Remarks by the First Lady at Childhood Obesity Summit

South Court Auditorium

1:40 P.M. EDT

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you, everyone.  (Applause.)  Thank you all so much.  It’s a pleasure to be here with all of you.

Let me begin by thanking Melody for that kind introduction, that wonderful story.  It’s happening in kitchens and households all over America -- kids really moving for the change.  I also want to thank Melody for her work in chairing the task force.  She has been instrumental, and we’ve seen such significant movement under her leadership.

I’d also like to thank several members of this administration who are providing invaluable leadership on this issue.  Melody introduced them, but let me take time to also thank Secretaries Duncan and Salazar, OBM Director Peter Orszag, Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan and Nancy-Ann DeParle.  Is Nancy-Ann here?  She is the Director of the White House Office of Health Reform and she obviously has been incredibly instrumental on this and so many efforts in this administration.

Thank you all for your leadership.  This has been an administration-wide effort and I am so proud of this team.  Everyone in this administration has embraced this issue with a level of fervor and commitment.  That's why we are able to be standing here today, having made so much progress in such a short period of time.

This gathering has never happened before at the White House.  It’s one where we’re bringing together teachers and child advocates, doctors and nurses, business leaders, public servants, researchers and health experts to talk about one of the most serious and difficult problems facing our kids today, and that is the epidemic of childhood obesity in this country.

We’re here because we all care deeply about the health and well-being of America’s children.  And we’ve gathered folks from across America and across just about every relevant field because, in the end, solving this problem is going to take every single one of us.

And that’s really at the heart of the “Let’s Move” campaign.

We launched this campaign two months ago, but the idea actually was inspired by the planting of the White House Kitchen Garden.

Last March, with the help of local students who have been so incredible, we planted the garden on the South Lawn of the White House, and it allowed us to begin a conversation about the importance not just of healthy eating -- eating right, eating the good food -- but also about getting exercise into our lives.

The kids during that whole year of planting and harvesting showed so much enthusiasm, so much excitement about that garden and about the potential of the topic that we realized there was an opportunity to do much more, because they were so open.

So we launched “Let’s Move.”  The campaign is designed to raise awareness about the problem of childhood obesity and to focus on how we as a nation have to come together to solve it.

My husband signed a presidential memorandum creating the first-ever government-wide Task Force on Childhood Obesity, composed of representatives from key agencies across the government.

And since then, I have spoken to so many people.  I’ve heard from so many people across this country.

I’ve met with mayors and governors and I’ve asked them to do their part to build healthier cities and states.

I’ve met with School Nutrition Association members -- the folks who decide what’s served in schools –- and I’ve asked them to do their part to offer healthier meals and snacks to our kids at school.

I’ve met with the food manufacturers and asked them to do their part to improve the quality of the food that they provide and to do a better job of marketing nutritious food to our kids.

I’ve met with kids -- met with a bunch of them the other day in my first town hall meeting, full of kids -- (laughter) -- and they were wonderful.  And I asked them to do their part.  I asked them nicely -- (laughter) -- but I asked them to do their part as well.  What I told them is that they were the most important players in this piece because it’s up to them to make different decisions; to try to make it a little easier on their parents to try new things and to incorporate exercise.

And I’ve been meeting with parents, too, because we all need to do our parts, as well, because the fact is, is that our kids didn’t do this to themselves.  They don’t decide the sugar content in soda or the advertising content of a television show.  Kids don’t choose what’s served to them for lunch at school, and shouldn’t be deciding what’s served to them for dinner at home.  And they don’t decide whether there’s time in the day or room in the budget to learn about healthy eating or to spend time playing outside.

We make those decisions.  That’s all up to us.

And I know how hard it is.  I know how hard it is as a parent when you’re bombarded by ads for junk food; when you’re hit with a barrage of conflicting stories about what’s healthy and what’s not; when you always feel like you’re failing to meet some impossible standard for working parents -- or for any parents for that matter.

We also know how hard it is for schools to provide nutritious lunches with just a few dollars to make that happen.  We know the budget constraints facing local governments in these tough times.  And we all know how difficult this problem is when playgrounds and ballparks are competing with video games and social networking sites; and when our children are simply surrounded by many more opportunities to eat badly and to sit around than they are to eat well and move.

But we also know this -- that over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled.  That is a fact.  Nearly one third of children in America now are overweight or obese.  That's a reality.  And unless we act now, things are only going to get worse.  That is a fact.

“Let’s Move” recognizes this reality and recognizes that there are a few things that we can do right now that can make a big difference.

First, we have to help parents and empower consumers by encouraging companies to offer healthier options and by providing more customer-friendly labels so that people can figure out what’s healthy and what isn’t.

And there are tools and resources available right now to parents and kids at our Web site, letsmove.gov.

Second, with 31 million children getting lunch through federal lunch programs, we can do so much more to provide healthy meals and snacks where our kids spend most of their days.

And I am pleased that the Senate Agriculture Committee has made a significant contribution towards the President’s goal of investing an additional $1 billion per year to ensure that the food provided to our children in schools is nutritious and healthy, and that fewer children in this country go hungry.

Third, we can do much more to make sure that all families have access to healthy and affordable food in their own communities.  23.5 million Americans, including 6.5 million children, live in communities without a supermarket.  That means far fewer healthier options are available to so many families who are going to be working to try to figure this out.  They won’t have access to the resources they need to do what we’re asking them to do.

So, we’re working with the private sector to reach a very ambitious goal, and that is to completely eliminate food deserts in this country.

And finally, there is much, much more that we can do to help kids stay physically active, not just in school but outside of school as well.

And if we can make real progress in these four areas, then there’s so much more else we can do.  But these four areas, as a country, we can reach our ultimate goal, and the ultimate goal for “Let’s Move” is to solve the problem of childhood obesity in a generation so that children born today grow up at a healthy weight with better notions of what is healthy, with better habits, who are incorporating exercise into their lives on a more regular basis, so there are more kids like the ones that Melody described, who know what it even means to eat healthy.  That's our goal.

And to achieve this goal, we are going to need all of you.  We’re going to need all of you -- your insight, your experience, your guidance.  And that’s why we are so excited about this gathering here today, because you all know this issue better than just about anyone.  So many of you have dedicated your lives to fighting this battle, and many of you have just -- are just thankful that there’s someone else shining the spotlight on what you have known for a long, long time.

This -- folks in this room, all of you working together, can do more than just about anyone to help us tackle this issue.  What we have done is started a national conversation.  We’ve started an important national conversation.  But we need your help to propel that conversation into a national response.

So today is very important.  The work that you do here is really meaningful, which is why you have so many heavy-hitters here, because we need your advice and your input.

And to make that happen, we’re going to have you break into smaller sessions, led by members of the task force that will focus on these four key components of “Let’s Move.”  And the information that we collect here today will be essential to construct the final report that's going to come from the task force -- a report that will serve as a very important roadmap, with goals, benchmarks, measurable outcomes, that will help us collectively tackle this challenge.

So, with that, all I have to say is let’s move.  (Laughter.)  Let’s get this going.  Thank you all so much.  Thank you for your energy, your expertise.  I thank our administration.  I am confident, because of the stories we hear from kids, that they’re ready for us to move.  They are more than ready.  Once again they’re waiting for us.  So let’s get this started.  And thank you so much and have a productive meeting.  Thanks so much.  (Applause.)

END
1:55 P.M. EDT

Remarks by the First Lady during Department of Defense Agency visit

Pentagon Courtyard, Washington, D.C.

11:11 P.M. EDT

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you all so much.  You’re so sweet!  (Applause.)  And there’s so many of you.  (Applause.)

First of all, let me start by thanking Secretary Gates, first of all, for your very kind introduction, but more importantly for your outstanding service to this country -- not just under this President, my husband, but under seven other Presidents.  (Applause.)  His service has spanned more than four decades.  So he could be standing up there, too.  (Laughter.)  So on behalf of all of us, thank you.  Thank you for your commitment to our country, thank you for your devotion to the men and women of this department. 

And I would be remiss if I didn’t thank the real hero in that family, Becky Gates.  (Laughter.)  Let’s give Becky a round of applause.  (Laughter.)  I was told that back in college you and the Secretary met on a blind date.  (Laughter.)  So maybe you didn’t really realize what you were getting into.  (Laughter.)  But for more than 40 years, Becky has shared her husband with our nation, and served in her own way, as well, and we honor her for her commitment to this country and to our men and women in service.

And though they couldn’t all be here today, I want to also say thank you to the Joint Chiefs, the Combatant Commanders, the Service Secretaries and the Senior Enlisted Advisors, and to their extraordinary wives.  I want to thank you all for keeping America safe and all our military families strong.  It’s been a pleasure getting to know all of them.  They are true heroes, and they’ve been a wonderful support to me and my husband during our beginning of this term. 

It is truly wonderful for me to be here.  It is a beautiful day.  (Applause.)  I have been waiting for this visit for a long time. 

The President has been to the Pentagon before, thank goodness -- (laughter) -- for discussions with the Secretary, Admiral Mullen, and the Joint Chiefs.  And when he first came, he told me that he had been in “The Tank.”  (Laughter.)  And I wasn’t quite sure whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.  (Laughter.) 

And last September, the President and I had the honor of joining some of you and your families here at the Pentagon memorial outside of the Pentagon for a rainy celebration -- not celebration, but to mark the anniversary of 9/11 and to pay tribute to the fallen colleagues who gave their lives here.

But today, this visit is my very time actually being anywhere inside the Pentagon -- although we’re not quite inside.  We’re very close.  (Laughter.)  But I’m going to get in there.  I know there’s a lot going on -- miles of corridors and all the “rings” I’m hearing about, and the six different zip codes.  (Laughter.)  So I can see why General Eisenhower got lost.  (Laughter.) 

So I’m thrilled that I made it in.  And Secretary Gates, I’m counting on you to make sure I get out safely.  (Laughter.)

Today is a simple chance for me to do a couple of things.  First, I want to say thank you.  It’s one of the things that I’ve done as First Lady that's one of the favorite things that I do, and it’s coming to the different departments to really express my personal appreciation as well as the appreciation of me and my family for all that you do for this country.

The second reason I’m here -- as the Vice President’s wife, Jill Biden, and I have been doing all across this country, this visit is another chance to shine a spotlight on the service and sacrifices of the finest military in the world and your amazing families.  (Applause.)

As Secretary Gates mentioned, the visits that I’ve done to bases all across this country have just been inspiring.  Meeting you, meeting your spouses, your children has been one of the greatest privileges that I’ve had as First Lady.

At Fort Bragg and Fort Hood, I stood in awe of the United States Army.  (Applause.)

At Norfolk, I was truly inspired by the United States Navy.  (Applause.)

At Eglin Air Force Base, I was blown away by our United States Air Force.  (Applause.)

And at the White House every day, I get to witness the amazing commitment of the United States Marine Corps.  (Applause.)

And we can never forget our partners at DHS -- the outstanding men and women of the United States Coast Guard.  (Applause.)  What?  (Laughter.)  Let’s hear it for the Coast Guard!  (Applause.)  All right. (Laughter.)   

Next door at Arlington and around the nation, I’ve seen the unbelievable love of spouses, wives and husbands, sons and daughters who’ve lost a loved one at war. 

And today, and every single day, we all honor America’s Gold Star families. 

I’ve been inspired, beyond measure, by our incredible wounded warriors and their families.  (Applause.)

The one thing that I wish is that the whole country could see what you all did here this morning -- the thousands of you lining the corridors and clapping and cheering and saluting their service, honoring these brave warriors and their families as they passed in this proud procession. 

This is a phenomenal tribute to them but to all of you because it’s a reflection of the spirit of this department.  Service before self.  Love of country.  Dedication to duty.  Taking care of each other.  It’s the spirit that so many of you have shown in Afghanistan and Iraq and all around the world, year after year, tour after tour.

Our country has never asked so much, for so long, of our all-volunteer force.  But the beauty is you never complain -- at least not out loud.  (Laughter.)  You always step up and you always come through.

And it’s the same spirit demonstrated by all the defense civilians, as well -- the force behind the force -- (applause) -- developing the policies; purchasing the equipment; organizing the logistics; ensuring your readiness; and taking care of your families, our wounded warriors and our military retirees.  You all may not always get the glory, but our troops cannot do their job without you. 

And as Secretary Gates pointed out, standing up here on stage with us are some of the Pentagon’s largest -- longest-serving civilian servants -- each of them with more than 40 years.  That’s an amazing thing.  Yes, indeed.  (Applause.)  So we thank you, a special thank you, for your dedication and your commitment.     

Now, I could say “thank you” all day long.  I love to do it.  But what I want you to know is that these words of thanks are backed up by deeds, as well.  They’re backed up by a President, by the Secretary -- by Secretary Gates, by Admiral Mullen, by the military commanders all the way down the chain of command, because they’re working hard every day to make sure that you and your families have what you need to get the job done, whether that means increasing the size of the military, investing in the equipment that saves lives on the battlefield, or working to give you more time home between deployments.

They’ve worked to improve your quality of life, including better pay, better benefits and better military housing.  And they’ve worked to improve care and treatment for our wounded warriors, especially those with post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury.  This administration understands that we have to take care of these American heroes who take such good care of all of us.

And Secretary Gates, especially I want to thank you and this department for everything that you’ve done to support our military spouses and children, because you’ve done a lot. 

The Family and Medical Leave Act has been extended to military families and to caregivers of our wounded warriors.  That’s never been done. 

There are more funds for child care now, for family counseling and support for spouses, and to help spouses pursue their careers, which is difficult to do when you are moving from base to base to base.

And since April -- this month is the Month of the Military Child, I want to salute all our military children -- (applause) -- all of your sons and daughters, because the truth is -- and we cannot forget -- these are the most mighty of our servants.   

They serve in a very special way:  trying to stay strong while mom or dad is a world away; recovering -- helping their parents recover from wounds; and in some unfortunate cases they’ve made the ultimate sacrifice and they’ve lost a parent to service.  And it can be so hard for these kids, probably beyond what we could even imagine.  So they need all the support that we can give them, all the love, both at school and at home.

So I want to thank Secretary Gates for your leadership on these issues.  It’s a leadership that is strengthening youth programs and renovating or replacing more than half of the DOD schools.  It’s a leadership that will help tens of thousands of military families and their children.   

But supporting all of you and your families truly takes more than government support.  It’s more than any of us can do.  It also takes an active and engaged citizen. 

So I want all you to know that as long as I’m First Lady, I’m going to keep urging all Americans to do their part, whether it’s something as simple as volunteering time or pro bono services to help our troops and their families, or making a home-cooked-meal for a busy spouse who’s struggling to keep it together, or whether it’s something as simple as just saying thank you when you see one of our troops in your community.

Every American can do something -- every American can do something -- in service to this country and in service around the world.  And you of all people know that, right?

AUDIENCE: Yes!

MRS. OBAMA:  You all know about service.  It’s the code that you live by every day.  It is the spirit that you showed after the terrible earthquake in Haiti:  the Coast Guards, who were the first on the scene, evacuating those in need and repairing the port so that aid could flow through; the soldiers who helped distribute so much food, water and medicine; the sailors who brought fresh drinking water and treated the injured and the sick; the airmen who reopened that airport and then operated those relief flights 24 hours a day; the Marines, some of who had just returned home from the Middle East, who said good-bye to their families and immediately shipped out to Haiti to help sustain one of the largest relief efforts in recent times.

And, of course, every step of the way, there were all the DOD civilians and folks from other agencies, all who worked alongside of you. 

And this international relief and recovery effort continues today.  There is still so much work to do in Haiti.  With the support from America’s military, we’re going to be able to do so much more.  But the need continues to be great.
 
Every American is grateful for the service that you’ve shown to that country.  We’re humbled by it.  We’re inspired by it.  But nothing compares to the appreciation of the Haitian people, which they have expressed in so many ways.  The cheering crowds when you arrived.  The “thumbs up” they gave you as you passed.  The grateful mother who named her newborn for the Navy ship he was born in.  The man who said simply, “Without you, I would be dead.  Thank you, America.”  Now, I couldn’t say it any better myself. 

On behalf of the President, on behalf of the American people, thank you for the service that you display every single day, around the world, often in harm’s way.  Thank you all, military and civilian, and to your families.   You make us so very proud.

So I’m going to come down and say hello.  (Applause.)

END
11:25 P.M. EDT 

Remarks by President Obama and President Medvedev of Russia at New START Treaty Signing Ceremony and Press Conference

Prague Castle
Prague, Czech Republic

12:37 P.M. CEST

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Good afternoon, everyone.  I am honored to be back here in the Czech Republic with President Medvedev and our Czech hosts to mark this historic completion of the New START treaty. 
 
Let me begin by saying how happy I am to be back in the beautiful city of Prague.  The Czech Republic, of course, is a close friend and ally of the United States, and I have great admiration and affection for the Czech people.  Their bonds with the American people are deep and enduring, and Czechs have made great contributions to the United States over many decades -- including in my hometown of Chicago.  I want to thank the President and all those involved in helping to host this extraordinary event.
 
I want to thank my friend and partner, Dmitry Medvedev.  Without his personal efforts and strong leadership, we would not be here today.  We’ve met and spoken by phone many times throughout the negotiations of this treaty, and as a consequence we’ve developed a very effective working relationship built on candor, cooperation, and mutual respect. 
 
One year ago this week, I came here to Prague and gave a speech outlining America’s comprehensive commitment to stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and seeking the ultimate goal of a world without them.  I said then -- and I will repeat now -- that this is a long-term goal, one that may not even be achieved in my lifetime.  But I believed then -- as I do now -- that the pursuit of that goal will move us further beyond the Cold War, strengthen the global non-proliferation regime, and make the United States, and the world, safer and more secure.  One of the steps that I called for last year was the realization of this treaty, so it’s very gratifying to be back in Prague today.
 
I also came to office committed to “resetting” relations between the United States and Russia, and I know that President Medvedev shared that commitment.  As he said at our first meeting in London, our relationship had started to drift, making it difficult to cooperate on issues of common interest to our people.  And when the United States and Russia are not able to work together on big issues, it’s not good for either of our nations, nor is it good for the world.
 
Together, we’ve stopped that drift, and proven the benefits of cooperation.  Today is an important milestone for nuclear security and non-proliferation, and for U.S.-Russia relations.  It fulfills our common objective to negotiate a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.  It includes significant reductions in the nuclear weapons that we will deploy.  It cuts our delivery vehicles by roughly half.  It includes a comprehensive verification regime, which allows us to further build trust.  It enables both sides the flexibility to protect our security, as well as America’s unwavering commitment to the security of our European allies.  And I look forward to working with the United States Senate to achieve ratification for this important treaty later this year.
 
Finally, this day demonstrates the determination of the United States and Russia -- the two nations that hold over 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons -- to pursue responsible global leadership.  Together, we are keeping our commitments under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which must be the foundation for global non-proliferation.
 
While the New START treaty is an important first step forward, it is just one step on a longer journey.  As I said last year in Prague, this treaty will set the stage for further cuts.  And going forward, we hope to pursue discussions with Russia on reducing both our strategic and tactical weapons, including non-deployed weapons.
 
President Medvedev and I have also agreed to expand our discussions on missile defense.  This will include regular exchanges of information about our threat assessments, as well as the completion of a joint assessment of emerging ballistic missiles.  And as these assessments are completed, I look forward to launching a serious dialogue about Russian-American cooperation on missile defense.
 
But nuclear weapons are not simply an issue for the United States and Russia -- they threaten the common security of all nations.  A nuclear weapon in the hands of a terrorist is a danger to people everywhere -- from Moscow to New York; from the cities of Europe to South Asia.  So next week, 47 nations will come together in Washington to discuss concrete steps that can be taken to secure all vulnerable nuclear materials around the world in four years.
 
And the spread of nuclear weapons to more states is also an unacceptable risk to global security -- raising the specter of arms races from the Middle East to East Asia.  Earlier this week, the United States formally changed our policy to make it clear that those [non]-nuclear weapons states that are in compliance with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and their non-proliferation obligations will not be threatened by America’s nuclear arsenal.  This demonstrates, once more, America’s commitment to the NPT as a cornerstone of our security strategy.  Those nations that follow the rules will find greater security and opportunity.  Those nations that refuse to meet their obligations will be isolated, and denied the opportunity that comes with international recognition.
 
That includes accountability for those that break the rules -- otherwise the NPT is just words on a page.  That’s why the United States and Russia are part of a coalition of nations insisting that the Islamic Republic of Iran face consequences, because they have continually failed to meet their obligations.  We are working together at the United Nations Security Council to pass strong sanctions on Iran.  And we will not tolerate actions that flout the NPT, risk an arms race in a vital region, and threaten the credibility of the international community and our collective security.
 
While these issues are a top priority, they are only one part of the U.S.-Russia relationship.  Today, I again expressed my deepest condolences for the terrible loss of Russian life in recent terrorist attacks, and we will remain steadfast partners in combating violent extremism.  We also discussed the potential to expand our cooperation on behalf of economic growth, trade and investment, as well as technological innovation, and I look forward to discussing these issues further when President Medvedev visits the United States later this year, because there is much we can do on behalf of our security and prosperity if we continue to work together.
 
When one surveys the many challenges that we face around the world, it’s easy to grow complacent, or to abandon the notion that progress can be shared.  But I want to repeat what I said last year in Prague:  When nations and peoples allow themselves to be defined by their differences, the gulf between them widens.  When we fail to pursue peace, then it stays forever beyond our grasp.
 
This majestic city of Prague is in many ways a monument to human progress.  And this ceremony is a testament to the truth that old adversaries can forge new partnerships.  I could not help but be struck the other day by the words of Arkady Brish, who helped build the Soviet Union’s first atom bomb.  At the age of 92, having lived to see the horrors of a World War and the divisions of a Cold War, he said, “We hope humanity will reach the moment when there is no need for nuclear weapons, when there is peace and calm in the world.”
 
It’s easy to dismiss those voices.  But doing so risks repeating the horrors of the past, while ignoring the history of human progress.  The pursuit of peace and calm and cooperation among nations is the work of both leaders and peoples in the 21st century.  For we must be as persistent and passionate in our pursuit of progress as any who would stand in our way. 

Once again, President Medvedev, thank you for your extraordinary leadership.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT MEDVEDEV:  (As translated.)  A truly historic event took place:  A new Russia-U.S. treaty has been signed for the further reduction and limitation of strategic offensive arms.  This treaty has a 10-year duration.  It will supersede the START treaty, which has expired, as well as another existing treaty, Russia-U.S. treaty on the reduction of strategic offensive capabilities.

And first of all, I'd like to thank my colleague, President of the United States of America, for the successful cooperation in this very complex matter, and for the reasonable compromises that have been achieved, thanks to the work of our two teams -- we have already thanked them, but let me do it once again in the presence of the media and the public.  We thank them for their excellent work.

And I would also like to thank the leadership of the Czech Republic, Mr. President, for the invitation to hold this signing ceremony here in this beautiful city, in this beautiful springtime, thereby creating a good atmosphere for the future.  And I believe that this signature will open a new page for cooperation between our two countries -- among our countries -- and will create safer conditions for life here and throughout the world.

One word -- we aimed at the quality of the treaty.  And indeed, the negotiating process has not been simple, but again, our negotiation teams have been working in a highly professional, constructive way that has been lots of work and very often they worked 24 hours a day.  And that enabled us to do something that just a couple of months looked like mission impossible; within a short span of time we prepared a full-fledged treaty and signed it.

As a result, we obtained a document that in full measure maintains the balance of interest of Russia and the United States of America.  What matters most is that this is a win-win situation.  No one stands to lose from this agreement.  I believe that this is a typical feature of our cooperation -- both parties have won.  And taking into account this victory of ours, the entire world community has won. 

This agreement enhances strategic stability and, at the same time, enables us to rise to a higher level for cooperation between Russia and the United States.  And although the contents of the treaty are already known,  let me point out once again what we have achieved, because this is very important thing:  1,550 developed weapons, which is about one-third below the current level; 700 deployed ICBMs -- intercontinental ballistic missile -- and anti-ballistic missiles and heavy bombers, and this represents more than twofold reduction below the current levels; and 800 deployed and non-deployed launchers for such missiles -- deployed and non-deployed heavy bombers, which again represents a twofold reduction below the level that existed prior to the signature on this treaty.

And at the same time, each party can use its own discretion to defend the makeup and structure of its strategic offensive potential.

The treaty also includes provisions concerning data exchange.  We are quite experienced now in this matter with my colleague and we are great experts on this matter -- perhaps the greatest experts in the world.  And the treaty also includes provisions concerning conversion and elimination, inspection provisions and verification provisions as well as confidence-building measures.

The verification mechanism has been significantly simplified and much less costly, as compared with the previous START treaty.  At the same time, it ensures the proper verification, irreversibility and transparency of the entire process of reducing strategic offensive arms.

We believe -- and this is our hope and position -- we believe that the treaty can be viable and can operate only provided there is no qualitative or quantitative (inaudible) in place in the capabilities, something that could, in the final analysis, jeopardize the strategic offensive weapons on the Russian side.  This is the gist of the statement made by the Russian Federation in connection with the signature on this treaty. 

The main task of the full signature period we regard as achieving the ratification of the treaty, as mentioned by my colleague, Mr. President of the United States, and it is also important to synchronize the ratification process.  Our American partners, as I understand, intend to proceed quickly to present this document to the Senate for ratification.  We also will be working with our Federal Assembly to maintain the necessary dynamics of the ratification process.

By and large, we are satisfied with what we've done.  The result we have obtained is good.  But today, of course, we have discussed not only the fact of signing this treaty; we have also discussed a whole range of important key issues of concern to all the countries.  Of course, we would not omit the Iranian nuclear problem.  Regrettably, Iran is not responding to the many constructive proposals that have been made and we cannot turn a blind eye to this.  Therefore I do not rule out the possibility of the Security Council of the United Nations will have to review this issue once again.

Our position is well known.  Let me briefly outline it now.  Of course, sanctions by themselves seldom obtain specific results, although it’s difficult to do without them in certain situations.  But in any case, those sanctions should be smart and aimed not only at non-proliferation but also to resolve other issues -- rather than to produce (inaudible) for the Iranian people.

(Audio is lost)

I am convinced that all that has been done so far is just the beginning of a long way, long way ahead.  I wouldn’t like to see the Russian Federation and the United States be narrowed down to just limiting strategic offensive arms.
To be sure, we shoulder specific responsibility, a special responsibility, in that respect, and we --

(Audio is lost)

     And let me once again thank President Barack Obama for the cooperation in this area.  Thank you. 

(Audio is lost)

     PRESIDENT OBAMA:  We recognize, however, that Russia has a significant interest in this issue, and what we’ve committed to doing is to engaging in a significant discussion not only bilaterally but also having discussions with our European allies and others about a framework in which we can potentially cooperate on issues of missile defense in a way that preserves U.S. national security interests, preserves Russia’s national security interests, and allows us to guard against a rogue missile from any source.

     So I’m actually optimistic that having completed this treaty, which signals our strong commitment to a reduction in overall nuclear weapons, and that I believe is going to strengthen the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty regime, that sends a signal around the world that the United States and Russia are prepared to once again take leadership in moving in the direction of reducing reliance on nuclear weapons and preventing the spread of nuclear weapons, as well as nuclear materials, that we will have built the kind of trust not only between Presidents but also between governments and between peoples that allows us to move forward in a constructive way.

     I’ve repeatedly said that we will not do anything that endangers or limits my ability as Commander-in-Chief to protect the American people.  And we think that missile defense can be an important component of that.  But we also want to make clear that the approach that we’ve taken in no way is intended to change the strategic balance between the United States and Russia.  And I’m actually confident that, moving forward, as we have these discussions, it will be part of a broader set of discussions about, for example, how we can take tactical nuclear weapons out of theater, the possibilities of us making more significant cuts not only in deployed but also non-deployed missiles.  There are a whole range of issues that I think that we can make significant progress on.  I'm confident that this is an important first step in that direction.

     PRESIDENT MEDVEDEV:  (In Russian, then translation begins) -- on that basis we will implement the newly signed treaty.  It matters to us what will happen to missile defense.  It is related to the configuration of our potential and our capacities, and we will watch how these processes develop.  And the preamble has a language that, to a certain extent, replicates a legal principle of the unchangeability of circumstances that were basis for the treaty.  But this is a flexible process, and we are interested in close cooperation over it with our American partners.

     We have appreciated the steps by the current U.S. administration in terms of the decisions in the area of anti-missile defense of the present administration, and this has led to progress.  It doesn’t mean that we’ll have no digressions in understanding, but it means that we’ll have will and wish to address these issues. 

We offered to the United States that we help them establish a global anti-missile defense system, and we should think about this, given the vulnerability of our world, the terrorist challenges and the possibility of using nuclear arms by terrorists existing in this world. 

And I am an optimist, as well as my American colleague, and I believe that we will be able to reach compromise on these issues.

     Q    (As translated.)  I have two questions.  To each of the Presidents, one.  The first is to Mr. Obama.  Moscow and Washington, not for the first time, agree on a reduction of strategic offensive arms, but as you have mentioned, Russia and the United States are not the only countries having nuclear weapons.  So how specifically can the documents achieved -- well, similar to today’s document on limitation on nuclear arms -- how soon we will see others sign this document?  And will you move along this track together with Russia? 

And to the President of the Russian Federation, you have mentioned the fact that sometimes there’s an impression that Moscow and Washington are unable to agree on anything else but a mutual reduction of arms.  So will we see any things that will counter such a statement?  And what will the agreement be?

     PRESIDENT OBAMA:  First of all, as I mentioned in my opening remarks, the United States and Russia account for 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons.  And given this legacy of the Cold War, it is critical for us to show significant leadership.  That, I think, is what we’ve begun to do with this follow-on START treaty.

     Other countries are going to have to be making a series of decisions about how they approach the issue of their nuclear weapons stockpiles.  And as I’ve repeatedly said, and I'm sure Dmitry feels the same way with respect to his country, we are going to preserve our nuclear deterrent so long as other countries have nuclear weapons, and we are going to make sure that that stockpile is safe and secure and effective.

     But I do believe that as we look out into the 21st century, that more and more countries will come to recognize that the most important factors in providing security and peace to their citizens will depend on their economic growth, will depend on the capacity of the international community to resolve conflicts; it will depend on having a strong conventional military that can protect our nations’ borders; and that nuclear weapons increasingly in an interdependent world will make less and less sense as the cornerstone of security policy.

     But that’s going to take some time, and I think each country is going to have to make its own determinations.  The key is for the United States and Russia to show leadership on this front because we are so far ahead of every nation with respect to possession of nuclear weapons.

     The primary concerns that we identified in a recent Nuclear Posture Review, essentially a declaratory statement of U.S. policy with respect to nuclear weapons, said that our biggest concerns right now are actually the issues of nuclear terrorism and nuclear proliferation -- more countries obtaining nuclear weapons; those weapons being less controllable, less secure; nuclear materials floating around the globe.  And that’s going to be a major topic of the discussion that we have in Washington on Monday. 

The United States and Russia have a history already, a decade-long history, of locking down loose nuclear materials.  I believe that our ability to move forward already on sanctions with respect to North Korea, the intense discussions that we’re having with respect to Iran, will increasingly send a signal to countries that are not abiding by their Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty obligations, that they will be isolated.  All those things will go toward sending a general message that we need to move in a new direction.  And I think leadership on that front is important.

     Last point I'll make, I will just anticipate or coach the question about other areas of cooperation.  Our respective foreign ministers -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Foreign Minister Lavrov -- have been heading a bilateral commission that has been working intensively on a whole range of issue.  And President Medvedev and myself identified a series of key areas on the economic front, in trade relations, the potential for joint cooperation on various industries, how we can work on innovation and sparking economic growth.  We've already worked together closely in the G20; I think we can build on that bilaterally.

     There are issues of counterterrorism that are absolutely critical to both of us, and I just want to repeat how horrified all of America was at the recent attacks in Moscow.  We recognize that that's a problem that can happen anywhere at any time, and it’s important for Russia and the United States to work closely on those issues.

     And then there are people-to-people contacts and figuring out how we can make sure that there’s more interaction and exchange between our two countries on a whole range of issues within civil society.

     So I'm very optimistic that we're going to continue to make progress on all of these fronts.  But I think we should take pride in this particular accomplishment because it speaks not only to the security of our two nations but also the security of the world as a whole.

     PRESIDENT MEDVEDEV:  It’s always good to answer second.  First of all, you know what your partner has said, and secondly, you can comment on what has been said by your interlocutor.  As a matter of fact, I will say a couple of words on the first part of the question that was meant for my colleague. 

     Yes, we have 90 percent of all the stockpiles which is the heritage of the Cold War legacy and we'll do all that we have agreed upon.  Keep in mind special mission of Russia and the U.S. on this issue, and we do care about what is going on with nuclear arms in other countries of the world, and we can't imagine a situation when the Russian Federation and the United States take efforts to disarm and the world would move towards a principled different direction away -- in charge of our peoples and the situation in the world. 

     So all the issues related to the implementation of the treaty and non-proliferation and the threat of nuclear terrorism should be analyzed by us in a complex way, an integrated way.  And I'd like this signing not to be regarded by other countries as their -- well, stepping aside from the issue.  On the contrary.   They should be involved to the full and take an active participation in it.  They should be aware what is going on.

     So we welcome the initiative that has been proposed by the President of the United States to convene a relevant conference in Washington, and I will take part in it, which is good platform to discuss non-proliferation issues.

     In this world we have a lot that brings us together, we and the United States as well.  And today we have had a very good talk that has started not with the discussion of the documents to be signed -- they were coordinated -- and not with discussing Iran, North Korea, Middle East, and other pressing issues of foreign affairs, but we started with economic issues.

     I have said that there is a gap in our economic cooperation.  I have looked at the figures, how the cumulative investments of the United States in Russia is quite small -- nearly $7 billion, and the figure has decreased a bit thanks to the world crisis.  In terms of Russian investment into the U.S., well, it’s nearly the same, which testifies to areas of interests.  It’s not with all countries that we have such volume of investment, but if we compare the figures with the figures of foreign investors’ presence in the American economy -- I mean other countries, including states that can be compared with Russia in terms of volume of economy, so it’s the difference of 20 or 30 times.  So we have a field to work upon.

To say nothing about the projects we talked about today -- modernization, high-tech, economy, establishment, and in the Russian Federation we are open for cooperation and would like to use American experience to employ -- these also include issues of energy, cooperation in transport, and I have suggested some time ago returning to the issue of creating a big cargo plane as such a unique experience -- only two countries have, the U.S. and Russia. The issues of nuclear cooperation are important.

So there can be a lot of economic projects.  It’s not the business of Presidents to deal with each of them, but some key issues are to be controlled by us, as the relations in business, relations between those who would like to develop active ties -- depend on business ties -- and humanitarian contacts, people-to-people contacts are important.  And it’s significant that we do our best so that our citizens respect each other, understand each other better, so that they are guided by the best practices of American-Russian culture, and not perceive each other through the lens of information that sometimes is provided by mass media.

So we should more attentively, more thoughtfully -- well, have a more thoughtful attitude towards each other.  And I count on this.

Q    Thank you, President Medvedev and President Obama.  For President Obama first, could you elaborate on how the yearlong negotiations over the New START treaty have advanced U.S. cooperation with Russia on Iran, and give us a sense of when you will pursue, move forward in the United Nations and next week with sanctions discussions, and what those sanctions might look like?

And for President Medvedev, could you address whether Russia could accept sanctions against Iran specifically dealing with its energy industry and energy sector?  Thank you.

     PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Discussions about sanctions on Iran have been moving forward over the last several weeks.  In fact, they’ve been moving forward over the last several months.  We’re going to start seeing some ramped-up negotiations taking place in New York in the coming weeks.  And my expectation is that we are going to be able to secure strong, tough sanctions on Iran this spring.

     Now, I think there are two ways in which these START negotiations have advanced or at least influenced Russia-U.S. discussions around Iran.  The first is obviously that President Medvedev and I have been able to build up a level of trust and our teams have been able to work together in such a way that we can be frank, we can be clear, and that helped to facilitate, then, our ability, for example, to work together jointly to present to Iran reasonable options that would allow it to clearly distance itself from nuclear weapons and pursue a path of peaceful nuclear energy.

     That wasn’t just an approach that was taken by the United States and Russia, but it was an approach taken by the P5-plus-1 as well as the International Atomic Energy Agency, the IAEA.

     So what we’ve seen from the start is that a host of countries, but -- led by countries like the United States and Russia, have said to Iran, we are willing to work through diplomatic channels to resolve this issue.  And unfortunately, Iran has consistently rebuffed our approach.  And I think that Russia has been a very strong partner in saying that it has no interest in bringing down Iranian society or the Iranian government, but it does have an interest, as we all do, in making sure that each country is following its international obligations.

     The second way in which I think the START treaty has influenced our discussions about Iran is it’s sent a strong signal that the United States and Iran -- or the United States and Russia are following our own obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and that our interest in Iran or North Korea or any other country following the NPT is not based on singling out any one country, but rather sends a strong signal that all of us have an obligation, each country has an obligation to follow the rules of the road internationally to ensure a more secure future for our children and our grandchildren.

     And so I think the fact that we are signing this treaty, the fact that we are willing, as the two leading nuclear powers, to continually work on reducing our own arsenals, I think should indicate the fact that we are willing to be bound by our obligations, and we’re not asking any other countries to do anything different, but simply to follow the rules of the road that have been set forth and have helped to maintain at least a lack of the use of nuclear weapons over the last several decades, despite, obviously, the Cold War.

     And the concern that I have in particular, a concern that I think is the most profound security threat to the United States, is that with further proliferation of nuclear weapons, with states obtaining nuclear weapons and potentially using them to blackmail other countries or potentially not securing them effectively or passing them on to terrorist organizations, that we could find ourselves in a world in which not only state actors but also potentially non-state actors are in possession of nuclear weapons, and even if they don’t use them, would then be in a position to terrorize the world community. 

That’s why this issue is so important, and that’s why we are going to be pushing very hard to make sure that both smart and strong sanctions end up being in place soon to send a signal to Iran and other countries that this is an issue that the international community takes seriously.

PRESIDENT MEDVEDEV:  Let’s ask ourselves a question:  What do we need sanctions for?  Do we need them to enjoy the very fact of reprising -- imposing reprisals against another state, or is the objective another one?  I am confident that all those present here will say that sanctions -- we need sanctions in order to prompt one or another individual or state to behave properly, behave within the framework of international law, while complying with the obligations assumed.

Therefore, when we are speaking about sanctions, I cannot disagree with what has yet been said.  And this has been the position of the Russian Federation from the very outset.  If we are to speak about sanctions, although they are not always successful, those sanctions should be smart sanctions that are capable of producing proper behavior on the part of relevant sides. 

And what sort of sanctions should we need?  Today we have had a very open-minded, frank, and straightforward manner discussed what can be done and what cannot be done.  And let me put it straightforward:  I have outlined our limits for such sanctions, our understanding of these sanctions, and I said that in making decisions like that, I, as friend of the Russian Federation, will proceed from two premises.  First, we need to prompt Iran to behave properly; and secondly, least but not least, aim to maintain the national interests of our countries.

So smart sanctions should be able to motivate certain parties to behave properly, and I'm confident that our teams that will be engaged in consultations will continue discussing this issue.

Q    (As translated.)  Now, everyone is concerned whether the treaty will be ratified by the parliaments.  You have mentioned that you will be working with the parliamentarians to achieve such certification.  Let me ask you what difficulty you see along this road, and what do you -- how do you assess the chances for success?  The question is addressed to both Presidents.

PRESIDENT MEDVEDEV:  Well, by all appearances, Barack believes that we might have more problems with ratification.  Perhaps that’s true, but let me say what I think about this question.

Of course, such agreements of major importance, international agreements, under our constitution and under our legislation, are subject to ratification by our parliaments.  And of course, for our part, we intend to proceed promptly and to do all the necessary procedures to ensure that our parliament, our State Duma, starts reviewing this treaty, discussing this treaty.

I will proceed from the following:  I believe that we have to ensure the synchronization of this ratification process so that neither party feels in one way or another compromised.  Earlier we had periods when one state ratified while another party said, sorry, the situation has changed; therefore we cannot do it.

So this is something we’re to avoid.  That’s why I say we have to proceed simultaneously in the conditions of an open-minded and straightforward discussion with subsequent certification by our parliaments.  That’s what we need.  And we will not be found amiss in that regard.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  The United States Senate has the obligation of reviewing any treaty and, ultimately, ratifying it.  Fortunately there is a strong history of bipartisanship when it comes to the evaluation of international treaties, particularly arms control treaties.

And so I have already engaged in consultation with the chairmen of the relevant committees in the United States Senate.  We are going to broaden that consultation now that this treaty has been signed.  My understanding is, is that both in Russia and the United States, it’s going to be posed on the Internet, appropriate to a 21st century treaty.  And so people not only within government but also the general public will be able to review, in an open and transparent fashion, what it is that we’ve agreed to.

I think what they will discover is that this is a well-crafted treaty that meets the interests of both countries; that meets the interests of the world in the United States and Russia reducing its nuclear arsenals and setting the stage for potentially further reductions in the future.

And so I'm actually quite confident that Democrats and Republicans in the United States Senate, having reviewed this, will see that the United States has preserved its core national security interests, that it is maintaining a safe and secure and effective nuclear deterrent, but that we are beginning to once again move forward, leaving the Cold War behind, to address new challenges in new ways.  And I think the START treaty represents an important first step in that direction, and I feel confident that we are going to be able to get it ratified.

All right?  Thank you very much, everybody.

PRESIDENT MEDVEDEV:  Thank you, sir.  Next time.  (Applause.)

                   END                1:29 P.M. CEST

 

Remarks by the First Lady at "Let's Move" Town Hall Event

State Dining Room

11:17 A.M. EDT

MS. SWAIN:  Good morning on this beautiful spring day, and welcome to the White House.  We are very pleased to be here in the beautiful and historic State Dining Room at the White House for a dialogue on childhood obesity and childhood health with the First Lady, Michelle Obama.

We’re very pleased for this program, which is live on C-SPAN this morning, to have students from all around the Washington, D.C., area and students watching all across the country.  Some of them will be calling in with questions on our discussion on childhood obesity.

We’ll be here for 45 minutes altogether, and we all hope to learn more about this topic and why it’s so important to young people’s health and how to stay healthy, and also why the First Lady is so passionate about it.

So boys and girls here in the White House, would you please join me in welcoming the First Lady Michelle Obama to our discussion this morning.  (Applause.) 

MRS. OBAMA:  Hello, everybody.  (Applause.)  Well, hello.

AUDIENCE:  Hello.

MS. SWAIN:  Well, we’re going to just plunge right into it, and as we get started here, I thought -- I’m going to ask you a question, and then we’re going to introduce the students in the room.  I had a very important question as we were getting ready this morning, Mrs. Obama, from a young man sitting in the back.  We keep using this big word “obesity” and he wasn’t sure what it meant.

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes, yes.  Well, it is a pretty big word, but I think it -- you know, just to make it simple, it’s when people’s weight gets higher than it should be.  And there are very scientific measurements for it.  Something called Body Mass Index is what a lot of doctors try to measure.  But as you grow, your weight and your height should remain fairly consistent, but people’s Body Mass Index really varies. 

So there’s no one right weight or height to be.  If you look in my whole family, we’ve got people who are 6’6” and people who are 4’11”.  And weight and height really depend on you as a person.  But what this is all about, really, is about making sure that you guys are healthy, that you’re eating the right foods, that you’re getting enough exercise.  This isn’t about how you look, this isn’t about appearances, because we all have to own and be proud of exactly who we are. 

I am 5’11”.  I was probably this height when I was very young, and my parents taught me to be proud of the way I look.  And this isn’t about how you look.  This is about how you guys feel.  It’s about health.

So I think that’s the big takeaway.  And you can talk to the doctors and the experts and the scientists, if you want to get a more definitive answer to what obesity technically is, but it’s really about our health.  It’s about your health.

Does that help?  Yes, yes?  All right, good.  It’s a good way to start.

MS. SWAIN:  The way that this event all came together is that students around the country have participated in an annual documentary contest that our network C-SPAN holds, called “Student Cam”, and this year we had 1,000 documentarians --

MRS. OBAMA:  That’s great.

MS. SWAIN:  -- from all around the country.  But interestingly, health was the number one issue among young people.  We had 128 different entries on aspects of health, so it’s much on their minds.  The economy, number two.  (Laughter.)  So not surprised there.

But today we’re going to meet one of the very special documentarians, Matthew Shimura, who is here as the first prize middle school winner; he’s been thinking about childhood obesity for a while.  Matt is in the front row and will meet you in just a minute.  Matt, welcome and congratulations for your winning documentary.

We also have young people who entered the contest who are watching from all the country -- also did, on the topic of childhood obesity, so they are thinking about this and have questions for you.  But let me introduce you to the young people who are here at the White House with us today.  And I’m going to ask you to stand up with your group when I call the name of your schools, so your parents can see that you’re here.

First of all, where’s the Hamstead Hill Academy in Baltimore?  Welcome.

MRS. OBAMA:  Welcome, you guys.

MS. SWAIN:  Stuart Hobson Middle School in Washington, D.C. -- sixth through eighth grade.  Hello, Stuart Hobston, looking good.

Next is Alexandria, Virginia -- Lyles Crouch Elementary School.  Hello, Lyles Crouch.

Now, we’ve got a group of Girl Scouts from the national capital region who have been involved in health and wellness issues.  Welcome, ladies.

MRS. OBAMA:  Good to see you all.

MS. SWAIN:  How about the Alliance for a Healthier Generation?  Where are those students?  Good morning and welcome. 

And then we have a number of student journalists who are covering this event.  Where are our student journalists?

MRS. OBAMA:  Oh, good, it’s the journalists.

MS. SWAIN:  They’re right near the professional journalists in the back, too, so --

MRS. OBAMA:  All right, watch them.  Watch them behind you. (Laughter.) 

MS. SWAIN:  Then is there any person here who hasn’t had a chance to stand that I didn’t introduce your group?  If not, please stand up now.

MRS. OBAMA:  And make sure you stand up, because your parents are watching.

MS. SWAIN:  Okay, it looks like we’ve got everybody.

MRS. OBAMA:  All right, great.

MS. SWAIN:  Well, if you could begin by telling us -- in the past every First Lady has had a special issue.  Mrs. Reagan was worried about drug use by young people.  Mrs. Bush was involved with literacy and reading.  How did you come to choose this issue, and why?

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes, I’ve said this so many times before.  I came to this issue as a mom way before we were anywhere near coming to the White House.  I mean, you guys know I have these two beautiful little girls, Malia and Sasha -- they’re not so little now -- but I was like a lot of your parents.  I worked a job, my husband worked a job, we were very busy, you’re trying to make sure that you’re doing the right thing as a mom and keeping your job together, and our health habits got way out of kilter because we were eating out too much.  I didn’t have time to cook.  I had to buy a lot of quick packaged things, so my kids were drinking a lot of sugary drinks, and you were rushing to make sure that the lunch was good and something that they’d eat.  We were probably eating too many things out of a box.

So we were doing probably what most of your parents do, because you’re just trying to get through the day, and everybody has got too many activities, and you’re shuttling to work, and you’re eating on the run, and you’re missing dinner together.  We were living that life. 

And it seemed fine, I thought I was in control until one of my kids’ pediatrician kind of tapped me on the shoulder, because he was regularly measuring that BMI, that Body Mass Index, that I talked to you about.  And we were lucky that we had a pediatrician that really checked this pretty accurately, because we lived on the South Side of Chicago, predominantly African American community, and weight issues and obesity issues are pretty significant there, so he was tracking that.  And he told me, you know, you may want to watch it.  And I didn’t think we had a problem because I look at my kids and I see perfection, just like your parents see.  They’re perfect, they’re beautiful.  And it wasn’t that they weren’t, but it was just that things were just tipping over to the point that we needed to make some changes.

So we made some pretty simple changes in our household.  We made sure we got more fruits and vegetables and dinner.  I cooked more.  We ate out a little bit less.  We limited desserts to weekends -- I know, not every day.  I took out sugary drinks so my kids were drinking more water.  We made sure they were exercising; at least moving around everyday, so no TV during the weeks -- week.

So those little changes made a pretty significant difference.  And my view is that if I could make those kind of changes and it could help my family in such a significant way, I wanted to make sure that we were doing that with the rest of the country, because my view is that if I’m having this problem in my household and I don't know it and it was unclear to me, then what’s going on with everybody else, people who don’t have information or don’t have pediatricians who are working with them? 

So when we planted the garden, the White House Kitchen Garden a year ago, we did it to start a conversation with young people about eating healthy.  Maybe they would get more engaged in fruits and vegetables if they were involved in growing them. 

And what we found with working with the kids that helped me with the garden was that if kids planted it and were involved in it and understood it, they’d eat it and they’d be excited about it.  And they could help not only change their own health habits, but they’d go back home and start teaching their parents, because once I started talking to my kids about what they needed to eat, trust me, they were monitoring me way more than I was monitoring them.    

They cleaned out the cabinets.  They looked at labels a bit more.  They made decisions about the kind of snacks they would eat.  They started making pretty healthy choices for themselves, and a lot of times, when I wanted to cheat, they’d pull me back.

So my hope is that young people around the country will take that kind of interest in their own health.  And then to see the statistics, seeing that one in three kids in this country is overweight or obese, and that we’re on track for the first time ever for our kids to live shorter lives than we do.  That in and of itself was terrifying enough for me.  I wouldn’t want that fate for my girls, and I don't want it for any of you or any other kids in this country.

So we started “Let’s Move” and hopefully it will catch on, and you guys are going to be the key ambassadors to really make this happen, because this is really about you and it’s about the kids that are going to follow you.

So I'll stop there.  I can go on and on and on.  (Laughter.) 

MS. SWAIN:  How can they be ambassadors?

MRS. OBAMA:  You know, I think first you can take the lead in your own homes.  This is what I tell my kids, my girls.  It’s not about never having the stuff you want, right?  I would love it if I could live healthy on pie and French fries.  I’d do it.  I’d eat it.  But the fact of the matter is, is that you can’t.  We are made as humans to need a balanced diet with enough fiber and enough vegetables and fruits.  And we have to be educated about what that diet should look like, and then we have to start making choices to not have candy every day, even if you can; to not ask for those desserts all the time, even if you can; to think about learning how to cook for yourselves, how to bake a chicken and make a little pasta; how to think about putting more water in your diet. 

Those are decisions at your age.  You’re the age of my girls.  You guys can make those decisions, and you can help your parents, because they’re trying -- they’re just trying to get you to eat.  That's all we want to do.  We want you to eat something.

And if you complain and you don’t want to try new things, if you’re hesitant, if you are going to get that -- you know, buy those chips instead of some pretzels, if you’re not going to make good decisions, it’s really not a whole lot that parents can do, because you’re not with us all the time, you’re at school, you’re with your friends.

So my whole goal in my kids -- for my kids is to try to get them to think about the choices they’re going to make in their own lives.  And I tell them it’s not about who they are today, it’s about who they want to be when they’re 20 and 25.  I have them thinking about what kind of moms are you going to be, you know?  If you don’t know how to feed yourself, then how are you going to feed your own kids?

So it’s really about you guys taking responsibility of your own future in so many ways and helping your parents and your families make those kind of decisions.  I think that that's the first thing that you can do, because that's your power.  You don't have to live in a certain neighborhood.  You don’t have to know anything more to make better decisions for yourself and be willing to make some of those decisions on your own.  You don't need a teacher or a parent to do it.  You guys have the power to start doing it.  And once you do it, your parents will follow.  That, I know.

MS. SWAIN:  Well, let’s introduce Matt Shimura officially.  Matt is sitting in the front row and he came all the way to the White House from Honolulu.  We’re very proud of his accomplishment.  We had 1,000 entries in this StudentCam documentary, and Matt Shimura’s documentary on childhood obesity took first place in middle school.  Matt, congratulations.  (Applause.)

Now, Mrs. Obama announced her big project on childhood obesity in early February.  By then you had finished your documentary, so you’ve been thinking about this for a while.  What got you interested?

MR. SHIMURA:  What got me interested was when I looked at our state’s furlough Fridays.  It’s when we don’t have -- the public schools don’t have school on Fridays, so they don’t have lunch and they don’t have P.E. on those days, so they’re lacking nutrition and physical exercise.  So I thought that could lead to childhood obesity, and that's how I chose that topic.

MS. SWAIN:  What did you learn while making your film?

MR. SHIMURA:  I learned, like, how to make a great documentary and express my ideas through filmmaking.

MS. SWAIN:  We’re going to show just a minute of it for our viewers and students watching around the country.  Here in the room -- you’ll just hear it, as I told you before -- but we’ll hear the audio of the documentary that you made, and then we’ll come back and have a question from you for Mrs. Obama.

(The documentary is shown.)

And that was Matt doing the voiceover in his documentary, as well.  Congratulations on your work.  You have a question for Mrs. Obama?

Q    Mrs. Obama, how do you think the government can improve nutrition and physical activity in schools?

MRS. OBAMA:  You know, I think that first of all, one thing I just want to say is that the solution to this challenge has to come from the bottom up.  The government can’t be in a position telling people to do -- what to do in their own homes, and that generally doesn’t work.  So it’s really going to require all of us working together -- the federal government, business leaders, food manufacturers, farmers, students, nurses -- everyone has to come together. 

But specifically, when you think about the federal government, when it comes to school lunches, the Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act is one of the ways that the government supports school lunches.  And one of the things we’re trying to get done, because it’s time for it to be reauthorized, is to get more money put into implementing that act so that we change the kind of food you all get in your lunches so that there are more fruits and vegetables added; that there’s less processed food; that the quality of the food goes up, because a large percentage of kids in this country are getting half of their meals at school. 

So if we can do a better job in the schools of providing better options that are healthier, more nutritious, then we’re going to go a very long way.

But this act also works to encourage more schools to become U.S. Healthier Schools.  And these are schools that are designated as already taking those steps to change the way they do things, providing healthier meals, incorporating nutrition education into the curriculum, making sure that they’re making time for physical activity and recess -- because in many schools around this country, with budget cuts, oftentimes that's the first thing to go. So we can’t tell kids, you know, “Get more exercise” and then take away recess and all physical activity out of the school.

So there are schools out there that are finding ways to put that kind of exercise and activity back into the curriculum.  The Healthier Schools Challenge recognizes that, and we’re going to work to double those numbers of schools that qualify.

So there are many, many ways that the federal government can work on -- through the Child Nutrition and Reauthorization Act. 

Also, through the FDA, the Food and Drug Administration, we can work with grocery manufacturers to make sure that the foods that are produced in the stores have labels on them that help families make decisions.  Because, you know when you walk into a grocery store, you walk down an aisle?  My kids know the brands.  Oh, that’s “X” brand!  They know the commercial.  But when a mom or dad picks up the cereal, how do you know whether this is something that's nutritious?  How many servings? 

And right now the labels are really confusing.  And if you’re busy and you’re trying to get in and out of the grocery store, you don’t have time to read labels or to make the kind of calculations.  So we’re trying to work with the FDA and food manufacturers to simplify those things so that it’s easy, so that you guys can walk in and look at foods and make decisions about what actually is going to be healthy and how much of it to eat.

So those are just some of the ways that the federal government can be involved.  But more importantly, this is an effort that's going to require everyone.  No one is off the hook on this one.

MS. SWAIN:  Our next question is going to come from a student in Jenks, Oklahoma, who’s watching us on television.  After that, we’ll take a question from the room.  Who has a question so we can get ready?  Okay, this young lady that's on the row, you’ll be our first question after our call from Alexander England, who’s watching us in Jenks, Oklahoma.  He goes to Jenks High School, and his winning documentary was “Childhood Obesity:  America’s Underlying Problem.”  He watches C-SPAN, which we appreciate, on COX cable in Oklahoma.  Alexander, what’s your question? 

Q    Good morning, Mrs. Obama.  It is an honor to talk with you this morning. 

MRS. OBAMA:  Good morning, Alexander.  Thanks for calling in.  What’s your question?

Q    For my C-SPAN film, I interviewed the vice president of a fast food chain.  He said that he rarely (inaudible) choices based on how healthy the food is, but instead on price.  With that in mind, do you think efforts should be focused on lowering the price of healthy food?  And if so, is there anything the government can do to encourage that?

MRS. OBAMA:  I think you’re absolutely right that the cost of healthy foods oftentimes becomes a barrier.  The access and affordability of foods is a huge issue.  And with “Let’s Move” that’s one of our major pillars, is eliminating what are known as food deserts.  There are millions of kids who live in areas all throughout the country that we call food deserts.  Those are places where you can’t -- there isn’t a grocery store, there isn’t a place to buy fresh produce, healthy food. 

There are a lot of people who live in communities where the only access to food comes in the form of a convenience store or a gas station.  You imagine trying to feed your family when the closest grocery store is a train ride or a cab ride or a car ride away.  And there are millions of Americans who find it very difficult to cook the kind of foods that they know that they should, because they don’t have access.

We’re looking at starting a healthy food financing initiative modeled after some of the efforts that have been done in cities across the country and states.  Pennsylvania has managed to eliminate food deserts through this financing initiative.  With this, we’re taking money from the Treasury Department and the Department of Agriculture, and trying to leverage resources, millions of dollars, to try to encourage more grocery stores to relocate in underserved communities. 

And that way, not only do you help to eliminate the food desert issue, but you can create jobs.  You can build economies around new grocery stores relocating to communities.  I saw this firsthand in Philadelphia in a community that hadn’t had a grocery store in it for a decade.  You imagine a decade.  So if you’re 10 years old, that means you’ve grown up in a community where your mom can’t go and buy a head of lettuce.  That is a frustration, and it’s a reality in so many families’ lives. 

But with their financing initiative in Pennsylvania, they were able to partner with a chain store that came in.  This grocery store is amazing.  It looks like any Whole Foods store that you’d see in any community -- fresh produce, fresh vegetables, everything you can imagine.

And the excitement that this community feels over having this resource that they haven’t seen had just turned this community upside down with excitement.  So our view is that if we can do that in Philadelphia, if they can do it in Pennsylvania, there’s no reason we can’t do this, replicate this model in communities all across this country.

MS. SWAIN:  And we have our student questioner here in the State Dining Room.

Q    Good morning, Mrs. Obama.  How would you think schools can show students what they should eat and what they shouldn’t eat while they’re there?

MS. SWAIN:  And do you want to tell us your name?

Q    Kayla Greenspoon (ph).

MS. SWAIN:  Thank you for your question.

MRS. OBAMA:  Thanks so much.  It’s a good question.  Some -- many schools are already doing this.  I mean, one of the things I said in a speech that I did to some of the school lunch ladies, the association -- they were here in Washington -- is that we have to remember that learning doesn’t stop at lunch time.  The cafeteria is one of the most important classrooms in the school.  And, yes, during that time -- and not just that time alone, but by exposing kids to different types of foods, helping them get introduced, encouraging kids to try things that they haven’t tried -- they may try some things in the school lunch room that they can bring home to their parents.

But nutrition education is an important part of a curriculum.  And there are many schools in this country that are figuring out ways to incorporate those kind of activities into the regular curriculum.  I visited many schools in the Washington, D.C., area that have wonderful community gardens and are using those gardens to not just teach science, but to teach reading and math.  And along the way, if you’re using the garden, you’re also helping kids, again, become exposed to the different variety of fruits and vegetables that are out there.  And when kids see that in the classroom, they may be more inclined to try it at home. 

So this is why trying to increase the number of U.S. Healthier Schools is going to be really critical, because again, there are already schools who are figuring out ways to do this.  So how do we scale that up?  How do we take those best practices that are happening in schools already and make sure that they’re happening in all schools, for all kids around the country?

And it’s going to take some resources.  And it’s going to take the folks who provide the food for the schools -- there are companies out there that get contracts to provide the school lunches.  We need them to take on ownership, to make sure that the lunches that they are providing aren’t just cheap and easy, but that they’re low in fat, salt, and sugar.

And many of them have already agreed that they’re going to do a better job.  But we have to hold their feet to the fire, and that’s another way that you all can be involved.  Look at the lunches that you’re providing -- being provided.  Talk to your teachers about the content.  Ask questions.  Figure out whether they’re balanced or not, because the more you educate yourselves, you guys can set the tone in your own schools in so many ways.  Slowly, but surely, you can change the culture in your own environments.

MS. SWAIN:  Mrs. Obama talked about the fact that they’ve planted a garden here at the White House to help with healthier eating.  How many students in this room have a garden at home?

MRS. OBAMA:  That’s nice.

MS. SWAIN:  And how many of you who don’t?  And a garden doesn’t have to be land.  If you live in the city, you can grow it in pots, as well.  How many of you are going to talk to your parents about planting a garden this year?  I’ve got a few converts. 

Who in this room has a question?  All right, you’ll be next.  But we’re to take another call from around the country.  This is Sarah Gabriel.  She is in Cedar Falls, Iowa, which is a Mediacom system.  She’s an honorable mention winner in our contest.  And her video was “Improving School Lunch:  Too costly, or a way to bend the cost curve?”

Sarah, you’re on the line now for Mrs. Obama.  What’s your question?

Q    Hi.  My question is also about improving the choice quality in schools.  And I go to a public school where they do something to try to implement higher nutritional standards.  But because my school still sells à la carte snack items to generate revenue, many students still just buy unhealthy snack items.  So I was wondering if you have any ideas about how schools might address this issue?

MRS. OBAMA:  Sarah, thanks for the question.  You make a great point about the vending machines and about the la carte lines.  These standards have to apply across the board.  And we have to make sure that kids have healthy options. 

I am a proponent of vending machines, because, kids, when you all are hungry, you’re going to look to a vending machine for a snack.  The question is just what do we have in those vending machines and how do we think about the content of the food in those machines. 

There’s nothing wrong with a vending machine per se.  But you don’t have to always have a sugary drink in a vending machine.  You can have a healthy sports drink.  You can have water.  You can have trail mix.  You can have pretzels, nuts, crackers, cheese.  There’s so many things that kids would eat -- they just gravitate to what’s there.

So I think that that’s part of what we need to do, as we work through these nutrition guidelines, that we can’t just look at the food on the cafeteria line, but we have to look at all the food that’s available to our children.  Again, that’s why this isn’t a problem that can be solved by the federal government -- the school community, the local community, has to want to make these changes.  And they have to make decisions about what’s going to go in those vending machines instead of what’s already there; how do you work with your local vendors.

We can work on high and try to set the tone, but really what happens at your schools and in your communities is really more up to you, your mayors, your city council people, than anything that can happen out of the White House.  And it really should, because folks know their communities better than we’ll ever know. 

But the fact of the matter is, as this question points out, is that we have to make sure that all of the options are good ones and not just some of them, because you guys are pretty sneaky, you’ll find a way to get to that bag of chips.  (Laughter.)    

MS. SWAIN:  How many of you in fact, when you’re looking for snacks, at least feel that you have an option in your vending machines at school to have a healthy choice if you want one?  Would you raise your hand if you have options for it?  It looks like we have a little work to do in some of the schools.

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes.  No, we do.  We do.

MS. SWAIN:  What’s your question?  And tell us your name too.

Q    Well, my name is Terrick Mack (ph).  I’m an eighth grader at Stillhouse (ph) Middle School.  And my question is about false labelings on nutrition labels.  And I wanted to ask what regulations could be put in place so that we can eliminate -- that we know that we can ensure that false labels won’t be put on nutritious facts.

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, as I mentioned earlier, the FDA is going to be working with the grocery store manufacturers this summer to work on the whole issue of labeling.  And our hope is that because the grocery store manufacturers have -- they want to be helpful in this effort, that this is one of the ways, one of the easy ways that they can be helpful, is figuring out how do you make, as I said earlier, simple, clear, accurate labels that give the facts in a way that the average consumer, the average purchaser, can figure it out and trust in the information. 

But the FDA, the Food and Drug Administration, is going to be setting up new guidelines for labels.  We want to do it with the help of the grocery store folks, because it’s their products, and we’re hopeful that they’re going to join in.  But you’re absolutely right, you can’t tell families to make smart decisions if they’re confused about what to buy. 

We’ve also talked to them about how they market to kids, right?  I mean, the majority -- I don’t want to quote percentages, but there are a lot of commercials that come on kid TV programs.  My kids are watching it, with the sugary food and the tasty this and the -- that’s what you guys are seeing a lot of. 

And one of the things we’re asking them is that as you -- as those grocery store manufacturers think about the products they’re going to market to kids, what percentage of those products are really healthy and how much of it is sort of kind of healthy, but it’s the stuff that you guys will push your parents to buy.  And how do we change that?  How do we become more responsible in what is advertised to you guys, right, so that you’re not bombarded with messages that say this sugary stuff is really what you want, really, right, you don’t really want the apple. 

And it’s not enough just to change not marketing the not-so-good stuff.  They have to help us market the good stuff to you.  And they know how to sell stuff, right?  I mean, I’m sure all of you could raise your hand and name your favorite brand of anything, right?  You know the jingle and the tune.  You can recite the words by heart.  But if you’re hearing those same songs and messages about good foods, trust me you’ll be -- those ideas and thoughts will be ringing in your head just as much as the sugary foods are.  So we need to do a better job of getting you all the information that you need to make good choices.

MS. SWAIN:  Once again, let’s see a hand for a future question.  All right, this young man in the blue shirt, you’ll be next.  But first, we’re going to take a call.  And this is Kyle Street.  And Kyle is an honorable mention winner for his video called “Childhood Obesity.”  He is a student at Throop Elementary in Paoli, Indiana.  And Avenue Cable is where he watches C-SPAN.  Kyle, you are on and what’s your question?

Q    Well, first of all, I’d like to say thank you for this opportunity.  And in our small rural community, volunteers have just started a wellness program to promote a healthier lifestyle.  (Inaudible) physical activity at a young age (inaudible) offering organized sports, team (inaudible).  Mrs. Obama, as you mentioned, physical education programs are getting canceled or cut back because of the struggling economy.  What other ways can the community help motivate kids to stay active and exercise?

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, thanks for the question, Kyle, and it’s important.  I’ve spent a lot of time talking about food, the food side of this equation.  But as Kyle points out, the physical activity piece is just as important.  Because the truth is, is that when I was growing up as a kid, we didn’t worry about what we ate.  And we ate the cupcakes and this -- we didn’t eat it every day.

But the difference was that when I was growing up, kids -- every kid played outside for hours and hours, because, number one, it was safe and, number two, we only had like seven TV channels and not 700.  So there was a period at which kid TV was over, so you were bored and your parents were going to kick you out of the house.

MS. SWAIN:  And no computer, right?

MRS. OBAMA:  No computers.  Life has just changed.  And now in my household, my kids could watch SpongeBob 24 hours a day, the same shows over and over and over again.  I even know all the episodes.  (Laughter.)

So you guys just have -- you’ve got computers, you’ve got your iPod.  A lot of what you’re drawn to has nothing to do with movement.  And if you’re not signed up with an activity or you don’t have a ballet class in your neighborhood -- or maybe it’s too expensive, because all these after-school programs are just really, really expensive for parents and families -- if you’re not engaged in any of that, then a lot of times kids nowadays are just sitting in front of the TV or watching -- playing on the video games.  And guidelines basically say that kids should be getting, what is it, 60 minutes of exercise, physical activity every single day.  That’s really what you’re supposed to do, right?

And when I was growing up, 60 minutes of playing around outside was nothing, it was just play.  So things have gotten tougher for you all in so many ways.  So we have to do a better job -- and not just in schools, but outside of school -- to figure out how do we get you guys moving again. 

And, again, some of that is on you all.  Some of that are the choices that you make, because you’re at the age now where you can make a decision to sit in front of the TV, or get up and jump rope, or walk up and down the stairs, or do a pushup, or figure out something fun, or turn on the radio and dance.  I mean, exercise isn’t about sports.  It’s not always about throwing a ball.  It’s just about moving, right?  And those are some choices that you have to make.  But we have to do a better job in giving you guys options to play. 

And Kyle’s community, it sounds like what they’re doing is what we need to have happen in all communities across this country, where the adults -- the mayors and the city officials and the businesspeople and the community groups and the churches -- are figuring out how do we open up parks and spaces for you guys to play?  How do we organize leagues that aren’t going to cost an arm and a leg?  How do we open up gym facilities for longer periods of time?  Those solutions have to come from the bottom up, because it’s going to be different in every community.

But getting you guys moving, which is one of the reasons why we’ve called our campaign “Let’s Move” is because we really don’t have time to wait.  We can’t let you guys sit around for another generation and not make physical activity a regular part of your lives.  So we need to be modeling what’s going on in Indiana.  Is that where Kyle is from?

MS. SWAIN:  He is, yes.

MRS. OBAMA:  And it’s a small community.  They figured out a way to make it happen.  But there are also bigger cities like Somerville, Massachusetts, where they’re figuring out how to just restructure that whole city so that they’re focused on health and physical activity.  And we’ve got to be doing that in cities and towns all across this country.

MS. SWAIN:  What’s your question?  And what’s your name?

Q    My name is Francis Wells.  And my question is, what is the main cause of childhood obesity?

MRS. OBAMA:  You know, I don’t know that they know that there’s one single cause for it.  Sometimes, it’s genetics.  And a lot of times, it’s lifestyle.  As I said before, things have changed.  The way we live as Americans have changed.  We walk less, sometimes because it’s not safe to walk; sometimes it’s because the schools your parents need you to go to are further away than they used to be.  I know when I grew up, I went to the neighborhood school around the corner and everybody went to the school in their neighborhood.  So you could walk to school, right?

But if you’re being -- going to a magnet school or a charter school or a new school somewhere else where you don’t have the ability to walk, what are you -- you’re in your parent’s car, or you’re on a bus, or maybe the walk is shortened.  And then you get to school and there’s no physical education, there’s no P.E., there are no sports programs.  And there were always those when I was growing up.  You played outside before school.  You had recess.  You played out during lunch time.  And you played in the playground after school.  And now, kids are going straight home to sit in front of the TV, do their homework, usually watching TV, or on videogames. 

And parents are much busier, right?  Because of the economy, a lot of parents have to work.  You guys know.  Your parents would love to give you every single minute of their time but they’re trying to pay the bills.  And that may mean that both parents or one parent has got two jobs.  So parents are busy and it’s harder to get you guys where you have to go.

So things have changed in society, and slowly but surely I think that that’s affected how healthy kids are.  And we’re eating more processed foods, we go out more, fast food is no longer a treat, right?  It’s something that you do several times a week because it’s convenient.  So we’ve changed the way we live and it affects you all.  And we got to sort of dial that back.  We have to rethink those kinds of things to figure out how do we create healthy lifestyles in the world that we live in today.  How do we do that for you.

And again, you guys are going to be helpers in this because, you know, the question that I have for you is how do I get you to turn off the TV?  How do I get you, in this culture of all this TV and all these videogames, what do I do as a mom to get you to move?  I don’t know.  I’m working on with it my kids.  But you guys are going to have to help us figure out how to engage you in a way that’s going to make this fun and not work so that you want to do it and don’t feel like you’re being forced to do it, right?

So we’re going to need your help in figuring this out.

MS. SWAIN:  We have about nine minutes left in our conversation with Mrs. Obama about childhood obesity.  Who will be our next questioner?  Let me get someone -- you’re going to be next, right in front of the camera -- okay, so just a second.  And in between, we’re going to hear from Lauren Shatanof.  Lauren is in Weston, Florida, Advanced Cable, Falcon Cove Middle School and a documentarian with the film titled “America’s Biggest Challenge:  Obesity.”  Lauren.

Q    Hello.  It is a great honor for me to speak with you, our First Lady.  Mrs. Obama, my question is:  A country facing challenging economic times, with limited resources to address childhood obesity, what measures will you take to ensure that this problem is prioritized?

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, I think this initiative is one of the biggest ways that I think that I can help.  Having the platform of the White House is really helpful in getting attention to stuff, right?  A lot of times when I do something, a lot of cameras show up and people tend to watch and write about it.  Sometimes they write about more than what I’m wearing.  (Laughter.)  So I think it’s my job to help shine the light on things that are already working.  So that’s one of the reasons why I chose this as my initiative.

I also think that one of the ways that I think we can move this effort, one of the reasons why I think that we can be successful, is that it doesn’t require -- I don’t believe, and others may have struggled a bit more -- it doesn’t require whole-scale changes in your life.  The beauty about kids, you guys, is that you’re young, your metabolisms are really healthy, which essentially means that once you start moving and eating right you’re going to -- you guys change really quickly.  You’re growing and everything is working right.

So if we make some little changes, get you guys moving more, a little more movement, a little less TV, if we take out sugary drinks, if we can make school lunches better, if we get you guys educated and your families about what to eat -- these are all things we can control and it doesn’t take millions of dollars and a whole bunch of legislation to get it done.  We don’t have to count on people passing stuff, thank God, to move this problem along.  And if we all get pumped up and empowered, right, we can move this issue along. 

And that’s why I’m so excited about it and that’s why I’m counting on all of you.  Because my thing is that if we get you thinking differently now as middle schoolers and folks headed to college, you’re going to enter adulthood with a whole different baseline of understanding about nutrition.  So you’re not going to carry these problems into your adulthood and you’re going to help your kids learn a bit differently.

So you guys are the beginning of the solution, right?  Our goal with “Let’s Move” is to ensure that kids born today, right, grow up healthy.  And that means you’re going to be taking the lead. 

So if you’re thinking differently about how you eat, if you’re thinking about access and affordability to foods, if you’re thinking about growing your own foods, if you’re thinking consciously and making different choices and knowing that exercise isn’t a luxury, it’s like a necessity to keep up alive and you’ve got to find the thing that you’re going to do that gets you moving every day -- if you’re growing up like that, then you’re not going to have the bad habits that a lot of us grown people have a hard time getting rid of.

So we’re trying to teach you guys differently.  That doesn’t take -- that’s not rocket science.  That’s good information and a coordinated effort and I think that the country from what I can see is ready to respond.  People around the country -- I haven’t gotten a negative response from anybody -- not people, members of Congress, not people in the media, entertainers.  Everybody believes that this is an important issue and they think that they can help move it.  And they’re ready to help make you guys healthier.

So if all of us are online, right, then there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to significantly change this trend in your lifetime.

MS. SWAIN:  What’s your question?  Would you stand up and tell your name, too?

Q    My name is Robert.  Good morning.

MRS. OBAMA:  Good morning.

Q    How do you feel about childhood obesity and adult obesity -- do you think they’re the same problem?

MRS. OBAMA:  You know, I am not an expert on sort of the science of this issue.  What I do think is that it’s, as I said, it’s harder to break habits when you’re older.  The longer you do something, right -- eat a certain way, get adjusted to a certain kind of food, get used to a certain taste, get used to not exercising -- it’s hard to break that habit.  It’s hard for grownups to make changes.  It just is.

You guys are still open.  Your brains are still taking in new information.  Trust me, you can learn to love vegetables -- (laughter) -- even though it doesn’t feel that way.  Your taste buds change over time.  Right now if you get used to the taste of a really sugary food, your taste buds are going to adjust to that as being normal, right?  But if you start drinking more water and trying more vegetables, over time you’re taste buds will adjust to where that’s what you crave.  So you can adjust yourself at a young age to want healthy things.  But if all you’re eating is fast food and junk food, that’s just what you’re going to want.

So I just think it’s easier to help people change habits earlier.  That doesn’t mean that it’s not hard for kids to make different choices.  It’s just if it’s hard now, it’s going to really be hard when you get to be an adult.  So why get there, right?  Why not stop it now?  Why not get you guys in the habit of exercising and moving now so that you’re not struggling with these issues for the rest of your life?

MS. SWAIN:  Katie Romos (ph) is in Caro, Michigan, Charter Cable, and also a student documentarian.  Katie, what’s your question?

Q    Good morning, Mrs. Obama.  How do you think parents should address the issue of obesity with their young children?  Should they take a strong obvious approach or a more subtle approach that does not let the child know (inaudible) situation?

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes.  You know, I think it’s a real delicate balance because you want to make sure that kids feel good about themselves, right?  And I think that all parents know their kids better than anyone.  That’s one of those things where it’s -- that’s not -- you can't get involved in how somebody deals with their kids. 

But in the process, I think that we have to make sure that our kids still feel good about themselves no matter what their weight, no matter how they feel.  We need to make sure that our kids know that we love them no matter who they are, what they look like, what they’re eating.  That’s really important.

But what I found in my household is that making small changes and involving my kids in the changes without making it a problem, right -- without saying we’re now -- “Now you’re in trouble, now you’re no longer be able to do this or you’ll have to” -- it’s not a punishment.  I did it more as a, “Let’s figure out how we can do this.  Do we really need this many sugary snacks, and have we thought about what’s in our food?  Why don’t we think about this?”  And I tried to engage them in the process so that it didn’t feel like you’re being punished for something and that they felt more ownership over it.

So, I don't know, that might be viewed as a softer approach, but again, this isn’t about how our kids look -- this is about how our kids feel and it’s about helping our kids take ownership over their lives and what they eat and making sure they have the information that they need to make those choices.

MS. SWAIN:  Do you mind if we go over one minute for a student who’s been on the line for a long time?

MRS. OBAMA:  I don’t mind at all.

MS. SWAIN:  Okay.  This is Reshad Jaji (ph) who is in Cohoes, New York, and Boght Hills Elementary School, a Time Warner community.  Reshad, are you there?

Q    Yes.

MS. SWAIN:  Do you have a question for Mrs. Obama?

Q    Yes.

MS. SWAIN:  Go ahead and ask it please.

Q    Good morning, Mrs. Obama.

MRS. OBAMA:  How are you?

Q    Fine.  Good morning, Mrs. Obama.

MRS. OBAMA:  Good morning.  (Laughter.)

Q    (Inaudible.)

MRS. OBAMA:  I think it’s a great idea.  I think that the more information, the better.  That’s my bottom line on this issue.  There isn’t a thing as too much information.  The question is, what information and what format is right for what age and what community at what time.  And that’s, again, why I think that decisions about what’s taught in the schools and how should be something that principals and teachers and parents in those schools really think through and make sure it makes sense and works for the kids in their community.

MS. SWAIN:  Mrs. Obama told us how cameras follow her wherever she goes, which is why it’s easy to highlight an issue.  I brought along a photograph from the newspaper from last week when she and her two daughters went to New York City and all of the photographers followed as they went to a pizza parlor.  So I think the message here is it’s possible to eat pizza and still eat healthy?

MRS. OBAMA:  Absolutely.  Like I said, I don’t believe in any absolutes in this thing.  It’s really about balance, right?  Can you have junk food every day?  No.  You just can’t.  I wish the answer was yes.  We talk about this in my household all the time.  Why on Earth is there not -- why doesn’t healthy food taste like candy?  And that’s really the question.  And it’s one of those dilemmas of humankind.  I mean, the thing that is best for us isn’t always the thing that tastes the best, right? 

But that’s life, right?  I mean, that’s -- those are the beginnings of the lessons of life.  There’s a lot of stuff that you really need to do that you don't want to do, but you really need to do it.  And I know you’re looking because I’m sure your parents have told you that, right -- but they’re right.  And eating right is one of those things.

So in my household there is no -- there are no absolute nos.  We eat a lot of great, fun stuff.  We eat junk food, snack food -- but it’s a balance.  And desserts are on the weekend.  We set up some basic rules.  But sometimes you break that because if there’s a special occasion or a birthday party at school, there’s no way I’m going to tell my kids, “No, you can’t have that cake.“  It’s not going to work.  It would never work.

So balance and moderation is really to me the key not just to how we eat and exercise but how we live in this country.  And hopefully you guys develop those -- that sense of balance.  Know that you can’t have candy every day.  And if you’re doing it, you’re ruining your teeth, you’re making your parents mad, and you’re not going to be healthy.

MS. SWAIN:  Well, Matt Shimura, thank you for your documentary that brought all of us together today at the White House, and congratulations.

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you, Matt.

MS. SWAIN:  And Mrs. Obama, on behalf of our students here and also watching around the country, thank you for your hospitality and the discussion.

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you, guys.  Great questions.  (Applause.) 

END
12:04 P.M. EDT