Remarks by the President at a Campaign Event

Walkerton Tavern and Gardens
Glen Allen, Virginia

12:12 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: How’s it going, Virginia? (Applause.) You know, this feels kind of good. (Applause.) Don't you think?

AUDIENCE: Yes!

THE PRESIDENT: I need to cool off a little bit. It's a little warm. (Applause.) Well, I know these are some die-hard political folks here -- (applause) -- not letting a little rain chase us away.

AUDIENCE: No!

THE PRESIDENT: Although I know this from Michelle. Ladies, I do apologize for your hairdos getting messed up. (Applause.)

We’re going to have to treat everybody to a little salon visit after this. (Applause.)

So a couple of acknowledgements I want to make real quick. First of all, an outstanding member of Congress who’s looking out for working people every day, Bobby Scott is in the house. (Applause.) State Senator Donald McEachin is here. (Applause.) State Delegate Jennifer McClellan is here. (Applause.) And John Montgomery is here. Give him a big round of applause. (Applause.)

Now, I’m going to just cut straight to business. We don't have time for small talk here.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Four more years! (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: This is my last political campaign. We’re term-limited as President. And it got me thinking about my first political campaigns. I think about the places I used to travel as a state senator when I was running for the United States Senate, all across Illinois, which is a lot like Virginia. You got big cities, but you also have small towns. You got rural, suburban, urban areas. You’d stop in VFW halls or diners. You go to churches or synagogues, and you’d meet folks black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, you name it. And wherever I went, even if on the surface folks looked different, there was a common thread that ran through their stories. And in those stories I saw my own.

So I’d meet an elderly veteran, and I think about my grandfather who fought in World War II, and my grandmother who worked on a bomber assembly line while he was away, even though they’d already had my mother. And I’d think about how when my grandfather came back from Europe, he was able to get a college education on the GI Bill, and how they’d buy their first home with the help of an FHA loan.

And then I’d meet a single mom somewhere who was working hard, raising kids, and I’d think about my mom -- because my dad left when I was young. And so my mother had to work and go to school at the same time, and yet, despite not having a lot of money, was still able to provide me and my sister with the best education possible, and instilled in us a sense that if we worked hard, we could go as far as our dreams would take us. (Applause.)

And then I’d think about Michelle’s parents whenever I’d meet a working family because Michelle’s dad was a blue-collar worker. He had multiple sclerosis. By the time I met him, he could barely walk, in fact, really couldn’t walk without two canes.

And he’d have to wake up an hour early -- earlier than everybody else -- just to get dressed. But he never missed a day on the job. (Applause.) And Michelle’s mom, she stayed at home when the kids were young and then found a job as a secretary, and that’s the work they did all their lives. They had a little second-floor apartment that Michelle and Craig lived in, and yet, despite those modest beginnings, Michelle and her brother were able to get the best possible education.

And so in these travels that I had in that first campaign, what I was reminded of was that core idea that is central to this country -- what makes us exceptional, what makes us great. It’s not just how many skyscrapers we have; it’s not how powerful our military is -- what makes us special is this idea that in this country, if you are willing to work hard, if you’re willing to take responsibility for your own life, then you can make it if you try. (Applause.) No matter where you come from, no matter what you look like, no matter what your last name is, no matter how modest your beginnings, you can make it in this country if you work hard. (Applause.) Because America has never been a country of handouts. We’re a nation of workers, and doers, and dreamers, and risk-takers. We work for what we get. And all we ask for, as Americans, is that our hard work pays off. All we ask is that our responsibility is rewarded -- so that if we put in enough effort, we can find a job that pays the bills; we can afford a home to call our own; we won’t go bankrupt when we get sick; maybe we can take a vacation.

When I think about my favorite vacations when I was a kid, when I was 11 years old my mom, sister, and my grandmom, we traveled across the country. But we didn’t fly on jets, we took Greyhound buses. (Applause.) Took the train sometimes. I think we were in the car twice. Stayed at Howard Johnsons. And the exciting thing for me was if there was any kind of swimming pool -- it didn’t matter how big it was. (Laughter.) And then after you spend the whole day swimming, then you’d go to the vending machine, get a soda and a bucket of ice. (Laughter.)

But the point was to spend time with folks you loved, and enjoy their company. So that was part of it, and then people expect, I think, that they can retire with dignity and respect after a lifetime of work. (Applause.) That’s the essence of America. That is within everybody’s grasp. It doesn’t mean you’re not going to have some ups and downs. It doesn’t mean at some point you’re not going to experience tough times. But it does mean that the trajectory of people’s lives in this country -- if you work hard, you can make it. And that’s what made us special. That’s what made us the greatest nation on Earth. That’s what made us an economic superpower. (Applause.)

Now, when I ran in 2008, a lot of people, we came together -- not just Democrats, but Republicans and independents -- because we’re not Democrats or Republicans first, we’re Americans first. (Applause.) And we came together because we felt like that idea had been slipping away for too long. For almost a decade, people had been working harder but getting less. And then the worst financial crisis in our lifetimes hit, the worst economic crisis in our lifetimes hit, millions of people lost their jobs or lost their homes or lost their savings, and that made the dream that much harder to reach for.

But what I’ve learned over these last three and a half years is that even though the crisis put us through some very tough times, the American people are tougher. (Applause.) Folks may have gotten knocked down some, but they got back up. (Applause.) The crisis didn’t change who we are. It did not change our fundamental character as a people. It hasn’t changed our sense of purpose from 2008. Our mission right now, yes, is to put people back to work and, yes, to strengthen the housing market; but our purpose is also to rebuild our economy so that it lasts -- (applause) -- so that work pays off. An economy in which everybody, whether you are starting a business or punching a clock, you can have confidence that if you work hard you can get ahead. That’s our goal. That’s our central purpose. That’s what this campaign is about. That’s what I’ve been working on for the last three and a half years. That’s why I’m 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: Now, I want to say this --

AUDIENCE MEMBER: We love you, Mr. President! (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: Because we’ve gone through tough times, I think there’s a tendency sometimes for some of the commentators to say, well, this time it’s really different, we’re losing our number-one status, and all this stuff. I don’t buy any of that. We’re still, by far, the greatest nation on Earth. (Applause.) And what’s holding us back from meeting our challenges --

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Congress. (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: What’s holding us back from meeting our challenges is not a lack of big ideas, it’s not technical solutions. You name it, whatever it is -- education, housing, the deficit -- we have the solutions in front of us. What’s holding us back is we’ve got a stalemate in Washington that has more to do with -- than just two candidates for President or two political parties. It’s two fundamentally different visions about how we move this country forward.

This election is about breaking that stalemate. The outcome of this election will determine not just what happens next year or the year after that, but what happens for the next 20 years.

See, my opponent and his allies in Congress, they believe in a top-down economics. They believe that if we spend trillions of dollars on tax cuts -- mostly for the wealthy -- even if we have to pay for it by gutting education, or gutting job training programs, or gutting investments in basic research, or turning Medicare into a voucher system, or increasing middle-class taxes -- that if we do that, somehow all of you are going to benefit. That’s their idea. They also believe that if we roll back regulations on banks and insurance companies and credit card companies -- regulations that are meant to protect people and our economy -- that somehow everybody is going to be more secure. That’s their basic argument. They’ll spend a lot of time talking, but if you cut through all the stuff -- (laughter) -- what they’re really saying is tax cuts for the wealthy, roll back regulations. That’s essentially their plan.

Now, it is a plan. It’s a theory. It fits easily on a bumper sticker. (Laughter.) But here’s the problem: We tried it. We tried it for a decade before I took office. It did not work. (Applause.) We tried it, and we turned a surplus into a deficit. We tried it, and we had the most sluggish job growth in decades. We tried it, and your income and wages on average went down -- went down, even while the cost of health care and education and gas were all going up. And then it culminated in the worst financial crisis that we’re still cleaning up after.

So it’s not as if we haven’t tried their theory. It would be one thing if we hadn’t tried it. Then they could say, well, let's try this. And maybe everybody would say, all right, that's worth trying. But we did this, and it didn’t work.

We can't afford to go back to top-down economics. (Applause.) We need somebody who believes in a middle-out economics, a bottom-up economics, somebody who will fight for you and working people all across Virginia and all across America. That's why I'm running for a second term as President of the United States. (Applause.)

You know, when the American auto industry was about to go under, and my opponent was saying, "let Detroit go bankrupt," I made a bet on American workers, on American ingenuity, and we got management and workers to sit down and work things out. And right now, GM is number one again -- (applause) -- and the U.S. auto industry is back on top. (Applause.)

Well, let me tell you something. What can happen in the auto industry in Detroit, that can happen in manufacturing all across this country. (Applause.) In Richmond and in Raleigh, and in Pittsburgh and in Cleveland. Which is why I've said let's stop giving tax breaks to companies that are shipping jobs overseas, let's give tax breaks to companies that are investing right here in the United States of America, and investing in American workers, so we can make American products stamped with those three proud words: Made In America. (Applause.) That's how we build an economy that lasts. (Applause.) And that's why I'm running for a second term as President. (Applause.)

Mr. Romney has got a different idea. He invested in companies that have been called "pioneers" of outsourcing. (Laughter.) I don't want a pioneer in outsourcing. (Laughter.) I want some insourcing. (Applause.) I want to bring companies back. (Applause.) And part of that is making sure we change our tax code. Part of it is investing in basic science and research. We've always been at the cutting-edge of technology. We've got to keep that. We've got to maintain that.

And you know, four years ago I said I would end the war in Iraq. (Applause.) Because of our veterans, because of our outstanding men and women in uniform, we've been able to keep that promise. (Applause.) We're transitioning out of Afghanistan and starting to bring our troops home. (Applause.) So now my attitude is, after a decade of war, let's take half of those savings on war and let's use that to reduce our deficit. Let's use the other half to do some nation-building here at home. (Applause.) Let's put folks back to work rebuilding our roads and our bridges and our railroads and our schools, and putting broadband lines into rural communities all across America. (Applause.) That's how we build an economy that lasts. (Applause.)

That's also, by the way, how we take care of our veterans. Now that they're coming home they shouldn’t have to fight for a job after they fought for us. (Applause.) And they should get the benefits that they've earned. So we'll be fighting any kind of cutbacks on veteran services. We've got to take care of folks who took care of us. (Applause.)

I'm running to make sure that our kids get the best education in the world. (Applause.) I want to help our schools hire and reward the best teachers, especially math and science. I want to give 2 million more Americans the chance to go to community colleges and get trained for the jobs that folks are hiring for right now. (Applause.) I want colleges and universities to bring down tuition so young people aren't burdened with debt. (Applause.) Higher education isn’t a luxury; it is a necessity in this 21st century. (Applause.)

I want to make sure that middle-class families can refinance their homes, save $3,000 a year. (Applause.) That's good for you, but it's also good for businesses, because you'll spend that money.

I'm running because I believe we've got to keep going on the Affordable Care Act. It was the right thing to do to make sure that everybody has health care. (Applause.) The Supreme Court has spoken. It is the law of the land. We are going to implement it. (Applause.) And because we're implementing it, young people can stay on their parent's health insurance plans until they're 26 years old. (Applause.) And if you've got health insurance, the only thing that's going to happen is you've got more security and insurance companies can't jerk you around. (Applause.) And 30 million people, including those with preexisting conditions, can finally get health insurance. It was the right thing to do. We're not going backwards, we're going forwards. (Applause.)

I'm wrapping up. (Laughter.) Everybody is wet anyway, so it doesn’t matter. (Laughter.) It's too late -- those hairdos are all gone. (Laughter.)

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

THE PRESIDENT: Let me talk about one last thing, and that is the deficit and the debt. Because the other side, they'll say, well, you know, this is the most important issue. And what I've said is, you know what, along with putting people back to work, we do need to bring down our deficit and our debt. After a decade of irresponsibility, where I inherited a trillion-dollar deficit, I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work. (Applause.) We've already cut a trillion dollars' worth of spending that we don't need.

I'm willing to do more, because not every program works. Government can't solve every problem. Government can't help somebody if they don't want to help themselves. It doesn’t matter how much money we put into schools if parents, you're not telling your kids they need to work hard in school. (Applause.) But I'm not willing to do is what my opponent proposes, which is pretend like you're lowering the deficit and then cut taxes for folks like me by $5 trillion on top of the Bush tax cuts, because we can't afford it.

What I've said to Congress is let's make sure that everybody who's making $250,000 a year or less, that your taxes don't go up. (Applause.) That's 98 percent of Americans. But let's ask folks like me who can afford it, the top 2 percent, to do a little bit more -- (applause) -- so that we can still help young people go to college, so that we don't turn Medicare into a voucher system, so that we're still investing in basic research, so that we can still build roads and help folks with the housing situation. (Applause.)

And by the way, we've tried that, too. A guy named Bill Clinton tried it, and we created 23 million new jobs. (Applause.) And we had surpluses instead of deficits. And by the way, rich people did just fine back then. (Laughter.)

Here's the thing I think the other side doesn’t understand. When working people do well everybody does well. (Applause.) That means businesses have more customers. That is how we grow an economy -- not by everybody just looking out for themselves, but by all of us coming together and working hard. (Applause.)

All these things, whether it's bringing manufacturing back, putting construction workers back to work, protecting health care, making sure our kids get the best education, caring for our veterans -- all these things that make up a middle-class life, they all tie together. They're all central to that idea that if you work hard you can get ahead. That's the promise that our parents and our grandparents and our great-grandparents made to future generations.

Some of them came here as immigrants; some came here not wanting to come. But when they got here, all of us -- whether they were working on farms or whether they were working in mines or working in a factory -- that idea that if I work hard now things will be better for my kids, that's what built this country.

And over the next four months, the other side is going to spend more money than we've ever seen in our lifetimes on a bunch of negative ads. And they're going to try to peddle this economic theory that everybody knows we tried and didn’t work. And since they know that's probably not going to sell, really what these ads are going to do is just say, the economy isn’t where it needs to be and it's Obama's fault. That's their message. They'll use all those scary voices in the ads and -- (laughter) -- but that's basically their message.

And that's a plan for maybe winning an election, but it's not a plan for creating jobs or helping the middle class. (Applause.) It's not an plan for rebuilding our economy.

And so I don't worry about the kind of money they're spending because what you taught me in 2008 -- same thing I learned in my first campaign -- was that when ordinary folks come together -- (applause) -- when they cut through all the nonsense, and they remember what makes this country great, they tap into those core American values, and they remember what's true about our lives -- when you come together, nothing can stop you. (Applause.) When you come together, change happens. (Applause.) When you come together, people get a fair shot, and everybody does their fair share and everybody plays by the same set of rules -- when you decide.

And that's the choice you have now in this election. So I have to tell you, when I ran in 2008, I tried to make sure that any promise I made I could keep. So I said I'd end the war in Iraq -- we ended the war. (Applause.) I said I'd keep your taxes down -- and I've lowered taxes for middle-class families, $3,600 on average. (Applause.) If somebody tells you I've raised their taxes, tell them that ain't right. (Laughter.) It's just not true.

But the main promise I made to you, I said I wasn’t a perfect man and I -- you can ask Michelle that -- (laughter) -- and I told you I wouldn’t be a perfect President. But I told you that I'd always tell you what I thought, I'd always tell you where I stood -- sometimes it wasn’t popular, but I'd tell you what I thought, what I believed. And I'd also wake up every single day fighting as hard as I knew how for you. (Applause.) To make your lives a little bit better. (Applause.)

And you know what, I've kept that promise. (Applause.) I've kept that promise. Because I see myself in you. When I see your grandparents, I see my grandparents. (Applause.) When I see my children, I see your children. We are in this together. We rise and fall as one nation. (Applause.) I still believe in you. And if you still believe in me, and you stand up with me, and make phone calls and knock on doors and get out there and organize with me -- (applause) -- we're going to finish what we started in 2008. (Applause.) We're going to win this election. We're going to win Virginia. (Applause.) We're going to put this country on the right track. And we'll remind the world just why it is that the American way is what is the envy of the world and we are the greatest nation on Earth. (Applause.)

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

END
12:44 P.M. EDT

Remarks by the President at Campaign Event in Virginia Beach, VA

Green Run High School
Virginia Beach, Virginia

1:05 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Virginia Beach!  (Applause.)  Thank you!  It is good to be back in Virginia!  (Applause.)

A couple of people I want to acknowledge.  First of all, please give Ricki a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  We are so proud of her, not just for introducing me -- that's not that big a deal -- (laughter) -- but her serving her country, first in uniform herself and then as a military spouse.  She is an example of what is best about America, and we could not be prouder of her. (Applause.)

A couple other people I want to acknowledge.  First of all, your outstanding former governor and soon to be United States senator, Tim Kaine.  (Applause.)  Your outstanding former governor and already senator, Mark Warner.  (Applause.)  We've got your Second Congressional District candidate, Paul Hirschbiel is here.  (Applause.) 

And I want to give a special acknowledgement to somebody who's not here but who we will always remember.  She was a true trailblazer, not just here in Virginia but across the country, and did so much for so many.  So we are truly blessed to have known and we profoundly miss State Senator Yvonne Miller --  (applause) -- who is now in a better place.  (Applause.)  And our thoughts and prayers go out to her family.  Her two brothers were here -- I had a chance to meet them -- and we're so proud of them.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love you!

THE PRESIDENT:  I love you back.  (Applause.)

Now, some of you may have noticed that we are in campaign season.  (Applause.)  I know that's surprising to many of you.  (Laughter.)  I don't suppose you've seen any advertising on TV.  (Laughter.)  You know, we are seeing more money spent than any time in American history -- a lot of it undisclosed, coming from folks who can write $10 million checks.  Most of the ads are negative -- in fact, almost all of the ads are negative.  And it's understandable that as you watch these TV ads that you start thinking that politics just doesn’t seem to get what's going on in your lives, that there's so much negativity and so much cynicism.  And it's understandable if at a certain point people just say, you know what, there's a disconnect here, this is not speaking to me, it's not speaking to what's going on in my neighborhood, my community. 

But I just want to remind everybody that in 2008, there were a lot of folks who didn’t believe either in the possibilities of change.  There were folks that counted us out, people who were sure that a guy named Barack Obama could not be elected President.  (Laughter.)  And so the reason we came together was not because we thought it was a sure thing; it was because we shared a set of values.  (Applause.)  We believed in the basic bargain that has been the bedrock of this nation for well over 200 years. 

And I was thinking as I was about to come out about this, which will be my last campaign --

AUDIENCE:  Nooo --

THE PRESIDENT:  No, no, I mean, there’s a term-limit thing in the presidency.  This isn’t like Congress -- I can’t just keep on running.  (Laughter and applause.)

AUDIENCE:  Four more years!  Four more years!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  But it made me think about my first campaigns, my earliest campaigns, and the reason I got into politics in the first place.  Some of you know my grandparents were part of that World War II, Great Depression generation.  And my grandfather fought in Patton’s Army and my grandmother worked on a bomber assembly line.  And when my grandfather came back -- at that point my mom had been born -- he was able to go to college because of the GI Bill.  And they were able to buy their first home with some help from the FHA. 

And then my mother -- she was a single mom -- my dad left before I even remembered him.  But she was still able to give me and my sister this unbelievable education -- (applause) -- because of scholarships and grants, and the fact that she was willing to work hard so that she could work and go to school at the same time and raise two kids. 

And then I think about Michelle’s family.  Her dad, he was a blue-collar worker, worked at the water filtration plant in Chicago.  And even though he had MS -- by the time I met him, he couldn’t really walk.  He had to use two canes.  And he’d have to wake up an hour early, earlier than everybody else, to get to work -- just to put on his clothes and get ready for work. But he never missed a day’s work. 

And Michelle’s mom, she stayed at home and looked after Michelle and her brother until they got older, and then worked as a secretary most of her life.  And yet, despite these modest beginnings, Michelle and her brother Craig could go to the best schools on Earth, and rise up to do extraordinary things.

So in my first campaign, when I thought about why am I getting into politics, the reason was because we -- my family, Michelle’s family -- we had benefited from this basic American bargain.  (Applause.)  This idea, at the heart of this nation, that if you’re willing to work hard, if you are willing to take responsibility, then you are not constrained by the circumstances of your birth.  You can go as far as your dreams can take you.  (Applause.)  If you’re willing to work hard, then you can find a job that supports a family -- (applause) -- and you can have a home to call your own.  And you won’t be bankrupt when you get sick.  (Applause.)  And even if you weren’t born into wealth, you can make sure your kids get a great education and go on to college.  (Applause.)  Maybe you can take a vacation once in a while. 

I was up in Ohio talking about my favorite vacation.  When I was 11 years old, my grandmother, my mother, my sister and me, we traveled the country -- but we didn’t go on jets.  (Laughter.) We took Greyhound and the train, and I think twice we rented a car.  And we’d stay at Howard Johnsons.  And if there was a pool somewhere, no matter -- it could look like a puddle it could be so small -- (laughter) -- I was so excited.  And you’d go to the ice machine and the vending machine -- I was 11 years old; that was a big deal filling up that bucket of ice and getting that soda.  (Laughter.) 

And the point was that your vacation didn’t have to be fancy.  It just gave you a sense of how you could spend time with each other.  That was part of that American Dream.  And then the notion that you could retire with dignity and respect after a lifetime of work.  (Applause.) 

That’s the idea that got me into politics -- because my feeling was, given how much this country had given me and given Michelle, I wanted to make sure that that same bargain held for the next generation -- (applause) -- that it wasn’t just about me, it was about making sure that every American had those same opportunities. 

And the interesting thing is, when I first started running for the U.S. Senate, let’s say, in Illinois, and I’d be driving around and we’d go to downstate Illinois and small farm towns, or sometimes we’d be in the big cities like Chicago -- no matter who you met, they had those same stories in their background.  Black, white, Latino, Asian -- it didn’t matter -- they remembered their parents or their grandparents or great-grandparents -- some of them immigrants, some of them brought here not by choice, but each successive generation believing that this union could be perfected, and that if they really worked hard and were able to overcome whatever barriers in their way, that they could succeed.

So I ran in 2008 because I felt that that bargain wasn’t reaching enough people.  And the reason so many of you supported me in 2008 was because you understood that that dream was slipping away for too many people.

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

THE PRESIDENT:  That we had gone through a decade in which wages and incomes weren’t going up no matter how hard you worked, while the costs of everything from college to health care to groceries to gas kept on going up; and people worrying that maybe their kids might not do as well as they did, when the idea was always that your kids do better than you do.

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

THE PRESIDENT:  And so that's what brought us together.  The campaign in 2008 was not about a single candidate.  It wasn’t about me.  It was about us --  (applause) -- and our desire to make sure that the American Dream continues for the next generation and the generation after that and the generation after that.   (Applause.)

Now, what we didn't realize at the time was we were about to confront the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression -- millions of people thrown out of work, folks losing the value of their homes.  And so in some ways that dream seemed even further away.  But, you know, we’ve worked hard over the last three and a half years to try to restore that belief that in this country you can make it if you try.  (Applause.)

And that's how we were able to save an auto industry when some said let’s "let Detroit go bankrupt."  (Applause.)  We said we’re going to be on American workers and American industry.  And now GM is back on top, and Ford and Chrysler are selling cars -- because we believe in that American promise.  (Applause.)  Business started getting back to basics and we’ve now created more than 4.4 million new jobs, more than 500,000 manufacturing jobs created during this time.  (Applause.)

We've seen all across the country folks who got laid off retrained, go back to a community college and be able to find a new job in a new industry; small businesses struggling, sometimes keeping their doors open even though they’re not taking a salary, because they know their employees depend on them, and their families depend on them. 

It’s turned out that America is tougher than any tough times.  (Applause.)  But what we also understand is we’ve still got more work to do -- because, Virginia, the reason I ran and the reason you supported me wasn’t just to get back to where we were in 2007; the reason we came together was to restore that promise for middle-class families and all who are striving to get into the middle class.  (Applause.)  That’s what we’re fighting for.  And we’ve got a lot more work to do on that front. 

AUDIENCE:  Four more years!  Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, I’ve got to tell you -- this election in some ways is going to be more important than 2008, because after three and a half years of not getting much help from the other side --

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  -- I think what’s fair to say is, is that we now have a stalemate in Washington.  Solving our problems, making sure that good jobs are created here in the United States, making sure that those good jobs pay and have basic benefits, making sure that we’re bringing down our deficit in a responsible way, making sure that we maintain cutting-edge industries here in the United States, making sure we’ve got the best education system possible -- we know how to do those things.  What’s holding us back is not an absence of new ideas; it’s not a lack of solutions.  It’s the fact that there are two fundamentally different visions about how we move this country forward.

And so this election is about more than just two candidates or two political parties, Virginia.  This is about which direction we take this nation.

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, the other side -- Mr. Romney and his allies in Congress -- they’ve got a very particular idea about how we move this country forward.  And it basically involves taking the country back.

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  Their economic idea, you can summarize it really easily.  They basically want to give $5 trillion in new tax cuts, mostly for the wealthy, on top of the Bush tax cuts even if it means gutting investments in education, even if it means gutting investments in basic research, even if it means that we’re not rebuilding America’s infrastructure, even if it starts cutting into benefits that we’re providing to our veterans.  The basic idea is that if you help folks at the top, at the very top, and if you eliminate regulations that we’ve put in place to make sure banks can’t just do whatever they want, or consumers aren’t cheated by their credit card companies, or insurance companies can’t take advantage of their customers -- eliminate those regulations, cut taxes at the very top, that somehow, all those benefits are going to trickle down on you --

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  -- that the economy is going to improve and you are going to benefit. 

Now, I have to tell you, I think they’re wrong.  (Applause.) And the reason I think they’re wrong, Virginia, is because we tried it.  We tried it for most of the last decade.  And what were the results?  We ended up turning record surpluses into record deficits.  Wages, incomes stagnated.  Job growth sluggish. And it culminated in the worst financial crisis that we’ve seen since the 1930s.

Now, if you try something and it doesn’t work, why would you try it again?  (Applause.)  Why would we want to go back to that? (Applause.)

I’ve got a different idea.  I don’t think top-down economics works.  I believe that we grow this economy from the middle out. (Applause.)  From the bottom up.  I believe the heart and soul of this country is making sure that working people can feel some security in the middle class and we’re growing our middle class, and we’re going back to that basic American bargain that says everybody gets a fair shot and everybody does their fair share, and everybody is playing by the same set of rules.  (Applause.)  That’s what I believe, and that’s why I’m running for a second term as President of the United States of America.  (Applause.) 

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

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, if you want a specific example of the differences between my approach, my vision -- our vision -- and the other side’s version, let’s look at the debate we’re having about taxes right now.

I have cut taxes for middle-class families by an average of $3,900 since I’ve been in office.  (Applause.)  Because my attitude was working people were the ones who were hurt most severely by the crisis and, by the way, if they got a tax break, they were most likely to spend that money for necessities and put it back into circulation, and that would do the most for the economy.

So just in case some of your friends or neighbors, or Uncle Jim, who’s a little stubborn and been watching FOX News -- (laughter) -- and he thinks that somehow I raised taxes -- let’s just be clear:  We’ve lowered taxes for middle-class families since I came into office.  (Applause.)

Now, what I’ve said is that the way the law is set up right now, if we do nothing, on January 1st, everybody’s taxes go up.  Everybody’s income taxes go up on January 1st if Congress does nothing.  So what I’ve said is now is not the time to raise taxes on the middle class.  The economy is still fragile.  We’re still digging ourselves out of this hole.  So let’s provide certainty to 98 percent of Americans:  98 percent of Americans make $250,000 a year or less; let’s say to that 98 percent, your taxes will not go up.  (Applause.)

And, by the way, this is the first $250,000 of income -- which means that even millionaires would get a little tax break because for their first $250,000 their taxes wouldn’t go up. 

The Republicans say they agree that middle-class taxes should not go up.  That’s my belief.  So what I’ve said is we both agree that middle-class taxes shouldn’t go up, let’s go ahead and get this done tomorrow.  (Applause.)  Let’s get this done next week.  What’s the holdup?  (Applause.) 

Well, it turns out that the holdup is we’ve got a disagreement on the top 2 percent.  The top 2 percent, folks like me, we don’t need a tax break.  And it turns out if you give us a tax break along with the 98 percent, that costs about a trillion dollars.  We already benefitted from most of the tax cuts over the last decade, so we don't need it, we’re least likely to spend it.  It’s least likely to give a boost to the economy.  We can't afford it because we’re trying to bring down our deficit and trying to control our debt.

Now, the Republicans disagree with me on this.  Mr. Romney disagrees with me on this.  And my attitude is, well, that's fine, but let’s not hold middle-class folks hostage.  (Applause.) The top 2 percent, those tax cuts, that will be settled in the next election.  And I’m looking forward to having a debate, because if you say you want to bring down the deficit but you're not willing to let tax cuts lapse for the top 2 percent, it tells me you’re not serious about deficit reduction.  (Applause.)

But we can have that debate.  But in the meantime, let’s go ahead and help middle-class families right now.  And so far I have not gotten an okay from the other side on that.  And that tells me I guess they're not that serious about deficit reduction.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Those folks let him down.  (Laughter.) 

THE PRESIDENT:  Now -- but this is just an example of their broader theory.  They think that if you just help wealthy investors, it helps everybody.  I think the opposite.

Let’s take small businesses.  I’ve cut small business taxes 18 times since I’ve been in office.  (Applause.)  And by the way, 97 percent of small businesses make $250,000 a year or less.  So for 97 percent of small businesses, they’d also benefit if we went ahead and got that done right now.  (Applause.)  

So far they haven’t taken me up on this offer.  But what this shows is the difference in philosophy, because I believe that if you’re doing well, then the country does well.  (Applause.)  I believe if the small business person and the teacher -- (applause) -- and the construction worker, and the firefighter, and all those folks who put in a hard day’s work every day -- if they're doing well, then everybody does well.  (Applause.) 

That's my vision for America, and that's why I’m running for a second term as President of the United States.  (Applause.) 

I’m running because I want to make sure that every young person in America has a great education.  (Applause.)  I’ve got a plan to hire new teachers, especially in math and science.  (Applause.)  We’ve already expanded the Pell Grant program to help make college more affordable, provide tax credits to middle-class families to help make college more affordable.  (Applause.) I want to keep on going and make sure that 2 million more people can go to community colleges to get trained in the jobs that exist right now, and lower college tuition costs.  That’s why I’m running for President of the United States of America.  (Applause.)

I’m running because I believe we should have manufacturing jobs created here in the United States.  (Applause.)  I don’t think the auto industry is unique; I think there are a whole bunch of companies who we can attract back to the United States. But we’re going to have to change our tax code and stop giving tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas.  Give those tax breaks to companies that are moving back here to the United States of America, hiring American workers, making products stamped with three proud words:  Made in America.  That’s why I’m running for President of the United States.  (Applause.)

I am running for President because there are a lot of folks in Virginia who have served us in uniform with such bravery and dedication and patriotism -- (applause) -- and I want us to keep faith with our troops, and make sure that our veterans get the benefits that they have earned, and that military families like Ricki’s are getting the help that they need when their loved ones are fighting on our behalf.  (Applause.)

But part of keeping faith is also making sure that we’ve got a smart national security strategy.  And it also means making sure that we’ve got a strong economy to support a strong military.  In 2008, I promised we would end the war in Iraq, and we’ve ended it.  (Applause.)  We are transitioning in Afghanistan and beginning to bring our troops home from that theater.  We have gone after al Qaeda, decimated their leadership ranks, taken out Osama bin Laden.  (Applause.)  So now I think it’s a good time for us to take half of those savings that we’ve gotten from winding down these wars, use half of it to pay for the deficit, use the other half to do some nation-building here at home.  (Applause.) 

Let’s put Americans back to work rebuilding our roads and our bridges, building broadband lines into rural areas, making sure that we’ve got the best airports and the best rail lines in the world.  That's why I’m running for President of the United States -- because I want to rebuild America and put people back to work.  (Applause.)

AUDIENCE:  U.S.A.!  U.S.A!  U.S.A!

THE PRESIDENT:  I’m running because I want to build not just the best energy policy in the world here in the United States, I also want us to take the lead in clean energy.  We’ve seen oil production go up.  We’re seeing natural gas production go up.  And we’ve doubled our investment and production in solar and wind and biodiesel.  (Applause.)  I don't want us to be dependent on what happens in the Middle East for our energy.  I want us to develop homegrown energy.  (Applause.)

I want us to stop giving tax subsidies to oil companies that are already incredibly profitable.  I want to double down on our investment in clean energy that's never been more promising -- in solar and wind and biodiesel -- and put people back to work so that we can free ourselves from dependence on foreign oil, and build up America.  That's why I’m running for a second term as President of the United States.  (Applause.)

And I’m running so that we bring down our deficit and our debt in a balanced, responsible way.  We’ve already made a lot of tough cuts to the federal government, and I’m prepared to do more.  I don't believe that every government program works.  I don't believe that government is the answer for every problem.  We’re not going to improve our schools unless our parents are focused on education.  (Applause.)  Americans can't be looking for handouts.  There are some folks you can't help if they're not willing to help themselves.  But what I also believe is, is that there are some investments like in education, or in basic research, or in transportation -- there are basic investments we need to make to grow our economy. 

And so if we’re going to bring down our deficit in a sensible way that grows the economy and grows our middle class, it can't be based simply on cuts to basic programs and asking nothing from those who have been the most fortunate in this society.  (Applause.)  So what I’ve said is we’ll make cuts, but we’re also going to ask the wealthiest Americans like me to do a little bit more.  And I promise you, we can afford it.  (Applause.)

And by the way, the last time we did that, it worked.  Bill Clinton did it, and we ended up having 23 million new jobs.  We went from deficit to surplus, and we created a whole bunch of millionaires to boot.  So don't tell me that that's going to destroy jobs.  That's going to create jobs -- because we’re doing it in a way that focuses on building the middle class.  (Applause.)  And there are a whole bunch of wealthy Americans who understand that and are willing to do the right thing if they're asked.  And I’m prepared to ask them.  That's why I’m running for President of the United States of America.  (Applause.)

So we’ve got a lot of work to do.  We’ve got a lot of work to do.  And the way we’re going to get it done is by you making a decision.  There may be some -- there are people who agree with Mr. Romney and his allies in Congress. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  No, no, that's how our democracy works.  Even though the theory that they are promoting they’ve tried --

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Don't believe it!

THE PRESIDENT:  -- and it didn't work, they want to try it again.  That's the way our democracy works. 

But you know what, I’m betting that the American people, they don't want to go backwards. 

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  You don't want to refight the fight we had in health care.  Let me tell you health care was the right thing to do.  (Applause.)  If you already have health care, the only thing this bill does is make sure that it’s even more secure and insurance companies can't jerk you around.  (Applause.)  It allows young people to stay on their parent's health insurance plan -- 6 million young people have already benefited from that program.  (Applause.) 

It lowers prescription drug costs for seniors.  It guarantees preventive care for everybody, including women.  (Applause.)  Thirty million people are going to be able to get health insurance that didn't have it before, and that means -- and we’ll help them get it.  And the only thing that we have said is if you can afford to get health insurance and you don’t, you can’t pass those costs on to somebody else.  (Applause.)  You’ve got to take responsibility -- that’s part of the American way.  So we’re not going to refight that battle. 

I noticed the House of Representatives -- the Republicans in the House of Representatives, they voted to repeal it again.  That was the 33rd time they’ve done that.  (Laughter.)  Thirty-three votes to repeal the health care bill; all it would take is one vote to make sure that all of you don’t see your taxes go up next year.  (Applause.)  You tell me what would be a better use of time.  (Applause.)

Mr. Romney doesn’t think we should have a timetable for getting out of Afghanistan.  I disagree.  I don’t want to go backwards, I want to go forwards.  (Applause.)  The other side says they want to go back to the days when you could not serve the country you love because of who you love.  I disagree.  I don’t want to go backwards, I want to go forwards.  (Applause.)

Mr. Romney says that undocumented workers in this country should "self-deport."  My belief is that we are a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants, and I want to make sure that we get comprehensive immigration reform that gives young people who've been raised here a chance to live out their own American Dream.  (Applause.)  I don’t want to go backwards, I want to go forward. (Applause.)

All these things that I’m talking about, it all goes back to that first campaign I ran.  It all goes back to my family and your family, and this basic idea of how we make sure that the middle class is strong and growing in this country; how do we make sure that folks who aren’t quite there yet, if they work hard enough, can get into that sense of security and take care of their families.  And you know what, we have learned from our history that that’s done together.  (Applause.)

When previous generations funded the GI Bill, or built the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate Bridge, or sent a man to the moon, or invested in the basic research that created the Internet, they didn’t do that because it was going to benefit one person or a handful of people or one group.  They did it because they understood we rise or fall together, as one people.  (Applause.) And that’s how I want to move this country forward -- together, as one people.  And that’s why I’m running again as President of the United States.  (Applause.)

But if I’m going to get there I’m going to need you.  (Applause.)  The way this democracy works, the choice is going to be up to you.  And over the next four months, you are going to see more negative ads than you’ve ever seen in your life.  You’re going to start getting out that DVR to block them out and fast-forward and all that stuff.  (Laughter.)   

And the other side, they basically just have one argument -- which is the economy is not where it should be and it’s Obama’s fault.  And they’ll just keep on repeating that over and over again because they know they don’t have new ideas.  They know the American people wouldn’t just buy what they’re selling on its own.  So they don’t want to talk about what they’re going to do; they just want to talk about what hasn’t gotten done. 

And that may be a way to try to win an election, but it’s not a plan to create jobs.  It’s not a plan to strengthen the middle class.  And I don’t care how much money they spend.  What you taught me in 2008 is that when regular folk, when working people, when all of you tap into that basic decency and goodness of the American people, when you focus on what’s true and what’s right, and you cut through all the nonsense and all the noise and all the spin, and you remember your families and your parents and your grandparents and everything they did to give you the opportunities that you had, then you can’t be stopped.  (Applause.)

When you decide change is going to happen, change happens.  (Applause.)  When you decide we’re moving forward, we move forward.  (Applause.) 

That’s what you taught me in 2008.  And some of you will remember, in that campaign I told you I’m not a perfect man -- Michelle told you that, too -- (laughter) -- and I told you I wouldn’t be a perfect President.  But what I told you was I’d always tell you what I thought, I’d always tell you where I stood, and I would spend every single day that I have the privilege of having this office thinking about you and fighting as hard as I knew how to make your lives a little bit better.  (Applause.) 

I made that promise because I saw myself in you, and I saw Michelle in you.  And when I look at your kids, I see my kids.  (Applause.)  And when I look at your grandparents, I see my grandparents.  And because of the values we share, I believe in you.  And I hope you still believe in me.  (Applause.)  Because I’ve kept that promise, and I fought for you, and I’m going to keep on fighting for you as long as I have the chance to be your President.  (Applause.)

And if you’re willing to stand up with me, and knock on doors with me, and make phone calls, and get out and organize, then we’ll finish what we started in 2008, and we’ll remind the world just why it is that the United States of America is the greatest nation on Earth.  (Applause.)

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

END
1:47 P.M. EDT

Remarks by the President at a Campaign Event in Roanoke, Virginia

Roanoke Fire Station #1, Roanoke, Virginia

7:51 P.M. EDT

     THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Roanoke!  (Applause.)  It is good to be back in Roanoke!  Good to be back in Virginia.  (Applause.)  Back in the Star City. 

     There are a couple of people I want to acknowledge.  First of all, you've got one of the finest senators and public servants in the country in Mark Warner.  Give it up for Mark Warner.  (Applause.)  Now, Mark was a great governor for the Commonwealth of Virginia, and now he's a great senator.  I just want to point out we've got another great governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia who is going to be a great senator in Tim Kaine.  (Applause.)  We are thrilled to have them both with us today.

     I want to thank Mayor David Bowers who's here.  (Applause.) City Manager, Christopher Morrill.  (Applause.)  Fire Chief, David Hoback.  (Applause.)  And we've got former Majority Leader of the House of Delegates, Dick Cranwell is here.  (Applause.) 

     And all of you are here.  (Applause.)  Couldn’t ask for a nicer setting.  It is beautiful flying in to Roanoke. 

     Now, let me just say, unless you have managed to break your television set -- (laughter) -- you're probably aware that it is campaign season.  And I know it's not always pretty to watch.  We're seeing more money flooding into the system than ever before, more negative ads, more cynicism.  A lot of the reporting is just about who's up and who's down in the polls instead of talking about the things that matter in your day-to-day life.

     So I know all this kind of makes it tempting to just turn off the TV set, and turn away from politics.  And there are some people who are betting that you lose interest.

     AUDIENCE:  No!

     THE PRESIDENT:  But the fact that you are here tells me that you're still ready to work to make this a better country.  (Applause.)  You're still betting on hope and you're still betting on change -- and I am still betting on you.  (Applause.) 
     AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love you, Mr. President!

     THE PRESIDENT:  I love you back.  (Applause.) 

     AUDIENCE:  Four more years!  Four more years! 

     THE PRESIDENT:  Well, let me just say this -- if I win Virginia, I'm going to get four more years.  (Applause.)  That I can say with some confidence. 

     And the reason you're here tonight is because no matter how petty and small politics seems sometimes, you recognize that the stakes could not be bigger.  In some ways, the stakes are even bigger now than they were in 2008, because what's at stake is not just two people or two political parties.  What's at stake is a decision between two fundamentally different views about where we take the country right now.  And the choice is up to you.

Now, this is my last political campaign.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Awww --

THE PRESIDENT:  No, it's true.  There is a term limit for Presidents.  You get two.  (Laughter.)  So no matter what happens, this will be my last campaign.  And it makes you nostalgic sometimes, and I started thinking about some of my first campaigns. 

When I was traveling across Illinois -- and Illinois is a big state.  And it's got big cities like Chicago and it's got small towns, and it's got rural areas and suburban areas, and you meet people from every walk of life -- black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American.  You stop in VFW halls, you stop in diners, you go to churches, you go to synagogues.  Wherever you go, you're going to have a chance to meet people from different walks of life.  And when I think about that first campaign, what strikes me is no matter where I went, no matter who I was talking to, I could see my own life in the life of the people whose vote I was asking for. 

So I would meet an elderly vet and I'd think about my grandfather who fought in World War II, and my grandmother who worked on a bomber assembly line during the war.  And I'd think about how, when my grandfather came back home, because of this country he was able to get an education on the GI Bill and they were able to buy their first home using an FHA loan. 

And then I'd meet a single mom somewhere and I'd think about my mom.  I never knew my dad.  He left when I was just barely a baby, and so -- and my mother didn’t have a lot of money and she was struggling, and she had to go back to school raising a kid, later raising my sister, and she had to work while she was in school.  But despite all that, because she was in America, she was able to get grants and scholarships and her kids were able to get grants and scholarships.  (Applause.)  And they could go as far as their dreams could take them. 

And then I'd talk to some working folks, and I'd think about Michelle's family -- her dad who was a blue-collar worker, worked at a water filtration plant in Chicago, and her mom was a secretary.  And yet, despite never having a lot, there was so much love and so much passion -- and her dad had MS, so he had to wake up an hour earlier than everybody else just to get to work because it took him that long to get dressed, and he could barely walk.  But he never missed a day’s work -- because he took pride in the idea that, you know what, I’m going to earn my way and look after my family.  (Applause.)  And I’d see that same pride in the people I was talking to. 

     And what this reminded me of was that, at the heart of this country, its central idea is the idea that in this country, if you’re willing to work hard, if you’re willing to take responsibility, you can make it if you try.  (Applause.)  That you can find a job that supports a family and find a home you can make your own; that you won’t go bankrupt when you get sick.  That maybe you can take a little vacation with your family once in a while -- nothing fancy, but just time to spend with those you love.  Maybe see the country a little bit, maybe come down to Roanoke.  (Applause.)  That your kids can get a great education, and if they’re willing to work hard, then they can achieve things that you wouldn’t have even imagined achieving.  And then you can maybe retire with some dignity and some respect, and be part of a community and give something back.  (Applause.) 

That’s the idea of America.  It doesn’t matter what you look like.  It doesn’t matter where you come from.  It doesn’t matter what your last name is.  You can live out the American Dream.  That’s what binds us all together.  (Applause.)    

Now, the reason that I think so many of us came together in 2008 was because we saw that for a decade that dream was fraying, that it was slipping away; that there were too many people who were working hard but not seeing their incomes or wages go up; that we had taken a surplus and turned it into a deficit -- we were running two wars on a credit card; that job growth was the most sluggish it had been in 50 years.  There was a sense that those who were in charge didn’t feel responsible. 

And so we came together to say we are going to bring about the kinds of changes that allow us to get back to those basics, allow us to restore and live out those values.  What we didn’t realize was that some of that recklessness, some of that irresponsibility would lead to the worst financial crisis we’ve seen since the Great Depression.  And I don’t need to tell you what we’ve been through over the last three and a half years because you’ve lived it.  Too many folks lost jobs.  Too many people saw their homes lose value.  Too many folks saw their savings take a hit. 

But you know what’s given me confidence and faith is that fact that as I’ve traveled around the country now, just like I used to travel around Illinois, that same decency, those same values -- they’re still alive, at least outside Washington.  (Applause.)  Times have been tough, but America’s character hasn’t changed.  The core decency of the American people is undiminished.  (Applause.)  Our willingness to fight through and work through the tough times and come together, that’s still there.

And so, just as we came together in the last campaign -- not just Democrats, by the way, but Republicans and independents, because we’re not Democrats or Republicans first, we’re Americans first.  (Applause.)  Just like we came together in 2008, we know that we’ve got to keep working, we got to keep moving forward in 2012.  And we knew back then that it wasn’t going to be easy.  These problems we’re facing, they didn’t happen overnight, and they’re not going to be solved overnight.  We understood it might take more than one year or one term or even one President.  But what we also understood was that we weren’t going to stop until we had restored that basic American bargain that makes us the greatest country on Earth.  (Applause.)

Our goal isn’t just to put people back to work -- although that’s priority number one -- it is to build an economy where that work pays off.  An economy where everyone, whether you are starting a business or punching a clock, can see your hard work and responsibility rewarded.  That’s what this campaign’s about, Roanoke.  And that’s why I’m running for a second term as President of the United States of America.  (Applause.)

     AUDIENCE:  Four more years!  Four more years! 

     THE PRESIDENT:  Now, let me say this.  It’s fashionable among some pundits -- and this happens every time America hits a rough patch -- it’s fashionable to be saying, well, this time it’s different, this time we really are in the soup; it’s going to be hard to solve our problems.  Let me tell you something.  What’s missing is not big ideas.  What’s missing is not that we’ve got an absence of technical solutions to deal with issues like education or energy or our deficit.  The problem we’ve got right now is we’ve just got a stalemate in Washington.

     And the outcome of this debate that we’re having is going to set the stage not just for the next year or five years, but for the next twenty.  On the one side you’ve got my opponent in this presidential race and his Republican allies who --

     AUDIENCE:  Booo --

     THE PRESIDENT:  No, no, look -- I mean, we’re having a good, healthy, democratic debate.  That’s how this works.  And on their side, they’ve got a basic theory about how you grow the economy.  And the theory is very simple:  They think that the economy grows from the top down.  So their basic theory is, if wealthy investors are doing well then everybody does well.  So if we spend trillions of dollars on more tax cuts mostly for the wealthy, that that’s somehow going to create jobs, even if we have to pay for it by gutting education and gutting job-training programs and gutting transportation projects, and maybe even seeing middle-class folks have a higher tax burden. 

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  So that’s part number one, right.  More tax cuts for those at the top.

     Part number two is they believe if you tear down all the regulations that we’ve put in place -- for example, on Wall Street banks or on insurance companies or on credit card companies or on polluters -- that somehow the economy is going to do much, much better.  So those are their two theories.  They’ve got the tax cuts for the high end, and they’ve got rollback regulation.

     Now, here’s the problem.  You may have guessed -- we tried this.  We tried this in the last decade and it did not work.

     AUDIENCE:  No! 

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, before I finish, can I say, by the way, that some of you have been standing for a while and I see a couple folks slumping down a little bit.  Make sure you’re drinking water.  Bend your knees.  Don’t stand up too straight.  The paralegals will be -- the paralegals?  (Laughter.)  You don’t need lawyers.  (Laughter.)  The paramedics will be coming by, so just give folks a little bit of room, they’ll be fine.  This happens at every event.

     AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love you, Obama!

     THE PRESIDENT:  I love you back.  (Applause.)  But I just want to point out that we tried their theory for almost 10 years, and here’s what it got us:  We got the slowest job growth in decades.  We got deficits as far as the eye can see.  Your incomes and your wages didn’t go up.  And it culminated in a crisis because there weren’t enough regulations on Wall Street and they could make reckless bets with other people’s money that resulted in this financial crisis, and you had to foot the bill.  So that’s where their theory turned out. 

Now, we don’t need more top-down economics.  I’ve got a different view.  I believe that the way you grow the economy is from the middle out.  (Applause.)  I believe that you grow the economy from the bottom up.  I believe that when working people are doing well, the country does well.  (Applause.)

     I believe in fighting for the middle class because if they’re prospering, all of us will prosper.  (Applause.)  That’s what I'm fighting for, and that’s why I'm running for a second term as President of the United States.  (Applause.) 

Now, this is what I've been focused on since I've been in office.  In 2008, I promised to make sure that middle-class taxes didn’t go up.  And in fact, because of the recession, you needed some help, so we cut the typical family's income taxes by $3,600.  (Applause.)  So if you hear somebody say that I'm a big tax guy, just remember $3,600 for the typical family.  That’s the tax break you've gotten since I've been in office.  (Applause.)

Four years later, I'm running to keep middle-class taxes low.  So this week, I called on Congress to immediately extend income tax cuts on the first $250,000 of income.  Now, what that means is 98 percent of Americans make less than $250,000, so 98 percent of folks would have the certainty and security that your taxes, your income taxes would not go up a dime.  (Applause.)  And, by the way, this is not a hypothetical.  This wasn't some campaign promise.  The reason I called on Congress to act now is because if they don’t do anything, on January 1st, almost everybody here, your taxes will go up an average of $1,600. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  So we need to stop that tax hike from happening.

So you would think that this makes sense, right, because the Republicans say they're the party of no new taxes, right?  That’s what they always say.  Except so far, they've refused to act.  And this might confuse you.  You might say, why would they not want to give 98 percent of Americans the certainty of this income tax cut? 

Well, it turns out they don’t want you to get your tax break unless the other 2 percent, the top 2 percent, they get their tax break as well.

Now, understand, the top 2 percent, folks like me, we're the ones who most benefited over the last decade from not only tax breaks, but also a lot of the money from increased profits and productivity went up to that top 2 percent.  So the bottom line is, the top 2 percent doesn’t need help.  They're doing just fine.

And I understand why they wouldn’t want to pay more in taxes.  Nobody likes to pay more in taxes.  Here's the problem:  If you continue their tax breaks, that costs a trillion dollars.  And since we're trying to bring down our deficit and our debt, if we spend a trillion dollars on tax cuts for them, we're going to have to find that trillion dollars someplace else.  That means we're going to have to maybe make student loans more expensive for students.  Or we might have to cut back on the services we're providing our brave veterans when they come home.

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  Or we might have to stop investing in basic science and research that keeps us as a leading-edge economy.  Or, as they suggested, maybe you would have to turn Medicare into a voucher program. 

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  I don’t think those are good ideas.  So what I've said to the Republicans is, look, all right, let's have this debate about the tax cuts for the wealthiest folks.  I don’t mind having that debate.  But in the meantime, let's go ahead and do what we agree on, which is give 98 percent of Americans some certainty and some security.  (Applause.)  So far, they haven't taken me up on my offer. 

Now, this gives you a sense of how Congress works these days -- you've got the possibility of your taxes going up in four months, five months, and instead of working on that, guess what they worked on this week?  They worked --

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Nothing!

THE PRESIDENT:  -- they voted for the 33rd time to try to repeal a health care bill we passed two years ago, after the Supreme Court said it's constitutional and we are going to go ahead and implement that law.  (Applause.)  I don’t know about you, Virginia, but I think they've got a better way to use their time.  I think helping you make sure your taxes don’t go up, that would be a good use of congressional time.  (Applause.)

Now, this is just a small example of the difference between myself and Mr. Romney, between myself and some of the Republicans who are running Congress.  And look, Virginia, I want to repeat -- this is a choice.  If you think their way of doing things is a recipe for economic growth and helping the middle class, then you should vote for them.

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  You can send those folks to Washington.  I promise you they will carry out what they promise to do. 

But that’s not why I went to Washington.  I went to Washington to fight for the middle class.  (Applause.)  I went to Washington to fight for working people who are trying to get into the middle class, and have some sense of security in their lives.  (Applause.)  People like me and Mr. Romney don’t need another tax cut.  You need some help right now to make sure your kids are living the kind of life you want for them.  And that’s why I'm running for a second term as President of the United States.  (Applause.)

On almost every issue, you've got the same kind of choice.  When the auto industry was about to go under, a million jobs lost, and my opponent said, "let's let Detroit go bankrupt," what did I say?  I said --

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  I said I'm betting on America's workers.  (Applause.)  I’m betting on American industry.  And guess what?  Three years later, GM is number one again and the American auto industry has come roaring back.  (Applause.)

     So I believe in American manufacturing.  I believe in making stuff here in America.  (Applause.)  My opponent, he invested in companies who are called “pioneers” of outsourcing.  I don’t believe in outsourcing -- I believe in insourcing.  (Applause.)  I want to stop giving tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas; let’s give tax breaks to companies that are investing right here in Roanoke, right here in the United States of America.  (Applause.)  Let’s invest in American workers so they can make products and ship them around the world with those three proud words: Made in America.  (Applause.)

     I’m running because our men and women in uniform have sacrificed so much.  We could not be prouder of them and we could not be prouder of our veterans.  And because of their efforts, I was able to keep my promise and end the war in Iraq.  (Applause.)
And I now intend to transition out of Afghanistan and bring our troops home.  (Applause.)  And what I said is, because of their outstanding work, we’ve been able to decimate al Qaeda and take out bin Laden.  (Applause.)  And so now it’s time for us to take half of the money we were saving on war and pay down our deficit, and use the other half to do some nation-building here at home.  (Applause.)

Roanoke knows something about transportation -- this was a railroad hub for a long time.  So you know how important that is to growing an economy.  Let’s take some of that money and rebuild our roads and our bridges and our rail systems, and let’s build wireless networks into rural communities so everybody can tap into world markets.  Let’s put construction workers back to work doing what they do best and that is rebuilding America.  That’s why I’m running for a second term as President of the United States.  That’s the choice you face.  (Applause.)

I’m running to make sure that our kids are getting the best education in the world.  When I came into office, we passed a tuition tax credit that has saved millions of families thousands of dollars, and now I want to extend it.  But I don’t want to stop there.  We just won a fight thanks to some of the folks who are here, including students from VT that -- we just won a fight to make sure that student loan interest rates would not double.

But that’s not enough.  I want to lower tuition to make it more affordable for all young people.  (Applause.)  I want to help our elementary schools and our middle schools and our high schools hire more teachers, especially in math and science.  I want 2 million more people to be able to go to community colleges to get trained in the jobs that businesses are hiring for right now -- because a higher education, a good education is not a luxury, it is an economic necessity.  That’s how we’re going to win the race for the future.  And that’s why I’m running for a second term as President -- to finish the job we started in 2008.  (Applause.)

We’ve got to deal with homeownership, and the fact of the matter is that my opponent’s philosophy when it comes to dealing with homeowners is, let the market bottom out and let as many foreclosures happen as it takes.  I don’t think that’s part of a solution -- that’s part of the problem. 

So what I want to do is, I want to let every single person refinance their homes and save about $3,000 a year because you’ll spend that $3,000 on some of these stores right here in downtown.  You’ll help small businesses and large businesses grow because they’ll have more customers.  It will be good for you and it will be good for the economy.  And that’s why I’m running for a second term as President -- because I want to help America’s homeowners.  (Applause.)

I am running because I still believe that you shouldn’t go bankrupt when you get sick.  We passed that health care law because it was the right thing to do.  (Applause.)  And because we did, 30 million people who don’t have health insurance are going to get help getting health insurance.  (Applause.)  Six million young people who didn’t have health insurance can now stay on their parent’s plan and get health insurance. 

Seniors are seeing their prescription drug costs go down.  And, by the way, if you’ve got health insurance, you’re not getting hit by a tax.  The only thing that’s happening to you is that you now have more security because insurance companies can’t drop you when you get sick.  (Applause.)  And they can’t mess around with you because of some fine print in your policy.  If you’re paying your policy, you will get the deal that you paid for.  That’s why we passed health care reform.  (Applause.)

     Now, one last thing -- one of the biggest differences is how we pay down our debt and our deficit.  My opponent, Mr. Romney’s plan is he wants to cut taxes another $5 trillion on top of the Bush tax cuts. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, first of all, like I said, the only way you can pay for that -- if you’re actually saying you’re bringing down the deficit -- is to cut transportation, cut education, cut basic research, voucherize Medicare, and you’re still going to end up having to raise taxes on middle-class families to pay for this $5 trillion tax cut.  That’s not a deficit reduction plan.  That’s a deficit expansion plan. 

     I’ve got a different idea.  I do believe we can cut -- we’ve already made a trillion dollars’ worth of cuts.  We can make some more cuts in programs that don’t work, and make government work more efficiently.  (Applause.)  Not every government program works the way it’s supposed to.  And frankly, government can’t solve every problem.  If somebody doesn’t want to be helped, government can’t always help them.  Parents -- we can put more money into schools, but if your kids don’t want to learn it’s hard to teach them.  (Applause.)

     But you know what, I’m not going to see us gut the investments that grow our economy to give tax breaks to me or Mr. Romney or folks who don’t need them.  So I’m going to reduce the deficit in a balanced way.  We’ve already made a trillion dollars’ worth of cuts.  We can make another trillion or trillion-two, and what we then do is ask for the wealthy to pay a little bit more.  (Applause.)  And, by the way, we’ve tried that before -- a guy named Bill Clinton did it.  We created 23 million new jobs, turned a deficit into a surplus, and rich people did just fine.  We created a lot of millionaires.

     There are a lot of wealthy, successful Americans who agree with me -- because they want to give something back.  They know they didn’t -- look, if you’ve been successful, you didn’t get there on your own.  You didn’t get there on your own.  I’m always struck by people who think, well, it must be because I was just so smart.  There are a lot of smart people out there.  It must be because I worked harder than everybody else.  Let me tell you something -- there are a whole bunch of hardworking people out there.  (Applause.)

     If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help.  There was a great teacher somewhere in your life.  Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive.  Somebody invested in roads and bridges.  If you’ve got a business -- you didn’t build that.  Somebody else made that happen.  The Internet didn’t get invented on its own.  Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.

     The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together.  There are some things, just like fighting fires, we don’t do on our own.  I mean, imagine if everybody had their own fire service.  That would be a hard way to organize fighting fires. 

So we say to ourselves, ever since the founding of this country, you know what, there are some things we do better together.  That’s how we funded the GI Bill.  That’s how we created the middle class.  That’s how we built the Golden Gate Bridge or the Hoover Dam.  That’s how we invented the Internet.  That’s how we sent a man to the moon.  We rise or fall together as one nation and as one people, and that’s the reason I’m running for President -- because I still believe in that idea.  You’re not on your own, we’re in this together.  (Applause.)

So all these issues go back to that first campaign that I talked about, because everything has to do with how do we help middle-class families, working people, strivers, doers -- how do we help them succeed?  How do we make sure that their hard work pays off?  That’s what I've been thinking about the entire time I've been President.

Now, over the next four months, the other side is going to spend more money than we've even seen in history.  And they don’t really have a good argument for how they would do better, but they're thinking they can win the election if they just remind people that a lot of people are still out of work, and the economy is not growing as fast as it needs to, and it's all Obama's fault.  That’s basically their pitch. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo --

THE PRESIDENT:  No, no, I mean, I'm just telling you.  You've seen the ads, and they're going to run more of them, and there will be all kinds of variations on the same theme.  But it will be the same basic message over and over and over and over and over again. 

Now, their ads may be a plan to win an election, but it's not a plan to put people back to work.  It's not a plan to strengthen the middle class.  And the reason it doesn’t worry me is because we've been outspent before.  We've been counted out before.  The pundits, they didn’t think I could win Virginia the last time.  (Applause.)  The last time I came to this part of Virginia, all the political writers, they're all like, well, he's not serious, he's just making a tactical move.  No, I'm serious -- I'm going to get some votes down here.  (Applause.) 

And so the reason that I continue to have confidence is because when I look at you, I see my grandparents.  When I see your kids, I see my kids.  And I think about all those previous generations -- our parents and grandparents and great-grandparents.  Some of them came here as immigrants, some were brought here against their will.  Some of them worked on farms, and some worked in mills, and some worked in mines, and some worked on the railroad. 

But no matter where they worked, no matter how times were tough, they always had faith that there was something different about this country; that in this country, you have some God-given rights:  a life in liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and a belief that all of us are equal -- (applause) -- and that we're not guaranteed success, but we're guaranteed the right to work hard for success.  (Applause.) 

They understood that, and they understood that succeeding in America wasn't about how much money was in your bank account, but it was about whether you were doing right by your people, doing right by your family, doing right by your neighborhood, doing right by your community, doing right by your country, living out our values, living out our dreams, living out our hopes.  That’s what America was about.  (Applause.)

And so when I look out at this crowd, you inspire me.  (Applause.)  And I have to tell you that the privilege of being your President is something that I thank God for every single day.  (Applause.) 

I said to you back in 2008 when I was running, I'm not a perfect man -- you can ask Michelle about that.  (Laughter.)  And I told you I wouldn’t be a perfect President.  But what I did say to you was that I'd always tell you what I thought and I'd always tell you where I stood, and that I would wake up every single morning thinking about you and fighting as hard as I knew how to make your life a little bit better.  (Applause.) 

And over these last three and a half years, I know times have been tough, and I know change hasn't always come as fast as you'd like.  But you know what, I've kept that promise.  (Applause.)  I thought about you.  I fought for you.  I believe in you.  And if you still believe in me, if you're willing to stand up with me, and campaign with me, and make phone calls for me, and knock on doors with me, I promise you we will finish what we started -- (applause) -- and we will restore that basic bargain that built this country, and we'll remind the world just why it is that America is the greatest nation on Earth.

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

                                                END                  8:33 P.M. EDT

Remarks by the First Lady at a Campaign Event

University of Central Florida
Orlando, Florida

5:59 P.M. EDT

MRS. OBAMA:  You all look good.  Oh my goodness.  Wow.  Four more year years!  Four more years!

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

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you so much.  We will get it done.  We will get it done with your help, absolutely.  Let me tell you, I am beyond thrilled to be here.  You all look so good -- so good.  (Applause.)

I want to start with a few thank-yous because we wouldn’t be here without a whole lot of people, including you, but I want to start by thanking Melissa for that amazing introduction.  She is an inspiration.  I mean, Melissa is an example of the kind of folks in this country who keep me inspired.  So let’s give her a round of applause for everything she is doing to make us all so proud.  (Applause.)

I also want to thank State Senator-Elect Victor Torres, who’s here; Pastor Jeffrey Rivera; also Staff Sergeant Joseph Washington for all the work he’s doing.  We have an amazing National Campaign Co-Chair, Lynette Acosta.  She is amazing.  I got to meet her.  She’s doing a terrific job.  Let’s give her a round of applause.  And I understand that Milagro Padilla helped to fire you all up earlier, and we want to thank him for that as well.  (Applause.)

And finally, last but not least, I want to thank all of you, truly.  Yes, indeed, all of you.  There are so many of our extraordinary volunteers and organizers.  You all, thank you for everything that you do -- everything.  Yes, we haven’t seen nothing yet.  (Applause.)  But thank you for everything that you do day in and out to make this campaign possible, truly.  Yes, indeed -- yes, indeed. 

You guys are doing the hard work.  I know you’re out there knocking on those doors.   You’re registering those voters.  You all are giving folks the information they need about the issues they care about so they know what to do.  And let me tell you, you have to know -- hi, sweetie -- that the grassroots work that you guys are doing, all that work that you’re doing to get people focused and fired up, that work is at the core of everything we do in this campaign.  It truly is.  But let me tell you, because of you, that’s how we did it four years ago, and that’s how we’re going to do it again today -- absolutely.  (Applause.)

And what I do know is that the work that you are doing is not easy.  You guys are all busy leading wonderful lives -- you’ve got your jobs, your families that you take care of.  Many of you young students, older students, student students, you’re out there, you’ve got classes to attend.  People are raising their families. 

But I also know that there’s a reason why we’re all here today, and why all of you are working so hard.  There’s a reason -- and it’s not just because we all support this awesomely phenomenal, terrific and handsome President.  And I will admit, I’m a bit biased -- (laughter) -- but our President is pretty awesome.  (Applause.)  And we’re not just doing this because we want to win an election -- although we do and we will.  (Applause.)  We are doing this because of the values we believe in. 

I mean, it’s important for us to remember we’re doing this because of the vision for this country that we all share.  We’re doing this because we want all of our kids to have good schools.  You know what kind of schools I’m talking about -- the kind of schools that inspire them.  The kind of schools that prepare them for good jobs and wonderful opportunities.  We want that for all of our kids.  (Applause.)

We want our parents and our grandparents to be able to retire with dignity -- (applause) -- because we believe that after a lifetime of hard work, they should be able to enjoy their golden years, right?  (Applause.)

We are here because we want to restore that basic middle-class security for our families, because we believe that in America folks shouldn’t go bankrupt because someone gets sick.  (Applause.)  They shouldn’t lose their home because someone loses a job.  (Applause.)  We believe in America that responsibility should be rewarded and hard work should pay off.  (Applause.)  We believe that everyone should do their fair share, but play by the same rules, right?  (Applause.) 

And the truth is, these are basic American values, right?  They’re the values that so many of us were raised with, including myself.

AUDIENCE:  I love you, Mrs. Obama!

MRS. OBAMA:  I love you, too!  Couldn’t be here without you.  (Applause.)

But I share my story everywhere I go.  My father was a blue-collar city worker -- worked at the city water plant all his life.  And my family lived in a little-bitty apartment on the South Side of Chicago.  (Applause.)  And growing up, let me tell you what I saw.  I saw how my parents saved and sacrificed, how they poured everything they had into me and my brother.  They held us to the same high standard of excellence because they wanted us both to have the kind of education they could only dream of. 

Education was everything in my family -- everything.  It was our ticket to the middle class.  It was our pathway to the American Dream.  (Applause.)  So my mom spent hours volunteering in our neighborhood public school, and she made sure we got -- handled our business, that we finished our homework every single night -- young people, every single night.  (Applause.)

And my parents did everything in their power to support my college education.  And while pretty much all of my tuition came from student loans and grants -- a very large portion -- my dad still paid a tiny portion of that tuition himself.  And let me tell you, every semester, my father was determined to pay that bill and to pay it on time.  He was so proud to be able to play a part in sending his kids to college, and he did all he could with his limited resources to lessen our financial burden by ensuring that neither me, nor my brother ever missed a registration deadline because his check was late.

And more than anything else, that is what is at stake.  That’s why we’re here.  It’s that fundamental promise that no matter who you are or how you started out, if you work hard, you can build a decent life for yourself and an even better life for your kids.  (Applause.)  That is the American Dream that we’re working for. 

And let me tell you, from now until November, we’re going to need all of you all out there.  (Applause.)  We’re going to need you out there.  We’re going to need you to tell everyone you know about how Barack is on our side and fighting for the values we believe in and fighting for the vision we all share.  You’ve got to tell them.

And I want you to start with the economy.  I want you to tell folks how Barack is fighting for working families, starting with tax cuts so folks can keep more money in their pockets so that they can have the income to pay for things like gas and groceries and school clothes for their kids.  I want you to tell them.  (Applause.) 

Remind people that Barack cut taxes for small businesses 18 times.  (Applause.)  Because he knows that rebuilding our economy starts with folks who are running the restaurants and the shops and the companies that create the jobs that we all need. 

And be sure to remind them of this:  Back when Barack first took office, this economy was losing an average of 750,000 jobs every single month.  That’s what he inherited.  But also let them know that for the past, now, 28 straight months, we’ve actually been gaining private sector jobs -– a total of more than 4 million jobs.  Let them know.  (Applause.) 

So while we definitely have a long way to go to rebuild our economy, we have more work to do, but let people know today millions of people are collecting a paycheck again; millions of people like my dad are able to pay their bills again.  (Applause.) 

And when it comes to health care, we need you to tell folks -- (applause) -- let them know that because of the reform that my husband passed, the people we love will no longer have to skip important health screenings because they can’t afford it.  Instead, insurance companies will have to cover basic, preventative care -- things like contraception, cancer screenings, prenatal cost, at no extra cost.  Because of this reform, millions of our seniors have saved hundreds of dollars on their prescription drugs.  And our young people can now stay on their parent’s insurance until they’re 26 years old.  (Applause.)  We can all feel that one.  And that is how 6.6 million of our young people in this country are getting the health care they need. 

AUDIENCE:  We love you, Michelle!

MRS. OBAMA:  And when it comes to education -- I’m not done yet, right?  There’s more.  (Applause.)  I want you to tell people that Barack knows what it’s like to be drowning in student debt.  Make sure they understand -- back when he and I first started out, we just got married, we’re starting to build a life together --

AUDIENCE:  We love you!

MRS. OBAMA:  Oh, man, thank you.  (Laughter.)

But let me tell you, back then, our combined student loan bill was actually higher than our mortgage.  How many people can relate to that one?  But that’s exactly why Barack has fought so hard to prevent student loan interest rates from increasing.  And that’s why he has doubled Pell grants, helping 4 million more students afford the education they need for the jobs of the future.

And when it comes to tapping into the promise of our young people, I want you to tell them how Barack has been fighting for the DREAM Act.  (Applause.)  Because he knows and believes that it is time to stop denying responsible young people opportunities in this country because they’re the children of undocumented immigrants.  It’s time to stop that.  (Applause.)  And you can also tell them how he has lifted the shadow of deportation so that -- for so many young people who came here as children, were raised as Americans, and have so much to contribute to our country.  It’s important that they understand.  (Applause.) 

And when it comes to keeping our country safe, I want you to remind people that Barack kept his promise to bring our troops home from Iraq.  (Applause.)  And he’s working hard to make sure that they get the benefits and the support that they’ve earned.  And today our troops no longer have to lie about who they are to serve the country they love.

When it comes to supporting women and families, I want you to tell people how Barack fought to make it easier for women to get equal pay for equal work because of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act -- (applause) -- that was the very first bill he signed into law.  But I think it’s also important for people to understand why he signed this bill.  He signed this bill because he knows that when so many women are now breadwinners for our families, truly women’s success in this economy is the key to families’ success in this economy.  (Applause.) 

And I also want you to let people know that, when it comes to the Supreme Court, don’t forget to tell people about those two brilliant Supreme Court justices Barack appointed -- Elena Kagan and Justice Sonia Sotomayor -– (applause) -- and how, for the first time in history, our daughters and our sons watched three women take their seat on our nation’s highest court.  Let them know.  (Applause.)

I could go on and on and on.  But I know you all are standing, and I see some people -- some people sitting down.  But what’s important for you all to understand is that all of that and so much more, all of it is at stake this November.  It is all on the line.  There is no question about it.  It is all on the line.  And in the end, it all boils down to one simple question:  Are we going to continue the change we’ve begun, the progress we’ve made?  (Applause.)  Or are we going to let everything we’ve fought for to just slip away? 

AUDIENCE:  No!

MRS. OBAMA:  No, we know what we need to do.  We cannot turn back now.  We need to keep moving forward.  (Applause.)  We need to keep moving forward.  (Applause.)

And more than anything else, that is what we’re working for.  That’s what we’re fighting for -- the chance to finish what we started, the chance to keep fighting for the values we believe in and the vision that we all share.  That’s what my husband has been doing every single day as President. (Applause.) 

And let me just share something with you -- I have had the privilege of seeing as First Lady over the last three and a half years, I’ve had the chance to see up close and personal what being President really looks like.  I’ve seen it.  I have seen how the issues that come across a President’s desk are always the hard ones –- the problems with no easy solutions, the judgment calls where the stakes are so high and the margin for error so, so small.  And I have seen how as President, you are going to get all kinds of advice from all kinds of people, but at the end of the day, let me tell you, when it comes time to make that decision, as President, all you have to guide you are your life experiences.  All you have to direct you are your values, your vision for this country.  And in the end, it all boils down to who you are and what you stand for.  (Applause.)

And we all know who my husband is, don’t we?  (Applause.)  We all know what Barack Obama stands for, don’t we?  (Applause.)  Barack Obama is the son of a single mother who struggled to put herself through school and pay the bills.  Barack is the grandson of a woman who woke up before dawn every day to catch a bus to her job at the bank.  And even though Barack’s grandmother was good at her job and helped support her family, like so many women, she hit that glass ceiling, and watched men no more qualified than she -- men she had actually trained -- be promoted up the ladder ahead of her.  But she didn’t complain.  Like so many people we know in our lives, she just kept getting up and giving her best every single day to help support her family.  (Applause.)

So let me -- just understand that your President, Barack Obama knows what it means when a family struggles.  This is not a hypothetical situation for him.  He knows what it means to work hard because you want something better for your kids and your grandkids.  And like me, and like so many of you, he knows the American Dream because he’s lived it.  (Applause.)  And Barack wants everyone who is willing to work to have the same opportunity.  (Applause.)

So when there’s a choice about our children’s futures -- about investing in their schools and helping them attend college without a mountain of debt, you know where Barack stands.  (Applause.)

When it comes time to stand up for our workers and our families, so folks can make a decent wage, save for retirement, see a doctor when they’re sick, you know what my husband is going to do.  (Applause.) 

When we need a President to protect our most basic rights  -- no matter who we love, or where we’re from, or what race or  gender we are -- you know you can count on Barack Obama, because that’s what he’s been doing every single day as President of the United States.  (Applause.)  Every single day, that’s what your President has been doing for you.  (Applause.)

But I have said this before, and I’m going to say it again and again and again:  He cannot do this alone.  (Applause.)  Did you hear me?  He cannot do this alone.  Because as Barack has said, this election will be even closer than the last one.  That you can count on.  So he needs your help.  He needs you to do what you do best.  (Applause.)  Keep making those calls.  He needs you to keep knocking on those doors, keep registering those voters.  You know the ones that aren’t registered, right?  Find them, shake them up.  They’re in your dorm rooms, they’re in your church -- find them. 

And even more importantly, he needs you to multiply yourselves.  Multiply yourselves -- reach out to everyone you know -- your friends, your family, your neighbors -- tell them to go to the barackobama.com, so they can find out how they can get involved, how they can help.   

And if you have any doubt about the difference you can make, one of the reasons why we focus so hard on our grassroots efforts -- I just want you to remember that in the end, this could all come down to those last few thousand people we register to vote.  Think about that.  This election could come down to those last few thousand folks we get to the polls on November the 6th.  And when you think about those kind of numbers, and what they mean when they’re spread out across an entire state -- I mean, just think about it.  It might mean registering just one more person in your town, in your community, right?  One more person.  It could mean helping just one more person get out and vote on Election Day.  One more person.

So I just want you to think, with every door you knock on, with every event you host, with every single conversation you have, I want you to keep in the back of your mind, I want you to say, this could be the one.  I want you to say it:  This could be the one.

AUDIENCE:  This could be the one!

MRS. OBAMA:  Because that is the kind of difference, that’s the impact that each of us can have.  That’s why you all are so important.  That is why you all are so important. 

And I’m not going to kid you, this journey is going to be long.  It is going to be hard.  You hear me?

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

MRS. OBAMA:  And there will be plenty of twists and turns along the way.  But I want you to remember, that is how change always happens in this country.  (Applause.)  Real change takes time, but we also have to know that if we keep showing up, if we keep fighting the good fight, then we eventually get there.  We always do.  We keep moving forward.  Applause.)  Maybe not in our lifetimes, though, but maybe in our children’s lifetimes.   Maybe in our grandchildren’s lifetimes. 

Because in the end, that’s what this is all about.  That is what this is all about.  It is not about us, it is about them.  And let me tell you, that is what I think about every night when I put my girls to bed.  Every night, I think about the world that I want to leave for them, and for all of our sons and daughters.  I think about how I want to do for them what my mom and dad did for me.  So many people sacrificed for us.  I want to give them a foundation for their dreams.  I want to give them opportunities worthy of their promise, because all our kids are worthy.  I want to give our children that sense of limitless possibility, you know?  That belief that here in America, there is always something better out there if you’re willing to work for it.  (Applause.)

So we cannot turn back now.  No, not now.  We have come so far, but we have so much more work to do.  So I have one final  question:  Are you all in?

AUDIENCE:  Yes!  (Applause.)

MRS. OBAMA:  Wait, wait, wait -- are you in?

AUDIENCE:  Yes!  (Applause.)

MRS. OBAMA:  I mean, are you roll-up-your-sleeves in?  (Applause.)  Are you knocking-on-every-door in?  Are you registering-every-voter kind of in?  Are you ready to do the work?  (Applause.)  Because I’m so in.  Can you tell how in I am?  I am so fired up.  And we need each and every one of you to stay fired up.  We don’t have a long time at this, right?  We need you to be focused and fired up.  I am so ready to go.  I can’t wait to see you all out there so that we can keep fighting for the values we believe.
 
Thank you all so much.  God bless.  (Applause.)

END
6:24 P.M. EDT