Remarks by the President at Campaign Event -- Jacksonville, FL

Prime Osborn Convention Center
Jacksonville, Florida

2:12 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Florida!  (Applause.)  Oh, it is good to be back in Jacksonville, Florida!  (Applause.) 

A couple people I just want to say thank you to -- first of all, please give Don Herrin a big round of applause for the introduction.  (Applause.)  One of our outstanding members of Congress, your own Corrine Brown is here.  (Applause.)  Another great member of the Florida delegation, Ted Deutch is here.  (Applause.) And Congresswoman and Chair of the Democratic National Committee, Debbie Wasserman-Schultz is in the house.  (Applause.)

And all of you are here.  And I'm happy about that.  (Applause.)

I'm sorry we were a little delayed -- had some weather issues.  Even Air Force One has to fly around the thunder.  (Laughter.)  But we are so glad to be back.  And I want to thank all of you for being here --

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  I love you!

THE PRESIDENT:  I love you back.  (Applause.)  That's why I came.

Now, Jacksonville, this is my last political campaign.

AUDIENCE:  Awww --

THE PRESIDENT:  It's true.  I'm term limited.  (Laughter.)  And since it's my last campaign, it got me thinking about my first political campaigns, early on, back when I had no gray hair.  (Laughter.)  And when I was running for the state senate, or I was running for the United States Senate in Illinois -- Illinois is a big state like Florida, and we'd have to travel across the state, and I didn’t have Air Force One back then.  (Laughter.)  No Marine One.  So I didn’t even have GPS.  (Laughter.)  So I'd be driving -- maybe I'd have one staff person in the car.  And since we didn’t have MapQuest, I had to have a map, and I'd fold it and then I'd try to unfold it and fold it back the way it was, and I'd get it all messed up.  And I'd get lost, and then once I got to an event I'd have to find parking, and sometimes I couldn't find a parking spot, or I'd get rained on. 

But I have such fond memories of those early campaigns because, no matter where I went, no matter what community -- inner-city, rural town, meeting with black folks, white folks, Latinos, Asians, Native Americans -- didn’t matter what background people came from, no matter how much they looked different on the surface, there was a common thread to all the stories that I heard as I traveled around the state. 

I'd meet an elderly couple, and they'd remind me of my grandparents.  I'd think about my grandfather who fought in Patton's Army in World War II, my grandmother working on a bomber assembly line while he was gone.  And when he came back he was rewarded with a chance to go to college on the GI Bill.  They were able to buy their first home with an FHA loan.  And I'd think about the journey that they had traveled and everything that that Greatest Generation had done to build America.

Or I'd meet a middle-class couple and I'd think about Michelle's parents -- especially her dad, who had multiple sclerosis, so by the time I met him he could barely walk, had to use two canes, had to wake up an hour earlier than everybody else to get to work because that's how long it took to get him dressed, but would not miss a day of work.  I'd think about Michelle's mom, who ended up working as a secretary for most of her life, and how, despite the fact that they never had a lot, they were able to give Michelle and Michelle's brother the best education possible, and how remarkable that was -- this country that we live in.

And then I'd meet a single mom and I'd think about my own mother, who raised my sister and me, with the help of my grandparents, because my dad left when I was a baby.  And my mom didn’t have a lot of money, but she worked hard and she went to school at the same time, so that she could give her two children the best education possible and they could travel on a path that she couldn't have even imagined. 

So the people I met in that first campaign and every campaign since, they had all kinds of different stories, all kinds of different backgrounds; they were young and old and every race and every faith -- gay, straight, Democrat, Republican, independent -- but all of them shared the belief in that core American experience, that basic idea, that core bargain that makes us the shining example for the world -- the idea that no matter where you come from, no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, America is a place where you can make it if you try.  (Applause.)

As Americans, we don't expect handouts, but we expect hard work to pay off.  (Applause.)  We understand there will be setbacks, but we also know that responsibility should be rewarded.  We believe that if you put enough effort into it, enough elbow grease into it, you should be able to find a job that pays the bills -- (applause) -- you should be able the have a home that you call your own, health care that you can count on if you get sick.  (Applause.)  You should be able to retire with dignity and respect.  You should be able to provide your children with an education that gives them an even better shot than you had.  That's what we believe.  (Applause.)

Jacksonville, we are here today because we recognize that this basic bargain, this essence of who we are as a people, this simple American Dream is at risk like never before.  For more than a decade, it had been slipping away from too many hardworking people.  Jobs and factories were shipped overseas.  Folks at the top were doing better than ever before, but middle-class families saw their paychecks get smaller even as their bills got bigger.  In Washington, the trillions that were spent on two wars and two tax cuts took us from record surpluses to record deficits.  And on Wall Street, a culture of "anything goes" led to the worst economic crisis and financial crisis since the Great Depression.

Now, ever since I first ran for this office, I’ve said it’s going to take more than one year or one term or maybe even one President to restore the dream that built this country.  (Applause.)  And the financial crisis and economic crisis made our job that much harder.  But I don't get discouraged -- (applause) -- because the cynics who say that our best days are behind us, they haven’t witnessed the everyday courage and the essential character of the American people.  (Applause.)

They haven’t met the small business owners in Minnesota who chose to sacrifice some of their own perks, some of their own pay, to avoid laying off a single worker during that recession.  They haven’t been to the auto companies in Michigan and Ohio that were never supposed to build another car again, but now they can't build them fast enough.  (Applause.)

They haven’t talked to the 55-year-old factory worker from North Carolina who decided that when the furniture industry left town she’d get her degree in biotechnology from the local community college -- not just because she hopes it gets her a job, but because she hopes it tells her children, you don’t give up on your dreams.  (Applause.)  That’s the character I’ve seen in the American people.  That’s who we are. 

There are no easy fixes, no quick solutions to the challenges we face, but there is no doubt in my mind that we have the capacity to meet them and we will meet them.  (Applause.)  We’ve got the best workers in the world and the best entrepreneurs in the world and the best scientists in the world and the best researchers and the best colleges and the best universities.  (Applause.)  We’re a young nation with the greatest diversity and talent and ingenuity from every corner of the globe.  And Florida knows something about that.  No matter what the naysayers tell us, there is not a country on Earth that would not happily trade places with the United States of America. (Applause.)

So the problem -- what’s standing in our way is not technical solutions to the problems of housing or education or dealing with the debt.  We know how to deal with it.  What’s standing in our way is our politics.

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

THE PRESIDENT:  It’s what’s going on in Washington.  It’s the notion that compromise is a bad word, the notion that the only path forward is going backwards to the same top-down economics that got us into this mess in the first place.

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

THE PRESIDENT:  Our opponent’s entire plan -- the same plan of his allies in Congress -- is to cut more taxes for the wealthy, cut more regulations for banks and insurance companies, cut more investments in things like education and research.

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  -- all with the hope that somehow that will create jobs and prosperity everywhere.  That’s what Mitt Romney believes.  That’s what folks in his party in Washington believe. But you know what, Florida, that’s not what you and I believe.

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s not what most Americans believe, no matter what party you belong to -- because this country was not built on top-down economics.  This country was built from the middle class out.  It was built from the bottom up.  That’s how we became the most prosperous nation in the history of the world. (Applause.)  That’s the path you can choose for America in this election.  And that is why I am running for a second term as President of the United States of America.  (Applause.)

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

THE PRESIDENT:  I am running because, like you, I believe you cannot reduce the deficit and deal with our debt without asking folks like me, without asking the wealthiest Americans, to give up the tax cuts they've been getting for the last decade.  (Applause.) 

Now, my opponent doesn’t just want to keep these tax cuts, he wants to cut those taxes by another $5 trillion, including a 25 percent tax cut for every millionaire in the country.

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, hold on, it gets better.  (Laughter.)  To pay for this, he plans to gut things like job training and financial aid for college, and potentially raise taxes on the middle class -- on you. 

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  He plans to roll back health care reform, forcing more than 200,000 Floridians to pay more for their prescription drugs.  He plans to turn Medicare into a voucher program.

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  So if that voucher isn't worth enough to buy the health insurance that’s on the market, you're out of luck.  You're on your own.  One independent nonpartisan study found that seniors would have to pay nearly $6,400 more for Medicare than they do today. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, Florida, that’s the wrong way to go.  It's wrong to ask seniors to pay more for Medicare just so millionaires and billionaires can pay less in taxes.  That’s not the way to reduce the deficit.  (Applause.)  We shouldn’t be squeezing more money out of seniors who are just barely getting by right now. 

My plan is to squeeze more money out of the health care system by eliminating waste, and going after abuse and fraud in Medicare.  (Applause.)  We can cut back government spending that we can't afford, but I will also ask anybody who is making over $250,000 a year to just go back to the rates they were paying under Bill Clinton -- because, by the way, that worked.  (Applause.)  Nearly 23 million new jobs were created, the largest budget surplus in our history.  And when we were doing it that way, where the burden was shared, actually, millionaires did really well. 

That’s the choice we have in this election.  That’s why I'm running for a second term as President.  (Applause.) 

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

THE PRESIDENT:  There is such a contrast in approach, two fundamentally different visions that you’re going to have to choose from in this election. 

When the American auto industry was on the brink of collapse, more than 1 million jobs on the line, Governor Romney said let’s "let Detroit go bankrupt."

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  I refused to turn my back on a great industry and on American workers.  I bet on American workers.  I bet on American manufacturing.  And three years later the American auto industry has come roaring back.  (Applause.)

So I want to make sure that the high-tech manufacturing jobs of tomorrow -- not just in the auto industry but in every industry -- that those advanced manufacturing jobs are taking root not in China, not in Germany, but in Jacksonville -- (applause) -- and in Cleveland and in Raleigh and in Richmond.

Governor Romney’s experience has been owning companies that were called "pioneers" in the business of outsourcing, wants to give tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas.  I want to give tax breaks to companies that are investing here in the United States -- (applause) -- rewarding companies that are investing here and hiring American workers, so we can sell products around the world stamped with three proud words:  Made in America.  (Applause.)  That's why I’m running.

I'm running because in 2008, I promised to end the war in Iraq -- and thanks to our outstanding men and women in uniform, we kept that promise.  (Applause.)  It’s time to do some nation-building here at home.  (Applause.)  America is safer and more respected because of the selflessness of our troops.  Not only did we end the war in Iraq, we've been able to go after al Qaeda and get bin Laden.  (Applause.)  We have set a timeline to end the war in Afghanistan.  And as long as I'm Commander-in-Chief, this country will care for our veterans and serve our veterans as well as they've served us.  (Applause.)  Nobody who fights for this country should have to fight for a job or a roof over their heads when they come home.  (Applause.) 

So my plan would take about half the money that we're no longer spending on war and use that to pay down the deficit -- use the other half to put people back to work rebuilding our roads, our bridges, our runways, our ports, wireless networks.  (Applause.) 

I want to create a Veterans Job Corps, so we can put our returning heroes back to work as cops and firefighters in communities that need them.  (Applause.)  That's the America we want to build.  That's the choice in this election.  And 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:  I'm running to make sure that America once again leads the world in educating our kids and training our workers.  (Applause.)  I want to help our schools hire and reward the best teachers, especially in math and science.  (Applause.) 
Let's give 2 million more Americans the chance to go to community colleges and learn the skills that local businesses are looking for right now.  (Applause.)  Let's work with colleges and universities to bring down the cost of tuition once and for all. (Applause.) 

In the 21st century, higher education isn't a luxury.  It's a necessity that every American should be able to afford.  (Applause.) 

On every measure, there's a difference in this election.  My opponent has a plan to help responsible homeowners by letting the housing market hit bottom.

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  That isn't a solution, that's a problem.  We've already helped more than a million responsible homeowners refinance their mortgages.  And now I want to give everybody the change to refinance and save $3,000 a year.  That's a plan for housing.  That's the choice in this election.  (Applause.)

I'm running because I believe nobody in America should go broke just because they get sick.  (Applause.)  And because we passed the health care law, we are going to realize that goal.  The Supreme Court has spoken.  We are moving forward.  We are going to help people who are working hard to make sure that just because they have an illness in their family, they don't lose everything.  (Applause.) 

And, by the way, if you’ve already got health insurance, this just gives you the guarantee and security when you’re dealing with your insurance company that they won’t jerk you around because of the fine print.  (Applause.)  And it lets your young -- it lets young people stay on their parent’s plan until they’re 26 years old.  (Applause.)  And it helps our seniors reduce their prescription drug costs.  We’re not going to roll that back.  We’re not going to refight that fight for the next four years.  We need to move forwards, not backwards.  (Applause.)

Just like we’re not going to refight the issue of whether you can serve the country you love just -- depending on who you love.  We ended "don’t ask, don’t tell" -- it was the right thing to do.  We’re not going back and having that fight.  (Applause.) We need to move forward. 

We need to make sure that women have control over their own health care decisions.  (Applause.)  We’re not going backwards.  We’re moving forward.

All these issues connect.  Whether it’s bringing manufacturing and construction jobs back, or protecting your health care, or making sure our kids are getting the best education, making sure our veterans are getting the care that they have earned -- all these things make up a middle-class life. They’re all central to the idea that made this country great -- that promise that if you work hard, you can get ahead.  (Applause.)

It’s the same promise our parents and grandparents passed down to all of us, the promise we have to pass down to our kids and our grandkids -- the idea that we work hard, that everybody has got to take responsibility, that government can’t solve every problem and it certainly can’t solve problems if you don’t want to help yourself -- but we also know there are some things we do better together -- (applause) -- that we rise or fall as one nation and as one people. 

Over the course of the next four months, the other side will spend more money than we have ever seen in our lifetimes on ads that tell you the same thing you’ve been hearing for months.  They know their plan isn’t going to sell, so all they’ll keep doing is saying, the economy is not where it should be and it’s all Obama’s fault. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo -- 

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s basically their message.  Now, I guess that's a plan to win an election, but they can't hide the fact that it’s not a plan to create jobs.  (Applause.)  It’s not a plan to grow the economy.  They don't have a plan to revive the middle class.  Everything they're proposing we tried for a decade and it didn't work. 

So they don't have a plan, and I do.  (Applause.)  And, Florida, I’ve been outspent before, and I’ve been counted out before, but through every campaign, what has always given me hope is the American people.  (Applause.)  You have the ability to cut through all that nonsense.  What gives me hope is that you remember the stories of families just like mine, all the struggles of parents and great grandparents; and some folks coming here as immigrants, some brought here in chains; some working on the farm, some working in the mines or on the mills.  They didn’t know what to expect, but they understood that there was something different about this country.  They knew that this was a country where things might not be perfect, but working together, we could perfect our union; where people were free to pursue their own individual dreams, but still come together as neighbors, as friends, as one American family.  (Applause.) 

They knew that being middle class wasn’t about how much you had in your bank account -- it was about the security of knowing you could take care of your family, and give your kids the chance to pursue the life that they dream of, and the chance to give something back to this country that gave you so much.  (Applause.) 

And when we tap into that spirit, when we push aside all the talk and all the politics, and get down to that core of what it means to be American, all that money doesn’t matter.  All those negative ads don’t matter.  When you come together, you cannot be stopped.  (Applause.)  And so you can still make change happen, Florida.  You can still inspire each other, because you inspire me.  (Applause.) 

In 2008, I tried to only make promises that I could keep or work on keeping.  And I told you then that I was not a perfect man and I wouldn’t be a perfect President, but I also told you I'd always tell you what I thought, I'd always tell you where I stood, and, most of all, I would wake up every single day -- every single day and spend every waking hour thinking about you, fighting as hard as I knew how for you. 

Because I see myself in you.  (Applause.)  Your grandparents remind me of my grandparents.  When I see your kids, I think about my kids.  And so I have kept that promise, Florida.  I've been fighting for you, and I keep believing in you. 

And now I am asking for your vote -- not just for me, but for the country that we believe in, together.  (Applause.)  And if you still believe, and if you're willing to stand up with me  -- (applause) -- and knock on doors for me, and make phone calls for me, talk to your neighbors and talk to your friends, talk to your coworkers, talk to your family, we will win Florida and we will win this election.  (Applause.)  We'll finish what we started in 2008, and we will remind the world just why it is that the United States of America is the greatest nation on Earth.  (Applause.)

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

END
2:43 P.M. EDT

Press Gaggle by Press Secretary Jay Carney Aboard Air Force One, 7/19/2012

Aboard Air Force One
En Route Jacksonville, Florida   

12:03 P.M. EDT

MR. CARNEY:  Good morning, everyone.  Welcome aboard Air Force One.  Thanks for traveling with us today to Florida -- and tomorrow to Florida.  Jen Psaki and I are together again, operating under the same idea whereby I'm here to field your questions on matters of policy and the presidency and the administration.  Jen will take your questions related to the campaign and the election.  And when there are questions that cover both areas, we'll answer accordingly.

I have no announcements to make, so -- go ahead, Jen.

MS. PSAKI:  Good morning.  You should have in your in-boxes notes that we sent overnight about what the President will be talking about today.  In addition to laying out the choice between Mitt Romney and himself and their plans for moving the economy forward, he will be highlighting a report we put out on the impact, the devastating impact Mitt Romney's Medicare plan would have on seniors in Florida.  So just a few highlights for you.

There are more than 3 million seniors -- let me just make sure -- 3.4 million people, not just seniors, in Florida who rely on Medicare.  As you may have heard, Mitt Romney wants to end the Affordable Care Act and all the many benefits.  That would have a huge impact, including on the 200,000 seniors who will fall into the doughnut hole in Florida, whose costs would likely go up.  He also has a plan to voucherize Medicare.  Independent analysts have found that this could raise the cost by more than $6,000.

So I encourage you to look at the report and look out for the President to talk about the contrast on how they would handle Medicare at the events today.

MR. CARNEY:  Actually, before we do take questions I want to make note of something you may have seen, which is that -- we put out a release on this -- the President yesterday announced action as part of his We Can't Wait initiative, under a program being run by OMB, to streamline the review process for permits on major infrastructure projects.  There are seven nationally and regionally significant projects announced yesterday that affect four major ports, including Miami, Jacksonville, Savannah, New York-New Jersey, Charleston.

I would note that this is an action taken after a recommendation from the President's Jobs Council.  And there was a lot of discussion about the Jobs Council yesterday, and I want to be clear -- the President is extremely appreciative of the initiatives and ideas that have been put forward by his Jobs Council.  You should know that the administration has acted on 90 percent of those initiatives that we can act on -- that the President can act on through his executive authority -- 90 percent rate.

On the initiatives proposed and supported by the President  -- proposed by the Jobs Council and supported by the President and put forward that require congressional action, Congress has acted on 20 percent.  And that includes job-creating initiatives like infrastructure that are part of the American Jobs Act. 

This President is focused on job creation and economic growth and he is using every tool in his toolbox to advance job creation and economic growth through his executive action.  But we need Congress to act, too.  Every economist whose Ph.D. is worth the paper it is printed on will tell you that the initiatives that Congress has so far refused to pass in the American Jobs Act would create at least a million jobs and would add to our economic growth.  Congress ought to act on those initiatives right away.

MS. PSAKI:  And one last thing.  There are three members of Congress traveling with us on the plane this morning -- Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, who is, as you know, head of the DNC; Congressman Ted Deutch and Congresswoman Corrine Brown.

MR. CARNEY:  Questions.

Q    Jay, on what happened in Bulgaria yesterday, is the administration concerned that this will instigate actions by Israel?  And then also, are there any NSC advisors traveling today?

MR. CARNEY:  There's always a national security staff representative who travels with the President, and there is one today.

Q    Who is it?

MR. CARNEY:  It might be Brian McKeon -- I'll check.  But there's always national security staff traveling with the President wherever he goes. 

The President, as you know, called Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday.  Counterterrorism Advisor John Brennan spoke with his Bulgarian counterpart yesterday.  The President expressed his condolences for the loss of life and his commitment to work with Israel and Bulgaria in the effort to find out who was responsible for this.  And he expressed again our country's unshakeable commitment to Israel's security.

John Brennan, in his conversations with his Bulgarian counterpart, notes the exceptional cooperation and transparency in the Bulgarian effort to find out who is responsible for this and to hold accountable who is responsible for this.  And we'll work closely with both countries in that effort and have offered both countries whatever assistance they might require in that effort that we can provide.

Q    Netanyahu is saying, though, that Iran backed Hezbollah.  If so, has the Israeli government shared any of that intelligence with you?  And would the U.S. back Israel in any effort -- any sort of thing that they would do to confront Iran on this issue?

MR. CARNEY:  First of all, we are still working with those two countries and waiting for assessments of responsibility.  I would note as a general principle that Hezbollah has backed, and Iran has backed terrorist actions against innocent people in third countries in the past.  And we condemn that, as we condemn the heinous assault that took place in Bulgaria and resulted in loss of life.

Q    What's your response to China and Russia vetoing the U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria?

MR. CARNEY:  Well, I would first recommend that you read the comments made by our United Nations Ambassador, and I will echo them, in saying that the decision by a very small minority of the Security Council to veto this action is deplorable and regrettable.  We need to come together behind a simple proposition that the Syrian President is waging a brutal, murderous campaign against his own people and that we need to come together to do everything we can to bring about a future in Syria that does not include Bashar al-Assad.

Those who vetoed the measure -- those nations that vetoed the measure are on the wrong side of history.  They're on the wrong side of the Syrian people.  They're on the wrong side of all of those who hope for peace and stability in the region, and for democratization in the region. 

And we find it highly unfortunate that it was not consensus and unanimity in support of this action, because it is absurd to send forth unarmed U.N. observers in the face of the brutality of the Assad regime if the consequences of failing to live up to their commitments, of the Assad regime's commitments, are non-existent.  There have to be consequences.  And that was -- the purpose of the resolution was to provide a mechanism that would have allowed for consequences through sanctions.  Again, we find it very regrettable. 

Q    Jay, in light of the bombing in Damascus that killed some of the members of the Assad regime, is the administration concerned that Assad could use chemical weapons on his own people?  And what steps is the administration taking to try to prevent those weapons from falling into the wrong hands?

MR. CARNEY:  Well, as we have said in the past, we are, of course, aware of and concerned by the stockpiles of chemical weapons that the Syrian government maintains.  We have made clear to the Syrian government that it is their responsibility to safeguard those stockpiles and that they will be held accountable if they do not.  And that would obviously include the fact that they would be held accountable if they were to use those chemical weapons against their own people.

We have no reason to believe at this point that those weapons are not in control of the Syrian government. 

Q    Can I follow on Kate's question?  How concerned are you guys about Netanyahu's pledge to retaliate against Iran?

MR. CARNEY:  Look, we are in constant and regular contact with our Israeli counterparts.  We share information all the time.  We work together all the time on the issue of Iran and on the issue of broader regional stability.  We are engaged in an effort right now with broad international consensus that is putting unprecedented pressure on the regime in Tehran to forgo its nuclear weapons ambitions and rejoin the community of nations by abiding by its international obligations. 

The concerted efforts by -- both multilateral and unilateral through sanctions and other means have resulted on significant pressure on the regime, significant economic distress -- a fact that has been acknowledged by the regime's leaders.  We continue to work to ratchet up that pressure.  Sanctions continue to come online that will have greater and greater effect. 

We believe that the window for a peaceful resolution to this is still open and that the right approach is to continue to put pressure on Iran to live up to its international obligations and forsake its nuclear weapons ambitions.

Q    My question was how concerned you are about what Netanyahu is saying.

MR. CARNEY:  I think that we will work with and provide assistance to both Israel and Bulgaria in the effort to find out who was responsible for the attack in Bulgaria and to hold accountable the responsible party or parties.  We’re still in the process of gathering information and working with our allies on that effort.

Q    Do you have a timing on that?

MR. CARNEY:  Not at this point, no.

Q    Can we get your response to this morning’s latest poll from The New York Times and CBS -- it shows that Romney has a slight edge over the President, but also seems to show that fears about the economic recovery are -- appear to be the most powerful force in this election.  Are you concerned that your strategy isn’t working and that these Bain attacks don’t seem to be sort of having the impact or aren’t changing the public opinion?

MS. PSAKI:  Well, a couple things.  One is we’ve always known this election would be close.  We’ve also known that three years ago, three and a half years ago, we went through the worst economic crisis and we’re still recovering from it.  And the American people have been going through a tough time.

In the same poll, I would also point out that President Obama is leading Mitt Romney among when voters are asked the question of who cares more and knows more about the middle class, who knows and understands what you’re going through? 

And we know that from -- we’ve also seen -- interesting -- from an ABC poll recently that people who were asked about Mitt Romney’s time in the business sector as a corporate buy-out specialist felt he did more to hurt the economy and hurt workers than to help. 

So people are learning more and more about his record.  There have been a lot of questions raised recently about when he was there, what decisions he was involved in, his record of outsourcing.  And we know as more questions are raised, people's concerns are growing.

I’ll also point you to, today, a story you may have seen in the L.A. Times that raised additional questions about the birth of Bain and the fact that it appears that the same secretive, financial system that Mitt Romney has benefitted financially from has been -- was a part of the investors that helped create Bain. And that raises a whole new set of questions.

But I’d also encourage you -- my final thought -- to talk to people at the events today about what’s on their minds.  And when we’re in Florida today, we know that not only Medicare and health care and how the election is going to impact them is something they’re concerned about, but also housing and the contrast between what President Obama is presenting on housing and the recovery of that sector, and Mitt Romney’s claim that we should just let the housing sector hit bottom.  And those are issues that are on the minds of voters that he’s talking to.

Q    -- talk about why you guys are deciding to highlight Medicare in Florida.  When you talk about Florida, you talk about your advantages on demographics and the state is getting younger and more diverse.  The President is not doing very well among the older voters, particularly, there.  Is this a concerted effort to try and right that?

MS. PSAKI:  Well, two things -- and you’re a Florida expert so you know a lot.  One is there are still 3.4 million people in the state -- some seniors, some other young people --

Q    The majority are seniors.

MS. PSAKI:  Right, but who benefit from Medicare.  It is true that the demographics in this state are changing.  The Latino population especially in the central part of the state has been increasing, and that’s been helping the President -- or that is helpful we think to the President.  Also in Jacksonville, where we’re going, an interesting fact is they just elected their first African American mayor, first Democrat in 20 years.  So those are all pieces that we feel are good for us.

At the same time, we know that the impact of the health care system, that the large seniors population in Florida, and the -- that provides an opportunity to educate people on the choice between the Affordable Care Act, President Obama’s fight for lowering the cost of prescription drugs, for making sure seniors still have access to Medicare benefits, and what Mitt Romney is presenting.  And that’s why he’s talking about it today.

Q    So what makes you guys think that that strategy is going to work this time around when it didn’t work when Democrats tried to use the similar health care issues against Rick Scott in 2010?

MS. PSAKI:  Well, I think the health care issues, and especially the cost of prescription drugs and really the choice between the candidates’ positions on this issue is very stark.  And we’ve been talking about it a lot given the debate over the Affordable Care Act and the decision by the Supreme Court.  We’re obviously implementing the bill now, which wasn’t the case a few years ago.  There are a lot of benefits we can talk about.  And again, there’s a clear choice between what they’re presenting when they come into office.

It’s clear if Mitt Romney voucherizes the Medicare program that could raise the cost for seniors.  Seniors need to know what’s at stake and we’re going to remind them of that.  President Obama’s continued support for the Affordable Care Act and implementing the pieces of it we feel is something seniors need to know about.  If you’re in the doughnut hole, this could impact you if President Obama isn’t elected and Mitt Romney is allowed to end the Affordable Care Act.

Q    And lastly, do you have any response to the Crossroads ad-buy that’s going to go up in states like Florida and other swing states?

MS. PSAKI:  Well, we know that there is a lot of special-interest money that’s being put into this campaign.  We know that that’s going to continue, and we're going to be, in all likelihood, outspent on the airwaves, and that’s something we are aware of.

We also know in Florida that this is a place where four years ago we had just started our campaign a month ago.  So we're way ahead of that, and we have been organizing on the ground since then.  And we know we're going to have to rely on our grassroots campaign, on our Neighbor-to-Neighbor program, on getting people excited at that level.  And we also know we're going to have to continue to draw on the contrast and use every resource we have to do that.

Q    Jay, just to be clear, will the U.S. allow the U.N. mission in Syria to expire tomorrow, since China and Russia aren't going along with the sanctions?  It's kind of a follow-up to Laura's question.

MR. CARNEY:  The United Nations -- I mean, the United States does not support extending a mission without the necessary backup that a resolution would have provided had it passed earlier this morning.

Q    Is that a yes?

MR. CARNEY:  Well, the United States alone doesn’t decide, but the United States does not support extending a mission where you send unarmed U.N. employees into Syria to try to observe the brutality of the Assad regime when there is nothing -- there is no mechanism within the resolution to create consequences for the regime for failing to live up to its obligations and its commitments under the Annan plan. 

That was the whole purpose of the resolution that was vetoed today, it was the purpose of the resolution that was vetoed on two other occasions, and in all three instances, a highly regrettable decision that will I think have repercussions for the countries that vetoed the resolution for a long time, in terms of how they're viewed by the Syrian people.

Because there is no doubt that Syria's future will not include Bashar al-Assad.  His days in power are numbered.  And it is a mistake to prop up that regime in its -- as it comes to an end.  It's clear from the events of recent days that the Assad regime is losing control.  It's clear that the violence is escalating, as we have said all along it would.  And that is why it is essential to take action.

And so the United States will continue to work with the multitude of nations that are within the "Friends of Syria" group and others to continue to pressure the Assad regime, continue to provide both humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people and non-lethal assistance to the opposition, and also to assist the opposition as it organizes itself and continues the work of preparing for a transition that is inevitable.  The only question is how soon it can begin, or how soon it can make real progress and move beyond the violence that we're seeing now.

The argument that it's necessary to support and prop up Assad to avoid chaos and avoid violence is being refuted every day by the chaos and violence that is engulfing that country because of Assad's actions.  It is simply an illogical argument.

Q    So did the Annan plan fail, then?

MR. CARNEY:  It has failed thus far, yes.  And the failure of the Security Council to support this resolution means that it can't go forward. 

Q    Vice President Omar Suleiman died in a Cleveland hospital.  How long had he been in the United States, and how had the U.S. government facilitated his stay here?

MR. CARNEY:  I'll refer you to the State Department for the specifics.  I'm not sure of the answers to either of those questions.  We can confirm, obviously, that he passed away, but he was here for medical treatment but I'm not sure for how long.

Q    The DNC has issued a recent apology of sorts to Ann Romney for their video that featured the Romneys' dancing show horse.  Mrs. Romney uses the horses as part of her MS therapy.  Do you think the video went too far, and what, if any, involvement did you have in their decision to halt this video series?

MS. PSAKI:  As you mentioned, it was a DNC web video that was released.  They did issue a statement last night I'm happy to provide to anyone, saying that if Mrs. Romney was offended in any way that was not their intention, and they have no plans to use the visual of the horse moving forward.  It was a DNC web ad, and they made the decision to pull it down.  So there wasn't involvement from the Obama campaign or anyone, of course, in the White House along those lines.

We are rooting for the Romney horse in London. 

MR. CARNEY:  Anybody else?  All right.

Q    Thanks.

END
12:20 P.M. EDT

Statement by the Press Secretary on the Announcement of Libyan Election Results

Libya’s democratic transition took another important step with yesterday’s announcement of the results from the July 7th National Congress election.  As President Obama noted on Election Day, Libya’s historic election underscores that the future of Libya is in the hands of the Libyan people.  The United States congratulates all the parties and candidates who have won seats in the new General Congress.  We commend Libya’s High National Election Commission for its hard work preparing Libya’s first election in almost 50 years.  The orderly voting process noted by international observers and the significant turnout reflects the Libyan people’s commitment to democracy and civic participation.  Once the final period for appeals has been completed, we look forward to working closely with Libya’s newly elected leaders and the members of the General Congress as they take on the challenges of strengthening public institutions, improving security, and promoting national unity.  As they do so, Libya’s leaders can count on the United States for continued friendship and support.