The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 22, 2010

Remarks by the President and the Vice President to the National Governors Association

State Dining Room

10:15 A.M. EST

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Good morning, everyone.  Well, I hope you all had a good time last night.  And I kept my tradition of not making more of a fool of myself than I usually do by not letting you all see me try to dance.  There was one reason -- I used to say to Governor Markell of Delaware -- why I never ran for governor -- you have to have an inaugural ball.  (Laughter.)  And that's why I stayed in the Senate all those years.

First of all, thank you all for being here.  It seems I've spent so -- you guys have spent, and ladies have spent, so much time with me on the telephone.  I can't tell you how much I appreciate our almost biweekly conversations.  But now I’ve gotten a chance to speak to all of you but two, and most of you twice for a half hour or so about the Recovery Act.

And the first message I want to deliver to you is thanks.  You have -- we put out a lot of money for a lot of projects, a lot of money that isn't projects -- tax cuts going into your states as well as health care monies.  And the truth of the matter is the hardest part is accounting for the projects.  And a lot of those projects weren’t directly in your control, Gov.  I know that.  But yet you guys oversaw it.  And we had -- in the Recovery Act, there's been 160,000 reports filed.  They've been sent out -- sent in from around the country.  And anyone can go to our Web site, recovery.gov, to find out exactly how those projects -- how that money was spent out, where it was spent.

And the thing I want to thank you most for -- and I kid you all when I'm on the conversation with you, say, well, why am I being so responsive.  Well, if it doesn’t work it's my problem with the boss -- coming in in a minute here.  (Laughter.)  And so that's why I try to be -- we try to be as responsive as we can.  But what I'm here to say to you all is you've been incredibly responsive to me, and to us, in terms of getting those reports in.

And as I said, the thing I'm, quite frankly, proudest of is that dog hasn't bitten yet.  Remember at the beginning we were going to have all these massive fraud programs, anything this big was going to -- and you know, there's been some mistakes and some of the programs don't really pass the smell test.  They're legal and they're appropriate, but they just don't look right on paper. But it's a very small percentage.

The inspector generals who have been looking at each one of these projects -- there's a panel of 10 inspector generals that reviews this -- there's very, very few -- I mean, less than a couple dozen that have been referred for further investigation, based on all the reports of any fraud coming in as a conduct of the program.  That's a great tribute to you all.

But I also know how difficult it is, the reporting piece of this.  It takes a lot of your time, a lot of your effort.  I apologize for being such a pain in the neck about it, but you've been great.

And the fact is, folks, that part of the program, the Recovery Act now -- and by the way, I think most people, and you all, Republican and Democrat, have been great.  The truth of the matter is that a lot of people thought, as my grandpop would say, the Recovery Act was the horse that was going to carry the sleigh, the entire economy, and pull it.  It was only one piece of the economic recovery program.  But almost everyone now agrees that it created somewhere between -- or saved -- somewhere between 1.6 million and 2.4 million jobs.  We're confident it's over 2 million jobs.

And we also know, as the President said last night from the podium when we were sitting right here that a lot of you have a FY'11 budget that's pretty steep as well, but last year out a lot of you were able to keep firefighters, school teachers, police officers on the job.

And one of the things that everyone, even the critics, now acknowledge is that the Recovery Act played a significant part in the growth of the GDP.  The first quarter of last year the economy shrunk by over 6 percent -- 6.4 percent.  Last quarter, a year later, it actually grew almost 6 percent -- 5.7 [percent].  But we all know a lot of people are still hurting.  I mean, I've traveled into now 65 cities, I think it is, in your states and a lot of people are still hurting.  Employment is lagging, and it's going to be -- it's a real scramble for a lot of people.

My grandpop used to have an expression -- a couple of you heard me say -- when the guy -- he was from Scranton -- when the guy in Oliphant's is out of work it's an economic slowdown -- that's a little town outside of Scranton.  When your brother-in-law is out of work it's a recession.  When you're out of work it's a depression.  It's a depression for a lot of Americans.  You all are right on the front lines trying to deal with the concerns and problems of those people.

But the next phase of the act -- and I'll conclude with this and introduce the President -- the next phase of the recovery monies -- and there's a lot of it left -- is in projects, but also in signature projects that we hope are not only going to create -- we're confident are going to create jobs, we hope they're going to begin to lay a new platform for an economic growth cycle in the 21st century.  They are innovative.  They range from everything from broadband that a lot of you are working on to high-speed rail, to a new electric grid and meters, and investment in battery technologies -- a range of things that are designed not just merely -- which is critical -- to get the economy moving and keep it moving, provide jobs and initiate new jobs, but they're also leveraging a lot of private capital, a lot of money.

I was talking to Governor Christie a moment ago.  It used to be, five years ago when we tried to talk about wind power along the East Coast, there was Delaware and no one else was doing it. All of sudden we started to invest in it and now you've got millions of megawatts of programs that are being suggested.  Same way with solar energy.  We're making major new investment in the Mohave Desert, a billion-dollar commitment.

So there's some real -- there's some real hope that we're going to be able to generate significant, new projects.  I know in the far West we're having some trouble about getting some of this off the ground and transmission and the rest.  But you all have worked with us, you've given us great insight as to where the biggest problems are.  We're trying to work through them, but we can't do it without you.

And so in this last phase, which is this next year, of the Recovery Act, I hope you will continue to be willing to be as available to me as you have been, and I hope we’ve proved to you that we're looking for your ideas.  We don't think everything is invented here, and so let us know how we can best implement the last portions of the most innovative parts of the Recovery Act.

With that, ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce the President, who is focused on rebuilding our infrastructure and sparking a new clean energy revolution, creating the best education system in the world.  That's what he's undertaking.  Some say we're doing too much, but the truth of the matter is, is there's no way that we can lead in the 21st century with the same energy policy, the same education system, and the same effort, same infrastructure we have now.  So we've got to deal with all this.  I think we're on the right path.  I'm glad you all are the ones that are leading the effort for us.  You've been a great source of ideas.  And again let us know what you think we're doing right and what you think we're doing wrong.

With that, ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce the President of the United States, Barack Obama.  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Please, everybody have a seat.  Thank you.

I hope nobody stayed up too late last night, because I’m looking forward to a productive challenge and challenging conversation this morning.  Joe, thank you very much for your remarks.  And I want to again thank Governor Douglas and Governor Manchin for their outstanding leadership with this organization.

I want to spend most of my time exchanging ideas with you and answering questions, but let me just preface this with a few remarks.  I want us to begin by remembering where we were just one year ago.  As I mentioned last night, our economy was in a full-blown crisis; 750,000 Americans were losing their jobs each month, and millions more were hurting at the end of one of the toughest decades for the middle class on record.  And just as they turned to you like never before, budget shortfalls threatened your capacity to help.

And that was just a few days before I signed the Recovery Act into law -- a plan that many of you were instrumental in devising.  That plan cut taxes for small businesses and for 95 percent of working Americans.  It gave direct relief to those hardest hit by the recession, including workers who lost their jobs and families who lost their health care because of it.  It helped most of you close some of those budget gaps that had developed, which kept 300,000 teachers and education workers in your schools and tens of thousands of first responders on your streets.

And it began rebuilding our economy on a new and stronger foundation for growth.  We helped to jumpstart a clean energy industry in places where there were none, as Governor Granholm can attest in Michigan.  We followed the gospel of Governors Rendell and Schwarzenegger and invested in our infrastructure; creating private sector jobs rebuilding today's crumbling roads and bridges, but also constructing the smart grids and the high-speed rails that are so critical to our future.  And that's helping many of you prepare your states for future growth -- like Governor Baldacci, who's accelerating his vision to connect broadband to every corner of Maine; or Governor Barbour, who's boosting plans to bring more commerce into Mississippi ports and out by rail to the rest of America.

Independent economists credit the Recovery Act with growing the economy and for 2 million jobs that otherwise wouldn't exist. Now, I understand that some of you still claim it's not working or wasn't worth it, but I also know that you've used it to close your budget gaps or break ground on new projects.  I've seen the photos and I've read the press releases.  (Laughter.)  So it must be doing something right.

Overall, the economy is in a better place than it was a year ago.  We were contracting by 6 percent and we're now growing by 6 percent.  But I know that your states are still in a very tough situation, and too many Americans still haven't felt the recovery in their own lives.  So we're working to create jobs by all means necessary, be it by cutting taxes for small businesses that create them, to investing more in infrastructure and in energy efficiency, or giving you more help to close budget shortfalls. And I am not going to rest until we see more progress in each and every one of your states.

As governors, I know you feel the same responsibility to see the people we serve through difficult times.  And I know you share my feelings that we've also got a responsibility to think beyond the crisis and build an economy that works for our future, to tackle some of the problems and barriers that have held us back, and to secure our rightful place as the preeminent economy in the 21st century.

And that's why we've taken up the cause of better health care that works for our people, our businesses, and our governments alike.  That's why we will continue to fight for the cause of clean energy, an economy that will free ourselves from the grips of foreign oil and generate millions of good jobs and good wages in the process.  That's why we've taken up the cause of guaranteeing that Americans have the knowledge and the skills and education they need in this new and changing world.

America's prosperity has always rested on how well we educate our children -– but never has that been more true than it is today.  And it's true for our workers as well, when a college graduate earns over 60 percent more in a lifetime than a high school graduate.  This is true for our businesses when, according to one study, six in 10 simply cannot find the qualified workers that they need, are ready and willing to hire.

Unfortunately, we continue to lag in several critical areas.  Our eighth grade students are ninth in the world in math, and 11th in science.  In response to assessments like these, some states have upped their game -- I want to point to Massachusetts as an example, where eighth graders now tie for first in science around the world.  Some unfortunately -- some states have actually done the opposite -– and between 2005 and 2007, under No Child Left Behind, 11 states actually lowered their standards in math.

That may make those states look better relative to other states, but it’s not going to help our students keep up with their global competitors.  When I visited South Korea last year -- and I've told this story before -- I had lunch with President Lee and I asked him, what’s your biggest education challenge?  And he said, my biggest issue, my toughest fight is that Korean parents are too demanding.  They want their kids to learn English in first grade, and so I've had to ship in a whole bunch of foreign speaking teachers to meet the demand.  They want their students learning everything -- math, science, foreign languages -- all as soon as possible.  They want their kids to excel because they understand that whichever country out-educates the other is going to out-compete us in the future.  So that’s what we’re up against.  That's what’s at stake -– nothing less than our primacy in the world.

As I said at the State of the Union address, I do not accept a United States of America that's second place.  And that means that all of us are going to have to work together to make sure that we are taking seriously the investments we make in our children’s future.  That’s the reason that we launched the Race to the Top, a national competition to spur reform and improvements in our schools.

We put $4 billion on the table and challenged states to compete for it, saying that if you embrace reforms that raise achievement, if you track and respond to student needs; if you evaluate and reward great teachers and principals and turn around failing schools, then we're going to help you make those reforms a reality.  Many of you and your states already have, and that’s why we’re going to expand the Race to the Top program.

And I want to commend all of you for acting collectively through the National Governors Association to develop common academic standards that will better position our students for success.  Many states have already positioned themselves to adopt higher standards; and today, I’m announcing steps to encourage and support all states to transition to college and career-ready standards on behalf of America’s students.

And I know that many of you have had a chance to interact with our Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, who's doing a terrific job, and I think you understand when you talk to him that this administration is serious about breaking down some of the barriers to reform that have existed in the past.  We are tired of arguments between the left and the right, between reformers and teachers' unions.  We want to figure out what works and we want to make sure that we are giving you the support and the resources that you need to implement what works.  (Applause.)

Now, of course, lifting achievement and transforming our schools is going to require more than new standards -– it's going to require better teaching, better curricula, it's going to require better assessments.  So we are calling for a redesigned Elementary and Secondary Education Act that better aligns the federal approach to your state-led efforts while offering you the support that you need.  Let me just be specific on some things that we're looking to do this year.

First, as a condition of receiving access to Title I funds, we will ask all states to put in place a plan to adopt and certify standards that are college and career-ready in reading and math.  Once you've got those standards in place, you’ll be able to better compete for funds to improve teaching and upgrade curricula.  If a university, state, or school district begins preparing educators to teach to higher standards, we’ll give them the support that they need.  And to make sure that we’re delivering for our kids, we’re launching a competition to reward states that join together to develop the highest-quality, cutting-edge assessments required to measure progress; and we’ll help support their implementation.

This all goes hand in hand with our efforts to give every American a complete and competitive education.  We are making college more affordable by increasing Pell Grants, we're continuing a new $2,500 tax credit for four years of college tuition, we are working to ease graduates’ debt burdens, because I believe and I think you do too that nobody should go broke because they decided to go to college.  We’ve provided the resources to effectively implement the Post-9/11 GI Bill, because every returning soldier should have the chance to begin a new life prepared for the new economy.

We’re strengthening our community colleges, because all of you know that they are outstanding career pathways for the children of so many working families.  And we’re working to reform the student loan program and save tens of billions of dollars that currently go to subsidizing financial intermediaries, because instead of having that money go to middle men we think it makes sense to spend that money educating the next generation.

Now, if we can come together and do all this -- in Washington, in state houses, and across party and ideology –- we’re going to raise the quality of American education; we’ll give our students, our workers, and our businesses every chance to succeed; and we are going to secure this next century as another American century.

Let me just close by saying this, we’ve been trusted with the responsibility to lead at a defining moment in our history.  We’ve been tasked to not only see this country through difficult times, but to keep the dream of our founding alive for the next generation.  That’s not something to shy away from.  It’s something to live up to.  And I intend to work closely with all of you -- Democrats and Republicans -- to do just that.

So with that, what I'd like to do is start the discussion.  I think that what we're going to do is I'm going to call on Jim and Joe first.  And then, after they've made their opening statements and remarks, then we'll kick the press out, and everybody will roll up their sleeves and we'll get to work.

END
10:26 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 22, 2010

Toast Remarks by the President and Governor Douglas at the 2010 Governors' Ball

State Dining Room

February 21, 2010

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, everybody.  Thank you.  Please, everybody have a seat.  Have a seat. 

Good evening, and welcome back to the White House.  For some of you this is the first time; welcome.  I want to begin by acknowledging your outstanding chairs of this extraordinary organization -- Jim Douglas of Vermont and Joe Manchin of West Virginia.  Thank you so much for the great work that you guys do each and every day.

I also want to let everybody know that this is not too stiff of an affair -- (laughter) -- because last year Ed Rendell led a conga line.  (Laughter.)  We still have photographs of some of you that we may use at any point.  (Laughter.)

But it's interesting to think about where we were last year.  Last year we were in the midst of what was the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.  Each of you in your own respective states I think saw how brutal it was on so many families -- hundreds of thousands of people losing their jobs every month; home foreclosures; small businesses having to shut down, unable to make payroll; and people not sure about the future and unclear about whether or not we were going to be able to pull ourselves out.

And I think that it is worth -- it is worth reminding ourselves of how urgent the situation was and it's worth this organization taking some extraordinary credit for helping to right the ship, working, I know, with my Vice President, Joe Biden, who's done outstanding work.  (Applause.)  We took some swift and decisive action, and because of that swift and decisive action, not only were folks in your states able to get unemployment insurance and get COBRA at a much cheaper rate, not only were you able to fill some of those budget holes that I know are still tough and I suspect we'll be talking about tomorrow, but we also started to begin entire new industries and start moving towards a extraordinary future through some of the infrastructure projects and research and development, clean energy projects that are -- so many of you have been leaders of.

If you think about it -- I was in Newton, Iowa, seeing a plant that had been closed, now reopened building wind turbines.  In Michigan -- I was just talking to Governor Granholm about the fact that last year we accounted for 2 percent of the advanced battery technology in the entire world, and by 2015, we are going to account for 40 percent.  By the end of this year, we're going to account for 20 percent of that advanced battery technology.  (Applause.) 

The truth is, the reason it worked is because of some very tough choices that many of you made, but the ability to work across state lines and party lines to try to get people focused not just on the past but also on the future.  And one of the things that I've always said about governors that Washington could learn from is that it's hard to be overly ideological as a governor, because the fact of the matter is, the rubber hits the road with you.  You guys can have all kinds of abstract thoughts, but when families come to you looking for help, when communities have been devastated, you're the ones they turn to.  And so these arguments become a lot less abstract.  And I think it's a reflection of that experience as chief executives in each of your state that makes you able to work together so effectively in this organization.

So I want to congratulate you for having worked through a very difficult year.  I want you to know that this White House wants to continue to partner with you, and not just -- not just in terms of us telling you what we think we can do to help, but more importantly, us listening and finding out from you the kinds of extraordinary ideas that all these states represent.  You guys are -- continue to be the laboratory for our democracy.

And so we welcome your ideas.  We welcome your input.  The main thing tonight, though, is we expect you to have a good time.  (Laughter.)  So, with that, what I'd like to do is to offer a toast.  I'd like to offer this toast not only to our constituents, who put up with us and have gone through some extraordinarily difficult times, but I also want to offer a toast to our spouses and families who make extraordinary sacrifices.  Some of them oftentimes don't always -- Michelle, she's starting to clank already.  (Laughter.)  But our families, our children, all those people who are so supportive of these extraordinary efforts that we're making.

So, cheers, everybody.  Dinner is served.

Oh, wait, wait, wait.  (Laughter.)  This is not the waiter, although he can read the menu.  Jim Douglas has been an extraordinary partner with this White House -- always constructive, always thoughtful, and we are so pleased to have him here tonight.  And so he's going to offer his own toast.

Please.  (Applause.) 

GOVERNOR DOUGLAS:  Mr. President, I thought you might explain that I'm not the entertainment, either, and I appreciate that.  (Laughter.)

Mr. President, on behalf of all my colleagues and the spouses and guests of the governors who are here tonight, I want to thank you for your hospitality.

As you may know, yesterday the First Lady addressed the National Governors Association.  We appreciated her message.  And she gave us a little hint and said that you were working on your dance moves up at Camp David.  (Laughter.)  Now, I don't know if any of the governors have been preparing, but based on the photographic evidence to which you referred, I hope they have.  (Laughter.)

Well, this is a challenging time for all of us to serve as chief executives at the federal or state level -- I'd say an economy that's still undergoing a great deal of stress, as you noted.  Many of our friends and neighbors are struggling to get by.  It's so essential that we all work together in the public interest to bring our states and the American people back to a position of prosperity so that we can move our country into a prosperous future.

This is also a time when we are sending young men and women abroad to serve in uniform.  And as Commanders-in-Chief of our National Guards, we share your commitment, Mr. President, to their well-being.  We appreciate your leadership and your support and care of our men and women in uniform.

The framers of our country designed a federal system of certain responsibilities for the federal government and others reserved to the states.  And it's our responsibility as their successors to maintain that delicate and creative fabric of governance; to continue to act in the best interest of the people whom we serve.

So, Mr. President, on behalf of the governors of America and others here tonight, I want to offer a toast to you, to the First Lady, and to the people of this great country. 

(A toast is offered.)

END

The White House

Office of the First Lady

For Immediate Release
February 20, 2010

Remarks by The First Lady to the National Governors Association

JW Marriott
Washington, D.C.

11:09 A.M. EST

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you all so much.  Thank you.  It is a pleasure for me to be here with all of you today and to welcome you all to Washington.

Thank you, Governor Douglas, for that very kind introduction.  And thanks to you and Governor Manchin for your leadership in Vermont as well as [West] Virginia, and as the Chair and the Vice Chair of the NGA.

And I also want to recognize all the governors who are here today and to thank you for your outstanding leadership and the dedicated service that you provide to states all across this country.  We are grateful to you.

Now, I would be remiss if I didn't thank all the spouses who are here for all the things you have to put up with.  (Laughter.)  The long hours, absolutely.  (Applause.)  You all are making the same kind of sacrifices, putting up with long hours and late-night crises.  And all I can say is, been there, done that.  (Laughter.)  And I know how you feel, and we are just grateful to have you all.  And again, we'll give them another round of applause.  (Applause.)

Now, I know that the focus of this year's meeting is the issue of health care.  And over the next few days, you're going to be talking about spiraling costs that are straining your budgets and running up all of our deficits -- costs like the nearly $150 billion a year that we spend on obesity-related conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure.  You're going to talk about the staggering Medicaid burdens -- and how premiums have risen three times faster than wages, often bankrupting families in your states, sinking businesses in states all across this country.

But we all know that there's another set of statistics that have to be a part of this discussion -- like how nearly one in three of our children in this country is now overweight or obese.  Like how one in three kids today will eventually develop diabetes -- and in the African American and Hispanic communities, the number is nearly half.  Because if we think our health care costs are high now, just wait until 10 years from now.  Think about the many billions we're going to be spending then.  Think about how high those premiums are going to be when our kids are old enough to have families of their own and businesses of their own.

So we all know that we can't solve our health care problems unless we address our childhood obesity problem, too.  And that's really why I'm here today:  to talk about the issue of childhood obesity that is so important to me and what our states and our nations can do to solve it.

But we have to begin by understanding how we got here, what's caused this crisis in the first place.  And I have my theories, but when you all think about it, this is a relatively new phenomenon.  This wasn't something that we were dealing with when I was growing up.  Back when we were all growing up, most of us led lives that naturally kept us at a healthy weight.  We walked to school and we walked home, because we usually lived in communities where our schools were close.  All of us ran around all day at school, doing recess and gym because everybody had to do it.  And then when we got home, we'd be sent right back outside and told not to come back home until dinner was served.  (Laughter.)  You know your parents didn't let you in the house.

And back then we ate sensibly.  We had many more home-cooked meals.  That was the norm.  And much to our dismay at the time, there was always something green on the plate.  (Laughter.)  Fast food and dessert was a special treat.  You had it but you didn't have it every day, and the portion sizes were reasonable.  In my family I remember a couple of pints of ice cream -- this was a big treat -- we'd get three pints of ice cream for a family of four and that would last us a week, because you wouldn't eat a pint, you'd get a scoop, and that would be it.  You'd savor that a spoonful at a time.

And these weren't arbitrary rules that our parents just made up.  As we know now, it was a way of life they imposed to help keep us active and healthy.  They knew back then that kids couldn't and shouldn't sit still for hours.  They knew that kids needed to run around and play.  They knew that keeping us healthy wasn't about saying no to everything, but it was about balance and moderation.  We all had our share of burgers and fries and ice cream growing up.  We just didn't have it every day, and not at every meal.

But somewhere along the line, we kind of lost that sense of perspective and moderation.  And we all want the very best for our kids just like our parents wanted for us.  But with the pressures of today's economy, and the breakneck pace of modern life, many parents feel like the deck is stacked against them.

They want to prepare healthy foods for their kids, but a lot of times they're tight on money and they just can't afford these meals.  Or oftentimes they're tight on time because they're juggling longer hours at work and many of them juggling multiple jobs.  So they just can't swing coming home and making a home-cooked meal around the dinner table.  It's hard.

They want their kids to be active, but sometimes they live in communities where either it's not practical to walk to school or, worse yet, it's not safe.  Or they live in communities where gym classes and school sports are considered luxuries and not necessities -- the first things to go in a budget crunch.  And those afternoons playing outside, they've been replaced by afternoons sitting inside in front of the TV or video games or the Internet.  And as a result, many parents feel like they've lost that sense of being in charge that their parents had.

But we have to be honest with ourselves:  Our kids didn't do this to themselves.  Our kids didn't decide whether there's time for recess or gym class, or our kids don't decide what's served to them in the school cafeteria.  Our kids don't decide whether to build playgrounds and parks in their neighborhoods or whether to bring supermarkets and farmer's markets to their communities.  We set those priorities.  We make those decisions.  And even if it doesn't feel like we're in charge, we are.

But that's the good news.  Because if we make these decisions here, then we can decide to solve this problem.  And that's precisely what so many of you are doing right now in your states.  You're experimenting and innovating.  Many of you are ignoring the naysayers and the old partisan divides, and focusing solely on what works.

In Pennsylvania, for example, folks started a Fresh Food Financing Initiative to bring grocery stores to underserved areas.  And I got to visit one of those communities yesterday when I spent some time with Governor Rendell in Philadelphia.  In that community they started with $30 million, and then they leveraged that for an additional $190 million from the private and non-profit sectors.  And with that money they've funded 83 supermarket projects in 34 counties that are making profits, and they're projected to create more than 5,000 jobs.

In North Carolina, they've launched a full-scale effort to help kids eat healthier and to exercise more.  They've banned snack and soda vending machines from elementary schools.  They've given grants to cities and to counties for things like sidewalks and trails and community gardens.  And they've trained 41,000 teachers across the state on how to incorporate physical activity into the classroom.

And Arkansas started on the issue of childhood obesity way back in 2003 -- something former Governor Huckabee and I discussed yesterday when I appeared on his TV show.  They screened students' BMIs, which was controversial.  They got healthier food into their schools and required regular physical education classes.  And as a result, that state was able to halt the rise of childhood obesity completely.

What you all are doing is proof that if we are creative and committed enough, if we meet this challenge with the kind of energy and determination that it requires, then we can take back control and we can turn back the tide and we can give our kids the kind of lives they deserve.

And that's why last week we launched this wonderful initiative called "Let's Move."  It's a nationwide campaign to rally this country around a single ambitious goal, and that is to solve the problem of childhood obesity in a generation so that the kids born today will reach adulthood at a healthy weight.

So we've issued a call to action.  We've said, let's move.  Let's move to help families and communities make healthier decisions for their kids.  And let's move to bring together governors and mayors and doctors, nurses, our business leaders, non-profit community, our educators, our athletes, our parents to tackle this challenge once and for all.  Because it's going to take every last one of us -- particularly folks in the private sector, from the food industry offering healthier options to retailers who understand that what's good for kids and families can actually be good for businesses, too.

That's why, over the next 90 days, the first ever government-wide task force, which includes members of our Cabinet, will develop a national action plan.  And they won't just review every government program relating to child nutrition and physical activity and advise us on how to marshal those resources.  But they're also going to develop benchmarks to measure our progress, and recommend actions that can be taken by the private and the non-profit sectors.

But we cannot wait 90 days to get to work here.  So we've already gotten started on a series of initiatives to achieve our goal.

There are four key pillars.  The first:  Let's move to offer parents the tools and information they need and that many have been asking for to make healthier choices for their kids.  So many parents want to do the right thing, but they are bombarded by conflicting information, and they don't know what to believe or where to start.  That's why many of you have been running public education campaigns and creating healthy-living Web sites.  And California is leading the way, becoming the first state in the country to require restaurant chains of a certain size to post calorie information on menus and menu boards -- just one part of an aggressive, anti-obesity strategy that's making a difference across that state.  And the health care legislation in Congress follows their lead.  It includes a similar provision to help parents make informed decisions.

Let's Move is going to add to these efforts.  We've started with a Web site, called letsmove.gov, that's going to have helpful tips and step-by-step strategies for parents.  We're also working with pediatricians and family doctors to encourage them to screen kids for obesity early, and then actually write out a prescription for parents with action steps that they can take to address it so they don't feel like they're dealing with this problem alone.

And we've been working with the FDA and the food industry to make our food labels more customer-friendly, so that people don't spend hours squinting at words they can't pronounce to know if the foods they're buying are healthy.  In fact, the nation's beverage companies, the largest, just announced that they're going to be providing clearly visible information about calories on the front of their products and on their vending machines and soda fountains.  And this is a step in the right direction.  It's an important step, but it's still only one step.  And we have so many more ahead.

We can't forget, for example, that 31 million of our children participate in federal school meal programs.  So we don't want to be in the position where we take one step forward with parents making good decisions, but then we take two steps back when lunch time rolls around at school and kids are faced with poor choices in the school cafeteria.

So let's move to get healthier food into our nation's schools, and that's the second part of this initiative.  There's a reason why our governors are such passionate advocates for our school meal programs.  It's because you all know the impact that these programs have.  You know that when kids get the nutrition they need, they perform better in the classroom and they miss fewer days of school.  So let's multiply that by 31 million, and we are talking about a serious impact on education in this country.

That's why we've set a goal of doubling the number of schools in the HealthierUS School Challenge.  And we've already gotten several major food suppliers to commit to offering healthier school meals.

We're also updating and strengthening the Child Nutrition Act.  Secretary Vilsack is taking the lead on these efforts, and we plan to invest an additional $10 billion over 10 years to fund that legislation.  This will allow us to serve 1 million more kids in the first five years, and dramatically improve the quality of food in our schools -- decreasing sugar, fat, and salt; and increasing fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

But our success here is up to you.  It's up to you to get that -- get the most out of these new investments.  And maybe that means demanding more from your suppliers in your state, or maybe renegotiating your contracts to include healthier options.  Maybe it means starting a farm-to-school program or insisting on healthier options in school vending machines, which, by the way, has actually meant increased revenues in schools in Kentucky and Maine and elsewhere.

But while school meals provide critical nutrition for millions of kids, we also can't forget that kids get plenty of their calories at home, right in their own neighborhoods.  And many of our kids live in what we call "food deserts," and these are areas without access to a grocery store.  Imagine that, living in a community without a grocery store.  So too many of those calories at home come from fast food or processed foods from the local gas station or convenience store.

So that's why the third component of "Let's Move" is, let's move to ensure that all our families have access to healthy, affordable food in their communities.  Right now there are food deserts in every single state in this country, so we've set an ambitious goal, and that is to eliminate every last one of those food deserts within seven years.

And to achieve this, we've created the Healthy Food Financing Initiative that is modeled on what was so successful in Pennsylvania.  We'll start with an initial investment of $400 million a year.  And we'll use that to leverage hundreds of millions more from the private and non-profit sectors to bring grocery stores to underserved areas across the country.

And once again, our success here is going to depend so much on what you do.  We need you to encourage communities to apply for these grants, and provide the right incentives -- from helpful zoning laws, to remapped transit routes that help shoppers access stores, to job training to entice grocers with a well-prepared workforce.

But we know that eating right is only part of the battle.  We all know that in our own lives.  We know that physical activity is critical, too -- not just for better health but for better academic achievement.  Experts recommend that kids get at least 60 minutes of active play each day.  And we know that many of our kids aren't anywhere close to that.  So let's move -- and I mean that literally.  We have to move to find new ways for our kids to be physically active both in and out of school.

And I have to say that many of you have been very creative on this piece already.  Folks in West Virginia have taken the lead in bringing DDR -- that's Dance, Dance Revolution -- it's a new video game that gets kids up and moving.  Many other states use it as well.  And let me tell you, I can attest to Dance, Dance Revolution.  We got it at Camp David, and it will make you sweat.  (Laughter.)  And it is addictive in a very good way.  The President still can't do it.  (Laughter.)

Georgia is using a program called HOPSports, and they're beaming in videos of famous athletes into gym classes so kids can learn skills and techniques from their heroes and their role models.

And to build on these efforts, "Let's Move" is going to work to modernize and expand the President's Physical Fitness Challenge.  And we've already recruited professional athletes from dozens of different sports leagues.  They're going to be involved to encourage our kids to get and stay active.

So that's just some of what we're doing -- just some of it.  That's how we're working to attack this problem from every single angle.  Because that's the thing about this issue of childhood obesity -- it has so many different causes.  There are so many different culprits, and it's not enough to tackle any one of them alone, because we can give our kids the healthiest school meals imaginable, but if the rest of their calories come from the corner store or drive-through, then they still won't get adequate nutrition.  And we can have shiny new supermarkets on every block in every community, but if parents don't have the information they need, they'll still struggle to make the right choices for their kids.

So we need a comprehensive, coordinated approach to this problem.  But that doesn't necessarily mean an expensive approach, because I know that many of you are stretched thinner than ever in these times, and don't actually have money to spare.  But often it's about doing more with what you already have.  If you're already paving a new road, for example, why not add a sidewalk or a bike path, too?  Or if you're already building a housing development, why not add a playground?  If you've got school gyms or playing fields empty after hours, why not find a way to open them up to the community at night or on the weekends?

I also want to be clear that "comprehensive and coordinated" doesn't mean centralized.  I've spoken to so many experts on this issue, and not a single one of them has said that the solution is for the federal government to tell people what to do.  That doesn't work.  There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this problem.  Because what works in Rhode Island might not work in Arizona.  What's perfect for Hawaii might not be right for Minnesota.  Different states, as you know, have different needs and different priorities and different resources.

And you all know best what's going to work for the people that you serve.  You know what's working and you know what isn't.  That's why the NGA's efforts to support this issue and to provide best practice is going to be so valuable.  It has already been.  That's why I've reached out to so many of you to get your ideas and your input and to learn more about how we can help you.  And I want to hear from every single state, of every size, from every region.  I want to work with leaders from both parties, because the way I see this, there is nothing Democratic or Republican, there is nothing liberal or conservative about wanting our kids to lead active, healthy lives.

There's no place for politics when it comes to fighting childhood obesity.  And I know all of you agree; I know that.  You know that -- (applause) -- you know that because with a phone call or the stroke of a pen, you can determine whether a child can see a doctor or get a decent education or have a safe place to play, because you all are fighting the real battles every day on behalf of our kids, and you don't have time for the fake battles.  You're interested in what works, what makes a real difference in people's lives, what will make things better for the next generation.

It's funny, because that's what drove President Theodore Roosevelt to call the very first meeting of this organization a century ago to speak to America's governors about conservation -- about preserving America's beauty and bounty not just for the current generation but for generations to come.

Working for the next generation is what drives so many Americans to do what they do -- to work that extra shift, to take that extra job, to go without themselves just so that their kids can have more than they did.  It's what we've always done in this country.  I know my parents have done it for me.  They measured their success by the success of their children, by whether their children were happier and healthier and had a better shot at fulfilling their dreams than they did.

That's why so many of you got involved in politics in the first place -- to leave something better for those who are going to come after you.  And in the end, that's what "Let's Move" is all about.  It is simple.  Let's stop wringing our hands and talking about it and citing statistics.  Let's act.  Let's move.  Let's give our kids the future they deserve.

Look, I look forward to working with all of you in these efforts over the months and years ahead.  I'm going to need you.  I'm going to need you championing these causes, giving me feedback, giving me direction and guidance.  It will not work any other way.  And our kids can't afford for us to get this wrong, and we know it.

So thank you in advance for your help, and I look forward to seeing you all on the dance floor tomorrow night.  (Laughter.)  Thank you so much.  (Applause.)

END
11:33 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the First Lady

For Immediate Release
February 19, 2010

Remarks by the First Lady at Fresh Food Financing Initiative

Fairhill Elementary School, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

2:47 P.M. EST

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you.  All right, Albalee, that applause was just as much for me as it was for your wonderful introduction.  (Laughter.)  Wasn't she?  She did a great job, great job.  (Applause.)  Just know that we're all very proud of you, and we're all very proud of every single one of your classmates and every single student here in the city of Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania.  I am so pleased to be here today, so grateful.  And thank you all for having me.

Ever since July, when Secretary Vilsack stopped -- visited here, he has not stopped talking -- (laughter) -- about his visit here to Pennsylvania.  (Applause.)  No, really, I mean -- and when I heard about it I couldn't wait to get here.  As we've been talking about the garden and talking about this initiative, I'm like, I got to see what's going on in Philly, what's going on in Pennsylvania.  So I'm thrilled to finally have the chance to come here and see for myself, and I want to thank Secretary Vilsack not just for being out front on this issue but for his leadership and work at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

I also want to thank Secretary Geithner also for joining us today.  Both of them have just been terrific resources and support, not just in the Cabinet but just in everything that we're doing.

And I don't think that many Treasury Secretaries can claim childhood obesity as part of their portfolio, right?  (Laughter and applause.)  It is pretty cool to have your husband's Treasury Secretary enthusiastically a part of this initiative.  (Laughter.)  So I salute you for your work.  I know your wife has a lot to do with it, but that's -- (laughter.)

I also want to thank Senators Casey and Carper as well for being here; Representatives Brady and Fattah --I'm trying to make sure I'm catching everybody.  And Representative Schwartz for joining us today and for their work on behalf of the people of this state and for the people of Delaware.

I want to thank Governor Rendell, Mr. Svelte -- (laughter) -- looking good, who's here.  Every time I see him he gets smaller and smaller.  (Laughter.)  It's a good thing.  You're looking good.  And I also want to thank his wonderful wife, Judge Marjorie Rendell.  I'm going to see you all very shortly tomorrow at the National Governors Association.  Have to thank Mayor Nutter, who still is getting the award for one of the best campaign rallies we had here in Philly.  He just blew out the introduction, had everybody crying.  (Laughter.)  So thank you for your support and your leadership here.  Representative Evans, thank you for your outstanding work to ensure that the kids across this state can lead active, healthy lives.  The work that you've done to get this going has been tremendous.  (Applause.)  Yeah, stand up! 

     And I also have to recognize Pat Burns, who hosted us at the Fresh Grocer today.  (Applause.)  Pat hosted us, just as Jeff Brown hosted Secretary Vilsack and others at his supermarket last summer.  It was just wonderful tour, a wonderful experience, and I commend both of you for your leadership and for doing what's best for the people of this city.

And I have to finally thank a few others:  the Food Trust.  (Applause.)  The Reinvestment Fund.  (Applause.)  And the Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition.  (Applause.)  You all have done extraordinary and some could say revolutionary work here in this city.  And as you all have said consistently, you couldn't do it without each other.  That has been the resonating message.  So you all should be very proud to be highlighted here today for the work that you've done.  It's really groundbreaking, and hopefully will set the tone for what we can do throughout the country.

Six years ago, when this city had fewer supermarkets per person than almost anywhere in America, all right, that was six years ago, when many folks had no access to healthy foods; six years ago many neighborhoods had alarming rates of obesity-related conditions like heart disease and diabetes -- the folks in this city, you all could have decided that you had an unsolvable problems on your hands, right?  You could have done that.  You could have decided that these problems were just too big and too complicated and too entrenched and thrown your hands up and walked away. 

But instead you all took a stand, a really important, collaborative stand.  You decided first that no family in this city should be spending a fortune on high-priced, low-quality foods because they have no other options.  You decided that no child should be consigned to a life of poor health because of what neighborhood his or her family lives in.  And you decided that you weren't going to just talk about the problem or wring your hands about the problems, but you were going to act. 

And that's precisely the kind of determination, the kind of commitment that we need to address the epidemic of childhood obesity in this country.  And this issue is an issue of great concern to me, and I've said this before, not because I'm First Lady -- or not just because I'm First Lady of this country -- but because I'm a mother, and I care about my kids and I care about all of our kids.  And I know that this issue is a great concern to all of you, everyone around this country.  We all care about our kids.  That's why last week we enthusiastically and proudly launched "Let's Move."  (Applause.)  "Let's Move" is a nationwide campaign to rally this country around one single but ambitious goal, and that is to end the epidemic of childhood obesity in a generation so that the kids born today grow up with a healthy weight.  Simple but ambitious. 

So this is what we need to do.  Let's move to help families and communities make healthier decisions for their kids.  Let's move to bring together our governors and our mayors, our doctors, our nurses, our businesses, our community groups, our parents, teachers, coaches, everyone to tackle this challenge once and for all.  And let's move to get our kids what they need to succeed in life.  Let's move to ensure that they have the energy and the strength to succeed in school and then in the careers that they choose.  Let's move to ensure that they can later live lives where they can keep up with their own kids, maybe keep up with their own grandkids, and if they're blessed, maybe their great-grandkids.

And "Let's Move" is a simple initiative with four parts.  And Albalee very well laid them out.  (Laughter.)  Good job.  (Applause.)  But let me repeat:  First part, let's move to give parents the tools and the information they need to make the healthy choices for their kids.  So we're working to provide better labeling for our food and encourage our pediatricians to screen kids for obesity during well-child visits, but then to write a prescription for families when they identify a problem with a step-by-step sort of process for what they can actually do.  And we started this wonderful Web site called letsmove.gov to help provide tips and step-by-step strategies on eating well and staying active so parents don't feel alone and isolated as they're trying to figure this out.

Second part:  Let's move to get more nutritious food in our schools.  Secretary Vilsack, that's something he's focused on.  That's why we're working not just with the Department of Agriculture but with food suppliers, food service workers, school officials, and investing billions of dollars to revamp our school breakfast and lunch programs so that our kids are eating foods with less sugar, fat, and salt, and eating more foods with fresh vegetables and fruits and whole grains.  (Applause.)

The third part of the initiative is:  Let's move.  That's literally let's move.  We got to move.  We got to find ways for our kids to be more active, both in and out of school.  That's why we're expanding and modernizing the President's Physical Fitness Challenge.  And we've recruited professional athletes from all across this country who are just ready and willing to encourage our kids to get and to stay active.

And then finally, one of the reasons why we're here, the final component:  Let's move to ensure that all families have access to healthy, affordable food in their own communities.  (Applause.)  And the approach on this aspect is very simple.  We want to replicate your success here in Pennsylvania all across America. 

Again, six years ago this state decided to invest $30 million in fresh food financing, which has leveraged $190 million more from the private and non-profit sectors.  And so far these investments have funded 83 supermarket projects in 34 counties, bringing nutritious food to more than 400,000 people.  (Applause.)  And, more importantly in this economy, this investment is projected to create more than 5,000 jobs.  (Applause.)  And these jobs are occurring often in communities that need them the most.  Across this state, right now, because of these efforts, new employees are learning new job skills.  And I met many of them at the Fresh Grocer.  Just folks who were proud -- proud to be in a store that was serving their community and proud to be doing a good job and have a chance to not just support their families but do something good for the rest of their communities.  (Applause.)

But these new stores are also bringing new economic development into these communities, because they serve as anchors to attract other businesses to invest, and creating even more new jobs.  So one good deed leads to another.

And we saw this example today again during our visit to the Fresh Grocer at Progress Plaza.  As you all know, the last supermarket that was in that community closed more than 10 years ago.  More than a decade ago.  That was the last time that that community had a grocery store.  So this community went 10 years without a place for folks to buy good food.  For 10 years folks had to buy their groceries at places like convenience stores and gas stations, where usually they don't have a whole lot of fresh food, if any, to choose from.  So that means if a mom wanted to buy a head of lettuce to make a salad in this community, or have some fresh fruit for their kids' lunch, that means she would have to get on a bus, navigate public transportation with big bags of groceries, probably more than one time a week, or, worse yet, pay for a taxicab ride to get to some other supermarket in another community, just to feed her kids.

So let's think about that.  For 10 years in one community, there were kids in that community who couldn't get the nutritious food that they needed during some of the most formative years of their lives.  And think about the impact that that can have on a child's health, not just now but in the future, because research shows that children who are overweight as adolescents are 70 to 80 percent more likely to become obese as adults.

And what happened in the neighborhood that we visited today is happening somewhere in every state all across this country.  Right now there are 23.5 million Americans, including 6.5 million children, who live in what we call "food deserts."  These are places and communities that don't have a supermarket.  This is true in the inner city and in rural communities.  This is happening all across the country.

But fortunately, right here in Philadelphia, you all have this wonderful grocer named Pat Burns who had already opened successful stores in other neighborhoods.  And he decided that it was -- he was interested in opening a grocery store in Progress Plaza.  (Applause.)  But he could only do it because of a grant from the Fresh Food Financing Initiative.  And today, just a few months after it opened -- and this is important for everybody to understand -- the Fresh Grocer is doing a thriving business.  It's a beautiful store, attracting folks from neighboring communities and providing jobs for folks in the area.  In fact, during the big snow the Fresh Grocer was able to stay open because so many of the employees live nearby.

So with your success here in Pennsylvania, what you've shown us is that when we provide the right support and incentives, then business leaders like Pat Burns and Jeff Brown, they're going to take the chance to invest in our communities.  And when we bring fresh, healthy food to communities, what do we learn?  People will buy it, right?  People will buy it.  These stores are turning a profit.  And what's going on is that they're doing well by doing good.  Isn't that something?  (Applause.)

So it's because of this example that part of "Let's Move" we created this Healthy Food Financing Initiative that's modeled on what's been going on here.  And as Secretary Geithner said, with a modest initial investment of about $400 million a year, we're going to use that money to leverage hundreds of millions more from private and non-profit sectors to bring grocery stores and other healthy food retailers to underserved communities all across this country.  If you can do it here, we can do it around the country.  (Applause.)  And our goal is ambitious.  It's to eliminate food deserts in America completely in seven years.  (Applause.)

Again, we know this is ambitious, but we also know that tackling the issue of accessibility and affordability is key to achieving the overall goal of solving childhood obesity in this generation.  Because we can give our kids the healthiest school breakfasts and lunches imaginable, but that won't mean much if they head to the corner store after school and buy candy and chips and soda because that's all they have available, right?  And we can create the best nutrition education and physical education programs in the world, but if dinner is something off of the shelf of a local gas station or convenience store because there's no grocery store nearby, all our best efforts are going to go to waste.  We're setting people up for failure if we don't fix this.

So it's clear that we need a comprehensive, coordinated approach.  But we also have to be clear that that doesn't mean that it requires a bunch of new laws and policies from Washington, D.C.  I have spoken to many experts on this issue, and not a single one of them has said that the solution to this problem is to have government telling people what to do in their own lives. 

It's also not about spending huge sums of money, particularly during these times, when so many communities are already stretched thin.  Instead, it's about doing more with what we already have.

And as you've shown us here in Philadelphia, it's about smart investments that leverage more investments and then have the potential to pay for themselves many times over in the long run.  What you've clearly demonstrated here in this city and in this state is that we can do what's good for our businesses and our economy while doing what's good for our kids and our families and our neighborhoods at the same time.  We can do it all.  (Applause.)

And Jeff Brown put it best when he talked about his decision to put a grocery store in underserved communities.  He said, "We have more than the bottom" -- "We have more than one bottom line here."  That's important.  He said, "We have more than one bottom line here…the community's success is important, too."  That's a wonderful spirit.  (Applause.)  And in the end, that's what this is all about, really -- not just the kind of food that we want our kids to eat, but it's also about the kind of communities that we want our kids to live in.  And it's about the kind of lives that we want them to lead, right, all of our kids.

We know it won't be easy to solve this obesity crisis, because these big problems are never easy.  We're going to need a lot more folks just like all of you to step up to the plate.  This isn't about the First Lady doing it all.  I can't do it by myself.  I'm going to need all of you.  We're going to have to work together.  But if there's anyone out there who doubts that it can be done, then I would urge them to come here to Philadelphia and to see what you've done here.  (Applause.)  I would urge them to see the difference that we can make when government and businesses and community groups and ordinary folks come together to tackle a common problem.  It's a powerful thing.  I would urge them to imagine what we can achieve if we take programs like this that have lifted up so many communities here in Pennsylvania and then we bring those programs and those efforts and those ideas to every part of this country.  Just imagine how many jobs we can create.  Just imagine how many neighborhoods that we could revitalize and how many lives could be transformed.  You all are seeing that now.

So let's move.  (Laughter.)  That's really the point.  (Applause.)  If we know it can be done, let's move, let's get it done.  Let's give our kids everything they need and everything they deserve to be the best that they can be.  Thank you all.  This has been a wonderful day.  Thank you so much.  (Applause.)

END
3:10 P.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 19, 2010

Remarks by the President to the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce and The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority

Las Vegas City Center, Aria Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada

12:02 P.M. PST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, everybody.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Thank you so much.  Thank you.  Everybody, please have a seat.  Thank you very much.  Thank you.

Well, what a extraordinary introduction from an extraordinary leader.  I just want to reiterate something I said at the town hall meeting earlier.  You could not have a better fighter on behalf of the people of Nevada than Senator Harry Reid.  (Applause.)  And I am just proud -- I'm proud to call him a friend. 

A lot of people in Washington forget where they come from.  Harry Reid has not.  And that's something that I've always admired about Harry, ever since I first got to the Senate.  He retains that honesty and decency and homespun good sense and, yes, sometimes some bluntness, that he's carried with him since his boyhood in Searchlight.

We've got a number of other special guests that I just want to acknowledge.  First of all, I want to thank Jim for helping to organize this.  Thank you so much to Jim Murren.  I want to acknowledge Congresswoman Shelley Berkley and Congresswoman Dina Titus, who are here.  (Applause.)  Assemblyman Joe Hogan is here and state Senator David Parks.  (Applause.)  I want to thank the Las Vegas Asian, Henderson, Latin, North Las Vegas, and Urban Chambers.  (Applause.)  Thank you, guys, for helping to organize this.  And the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.  (Applause.)

You know, I was mentioning the fact that Harry has retained that sense of who he is, despite the extraordinary journey that he's traveled.  Over the past year under very trying circumstances for the country, I've seen something else in Harry.  Harry comes across as soft-spoken, but he's made of very strong stuff.  He's never been afraid to make tough decisions, even if they weren't politically popular, if they were the right decisions for his state and the right decisions for America.

And so I just want to reiterate his leadership has made a tremendous difference, and through these economic storms he's never lost sight of the struggles and the hardships of the people who sent him to Washington.  And every Nevadan should know the strength and the character of a man that I hope and expect to serve in Washington for many years to come.  (Applause.) 

So, thank you, Harry, for the great work you do.  Harry also gets embarrassed when you compliment him too much.  You know, he kind of -- (laughter) -- see, he looks away.  (Laughter.)

Now, before I go any further, let me set the record straight:  I love Vegas!  (Applause.)  There you go.  Always have.  Love Vegas.  (Laughter.)  Enjoy myself every time I've gotten an opportunity to visit.  In fact, just last night, I drew a flush on the river and cut the budget deficit in half.  (Laughter.)  Some of you know I can play some poker.  (Laughter.) 

Now, I did receive a little bit of heat, I know, from maybe some in this room, when I said that folks shouldn't blow their college savings in Vegas.  That doesn't mean I don't love Vegas.  It wasn't meant to be a shot.  I think everybody here would agree that the only place where people should spend their college savings is in college.  (Applause.)  There's no contradiction there.

But, look, I understand how hard things have been here.  In the worst economic turmoil that we've faced in generations, Las Vegas has been at the eye of the storm.  When the economy suffers, the tourism industry is deeply affected; in fact, you've seen perhaps the steepest drop in tourism in the state's history.  And I know things are starting to bounce back, but it's been tough going.  When folks are hurting and don't have the money to spend on a night out or a weekend getaway, that hurts the broader economy as well.  So what happens in Vegas reflects what's happening across America.

And this area has also been hit by the home mortgage crisis as hard as just about anywhere in America.  And this doesn't just affect the families at risk of losing their homes, as devastating as that can be.  It also affects the many more families who've lost value in their homes, and the equity that makes it possible to finance a business or secure a retirement.  From their peak, home prices in Las Vegas have fallen in half.  This is something all of you are aware of.

And finally, Nevada has not escaped the wider devastation that's ripped through the financial markets and the economic fabric of our country a whole, as credit became scarce and consumer spending dropped and businesses were forced to close their doors. 

Today, more than one in eight people in Las Vegas can't find work.  So no one needs to explain to the members of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce that we've been through a punishing recession -- as bad as anything since 1930.  The recession in 1980-'81, doesn't come close to what we've gone through over the last two years. 

And no one needs to tell you how important it is that we remain absolutely focused on bringing about a strong recovery.  Our great challenge as a country is to create the environment in which businesses can expand and hire workers; in which middle-class families can find good jobs and save for the future; in which our economy is growing, and that growth is sustained and broadly shared.  That's my focus; that's Harry Reid's focus:  to not only rebuild this economy, but to rebuild it stronger than it was before the crisis.

At the same time, standing before this group of business leaders, it's important to emphasize that there's only so much that government can do -- and only so much that government should do.  Sometimes in Washington it sounds a little contradictory when I hear folks say, "Obama wants the government to take over the economy."  Then they'll turn around and say, "Why isn't the government doing more to create jobs?" 

Now, Harry and I understand that's politics.  But putting politics aside, what I believe -- and what I know you believe -- is that the true engine of job creation and economic expansion in this country has never been found in the halls of Congress or in the corridors of the White House.  America's economic success begins elsewhere, in more humble settings:  in garages and basements and rented storefronts.

It begins when a worker decides to leave her job to be her own boss; when an inventor makes his first sale on the way to his first million; when an innovator sees a product that could be better or a service that could be provided more smartly; when an entrepreneur takes a chance on an idea that just might fail, but might also change the world. 

Now, that's the story of America -- the land of opportunity.  A nation where -- at our best -- we welcomed all those from around the world who are willing to work hard, all who are willing to take themselves as far as their talents would allow.  And what has made it possible to harness the incredible productive capacity of the American people -- the greatest economic force in the history of the world -- has been a free market where people can pursue their dreams, their goals and their happiness, and where you can take charge of your own destiny. 

So I don't believe my role as President, the role of the federal government or the state government or city governments, is to stifle the free market.  I think my role is to strengthen its ability to unleash that creativity and ingenuity which still makes this nation the envy of the world. 

Now, there are those who suggest that the only way government can promote strong markets is to allow them to operate wholly outside even the most modest rules of the road, even the most sensible reforms.  Many of these same folks also suggest -- whether in regard to proposed consumer protections in the health insurance industry, or proposed rules to prevent another financial crisis -- that these kinds of policies run counter to our economic interests.  And while I respect those who sincerely hold this view, the facts -- and our history -- do not favor this argument. 

Throughout our past, there have been times when markets have fallen out of balance.  And there have been periods of economic transformation and upheaval when prosperity and even basic financial security have eluded far too many citizens.  And at those moments, government has stepped in not to supplant private enterprise, but to catalyze it -- to create the conditions for entrepreneurs and new businesses to adapt and ultimately to thrive. 

Sometimes it requires government investment.  That's why we laid railroads and highways to spur commerce and industry and stitch this nation together.  Sometimes it means making sure that there's a safety net.  That's why we created Social Security while putting in place financial safeguards like the FDIC in the wake of the economic dislocations of the 1930s. 

A lot of times it involves investing in our people.  That's why we passed a GI bill to nurture the skills and talents of an entire generation.  That's why President Kennedy pointed us to the moon, knowing that the exploration of the skies above would lead to unimagined discoveries here on Earth.

That's how Las Vegas became Las Vegas -- a balance of private enterprise but also a regulatory structure that made sure that people could come here and enjoy themselves and thrive and bring their families in an environment that was safe for them and secure. 

At these moments of transformation, such efforts by government, they don't stifle our economy; just the opposite.  They've helped our economy achieve the growth that was not only more robust, but more widely shared by our citizens -- citizens who were in turn better able to contribute to our economy.  And when we've gone without sound rules of the road and sound investments in our future, then we've risked stagnation or worse -- we've risked full-blown economic crises.

And that's where we found ourselves one year ago when my administration came through the door.  I know sometimes we've got a short-term memory.  It's one of the things that makes America great, is we don't brood about the past.  But it's worth us just remembering where we were. 

Five trillion dollars of Americans' household wealth evaporated in just 12 weeks as the financial markets plummeted -- $5 trillion.  Several of the world's largest financial institutions were on the brink of collapse; some of them disappeared.  Home values were in freefall -- nobody knew what the floor was.  Businesses could not get credit, no matter how creditworthy.  Seven hundred and fifty thousand jobs were vanishing each month -- more than the entire population of Vermont was losing its job every single month when I was sworn in.  And the fear among economists across the political spectrum was that we were rapidly sinking into a second Great Depression.

So we undertook a series of difficult steps -- and, frankly, some of them were unpopular, deeply unpopular -- to prevent that outcome.  And I was at the town hall earlier today and I pointed out, it's not as if Harry and I don't have pollsters -- we got very good pollsters, and they tell us when things are unpopular.n  (Laughter.)  "Don't do that!"  But we thought it was important to do what was right, not what was popular.  (Applause.)

So we acted to get lending flowing again, so companies like yours could get loans to buy equipment and restock, keep your doors open, make payroll.  We thought it was important for ordinary Americans to be able to finance their homes, or buying a new car, or going to college, or starting or running a business. 

We passed tax relief for small businesses and 95 percent of working families, for college students, for first-time homebuyers.  We extended or increased unemployment benefits not just to help those families but also to make sure that there was some demand in the economy at a time when so much demand had been lost.  We made health insurance 65 percent cheaper for families relying on COBRA.  We acted to close state budget gaps to prevent hundreds of thousands of teachers and public school workers and firefighters and police officers from being laid off all across the country, including right here in Nevada.

And at the same time, we initiated investments to spur hiring while laying a foundation for long-term lasting growth.  We doubled our capacity in renewable energy like wind and solar.  We computerized medical records to save money and lives.  We provided the largest boost to medical research in history.  All across the country, classrooms and school laboratories are being renovated.  Roads and railways are being upgraded as part of the largest investment in infrastructure since President Eisenhower half a century ago initiated the Interstate Highway System.

Right here in Nevada, hundreds of entrepreneurs have received small business loans.  One million Nevadans have seen a tax cut.  Hundreds of thousands of seniors and veterans have received emergency assistance.  A quarter-million people in this state have received additional unemployment insurance.  And across Nevada, there are dozens of transportation projects and energy projects and construction projects putting people to work doing the work that America needs done.

And you know what -- what made all this possible was the Recovery Act; also known as the stimulus bill.  Now, there are a bunch of folks out there who would tell you otherwise and would say that the Recovery Act hasn't made a difference and created a job.  But, you know, facts are stubborn things.  There's a famous story about a former senator, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who has having an argument with a fellow senator and the other guy wasn't doing too well in the argument so finally he said, "Well, I'm entitled to my own opinion."  And Moynihan said, "Yes, you're entitled to your own opinion; you're not entitled to your own facts."  (Laughter.)

Economists tell us that the Recovery Act has helped stop the freefall in our economy and created or saved as many as two million jobs so far.  And by the way the actions of these critics speak louder than words, because many of the members of Congress who voted against the Recovery Act, called it a boondoggle -- funny how they end up making appearances at ribbon cuttings for Recovery Act projects.  (Laughter.)  It's a sight to see.  They're up there cheesing and grinning.  (Laughter.)  They're trying to vote against their cake and eat it, too.  (Laughter.)

Now, this is not to say that all of our troubles are over -- far from it.  We may have kept 2 million people from the unemployment line in this recession, but more than 8 million people have lost their jobs.  We may have broken the back of the recession -- when I came in this economy was contracting 6 percent; this past quarter it was growing 6 percent -- a huge reversal.  So the economy may be growing again, but that growth has not nearly made up for the terrible pain and dislocations that rocked businesses and families over the course of a very difficult two years. 

So we've got a lot of work to do.  And I'm here to tell you, I will not rest -- I know Harry will not rest -- until we're not just recovering, but we're prospering.  I don't want Vegas just to be getting by -- I want Vegas to be thriving.  And I know that's what you want as well.  (Applause.)

So that's why Harry and I are working to provide tax breaks for small businesses to spur hiring.  That's why we're fighting for health insurance reforms to address the crushing cost of health insurance for small businesses and families.  And that's why we've continued to seek ways to address the home mortgage crisis, which has touched all parts of this country, but has hit Las Vegas particularly hard. 

In large part, the broader economic crisis we've experienced began as a home mortgage crisis.  And the story is familiar to all of you.  A lot of people got in over their heads, from homeowners on Main Street to large firms on Wall Street.  And many more Americans found themselves in a terrible situation by no fault of their own:  unable to pay a mortgage because of a lost job, but they're unable to sell or refinance because their mortgage debt is now higher than the value of their house -- their home is underwater.

Now, government has a responsibility to help deal with this problem.  I've got to again repeat -- government can't stop every foreclosure.  There's not enough money in the Treasury to stop every foreclosure.  And we shouldn't be using tax dollars to reward the same irresponsible lenders or borrowers who helped precipitate the crisis.  But what government can do -- what government can do is to help responsible homeowners to stay in their homes.  The government can stop preventable foreclosures.  What we can do is stabilize the housing market so home values can begin to rise again. 

So over the course of the past year, we've taken a number of steps to do just that.  We've provided a tax credit for 1.4 million taxpayers to help them buy their first homes.  We've made it possible for more than one million struggling homeowners to reduce monthly payments.  And combined with our broader efforts to spur growth, stem job losses, and stabilize the financial system, we've helped promote recovery in the housing markets.  In fact, in many markets, home values have begun to rebound.

But we got a ways to go, especially in the hardest hit regions like Las Vegas, where there are just too many blocks littered with brown lawns and "for sale" signs, too many mortgage holders are underwater, and where job losses continue to exact a terrible toll.  So for these communities, recovery depends on continued responsible efforts to stop the downward spiral of defaults, foreclosures, and declining home values. 

That's why earlier today I announced a $1.5 billion investment in housing finance agencies in the states hardest hit by this housing crisis.  And one of those states is Nevada.  (Applause.)  So that means that here in Nevada, we're going to be able to help prevent some foreclosures that otherwise would have happened.  It's going to allow lenders to help homeowners who are underwater.  And it will help folks who've taken out a second mortgage modify their loans. 

So the goal is to target communities at the center of the crisis, and to empower local agencies who know these communities best to structure and tailor their programs in ways that are most responsive.

Now, these are very difficult times for our country -- times that demand we put aside the stale debates and the tired arguments, times that demand of us something more.  The fact is, the economic crisis of the past two years -- indeed the growing economic insecurity of the middle class that's been going for a decade -- was born not just of failures in our economic system.  These challenges were also born of failures in our political system. 

And while Harry has been fighting for us, too many folks in Washington have been putting off hard decisions.  So for decades, we've watched as efforts to solve tough problems fall prey to gamesmanship and partisanship, to the prosaic concerns of politics, the ever-quickening news cycle, to endless campaigns focused on scoring points instead of meeting our common challenges. 

Imagine if you had to run a business like this, where the people who are in your office are constantly yelling at you, running ads against you, more interested inyou failing than the company succeeding.  That's what we've been seeing in Washington. 

And it's got to stop, because the challenges have been mounting all around us.  A health care system that saddles businesses and families with skyrocketing costs.  An economy powered by fuels -- are fuels of the 20th century instead of the 21st, and endanger our planet and our security.  We've got an education system unsuited for a global era, and a financial system that has been rewarding reckless risks.  And we've got a structural deficit that threatens to leave our children a mountain of debt.

So we've seen the consequences of this failure of responsibility, and the American people have paid a heavy price.  The question we'll have to answer now is if we're going to learn from the past or if, even in the aftermath of disaster, we're going to repeat it.  Because as the alarm bells fade, and the din of Washington rises, the danger is we just forget what happened and we start thinking we should go back to business as usual.  That won't work.  It will not work in this global economy, not in this environment. 

I said this during the State of the Union.  I repeated it today in Henderson in my town hall.  Other countries are not playing for second -- they're playing for first.  One of the things that I know is of great interest to Nevada is tourism and what are we doing for tourism promotion.  I can tell you, Harry is going to be championing a tourism promotion bill because, as he points out, why is it that every other country is promoting their tourist industry and America is not doing enough for ours?  (Applause.) 

But that's just -- he's going to have strong support for that effort, but that's just one example of the competition that we're facing on everything.  If China is producing 40 high-speed rail lines and we're producing one, we're not going to have the infrastructure of the future.  If India or South Korea are producing more scientists and engineers than we are, we will not succeed.

So I hope that all of us -- Democrats, Republicans, public servants, and leaders in the business community -- can keep alive a sense of seriousness, a sense of common purpose.  That's how we can rise to this moment and transcend the failures of the past, tackle the challenges before us, and leave behind a nation that is more prosperous than ever before.

But it is going to take work and I am going to need all of you to be partners with Harry and partners with myself in moving it forward.  The days are over where we can keep on organizing ourselves along the lines of, business is here and labor is here and government is over here.  We are all in this together.  (Applause.) 

If businesses -- and nobody understands that more than Las Vegas.  If the MGM is doing well, that means its workers are doing well.  And if its workers are doing well, that means that the housing market is doing well.  And if the housing market is doing well, then that means that small businesses all across the region are doing well, who in turn are hiring more workers.

That's the model that we've got to achieve.  But it also means in order for us to succeed, it also means that business, labor, government, Democrats, Republicans -- we can't be looking for every single edge or advantage on every single issue.  At some points, we've got to be thinking about the larger good.

So if we're serious about reforming the health care system, we've got to be thinking, even if I've got health insurance -- and by the way I've got really good health insurance -- (laughter) -- I've got a doctor who follows me around everywhere -- (laughter) -- I've got to spend some time thinking about the people who don't have health insurance. 

And I've also got to be thinking about the next generation that's picking up the bill for the health insurance that's currently being provided to me if I'm getting a benefit from the government.  If I'm a business leader, I've got to be thinking about my shareholders and my bottom line, but I've also got to be thinking about the people who work for me and I've got to be thinking about the larger community and I've got to be thinking about the country. 

That kind of leadership can't just come from the White House, it can't just come from the United States Senate -- it's got to come from you.  In fact, that's where it always comes from in America.  The most profound changes, the most dynamic innovations, they don't happen from the top down -- they happen from the bottom up. 

But they always happen not just because of some single individual with some great idea -- although a lot of times that's what drives innovation in our economy.  It also comes from a culture of trust and mutual regard.  America has always been a combination of fierce individualism, but also a sense of community, the sense that we're looking out for one another. 

And every single successful business leader here understands that's the kind of culture you've tried to build in your businesses.  That's the kind of culture we have to reinvigorate all across America.  I'm confident we can do so.  I am looking forward to coming back to Vegas.  I think my mother-in-law is going to get here first.  (Laughter.)  She comes quite frequently -- maybe I shouldn't say that in front of the press.  (Laughter.) 

But I want everybody here to have confidence that if we keep on working hard, we don't shy away from these tough challenges, and we're not looking backwards, we're looking forwards, then not only is Las Vegas going to thrive in the 21st century, not only is Nevada going to thrive in the 21st century, but all the United States of America is going to thrive.

Thank you very much, everybody.  God bless you, and God bless America.  (Applause.)

END
12:32 P.M. PST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 19, 2010

Remarks by The President At Town Hall Meeting In Henderson, Nevada

Green Valley High School, Henderson, Nevada

9:58 A.M. PST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Henderson!  Thank you!  Thank you so much, everybody.  Everybody, have a seat, have a seat.  I am thrilled to be here.  (Applause.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love you, Mr. President!

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

We've got some special guests here -- everybody is a special guest, but I just want to acknowledge a few folks here.  Secretary of State Ross Miller in the house.  (Applause.)  Two outstanding members of Congress -- Representative Shelley Berkley -- (applause) -- and your own Dina Titus.  (Applause.)

Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford.  (Applause.)  We've got State Assembly Majority Leader John Oceguera.  (Applause.)  Clark County Commissioner Chairman Rory Reid.  (Applause.)  Henderson Mayor Andy Hafen.  (Applause.)  Former Governor Bob Miller.  (Applause.) 

We've got -- first, can everybody give a huge round of applause for Tina Long for the great introduction of Harry Reid?  (Applause.)  Green Valley High School principal Jeff Horn.  (Applause.)  Obviously not exam time yet.  (Laughter.)  Get's a standing "O."

The Green Valley High School Marching Band that played at my inauguration -- give them a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  They played "Viva Las Vegas."  (Laughter.)  At the reviewing stand -- they did.  (Laughter.) 

And finally, he may have already been acknowledged -- I want to give a special acknowledgment to Greg Koehler, North Las Vegas Fire Department, who just returned from 14 days in Haiti giving medical assistance to orphans -- (applause.)  Thank you.  (Applause.)  We're proud of you.  Thank you.

Now, it's good to be back in Nevada -- (applause) -- good to be back in Vegas.  (Applause.)  Good to be back in Henderson.  (Applause.)  And good to be with my good friend, your great senator, Harry Reid.  (Applause.) 

I understand Henderson is where Harry went to school as a boy and fought in the ring as an amateur boxer.  Now, looking at Harry, you wouldn't say that -- (laughter) -- I mean, let's face it -- (laughter) -- but I can personally attest that Harry Reid is one of the toughest people I know.  He does not give up.  He knows what he cares about.  He knows what he believes in and he's willing to fight for it.  And sometimes he takes his licks, but he gets back up.  Harry Reid has never stopped fighting -- he hasn’t stopped fighting for Henderson; he hasn’t stopped fighting for Nevada; he has not stopped fighting for the United States of America and middle-class families all across this country that need a fair shake.  (Applause.)

     I'm looking forward to hearing what's on your minds and trying to answer a few questions.  But before I do, let me say a few words about the situation that folks are facing right now. 

     Harry is not one for sugarcoating things -- I don't know if you noticed that.  He's kind of a blunt guy.  (Laughter.)  Neither am I.  These are tough times.  When President Kennedy was here, he called Henderson a "city of destiny" because he saw its potential as Las Vegas grew.  But for too long, I know many of you have felt like your destiny has been slipping beyond your control. 

     You don't need me to tell you that.  All of you in some way have felt this recession.  You felt it in the tourism and hospitality industry.  You felt it in the construction industry.  The unemployment rate here is 13 percent, which is the second highest in the nation.  Foreclosures are also among the highest.  Home values have fallen by more than almost anyplace else.  And this is after a decade when, for most middle-class families, incomes actually shrank and wages flat-lined, and the only thing rising faster was medical costs and the cost of education. 

     So I know it's tough out there.  Harry Reid knows it's tough out there.  That's why we asked you to send us to Washington.  We didn't run for the fancy title or a big desk or a comfy chair.  We didn't run because it was fun to get your name in the newspapers -- most of the time, it's not.  (Laughter.)  We didn't run so a bunch of folks on cable TV could chatter about you.  (Laughter.)  And we didn't run to kick our problems down the road.  We ran to solve problems that folks like you are facing every single day.  (Applause.)  That's why we ran for office.  That's why Harry wanted to be Majority Leader, and that's why I wanted to be President of the United States -- to help you.  (Applause.)

     When my administration took office, our immediate mission was clear.  We needed to stop the great recession from turning into a great depression.  And economists of every stripe were warning that was a real possibility.  And that meant that we had to make some decisions swiftly, boldly, and not always popular, but decisions that were necessary.  It wasn't a time for satisfying the politics of the moment, it wasn't time for just playing to the cameras -- it was time for doing what was right.

     That's why we helped stabilize our financial system -- not because we felt any compassion for big banks, but because not doing so would have endangered the savings and dreams of millions more Americans.  (Applause.) 

And by the way, I was committed to ensuring that if taxpayers were going to provide temporary assistance to keep our financial system afloat, then it actually had to be temporary.  And I was determined to get back every single dime, and we are well on our way to doing that -- getting back every single dime from those banks.  (Applause.)

     In fact, one battle we're having right now is we think the largest banks should be assessed a fee so that taxpayers are held harmless for the assistance that you've been giving.  (Applause.)  As you might imagine, the banks are not enthusiastic about that.  (Laughter.)  And it won't surprise you to learn that they've got a few friends in Congress who are willing to go along, but you know Harry Reid is not one of those folks who are willing to go along.  (Applause.)  We're going to get your money back because Harry Reid is going to make sure you get your money back.  (Applause.) 

     We helped shore up the American auto industry.  That wasn't popular.  I understood why.  Folks felt like these companies should reap the consequences of bad management decisions in the past, just like any other company would.  But if we had let GM and Chrysler go under, it would have been hundreds of thousands of hardworking Americans who paid the price -- not just folks at those companies themselves, but at suppliers and dealers all across the country. 

     So we told them, if you're willing to take the tough and painful steps you make -- that are needed for you to become more competitive, then we're willing to invest in your future.  And as a result, auto production in the United States of America is up 69 percent from the first three months of 2009.  (Applause.)  GM's CEO recently said that the company would repay $6.7 billion in loans from taxpayers -- with interest -- by June of this year.  (Applause.)

     Now, one of the things you need to know is that the steps we've taken to shore up the banks and the autos, they have nothing to do with the Recovery Act.  Those were separate.  We had to do those as emergency measures.  And I just want to point this out -- Harry Reid, he's got his pollsters; I've got my pollsters.  We knew that this wasn't going to be popular.  But we did it because it was the right thing to do.  (Applause.)

     So it's also why we passed the Recovery Act.  Now, a lot of people think that the stimulus package, the Recovery Act -- if you listen on television, you'd think, well, that's all about giving banks money.  That has nothing to do with the banks.  The other week, I saw a poll that said Americans, they don't like the Recovery Act -- they just like all the individual parts of the Recovery Act.  (Laughter.) 

     And the reason is, they think the Recovery Act is for banks and auto companies.  When you ask folks about what was actually in the Recovery Act, they think it's full of good ideas -- like tax cuts, like infrastructure investment, like unemployment relief.  That's what the Recovery Act was.  It was tax cuts for small business owners and 95 percent of you.  You may not have noticed -- 95 percent of you got a tax cut -- because of Harry Reid and because of the Recovery Act.  (Applause.)  One million people in the state of Nevada. 

     We expanded unemployment insurance at a time when it was absolutely vital for people as they were trying to stay afloat.  (Applause.)  More than a quarter-million of your members -- of your neighbors.  It was jobs for construction workers and jobs for cops and firemen, jobs for almost 2,000 education professionals right here in Nevada. 

I haven't talked to the principal, but I guarantee you, we would have seen some very difficult decisions having to be made about maintaining teachers right here at Green Valley, if it hadn't been for the help that Harry Reid provided last year.  (Applause.)  You would have seen some very tough choices.

     All of this -- from the tax cuts to the unemployment insurance to the jobs -- that was only possible because of Harry's leadership.  And as a result, our economy is growing again.  Almost two million Americans who would  otherwise be employed [sic] are working right now -- because of what Harry Reid did.  (Applause.)  We're no longer staring into an economic abyss -- because of what Harry Reid helped to do. 

     Now, he and I both know that's little comfort to the seven million Americans who lost their job in this recession.  It's little comfort to homeowners who are facing foreclosure or steep declines in their home values, or to students who are having to delay their college plans because they can't afford it, or older folks who are postponing retirement.

     That's why I'm not going to rest.  That's not -- why we're not done.  That's why Harry Reid isn't going to rest until all of America is working again, until the dream of home ownership is secure once again, and until our economy is benefiting not just Wall Street but benefiting hardworking Nevada families, benefiting the middle class, benefiting Americans all across this great country of ours.  That's what we are aiming to do.  (Applause.)

     Now, I've said before that the way I measure our economy's strength -- the way you measure it -- is by whether jobs and wages and incomes are growing.  But the other way we measure is by whether families have a roof over their heads and whether folks are living out that American Dream of owning a home.  That dream has been jeopardized in this recession for a lot of people, especially right here in Nevada. 

Now, part of it was -- I've got to be blunt here, I got to be honest -- part of it was because too many lenders were focused on making a quick buck instead of acting responsibly.  (Applause.)  And, if we're honest, too many borrowers acted irresponsibly at certain points, taking on mortgages that they knew they couldn't afford.  (Applause.)  And what happened was the regulators in Washington and legislators too often turned a blind eye to the excesses and the failures on Wall Street that fed a housing bubble.  And now that that bubble has burst, it's left devastation that we're still grappling with today. 

     Now, government has a responsibility to help deal with this problem.  Government can't solve this problem alone.  We got to be honest about that.  Government alone can't solve this problem.  And it shouldn't.  But government can make a difference.  It can't stop every foreclosure, and tax dollars shouldn't be used to reward the very irresponsible lenders and borrowers who helped bring about the housing crisis.  But what we can do is help families who've done everything right stay in their homes whenever possible.  (Applause.)  What we can do is stabilize the housing market so that home values can begin rising again. 

     And that's why we're buying up vacant homes and converting them into affordable housing -- creating jobs, stemming our housing crisis, growing the local economy.  (Applause.)  That's why last year, we put a tax credit worth thousands of dollars into the pocket of 1.4 million Americans to help them buy their first home -- first-time homebuyers credit.  (Applause.)  That's why we're offering over one million struggling homeowners lower monthly payments through our loan modification initiative. 

     And that's why today, thanks to the leadership of Harry Reid, I'm announcing a $1.5 billion fund for housing finance agencies in the states that are hardest hit by this housing crisis -- and that means here in Nevada.  (Applause.)  Right here in Nevada.  (Applause.)

     So this fund is going to help out-of-work homeowners avoid preventable foreclosures, and it will help homeowners who owe more than their homes are worth find a way to pay their mortgages that works for both the borrowers and the lenders alike, and will help folks who've taken out a second mortgage modify their loans. 
    
     So, yes, we need to strengthen our housing market.  And we need to focus on job creation and getting our economy moving again.  But one last thing I want to be clear about -- we can do all those things, dealing with sort of the emergency crisis, and still fall behind in the 21st century, in this global economy, unless we recommit ourselves to solving some of the long-term problems that have been with us for years. 

We've got to recognize, just like earlier generations, that our future is what we make of it, and unless we give everything we've got to securing America's success in the 21st century, our children aren’t going to have the same opportunities. 

     Now, I've traveled a lot over the last year, all over the world, and I've got to tell you, countries like China  -- they're competing to win.  And there's nothing wrong with that.  We want China to succeed.  They've got a lot of poverty, much more poverty than we have here, and it's good for their stability if they're doing well.  But I don't know about you -- I don't intend to cede the 21st century to anybody else.  (Applause.)  America is not a nation that follows -- America leads.  That's what I intend for us to do once again.  (Applause.)  America leads.   

     So what does it mean to lead?  It means countries that out-educate us today are going to out-compete us tomorrow.  And that means America has to lead in education.  (Applause.)  That's why we're working with educators to transform our schools, and make college more affordable, and prepare our kids for science and engineering and technical degrees -- because those are going to be the jobs of the future. 

     And because the future belongs to countries that create the jobs of tomorrow, we've got to lead in energy.  That's why we're investing in companies right here in Nevada and across this nation that produce solar power and wind power and the smart, energy-efficient electric grids  -- (applause) -- the investments that are giving rise to a clean energy economy.  (Applause.)  It's vital that we do that.    

     Our nation can't lead, we can't prosper, if we've got a broken-down health care system that works better for the insurance companies than it does for ordinary Americans.  (Applause.)  And we can't squander the opportunity to reform our health care system to make it work for everybody.  (Applause.)

That's why this coming week I'm going to be meeting, and Harry is going to be meeting, with members of both parties and both chambers -- we're going to move forward the Democratic proposal; we hope the Republicans have one, too.  And we'll sit down and let's hammer it out, go -- we'll go section by section.

     Because America can't solve our economic problems unless we tackle some of these structural problems.  And America can't lead -- we can't succeed unless we're also getting a handle on our debt.  We've got to confront this fiscal crisis that has been brewing for years.  That's why we're cutting what we don't need to pay for what we do.  That's why I signed a law that says Americans should pay as we go and live within our means.  (Applause.)  That's why yesterday I announced a bipartisan fiscal commission that will help us meet our fiscal challenges once and for all.

     Fiscal responsibility.  Clean energy.  A world-class education.  A health care system that works.  An economy that lifts up all our citizens.  That's how America can lead.  That's how the future will be won -- with all of us coming together to win it -- (applause) -- Democrats and Republicans alike.  (Applause.)  And independents. 

With all the petty partisanship and game-playing in Washington, I know that sometimes you guys can feel pretty frustrated. 

AUDIENCE:  Yesss!

THE PRESIDENT:  I know it can be easy to despair about whether we, as a nation, can come together anymore.  But for those who wonder if America can unite, just come to Henderson.  You think about it.  This is a town that was founded during World War II to supply metal for planes, for guns, for the arsenal of democracy that freed the world from tyranny.  This is a town -- it wasn’t built by liberals or conservatives; it was built by Americans, by patriots who rallied around a common purpose in an hour of need.  (Applause.)  And I'm certain that if we can reclaim in this country the spirit of unity that built Henderson, Nevada, all those years ago, then we can build cities of destiny across this country.  And the future will belong to the United States of America.  (Applause.)  

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

     All right, everybody sit down.  This is the -- (applause.)  Here's where I'm on the hot seat, so I've got to take off my jacket.  (Laughter.)  Answer some questions.  Everybody sit down.  All right. 

Some of you have been to town halls before, so this is pretty straightforward.  We've got people in the audience with mics, and just raise your hand -- we're going to go girl, boy, girl, boy -- (laughter) -- make sure it's fair.  And I'm going to try to take as many questions as I can in the time remaining.  And when you -- before you answer [sic] your question, if you can introduce yourself so that we know who you are.  And try to make your question relatively brief so that we can get in as many as possible.  All right?

As I said, we're going to go girl, boy, girl, boy.  Young lady right there, yes.

Q    Thank you, President Obama.  In Nevada --

THE PRESIDENT:  What's your name?

Q    Oh, my name is Florence Jamison (phonetic.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Okay.  How are you, Florence?

Q    I'm terrific.

THE PRESIDENT:  Great.

Q    In Nevada we have the second highest number of medically uninsured, about 325,000 uninsured.  More than five working adults are colleagues who are dying each week because of no access to health care.  I am the founder of Volunteers in Medicine, Southern Nevada -- a free clinic which has been set up to help our sick and dying.  There are hundreds of caring Nevadans that have rallied like a corps of angels to come and provide free health care for their struggling neighbors -- housekeepers, operators, receptionists, eligibility workers, social workers, nurses, doctors. 

In your health reform bill you have a provision to protect the federally funded subsidized community clinics.  It is not clear if they're going to cover the free clinics where volunteers throughout the community have rallied to give support to their struggling neighbors in their great time of need.  Can you help us with that?

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, thank you, first of all, for the great work that you guys are doing.  So we appreciate that.  (Applause.)  But if you're like a lot of free clinics across the country, I know you're getting overwhelmed, because the need is so great. 

The bill that Harry and I have been working on would provide assistance to a whole range of community-based efforts -- preventive care, wellness care -- which is absolutely vital not only for the people who are receiving services at clinics like yours, but also for reducing the costs of health care overall, because the more that people have access to preventive care, the less likely they are to go to the emergency room when things are already out of hand.

Now, let me just speak more broadly about health care, because we're going to have a meeting with the Republicans, as I said, next week.  I've got to admit that this has been an issue that I was warned I shouldn't take on.  (Laughter.)  No, no, I mean, seriously.  When I first came in -- and Harry was part of some of these conversations -- there were a lot of political advisors who said, look, health care is just too hard, it's just too complicated.  Everybody says in theory that they want to reform the health care system, but because it's complicated, once you start putting a bill together you get all kinds of criticism; the insurance lobby will spend millions of dollars on advertising and TV, scaring the heck out of everybody; your poll numbers will go down, and you're not going to get a lot of cooperation from the other side.

     I mean, that was the warning.  Plus, because the economy is bad, a lot of people are already feeling kind of anxious, and so they're thinking, gosh, we had to do all that stuff to fix the financial system, we had to do this stuff to fix the autos, we had this big recovery package, the deficits are going up -- partly because tax revenues is not coming in and we're having to spend more on unemployment insurance and things like that -- this is probably not the time to be too ambitious.

     So I want to explain to everybody why I decided to take it on.  First of all, I decided to take it on because I get a letter -- or two, or five -- every day from people who have lost their job and suddenly they don't have health insurance, somebody in their family gets sick, and they lose their house.  They were solid middle-class folks until they lost their job, and, lo and behold, they discovered they couldn't get coverage because something had happened to them before.  Maybe a woman had had breast cancer, and it was okay as long as she had her employer-based health care.  But once she tried -- once she lost her job and tried to get health care, couldn't get it. 

I've looked too many parents in the eye who say, our children have these chronic diseases and we found out that our insurance only covered us up to a certain amount and then they hit a cap, and afterwards we had to hold bake sales and our neighbors had to raise money just to make sure that our kids would live.  Too many stories like that.  So that was the main reason that I said we had to take it on. 

     But the second reason was because even if you've got health insurance, what's happened to your premiums lately?  Look, if this is a representative sample, I'm assuming that 85 percent of you have health care -- maybe 90 percent -- let's say 85 percent of you have health care.  Some of you are getting it through your jobs; some of you are still buying it individually, or you're a small business owner and you're purchasing it.  No matter what your situation, I guarantee you your costs have gone up at least double digits over the last year.  They have doubled over the last decade.  And they're going to more than double over the next decade if we don't do anything.  So even if you're lucky enough to have health care, it is digging deeper and deeper into your pocket. 

They just had -- some of you saw the news -- for people who don't have insurance through a big employer, the individual market, in California one of the biggest insurance providers, Anthem Blue Cross, just announced that they were going to raise rates on these folks by up to 39 percent -- up to 39 percent. 

That's the future.  That's the future, Henderson.  That's going to be one of the main things that helps to bankrupt local school districts, because all these teachers, all these employees, those health care costs go up.  Universities -- those young people who are about to go to college, part of the reason your tuition is going up is because every employee at the university, their health care costs are going up.  And that gets passed on to you.

     And, finally, the third reason that we had to take this on is because the deficit and the debt that you hear everybody getting in a tizzy about -- properly so -- the vast majority of our long-term debt is driven by Medicare and Medicaid.  It's driven by our rising health care costs.  Nothing comes close.  You could eliminate every earmark, you could eliminate foreign aid, you could eliminate all that stuff -- it would amount to about 5 percent of the budget.  Most of it is health care costs. 

And as the population gets older, they use more health care; that drives it up even faster.  And pretty soon, pretty soon the entire federal budget is going to be gobbled up by these rising health care costs.  And you're already seeing it at the state level here in Nevada, right?  What's happening with Medicaid?  The governor is starting to talk about having to cut all kinds of aspects of Medicaid because of the cost.

     So here's my point.  We can't wait to reform the health care system.  It is vital for our economy.  (Applause.)  It is vital for our economy to change how health care works in this country.  It's vital.  (Applause.)

     Now, having said all that, the people who were giving me advice at the beginning of the year were right -- health care has been knocking me around pretty good.  (Laughter.)  It's been knocking Harry around pretty good.  And Harry has shown extraordinary courage because he said, you know what, Barack, we are going to get this done.  I know it's costing me politically but it's important, it's the right thing to do.  (Applause.)  That's what he's been saying consistently, and I'm proud of him for it.

     So let me -- just very quickly, let me describe what it is that we have proposed -- and I'm waiting to see what the Republicans propose in turn -- because there's been a lot of misinformation here.  What we have said is this:  If you have health insurance, we are going to pass a series of health reforms so that the insurance companies have to treat you fairly -- it's very straightforward -- that they can't prevent you from getting health insurance because of a preexisting condition; that they can't put a lifetime cap so in the fine print it turns out that you're not fully covered.  (Applause.)  So there are a whole series of insurance reforms -- that's number one.

     Number two, we've got a whole series of cost controls.  So what we're saying is, for example, that every insurer, they've got to spend the vast majority of your premiums on actual care, as opposed to profits and overhead.  (Applause.)  We're saying that we've got to get out some of the waste and abuse, including subsidies to insurance companies in the Medicare system that run in the tens of billions of dollars every year.  (Applause.)  That's not a good use of your taxpayer dollars.  And we're working to improve wellness and prevention, as I said before, so that people aren't going to the emergency room for care.

     Now, the third thing, and the thing that's most controversial, sadly, is what we're also saying is we've got to make sure that everybody can have access to coverage.  And the way we do that is we set up something called an exchange, where essentially individuals and small businesses who aren't getting a good deal because they don't have the same negotiating power as the big companies when it comes to the insurance market, they can pool just like members of Congress and federal employees do in their health care plan -- they can pool so that now they've got the purchasing power of a million people behind them and they can get a better deal.  That can lower their costs.  And we'll give subsidies for working families who can't afford it even with lower premium costs.  (Applause.) 

     Now, so I want everybody to pay attention next Thursday when we have this health care summit.  You may not want to watch all six or eight hours of it, you got things to do.  (Laughter.)  But pay attention to what this debate is about, because there's been so much talk about death panels and adding to the deficit, and this and that and the other.  Pay attention, because this is -- what we're proposing has nothing to do with a government takeover of a health care.  Most of you would have the exact same health care that you've got right now, but you'd be more protected and more secure.  And if you don't have health care, you'd have a chance of getting health care. 

And, by the way, it would actually save us money in the long term, because all those wasteful dollars that we're spending right now, the experts estimate we'd actually save a trillion dollars by passing it.  (Applause.) 

Now, I think it's the right thing to do.  The Republicans say -- the Republicans say that they've got a better way of doing it.  So I want them to put it on the table -- (applause) -- because as I told them -- as I told them a while back, look, I mean, I'm not a -- I'm not an unreasonable guy.  (Laughter.)  If you show me that you can do the things we just talked about -- protect people from insurance problems, make sure that the costs are controlled, and people who don't have health insurance are covered -- and you can do it cheaper than me, then why wouldn’t I do that?  I'll just grab your idea and say, great, and take all the credit.  I'd be happy to do it.  (Applause.) 

So show me what you got.  But don't let the American people go another year, another 10 years, another 20 years without health insurance reform in this country.  (Applause.)

Okay, it's a gentleman's turn.  It's a man's turn.  This guy over here.  This guy with a beard. 

Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  Ben Burris (phonetic), from Jonesboro, Arkansas.

THE PRESIDENT:  What are you doing all the way here in Vegas?

Q    Everybody comes to Vegas.  (Laughter.) 

THE PRESIDENT:  That's what I'm talking about.  There you go.  Everybody comes to Vegas.  (Applause.)  Yes.  Now, here's my only question, Ben.  Have you spent some money here in Vegas?

Q    Oh, yes, sir.

THE PRESIDENT:  He says "Yes, sir."  (Applause.)

Q    Yes, sir.

THE PRESIDENT:  He's spending some money here in Vegas.  All right.  That's good.  We like to see that.  All right, what's your question?

Q    Well, sir, I'm reasonably familiar with the current and proposed legislature as it applies to dentistry and oral health.  And my question is, what's your vision for how dentistry will fit into your larger framework for health care reform?

THE PRESIDENT:  Are you a dentist yourself?

Q    Yes, sir.  So if somebody has a heart attack, you better still call 9-1-1.  (Laughter.)  Just a dentist.

THE PRESIDENT:  Now, it is interesting that you raised this.  It turns out -- this is serous -- that dental hygiene is actually very important for keeping your heart healthy.  It turns out that heart disease can be triggered when you've got gum disease.  So everybody floss.  That's my first -- am I right?  You got to floss.  (Applause.)

It is my hope that we can include dental care in the various proposals that we're putting forward.  Dental and vision care are very important.  Now, I'll tell you that some folks will say we can't afford it.  Some states in their Medicaid program cover dental; some states don't. 

At minimum -- at minimum, I think it's very important that we've got dental care for our kids.  (Applause.)  Because what happens is, is that if we can keep our children's teeth healthy, then usually that means they've got healthy teeth as adults.  And if not, oftentimes that actually distracts them and prevents them from learning, because both dental and eye care -- a lot of kids end up being distracted.  They can't read the blackboard, they've got a cavity that's been untreated.  It's a huge problem. 

So I would like to see dental care covered.  I will tell you that some folks are going to say we can't afford it.  At minimum, I'd like to see that our children have the care that they need.  (Applause.)

     Q    Can I say one more thing, sir?  I think most of us in dentistry think that health care is the primary need here in terms of that, and children as well.  So we think that if you can take care of health care first and let dentistry -- do that kind of thing -- it's more important to take care of the health care first.  Thank you, sir.

     THE PRESIDENT:  There you go.  All right, I appreciate that.  Thank you.  (Applause.) 

Okay, it's a young lady's turn.  It's so hard to choose.  Okay, I'll call on this young lady back here, right over here.  Yes, you.  (Laughter.)  All right, we got to get the young man with the mic over to you.

     Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  Thank God for this opportunity.  I realize that insurance and medical care has been a major issue.  This is my problem.  I worked for United Airlines for nearly 30 years.  I was severely injured during flight.  I have a workman comp's case that have fallen on deaf ear.  The conflict in this city with the lawyers and the doctors and this whole problem has drove my life really to almost not having a life at all. 

I don't know where else to turn.  I don't know who else to talk to about the problem.  I've written you letters.  I've written letters to many of the senators here in Las Vegas.  I've talked to the doctors.  I've done everything I know how to do.  But I am a widow with a special needs child.  I have lived in the house that I live in for 19 years.  My house is in foreclosure.  I have disability insurance.  I have Social Security disability.  That disability tells me, your insurance is not accepted here.  I can't get the medical help that I need to get better. 

     THE PRESIDENT:  What's your --

     Q    I'd love to be a flight attendant for you on that U.S. One.  I'm trained on that U.S. One.  (Laughter.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Well, look, in terms of your specific issue, come see Harry Reid and Harry Reid will see if he can help you out here.  (Applause.)  All right?  Workman's comp is generally a state issue as opposed to a federal issue.  But Harry, he's got a few connections here in Nevada, so I suspect that he can help out.

     But, look, to the larger point, there are a lot more people who are actually going on disability right now partly because job opportunities have shrunk.  And that's why it’s so important for us to really focus on jobs. 

Now, if you were listening to the Republicans, you'd think that last year we weren't paying any attention to jobs, that we were just kind of -- I don't know what we were doing, Harry.  I guess we were just sort of sitting around.  (Laughter.)  The truth is, is that everything we did last year was designed around how do we break the back of the recession and move the economic recovery forward in order to promote job growth.

     You can't have job growth if the economy is contracting by 6 percent, because businesses look and they say nobody is spending money, we got no customers, we can't hire.  So the first thing we had to do was to make sure that companies were starting to make a profit again, and the economy was growing.  We are now in that position, because of the work that Harry did and a lot of -- and these two outstanding members of Congress did, Congresswoman Berkley and Titus.  (Applause.)  The economy is now growing again.

     But here is the challenge that we've got.  The challenge we have is that after they've laid off 8 million people, now they're growing with fewer people.  So they're making profits, but they haven't started hiring yet.  Our challenge is how do we get businesses to start hiring again? 

Now, some of the jobs, I'll be honest with you, are probably not going to come back.  And the reason is because people have installed new technologies, or they've set up new system where they can do more with fewer workers.  That's why it's so important for us to invest in new industries and new technologies.

     I'll give you an example.  We were talking about autos before.  Do you know that before the Recovery Act was passed, the United States was producing about 2 percent of the advanced batteries that are used in these clean cars, these electric cars?  We were producing 2 percent of the batteries -- less than 2 percent.  What we did as part of the Recovery Act was invest in developing plants for battery production here in the United States.  And do you know that in 18 months, we will have the capacity to produce 20 percent of the advanced batteries around the world?  (Applause.)  And by 2015, we'll have the capacity to produce 40 percent of the batteries around the world.  We've created an entire new industry -- an entire new industry has been created here in the United States that can produce jobs.

     So we've got to constantly look for those opportunities in solar and in wind, and in other hi-tech areas, because that's going to be the future.  The more people have work available to them -- there is just a virtuous cycle that happens.  When people go to work, they feel good; their health is better; their kids do better in school -- right?  (Applause.)  Business -- they've got money to spend, they come to Vegas, right?  Tourism industry starts taking off.  (Applause.) 

     So we're going to be putting -- Harry and I are working now on a jobs package for this year that's designed not -- it's no longer designed to grow the economy.  Now it's designed to give incentives to businesses who are now making a profit to start hiring again, and to help small businesses get loans.  Because a lot of small businesses are still having trouble getting loans from banks, even if they see an opportunity for business growth, and we want to make sure that they've got access to capital.

     All right, it's a guy's turn.  I'm going to call on this guy, even though he's got a Cubs jacket on.  (Laughter.)  Everybody knows I'm a White Sox fan, but I'm going to call -- just to show that I'm unbiased, I'm calling on a Cubs guy.  (Laughter.) 

     Q    You're not a Cub hater.

     THE PRESIDENT:  I'm not a Cub hater, that's right.

     Q    Okay, before I ask my question, I want to say something.  I'm enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan.  I understand that my benefits will be cut with health reform.  I'm all for it.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Well, how about that?  Let me -- let me -- before you ask your actual question, let me just make this point.  We're not actually eliminating Medicare Advantage.  What Medicare Advantage is, is basically the previous administration had this idea, instead of traditional Medicare, let's contract out to insurance companies to manage the Medicare program.  And the insurance companies can then kind of package and pool providers of dental care or eye wear or what have you, and it's a one-stop shop for seniors.

     Now, in theory that sounds like a pretty good idea, except as you might imagine if the insurance companies are involved that means they've got to make a profit.  And what happened was they didn't bid out competitively this Medicare Advantage program.  So these insurance companies were just getting a sweet deal. 

All we've been saying is let's make sure that there's a competitive bidding process and that we are getting the absolute best bargain.  (Applause.) 

But I appreciate your larger concern, which is let's make sure that everybody has access to health care.  And traditional Medicare, by the way, is a great deal.  Everybody who is in it is pretty happy with it.  But go ahead with your question.

     Q    I'm going to introduce myself.  My name is Norman -- I live in north Las Vegas.  I'm retired.  (Applause.)  And my question is about Social Security.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Are you a former Chicagoan?

     Q    Yes, sir.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Where are you from in Chicago?

     Q    Schaumburg last.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Fantastic.  Well, the weather is a little bit better here, I got to admit.  (Laughter.) 

     Q    Well, we can visit snow here. 

     THE PRESIDENT:  Exactly.  All right, go ahead.

     Q    Well, my question is about Social Security.  Now, I know there are a lot of myths out there, and I know you can dispel them.  I saw an interview on "Meet The Press" with Alan Greenspan, who, as you know, was on the Social Security Commission in the '80s.  And Tim Russert asked him specifically, what about the crisis in Social Security?  Alan Greenspan's response was, there is no crisis in Social Security; it's a payroll tax issue.  Can you comment on that?

     THE PRESIDENT:  Yes.  Here’s the situation with Social Security.  It is actually true that Social Security is not in crisis the way our health care system is in crisis.  I mean, when you think about the big entitlement programs, you've got Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid.  These are the big programs that take up a huge portion of the federal budget.  Social Security is in the best shape of any of these, because basically the cost of Social Security will just go up with ordinary inflation, whereas health care costs are going up much faster than inflation.

     It is true that if we continue on the current path with Social Security, if we did nothing on Social Security, that at a certain point, in maybe 20 years or so, what would happen is that you start seeing less money coming into the payroll tax, because the population is getting older so you've got fewer workers, and more people are collecting Social Security so more money is going out, and so the trust fund starts dropping.

     And if we did nothing, then somewhere around 2040 what would happen would be a lot of the young people who would start collecting Social Security around then would find that they only got 75 cents on every dollar that they thought they were going to get.  Everybody with me so far?
All right.  So slowly we're running out of money. 

But the fixes that are required for Social Security are not huge, the way they are with Medicare.  Medicare, that is a real problem.  If we don't get a handle on it, it will bankrupt us.  With Social Security, we could make adjustments to the payroll tax.  For example -- I'll just give you one example -- right now, your Social Security -- your payroll tax is capped at $109,000.  So what that means is, is that -- how many people -- I don't mean to pry into your business, but how many people here make less than $109,000 every year?  (Laughter.)  All right, this is a pretty rich audience -- a lot of people kept their hands down.  (Laughter.)  I'm impressed.  (Laughter.) 

     No, look, what it means is basically for 95 percent of Americans, they pay -- every dollar you earn, you pay into the payroll tax.  But think about that other 5 percent that's making more than $109,000 a year.  Warren Buffett, he pays the payroll tax on the first $109,000 he makes, and then for the other $10 billion -- (laughter) -- he doesn't pay payroll tax.

     So -- yes, somebody said, "What?"  (Laughter.)  Yes, that's right.  That's the way it works. 

So what we've said is, well, don't we -- doesn't it make sense to maybe have that payroll tax cut off at a higher level, or have people -- maybe you hold people harmless till they make $250,000 a year, but between $250,000 and a million or something, they start paying payroll tax again -- just to make sure that the fund overall is solvent.

     So that would just be one example.  That's not the only way of fixing it, but if you made a slight adjustment like that, then Social Security would be there well into the future and it would be fine.  All right?  (Applause.)

     Okay.  It's a woman's turn.  Anybody -- I'm going to go back here.  Nobody's got -- these folks haven't had a chance here.  Hold on one second -- I'm going to let you use my mic.  You'll give it back, right?  (Laughter.)  Okay.
    
     Q    My name is Peggy -- and I'm a native Nevadan, grew up in Boulder City.  (Applause.)  There's a few of us here -- known this great guy, Harry, all my life.  And my question, which is near and dear to my heart, and there's a few of my co-workers watching right now on television, and a few here -- is we want to know what is going to be done for tourism in Nevada, particularly airlines.  I am a U.S. Airways employee who has been furloughed for 17 months.  They furloughed over 500 more just on the 14th, so there's many, many of us now on the unemployment rolls.  And we want to see what's going to happen to bring our jobs back to Las Vegas.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Well, first of all, obviously tourism is directly connected to the state of the economy as a whole.  If people have disposable income, then they're going to travel.  And if they're going to travel and have fun, they're going to come to Las Vegas.  (Applause.)  Right?  So -- but on the other hand, if times are tight, they're having trouble paying the bills, making the mortgage, et cetera, that means tourism declines.

     So everything we're doing in terms of improving the economy as a whole will start improving tourism.  But what is also true is that we can take some particular steps to help to encourage the tourism industry.  And Harry, before we came out, was talking about a bipartisan tourism promotion/travel promotion act. 

     Harry -- I'm going to give the mic to Harry for a second.  Harry, do you want to talk just a little bit about what would be in the act?  (Applause.)

     SENATOR REID:  We're going to try to take that up next week.  You'll save a half a billion dollars over 10 years and create tens of thousands of jobs.  We're the only country in the world, major country in the world, that doesn’t promote itself.  You'll see on TV Jamaica does, New Zealand does, Australia does, South Africa does -- but not the United States.  We hope within two or three months we'll be promoting ourselves.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Good.  Now, that's the kind of leadership that Harry is showing.  Let me make one last point about airlines in particular.  There are two things that we can really do to help improve the airline industry. 

     The first is on energy.  Part of the reason that airlines are getting squeezed all the time is because their fuel costs are huge.  That's the single biggest problem for most airlines, is fuel costs that skyrocket or are unpredictable.

     And so if we've got a smart energy policy that is encouraging the use of electric cars and improving gas mileage, and making sure that we're looking at alternative fuels like biofuels that can be used for trucks, all those things will help to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and, as a consequence, will, over time, stabilize fuel prices in a way that is very helpful to the airlines.

     The second thing that we need to do is we've got to upgrade our air traffic control system, which is a little creaky.  And one of -- don't worry, I mean, it's safe to travel.  I'm not -- (laughter) -- I don't want anybody to think, man, creaky, that doesn’t sound good.  (Laughter.) 

     What it is, is that because we don't use the latest technologies, a lot of times the holding patterns for planes, how many planes can land safely at the same time, all those things are -- reduce the efficiency of -- the overall system is reduced because we're not using the best technologies available.

     If we can upgrade those technologies, then we could reduce delays, we could reduce cancellations, we could reduce the amount of time that it takes when there's bad weather for planes to land.  And all that would also help improve profitability in the airlines industry, which in turn would mean that they would be able to hire more workers and provide outstanding customer service.  Okay?  (Applause.) 

     All right.  It's a gentleman's turn.  This guy right here.  He's a big guy, he stood up and -- he stood up, I thought, man, that's a big guy, I better call on him.  (Laughter.)  Say you're big, too -- I agree.  (Laughter.)  Don't worry, I'm not saying you're not big.  (Laughter.)  All right, go ahead.

     Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  My name is Dr. Herve Misoko (phonetic).  I am originally from France -- actually from Africa, moved to France, and now I'm here in America because I believe -- I still believe that America is the  country of the American Dream.  And I came here -- I'm a scientist, president of a renewable energy startup, and I came here because I really believe that America can become the first country for clean energy.  (Applause.)

     One of the comments I wanted to make, coming from Europe where carbon is regulated, I see firsthand -- I have a company in France also -- that regulation works.  It creates job.  My company has been growing 30 percent every year in France for the past two years.  And I really want to see that happen here.  And I think that even if you don't believe in climate change, there's like byproducts that are awesome jobs.  The country is going to advance technology-wise.  We're going to become once again like we were with the space industry, the most advanced technologically country in the world.  And so I really want to see these regulations happen because it's going to help all of us in the clean energy business.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Okay.  Well, let me just talk about -- this is -- when the conservatives have their conventions and they yell at me and say how terrible I am -- (laughter) -- along with health care this is the other thing that they usually point out, which is that "the President wants to create this cap and trade system and it's going to be a job killer and it's one more step in the government takeover of the American economy."  So this is a good place for me to maybe just spend a little time talking about energy and climate change. 

     First of all, we just got five feet of snow in Washington and so everybody is like -- a lot of the people who are opponents of climate change, they say, see, look at that, there's all this snow on the ground, this doesn't mean anything.  I want to just be clear that the science of climate change doesn't mean that every place is getting warmer; it means the planet as a whole is getting warmer.  But what it may mean is, for example, Vancouver, which is supposed to be getting snow during the Olympics, suddenly is at 55 degrees, and Dallas suddenly is getting seven inches of snow.

     The idea is, is that as the planet as a whole gets warmer, you start seeing changing weather patterns, and that creates more violent storm systems, more unpredictable weather.  So any single place might end up being warmer; another place might end up being a little bit cooler; there might end up being more precipitation in the air, more monsoons, more hurricanes, more tornadoes, more drought in some places, floods in other places.

     So I just -- that's one aspect of the science that I think everybody should understand.  That's point number one.

     Point number two:  The best way for us to unleash the free market -- the best way for us to unleash the free market and capitalism and innovation and dynamism in the energy sector is for us to fully take into account all the costs that go into producing energy and using energy. 

     And what do I mean by that?  Look, if you tell a company that there are no mileage standards on cars, then people end up making Hummers.  Right?  And everybody drives Hummers until finally gas gets so crazy and at a certain point people start saying maybe I should get a more fuel-efficient car. 

     But if you've got a fuel-efficiency standard in place that says your car needs to get 20 miles a gallon or 30 miles a gallon, suddenly all these engineers are thinking, well, how do we do that?  And all these companies start coming up with new technologies that make your cars more fuel-efficient.  Ultimately, you end up seeing jobs and businesses thriving in response to the regulation that's been put there.

     Now, that's one way to regulate, is just to tell people you got to produce more energy-efficient cars.  Another way of doing it is just to send a price signal.  You say, it's going to be more expensive for you if you've got a less fuel-efficient car. 

     Well, that's the only idea that we're trying to talk about when it comes to these greenhouse gases that are causing global warming.  If we say that, you know what, the pollution that's being sent into the atmosphere has a cost to all of us -- in terms of in some cases the air we breathe that's causing asthma, in some cases because it's causing climate change -- we just want you to take into account those costs and price energy accordingly.  And that means that things like wind energy suddenly become more appealing because they don't produce those pollution -- those pollutants, and other sources of energy become less appealing because they do produce those pollutants.

     The idea has been that if we put a price on these carbons, then maybe that would be a way that companies would all respond and start inventing new things that would make our planet cleaner.  That's the whole idea.

     Now, last point I'm going to make on this.  What is true is that a lot of us depend on dirty sources of energy and a lot of us depend on really inefficient cars and buildings and et cetera.  And so there's got to be a transition.  We're not going to suddenly get all our energy from wind or all our energy from sun because we just don't have the technology to do it.

     But what we should be doing is planning over the next 20, 30 years to move in that direction.  That's what countries like China are doing.  That's what countries like France are doing.  That's what countries all across Europe are doing, and all across Asia are doing.  We don't want to be left behind.  We're the only ones who have kind of missed the boat.  So we're still using 20th century technologies and everybody else is producing 21st century technologies.

     Look what happened with the car.  We started getting our clock cleaned when consumers decided they wanted a cleaner car and suddenly everybody was buying their cars from Japan, or now South Korea.  And we want to make sure that that doesn't happen when it comes to wind turbines, it doesn't happen when it comes to solar energy, et cetera.

     So the ideas that are being talked about is how do we provide more incentive for clean energy companies like yours to operate profitably, and over time how do we start shifting away from less efficient ways of using energy?  That's a pretty straightforward thing to do.  There's nothing radical about it.

     It is true, though, that it's not going to happen overnight; it's going to take some time.  And we're still going to be getting our electricity from coal; we're still going to be getting electricity from nuclear energy; we're still going to be getting electricity and power from natural gas and other traditional sources.  We just want to make sure that we're also moving into the future even as we do so.  And I think that we can.  (Applause.)

     All right.  I think I've got time for one more question.  All right, this is the last question.  Last question.  It's a lady's turn.  All right, everybody is pointing at her.  Right up there, right there.  I couldn't call on anybody.  You know I love everybody here.

     Q    Good morning, Mr. President.  My name is Terry Wright (phonetic) -- and I teach math right here at Green Valley High School.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Excellent. 

     Q    And my mom is right behind you in the top row. 

     THE PRESIDENT:  Where is Mom?  Mom, raise your hand.

     Q    Right there. 

     THE PRESIDENT:  Oh, hey, Mom.  (Laughter.)  You're a very young looking mom. 

     Q    Thank you.  My question is this -- and I'm speaking on behalf of all of us math teachers up here -- when you were a freshman in high school specifically, did you have math homework every night?  And if you did, did you do it?  (Laughter.) 

     THE PRESIDENT:  Oh, ah.  (Laughter.)  The answer is yes, and sometimes.  (Laughter.)  But, first of all, let me thank you for being a math teacher, because we need more math teachers.  (Applause.)  We need more science teachers.  We need more teachers generally who are enthusiastic about their work and their jobs.  So thanks to all the teachers here.  We love teachers.  (Applause.)

     All right.  Now, we are actually -- unfortunately, our students are falling behind in math and science, internationally.  We used to rank at the top, and now we're sort of in the middle of the pack when it comes to math and science performance. 

This is why one of the things that I've been emphasizing this year -- and this actually hasn’t been subject to a lot of controversy; this is an area where we've been able to get good cooperation between Democrats and Republicans -- is promoting math and science education, promoting technology education.  The more that we are moving our young people into these areas, the better off this economy is going to be, because that means we're producing engineers, we're producing scientists, we're producing computer programmers. 

So we want to make sure that we are recruiting more math teachers, we're recruiting more science teachers.  We want all outstanding teachers to be getting higher pay.  (Applause.)  We want to make sure that there's constant professional development when it comes to the teaching profession, so that if you had the best way of teaching math five years ago, it might not be the best way of teaching math five years from now, and so you should be able to go back and constantly sharpen your skills.

To the students I want to say this.  We're doing a lot of work on education reform.  We are doing a lot to bring in new teachers, to improve classrooms, to make sure that they're all connected to the Internet, to make sure that college is more affordable.  (Applause.)  But let me just say that it won't make any difference if our students aren’t working a little bit harder.  (Applause.)

Now, I'm not saying all of you aren’t working hard.  I'm sure many of you feel like you are working very, very hard -- because Malia and Sasha always tell me how hard they're working.  (Laughter.)  But I really do think that we're going to have to emphasize in the next decade that we're competing around the world, and America will continue to be number one as long as we are just as hungry as other countries.

So if our kids are spending all their time playing video games, and somebody else's kids are getting the math and science skills to invent video games -- (laughter) -- we're not going to be number one.  I mean, it's as simple as that.

So the need to turn off the TV, put the video games away, buckle down on your work, making sure that parents are checking their kids' homework and talking to their teachers -- (applause) -- being accountable, being responsible -- that's what's going to make sure that we continue to thrive, we continue to excel into the future.

Thank you, Henderson.  I had a great time.  Bye-bye.  (Applause.)

END
11:09 A.M. PST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 19, 2010

Remarks by The President at A Reception for Senator Bennet

Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, Denver, Colorado

February 18, 2010

5:04 P.M. MST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Denver!  (Applause.)  Well, it is good to be back in Denver.  (Applause.)  Good to be in Colorado.  And good to be campaigning for one of the finest young senators we have in the United States Senate, Michael Bennet.  (Applause.) 

I have to confess, the reason I was delayed, I was grabbing one of those little canapés.  (Laughter.)  Quite tasty.  He had one, too.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Thanks for the snow.

THE PRESIDENT:  You're welcome.  Well, look, it is wonderful to be here.  We just came from the Fillmore Auditorium, where we had -- what did we have, a couple thousand people?  Twenty-four hundred people.  (Applause.)  Not that he's counting.  Because they understand that at this defining moment in our history, we've got to have people who are willing to fight on behalf of families all across America.  And they know that Michael got into this business because he believes in that fight.

Now, before I go on, I think there are a couple people who are still around, I'm not sure if they're out here.  But the senior senator from Colorado, Brother Udall is right here.  Give him a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  And a great friend and a terrific governor of California is here -- where's Governor Ritter, where did he go?  Colorado, sorry.  What did I say?  (Laughter.)  California.  Listen, East Coast time, it's past my dinner.  That's why I -- give Bill Ritter a big round of applause.  (Applause.)

All right, now, back to what I was saying.  (Laughter.)  You know, obviously we know that the country is going through a tough time.  But when I was here a year ago, at Mile High, and some of you were probably here -- (applause) -- some of you were there with me -- I made a promise to you not that I was going to tell you what you wanted to hear, not that I was always going to do what was popular.  But I promised you that I would wake up each and every day thinking about how we can make sure that the American Dream is working for everybody, and more importantly, how we can make sure that it's working for the next generation.

And one of the things throughout my campaign for the presidency was reminding America that this isn't about a candidate, this is about the people; that change comes from the bottom up, not from the top down; and that the kind of transformation that we needed was not going to happen because you elected me as President, because -- but rather because all of us together were willing to join and all of us were willing to take responsibility.

Now, one of the things, the great things that you did was to send two outstanding United States senators with me on this difficult journey.  And we've got to make sure that Michael continues on that journey with me.  (Applause.)  Because the same things that we fought for in 2008, the same things that I campaigned on, that same spirit -- that's what driven Michael all his life.  He knows what it's like to come from humble beginnings.  He knows what it's like to make sure that everybody is going to have a chance in life. 

And that's why, even though he was successful in business and the private sector, he decided that he could make his biggest contribution by going into public service, and I'm sure taking a really big pay cut.  (Laughter.)

So working with the outstanding mayor and soon-to-be governor, John Hickenlooper -- (applause) -- he helped to balance budgets, he helped to make sure that this city was running as well as it's ever run, a model for cities across the nation.  And then he decided, well, that's not a big enough challenge; let me try to fix the school system.  And he took that on.  And he did it with the same energy and the same determination and the same capacity to bring discordant voices together and get them to work and think in new ways.  And as a consequence, you saw the performance of this school district go up as fast as any school district anywhere in the country.

So he's been a business executive, he's somebody who's run a school system and made it work for children, and then he decided, well, let me try this U.S. Senate thing. 

Now, I'm not sure he knew entirely what he was bargaining for.  Udall might have warned him a little bit, because Udall had been in Congress for a while.  But the truth is, Michael is a pretty bright guy, and he understood this was not going to be an easy year or two to get started in electoral politics.

I mean, think about where we were last year.  Michael took his spot about two days after I was inaugurated, and at that point, we already understood that we had the worst recession since the Great Depression; we're losing 800,000 jobs per month; we knew that the financial system was on the verge of meltdown; we knew that we were involved in two wars; that we were inheriting a $1.3 trillion deficit.  We knew that this was going to be a tough time.

So nobody would have blamed Michael if he had said, you know, maybe I'll make my maiden race four years from now when things are looking a little bit better.  But that's not what he did.  He stepped up.  And not only did he step up, but since he has been in Washington, there has not been a better champion on behalf of middle-class folks and on behalf of the dreams and aspirations that each of you carry for your children and your grandchildren than Michael Bennet.  (Applause.)  There has not been anybody who's been fighting harder for you and taking the tough votes.

He was with me when we signed the Recovery Act -- (applause) -- that has provided a tax cut for 95 percent of working families; created an entire new sector of clean energy.  Did you know that when we started last year, the Recovery Act, we had about 2 percent of the advanced battery production here in the United States; almost all of it was coming from Asia.  We now have 20 percent capacity, and we're going to go up to 40 percent capacity.  (Applause.)  That's because of the kind of work that Michael Bennet, working with his partner, Senator Udall, did. 

We provided the biggest boost in education from the federal government in our history, and not just any kind of money but rewarding success, rewarding reform, investing in research and development and math and science education, because we understand that whatever country out-educates us today is going to out-compete us tomorrow, and we will not tolerate America being number two or number three in the number of scientists and mathematicians.  (Applause.)

We made investments not just in roads and bridges, as important those are, but we made investments in smart grid and high-speed rail and broadband -- the infrastructure of the 21st century that's going to make sure that we can compete.  All these things were because Michael pushed and Michael supported an agenda that was not only going to deal with the immediate crisis but looking beyond trying to figure out what our future was going to be.

And that's just one of the fights he's fought.  Alongside me and the rest of the Democrats in the Senate, we've been able to make sure that credit cards were no longer the source of abuse for ordinary consumers.  (Applause.)  We passed housing fraud legislation to make sure that people weren't taken advantage with predatory loans.  We passed the largest expansion of national service that our young people can get involved at an early age in giving back to America.  We provided children -- 4 million children in this country, without passing health care -- comprehensive health care yet, we've already provided 4 million children with health care that didn't have it before Michael joined the United States Senate.  (Applause.)

So this guy's been fighting for you.  Now you need to fight for him.  Because the fact of the matter is, is that this is a tough political environment.  I'm not telling anything -- anybody anything they don't know.  As successful as the Recovery Act and our other steps have been in breaking the back of the recession, there are still millions of people out there who are struggling, who are trying to figure out how to pay the mortgage; they're seeing their homes underwater; they're worried about whether they can find a job if they've already lost the one that they had.

And so understandably people are scared.  And sometimes when people are scared, politics can get rough.  That's not unique to this period of time; that's been true throughout our history.  And it doesn't help when you've got an opposition that is more interested in tearing the other party down than they are in building America up.

But what Michael understands is that as many barriers as there may be in front of us, we've got to keep on going, because just walking away is not an option.  Look, he hasn't been in politics long enough to understand that the easiest way to get reelected is just to wave and smile and don't say anything offensive.  (Laughter.)  Keep your head down, don't do anything.  That's the best way to keep your poll numbers high.

But he understands that we can't afford that.  We can't afford to walk away from a clean energy future.  We can't afford to walk away from making sure that our education system is producing the kinds of scientists and engineers and entrepreneurs that are going to build our economy in the future.  We can't afford to walk away from a health care system that is broken for everybody -- for small businesses and large businesses; for families who are seeing their premiums go up 25 percent, 30 percent, 35 percent; for the millions who don't have health insurance at all; and for future generations who are going to have to carry the bill if we don't get control of health care costs like Medicare and Medicaid.  He understands we cannot walk away from it and we will not walk away from it.  (Applause.)  If I've got Michael Bennet's help, we are going to get health care reform passed in this country.  (Applause.)

So, yes, it's tough.  (Laughter.)  But we're tougher.  (Applause.)  We've been through tougher times; our parents, our grandparents.  Many of you in your own lives, you know what it's like when you hit a barrier.  There are times where you feel doubtful; there are times where you get weary.  But what has defined America throughout our history is that in fits and starts, we just keep on going forward.  And we're driven not just by self-interest, we're driven not just by greed or not just by inquisitiveness.  We're driven by a sense of responsibility and obligation to others, to this country, to our community, to our children, to the next generation.  (Applause.)

That's what drove Michael into public service.  That's what is keeping him going, even when he's away from that gorgeous family of his.  And that's why he needs you.

Look, there will continue to be special interests and lobbyists and those in Washington who are going to try to go after a guy like this who plays it straight.  They're going to try to take him out.  They've got all their pollsters and their -- and we got to -- this is a rookie here.  The guy has never cut a TV ad.  (Laughter.)  He doesn't know how to speak in seven-minute -- seven-second sound bites.  (Laughter.) 

So they've got a target on him.  And this becomes a test of what kind of government do we want.  Do we want the kind of government where an outstanding individual who's in it for all the right reasons and has a track record of success in making systems work for ordinary people -- are we going to make sure that this guy has a long and outstanding career in Washington?  (Applause.)  And are we going to channel that anger and that frustration we feel sometimes, understanding that Michael is not part of the problem, he's part of the solution -- (applause) -- and that he's somebody who is going to change Washington if you send him back there and give him the kind of mandate that he deserves?  (Applause.)

So my bottom line is this -- my bottom line is this:  As hard as you worked in 2008, you've got to work harder in 2010.  (Applause.)  If you raised money for me, I want you to raise more money for Michael Bennet.  (Applause.)  If you made more -- if you made phone calls for me, I want you to make more phones calls and I want you to Twitter, too, for Michael Bennet.  (Applause.)  If you knocked on doors on your block, I want you to go in your whole neighborhood for Michael Bennet.  (Applause.) 

I want you to work hard, because if you do, then I am absolutely confident that not only is Michael Bennet going to continue to be the United States senator from Colorado, I am confident that this is going to be one of the most outstanding senators that we've ever had and a great leader for all of America.

Thank you very much, Denver.  Let's get to work.  Let's get busy.  God bless you.

END
5:20 P.M. MST 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 18, 2010

Remarks by the President at Grassroots Fundraiser for Senator Bennet

The Fillmore Auditorium, Denver, Colorado

3:50 P.M. MST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Denver!  (Applause.)  I'm fired up!  (Applause.)  What a great crowd.  (Applause.)  Yes, we can.

AUDIENCE:  Yes, we can!  Yes, we can!  Yes, we can!  Yes, we can!

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you, everybody.  Listen, let me first of all say I am thrilled to be back in Denver.  (Applause.)  I've got some good friends here who I want to make sure I acknowledge, in addition to the guy standing beside me here.

First of all, your outstanding governor is in the house, Bill Ritter.  Where is Bill?  (Applause.)  There he is.  (Applause.)  Lieutenant Governor Barbara O'Brien is here.  (Applause.)  A great partner for this guy, Senator Mark Udall is in the house.  (Applause.)  Congressman Jared Polis is here.  (Applause.)  And an outstanding mayor, who I think actually might make a pretty good governor, John Hickenlooper in the house.  (Applause.)

It is great to be back in Colorado.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love you!

THE PRESIDENT:  I love you back.  (Laughter.)  I know this state is the training ground for a few Winter Olympians -- (applause) -- who are doing us so proud.  I know Shaun White's secret training facility up on Silverton Mountain paid off.  I don't know how those guys do that, though.  (Laughter.)  How do you start doing that?  (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Practice!

THE PRESIDENT:  But how do you get up the guts the first time to start practicing doing that?  (Laughter.)

Gold medal for snowboarding -- Colorado is the home of several Olympians, including Lindsey Vonn -- (applause) -- who brought home the gold yesterday; Johnny Spillane, who won the silver medal in Nordic combined -- first American medal in that event.  So I just want all of our Olympians to know that the United States of America is proud of you, we are cheering for you every day.  I am checking my BlackBerry -- (laughter) -- every half hour to see how things turned out.

I've got some good memories of Denver, including one just down the road at Mile High Stadium.  (Applause.)  Some of you may have been there.  You know, that night I talked about the promise of America.  And I want you to know that not a single day goes by that I don't think about the obligation that I have to keep that promise alive for every single American and every single Coloradoan.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Thank you!

THE PRESIDENT:  You're welcome.  (Laughter.)  Thank you for giving me the privilege of every single day thinking about how can we make that American Dream live for everybody, not just for some.

And I'm thrilled to be here in support of a leader who shares our commitment to that priority -- Senator Michael Bennet.  (Applause.)

Now, some of you may support him just because he's got an adorable family.  (Laughter.)  They are adorable.  But for those of you who need additional reasons, let me testify about this guy.  He's been an agent of change in these parts for a very long time.  As a businessman, he turned struggling companies around and got them to work better.  He knows how to make the private sector work.  Then, he put his talents to use making Denver work better.  And Mayor John Hickenlooper, one of America's finest mayors -- (applause) -- soon to be one of America's best governors, knows how valuable Michael can be. 

Michael closed a budget deficit and balanced two budgets in a row by finding innovative ways to get the job of city government done.  Then, he took over the public school system where progress was stalled and budgets were shrinking, and he turned that around, too.  (Applause.)  He invested in your schools and your classrooms, he expanded early childhood education for your kids, finished with graduation rates up and student achievement climbing faster than in any other district in the state.  (Applause.)  In just a few short years, Michael proved himself to be one of America's great education reformers.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  That's right.

THE PRESIDENT:  That's right.  (Laughter.)  I got an "Amen" over here.  (Laughter.)  

So when I heard that he'd be joining your other extraordinary Senator, Mark Udall, I was thrilled because I knew that Michael is a different kind of leader -- one who's unafraid to bring a fresh approach to tough challenges because he knows the old ways of doing business just won't do.  Not anymore.  And Colorado, that is precisely the kind of leader that he has been in Washington.  That's precisely the kind of leader he's going to continue to be when you reelect him as senator from the great state of Colorado.  (Applause.)

Now, keep in mind Michael answered the call to service at an extraordinarily challenging time for Colorado and for America.  He took office just over a year ago, two days after I did, and thinking about what we were facing then -- a financial crisis unlike any that we had seen in generations; an economy that was bleeding 700,000 jobs a month; a $1.3 trillion deficit; two wars; challenges that ranged from the specter of terrorism to the impacts of globalization; and on top of that, one of the toughest decades America's middle class has ever faced, with stagnant job growth, declining income, and rising costs.

So when he was asked to serve, he could have said, "I don't think so."  (Laughter.)  "Let me put this off for a while" -- and especially when you think about the sacrifice he has to make with respect to a young family.  Nobody would have blamed Michael if he had declined the challenge.  He could have blinked in the face of these difficulties and shied away from an economy in turmoil.  He could have scanned the political landscape and seen the pain and anger that Americans were feelings and said, "You know what, let me just point fingers at somebody else and wait till things got better."

But that's not what Michael did, because that's not his style.   He has always thrived in taking on the tough job.  And he knew it would be a tough time to serve, but he knew that's when you can make the greatest difference.  He knew that he might take a few licks as a politician -- but he also knew it would be nothing compared to the licks that working families all across this state and all across this country have been taking every day.  And so he stepped up. And he has been a tremendous ally for middle-class families not just here in this state but all across the country.  (Applause.)

He was here by my side in Denver a year ago, when we signed the Recovery Act into law.  (Applause.)  It wasn't a politically easy decision to make -- for any of us -- because we knew that we were already facing big deficits that had been run up over the last decade.  But we had a responsibility to do what was right for the American people, and break the back of this recession that was slipping into a depression.

One year later, thanks largely to the Recovery Act, we can stand here again and say that a second depression is no longer a possibility.  (Applause.)  An economy that was shrinking by 6 percent a year ago is now growing by nearly 6 percent.  (Applause.)  According to independent, nonpartisan economists, there are about 2 million Americans who are at work today who would otherwise be unemployed.  (Applause.)

We cut taxes for 95 percent of working Americans; for small businesses; for first-time homebuyers; for parents trying to care for their kids; for 8 million Americans paying for college, we made it less expensive.  (Applause.)  We extended and increased unemployment insurance for more than 19 million Americans.  We made COBRA 65 percent cheaper for families who have suffered a job lost.  We gave relief to states to help them through these tough times.  And every governor, Republican and Democrat, will acknowledge that if it hadn't been for that Recovery Act, we would have seen police officers and firefighters and teachers laid off.

And we began building the infrastructure, investing not just in roads and bridges, in airports and railways, but in the infrastructure of the future, something that John Hickenlooper knows a lot about, making sure that we've got high-speed in this country, making sure that we've got broadband lines in this country, making sure that we're investing in science and technology, and education and clean energy in America that is going to assure long-term growth and prosperity.  (Applause.)

Now, you wouldn't know any of this if you just listened to those who are trying to score political points by attacking me or attacking Michael or what we did, despite the fact that a lot of these guys, when it comes to the ribbon-cuttings for the projects they show up.  (Laughter.)  They were holding up those big checks.  (Laughter.)  "Look what I did for you."  You know, I'm not going to give them hell.  I'm going to tell the truth, and they'll think it's hell.  (Applause.)  That's what Harry Truman said.  (Applause.)

But that's politics as usual.  We've become accustomed to it.  We've become numb to it.  We're just accustomed to falsehoods and exaggerations and slash-and-burn politics. 

But Michael and I, we don't have time for that nonsense.  We're going to keep doing everything in our power to turn this economy around.  We won't rest as long as millions are still without work, or millions are still working harder and harder for less.  Until they begin to feel recovery in their own lives, we're going to keep on working, because for years, Americans just doing their best to live up to their responsibilities have seen their leaders fail to live up to their responsibilities. 

We've got a Washington here every day is Election Day.  On Wall Street, they've seen failure rewarded.  In the hallways of both cities, you see lobbyists and special interests using money and connections to stack the deck, and pundits who all they're interested in is the political game -- is the red team winning, is the blue team winning -- instead of, are the American people winning.  (Applause.)  

And so people are fed up because it's not a game.  It's not a game.  And when I get out and I talk with workers in factories, and families in diners, nobody is asking who's up, who's down, what's the latest poll number look like?  No one is asking me, hey, you know, who won the media cycle today?  (Laughter.)  They're interested in how are we going to help them find a job when they've only known one trade in their whole life; how are they going to send their kids to college; how are they going to pay the bills if they get sick; how are they going to retire when their savings are so beat up; and who, if anybody, is going to confront the real problems that touch their lives?

That's why I ran for President.  That's why I was in Mile High Stadium.  That's why Michael Bennet signed up to be your senator.  That's why we are not going to quit.  We do not quit -- (applause) -- because we believe if we're going to secure a better future for the people of this state and the American people, as Michael so eloquently spoke about, we're going to have to change the ways of Washington.  We're going to have to solve problems that keep holding us back -- and we've got no time to waste.

Now, look, this is a problem that transcends party, what's happening in Washington right now.  A couple weeks ago, I went to the Capitol to speak with Democratic senators.  And Michael stood up -- and he's new, so he's still kind of puzzled as to -- (laughter) -- why is nothing getting done.  (Laughter.)  So Michael stood up, he challenged everybody in the room, including me.  He said, "This place looks broken to the American people.  What can we do differently?  What do we need do differently --”  (applause) -- “Democrats and Republicans -- so that democracy can meet the test that we're facing right now?"  That's what Michael asked me.  That's what the American people are asking.

Now, the first thing I'll say is, you've got to have more leaders like Michael Bennet -- (applause) -- because he's determined to break through partisan gridlock to get the tough stuff done.  He's fearless when it comes to challenging the old assumptions and the tired debates and the entrenched special interests that have stymied progress for too long.

He told me about a woman he met from Glenwood Springs.  She asked him where could she get her lobbyist in Washington.  (Laughter.)  I don't know what he told her, but I -- if she were here, I would tell her, you don't need a lobbyist because you've got Michael Bennet as senator and you've got Mark Udall as senator and they are going to be looking out for your interests.  (Applause.)

The only agenda Michael has is yours.  He understands that there's something more important than pursuing power or clinging on to your seat or scoring points -- and that's breaking free from the politics of the past and moving America forward at this defining moment in our history.

Look, we can keep on being consumed by the politics of energy, but we know that there are factories to reopen, and assembly lines to restart, and workers ready to build wind turbines and solar panels and advanced batteries right here in the United States of America.  We know that whoever leads the clean energy revolution is going to lead the 21st century economy.  The people of Colorado understand that.  Michael Bennet understands that.  (Applause.)

And we can't wait.  We can't wait.  Because China is not waiting.  India is not waiting.  Germany is not waiting.  We can't afford to wait.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  That's right!

THE PRESIDENT:  Exactly.  (Laughter.)  We can't continue to spin our wheels in the old education debates -- the stale debates, they pit teachers against reformers -- meanwhile kids are trailing their counterparts all around the world.

So we need to do what Michael did here in Denver, which is to bring people together, get them talking, build consensus around reform.  Because we know that the country that out-educates us today is going to out-compete us tomorrow.  And we don't want that future for our young people.  We're not going to sentence them to a lifetime of lower wages and unfulfilled dreams.  (Applause.)

We can continue to ignore the growing burden of runaway health care costs.   And we all know what will happen if we do -- it's already happening.  Just the other week, one of California's largest insurers sent a letter to a million customers saying:  Your premiums are going to go up by as much as 39 percent.

AUDIENCE:  Boo!

THE PRESIDENT:  It's not just happening there.  It's happening in Kansas; it's happening in Missouri; it's happening in Maine.  You name it, across the country, it's happening -- it's going to be happening here.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Already is!

THE PRESIDENT:  Already happened.  Now, after folks found out about this rate hike, they caused a ruckus and the insurance company said, well, we'll put it off for couple months.  I'm sure they're going to work on their PR a little more.  (Laughter.)

The reform before Congress that people like Michael and myself have been working on would help prevent such hikes from happening.  And if we walk away from it, we know that premiums and out-of-pocket expenses will keep rising this decade, just as they did in the last decade.  More small businesses are going to be priced out of the insurance market.  More business -- more big businesses are going to be unable to compete internationally.  More of you will see health care taking a bigger and bigger bite out of your paychecks.  Millions will lose their coverage.  Our deficits will keep on growing because health care costs, by far, is the biggest driver of deficits.

And that's why we're not going to walk away from it.  (Applause.)  That's why I've asked leaders of both parties to come meet with me next week.  I want to see what their ideas are, because we know we've got ideas that will work for America.  (Applause.)  And we can't afford to wait.

We can keep on playing games with the deficit.  But Michael Bennet refuses to.  He was a strong supporter of the PAYGO law that says, surprisingly enough, to Congress, you have to pay as you go -- a novel concept that helped produce the budget surpluses of the 1990s.  If you want to spend on something new, you've got to cut back somewhere else.  Michael was part of a majority in the Senate that supported the creation of an independent, bipartisan fiscal commission to help us find long-term solutions to some of the problems that we're facing.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Medicare for all!

THE PRESIDENT:  There you go.

Now, unfortunately, partisanship blocked that step.  Some of you read about this, how there were seven people who were co-sponsors of this bill that would create this fiscal commission who, when I decided I was for it, suddenly were against it.  (Laughter.)  They were sponsors of the bill.  So we said, okay, that's all right, I'll establish one on my own -- National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility -- we signed it today -- Alan Simpson, a Republican; Erskine Bowles, a Democrat -- to find real solutions.  (Applause.)

Michael held an event out here recently where he was talking about fiscal discipline, and his 10 year old daughter, Caroline, came to watch.  There she is.  Wave.  Yes, there she is.  (Laughter.)  When she was born, America had a surplus.  But after two tax cuts, two wars, a prescription drug program, none of which were paid for, we faced a deficit of over $1 trillion and projected deficits of $8 trillion over the next decade.  That's all before my administration spent a single dollar.  Then you had the recession.  That's another $3 billion.  And then we did have to make sure that we were stimulating the economy, and that cost about a trillion [dollars] -- a fraction of the overall debt.

So that's we inherited.  And as Michael and his daughter walked out of the event -- she was listening to all this -- I don't know if you were adding all this up in your head, Caroline, but she said, "Dad, just so you know -- I'm not paying for all that."  (Laughter and applause.)  That's a smart kid.  (Laughter.)

Her message was crystal clear.  The American people did not send us to Washington to argue; they didn't send us to Washington to obstruct -- they sent us there to do what it takes not to win the next election, but to help the next generation.  You sent us there to work together; to do what's right; to solve our problems -- once and for all.

Now, you've got a senator right now who goes to work every single day with that mission in mind.  And even though Michael Bennet has been serving you for years -- believe it or not, this is his first election; he's a heck of a public servant, but he's new to politics, do he hasn't learned the best way to keep your poll numbers up is just to smile and wave and pretend like you're doing something and not really doing anything that might offend anybody; he hasn't perfected the seven-second sound bite.  He's never even made a TV ad.  Heaven forbid.  (Laughter.)  And he's facing reelection in a tough political climate.

Look, something you got to understand -- for those who don't believe in government, those who don't believe that we have obligations to each other, it's a lot easier task.  If you can gum up the works, if you make things broken, if the Senate doesn't get anything done, well, that's consistent with their philosophy.  It's a whole lot easier to say no to everything.  It's a whole lot easier to blame somebody else.  That politics that feeds on peoples' insecurities, especially during tough political times -- that's the easiest kind of politics.  There's a long, storied history of that kind of politics.

And so Michael is running in a very tough environment, but he's got one very powerful advantage.  He's got you.  (Applause.)  He's been fighting for each and every one of you in Washington.  He needs you to fight for him now.  And if you do that, if you're willing to organize, and make phone calls, and talk to your friends and your neighbors and explain to them what's at stake; if you come out and caucus for Michael on March 16th, and then fight for him all the way to November; if you help him finish what we've started -- we're not just going to move Colorado forward, we're going to move America forward, and we're going to guarantee that this century is the American century just like the last one is.

Let's get to work, Colorado.  God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.  (Applause.)

END
4:29 P.M. MST

The White House

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release
February 18, 2010

Remarks of Vice President Biden at National Defense University - As Prepared for Delivery

The Path to Nuclear Security: Implementing the President’s Prague Agenda

Ladies and gentlemen; Secretaries Gates and Chu; General Cartwright; Undersecretary Tauscher; Administrator D’Agostino; members of our armed services; students and faculty; thank you all for coming.

At its founding, Elihu Root gave this campus a mission that is the very essence of our national defense: “Not to promote war, but to preserve peace by intelligent and adequate preparation to repel aggression.” For more than a century, you and your predecessors have heeded that call. There are few greater contributions citizens can claim.

Many statesmen have walked these grounds, including our Administration’s outstanding National Security Advisor, General Jim Jones. You taught him well. George Kennan, the scholar and diplomat, lectured at the National War College in the late 1940s. Just back from Moscow, in a small office not far from here, he developed the doctrine of Containment that guided a generation of Cold War foreign policy.

Some of the issues that arose during that time seem like distant memories. But the topic I came to discuss with you today, the challenge posed by nuclear weapons, continues to demand our urgent attention.

Last April, in Prague, President Obama laid out his vision for protecting our country from nuclear threats. 

He made clear we will take concrete steps toward a world without nuclear weapons, while retaining a safe, secure, and effective arsenal as long as we still need it.  We will work to strengthen the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.  And we will do everything in our power to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons to terrorists and also to states that don’t already possess them.

It’s easy to recognize the threat posed by nuclear terrorism.  But we must not underestimate how proliferation to a state could destabilize regions critical to our security and prompt neighbors to seek nuclear weapons of their own. 

Our agenda is based on a clear-eyed assessment of our national interest.  We have long relied on nuclear weapons to deter potential adversaries. 

Now, as our technology improves, we are developing non-nuclear ways to accomplish that same objective. The Quadrennial Defense Review and Ballistic Missile Defense Review, which Secretary Gates released two weeks ago, present a plan to further strengthen our preeminent conventional forces to defend our nation and our allies.

Capabilities like an adaptive missile defense shield, conventional warheads with worldwide reach, and others that we are developing enable us to reduce the role of nuclear weapons, as other nuclear powers join us in drawing down. With these modern capabilities, even with deep nuclear reductions, we will remain undeniably strong.

As we’ve said many times, the spread of nuclear weapons is the greatest threat facing our country.

That is why we are working both to stop their proliferation and eventually to eliminate them. Until that day comes, though, we will do everything necessary to maintain our arsenal.

At the vanguard of this effort, alongside our military, are our nuclear weapons laboratories, national treasures that deserve our support. Their invaluable contributions range from building the world’s fastest supercomputers, to developing cleaner fuels, to surveying the heavens with robotic telescopes.

But the labs are best known for the work they do to secure our country. Time and again, we have asked our labs to meet our most urgent strategic needs. And time and again, they have delivered.

In 1939, as fascism began its march across Europe, Asia, and Africa, Albert Einstein warned President Roosevelt that the Nazis were racing to build a weapon, the likes of which the world had never seen. In the Southwest Desert, under the leadership of Robert Oppenheimer, the physicists of Los Alamos won that race and changed the course of history.

Sandia was born near Albuquerque soon after the Second World War and became our premier facility for developing the non-nuclear components of our nuclear weapons program.

And a few years later the institution that became Lawrence Livermore took root in California. During the arms race that followed the Korean War, it designed and developed warheads that kept our nuclear capabilities second to none.

These examples illustrate what everyone in this room already knows - that the past century’s defining conflicts were decided not just on the battlefield, but in the classroom and in the laboratory.

Air Force General Hap Arnold, an aviation pioneer whose vision helped shape the National War College, once argued that the First World War was decided by brawn and the Second by logistics. “The Third World War will be different,” he predicted. “It will be won by brains.”

General Arnold got it almost right.  Great minds like Kennan and Oppenheimer helped win the Cold War and prevent World War Three altogether.

During the Cold War, we tested nuclear weapons in our atmosphere, underwater and underground, to confirm that they worked before deploying them, and to evaluate more advanced concepts. But explosive testing damaged our health, disrupted our environment and set back our non-proliferation goals.

Eighteen years ago, President George H.W. Bush signed the nuclear testing moratorium enacted by Congress, which remains in place to this day. 

Under the moratorium, our laboratories have maintained our arsenal through the Stockpile Stewardship Program without underground nuclear testing, using techniques that are as successful as they are cutting edge.

Today, the directors of our nuclear laboratories tell us they have a deeper understanding of our arsenal from Stockpile Stewardship than they ever had when testing was commonplace. 

Let me repeat that - our labs know more about our arsenal today than when we used to explode our weapons on a regular basis.  With our support, the labs can anticipate potential problems and reduce their impact on our arsenal.

Unfortunately, during the last decade, our nuclear complex and experts were neglected and underfunded.

Tight budgets forced more than 2,000 employees of Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore from their jobs between 2006 and 2008, including highly-skilled scientists and engineers.

And some of the facilities we use to handle uranium and plutonium date back to the days when the world’s great powers were led by Truman, Churchill, and Stalin. The signs of age and decay are becoming more apparent every day.

Because we recognized these dangers, in December, Secretary Chu and I met at the White House with the heads of the three nuclear weapons labs. They described the dangerous impact these budgetary pressures were having on their ability to manage our arsenal without testing.  They say this situation is a threat to our security. President Obama and I agree.

That’s why earlier this month we announced a new budget that reverses the last decade’s dangerous decline.

It devotes $7 billion to maintaining our nuclear stockpile and modernizing our nuclear infrastructure.  To put that in perspective, that’s $624 million more than Congress approved last year—and an increase of $5 billion over the next five years.  Even in these tight fiscal times, we will commit the resources our security requires.

This investment is not only consistent with our nonproliferation agenda; it is essential to it.   Guaranteeing our stockpile, coupled with broader research and development efforts, allows us to pursue deep nuclear reductions without compromising our security.  As our conventional capabilities improve, we will continue to reduce our reliance on nuclear weapons.

Responsible disarmament requires versatile specialists to manage it.

The skilled technicians who look after our arsenal today are the ones who will safely dismantle it tomorrow.

And chemists who understand how plutonium ages also develop forensics to track missing nuclear material and catch those trafficking in it. 

Our goal of a world without nuclear weapons has been endorsed by leading voices in both parties. These include two former Secretaries of State from Republican administrations, Henry Kissinger and George Shultz; President Clinton’s Secretary of Defense Bill Perry; and my former colleague Sam Nunn, for years the Democratic Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. 

Together, these four statesmen called eliminating nuclear weapons “a bold initiative consistent with America’s moral heritage.”

During the 2008 Presidential campaign, both the President and Senator McCain supported the same objective. We will continue to build support for this emerging bipartisan consensus like the one around containment of Soviet expansionism that George Kennan inspired.

Toward that end, we have worked tirelessly to implement the President’s Prague agenda.

In September, the President chaired an historic meeting of the UN Security Council, which unanimously embraced the key elements of the President’s vision.

As I speak, U.S. and Russian negotiators are completing an agreement that will reduce strategic weapons to their lowest levels in decades. 

Its verification measures will provide confidence its terms are being met.  These reductions will be conducted transparently and predictably. The new START treaty will promote strategic stability and bolster global efforts to prevent proliferation by showing that the world’s leading nuclear powers are committed to reducing their arsenals. 

And it will build momentum for collaboration with Russia on strengthening the global consensus that nations who violate their NPT obligations should be held to account. 

This strategy is yielding results.  We have tightened sanctions on North Korea’s proliferation activities through the most restrictive UN Security Council resolution to date - and the international community is enforcing these sanctions effectively.

And we are now working with our international partners to ensure that Iran, too, faces real consequences for failing to meet its obligations.

In the meantime, we are completing a government-wide review of our nuclear posture.

Already, our budget proposal reflects some of our key priorities, including increased funding for our nuclear complex, and a commitment to sustain our heavy bombers and land and submarine-based missile capabilities, under the new START agreement.

As Congress requested and with Secretary Gates’ full support, this review has been a full interagency partnership.

We believe we have developed a broad and deep consensus on the importance of the President’s agenda and the steps we must take to achieve it. The results will be presented to Congress soon.

In April, the President will also host a Nuclear Security Summit to advance his goal of securing all vulnerable nuclear material within four years.  We cannot wait for an act of nuclear terrorism before coming together to share best practices and raise security standards, and we will seek firm commitments from our partners to do just that.

In May, we will participate in the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference. We are rallying support for stronger measures to strengthen inspections and punish cheaters.

The Treaty’s basic bargain - that nuclear powers pursue disarmament and non-nuclear states do not acquire such weapons, while gaining access to civilian nuclear technology - is the cornerstone of the non-proliferation regime.

Before the treaty was negotiated, President Kennedy predicted a world with up to 20 nuclear powers by the mid-1970s.  Because of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and the consensus it embodied, that didn’t happen.

Now, 40 years later, that consensus is fraying.  We must reinforce this consensus, and strengthen the treaty for the future.
 
And, while we do that, we will also continue our efforts to negotiate a ban on the production of fissile materials that can be used in nuclear weapons.  

We know that completing a treaty that will ban the production of fissile material will not be quick or easy - but the Conference on Disarmament must resume its work on this treaty as soon as possible.

The last piece of the President’s agenda from Prague was the ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

A decade ago, we led this effort to negotiate this treaty in order to keep emerging nuclear states from perfecting their arsenals and to prevent our rivals from pursuing ever more advanced weapons.  

We are confident that all reasonable concerns raised about the treaty back then – concerns about verification and the reliability of our own arsenal - have now been addressed.  The test ban treaty is as important as ever.

As President Obama said in Prague, “we cannot succeed in this endeavor alone, but we can lead it, we can start it.”

Some friends in both parties may question aspects of our approach. Some in my own party may have trouble reconciling investments in our nuclear complex with a commitment to arms reduction. Some in the other party may worry we’re relinquishing capabilities that keep our country safe.

With both groups we respectfully disagree. As both the only nation to have used nuclear weapons, and as a strong proponent of non-proliferation, the United States has long embodied a stark but inevitable contradiction. The horror of nuclear conflict may make its occurrence unlikely, but the very existence of nuclear weapons leaves the human race ever at the brink of self-destruction, particularly if the weapons fall into the wrong hands.

Many leading figures of the nuclear age grew ambivalent about aspects of this order. Kennan, whose writings gave birth to the theory of nuclear deterrence, argued passionately but futilely against the development of the hydrogen bomb. And Robert Oppenheimer famously lamented, after watching the first mushroom cloud erupt from a device he helped design, that he had become “the destroyer of worlds.”

President Obama is determined, and I am as well, that the destroyed world Oppenheimer feared must never become our reality. That is why we are pursuing the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons. The awesome force at our disposal must always be balanced by the weight of our shared responsibility. 

Every day, many in this audience help bear that burden with professionalism, courage, and grace.

A grateful nation appreciates your service. Together, we will live up to our responsibilities. Together, we will lead the world. 

Thank you. 

May God bless America. 

May God protect our troops.

The White House

Office of the First Lady

For Immediate Release
February 18, 2010

Remarks from First Lady Meeting with British Essay Contest Winners

Old Family Dining Room

11:05 A.M. EST

MRS. OBAMA:  Well, first, let me just officially welcome you to the White House, to my house.  We're in the Old Family Dining Room, and this is the State Floor of the Residence, so this is where all the official functions happen.  And we live upstairs, two floors upstairs.  That's where our house is, and the TVs, and the dog, and the kids, and all that stuff.

But this, we do a lot of intimate events here.  I think yesterday the President had lunch with the King of Spain.  So that's the kind of stuff we do here.  I met with Congress here on a childhood obesity initiative. 

But on the rest of this floor this is where you do big press conferences.  Right here in the State Dining Room we're going to have the Governors Ball on Sunday.  We invite every governor from the states and their wives.  And then there's the Blue Room and the Red Room and the Green Room -- they're that color.  (Laughter.)  So hopefully before you guys leave you'll get to see everything.  And in the Blue Oval Room you'll be able to look out on the South Lawn, which is like our backyard.  So it's so good to have you.

As you know, we have entertained a lot of important guests here, people from your country.  Many of your Prime Ministers have been here.  The Queen has been here -- not since we've been here, but she's been here before.  And you all are just among the many important people that we've had, and I am just thrilled to have you guys here. 

STUDENTS:  Thank you.

MRS. OBAMA:  I really am thrilled and honored that you have taken time.

You know, when I was in the U.K. and visited the Elizabeth Garrett School, I had -- you know, that was one of the most memorable moments for me in my first year.  I've gotten to travel a lot of places, but the time that I spent with Nanah and her fellow students meant a lot to me because, as I said then, I see myself in you all -- you know, the possibilities.  And with you guys doing so well and working on these essays and making your way here, I mean, what you're doing is laying that foundation.  You're demonstrating to your families, to your teachers, to your communities that you're ready to put in the work and be serious and focused. 

And by doing that, the important thing is to know that you can do anything.  You can do anything.  We're living in a wonderful time where, you know, if you work hard and you develop important supports and resources -- and it can be anyone -- it may not be in your family, but it could be a teacher, it could be a pastor, it could be a neighbor -- that the opportunities are endless. 

And that was true for me, you know.  Never before would I have imagined that everything that I did up until this point would prepare me to be the First Lady of the United States.  But it really has, and it started with all the small stuff -- going to school, taking pride in my work, enjoying being the best at whatever I was going to do, practicing discipline early on, listening to my teachers, taking on opportunities to travel.  I never got to do anything like this when I was your age, but, you know, the fact that you have not only competed and won and were able to do this, but you had the courage to come and make it happen.

So I would just encourage you all to make the most of your time in high school.  Is everybody in high school?  Everybody is in high school, right?

STUDENT:  Not me.

MRS. OBAMA:  Not you?  I was like, are you in high school?  (Laughter.)  So you're starting early, which is good. 

But make the most of this time.  I tell my kids that this is practice for the rest of your life, because you don't wake up and become the person that you are.  President Obama didn't wake up to become who he is.  It was a lot of practice early on, of getting things done.  You're going to slip and fall and trip along the way.  He certainly did.  I did a little less than he did.  (Laughter.) 

But, you know, no one gets to where they are without a lot of mistakes, and I tell my kids that's the whole point.  Now you make the mistakes.  And be proud of those mistakes, you know.  And if you don't know what's going on, make some -- make sure people explain things to you.  Don't be afraid to not know, don't be afraid to be wrong, because now is the time to be wrong and to get a few things wrong, because you're just learning.  It's all practice.  But we're proud of you.  We're very proud and honored to have you with us. 

And the other thing that I'll just say is having you here is sort of where -- I know the President talked about moving the country through young people; you know, young people exchanging ideas, and traveling, and sharing, and by visiting the schools you've been visiting, and going to Howard, and seeing some historical sites.  You never know what impression you'll make on the kids that you meet here, because you -- if you haven't run into kids here already, they probably never even been to the U.K.  They probably don't even know what your world is like.

And what you learn as you get older is that so much of who we are is exactly the same, but for an accent or a location.  You'll find that your challenges are the same across the globe.  And you have an opportunity through your visits to inspire somebody here maybe to pick up a map and say, let me find out a little bit more about the U.K. or this community that you all are from; maybe I'll think about competing in an essay contest; maybe I'll think about studying abroad when I get to college; maybe I'll think about expanding my world, right?

So you have that opportunity to influence young people's lives here, and we hope to have more of our young people here in the United States visit many countries and do the same thing.

But remember when you go back that this is a special opportunity.  And one of the things that I try to do and tried to do along my life, throughout my life, is to look back and pull somebody along.  And it's never too early to do that, you know.  It could be a younger brother or a kid in your community, or a cousin.  Think about who you're going to help along, and never stop doing that. 

That's why mentoring is so important to me, because even being here as the First Lady I'm constantly thinking about who I'm going to bring with me; you know, who gets to see this, who gets to experience this life that I'm living. 

And if we all think like that, you know, just imagine what we can do in our communities, for kids who may not get to come on this trip, right?  But we can take this experience back to them, and you all can do the same thing.  That's the only thing I'd ask you guys to think about.

But it is really wonderful to have you here.  And we're excited.

But now I think we've got -- Curtly, you're going to do a little reading for us?  Why don't we do that.

(Curtly Mejias reads an excerpt from his winning essay.)

END
11:14 A.M. EST