’t go up over the summer.  We won that fight.  (Applause.)

Some of these Republican members of Congress would have allowed those rates to double, costing more than 7 million students an extra thousand dollars a year.  I’ve said I want to extend the college tax credit that my administration created so more families can save up to $10,000 on their tuition over four years.  (Applause.)  They want to end that tax credit.  That’s the choice in this election.

In 2008, I promised we would reform a student loan system that was giving tens of billions of taxpayer dollars to big banks and lobbyists instead of students.  There are plenty of folks in Washington who fought tooth and nail to keep that system as it was.  We kept at it, we won that fight, we used it to double grant aid for students.  (Applause.)

My opponent now wants to go back to the way things were.  He wants to go backwards to the policies that got us into this mess in the first place.  We’re moving forward.  That’s the choice in this election.  That’s why I’m running for a second term.  (Applause.)

And, by the way, part of our job is also to make sure you don’t need a Ph.D. to apply for financial aid in the first place. So we’ve put in place this new consumer protection watchdog, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, put in place — and it’s working with the Department of Education to develop a simple new factsheet on student loans and financial aid, so you can have all the information you need to make your own best choices about how to pay for college.  We call it “Know Before You Owe.”  Know before you owe.  (Applause.)  That’s a good idea.  But my opponent wants to get rid of this new consumer protection agency, and let for-profit colleges keep preying on veterans and working families.  That’s one of the choices in this election.

I’m want to make sure that America once again leads the world in educating our kids, training our workers.  I want to make sure more of our students are prepared for college by helping our secondary and elementary schools hire and reward the best teachers, especially in math and science.  (Applause.)  I want to give 2 million more Americans the chance to go to community college and learn the skills that local businesses are looking for right now.

I’ve put colleges and universities on notice — if they can’t stop tuition from going up, the funding they get from taxpayers will go down.  We want to give them some incentive to start lowering tuition.  (Applause.)  That’s the choice in this election.  That’s what we’re fighting for.  That’s what you’re going to be having to think about when you go to that voting booth in November.

Four years ago, I promised that we would end the war in Iraq.  (Applause.)  Thanks to the service and the sacrifice of our incredible men and women in uniform, that’s what we’ve done.  (Applause.)  Today, all our troops are out of Iraq.  We are beginning to bring our troops homes from Afghanistan.  But the key is making sure that they are getting the same good deal that my grandfather got when he came home from the war.  So we’ve made sure to keep the Post-9/11 GI Bill strong so that everybody who has served our country has the chance to earn a degree.

As long as I am Commander-in-Chief, I promise you we will care for our veterans and serve them as well as they’ve served us.  (Applause.)  If you fought for this country, you shouldn’t have to fight for a college education or for a job or for a roof over your heads when you come home.  (Applause.)  So that’s what we’re fighting for, Columbus.  That’s just one example, in the education arena, of what’s at stake.

Now, over the next two and a half months, the other side will spend more money than we have ever seen — ever.  I mean, they got folks writing $10 million checks, $20 million checks.  They should be contributing that to a scholarship fund to send kids to college.  (Applause.)  But instead, they are going to spend more money than we’ve ever seen on ads.  And the ads all say the same thing, which is, the economy is not where it needs to be and it’s all Obama’s fault.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  See, look — no, no, listen, they know their economic plan isn’t popular.  They know that gutting investments in education and science and infrastructure, and voucherizing Medicare, they know that doesn’t really sell well.  They know that it especially doesn’t sell well when you’re doing all those things not to reduce the deficit but to pay for massive new tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires.  They know that’s not going to poll well.  So they’re betting on the fact that you get so discouraged that you decide your vote doesn’t matter.

They’re betting every single $10 million check from a wealthy donor drowns out millions of voices at the ballot box.  They’re counting on young people sitting this one out.  They say well, you know what — Obama, he’s grayer now, he’s not as new and as fresh as he was in 2008, so young people aren’t going to turn out the same way.  They’re counting on you sitting on the sidelines and letting others make the choice for you.  See, they don’t have a plan to create jobs or strengthen the middle class, but this is their plan to win the election.

But I’m counting on something different.  I’m counting on you.  (Applause.)  I’m counting on the fact that when the American people focus and push aside all the noise and all the nonsense, and they remember the fact that all of us, whatever success we’ve achieved, we’ve achieved because we worked together, because we made sure everybody has a fair shot, and everybody is doing their fair share, and everybody is playing by the same set of rules.  I’m counting on the fact that when the American people focus on what’s at stake, you can’t be stopped.  And all the money the other side is spending doesn’t matter.

So I’m going to need your help — young people especially — I’m going to need your help.  (Applause.)  I need to make sure you’re registered to vote at your current address.  We’ve got staff and volunteers who are here who can help you do that before you leave today.  And when you leave, I’m asking you to grab 10 friends — make sure they’re registered, too.  And if you need more information, you can go visit the website GottaRegister.com.  That’s not Got-To, it’s Gotta.  (Laughter.)  G-o-t-t-a-register.com.

Let’s prove the cynics wrong.  Let’s show them your votes count.  Let’s show them your voice makes a difference.  Let’s show them America better start listening to the voice of the next generation of Americans.  (Applause.)

I need your help to keep this American Dream alive, this incredible experiment we have in democracy; this idea that no matter where you’re born, or who your parents are, or how much money you got, or no matter what you look like or what you believe in, you can go as far as your talents take you.  (Applause.)  That dream that we can still, together, achieve great things; that you can pursue the happiness that you hope for and your parents hope for; that here in America you can make it if you try.

Ohio, we’ve come too far to turn back now.  (Applause.)  We’ve got more students who dream to afford college.  We’ve got more good teachers to hire.  We’ve got more schools to rebuild.  We’ve got more good jobs to create.  We’ve got more homegrown energy to generate.  We’ve got more troops we’ve got to come home.  We’ve got more doors of opportunity to open for everybody who is willing to walk through them.  That’s why I’m asking for a second term as President.

And if you’re willing to stand with me, and vote for me, and organize with me, and knock on doors and make phone calls with me, we will finish what we started.  We will win Ohio.  We will win this election.  And we will remind the world why the United States of America is the greatest nation on Earth.  (Applause.)

God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.

END
1:27 P.M. EDT

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by bonniekgoodman on August 21, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Barack Obama, Campaign & Elections News, Campaign 2012, Campaign Speeches & Statements, Campaign Trail, Economy, Education, General Election 2012, Presidential Campaigns & Elections
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Posted by bonniekgoodman on August 21, 2012

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Full Text Obama Presidency July 26, 2012: President Barack Obama’s New Launches Initiative to Improve Educational Outcomes for African Americans

POLITICAL SPEECHES & DOCUMENTS

OBAMA PRESIDENCY & THE 112TH CONGRESS:

POLITICAL QUOTES & SPEECHES

Obama launches African-American education initiative

Source: CNN, 7-25-12
President Barack Obama on Wednesday announced an initiative he said will give African-American students greater access “to a complete and competitive education from the time they’re born all through the time they get a career.”…READ MORE

President Obama Signs New Initiative to Improve Educational Outcomes for African Americans

Source: WH, 7-26-12

Executive Order Establishes the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans

On Wednesday, during his remarks at the National Urban League conference in New Orleans, LA, President Obama announced he would sign an Executive Order today to improve outcomes and advance educational opportunities for African Americans.

The President has made providing a complete and competitive education for all Americans – from cradle to career – a top priority.  The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans will work across Federal agencies and with partners and communities nationwide to produce a more effective continuum of education programs for African American students.  The Initiative aims to ensure that all African American students receive an education that fully prepares them for high school graduation, college completion, and productive careers.

In the nearly 60 years since the Brown v. Board of Education decision put America on a path toward equal educational opportunity, America’s educational system has undergone a remarkable transformation.  Many African American children who attended substandard, segregated schools in the 1950s have grown up to see their children attend integrated and effective elementary and secondary schools, colleges, and universities.  Nonetheless, substantial obstacles to equal educational opportunity still remain in America’s educational system.  African American students lack equal access to highly effective teachers and principals, safe schools, and challenging college-preparatory classes, and they disproportionately experience school discipline and referrals to special education.

Significantly improving the educational outcomes of African Americans will provide substantial benefits for our country by advancing important outcomes, like increasing college completion rates, employment rates, and the number of African American teachers.  Enhanced educational outcomes for African Americans will lead to more productive careers, improved economic mobility and security, and greater social well-being for all Americans.

Advancing Educational Achievement of African American Students

The President has set the goal for America to have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020. To reach this ambitious goal, and to ensure equality of access and opportunity in education for all Americans, the Obama Administration is dedicating new resources, through rigorous and well-rounded academic and support services, to enable African American students to improve their educational achievement and prepare for college and career.

The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans, housed within the Department of Education, will work with the Executive Office of the President and Cabinet agencies to identify evidence-based best practices to improve African American student achievement in school and college, and to develop a national network of individuals, organizations, and communities that will share and implement these practices.  It will also help ensure that Federal programs and initiatives administered by the Department of Education and other Federal agencies maintain a focus on serving and meeting the educational needs of African Americans. The Initiative will complement the existing White House Initiative that strengthens the nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) by working with Federal agencies and partners nationwide to provide all African American students with a more effective continuum of education programs.

To deliver a complete and competitive education for all African Americans, the Initiative will promote, encourage, and undertake efforts designed to meet several objectives, including:

• Increasing the percentage of African American children who enter kindergarten ready for success by improving access to high-quality early learning and development programs;
• Ensuring that all African American students have access to high-level, rigorous course work and support services that will prepare them for college, a career, and civic participation;
• Providing African American students with equitable access to effective teachers and principals in pursuit of a high-quality education, and supporting efforts to improve the recruitment, preparation, development, and retention of successful African American teachers and principals;
• Promoting a positive school climate that does not rely on methods that result in disparate use of disciplinary tools, and decreasing the disproportionate number of referrals to special education by addressing root causes of the referrals;
• Reducing the dropout rate of African American students and increasing the proportion of African American students who graduate from high school prepared for college and career;
• Increasing college access, college persistence, and college attainment for African American students;
• Strengthening the capacity of institutions of higher education that serve large numbers of African American students, including community colleges, HBCUs, Predominantly Black Institutions (PBIs), and other institutions; and
• Improving the quality of, and expanding access to, adult education, literacy, and career and technical education.

The Presidential Advisory Commission and Federal Interagency Working Group to Enhance Educational Outcomes for African American Students

The Executive Order also creates the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans, to aid and advise the work of the Initiative. The Commission will advise President Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan on matters pertaining to the educational attainment of the African American community, including the development, implementation, and coordination of resources aimed at improving educational opportunities and outcomes for African Americans of all ages. The Commission will also engage the philanthropic, business, nonprofit, and education communities in a national dialogue on African American student achievement, and work with the Initiative to establish partnerships with stakeholders from these sectors to achieve the objectives of this Executive Order.

The Executive Order also establishes a Federal Interagency Working Group on Educational Excellence for African Americans. The Working Group will be chaired by the Initiative’s Executive Director, and will convene senior officials from the Executive Office of the President and several Cabinet and sub-Cabinet agencies to coordinate the Federal investment in education programs and initiatives aimed at enhancing outcomes for African Americans in early childhood education; elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education; career and technical education; and adult education.

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by bonniekgoodman on July 26, 2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by bonniekgoodman on July 26, 2012

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Full Text Obama Presidency July 25, 2012: President Barack Obama’s Speech at the National Urban League Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana Focused on the Economy, Education & Gun Control Laws

POLITICAL SPEECHES & DOCUMENTS

OBAMA PRESIDENCY & THE 112TH CONGRESS:

POLITICAL QUOTES & SPEECHES

President Obama Speaks to the National Urban League

Source: WH, 7-25-12

President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the Urban League Convention President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the Urban League Convention at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, La., July 25, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza) 

President Obama Speaks at the National Urban League Convention

President Obama Speaks at the National Urban League Convention

Remarks by the President at the National Urban League Convention

Source: WH, 7-25-12

Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
New Orleans, Louisiana

7:00 P.M. CDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Urban League!  (Applause.)  Thank you.  It is good to be with the Urban League.  (Applause.)  And it’s good to be in the Big Easy.  (Applause.)

Now, I don’t know if the fact that this is called the Morial Convention Center had anything to do with folks coming down to New Orleans — (laughter) — but it is good to be with all of you.  And I’m glad I caught you at the beginning of the conference, before Bourbon Street has a chance to take a toll on you.  (Laughter.)  All right.  You all stay out of trouble now.  (Laughter.)

Everybody please have a seat.  Have a seat.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Four more years!  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  A couple of people that I want to acknowledge.  Obviously, first of all, I want to acknowledge your outstanding president and CEO who has shown such extraordinary leadership for so many years — Marc Morial.  (Applause.)  Just like we’ve got an outstanding former mayor of New Orleans, we’ve also got the outstanding current mayor of New Orleans — Mitch Landrieu is in the house.  (Applause.)  Fine young congressman from this area — Cedric Richmond, is here.  (Applause.)  And one of the best mayors in the country — we’re glad he came down from his hometown of Philadelphia — Mayor Michael Nutter is in the house.  (Applause.)

And all of you are here, and I am grateful for it.  (Applause.)  And we love the young people who are in the house.  (Applause.)  Mitch, don’t you — I wasn’t referring to you, man, I was talking to those folks over there.  (Laughter.)  Mitch is all waving, “thank you.”  (Laughter.)

For nearly a century, the National Urban League has been inspiring people of every race and every religion and every walk of life to reach for the dream that lies at the heart of our founding — the promise that no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, no matter where you came from, no matter how modest your beginnings, no matter what the circumstances of your birth, here in America, you can make it if you try.  (Applause.)

Of course, this dream has never come easy.  That’s why the Urban League was formed.  In the aftermath of the Civil War, with the South in the grips of Jim Crow, the waves of men and women who traveled north to urban centers discovered that even in their new homes, opportunity was not guaranteed.  It was something you had to work for, something you had to fight for –- not just on your own, but side-by-side with people who believed in that same dream.

And so the white widow of a railroad tycoon and a black social worker from Arkansas founded what would become the Urban League, to strengthen our cities and our communities brick by brick, and block by block, and neighborhood by neighborhood, life by life.

Decades later, I arrived in one of those cities my hometown of Chicago.  (Applause.)  South Side!  (Applause.)  And I was driven by this same cause.  Like many of my classmates, I felt, I understood, the pull of a hefty paycheck that might come from a more conventional job.  But ultimately the pull to serve was even stronger.

So I moved to the South Side of Chicago, and I took a job with a group of churches, mostly Catholic parishes, working to help families who had no place to turn when the local steel plants shut down, and when panic-peddling had led to enormous turnover in these communities.  And we worked with laypeople and local leaders to rebuild neighborhoods and improve schools, and most of all, to broaden opportunity for young people, too many who were at risk.

And I confess that progress didn’t come quickly and it did not come easily.  Sometimes, it didn’t come at all.  There were times where I thought about giving up and moving on.  But what kept me going, day in and day out, was the same thing that has sustained the Urban League all these years, the same thing that sustains all of you, and that is the belief that in America, change is always possible; that our union may not be perfect, but it is perfectible; that we can strive over time through effort and sweat and blood and tears until it is the place we imagine.

It may come in fits and starts, at a pace that can be slow and frustrating.  But if we are willing to push through all the doubt and the cynicism and the weariness, then, yes, we can form that more perfect union.  (Applause.)

Now, the people I worked with in those early days in Chicago, they were looking for the same thing that Americans everyplace aspire to.  We’re not a nation of people who are looking for handouts.  We certainly don’t like bailouts.  (Laughter.)  We don’t believe government should be in the business of helping people who refuse to help themselves, and we recognize not every government program works.  But we do expect hard work to pay off.  We do expect responsibility to be rewarded.  We do expect that if you put in enough effort, you should be able to find a job that pays the bills.  (Applause.)  You should be able to own a home you call your own.  You should be able to retire in dignity and respect.  You should be able to afford the security of health care and you should be able to give your kids the best possible education.  (Applause.)

That idea that everybody should have a fair shot, not just some — that this country is special because it has grown this magnificent middle class and has provided ladders of access for those striving to get into the middle class — that’s the idea that drove me.  That’s the idea that has driven the Urban League, That idea that everyone should have equal opportunity — that’s what brought me to Chicago.  That belief that this country works best when we are growing a strong middle class and prosperity is broad-based — that’s what led me into politics.  And it is those values that have guided every decision that I have made as President of the United States.  (Applause.)

Now, today we’re battling our way back from a once-in-a-lifetime economic crisis.  And make no mistake, we’ve made progress in that fight.  When I took office, we were losing hundreds of thousands of jobs a month.  Our auto industry was on the brink of collapse.  Factories were boarding up their windows. We’d gone through almost a decade in which job growth had been sluggish, incomes had declined, costs were going up — all culminating in the financial system coming close to a breakdown.

Today, three and a half years later, we’ve had 28 straight months of private sector job growth.  (Applause.)  Three and a half years later, the auto industry has come roaring back.  (Applause.)  Three and a half years later, companies are beginning to bring thousands of jobs back to American soil.  (Applause.)

We still have much more work to do.  There’s still too many out of work, too many homes underwater, too many Americans struggling to stay afloat.  So the greater challenge that faces us is not just going back to where we were back in 2007, not just settling to get back to where we were before the crisis hit.  Our task is to return to an America that is thriving and growing out from our middle class, where hard work pays off — where you can make it if you try.  (Applause.)

And, Urban League, I want you to know what’s holding us back from meeting these challenges is not a lack of ideas or solutions.  I have no patience with people who say our best days are behind us, because the fact of the matter is we still have the best workers in the world, the best universities in the world, the best research facilities in the world, the most entrepreneurial culture in the world.  (Applause.)  We have all the ingredients to make the 21st century the American Century just like the 20th.

What’s holding us back is a stalemate in Washington — (applause) — between two fundamentally different views about which path we should take as a country.  (Applause.)  And it’s up to the American people to decide what direction we should go.

Let me tell you what I believe.  I believe that strong communities are places that attract the best jobs and the newest businesses.  And you don’t build that kind of community by giving tax breaks to companies that are shipping jobs overseas.  (Applause.)  You build it by giving tax breaks to companies that create jobs in Detroit and in Cleveland and in Chicago and right here in New Orleans, right here in America — (applause) — using American workers, making American products that we sell around the world, stamped with three proud words — Made In America.  (Applause.)

You build it by investing in America’s manufacturing base and providing the dollars for research so that we have the most advanced products in the world.  You do it by investing in small businesses — the way we’ve provided 18 tax breaks to small businesses since I’ve been in office.  And if you’re a company that wants to relocate in a community that’s been particularly hard hit when a factory left town, I believe you should get help financing that new plant or equipment, or training for your workers — because we can’t leave anybody behind if we want to grow America the way it can grow.  (Applause.)

We also believe that every entrepreneur should have the chance to start a business –- no matter who you are, no matter what you look like.  (Applause.)  That’s why we’ve supported financing and assistance and exporting to small businesses across the board.  That’s why we’ve helped African American businesses and minority-owned businesses and women-owned businesses gain access to more than $7 billion in contracts and financing — (applause) — that allowed them to grow and create jobs.

That’s why we’ve emphasized helping our veterans create small businesses — because if they fought for us, they shouldn’t have to fight to get financing when they get home.  (Applause.)  They shouldn’t have to fight for a job when they come home.  They shouldn’t have to fight for a roof over their heads when they come home.  We should honor them the way they’ve honored us with their service.  (Applause.)

I believe strong communities are places where people can afford to buy what their local businesses sell.  So I ran for President promising to cut taxes for the middle class -– and regardless of what you hear during silly political season, I have kept that promise.  (Applause.)  Today, taxes are $3,600 lower for the typical family than they were when I came into office.  (Applause.)

Just a few hours ago, the Senate moved forward a bill that we had promoted to keep middle-class tax cuts for 98 percent of Americans next year.  (Applause.)  I will add that we didn’t get a lot of Republican votes — but that’s okay, they’ve got time.  We passed it through the Senate and now is the time for the House to do the same.  They should not be holding middle-class tax cuts hostage just to get more tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires.  (Applause.)  At a time when so many people who have a job can barely keep up with their bills, we don’t need another trillion-dollar tax cut for folks like me.  We need tax cuts for working Americans, not for folks who don’t need it and weren’t even asking for it.  (Applause.)

Millions of Americans — including more than 2 million African American families — are better off thanks to our extension of the child care tax credit and the earned income tax credit — (applause) — because nobody who works hard in America should be poor in America.  That’s how strong communities are built.  (Applause.)  And by the way when working folks have money in their pockets, businesses do well because they’ve got customers, and all of us grow.  That’s been the history of this country.

I believe strong communities are built on strong schools.  (Applause.)  If this country is about anything, it’s about passing on even greater opportunity to the next generation.  And we know that has to start before a child even walks into the classroom.  It starts at home with parents who are willing to read to their children, and spend time with their children — (applause) — and instill a sense of curiosity and love of learning and a belief in excellence that will last a lifetime.

But it also begins with an early childhood education, which is why we’ve invested more in child care, and in programs like Early Head Start and Head Start that help prepare our young people for success.  It’s the right thing to do for America.  (Applause.)

Our education policy hasn’t just been based on more money, we’ve also called for real reform.  So we challenged every state in the country to raise their standards for teaching and for learning.  And three years later, nearly every state has answered the call.  We have seen the biggest transformation in terms of school reform in a generation, and we’ve helped some of the country’s lowest-performing schools make real gains in reading and math, including here in New Orleans.  (Applause.)

We’ve made it our mission to make a higher education more affordable for every American who wants to go to school.  That’s why we fought to extend our college tuition tax credit for working families — (applause) — saving millions of families thousands of dollars.

That’s why we’ve fought to make college more affordable for an additional 200,000 African American students by increasing Pell grants.  (Applause.)  That’s why we’ve strengthened this nation’s commitment to our community colleges, and to our HBCUs. (Applause.)

That’s why, tomorrow, I’m establishing the first-ever White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans –- (applause) — so that every child has greater access to a complete and competitive education from the time they’re born all through the time they get a career.

And that’s why we’re pushing all colleges and universities to cut their costs — (applause) — because we can’t keep asking taxpayers to subsidize skyrocketing tuition.  A higher education in the 21st century cannot be a luxury.  It is a vital necessity that every American should be able to afford.  (Applause.)  I want all these young people to be getting a higher education, and I don’t want them loaded up with tens of thousands of dollars of debt just to get an education.  That’s how we make America great. (Applause.)

Of course, that means all of you all have got to hit the books.  (Laughter.)  I’m just saying.  Don’t cheer and then you didn’t do your homework.  (Laughter and applause.)  Because that’s part of the bargain, that’s part of the bargain — America says we will give you opportunity, but you’ve got to earn your success.  (Applause.)

You’re competing against young people in Beijing and Bangalore.  They’re not hanging out.  (Laughter.)  They’re not getting over.  They’re not playing video games.  They’re not watching “Real Housewives.”  (Laughter.)  I’m just saying.  It’s a two-way street.  You’ve got to earn success.  (Applause.)

That wasn’t in my prepared remarks.  (Laughter.)  But I’m just saying.  (Applause.)

I believe strong communities are places where you and your family can work and save and buy your home.  That’s why we’ve helped more than a million responsible homeowners — these are folks who were making their payments — refinance their mortgages at these historically low rates, saving thousands of dollars every year.  Because people who did everything right shouldn’t pay the price for somebody else’s irresponsibility.  (Applause.)
So now we want to expand that refinancing opportunity to every homeowner who’s making their payments on time.

And while we’re at it, let’s put construction workers back on the job — because they’ve been hit by the housing bubble bursting.  Let’s put them back on the job not only rebuilding roads and bridges and ports, but also rehabilitating homes in communities that have been hit by foreclosures, businesses that have been hit hardest by the housing crisis.  (Applause.)  That creates jobs.  It raises property values, and it strengthens the economy of the entire nation.

Strong communities are healthy communities.  Because we believe that in the richest nation on Earth, you shouldn’t go broke when you get sick.  (Applause.)  And after a century of trying, and a decision now from the highest court in the land, health care reform is here to stay.  (Applause.)  We’re moving forward.

Insurance companies will no longer be able to discriminate against those who are sick.  Prescription drug prices will be lower for our seniors.  We’re going to close that doughnut hole. Young people will be able to stay on their parent’s insurance until they’re 26 years old.  (Applause.)  Thirty million Americans without health insurance will finally know the security of affordable care.  (Applause.)

We’ll improve any aspect of this law, and any recommendations and suggestions that those who actually know the health care system and aren’t just playing politics put forward. But we’re going to implement this law and America is going to be better for it.  (Applause.)

Now, I’ve got to say that I recognize we are in political season.  But the Urban League understands that your mission transcends politics.  Good jobs, quality schools, affordable health care, affordable housing — these are all the pillars upon which communities are built.  And yet, we’ve been reminded recently that all this matters little if these young people can’t walk the streets of their neighborhood safely; if we can’t send our kids to school without worrying they might get shot; if they can’t go to the movies without fear of violence lurking in the shadows.  (Applause.)

Our hearts break for the victims of the massacre in Aurora.  (Applause.)  We pray for those who were lost and we pray for those who loved them.  We pray for those who are recovering with courage and with hope.  And we also pray for those who succumb to the less-publicized acts of violence that plague our communities in so many cities across the country every single day.  (Applause.)  We can’t forget about that.

Every day — in fact, every day and a half, the number of young people we lose to violence is about the same as the number of people we lost in that movie theater.  For every Columbine or Virginia Tech, there are dozens gunned down on the streets of Chicago and Atlanta, and here in New Orleans.  For every Tucson or Aurora, there is daily heartbreak over young Americans shot in Milwaukee or Cleveland.  Violence plagues the biggest cities, but it also plagues the smallest towns.  It claims the lives of Americans of different ages and different races, and it’s tied together by the fact that these young people had dreams and had futures that were cut tragically short.

And when there is an extraordinarily heartbreaking tragedy like the one we saw, there’s always an outcry immediately after for action.  And there’s talk of new reforms, and there’s talk of new legislation.  And too often, those efforts are defeated by politics and by lobbying and eventually by the pull of our collective attention elsewhere.

But what I said in the wake of Tucson was we were going to stay on this, persistently.  So we’ve been able to take some actions on our own, recognizing that it’s not always easy to get things through Congress these days.  The background checks conducted on those looking to purchase firearms are now more thorough and more complete.  Instead of just throwing more money at the problem of violence, the federal government is now in the trenches with communities and schools and law enforcement and faith-based institutions, with outstanding mayors like Mayor Nutter and Mayor Landrieu — recognizing that we are stronger when we work together.

So in cities like New Orleans, we’re partnering with local officials to reduce crime, using best practices.  And in places like Boston and Chicago, we’ve been able to help connect more young people to summer jobs so that they spend less time on the streets.  In cities like Detroit and Salinas, we’re helping communities set up youth prevention and intervention programs that steer young people away from a life of gang violence, and towards the safety and promise of a classroom.

But even though we’ve taken these actions, they’re not enough.  Other steps to reduce violence have been met with opposition in Congress.  This has been true for some time — particularly when it touches on the issues of guns.  And I, like most Americans, believe that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual the right to bear arms.  And we recognize the traditions of gun ownership that passed on from generation to generation -– that hunting and shooting are part of a cherished national heritage.

But I also believe that a lot of gun owners would agree that AK-47s belong in the hands of soldiers, not in the hands of criminals — (applause) — that they belong on the battlefield of war, not on the streets of our cities.  I believe the majority of gun owners would agree that we should do everything possible to prevent criminals and fugitives from purchasing weapons; that we should check someone’s criminal record before they can check out a gun seller; that a mentally unbalanced individual should not be able to get his hands on a gun so easily.  (Applause.)  These steps shouldn’t be controversial.  They should be common sense.

So I’m going to continue to work with members of both parties, and with religious groups and with civic organizations, to arrive at a consensus around violence reduction — not just of gun violence, but violence at every level, on every step, looking at everything we can do to reduce violence and keep our children safe -– from improving mental health services for troubled youth  — (applause) — to instituting more effective community policing strategies.  We should leave no stone unturned, and recognize that we have no greater mission as a country than keeping our young people safe.  (Applause.)

And as we do so, as we convene these conversations, let’s be clear:  Even as we debate government’s role, we have to understand that when a child opens fire on another child, there’s a hole in that child’s heart that government alone can’t fill.  (Applause.)  It’s up to us, as parents and as neighbors and as teachers and as mentors, to make sure our young people don’t have that void inside them.

It’s up to us to spend more time with them, to pay more attention to them, to show them more love so that they learn to love themselves — (applause) — so that they learn to love one another, so that they grow up knowing what it is to walk a mile in somebody else’s shoes and to view the world through somebody else’s eyes.  It’s up to us to provide the path toward a life worth living; toward a future that holds greater possibility than taking offense because somebody stepped on your sneakers.

That’s the difference that we can make in our children’s lives and in the lives of our communities.  That’s the legacy we must leave for the next generation.  (Applause.)

Now, this will not be easy.  Even though it’s called the Big Easy, this proud city and those who call it home, they know something about hardship.  They’ve been battered again and again in this new century:  One of the worst natural disasters in our history, the worst environmental disaster in our history, the worst economic crisis most of us have ever known.  So sometimes being from the Big Easy means knowing hardship and heartbreak.  (Applause.)

But what this city also knows is resilience, and determination, and heroism.  (Applause.)  That’s one of the reasons it is one of America’s jewels.  It’s quintessentially American because of its resilience.

There is no shortage of citizens in this city who’s stepped up in the darkest of times.  And one person I want to end with is somebody that many of you know — the superintendent of schools in St. Bernard’s Parish, Doris Voitier.  Now, when Katrina’s waters rose, Doris and the faculty and staff of Chalmette High School saved the lives of hundreds of their neighbors, many of them old and sick, by moving them to shelter in the school’s second floor.

Two days later, they led 1,200 people to safety.  (Applause.)  The day after that, with her community in ruins, the superintendent was on her way to Baton Rouge to make sure her schools would open that fall.  “Failure is not an option” became her motto.  When some government officials gave her the runaround, she plowed ahead on her own — secured loans, finding portable classrooms and books, and doing everything it took to make sure her kids -– our kids -– could return to some semblance of normalcy.

When an official told her a gas line wouldn’t be repaired in time for school to reopen, and that her kids might have to eat MREs, she hired a local restaurant owner to cook hot lunches on a barge and sent FEMA the bill.  (Applause.)  On the first day of school, less than three months after Katrina swept ashore, she heard a young child, who’d endured nearly three months of suffering and hardship, yell out loud, “Real food!  Real food!”

Of that first night she said, “There were no riots; there were no disruptions; there were just hundreds of people just like you and the person sitting next to you, in the blink of an eye, having lost everything they had worked for over their entire lifetimes, who now looked to us for rescue.  And we accepted that responsibility because that’s what school people do.”  (Applause.)

Now, obviously, the superintendent is an exceptional educator and an exceptional citizen.  But as I’ve traveled around the country, what I’ve discovered is that’s not just what school people do.  That’s not — that’s what Americans do.  (Applause.) That’s what Americans, at their best, do.  When I traveled to Joplin, Missouri, that’s what folks in Joplin do.  When I go to Aurora, that’s what people in Colorado do.  (Applause.)  In urban communities all across America, that’s what you do.

For more than two centuries, our journey has never been easy, and our victories have never come quickly.  And we have faced our share of struggles and setbacks and climbs that have seemed too steep -– just like we do today.  But we know what we’re fighting for.  We can see the America we believe in –- a country where everybody gets a fair shot and everybody is doing their fair share, where everybody is playing by the same set of rules.  And if we don’t keep fighting as hard as we know how for that America, if we don’t keep fighting for better jobs and better schools and a better future, who will?  (Applause.)

That’s our challenge.  We don’t quit.  Folks in New Orleans didn’t quit.  Americans don’t quit.  (Applause.)  We accept responsibility.  We keep on going.  We keep marching.  We keep moving forward.  Failure is not an option.  (Applause.)  This is not a time for cynics.  It is not a time for doubters.  It is time for believers.  It is time for folks who have faith in the future.

I still believe in you.  And if you still believe in me, I ask you to stand with me, march with me, fight with me.  (Applause.)  And as I do, I promise we will finish what we started, turn this economy around, seize our future, and remind the world why the United States of America is the greatest nation on Earth.  (Applause.)

Thank you, Urban League.  God bless you.  (Applause.)  God bless the United States of America.  (Applause.)

END
7:40 P.M. CDT

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by bonniekgoodman on July 25, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Domestic Policy, Economy, Education, Political Speeches & Documents, President Barack Obama
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Posted by bonniekgoodman on July 25, 2012

http://historymusings.wordpress.com/2012/07/25/full-text-obama-presidency-july-25-2012-president-barack-obamas-speech-at-the-national-urban-league-convention-in-new-orleans-louisiana-focused-on-the-economy-education-gun-control-laws/

Full Text Campaign Buzz July 25, 2012: President Barack Obama’s Speech at a Campaign Event at a Private Residence in Hunts Point, Washington

CAMPAIGN 2012

CAMPAIGN BUZZ 2012

THE HEADLINES….

Remarks by the President at a Campaign Event

Source: WH, 7-25-12 

Private Residence
Hunts Point, WA

8:24 P.M. PDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, everybody.  (Applause.)  Thank you.  Thank you so much.  Everybody, have a seat.  It is great to be back in the Pacific Northwest.  And I couldn’t ask for somebody I admire more to introduce me than Jim Sinegal.  And for him and Jan, they have just been extraordinary friends.  They are unbelievably gracious.

And the story of Costco and everything that you guys have done I think is representative of what America is all about — (applause) — entrepreneurship, vision, value for your money — (laughter) — treating your workers right — (applause) — doing well and doing good at the same time, and being part of a broader community that takes your responsibilities for this city, this state, and this country really seriously.

I am so grateful for your support.  I do want to just correct one thing, though.  When I called Jim, I said congratulations.  I was confident about the hot dog.  (Laughter.)  You don’t mess with something if it ain’t broke.  (Laughter.)  But what I did say was — Jan is probably going to be driven crazy if you’re just sitting around the house all day; you need to get involved in the campaign — (laughter) — because you’re a little too young to just be puttering around.  And for the two of them to take up this effort with such energy is something that I will always be grateful for.

There are a couple of other people I want to acknowledge.  Your outstanding Governor, Christine Gregoire is here.  (Applause.)  We love her.  And an outstanding member of Congress, who, like another guy of similar name, knows something about how to get the economy growing and cares about working people — Adam Smith is here.  (Applause.)  He was — there he is — somewhere.  He’s here somewhere, I know he is.  And all of you are here.

So because this is not like a huge rally, what I want to do instead of giving a long speech is spend some time answering some questions and taking some comments from all of you.  But let me try to just, at the top, frame I think the choice that the country is going to be confronting and the debate that we’re going to be having over the next three to four months.

As Jim mentioned, when I came into office, we were going through the worst recession, the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.  Lost 800,000 jobs the month I was sworn into office.  And because of some timely — and not always popular — steps that we took in that first year, we were able to save an auto industry, get the economy growing within six to eight months of me taking office; started adding jobs shortly thereafter.

We’ve now seen almost two and a half years of private sector job growth — about 4.5 million jobs created; about half a million in the manufacturing sector, the fastest growth we’ve seen in the manufacturing sector since the 1990s.  Saved an auto industry, stabilized the financial system.  And we have started to see — even in some sectors that were hardest hit, like housing — some modest improvement.  That’s the good news.  The bad news is that there are still millions of folks who are out of work but desperately want to work.  There are still folks whose homes are underwater.

And most importantly, when I ran in 2008, the goal wasn’t to get back to where we were right before the crisis struck.  The goal was to restore a sense that in this country, if you work hard — no matter what you look like or where you come from — you can get ahead.  That you can afford to own a home.  That won’t go bankrupt when you get sick.  That your kids can get a good education and go to college, and aspire to things that you never dreamed of.  That you can retire with dignity and respect.  That core middle-class dream that some of us may have exceeded when it comes to our bank accounts, but that really is the glue that made us the envy of the world — this idea that if you work hard, you can make it; and if you act responsibly, you will be rewarded.

And the challenge was that, for a decade, that really wasn’t the case.  People were working harder and making less.  Costs were going up for things like college and health care.  A lot of jobs seemed as if they were being shipped overseas.  And the middle class was feeling less secure, and those who wanted to work hard to get into the middle class saw fewer and fewer ladders — fewer rungs on the ladder into opportunity.

So it hasn’t been enough.  Even though job one was to get us back on a path of recovery, the broader mission is how do we make sure that everybody has got a fair shot in this society, everybody is doing their fair share, and everybody is playing by the same set of rules — which is why health care reform was important, because that’s part of security for middle-class families.  That’s why Wall Street reform was important, because we’ve got to make sure that people have confidence in our financial system, and that it’s not being gamed, or reckless bets don’t potentially bring down the entire financial system.

That’s why education reform has been so important.  So the initiatives through things like Race to the Top, where we’ve gotten 46 states to initiate serious reforms — not with a lot of money, but with enough to incentivize best practices; and then, at the higher education level, work that we’ve done to expand Pell grants to make sure that there is a tuition tax credit for middle-class families to help them send their kids to college; initiatives that we’re now moving forward to create more engineers and more scientists and more mathematicians, so that we can keep our competitive edge — all those steps aren’t just going to pay short-term dividends, they’re also laying the foundation for long-term success.

Now, the debate in this campaign is going to be whether we continue down that road to progress or whether we take a sharp turn back to the policies that I believe got us into this mess in the first place.

My opponent’s basic vision can be described pretty simply.  You take the Bush tax cuts, you add on top of it an additional $5 trillion worth of tax cuts that would disproportionately benefit folks like us that don’t need them.  To the extent that there’s even an attempt to reduce the deficit, it’s done by slashing investments in education, voucherizing critical safety net programs like Medicare, reducing our investment in basic research and science.  And along with stripping away regulations that we’ve put in place through the health care bill or Wall Street reform or the enforcement that we think is important to make sure that our air is clean and our water is clean, that somehow, the market is going to be unleashed and prosperity will rain down on everybody.  Now, that’s their theory.

I disagree with that theory.  I think it’s wrong, partly because empirically we tried it.  We tried it for a decade and it didn’t work.  And the approach that I’m talking about in terms of balanced deficit reduction and investments in science and education and infrastructure — we’ve tried that, too, the last time there was a Democratic President.  And we created 23 million new jobs and went from deficit to surplus.  And, by the way, business people, large and small, did really well — because one of the lessons of our economic history is, is that when we’ve got a strong middle class, then businesses have customers and everybody does well, everybody grows.

So that’s what’s at stake in this election.  There are obviously a lot of other things at stake.  On foreign policy, I think it was the right thing to do to end the war in Iraq and refocus attention on al Qaeda, and now transition out of Afghanistan.  (Applause.)  I think it was the right thing to do for us to end torture and make sure that we applied rule of law to how we deal with a terrorist threat.

On issues like women’s health — making sure that women control their own health care choices I think is important.  (Applause.)  It’s the right thing to do.

Ending “don’t ask, don’t tell” — (applause) — and making sure that we are treating our brothers and sisters in the LGBT community with equality and fairness I think is the right thing to do.  So there are a bunch of other issues as stake here.  Supreme Court appointments — you name it.

But the central question is going to be how do we create an economy that works for everybody.  And I have to tell you, I generally have patience with what the other side says about me.  That’s the requirement of this job.  (Laughter.)  And if you don’t like folks talking about you, you probably shouldn’t run for President.

The one thing I do have no patience for is this argument that somehow what I’m criticizing is success.  That’s an argument you hear from the other side — oh, he wants to punish success.  I want to promote success.

But what I know is that Jim’s story, my story, the story of so many of you — our success was made possible in this country because our parents, our grandparents, our great-grandparents — stretching all the way back to the Founders — they had a vision that says, you know what, we’re going to insist on hard work and individual initiative, and we’re going to reward risk and entrepreneurship, and people are going to have to sweat and sacrifice for their success.  But there are some things we’re also going to do together to make sure that everybody has a chance.  Not everybody is going to succeed, but everybody is going to have a shot at success.

That’s why we set up a public school system that works.  That’s how we built extraordinary colleges and universities.  That’s how we created this amazing infrastructure that allows businesses to move goods and services, not just throughout this nation, but eventually throughout the world.  That’s how we sent a man to the moon.  That’s how we made the investments that helped to create the Internet.

So we want success.  We just want to make sure that everybody has a shot.  That’s what we’re fighting for.  That’s what’s at stake in this election.  And I hope you guys are willing to work as hard as I am over the next 106 days — not that I’m counting — (laughter) — and then you’re willing to work with me over another four years to make sure that we are moving towards that goal that I think the vast majority of Americans, regardless of whether they’re Democrats or Republicans or independents, all share.

Thank you very much, everybody.  (Applause.)  Thank you.

END
8:37 P.M. PDT

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by bonniekgoodman on July 25, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Barack Obama, Campaign Speeches & Statements, Campaign Trail, Economy, Education, Presidential Campaigns & Elections
Tagged , , , ,

Posted by bonniekgoodman on July 25, 2012

http://historymusings.wordpress.com/2012/07/25/full-text-campaign-buzz-july-25-2012-president-barack-obamas-speech-at-a-campaign-event-at-a-private-residence-in-hunts-point-washington/

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