Remarks by the President before Signing the HIRE Act

Rose Garden

11:20 A.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Good morning, everybody.  Please have a seat.

Well, on this beautiful morning, we are here to mark the passage of a welcome piece of legislation for our fellow Americans who are seeking work in this difficult economy.  But first, let me say a few words about the latest development in the debate over health insurance reform.  I don’t know if you guys have been hearing, but there’s been a big debate going on here. 

This morning, a new analysis from the Congressional Budget Office concludes that the reform we seek would bring $1.3 trillion in deficit reduction over the next two decades.  (Applause.)  That makes this legislation the most significant effort to reduce deficits since the Balanced Budget Act in the 1990s.  (Applause.)  And this is -- this is but one virtue of a reform that will bring new accountability to the insurance industry and greater economic security to all Americans.  So I urge every member of Congress to consider this as they prepare for their important vote this weekend. 

And I want to welcome all the members of Congress who are here, those who are on stage -- Madam Speaker, Majority Leader Reid -- as well as some of my Cabinet members who are here.

In a few moments, I’ll sign what’s called the HIRE Act -- a jobs bill that will encourage businesses to hire and help put Americans back to work.  And I’d like to say a few words about what this jobs bill will mean for workers, for businesses, and for America’s economic recovery.

There are a number of ways to look at an economic recovery.  Through the eyes of an economist, you look at the different stages of recovery.  You look at whether an economy has begun to grow; at whether businesses have begun to hire temporary workers or increase the hours of existing workers.  You look at whether businesses, small and large, have begun to hire full-time employees again.

That’s how economists measure a recovery -- and by those measures, we are beginning to move in the right direction.  But through the eyes of most Americans, recovery is about something more fundamental:  Do I have a decent job?  Can I provide for my family?  Do I feel a sense of financial security?

The great recession that we’ve just gone through took a terrible toll on the middle class and on our economy as a whole.  For every one of the over 8 million people who lost their jobs in recent years, there’s a story of struggle -- of a family that’s forced to choose between paying their electricity bill or the car insurance or the daughter’s college tuition; of weddings and vacations and retirements that have been postponed.

So here’s the good news:  A consensus is forming that, partly because of the necessary -- and often unpopular -- measures we took over the past year, our economy is now growing again and we may soon be adding jobs instead of losing them.  The jobs bill I’m signing today is intended to help accelerate that process.

I’m signing it mindful that, as I’ve said before, the solution to our economic problems will not come from government alone.  Government can’t create all the jobs we need or can it repair all the damage that’s been done by this recession.

But what we can do is promote a strong, dynamic private sector -- the true engine of job creation in our economy.  We can help to provide an impetus for America’s businesses to start hiring again.  We can nurture the conditions that allow companies to succeed and to grow.

And that’s exactly what this jobs bill will help us do.  Now, make no mistake:  While this jobs bill is absolutely necessary, it’s by no means enough.  There’s a lot more that we’re going to need to do to spur hiring in the private sector and bring about full economic recovery -- from helping creditworthy small businesses to get loans that they need to expand, to offering incentives to make homes and businesses more energy efficient, to investing in infrastructure so we can put Americans to work doing the work that America needs done.

Nevertheless, this jobs bill will make a difference in several important ways.  First, we will forgive payroll taxes for businesses that hire someone who’s been out of work at least two months.  That’s a tax benefit that will apply to unemployed workers hired between last month and the end of this year.  So this tax cut says to employers:  If you hire a worker who’s unemployed, you won’t have to pay payroll taxes on that worker for the rest of the year.  And businesses that move quickly to hire today will get a bigger tax credit than businesses that wait until later this year.

This tax cut will be particularly helpful to small business owners.  Many of them are on the fence right now about whether to bring in that extra worker or two, or whether they should hire anyone at all.  And this jobs bill should help make their decision that much easier.  And by the way, I’d like to note that part of what health insurance reform would do is to provide tax credits for over 4 million small businesses so they don’t have to choose between hiring workers and offering coverage.

The second thing this bill does is to encourage small businesses to grow and to hire by permitting them to write off investments they make in equipment this year.  These kinds of expenses typically take years to depreciate, but under this law, businesses will be able to invest up to $250,000, let’s say, in a piece of factory equipment, and write it off right away.  Put simply, we’ll give businesses an incentive to invest in their own future -- and to do it today.

Third, we’ll reform municipal bonds to encourage job creation by expanding investment in schools and clean energy projects.  Say a town wants to put people to work rebuilding a crumbling elementary school or putting up wind turbines.  With this law, we’ll make it easier for them to raise the money they need to do what they want to do by using a model that we've called Build America Bonds -- one of the most successful programs in the Recovery Act.  We’ll give Americans a better chance to invest in the future of their communities and of the country. 

And finally, this jobs bill will maintain crucial investments in our roads and our bridges as we head into the spring and summer months, when construction jobs are picking up.

I want to commend all the members of Congress, and their leadership is what made this bill possible.  Many of them are here today.  I’m also gratified that over a dozen Republicans agreed that the need for this jobs bill was urgent, and that they were willing to break out of the partisan morass to help us take this forward step for the American people.  I hope this is a prelude to further cooperation in the days and months to come, as we continue to work on digging our way out of the recession and rebuilding our economy in a way that works for all Americans and not just some Americans.

After all, the jobs bill I’m signing today -- and our broader efforts to achieve a recovery -- aren’t about politics.  They’re not about Democrat versus Republican.  This isn’t a game that we’re playing here.  They’re about the people in this country who are out of work and looking for a job; they’re about all the Americans -- of every race and region and age -- who’ve shared their stories with me over the last year.

The single mother who’s told me she’s filled out hundreds of job applications and been on dozens of interviews, but still hasn’t found a job.  The father whose son told me he started working when he was a teenager, and recently found himself out of a job for the very first time in his life.  The children who write to me -- they’re worried about their moms and their dads, worried about what the future holds for their families.

That’s who I’m thinking about every morning when I enter into the Oval Office.  That’s who I’m signing this bill for.  And that’s who I’m going to continue to fight for so long as I am President of the United States.

So with that, let me sign this bill and let’s get to work.  (Applause.)

(The bill is signed.)

END
11:27 A.M. EDT

Remarks by the First Lady at Newsweek Q&A Event

Newseum, Washington, D.C.

12:39 P.M. EDT

Q    Thank you so much.  Thank you, Ms. Weymouth, for your hospitality, and thank you all for coming.  This is our cover subject.  We tried to make the picture a little bigger.

MRS. OBAMA:  I know, right.  (Laughter.)

Q    But I will say Newsweek has been publishing for 77 years, and I believe this is the first time within six weeks or so we’ve had both a husband and a wife write the cover story.  So -- (laughter) -- I know you’ll --  

MRS. OBAMA:  So whose was better, though?  (Laughter.)  That's ultimately how spouses operate, right? (Laughter.)

Q    That’s a very good point, that’s a very good point.  So with all this “first” stuff and living in the White House, forget it.  It’s the Newsweek --

MRS. OBAMA:  This is the one.

Q    It’s the Newsweek cover.

MRS. OBAMA:  I agree.

Q    Why this issue?  Why childhood obesity, of all the things you could have picked?

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, first of all I think it’s absolutely relevant right now.  The statistics are clear, you know.  We’re seeing rates of childhood obesity go up like never before.  And I think the country is also at a point where we’re ready.  And I think that's one of the reasons why the “Let’s Move” initiative has been so well received by so many industries and parents and teachers, is because I think we know there’s a problem, and we’re going to have to come together to solve it.

Now, personally, the issue for me is a personal one.  I’ve spoken about this often, how in my busy lifestyle, before coming into the White House, I was living like most busy mothers -- a husband traveled a lot, I had a full-time job, I bought for convenience and cost.  And I saw some changes -- or my pediatrician saw some changes in my children’s diet that caused him to say, “Hold on.”  And I think I was like most mothers -- I thought I was doing absolutely everything that I was supposed to be doing.  And to me my kids looked fine.  They were perfectly -- hey, you know, they’re my kids, they’re gorgeous.

But I made some changes.  And they were very simple changes in our lifestyle, but it made significant differences -- made a significant difference in how the kids felt, how we felt as a family. 

And I started thinking, well, if I didn’t know these things -- and I’m educated, have resources, I have the support that I need -- what are other families doing?  How are other mothers, people who live in communities that don't have grocery stores -- how are they making these decisions?  How are we teaching kids how to eat?  What’s happened to our habits? 

So even before coming to the White House, this issue moved me in a way that made me think we need to explore this a little bit more.

And then we planted this beautiful garden, 1,100 square feet of pure joy.  And that gave us an opportunity in a very sort of non-confrontational way to begin exploring the questions of how do kids respond to nutritious food and vegetables if they’re part of the process of growing and getting involved.  That's one of the reasons why getting the kids in the D.C. area involved in the work was critical.  And their response really sent us the message that we might be ready to begin this conversation in a more comprehensive way.

So, you know, the time is right.  It’s also important in my husband’s administration, which is something that I try to do with the issues that I take on.  I mean, I say this a lot:  I am here to support the President of the United States, and health care is one of the most important issues that this country is facing.  We are spending $147 billion on obesity-related conditions that are preventable.  And if we can make ourselves healthier, that's going to go a long way to helping find some solutions to this problem.  And these issues intersect in a very important and compelling way.

Q    How did we get here?  What is the history of this?

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, you know, I don't think there’s any one path to how we got there.  I know I have my theories.  I think lifestyles have changed significantly.  I reminisce with people about what it was like for me growing up on the South Side of Chicago in a simple working-class community.  You went to the school around the corner from your house because all the schools were solid enough that you just went to the school in your neighborhood.  So you walked to school, number one.

And there was recess and gym.  I was talking to one of my staff members just about how lunchtime, it was an hour. And my mother was one of the mothers that didn’t work, so me and all my friends, we’d come back to our house, we’d watch soap operas, we’d eat lunch.  (Laughter.)  We’d complain about our teachers.

Q    Which ones?

MRS. OBAMA:  “All My Children,” I have to say.  (Laughter.)   That was a big one.

Q    We just made news, ma’am.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  But that was a lunchtime treat, and it was a way -- you know, I thought -- so we ate, we had time to eat our food, have a conversation with our parents, and then go back to school, catch that last minute of play.  So it was a lot of activity. 

We didn’t -- we had seven channels, not 107.  Internet, video games were not a part of the culture.  You had to go outside to play.  So I think kids were naturally more active than they are today.  And now kids are going to schools where they have to take a bus, a car ride.  Some neighborhoods are not safe.  And no matter what you say, in some neighborhoods you can’t tell parents, “Just let your kids go out and play,” because it isn’t safe.  Some kids don't even have friends in their own neighborhood because they live in different communities.

So things have changed, and we are a busier culture.  Parents -- two parents working in the household, so you’re coming home, you’re tired.  We all do it, right?  You know you shouldn’t go to that drive-thru, but you’re just tired, and you know they’ll eat the food without complaining.

We’re also a culture and a society right now that snacks a lot more.  Just some of the statistics I talked about in my speech yesterday was that the average snack amount when I was growing up was one snack a day, if you were lucky.  And now it’s averaging two to three.  They say the average school-age kid is getting six snacks a day.  So we’re taking 200 more calories than we were 40 years ago, 30 years ago just from snacks alone.

So I think some of that convenience, you know, makes it very easy.  You pick up a little bag of chips, you throw it in, the kids are hungry, they’re grabbing this, they’re grabbing that, and before you know it, they’ve snacked their way through the day.

So I think those are just some of the things.  But there are many, many, many -- physical education, the level of activity.  All of that is I think a part of it.

Q    What’s an analogous public health campaign that you think has been successful that could be a kind of model for this? 

MRS. OBAMA:  Oh, that’s a --

Q    Is it smoking?  Is it seat belts?

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, you know, I think seat belts is one of those.  And I actually was talking to Mike Huckabee about this, because he actually made the analogy that this is one of those issues where culturally folks have to be ready to make the shift, you know.  You cannot mandate, legislate seat belt wearing.  You could, but does it really work?  The same thing is true for how we eat and how we live.  You can’t tell people what to do in their own homes, and nor should you.  But there comes a point when we start seeing enough statistics, we sort of get aware of the problems in our own homes, and we start -- we get emotionally ready to make some of those changes.

So we’re at a point now where I think the society is ready for more information.  Parents are looking for the answers.  They know that something is off, and they just now want to figure out, well, what do I need to know?  What am I doing wrong?

Had a conversation with a girlfriend at dinner last night, and we were talking about, “Well, is apple juice okay?  And what about chocolate milk?”  I mean, and this is an educated woman who is confused about what beverage is actually going to be okay, outside of water, which we know is fine.  But parents, societies, schools, we’re now ready to figure that out so that we can make good choices. 

We all care about our kids -- that goes without saying, and that’s why this is not a “blame game” kind of issue.  People are just trying to figure out how to survive, how to make sure their kids are happy and healthy.  And sometimes we just don’t get the information that we need.  And seat belt laws are a similar -- one of those similar challenges, that once we were ready, we were ready to take in the information and make the changes.

Q    It has worked.  How much -- you’ve talked about the cultural shift -- how much of this is regulatory?  What is government’s role in these issues, which I suspect is both a federal and a state, even local question too?

MRS. OBAMA:  Right, right, right.  Well, as I said, there is no expert that will tell you that having government tell people what to do is going to make a difference in this issue.  So the role of government is not to mandate.  And I think the roles are different.  I think at the federal level, at this level, we can highlight and inform.  There are things that we can do at this level, with the FDA, for example, working with food manufacturers to have better front-of-package labeling, things like that.  We can finance and leverage money to try to get more groceries into underserved communities.  We can make sure that we pass legislation that gets us a strong Nutrition Authorization Act so that we get better food in our schools and that there are guidelines that the private sector and schools can follow.

But I think the real work happens on the ground.  It’s our governors, our mayors, our schools, our communities.  And that’s one of the reasons why I’ve been traveling so much, is that a lot of the answers are already out there, even in states like Mississippi who struggle more with this issue than most.  I did some visits with the governor and his wife, terrific folks.  They care about this issue; they know it’s a problem.  And they’re doing some great work to really ramp up physical education in the schools.  You’ve got teachers who are redesigning play spaces and they’re getting kids hula-hooping and jumping rope and they’re making teachers do more work and having them think about their diets.  They’ve created requirements where teachers have to eat lunch with the kids, and they’ve seen vegetable and fruit consumption go up because -- not just with the kids but with the teachers as well.  (Laughter.)

So you can go into many states and see some wonderful examples of things that work in those communities, because there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer.  What works in Mississippi may not work in Arizona, may not work in Connecticut.  So we really need to look to the governors and mayors who know their communities, who understand their issues, their challenges, and that we work from there, and that we highlight those things that work -- like in Pennsylvania.  They’ve done an amazing job to deal with the issue of food deserts that I’ve talked about; you know, the 23.5 million Americans that live in communities without access to a supermarket.  And there were neighborhoods like that when I was growing up. 

There’s one community in Philadelphia -- we went to visit a grocery store -- that community hadn’t had a grocery store in a decade.  So you think about -- you know, that’s a child’s life, right?  Ten years of a child’s life where their mother couldn’t walk down the street and buy some fruit and a head of broccoli. 

So they’ve structured a financing initiative that leverages government dollars with private sector dollars, and they’ve been able to incentivize getting grocery stores into underserved communities, not just in urban areas but in some of the more rural areas in the state.

So we need to -- we can highlight those successes and hopefully give other states an example of what they might try, what might work.

Q    On Tuesday, you spoke to the Grocery Manufacturers Association.  They sell not only in those supermarkets, those grocery stores, they sell vegetables and fruit; I hear that there’s also some sugary stuff around -- (laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  A few things, a few things.

Q    My five-year-old has briefed me on this.

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes, yes.  (Laughter.)

Q    And my question is, one logical extension, if the epidemic is as significant and widespread as it seems to be, what would you think about a warning label on Twinkies or Froot Loops that says --

MRS. OBAMA:  “Warning.”

Q    -- “This is known to cause obesity in the absence of other kinds of eating and exercise”?

MRS. OBAMA:  You know, that strikes me as extreme, because a Twinkie is not a cigarette, you know.  And what -- what parents need is just information about what’s in the Twinkie and how much of this can we eat.  It’s not that we can’t have a Twinkie.  And our kids would be pretty upset.  And I am not supporting that.  (Laughter.)  So all the kids out there -- right? 

Q    It’s called triangulation, ma’am.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  I’m all in favor of good snacks.  We grew up with snacks and chips.  We did.  But we have to exercise more, parents have to understand what’s in the Twinkie; again, how does it fit into the overall diet.  So we don’t need a warning, we need information.  And we need information that’s easy to understand.  That’s something that I said yesterday in the speech.  You read labels now and it’s like the small print and it’s all “oleosutomay” -- or I don’t -- the chemicals, you can’t even pronounce them, and the portion sizes compared to one, and you’ve got a small one and a big one.  And then, before you know it, you don’t know what to buy and how much to give to your kids and in what amounts.  That’s the kind of information that families need.

And I think that the Grocery Store Manufacturers who are -- they have been magnificent.  And I know that there are those who say, well, are they going to really make changes?  Look, the people who run those companies are parents and grandparents, too.  They care about their kids.  They’re trying to figure out how to meet the demand and how to give information.

And we know that they’re going to sit down -- you know, we know they’re going to sit down and help us figure this stuff out.  You know, what are the facts that parents need to know; how do we structure it in a way that they can understand; and how do they meet the demands that we are now going to make -- because it’s really up to us, as the parents and the consumers, to change the demand. 

They will make what we tell them we want to buy.  And if we want healthier foods for our kids, and that's what we’re purchasing, our power will shift their market.  We don't need much more than our own demands to change, and we need to work with our kids to also get them to change their eating habits as well.

So it’s going to require all of us to do their parts, and then we don't need the warning labels.  We just need common sense and good information.

Q    Twinkies are safe in the Obama administration.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  Yes, we are -- (laughter) -- yes, I think I'm -- I feel good going on record.  (Laughter.)

Q    Okay.  We don't have to pass a special rule.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  No.

Q    Where do you stand on a beverage tax for sugary beverages?

MRS. OBAMA:  You know, the “Let’s Move” initiative doesn’t -- we’re not -- doesn’t involve a tax.  But there are communities that believe that taxing sodas and other things works for them.  And again, because, you know, we believe that those ideas and those approaches need to come from the bottom up, there are going to be cities and states and towns who believe that that's what they need in their communities.  And, again, there is no one-size-fits-all answer.  And I think that's where mayors, governors, citizens, schools, you know, working in your own states and communities -- to figure out really what’s going to work and what’s going to move the bar on this issue.

Q    What’s your sense of posting calorie counts?  It happens in New York -- actually, where I live, and it’s very depressing, actually.  (Laughter.)  The mayor of New York has made it very hard to go to Dunkin’ Donuts.  (Laughter.)  But it works.  Is that something else that should be a weapon in the arsenal?

MRS. OBAMA:  I think the more information we can give to consumers, families, parents, the better.  There are examples outside of New York -- in Somerville, Massachusetts, the mayor there has been working with some of the local restaurant owners to get them to change their menus so that there are healthier options and customers have more information about what’s in stuff.  I think that's a good thing. 

But also in Somerville they’re going beyond just what we eat and they’re also thinking more creatively about how in every aspect of what they do to run that city, they’re thinking about the health and well-being of kids.  So that comes down to how many parks they have; and what their roads look like; and if they’re building a new street, making sure there’s a sidewalk and a place for kids to ride their bikes.  I mean, again, this isn't just about what we eat, this is about how we live.

In some of the towns in Mississippi they have to think creatively about where they don't have places to play -- you know, maybe you take an old field and turn it into a soccer field and let the city pay a dollar for it.  And you find ways, creative ways, to make sure there are spaces for families to live in a healthy way.

Those are the kind of ideas that we want to promote.  Those are the kind of things that are working.  We just need to do more of it and we need to do it faster.

Q    There’s also, both in rural areas and in urban areas, there’s an economic issue, which is -- you mentioned convenience, but often the fast food can be even less expensive sometimes than getting healthy food.

MRS. OBAMA:  Absolutely.

Q    Can you talk about that disparity and what we can do about it?

MRS. OBAMA:  That disparity is very real.  I mean -- no, I talked about it with the grocery manufacturers as well.  It’s not just making healthy food, but it’s making healthy food that's affordable.  And that's a challenge, as well, but we have to recognize that we need to move in that direction.  There are -- you know, we can't look families in the face and say, “You fix this problem,” but then you can't afford the food that they need to fix the problem; they don't have access to it.  We have to figure this out.

The school lunch program is a major -- is going to be a major player in the whole resource issue because many kids are getting the majority of their meals at school.  So that's one of those areas where we have some control over as a society because, you know, we’re going to feed these kids for two out of three or four of their meals, depending upon how many they have.  So we need to make sure that we pass legislation that makes sense, that sets clear basic nutritional guidelines, not just in the school lunch lines, but in the vending machines and a la carte lines; that we have the resources to help schools bring their standards up.

Things like -- in Mississippi, what Governor Barbour did with some of his stimulus money was to remove fryers and put in ovens.  I mean, it’s just something as simple -- the school nutritionist will tell you, we want to do better, but all we have is a fryer, which means when you have a fryer then you have to fry stuff.  (Laughter.)  So we need to make sure that the schools have the resources they need to make the changes to get healthier food into the schools.

But we also have to make sure that every single child that is eligible for free and reduced lunch actually gets it, that we reduce the paperwork to make sure that -- if you look at some of the paperwork that families get to sign up, and then they have to re-sign up and then they have to fill it out.  You know, you look at that, you're busy and, you know, you just brush it under the rug, you don't complete it.  We have to make those processes and procedures easier.  And I think we can go a long way to helping underserved families with the school lunch program.

Q    How does obesity affect classroom learning?

MRS. OBAMA:  I think, you know, this week it opened this up, right, to the audience.  I mean, we know -- in our own kids, in our own lives -- how kids respond when they have a good meal, they’ve eaten the right things.  We know what happens to kids when they are hyped up on sugar and they’re operating on too much sugar and not enough substance.  We see it in our own lives. 

So you just imagine if you send a kid to school with a sugary breakfast and a sugary drink, and they have to learn for a few hours and they stop maybe for 10 minutes for lunch -- maybe -- and they haven’t had a chance to run and run off that energy.  And then they start dropping because they’re coming down from all that sugar.  And they don't even know it.  They don't even know why they feel lethargic, why they get sleepy at about eleven o’clock during the day -- just like we all do when we don't eat right.  I mean, we all experience it.

So it definitely affects how kids feel throughout the day, which is something that we have to remember.  This issue is not about looks and appearance.  This is about how our kids feel and how they feel about themselves, because how you feel inside affects the way you approach the day; even the way you tackle the challenge.  If you feel like, you know, you're full and you've eaten some fruit and you've gotten some grains, that affects the way you think.

So this isn't an image issue.  This is truly an overall health issue.  And kids, in addition to needing to eat well, have to run.  They have to run around during the day.  They have to get the energy out, you know?  I mean, you've got kids.  You imagine trying to teach your child sitting still for hours --

Q    Oh, in our house (inaudible) the time.  (Laughter.)

MRS. OBAMA:  Right.  All right, okay, Jon.  (Laughter.)

Q    We read “Newsweek” aloud.  (Laughter.)  They love the Obama collection.

MRS. OBAMA:  Oh, good.  It’s very good.  (Laughter.)

Q    No, you’re right, absolutely.  But why isn't -- I mean, we’re lucky in that our kids -- where our kids go to school, they run around.  That's not true in a lot of places.  Physical education is often the first thing to go.  Recess has been cut back.  From a policy perspective, is that simply a financial issue?  Is it because the standards, classroom standards have been set at a point where they can't afford a single moment of classroom time?  What’s your analysis of the end of recess?

MRS. OBAMA:  I think that educators, administrators, parents would say it’s all of it.  Some of it feels like a resource issue.  And some of it is when you’re testing so much and you’re meeting requirements, you feel like the first thing that goes -- if your money is tied to a test score and not to recess, you know, and whether your kids can run around, then the choice is already made for you, some administrators feel.

But there are also examples where schools are figuring out how even in this current climate of testing and lack of resources, how to put that stuff back into the curriculum.  The Department of Agriculture has the U.S. Healthier School Challenge, which is an initiative that we’re promoting as part of the “Let’s Move” initiative.  We’re going to -- we want to double the number of schools in this country that qualify as U.S. Healthier Schools.  There are currently about 600 of them around the country.  Our goal under “Let’s Move” is to double that, because these are schools that are the models for what we’d like to see happening with nutrition and physical education, because without any additional resources, they figured out how to restructure their curriculum, how to use nutrition education as part of math and science; they found ways to mandate and reincorporate recess and gym back into their classrooms.

I mean, there are schools -- wonderful, public schools -- all over the country that are figuring how to restructure the day.  But what I’ve found when I’ve talked to principals, administrators who’ve made that choice, they have decided as a school community that exercise and nutrition isn’t an extra; that it is an essential part of what a good curriculum has to look like. 

So in one school that I visited in Virginia, they don’t allow teachers to take recess or gym away as a punishment because their feeling is that’s counter-productive.  So now you’ve got a problem, so you’ve taken away the one thing that may help the kid wind out of the problem.  So they’ve -- you know, they’ve said you can’t take that away, because that’s part of the curriculum.  That’s like telling the kid, well, you didn’t do well in spelling, so you’re not going to be able to do math today.

Q    In addition to the Twinkie thing, that might be a very good political move -- (laughter) -- pull them out of math. 

MRS. OBAMA:  Right, right.  (Laughter.)  But I am not -- now, I did not say that.  (Laughter.)

Q    No, ma’am, just me.  (Laughter.)  It was me. 

MRS. OBAMA:  That’s your idea. 

Q    Yes, ma’am. 

MRS. OBAMA:  But there are schools that are figuring out how to make this happen.  Our job is to give them the resources they need, hold them up, celebrate those successes and help other school districts figure out how do they do the same thing.  How have they managed in the current climate?  What’s the difference?  Why does one school manage to do it and another can’t?  Is it at the regional level?  Is it the superintendent support?  I mean, we could probably talk to educators in this room right now who are -- just they know the answer to this, and they’re ready to jump on it.

But there are schools that are doing it.  And we need to make sure that more are doing it.  This should be the standard of how our kids get an education in this country. 

Q    Last question, ma’am.  How will you measure success, as you look at the lifetime of the administration, of your own ongoing work, presumably?

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, the goal for “Let’s Move,” the whole goal of this initiative, is to end the problem of childhood obesity in a generation.  So this is a generational issue.  And our view is that we want kids born today to grow up at a healthy weight.  And it will take a generation to see how that’s going.

But one of the things that the administration is doing now -- the President signed an executive order creating the first ever Council on Childhood Obesity.  They are now reviewing every single program and policy, not just in the government but in the country, that focuses on education and nutrition.  And we need to figure out how to use the resources we have more smartly.

But we’re going to get that report in May.  We’re looking forward to that.  And part of that -- the interesting thing about that approach is that we’re saying we need real, measurable outcomes.  And the foundation that was set up as part of this initiative -- and we’ve got some wonderful foundations who have been researching and investing in this issue for decades -- RJW, Kellogg -- I don’t want to begin to name all of them, because I’ll miss some -- but they are going to be sort of the future arm of this, so that when I’m gone, when the President is gone and the next administration comes in, you’ve got an independent group that’s going to continue to look at these goals and help us figure out whether we’re reaching the goals, and keep our feet to the fire, because, again, this isn’t something that’s going to happen in this administration.

This is -- we are looking at this as a forever proposition, because fundamentally, as I said in my speech to the food manufacturers, we have to change the way we view food and health forever.  And we can start with kids, because they haven’t -- their habits haven’t been ingrained.  We can shift the way they think, even the way they taste food.  We can do that.  Us, you know, grownups -- (laughter) -- not so much.  We’re a little stuck in our ways.

But we can still guide our children.  I still think of my mother, who said -- you know, she had no problem doing things that she told me I couldn’t do.  (Laughter.)  So even though we, as parents, haven’t conquered it and maybe we don’t -- we’re not doing it, we can still help our kids get to a different place.  And it’s going to take time.  And it’s going to take patience.  And we’re going to need everyone involved.

But I think about where we started a year ago with the planting of this little garden.  And now, we have this wonderful initiative that has the food industry coming together; and bipartisan support all over the country; parents feeling excited and support it; kids -- (laughter) -- you know, they’re coming.  (Laughter.)  We’ve got the professional sports community standing by. 

This is an issue that can unite the country.  And it can unite us with the rest of the world, because the truth is there isn’t a single head of state or spouse of a head of state who I have met who has not been fascinated by our garden and our conversations around nutrition, because so many other countries are beginning to see some of the effects as they develop.  They’re seeing their rates go up.

So this is an issue for the world.  And we can truly be a leader, but we have to be patient.  And we also have to be clear that we need to work really hard and stretch.  So when we talk to the food industry, we say, you have to do more.  When we talk to ourselves as parents, we have to push ourselves.  We have to talk to Congress.  And we have to say, you have to push to ensure that we’re getting the kind of regulations and support so that our school meals are healthy.

We all have to stretch on this one.  And if we do, I think we can -- we will see a change in our kids that we can be proud of.

Q    Well, thank you so much for your work, for your piece this week --

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you.  Thank you for investing in this conversation.

Q    -- and for this remarkable presentation.  Thank you very much.  (Applause.)

END
1:02 P.M. EDT

Remarks by President Obama and the Taoiseach of Ireland Brian Cowen

Oval Office

11:26 A.M. EDT

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Good morning, everybody.  First of all, I just want to congratulate this sound person right here for having the green earmuffs.  (Laughter.)  Now, I haven’t seen that before.  Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everybody. 

Before I talk a little bit about the strong and enduring bond between the American and Irish people, I just want to thank Congress for passing this morning the HIRE Act.  It is the first of what I hope will be a series of jobs packages that help to continue to put people back to work all across America. 

This bill will provide tax cuts to small businesses that are willing to begin hiring right now, putting people back to work.  It’s also going to provide significant tax breaks to businesses for investing in their business, and so, hopefully, at a time when we're starting to see an upswing in the economic growth, that will help sustain it.  And the bill also will continue to improve our ability to finance infrastructure projects all across the country.

I also want to say to the Republicans who voted for this bill that I appreciate their willingness to work with Democrats in a bipartisan fashion to get America moving again.  And as I said, I hope that on a series of future steps that we take to help small businesses get financing, to help improve our infrastructure around the country, to put people back to work, that we're going to see more progress on that front.

I want to thank the Taoiseach for coming here today.  Last year we had the opportunity to get to know each other and had a wonderful time during St. Patrick’s Day.  Thirty-six million Americans claim Irish ancestry -– I'm sure more do on St. Patrick’s Day.  And it’s a testament I think to how close our two countries are that America has been shaped culturally, politically, economically by the incredible contributions of Irish Americans.  Those bonds endure.  And in our meeting we reaffirmed how important it is for us to continue a strong partnership across a whole host of issues.

I thanked the Taoiseach for the assistance that they’ve provided on critical international issues.  We use the facilities in Ireland for transit for our military troops to Afghanistan.  The Irish police are providing training in Afghanistan.  As the Taoiseach indicated, the Irish government punches above its weight on a whole host of critical issues.  We're going to be working together to enhance food security around the world.  Even in these difficult times it’s important for us to make sure that we're tackling big issues like world hunger.

I congratulated the Taoiseach and his government for the extraordinary work that they engaged in, working with Gordon Brown and the British government, as well as Secretary Hillary Clinton, in reaffirming the progress that's been made in Northern Ireland and to get a ratification of continued devolution.  It’s a sign of his leadership, and we want to be as supportive as possible in advancing the Northern Ireland peace process.

We also discussed the economy.  And on both sides of the Atlantic we are seeing stabilization of the economy, but obviously we want more than just stabilization.  There are a lot of people out there that are still hurting, still out of work.  And so we will continue to coordinate in international fora as well as bilaterally to see how we can spur investment and private sector growth on both sides of the Atlantic.

So I just wanted to say how grateful we are for the friendship and the partnership between the United States government and the Irish government.  We wish you and everybody who is here a happy St. Patrick’s Day, and are looking forward to the reception that we'll have in the White House later this evening.

TAOISEACH COWEN:  Thank you very much, Mr. President.  And we are -- I and my delegation -- delighted to be able to join you here at the White House this morning on this wonderful St. Patrick’s Day morning.  And I think the sun shining outside and the light coming in I think typifies the excellent relationship that Ireland enjoys with the United States not only now, but as you say, over many generations.  And that contribution to America by Ireland is a continuing one, one that we have to find and give modern expression to all the time.

And certainly the level of cooperation and common cause we enjoy together in terms of the issues of today in the economy and how we can ensure that our economies recover as quickly as possible is something that’s very important to both our countries.  And certainly in Ireland’s context the resurgent  U.S. economy will be a strong indicator of our return to prosperity.  And we very much commend the very decisive steps that you have taken in terms of the economic issues and the banking issues, which have been so successful.

I think we are seeking to replicate ourselves in our own context as a recapitalization of our banking system and making sure that we have a banking system fit for purpose that will assist recovery and grow jobs again in the future, and provide investment and credit, working credit for businesses that are hard pressed in the very difficult trading environment.

In that context I’ve been delighted to head a delegation here to the United States and having visited Chicago, the West Coast, Silicon Valley and now Washington, D.C. over the last couple of days; 70 small- and medium-sized enterprises have been over with us, doing trade with American companies.  I’m glad to say that the two-way relationship in terms of investment is continuing.  Over 34 billion euros have been invested by Irish companies in the United States, employing 85,000 people directly.
 
And that, if you like, mirrors the very significant U.S. investment that’s taking place in Ireland, employing directly of the order of 90,000 people.  So that important two-way mutual benefit to this trade is very, very important, one I know that you’re equally cognizant about in terms of finding jobs for your people as we seek to provide jobs for ours.

On Northern Ireland, we are deeply grateful for the continuing and deep commitment shown by the Obama administration, by the President, himself, and by Secretary of State Clinton in recent months.  We’ve been very grateful for that continuing interest which has influenced an outcome that has been so positive.  As I said to the President, for a place that has been known for its disagreements, a 98-17 vote was a very good vote to get.  I’m sure he’s looking forward to a good outcome in what he’s doing during the course of this week.

We decided to come on a quiet week -- we knew there wasn’t much going on.  (Laughter.)  But in that context, it reinforces the fact that we are so, so grateful that the President gives so much of his time -- both himself as President, his administration, and, indeed, the people on the Hill from both parties are very welcoming of us.  And we deeply appreciate that, as both a recognition of the contribution of Ireland thus far to America, but also the continuing important relationship we enjoy.

So on all these fronts, again, it’s a great pleasure to meet with the leader of the free world.  We are deeply grateful for his sense of mission not only in terms of how America is progressing, but America’s position in the world.  And we will always be supportive of the very progressive stands and positions that President Obama has taken -- not only in terms of the economic issues, but on development issues.  We will have a co-chairing by Secretary Clinton and Micheál Martin, our foreign minister, at the U.N. Conference on Hunger and Food Security.  And these are another indication of the values we share and our ability to cooperate and provide leadership positions is one that we’ve very grateful and privileged to enjoy with you.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you. 

Thank you, everybody.

Q    -- that Representative Kucinich will vote for the health care bill --

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  That's a good sign.

Q    What did you tell him?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I told him thank you.

Q    Will you be going to Ireland, Mr. President?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I would love to be going to Ireland.

END
11:35 A.M. EDT

Press Briefing on the President's Upcoming Trip to Guam, Indonesia and Australia by Denis Mcdonough, NSC Chief of Staff, Jeff Bader, NSC Senior Director for Asian Affairs, and Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications

Via Conference Call

2:20 P.M. EDT

MR. RHODES:  Thanks, everybody, for joining today.  With me is Jeff Bader, Senior Director for Asia here at the NSC, who you know well; and Denis McDonough, Chief of Staff for the NSC, as well.

I'll just give a kind of brief outline of the trip and walk you through the schedule and then turn it over to Jeff, and then we can answer your questions.

First and foremost I’d just say that this trip to Indonesia and Australia is an important opportunity to advance America's security and economic interests in a very vital part of the world.  The Asia-Pacific region is of growing importance to our interests.  And as the President said on his trip there last fall, in many ways America has been somewhat absent from the region over the last several years and we are committed to reestablishing that leadership in advance of our interests.

The Asia Pacific is fundamental to our ability to achieve some of our top priorities, whether it’s doubling exports and achieving balanced and sustainable growth or fighting terrorism and combating climate change.  In that effort, Indonesia and Australia are both essential partners to the United States.

I'll just start with Indonesia.  Of course, within Indonesia you see the convergence of many issues that are of common interest to both of our nations.  Indonesia is of course the third largest democracy in the world, has the world’s largest Muslim majority population.  And it’s also playing an increasingly important role in the international effort, such as the G20 and the effort against climate change.

They also have been a very effective partner when it comes to security issues such as fighting terrorism, as well as the President's broader efforts to advance relations with the Muslim world.  And they’re also, of course, important economic partners, an emerging economy to the United States as well.

So we want to underscore with this trip that the deepening and comprehensive partnership that we’re developing with Indonesia in the region and the world, and as well highlight Indonesia’s positive example to -- as a strong democracy, a developing economy and a committed partner on a range of issues.

So with that I'll just take you through the schedule that we currently have.  This obviously had to be adjusted as we’ve moved back the beginning portions of the trip, which you're well aware of.  But I'll go through what we currently have slotted.

The first stop on the trip for the President is in Guam.  We’ll be in Guam Monday, March 22.  And that evening, Guam time, the President will be hosting a public event where he’ll be able to speak to both our -- the community in Guam and of course some of the military personnel that the United States has in Guam.  Later in the call Dennis can field questions about this portion of the trip.

The next day, on Tuesday, the 23rd, we’ll be making our way to Indonesia.  The President will be greeted with an arrival ceremony and there will be several events associated with that arrival ceremony, which we’ll be giving you more specifics on as we get closer to the day.  But that first day he’ll have a bilateral meeting with the President of Indonesia.  And following that bilateral meeting they’ll host a joint press conference.  Then that night the President will be hosted at a state dinner by the Indonesians, which he very much looks forward to.

The following day, Wednesday, the 24th, the President will be giving a speech.  This speech, of course, will be an opportunity for him to discuss the comprehensive partnership that we’re developing with Indonesia and with the Indonesian people.  Of course this is a country that the President has personal experience in, having lived there for four years as a child; having a sister who’s half Indonesian; and his mother of course worked extensively in Indonesia for 20 years.  So he’ll be able to speak to his connections to the country.

And he’ll also be able to discuss the efforts that the United States cooperates with Indonesia on as it relates to democracy and as it relates to Indonesia’s position as a country with the world’s largest Muslim-majority population, as well as a country with a strong history of pluralism.  And in some respects it will be of course his first trip to a Muslim-majority country since he was in Egypt and delivered his speech in Cairo, so he’ll be able to speak to some of the progress that’s been made and that needs to be made on the issue that he spoke to in Cairo, as well.

The rest of that day -- we look forward to making some additional cultural stops as well as the President will be meeting with some business leaders in the region to highlight again America’s growing economic ties with Indonesia.  We believe that this can be an economic relationship that can serve our mutual interests and will be part of, of course, the President’s efforts to deepen our economic relationship across the region.

He’ll also be meeting with Indonesian parliamentary leaders as a part of his effort to, again, reach out and speak to a broad cross-section of Indonesia’s government and society.

Then we’ll be moving on to Bali.  And on Thursday, March 25th, the President will host a civil society event in Bali.  The reason that we’re choosing Bali to highlight this particular issue is that Bali is host to the Bali Democracy Forum, which is a signature initiative of the President of Indonesia’s and a very positive effort, again, to advance democracy and civil society in the region and around the world.

So President Obama will have an opportunity in Bali to meet with a group of civil society leaders in order to highlight the important role of civil society in the emergence of Indonesia’s democracy, and also how that might -- that effort might support civil society across the region.  And to that end, we’ll be inviting civil society groups from other parts of Southeast Asia as well to discuss issues related to political participation, freedom of information, and human rights, broadly speaking.

After the President is in Bali, we will move on to Canberra.  And here I’d just stop and say that, of course, Australia is increasingly -- is a longstanding ally of the United States, an increasingly important ally in both the region and the world.  In many ways it’s a model alliance for the United States.  We have very robust cooperation with the Australians on security issues, economic issues, environmental issues.  They’re obviously a close partner of us in Afghanistan, where they’ve been steadfast in their support there.  We run a very positive trade relationship with Australia that supports American jobs and supports economic prosperity for both Australians and Americans.  And of course, we’ve cooperated closely on clean energy issues and efforts to combat climate change, Australia also being a partner through the G20.  And the President will be underscoring this alliance throughout his time in Australia.

He’ll begin that night with a dinner with Prime Minister Rudd, who’s been a particularly close partner of the President’s both bilaterally on a personal basis, and also in international forums.  So the President is looking forward to the opportunity to share this time with Prime Minister Rudd in Canberra.

The next day, on Friday the 26th, we will have a very robust program of events.  The President will meet with the Governor General in the morning.  Then he will have a series of -- he’ll have a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Rudd, building on the work, the discussions they’ll have at dinner.  Following that bilateral meeting, we anticipate a joint press conference.

Then, as I think some of you know, the Australians have been generous enough to invite the President to address a session of the Australian parliament.  So the President will address the parliament and he’ll speak to the depth of our alliance with Australia, the 70th anniversary of that alliance, and discuss several areas in which we can deepen our partnership in security, economic and environmental issues.

After addressing the parliament, he will have the opportunity to participate in some other events to mark, again, the historic landmark of this being the anniversary of the alliance and the cooperation that we share before departing that night to return to the United States.

So we have a very busy five days in the Asia-Pacific region.  And again, I’ll just turn it over to Jeff now who can speak a little bit to the importance of the region to the United States and how Indonesia and Australia in particular are key and emerging partners for the United States on many of our top priority issues.  So, Jeff, I’ll just hand it over to you.

MR. BADER:  Thanks, Ben.  Ben covered the ground fairly thoroughly.  I’ll just add a few points.  First of all, as Ben noted, this trip is designed to highlight the importance of the Asia-Pacific region to the U.S.  The members of APEC, to which Australia and Indonesia both belong, are responsible for 55 percent of global GDP and 50 percent of global trade.  And this will be the first time in at least 10 years that a President has gone to the Asia Pacific for a trip other than an APEC meeting, except for President Bush’s trip in 2008 for the Beijing Olympics.

This is a part of the world that’s marked by a number of rising powers, namely China and India; a number of existing powers, Japan and South Korea; and some emerging important countries and powers like Vietnam and Indonesia.

In the context of a region that is evolving in this fashion, where there are shifts of power and influence, the U.S. presence is a crucial stabilizing force.  It is welcomed by pretty much everyone in the region.  And it’s important for -- and that’s why the President is reaching out to one of our most important allies and one of our most important partners in the region, Australia and Indonesia.

The second point I'll highlight, which Ben also touched on, is that this trip highlights the changing global governance that we face in the world in the 21st century.  When we were in Copenhagen, we saw the decisive meeting at the end of the conference.  The players in the room were China, India, South Africa, Brazil and the United States.  This is something that wouldn’t have happened -- would not have happened 20 years ago.  And this is a -- this is a sign of the change that has occurred in the number of countries that are participating in major global decisions.

In that context there are a number of important middle powers -- middle powers, countries like Australia and Indonesia -- who are significant players on these kinds of decisions.  The G20, which is the emerging economic governance instrument -- major economic emerging governance instrument -- Australia and Indonesia are both important players in this body.

Australia has, for quite some time, I’d say punched above its weight.  Indonesia was held back for years by poverty, by governance issues, by corruption, and it is now, in the last few years, emerging and beginning to perform in the fashion that a power of that rank deserves.

Just a few words specifically on Australia and Indonesia.  Australia has been mentioned as an ally.  We have a special relationship with them.  They’ve fought in all wars with us.  Australia has lost something like 100,000 people -- 100,000 lives in wars since the First World War, which is a quite extraordinary number for a country of that size.  They have more troops in Afghanistan than any other non-NATO country -- 1,500.  And Prime Minister Rudd stepped up to the plate after the President -- after the President spoke to him and increased the Australian component by upwards of 40 percent. 

They are a major global partner on climate change, in the G20, on terrorism, on non-proliferation, on clean energy.

Indonesia, as Ben mentioned, a number of interests.  Third-largest democracy in the world.  For 12 years they’ve been a stable and impressive democracy with a history -- with a modern history of tolerance after tough times in the 1960s.  Protection of human rights has been particularly impressive.  They are a majority Muslim country, but there are other religious and ethnic groups there.  Our trip to -- our stop in Bali, Bali is a Hindu -- traditional Hindu religious center.

They are a regional and global player -- key player in ASEAN and G20 member.  And we will be announcing on this trip a comprehensive partnership with Indonesia, which was President Yudhoyono’s personal initiative, and that shows just how far the Indonesia -- how far Indonesia has moved since its earlier days of an adversarial relationship with the United States, that President Yudhoyono would feel comfortable proposing a comprehensive partnership with the United States that will cover political security issues, economic issues, and people to people.

MR. RHODES:  Thanks, Jeff.  With that, I think we’ll just move to take your questions.

Q    Thank you, gentlemen, for taking the time to brief us on this trip.  I’m wondering, outside of the comprehensive agreement, are there any deliverables -- concrete documents that you expect to sign or things you expect to bring back?  And as a quick follow-up, I’m wondering if Assistant Secretary Campbell is going on this trip, and if not, why not.  Thank you.

MR. RHODES:  Just on your first question, Josh, associated with a comprehensive partnership will be I think a series of announcements that speak to specific issues.  But we will wait until the Presidents have the opportunity to meet to address that.

What I will say is that we’ve been discussing throughout the year an advancement of our partnership with Indonesia on a series of issues that I think are, again, top priorities for both the United States and Indonesia and the region.  They’re a close economic partner through the G20 and we’re looking to deepen our ties in that regard.

As Jeff said as it related to Copenhagen, Indonesia played a -- it’s one of the world’s largest emitters, but they’ve also stepped up to the plate and played a very responsible role through the Copenhagen process and other venues on climate and energy.  And so as we’re looking in order to advance some of the ambitious targets that have been made, we’ll of course have to deepen our partnership with Indonesia and countries like it around the world.  I think they’re the fourth-largest emitter.

And then in addition to that, we’re looking to deepen our partnership in a range of areas from education to science and technology and multiple other areas of common interest.

So I think we’ll be filling in the details of the comprehensive partnership that we’re forging with Indonesia.  I think a key point here is that we will be collaborating with them across a very broad range of issues.  We of course -- we have had -- they have been a key security partner.  You’ve seen them have some very important successes actually this year through their own initiative in taking out leaders, for instance, of Jemaah Islamiyah, the al Qaeda-affiliated group in Indonesia.  So we enjoy a robust partnership with them in that respect and it’s one that we would like to carry forward.

And again, of course, as the world’s largest Muslim-majority country and as an emerging democracy, we’re looking to advance in specific areas our partnership to facilitate the President’s efforts to build a new beginning with Muslim communities around the world as well as our ability to highlight democratization and the empowerment of civil society, which is why we’re going to Bali.

I don't know if Jeff wants to add anything on that.

MR. BADER:  Yes, just one point that I should have mentioned in my earlier comments.  We’ll also be highlighting trade and investment with both Indonesia and Australia on the trip.  This week there will be the first round of negotiations on the trans-Pacific partnership trade agreements in Melbourne, Australia.  So we’ll be arriving right on the heels of the first round of that.  The President spoke to his goal of moving rapidly towards agreement among the eight countries in the trans-Pacific partnership.

Indonesia is a country with whom our trade has lagged -- I think it’s something like $23 billion two-way trade.  There are obstacles to trade.  We need to do better.  We need to talk to the Indonesians about how we can make our trade with Indonesia come up to the level that it should be as it is with many of the other ASEAN countries.

MR. RHODES:  Yes, I'd just echo that last point by saying we’ll -- in both countries I think we’ll be looking to highlight the export potential for the United States, which is of course a part of the President’s commitment to doubling exports.  We run a positive trade balance with Australia that, again, supports U.S. jobs, and we want to be deepening those partnerships because, as the President has done, has laid out a very aggressive and ambitious export agenda.  We believe that the Asia-Pacific region, broadly speaking, will be critical to our success in that regard.

On your second question, Josh, I anticipate the Assistant Secretary will be coming on the trip.

Q    Thank you very much for taking my call.  I’m calling from the National Education Association and we have relations and projects that we share in common with the PGRI education union of Indonesia with its 2.3 million members, as well as with the Australian education union, both of which serve public education.  I’m interested in the plans for discussion on education, and also specifically with the Bali Democracy Forum.  Is there plans to discuss specifically student assessment as well as quality training and professional development for teachers?  Thank you.

MR. RHODES:  I appreciate the call and I think there’s probably more consultation that we can provide through direct contact with you all, but what I will say is -- again, I don’t want to preview announcements, but I do think that we are looking to expand and deepen our educational relationship with Indonesia.  The President I think believes strongly in the value of international educational exchange as a tool of deepening our engagement in a way that serves our people and people throughout the world.

At the back end of the Cairo speech, for instance, I think he spoke about the value of educational exchanges and other educational programs that have been a key component, really, of American leadership around the world for many decades.  So I think you’ll see he -- speaking to a deeper educational partnership with Indonesia.

As it relates to the civil society efforts, I believe we’ll be looking at a range of ways that we can empower civil society around the world, quite frankly.  They play a key role, civil society does, in Indonesia -- a very robust democracy -- a very positive role.  And civil society is often on the front lines of the effort to advance democracy, to combat corruption, to support the rule of law, to speak out for people’s rights.

So we’ll be wanting to explore ways in which the United States can support those efforts, can support the kind of efforts that Indonesia is leading by taking on the Bali Democracy Forum.

So some of your -- the more specific concerns I think we can probably best address directly, but I do think, again, education and civil society will be key parts of the kind of partnership that we’re developing with the Indonesians.

Q    Thank you.  You said the President wants to highlight the fact that the U.S. enjoys a trade surplus with Australia.  Could you say which areas the President is thinking of in particular, and which sectors would the Obama administration like to see an expansion of trade, in light of the free trade agreement between the two countries?

MR. RHODES:  I’ll just say a few words, and then Jeff will I think want to jump in.

I think what he’ll be wanting to highlight is just the fact that it’s a very robust and mutually beneficial trade relationship that, again, speaks to the kind of deepening partnerships that we’d like to have around -- across the region.  And of course, we believe that that is fundamental to both a healthy and growing American economy and Australian economy.

As it relates to sectors -- Jeff may speak to this -- I’ll just say, to start off, that clean energy is an area where both I think Prime Minister Rudd and President Obama recognize that there is a growth potential.  So that’s a particular area.  But I think more broadly speaking, whether it’s the trade -- robust trade relationship we have and the efforts we’re exploring through the TPP, we’re looking to frankly build upon the success of the U.S.-Australian relationship, both bilaterally and across the region.

So Jeff, you might want to --

MR. BADER:  All I’d add is that the U.S. and Australia both have very open markets, and in that sense --- that’s what we’re highlighting rather than the fact that the U.S. has a surplus.  The surplus is a reflection of the wishes of consumers and companies on both sides, not a managed outcome.

As for specific sectors, Australia’s got great beef, but we want to make sure that there are not obstacles to the import of U.S. beef.  They also -- the aviation sector is one where the U.S. has found good customers in Australia in the past.  Those are two that I would particularly mention, in addition to the ones that Ben mentioned.

Q    Thank you.  Which events do you expect the President to be focusing on energy and climate issues?  And more specifically, do you expect with the address to the Australian parliament he will be focusing on those issues, given the difficulty in passing climate legislation there?

MR. RHODES:  Sure, I’ll just begin by saying that I expect that this will be a subject for both of his bilateral meetings on this trip.  So the bilateral meeting with the President of Indonesia will certainly have a component that focuses on energy and climate issues.  Similarly, the bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Rudd, I’d expect this to be an issue that together they address.  And so to the extent to which the President will be reading out those meetings and following through both his public remarks, press conferences and in speeches, I think this will be a subject that he’ll be addressing throughout the trip.

And again I'd just underscore points that Jeff made, which is that climate -- our climate initiatives, particularly some of the commitments captured at Copenhagen, will demand very broad international cooperation, and it will demand, again, close coordination with countries like Indonesia that are increasingly playing a responsible role in this area, as well as countries like Australia that have deliberately and very productively sought out a positive role in international climate forums.

And we also frankly believe that clean energy holds out great economic potential, and we continue to believe that there’s great job creation potential and the development of clean energy partnerships with emerging economies like Indonesia and close trading partners like Australia.  So we’ll be speaking to the economic potential of partnership in this area, as well. 

But I don't know if you have much to --

MR. BADER:  Just a point -- just one point.  The President of the United States admires Prime Minister Rudd’s leadership on the climate change issue both in the run-up to Copenhagen, in being one of the leaders in coming up with the idea of a “political agreement,” which ultimately allowed us to achieve consensus in Copenhagen.  And he’s also the creator of a carbon capture and storage institute.  The President was pleased to be present in Italy when the inauguration of this institute was announced and to be a founding member.

Q    Hi, thanks.  Obviously when you’re talking about issues like economics and trade in Asia, the unspoken player apart from the U.S. is China.  Will the President at any stage of his trip bring up the current tensions with China?  Do they have an implication for the sort of success of the effort to expand U.S. ties in Asia-Pacific region?  And can you comment on Premier Wen Jiabao’s remarks yesterday in which he put the blame for the deterioration of the relationship down to the U.S.?

MR. BADER:  Well, we have a mature relationship with China.  There are -- it is steady in its objectives.  I think that the relationship is in good shape.  We have a number of areas of difference and we’re talking about them, but I would not describe it as a relationship of tension.

We will be talking about a number of third-country issues on the trip, I’m sure.  We will be talking about -- I'm sure we’ll be talking about Afghanistan, Afghanistan/Pakistan.  We will I’m sure be talking about Iran.  It’s impossible to go to Asia and for the subject of China not to arise.  So certainly Prime Minister Rudd is deeply knowledgeable on the subject, has much insight.  So I certainly expect that that is a subject we’ll discuss.

And our perceptions of China are fairly similar to those of Australia.  We both see China’s emergence as a major economy, a driving economy in the world, as offering great potential to both our countries -- potential for growth, potential for prosperity of our citizens.  We’re also looking to reshape the international regulatory systems through the G20 in a way that ensures that new actors, such as China, are acting consistent with international norms.

As for Wen Jiabao’s comments, he was talking about currency -- I think I’d leave those to the -- that’s the Secretary of Treasury’s domain, so I don’t think I’ll go there today.

MR. RHODES:  Yes, the only thing I’d add to what Jeff said is that this is obviously our second trip to the region; the last time we traveled to Japan, Singapore, China and South Korea.  And again, as Jeff said in his opening comments, we believe that it’s very important that the Asia-Pacific region is fundamental to the economic and security interests of the United States in the 21st century, and that in order to effectively advance those interests, we need to deepen and broaden our engagement and our leadership in the region, which is why we’ve taken a more -- we’ve taken a more aggressive role in engaging groups that APEC and ASEAN, and it’s why we set out to go -- to travel to Indonesia and Australia; to, again, build partnerships that we believe will be fundamental to our ability to deal with our top-priority issues.

And to ours -- to those press like you, Steven, who’ve followed us through the year, I think one thing you can look to on this trip is we laid down a framework for how we deal with a set of issues last year:  terrorism, energy and climate, achieving balance and sustainable growth, and of course nuclear proliferation.  And I think what you’ll see in this trip is that the issues that we’re addressing through these partnerships are very much in line with our broader international priorities.  So we’ll be discussing our deepening -- our deep counterterrorism cooperation in both stops.  As Jeff said, Afghanistan -- Australia is a key partner with us in Afghanistan, and again, Indonesia has had some successes in some of the global pressure that’s been applied to al Qaeda and its affiliates this year.

We’ll be following up on Copenhagen, building on a momentum that we generated last year, to implement this commitment through our partnerships with countries like Indonesia and Australia.

And we’ll be following up on the balance of sustainable growth agenda that came out of the G20’s efforts last year, which was an unprecedented international economic collaboration.  But it’s going to demand sustained action by major economies in order to ensure that the global recovery is sustained.

So I’d just highlight that to point out that the President sees China, of course, as a fundamental -- fundamentally important bilateral relationship as it relates to advancing these interests, but he also believes it’s very important to have not just the bedrock of our strong alliances in the world but also developing partnerships with countries like Indonesia as well, which will be fundamental to our ability to advance our mutual interests.

So to that end, we believe that these relationships are absolutely critical.

Q    Has there been progress to include the training of Kopassus Special Forces as part of the military component of the comprehensive partnership? 

And number two, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has said that it’s disappointed by growing protectionism on the part of Indonesia.  Will the administration express this disappointment?  Thank you.

MR. BADER:  First on Kopassus, as you know, there was a delegation from Kopassus, the counterterrorism -- the Special Forces component of the Indonesian military, in Washington last week.  They met with administration officials.  We have a very good cooperation with the Indonesian government on counterterrorism issues.  It would be good if we could move to full cooperation, fuller cooperation, to include the Special Forces -- the counterterrorism capabilities within the special forces of Kopassus.

There is a certain history that needs to be overcome.  There were human rights violations in the 1990s in former East Timor.  We have been talking to the Indonesians and to the Indonesian government and to Kopassus, and we hope to be able, at some point, to move past and resolve those concerns.  I can’t predict at this point when that -- when that day might arrive, but we have been talking to the Indonesian government about it.

And the second question:  The President, in his discussions with President Yudhoyono, will, I am fairly confident, talk about the kinds of things that we hope will be done so that our trade relationship can achieve its full potential, including removing the -- moving expeditiously to remove access -- market access barriers that the Chamber of Commerce highlighted that you just mentioned.

Q    Steve literally took the words right out of my mouth.  I appreciate the question, Steve, and I also appreciate the answer.  Thank you.

MR. McDONOUGH:  I would just add one thing to Jeff’s comments about Kopassus.  Obviously as we’ve been in discussions with our Indonesian partners, we’ve also been in close discussions with Congress and consultation with Congress on this matter so that when we are in a position to move forward on it we’re in a position to have a unified posture across the branches of the U.S. government on this important issue.

Q    Hi, thanks for the call, guys.  I think this question is for Denis -- a question on Guam.  In addition to speaking to the Guam community and service members, what message is trying to be sent to the Pacific region overall and to Japan and China specifically with that?  Thanks.

MR. McDONOUGH:  Thanks.  Well, obviously the President’s decision to visit Guam now demonstrates a commitment to underscore our -- obviously our responsibilities in Guam in the first instance, and underscores a very visible presence of the United States in this vital region, as both Jeff and Ben have outlined.

While there he’ll not only visit with commanders but also with local Guam authorities.  And he’s going to make sure that we have a very realistic and sustainable and well thought out approach to Guam.  He has a vision which we refer to here as “one Guam, green Guam,” which is apropos of many of the questions heretofore, designed to make sure that we’re investing in capabilities on Guam that are sustainable over the course of time, that are clean energy focused, that do take very concrete steps to reduce the high price of energy on the island, and obviously will lead to an end state that’s politically, operationally, and environmentally sustainable.

So the President, while there, will also take a hard look at the project and infrastructure needs on Guam.  We’ll obviously be looking at base-related construction that must take into accounts the needs of not only of an increased troop presence or Marine presence, but also the needs of the people of Guam, the impact on the environment, and the important role that the United States plays within the region.

So I wouldn’t read a particular set of -- just to respond to the last part of your question -- I wouldn’t read a specific or even general message to Japan or to China into the stop; I’d rather just make clear that we have a commitment to the people of Guam, and that as part of our ongoing plan for our presence in the region, are going to make very common-sense and important investments in the infrastructure there.

Q    Question for both Jeff and Denis, if I could indulge you.  Obviously we all understand the mantra about Treasury and currency -- no argument there.  But surely the President himself has raised the fundamental issues often enough, and the events over the last few days certainly seem to indicate that the currency issue is becoming a fundamental relationship management problem.  And I’m wondering if this issue will be on the discussion agenda with Prime Minister Rudd.  Is it perhaps too soon to be talking about coordinated action or coordinated reaction?  I think we’re all interested to know, aren’t we moving past the point where it’s just a Treasury management issue?  Thanks.

MR. BADER:  You thought I was kidding when I said this was an answer for Secretary Geithner.  I wasn’t.

MR. McDONOUGH:  Let me vigorously agree with Jeff; reference of the question to the Department of Treasury.

MR. RHODES:  Well, thanks, everybody, for joining the call and, again, we look forward to a very important and packed schedule for these five days in the Pacific region and look forward to seeing some of you there.  And we’ll provide you with any more detail as it becomes locked and look forward to fielding your requests.

END
3:02 P.M. EDT