Remarks by the President at a DSCC Fundraising Reception

Private Residence
Miami, Florida

6:25 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Wow, if Jorge wasn’t so good at business, we might have to run him for something -- (laughter) -- because I was inspired just listening to him.  To Jorge and Aleyda, and the entire Mas family, thank you so much for the incredible hospitality in this beautiful setting and to all of you who are here.

Everything that Jorge said is true and I remember as if it was yesterday, although we noted that both of us have gotten a little grayer since the first time we met.  (Laughter.)  When I first met Jorge, I was obviously the underdog in a presidential campaign.  And I had taken a deep interest in Florida and a deep interest in Cuban politics.  But the truth is I hadn't had occasion to campaign a lot in Florida, with the exception of making sure that Florida re-elected one of the finest senators we have in this country, Bill Nelson, who is here tonight.  (Applause.)

But one of the things I was confident about was given my history and concern on issues of freedom, democracy, civil society, my own background as a grassroots organizer that the policies that the United States pursued would be ones that would focus on the idea of liberty and how do we build that from the bottom-up.  And Jorge immediately was able to share with me his vision and his views.  And, as a consequence, we were in a position I think to make changes that empowered, that opened the possibility of greater penetration and contact from Cuban families here in remittances and in travel. 

And we’ve started to see changes on the island.  Now, I think we all understand that, ultimately, freedom in Cuba will come because of extraordinary activists and the incredible courage of folks like we see here today.  But the United States can help.  And we have to be creative.  And we have to be thoughtful.  And we have to continue to update our policies.  Keep in mind that when Castro came to power, I was just born.  So the notion that the same policies that we put in place in 1961 would somehow still be as effective as they are today in the age of the Internet and Google and world travel doesn't make sense.

And I think that partly because we're of the same generation, we recognize that the aims are always going to be the same.  And what we have to do is to continually find new mechanisms and new tools to speak out on behalf of the issues that we care so deeply about. 

Now, as Jorge mentioned, he is also a great businessman.  And his family has a great tradition of business in this country.  And the energy sector is one that is an enormous advantage for the United States.  We're starting to see changes in geopolitics in part because of the incredible production of both traditional energy sources and new energy sources.  It's interesting.  I was having a meeting with the Central American leaders when I was in Costa Rica.  And the single thing they wanted to talk most about was energy and how could the United States help them on their energy costs.  And that gives you a sense of why the kind of smart public policies combined with outstanding entrepreneurs and business leaders like Jorge can make an enormous difference in our position in the world over the long term. 

Now, I wish that I could say that Washington always runs on the basis of common sense.  But Washington is a political place.  And what we've seen over the last several years is a constant ratcheting up of partisanship that prevents us from moving forward on things that I think most people would say aren't Democrat or Republican ideas.  They're just good, common-sense, American ideas.  Energy independence is one of them -- making sure that we're investing in the best schools, so that our children can compete in this new global economy; rebuilding our infrastructure, not just our energy infrastructure, but our ports and our roads and our bridges and our air traffic control systems, so that we stay on the cutting edge; making sure we're investing in research and development.  Those are all things that are critically important and should not be the subject of ideological debates.

Unfortunately, what we've seen is again and again those efforts blocked.  And, in fact, sometimes what we've seen is Washington hurt our economy instead of helping, most recently with the shutdown and the threat that for the first time in over 200 years, America wouldn't pay its debts. 

So we have a whole drawer full of good ideas.  And some of them I can do on my own, administratively.  But, ultimately, I've got to have a Congress that is prepared to move forward, to work on those issues where we agree even as we understand there are some issues where we're going to disagree.  And that's why you being here tonight is so important. 

One of my favorite people and one of the finest public officials that we have in this country is here tonight -- Michael Bennet.  He is the senator from Colorado.  (Applause.)  And Michael has the thankless job of traveling all around the country and raising money and recruiting candidates on behalf of the Democratic Senate Committee.  And I have to tell you that when Michael and I, we traveled down to Dallas together just a couple of days ago, we both sat there and we agreed that the horizon and the possibilities are limitless for the United States in this next generation. 

We are better positioned than any country on Earth to succeed in the 21st century, just like we were in the 20th century.  But the only way it's going to happen is if we solve some of the political dysfunction that exists in Washington.  And that's where you come in, because we can't make it happen without you.  And that's why I'm so grateful to Jorge for the support that he has provided. 

I'll give you just one specific example to indicate what can happen if we focus not on the next election, but we focus on the next generation.  We've been talking about immigration reform for decades now.  Almost a decade ago, my predecessor, George W. Bush, said that comprehensive immigration reform that would strengthen our borders, improve our legal immigration system and do something about those who are here on an undocumented basis, that that would be good for the economy.  And it was embraced by a large number of Republicans as well as Democrats. 

We have seen the Senate most recently -- Michael Bennet was part of a group, bipartisan group that helped to pass a comprehensive bill that we know would add over a trillion dollars of economic growth to our country, would reduce our deficit by $800 million, is supported by law enforcement, clergy, business, immigration rights activists.  And right now, it's being held up.  It's being held up not because it's not a good idea.  The majority of the American people support it.  It's being held up because there's a small faction in the other party that has decided we don't want to do anything and our main goal is obstruction.

The only way we can continue to place pressure to get that bill done is by making sure that the other side -- or at least that small faction on the other side -- understands there's a price to pay when you don't act on the basis of the interests of the American people.  And so that's something that I hope we can still get done by the end of this year. 

And, by the way, if the Republicans decided to pass it -- and nobody would be happier than me -- even though it would be to their political advantage to do it, because ultimately I've run my last election.  And along with the gray hair, what comes with being President is that you take the long view and you start thinking about 10 years from now or 20 years from now or 30 years from now. 

And when I'm hopefully playing with some grandkids -- but not too soon -- (laughter) -- because Malia and Sasha are only 15 and 12, I want to know that what I did made the world a better place for them.  I want them to know that because of the decisions we made now, we're more energy independent and that we're improving our environment.  I want them to know that not just they and their friends got a great education, but children all across America got a great education.  I want them to know that the same liberty and freedom that they enjoy here is enjoyed in other parts of the world, including Cuba. 

That's what motivates me.  That's what gets me up every day.  I want to make sure that I'm delivering for them.  And I know Jorge feels the same way.  And I know all of you feel the same way.  That's what we're fighting for.  That's what this is about. 

And so, I know that sometimes politics seems messy and ugly.  And sometimes, it can be discouraging.  And the path of progress typically involves two steps forward and then one step back.  And it doesn't always move in a straight line.  That's true for those who are still fighting for their freedom.  That's true for those who already enjoy their freedom.  But what I'm confident about is if we stay persistent and we keep our eye on the prize that we'll get to where we need to go. 

And I'm just grateful to all of you for joining us in this process.  And I want you to know that if we've got senators like Bill Nelson in our Senate and Michael Bennet in our Senate, then that's going to help me deliver on the promises that I've made.

So thank you very much, everybody.  God bless you.  (Applause.)

END 
6:37 P.M. EST

President Obama Signs South Dakota Disaster Declaration

The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of South Dakota and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by a severe winter storm, snowstorm, and flooding during the period of October 3-16, 2013.

Federal funding is available for Disaster Unemployment Assistance for affected individuals in Butte, Corson, Custer, Dewey, Fall River, Haakon, Harding, Jackson, Lawrence, Meade, Pennington, Perkins, Shannon, and Ziebach Counties and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of the Cheyenne River Reservation within Dewey and Ziebach Counties and the Oglala Sioux Tribe within Jackson and Shannon Counties.

Federal funding also is available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe winter storm, snowstorm, and flooding in Butte, Corson, Custer, Dewey, Fall River, Haakon, Harding, Jackson, Lawrence, Meade, Pennington, Perkins, Shannon, and Ziebach Counties and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of the Cheyenne River Reservation within Dewey and Ziebach Counties and the Oglala Sioux Tribe within Jackson and Shannon Counties.

In addition, federal funding is available to the state and eligible local governments on a cost-sharing basis for snow assistance for a continuous 48 hour period during or proximate to the incident period in Butte, Custer, Fall River, Lawrence, Meade, and Pennington Counties.

Finally, Federal funding is available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures for all counties and Tribes within the state.

W. Craig Fugate, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, named Gary R. Stanley as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area. 

FEMA said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.

Remarks by the President on the Economy -- Port of New Orleans

Port of New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana

12:32 P.M. CST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Big Easy!  (Applause.)  Everybody, give it up for Nancy for that great introduction.  (Applause.)  It is good to be back in New Orleans.  This is what passes for winter here in New Orleans, huh?  (Laughter.)  Folks got all their coats on and all that.  Come on.  You need to go to Chicago to know what it's like to be cold.

It is great to be here.  It is especially happy for my staff.  They love coming to New Orleans.  But we did schedule the event early because I figure there's a limit to how much trouble they could get into.  (Laughter.)  They can't get over to Bourbon Street fast enough if we did a daytime event.  And I know that there are probably a couple of my staff that are LSU fans.  I wouldn't mind staying for the game tomorrow night.  I know we've got the president here -- I just saw him a minute ago and I wished him all the best.

I also want to acknowledge a couple of other people who are here.  You've got your Governor -- Bobby Jindal is here.  (Applause.)  We've got the Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx, who is here.  (Applause.)  We have Cedric Richmond, your outstanding Congressman.  (Applause.)  Cedric then brought down a whole bunch of his colleagues from the Congressional Black Caucus for some important work that they're doing -- not that they're going to enjoy themselves at all while they're here.  (Laughter.)  But we are thrilled to see them all here. 

You have one of the best mayors in the country in Mitch Landrieu.  (Applause.)  And I just flew down with your Senator, who, by coincidence, has the same name -- Mary Landrieu.  (Applause.)  She's traveling around the state today and doing unbelievable work on behalf of the people of Louisiana.  And I just want to say nobody is a tougher advocate on behalf of the working people of Louisiana than Mary Landrieu.  So we're very, very proud of the work that she does.  (Applause.)

Finally, I want to thank Mr. Gary LaGrange, Keith Palmisano, and Chris Hammond.  They showed me around the port.  (Applause.)  And this is one of the -- by the way, anybody who's got a seat, feel free.  I noticed that a few folks are standing up.  If you don’t have a seat then keep on standing.  I don’t want you hurting yourself.

This is one of the busiest port complexes in the entire world.  You move millions of tons of steel and chemicals and fuel and food every single year.  I just found out you also handle a lot of the country’s coffee, which means you're responsible for keeping the White House awake at all times.  (Applause.)  Got some coffee folks here.

And, in so many ways, this port is representative of what ports all around the country do:  They help to keep our economy going -- moving products, moving people, making sure that businesses are working.  You've got corn and wheat that’s coming down from my home state of Illinois down the river, ending up here, and then going all around the world.  And it's part of the reason why we've been able to increase exports so rapidly, is because we've got some of the best natural resources and waterways and facilities in the world. 

Now, growing our economy, creating new jobs, helping middle-class families regain a sense of stability and security so they can find good jobs and make sure that their kids are doing even better than they did -- that’s always been what America is about, but for too many people, that sense that you can make it here if you try, that sense has been slipping away.  And my driving focus has been to restore that sense of security, and it should be Washington's focus, regardless of party.  That’s what everybody in Washington should be thinking about every day.  

So today, I want to just offer a couple of ideas about what we could do right now together that would help our economy -- right now.  Now, the good news is, over the past 44 months our businesses have created 7.8 million new jobs.  Since I took office, we’ve cut the deficits in half.  (Applause.)  That’s right.  By the way, you wouldn’t know this sometimes listening to folks on TV, but the deficits are going down, they're not going up.  They've been cut in half.  (Applause.)  And they keep on going down. 

Over the past three years, health care costs have risen at the slowest pace on record.  Exports are up.  The housing market is up.  The American auto industry is roaring back.  So we’ve got a lot of good things to build on, but we’ve got a lot more work to do.  And what we should start doing, the first thing we should do is stop doing things that undermine our businesses and our economy over the past few years -- this constant cycle of manufactured crises and self-inflicted wounds that have been coming out of Washington. 

For example, we learned yesterday that over the summer, our economy grew at its fastest pace in a year.  That's the good news.  The bad news is that the very day that the economic quarter ended, some folks in Washington decided to shut down the government and threatened to default on America’s obligations for the first time in more than 200 years.  And it’s like the gears of our economy, every time they are just about to take off, suddenly somebody taps the brakes and says, “Not so fast.”

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Tell it!  (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, our businesses are resilient.  We’ve got great workers.  And so, as a consequence, we added about 200,000 new jobs last month.  But there’s no question that the shutdown harmed our jobs market.  The unemployment rate still ticked up.  And we don't yet know all the data for this final quarter of the year, but it could be down because of what happened in Washington.  Now, that makes no sense.  These self-inflicted wounds don't have to happen.  They should not happen again. 

We should not be injuring ourselves every few months -- we should be investing in ourselves.  We should be building, not tearing things down.  Rather than refighting the same old battles again and again and again, we should be fighting to make sure everybody who works hard in America and hard right here in New Orleans, that they have a chance to get ahead.  That's what we should be focused on.  (Applause.)

Which brings me to one of the reasons I’m here at this port.  One of the things we should be focused on is helping more businesses sell more products to the rest of the world.  And the only way those products get out is through facilities like this.  Right now, exports are one of the brightest spots in our economy.  Thanks in part to new trade deals that we signed with countries like Panama and Colombia and South Korea, we now export more goods and services than ever before.  And that means jobs right here in the United States of America.

Last year, every $1 billion in exports supports nearly 5,000 jobs, including jobs right here at this port.  So we’re working on new trade deals that will mean more jobs for our workers, and more business for ports like this one.

And, by the way, when I travel around the world, I’m out there selling.  I’ll go anywhere in the world to make sure that those products stamped with those words, “Made in America,” that we can open up those markets and sell them anywhere.  (Applause.)

So helping American businesses grow; creating more jobs --  these are not Democratic or Republican priorities.  They are priorities that everybody, regardless of party, should be able to get behind.  And that’s why, in addition to working with Congress to grow our exports, I’ve put forward additional ideas where I believe Democrats and Republicans can join together to make progress right now.

Number one, Congress needs to pass a farm bill that helps rural communities grow and protects vulnerable Americans.  For decades, Congress found a way to compromise and pass farm bills without fuss.  For some reason, now Congress can't even get that done.  Now, this is not something that just benefits farmers.  Ports like this one depend on all the products coming down the Mississippi.  So let’s do the right thing, pass a farm bill.  We can start selling more products.  That's more business for this port.  And that means more jobs right here.  (Applause.)

Number two, we should fix our broken immigration system.  (Applause.)  This would be good for our national security, but it would also be good for our economic security.  Over the next two decades, it would grow our economy by $1.4 trillion.  It would shrink our deficits by nearly a trillion dollars.  This should not be a partisan issue.  President Bush proposed the broad outlines of common-sense immigration reform almost a decade ago.  When I was in the Senate, I joined 23 of my Republican colleagues to back those reforms.  This year, the Senate has already passed a bill with broad bipartisan support. 

So all we’re doing now is waiting for the House to act.  I don't know what the holdup is.  But if there's a good reason not to do it, I haven't heard it.  There's no reason both parties can’t come together and get this done this year.  Get it done this year.  (Applause.)   

Number three, Democrats and Republicans should work together on a responsible budget that sets America on a stronger course for the future.  We shouldn’t get caught up in the same old fights.  And we shouldn’t just cut things just for the sake of cutting things.  Remember, I want to remind you -- what's happening in the deficits?  They're going down.  They're shrinking.  They're falling faster than they have in 60 years.

So what we have to do now is do what America has always done:  Make some wise investments in our people and in our country that will help us grow over the long term.  We should close wasteful tax loopholes that don’t help our jobs, don't grow our economy, and then invest that money in things that actually do create jobs and grow our economy.  And one of those things is building new roads and bridges and schools and ports.  That creates jobs.  (Applause.)  It puts people to work during the construction phase.  And then it creates an infrastructure for our economy to succeed moving forward.

Educating our kids, training our workers so they’re prepared for the global economy -- that helps us grow.  We should be investing in that.  And Mayor Landrieu has been doing a great job in improving education here in New Orleans.  (Applause.)

  Investing in science and research and technology -- that keeps our businesses and our military at our cutting edge.  That’s the kind of investment we should be making. 

I mean, think about our infrastructure.  In today’s global economy, businesses are going to take root and grow wherever there's the fastest, most reliable transportation and communications networks -- they can go anywhere.  So China is investing a lot in infrastructure.  Europe is investing a whole lot in infrastructure.  And Brazil is investing a whole lot in infrastructure.  What are we doing?

We're doing some good things locally here.  The state and city are trying to do some work, but nationally we're falling behind.  We're relying on old stuff.  I don't think we should have just old stuff.  We should have some new stuff that is going to help us grow and keep pace with global competition.  

Rebuilding our transportation and communications networks is one of the fastest ways to create good jobs.  And consider that just a couple of years from now, we're going to have new supertankers that are going to start coming through the Panama Canal, and these tankers can hold three times as much cargo as today’s.  If a port can’t handle those supertankers, they’ll go load and unload cargo somewhere else.  So there’s work that we can start doing in terms of dredging and making the passageways deeper, which means the supertankers can have more stuff on them, which means they can unload and load more stuff, which makes this port more competitive.

So why wouldn’t we put people to work upgrading them?  (Applause.)  Why wouldn’t we do that?  It’s not just our ports either.  One in nine of our bridges is rated structurally deficient.  More than 40 percent of our major highways are congested; so is our airspace.  Everybody who’s sitting on a tarmac wondering why it is that you’re not taking off, and getting aggravated when you go fly someplace, part of the reason is we’ve got this antiquated air traffic control system.  We need the next generation air traffic control system.  It would reduce time travel; it would reduce delays.  It reduces fuel costs for airlines.  It reduces pollution in the sky.  We know how to do it, we just haven’t done it.

That shouldn’t be a Democratic or a Republican issue.  That’s just smart to go ahead and do it.  Something that people  across the political spectrum should be able to agree on.  Now, here’s the thing:  All these opportunities and challenges, they’re not going to magically fix themselves.  We’ve got to do it.  And anybody who says we can’t afford to pay for these things needs to realize we’re already paying for them. 

I’ll give you an example.  A lot of trucking companies now reroute their shipments to avoid traffic and unsafe bridges.  So they’re going longer than they need to; that costs them money.  So you’re paying for it.  Those costs then get passed on to consumers.  Or it means companies aren’t making as much of a profit and maybe they’ve got fewer employees.  So directly or indirectly, we’re paying for it.  And the longer we delay, the more we’ll pay.

But the sooner we take care of business, the better.  And I know that if there’s one thing that members of Congress from both parties want, it’s smart infrastructure projects that create good jobs in their districts.

That’s why, last year, I took the step without Congress to speed up the permitting process for big infrastructure projects like upgrading our ports.  Just cut through the red tape.  Get it done faster.  This year, rebuilding our infrastructure could be part of a bipartisan budget deal.  A couple months ago, I put forward an idea to try to break through some of the old arguments -- a grand bargain for middle-class jobs.  And what I said was, we’ll simplify our corporate tax code, close some wasteful tax loopholes, end incentives to ship jobs overseas, lower tax rates for businesses that create jobs here in the United States, and use some of the money we save by switching to a smarter tax system to create good construction jobs building the things that our businesses need right here in America.  It’s a pretty sensible deal.  (Applause.)

So if we took that step, we could modernize our air traffic control system to keep planes running on time; modernize our power grids and pipelines so they survive storms; modernize our schools to prepare our kids for jobs of the future; modernize our ports so they can accommodate the new ships.  

The point is, rebuilding our infrastructure or educating our kids, funding basic research -- they are not partisan issues, they're American issues.  There used to be a broad consensus that these things were important to our economy.  And we’ve got to get back to that mindset.  We’ve got to move forward on these things together.  It doesn't mean that there aren’t going to be disagreements on a whole bunch of stuff, but let’s work on the things we agree on. 

Now, I’m going to make one last point, one area where we haven’t made much bipartisan progress -- at least not as much as I’d like -- is fixing our broken health care system.  (Applause.)

And I took up this cause knowing it was hard -- there was a reason why no other President had done it -- to make sure every American has access to quality, affordable health care, and to make sure that no American ever again has to fear one illness is going to bankrupt them.  (Applause.)

And the work we’ve already done has resulted in, over the past three years, health care costs rising at the slowest pace on record.  Health care costs for businesses are growing about one-third of the rate they were a decade ago, and we want those trends to continue.

Now, we’ve had this problem with the website.  I’m not happy about that.  But we’re working overtime to make sure that it gets fixed, because right now we’ve put in place a system, a marketplace, where people can get affordable health care plans.  I promise you nobody has been more frustrated.  I want to go in and fix it myself, but I don't write code, so -- (laughter).

But to every American with a preexisting condition who’s been waiting for the day they could be covered just like everybody else, for folks who couldn’t afford to buy their own insurance because they don't get it on the job, we’re going to fix the website.  Because the insurance plans are there.  They are good, and millions of Americans are already finding that they’ll gain better coverage for less cost, and it’s the right thing to do.  (Applause.)

Now, I know that's -- I know health care is controversial, so there’s only going to be so much support we get on that on a bipartisan basis -- until it’s working really well, and then they're going to stop calling it Obamacare.  (Laughter and applause.)  They're going to call it something else.

One thing, though, I was talking to your mayor and your governor about, though, is a separate issue, which is one of the things that the Affordable Care Act does is allow states to expand Medicaid to cover more of their citizens.  (Applause.)

And here in Louisiana, that would benefit about 265,000 people.  And already you’ve seen states -- Arkansas has covered -- taken this up, and they're covering almost 14 percent of their uninsured.  Republican governors in states like Ohio and Nevada, Arizona, they're doing it, too.  Oregon has already reduced the number of uninsured by about 10 percent.  And some of these folks opposed Obamacare, but they did support helping their citizens who can’t get coverage. 

So we want to work with everybody -- mayor, governor, insurance -- whoever it is that wants to work with us here in Louisiana to make sure that even if you don't support the overall plan, let’s at least go ahead and make sure that the folks who don't have health insurance right now can get it through an expanded Medicaid.  Let’s make sure we do that.  (Applause.)  It’s the right thing to do.

And one of the reasons to do it is -- I’ve said this before; sometimes people don't fully appreciate it -- we already pay for the health care of people who don't have health insurance, we just pay for the most expensive version, which is when they go to the emergency room.  Because what happens is, the hospitals have to take sick folk.  They're not just going to leave them on the streets.  But people who are sick, they wait until the very last minute.  It's much more expensive to treat them.  Hospitals have to figure out how to get their money back, which means they jack up costs for everybody who does have health insurance by about $1,000 per family. 

So, as a consequence, what happens is you're already paying a hidden tax for a broken health care system.  Community hospitals struggle to care for the uninsured who can't pay their bills when they get sick.  So it's the right thing to do for the health of our economies as a whole.  It is a practical, pragmatic reason to do it.  It has nothing to do with politics or ideology.  And the more states that are working together, Democrats and Republicans, the better off we're going to be. 

So the bottom line is, New Orleans, we can work together to do these things, because we’ve done them before.  We did not become the greatest nation on Earth just by chance, just by accident.  We had some advantages -- really nice real estate here in the United States.  But what we also had were people who despite their differences -- and we come from everywhere and look different and have different traditions -- we understand that this country works best when we're working together.  And we decided to do what was necessary for our businesses and our families to succeed.  And if we did it in the past, we can do it again. 

So let's make it easier for more businesses to expand and grow and sell more goods made in America to the rest of the world.  Let’s make sure we’ve got the best ports and roads and bridges and schools.  Let’s make sure our young people are getting a great education.  Let’s give everybody a chance to get ahead, not just a few at the top, but everybody -- (applause) -- because if we do that, if we help our businesses grow and our communities thrive and our children reach a little higher, then the economy is going to grow faster. 

We'll rebuild our middle class stronger.  The American Dream will be real and achievable not just for a few, but for everybody -- not just today, but for decades to come.  That's what we're fighting for.  That's what you're all about here at this port and here in New Orleans.  And I'm looking forward to working with you to make sure we keep that up. 

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

END
12:55 P.M. CST

Press Gaggle by Principal Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest en route New Orleans, LA

Aboard Air Force One
En Route New Orleans, Louisiana

11:00 A.M. EST

MR. EARNEST:  Before we get started, I just wanted to talk about an important aspect of the President's trip to New Orleans today.  As you know, we got the latest jobs from the Department of Labor.  Those jobs numbers have indicated that we've now been creating jobs in this country for 44 consecutive months, a total of 7.8 million jobs.

Just in this past month alone, there were 212,000 jobs created in the private sector.  And for the third quarter, that's an average of about 152,000 private-sector jobs per month.  That's an indication that our economy is continuing to make good progress in its recovery from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. 

Now, the other thing that the jobs report showed is that our economy took a hit, as a result of the government shutdown and the brinksmanship that Congress played with the debt limit just last month.  The jobs report indicated that there was an uptick in unemployment.  The jobs report indicated that there was an increase in the number of people who reported being temporarily unemployed.  These are the kinds of self-inflicted wounds that our economy needs to avoid.  The American people are counting on their representatives in Washington, D.C., to put in place policies that will support the recovery, not undermine it.

Now, there’s one last aspect of the report that is notable, which is the report indicated that there were 11,000 construction jobs that were created last month.  Over the course of the last year, 185,000 construction jobs had been created.  Again, that's important progress, but it is 1.9 million construction jobs below the peak before the economic downturn.  So we've got quite a ways to go. 

One common-sense way that we could put people back to work would be investing in modernizing our nation's infrastructure.  The Port of New Orleans is one good example where wise investments could, in modernizing that port, could lead to job creation, good construction jobs there in the New Orleans area.  But what's important is there's a multiplier effect.  The port itself is a key component of our nation's international trading system -- that millions of tons of products are transported out of this country through the Port of New Orleans to markets overseas.  That supports millions of jobs in this country.

And the President has made exports and increasing our exports a focus of his economic growth strategy.  So there is an opportunity for us to make a front-end investment in our infrastructure, in ports like the one in New Orleans that will not just create jobs in the short term, but also lay a foundation where we’re creating jobs over the long term, many of them, all across the country, as we strengthen our trading relationships and make the transport of American products from American to overseas markets more smooth and more efficient.

So that's some of what the President will be talking about in New Orleans today, and it is a key component of the President's strategy for strengthening the economy and creating good jobs for middle-class families.  So with that, I'll take your questions.

Roger, do you want to start?

Q    Can you update us on Iran talks?  And has the President talked to Netanyahu?

MR. EARNEST:  At this point, I don't have any specific calls from the President to read out to you.  As was reported overnight, Secretary Kerry has traveled to Geneva, where he will participate in some of the conversations that are ongoing there.  He is participating in those talks in the hopes that he can play an instrumental role in narrowing the differences that currently exist between the P5-plus-1 and the Iranians. 

So I don't have any additional updates to provide to you beyond sort of observing that that is the current state of affairs.  And if there are more details to report out, I would anticipate that my colleagues who are traveling with the Secretary in Geneva would be able to keep you apprised of them on a short-term basis.

Q    Israel is completely rejecting the deal that seems to be emerging.  Netanyahu says that Iran got everything and had to pay nothing.  So what do you make of your closest ally saying that this is something that would make their safety be a risk?

MR. EARNEST:  One thing that’s important for everybody to understand is that there is no deal.  The reason, as I just mentioned to Roger, that Secretary Kerry has traveled to Geneva is to see if he can narrow the differences between the P5-plus-1 -- which is the United States and our negotiating partners -- and the Iranians.  So any critique of the deal is premature.

It's also important for observers in this process to not lose sight of the fact that the United States and Israel are in complete agreement about the need to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.  The Israelis have expressed their serious concerns because of the threat that Iran having a nuclear weapon would pose to their nation's security.  The nation of Israel is a close ally of the United States, so we obviously are concerned about their security, too. 

But Iran having a nuclear weapon would also have a terribly destabilizing impact on the broader Middle East.  This is already a very volatile region, and having one country with a nuclear weapon, like Iran, that has been very combative and engaged in some inflammatory rhetoric would be destabilizing throughout the entire region.  The last thing we need to see is a nuclear arms race in the Middle East.

So there are a couple of very good reasons why it's important for Iran not to obtain a nuclear weapon.  And you have seen this President play a leading role in the effort to put in place sanctions that are bringing Iran to the negotiating table.  The only reason that Iran has come to the negotiating table to explore the possibility of demonstrating to the international community that their nuclear program is exclusively for peaceful means is because there is a very tough sanctions regime that’s in place, both bilaterally between Iran and the United States, but also a set of multilateral sanctions that have taken a severe toll on the Iranian economy. 

And we have seen -- there's now an Iranian -- now the Iranian leadership is responding to that, to the pressure of those economic sanctions, and coming to the table and seeking to resolve this dispute with the international community in a peaceful way.

So we're going to consider those conversations.  But just to be clear, let me begin where I began, which is there no deal in place, and the whole reason that Secretary Kerry has traveled to Geneva is to see if he can narrow the differences that currently exist between the Iranians and the P5-plus-1.

Q    What is the modest easing of sanctions that the United States would consider offering in this?

MR. EARNEST:  I don’t want to get ahead of any of the discussions that currently underway there.  But what we have said about the relief that we would consider is that it would be proportional to whatever concessions the Iranians themselves make.  The relief that would be provided would be completely reversible.  This is not an open-ended proposition that we’re considering here. 

And the other thing that we are resolved to is protecting the broader architecture of the sanctions program.  That sanctions regime architecture has been critical to bringing the Iranians to the table.  This sanctions architecture has put enormous strain on the Iranian economy, has put enormous strain on the Iranian leadership.  And it’s the reason that we’re having these conversations right now.  So it wouldn’t make sense at this point to start taking this architecture apart.

But in terms of the details, that’s part of what they’re talking about, so I don’t want to be any more specific about that from here.

Q    Josh, the Israelis with the Saudis as well have expressed concerns about any rapprochement with Iran.  How do concerns from important allies in the region temper the U.S. approach to making any deal with Iran?

MR. EARNEST:  Well, I think a lot of what I said about Prime Minister Netanyahu’s comments applies to the concerns that have been raised by the Saudis, which is it is in the interest of the United States and our allies all across the world and in the region that Iran not obtain a nuclear weapon.  That is precisely the effort that we are engaged in right now, which is to force the Iranian regime to live up to their international obligations, particularly those obligations that are guaranteed by the Non-Proliferation Treaty.  There are also obligations that Iran has to the United Nations Security Council that they failed to meet. 

The United States and President Obama are determined to ensure that the Iranians live up to those obligations.  The President has played a leading role in putting in place these sanctions that have taken a terrible toll on the economy, that have put pressure on the Iranian regime to bring them to the table to come into compliance with those obligations.

So we have a very clear, I think what you could describe even as a pretty transparent strategy, and that strategy has made some really important progress.  We have a situation where the Iranians are at the negotiating table, and we do feel like those negotiations are progressing.  But there is no deal, but there is an opportunity here for a possible diplomatic solution, and that is exactly what the President is pursuing -- a diplomatic solution that would lead to the kind of guarantees that the international community could be confident in, could be confident that the Iranian regime is living up to their international obligations.  This would be transparent inspections, intrusive inspections that would guarantee some transparency into the program so that the Iranian regime could guarantee to the international community that their nuclear program exists for exclusively peaceful purposes.

Q    Josh, the President last night mentioned, when he apologized for problems with the cancellations of policies, that he was going to instruct his administration to go back with some sort of a loop.  Can you flesh that out?  What are you guys looking at in terms of canceled policies?

MR. EARNEST:  I’m not in a position to add a whole lot of additional detail to what the President said last night.  The President did acknowledge that there are some gaps in the law that need to be repaired.  He has directed his team to consider some administrative solutions to those problems, some steps that his administration could take unilaterally that would address some of those gaps.

Q    Is he looking at any legislation?  And then, is he talking to Senator Landrieu, who is aboard the plane with us today?  Can you tell us anything about the conversations they might be having?  She has a bill out that would make a fix.

MR. EARNEST:  Senator Landrieu is on the plane, and I know -- I’ve heard a little bit about her legislation.  I don't have any specific details from any conversation she had with the President to tell you about.  But suffice it to say that the President is determined to address some of the challenges from this law.

The whole reason that the President fought so hard to get the Affordable Care Act passed is because he believes firmly in the priority that all Americans should have access to quality, affordable health insurance. 

The fact of the matter is that 80 percent of Americans get their health insurance through their employer or through Medicare or Medicaid, or through the VA.  Other than additional consumer protections falling into place, they’re unaffected by the Affordable Care Act.  There are 15 percent of Americans who are currently uninsured, but now for the first time have access to quality, affordable health care.  And in some cases -- in many cases, in fact, we’ll see some Americans get some tax credits to help them afford that health insurance. 

In terms of the 5 percent of the people who are in the individual market, we are committed to, again, making sure that we’re putting in place some specific consumer protections that will prevent insurance companies from discriminating against people with preexisting conditions, that would prevent insurance companies from charging women double just because they're women.  So there are important protections that the President remains committed to.

But that's the whole reason that we’re working so hard to fix some of these flaws, because the President believes firmly in the importance of the goal we’re trying to achieve here.

Q    And does he just want to look at administrative fixes, or are you open to legislative changes as well?

MR. EARNEST:  The President has said for years now that he is open to working with members of Congress that have a genuine interest in trying to strengthen the Affordable Care Act.  That's been true for years now, and it’s true today.

There’s one other thing I think that’s -- I also want to mention here that the President touched on during his trip to Texas, which is in the interest of pursuing quality, affordable health insurance for people all across the country, the President put forward a proposal to expand Medicaid that would put the federal government on the hook for covering 100 percent of the expansion of Medicaid. 

That’s something that Governor Perry had resisted in Texas, and the President talked about that in Texas.  I didn’t want to let this trip go by without pointing out that we’re actually traveling to two states today, the great state of Louisiana and the great state of Florida, where you have Republican politicians who are blocking the expansion of Medicaid in those two states.  That doesn't make any sense.

In Louisiana, at the beginning of this year, there would be 265,000 people who would get access to affordable health care if Republican politicians weren’t blocking Medicaid.  In the state of Florida, we’re talking about 848,000 people who, as of the first of the year, would have had access to health insurance if Republican legislators weren’t blocking that effort. 

So there are a number of things that we’re engaged in, and one of them is trying to encourage Republican officials at the local level to stop playing politics with people’s health care and actually take advantage of programs that are going to bring much needed relief to families that desperately crave it.

Q    Is the extension of the enrollment deadline one of the things you’re considering in one of these fixes he’s talking about?

MR. EARNEST:  At this point, we are at the end of five weeks -- at the end of the fifth week of a six-month enrollment period.  The experts who are focused on fixing the website have indicated that they expect that the website will be functioning smoothly for the vast majority of users by the end of this month.  If that deadline is met, that means that there will continue to be -- there will still be another four months left in the enrollment period for people to use the website, to visit the marketplaces, to find out if they qualify for tax credits, and for the first time take advantage of quality, affordable health insurance that’s available on the individual market.  That’s something that previously hasn't been in place.

And we're confident that once we get this website fixed, that people will have four months in which to do that, which, when you compare it to the open enrollment period that typically exists for people who get health care through their employers, four months is actually a really long time.  When you compare it to the Medicare open enrollment period -- which I think is only four or six weeks -- a four-month enrollment period is still a substantial period of time.

Q    So it’s primarily the grandfathering issue that you’re fixing?  And that’s not exactly a loophole, is it?  The President has called it a loophole.

MR. EARNEST:  Well, I think what -- the President was asked this specifically last night, and I think he referred to it as a gap in the health care law.  And there are a variety of things that we're considering to try to address that gap.

The fact of the matter is that there are -- that many people who are receiving cancellation letters right now, about a million of them are people who otherwise would qualify for Medicaid.  So there are some options for those people who are receiving cancellation letters.

A number of the people who are receiving cancellation letters would actually qualify for tax credits to help them afford health insurance.  A number of the people who are receiving cancellation letters will have access to -- when they go and look at the online marketplace -- will have access to health care plans that are as good as the plan that they currently have, but they can purchase it for the same price or less.

So one of the other challenges that we face is educating people about this system.  I know that Consumer Reports has talked about this a little bit, that some of the reporting that we've seen about people who are worried about the cancellation letters they've received, when they've actually learned the facts about the options that are available to them, they’ve learned that they’re actually ending up in a pretty good place here because of the new protections that are in place because of the Affordable Care Act, because of that new tax credits that people can benefit from that will help them afford quality health insurance.

So one of the other challenges that we have over the course of the next four months is educating people about the options that are available to them -- options that were created by the Affordable Care Act.

Q    Back to Iran, Josh.  Is the President making any calls from the plane on Iran?  Or has he spoken to Secretary of State Kerry to offer guidance, thoughts, instructions?

MR. EARNEST:  I don’t have any calls from the plane to read out at this point.  And I don’t know if he has spoken to Secretary Kerry today.  I don't believe that he has.  But I don't have any calls to Secretary Kerry to read out at this point.  But if there are calls and we're in a position to read them out, then I'll make sure that you guys get them.

Q    Can we expect to see former Florida Governor Charlie Crist here today, later in Florida?

MR. EARNEST:  That's a good question.  I don't know what Mr. Crist’s schedule is today.  But we'll take a look at that.  Once we get down there, I'll have a better sense.  And there will be press access to at least a couple of the fundraisers that the President is doing, so you get a chance to look for yourself.  If I see him in some setting in which you're not allowed, I'll try to flag it for you.

Q    Does the President support his candidacy?  I haven’t followed.

MR. EARNEST:  Well, I don't know if -- well, I will say this.  Mr. Crist is somebody who was a very strong supporter of the President's re-election.  And the President was certainly pleased to have his support.  Then-Governor Crist, as you know, famously worked closely with the President to implement the Recovery Act, which was very important in helping the economy across the country and the economy in Florida bounce back from the worst recession since the Great Depression.

In terms of the governor's race in 2014, I don't have any endorsements to announce at this point.  I'm actually not even sure that the field is set in that race, so I don't want to get ahead of the game on that front.

Q    Josh, the President is going to talk about exports today.  Is the U.S. still on track to meet the President’s goal of doubling exports by 2015?

MR. EARNEST:  I haven't seen the latest numbers on this.  I think the latest numbers indicate that exports have increased by more than 50 percent since the President took office.  But I don't know what that 50 percent refers to in terms of when they're drawing that line.  So I’ll have to get back to you with some more specific numbers.  But what you can report in terms of the President's record on exports is that exports have increased by 50 percent since he took office.

Q    Do you have anything on the President’s meeting yesterday with John McCain?  What did they talk about, and how did it go?

MR. EARNEST:  I don't have a specific readout.  I know that they were planning to sit down to talk about a range of issues, including touching base on the latest efforts to pass bipartisan immigration reform.  I know that the President is in regular touch with Senator McCain and has the opportunity to talk to him on a fairly regular basis.  But I didn't talk to him about the specific conversation that they had now, other than confirming that the early description of the topics covered in that meeting is accurate.

Q    Josh, can you say whether Todd Park will testify before Congress on the Affordable Care Act?  And can you also talk about what his role was in implementing the website?

MR. EARNEST:  Well, as you know, Mr. Park was subpoenaed by Chairman Issa to testify before his committee.  There’s something a little ironic about that request, because Mr. Issa has talked repeatedly about the need to get the website fixed quickly, and so for him to pull away a person who is critical to that effort to testify before Congress might cause some to wonder about the motivation for the request for testimony.

At this point, it’s Mr. Park’s intention to stay focused on the work to repair the website.  But that doesn’t mean -- but I think he’s also willing at some point down the line, in the months ahead, to appear before the committee and to talk about the efforts that they’ve undertaken to try to get a handle on the website’s problems and to put in place some fixes by the end of November.

Q    Is he resisting the subpoena for now?

MR. EARNEST:  I don’t know that a subpoena has been issued, I think it’s just been a request from Chairman Issa in the form of a letter.  And right now it’s Mr. Park’s intention to stay focused on the task at hand that Mr. Issa himself said was important, which is getting the website fixed as quickly as possible.

Q    Are you saying that he won’t testify unless he is subpoenaed?

MR. EARNEST:  I’m saying that right now the plan is for Mr. Park to continue his work in fixing the website.  It doesn’t mean that he won’t appear before the committee at some future date.  But right now the plan is for him to stay on the job of getting the website up and running as quickly as possible.

Q    And Senator Landrieu is being criticized for traveling to Louisiana with the President but then not appearing at the event with him.  Can you comment on that?

MR. EARNEST:  Well, I don’t want to -- I haven’t spoken to Senator Landrieu about it.  I did read in some local report that she has another event in another part of the state today.  You should check with her.  But my hunch is that she is strongly supportive of the President’s efforts to promote investments in the Port of New Orleans and in other infrastructure projects like it that are so critical to the economy not just in the New Orleans area, but all across the country. 

But you can check with her on that.  I would point out the Senator’s brother, the Mayor of New Orleans, will be with us for at least part of this trip today, because he does believe that important upgrades at the port would be beneficial to the local economy here.

Q    (Inaudible) to the minimum wage if you’re planning on getting behind the Harkin-Miller bill, or what the efforts are to sort of get behind that now?

MR. EARNEST:  The President, in his State of the Union address, as you’ll recall, made a point of talking about his support for increasing the minimum wage.  It’s the President’s view that hard work in this country should lead to a decent living.  And there are too many people out there who work very hard for the minimum wage, at a minimum wage level.  That means they’re trying to raise a family either at the poverty line or just a little bit above it.  That is not the kind of economy that we should have in this country.  If there are people who are out there working hard to put food on the table for their family, they should be able to earn a decent living.

So that’s why the President supports increasing the minimum wage.  And it is fair for you to say that the administration is supportive of the Harkin-Miller bill that would increase the minimum wage.

Q    How does the President feel about the U.S. being stripped of our vote at UNESCO?

MR. EARNEST:  I actually have not seen those reports, Josh, so I'll have to get back to you on that.

Q    Can you give us a sketch for tomorrow, what we can expect?

MR. EARNEST:  At this point, the President doesn’t have any public events tomorrow, but as we learn more about the President's schedule we'll give you an update. 

Q    Josh, the President in the interview last night seemed to stop short of voicing full confidence in Secretary Sebelius.  Was there anything that he meant by just saying that she's done a good job, but not offering a full-throated endorsement?

MR. EARNEST:  No, nothing has changed about the President's full confidence in Secretary Sebelius.  I think you might be over-reading just a little bit into his comments.  But, no, the President has full confidence in Secretary Sebelius.  I think the President himself pointed out why, which is that she has undertaken a very difficult challenge, which is, in a difficult political environment, put in place insurance marketplaces that are producing results for people.

There are people who are able to sign up for insurance on the individual market and can get tax credits to help them afford it.  And what we're finding is that those insurance policies, because of the competition between insurance companies, those policies are being offered at a very competitive rate.  And that is a testament to the hard work of the people at HHS.  There are many Republicans, you'll remember, who doubted whether that was even possible.

The fact of the matter is that has been a strong success in states all across the country, and that’s a testament to the hard work of Secretary Sebelius.  But her top priority right now is mobilizing the resources and putting a team together to fix problems with the website.  They've made progress on that and they're making steady progress, but they've got some work to do to meet their deadline, which is to get the website up and running smoothly for the vast majority of users by the end of this month.

Q    Does the President have any comment on the FDA rules on trans-fat?  Is that something he talked about with you?

MR. EARNEST:  I did see the news coverage of that, but I haven't talked to the President about it, so I don’t know what his view is.

Q    The First Lady? 

MR. EARNEST:  (Laughter.)  Check with her office.  I bet they do have a comment.  Anything else?  I do have a quick week ahead.

And the most important thing is, really, Monday is Veterans Day.  So as you know, the President and First Lady traditionally on Veterans Day have hosted a breakfast for veterans from across the country.  They’ll be doing that again on Monday.

Later in the morning, the President will travel to Arlington National Cemetery where he will participate in a wreath-laying ceremony and deliver remarks there.

On Tuesday, the President will attend meetings at the White House. 

On Wednesday, the President will address the 2013 Tribal Nations Conference. 

On Thursday, the President will travel to Philadelphia where he’ll participate in a campaign event for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. 

And then, on Friday, the President will participate in more meetings at the White House.

All right?  Okay. 

END
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