The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 18, 2010

Remarks by The President Establishing The National Commission On Fiscal Responsibility and Reform

Diplomatic Reception Room

10:20 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Good morning, everybody.  When I took office, America faced three closely linked challenges.  One was a financial crisis, brought on by reckless speculation that threatened to choke off all lending.  And this helped to spark the deepest recession since the Great Depression, from which we're still recovering.  That recession, in turn, helped to aggravate an already severe fiscal crisis, brought on by years of bad habits in Washington.

Now, the economic crisis required the government to make immediate emergency investments that added to our accumulated debt -- critical investments that have helped to break the back of the recession and lay the groundwork for growth and job creation.  But now, with so many Americans still out of work, the task of recovery is far from complete.  So in the short term, we're going to be taking steps to encourage business to create jobs that will continue to be my top priority. 

Still there's no doubt that we're going to have to also address the long-term quandary of a government that routinely and extravagantly spends more than it takes in. 

When I walked into the door of the White House, our government was spending about 25 percent of GDP but taking in only about 16 percent of GDP.  Without action, the accumulated weight of that structural deficit, of ever-increasing debt, will hobble our economy, it will cloud our future, and it will saddle every child in America with an intolerable burden.

This isn't news.  Since the budget surpluses at the end of the 1990s, federal debt has exploded.  The trajectory is clear and it is disturbing.  But the politics of dealing with chronic deficits is fraught with hard choices and therefore it's treacherous to officeholders here in Washington.  As a consequence, nobody has been too eager to deal with it.

That's where these two gentlemen come in.  Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles are taking on the impossible:  They're going to try to restore reason to the fiscal debate and come up with answers as co-chairs of the new National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.  I'm asking them to produce clear recommendations on how to cover the costs of all federal programs by 2015, and to meaningfully improve our long-term fiscal picture.  I've every confidence that they'll do that because nobody is better qualified than these two.

Alan Simpson is a flinty Wyoming truth-teller -- (laughter) -- if you look in the dictionary it says "flinty," and then it's got Simpson's picture.  (Laughter.)   Through nearly two decades in the United States Senate, he earned a reputation for putting common sense and the people's welfare ahead of petty politics.  As the number two Republican in the Senate, he made the tough choices necessary to close deficits and he played an important role in bipartisan deficit reduction agreements.

Erskine Bowles understands the importance of managing money responsibly in the public sector, where he ran the Small Business Administration and served as President Clinton's chief of staff.  In that capacity, he brokered the 1997 budget agreement with Republicans that helped produce the first balanced budget in nearly 30 years.  One is a good Republican, the other a good Democrat.  But above all, both are patriotic Americans who are answering their country's call to free our future from the stranglehold of debt.

The commission they'll lead was structured in such a way as to rise above partisanship.  There's going to be 18 members.  In addition to the two co-chairs, four others will be appointed by me.  Six will be appointed by Republican leaders, six by Democratic leaders.  Their recommendations will require the approval of 14 of the commission's 18 members, and that ensures that any recommendation coming out of this effort and sent forward to Congress has to be bipartisan in nature.

This commission is patterned on a bill that I supported for a binding commission that was proposed by Democratic Senator Kent Conrad and Republican Senator Judd Gregg.  Their proposal failed recently in the Senate.  But I hope congressional leaders in both parties can step away from the partisan bickering and join this effort to serve the national interest.

As important as this commission is, our fiscal challenge is too great to be solved with any one step alone, and we can't we wait to act.  That's why last week, I signed into law the PAYGO bill -- says very simply that the United States of America should pay as we go and live within our means again -- just like responsible families and businesses do.  This law is what helped get deficits under control in the 1990s and produced surpluses by the end of the decade. 

It was suspended in the last decade, and during that period we saw deficits explode again.  By reinstituting it, we're taking an important step towards addressing the deficit problem in this decade, and in decades to come.

That's also why, after taking steps to cut taxes and increase access to credit for small businesses to jumpstart job creation this year, I've called for a three-year freeze on discretionary spending, starting next year.  This freeze won't affect Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security spending.  And it won't affect national security spending, including veterans' benefits.  But all other discretionary spending will be subject to this freeze. 

These are tough times and we can't keep spending like they're not.  That's why we're seeking to reform our health insurance system -- because if we don't, soaring health care costs will eventually become the single largest driver of our federal deficits.  Reform legislation in the House and the Senate would bring down deficits, and I'm looking forward to meeting with members of both parties and both chambers next week to try to get this done.

And that's also why this year, we're proposing a responsible budget that cuts what we don't need to pay for what we do.  We've proposed budget reductions and terminations that would yield about $20 billion in savings.  We're ending loopholes and tax giveaways for oil and gas companies and for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans.  So, taken together, these and other steps would provide more than $1 trillion in deficit reduction over the coming decade.  That's more savings than any administration's budget in the past 10 years.

I know the issue of deficits has stirred debate.  And there's some on the left who believe that this issue can be deferred.  There are some on the right who won't enter into serious discussions about deficits without preconditions.  But those who preach fiscal discipline have to be willing to take the hard steps necessary to achieve it.  And those who believe government has a responsibility to meet these urgent challenges have a great stake in bringing our deficits under control -- because if we don't, we won't be able to meet our most basic obligations to one another.

So America's fiscal problems won't be solved overnight.  They've been growing for years; they're going to take time to wind down.  But with the commission that I'm establishing today, and the other steps we're pursuing, I believe we are finally putting America on the path towards fiscal reform and fiscal responsibility. 

And I want to again thank Alan and Erskine for taking on what is a difficult and perhaps thankless task.  I'm grateful to them for their willingness to sacrifice their time and their energy in this cause.  I know that they're going to take up their work with a sense of integrity and a sense of commitment that America's people deserve and America's future demands. 

And I think part of the reason they're going to be effective is, although one is a strong Democrat and one is a strong Republican, these are examples of people who put country first.  And they know how to disagree without being disagreeable, and there's a sense of civility and a sense that there are moments where you set politics aside to do what's right. 

That's the kind of spirit that we need.  And I am confident that the product that they put forward is going to be honest; it's going to be clear; it's going to give a path to both parties in terms of how we have to address these challenges.

All right.  Thank you very much.

(The executive order is signed.)

Q    Sir, is everything on the table for this?

THE PRESIDENT:  Everything is on the table.  That's how this thing is going to work.

Q    What's "Erskine" in the dictionary?  (Laughter.) 

END
10:29 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 17, 2010

Remarks by the President in Conversation with the International Space Station Crew and the Space Shuttle Endeavour Crew via Satellite

From the Roosevelt Room

5:20 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hey, guys.

COMMANDER ZAMKA:  Good morning from the International Space Station and from the Space Shuttle Endeavour, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, it's great to talk to you guys.  I wanted to, first of all, just say that we've got a bunch of very excited young people here with us, along with a bunch of somewhat excited teachers.  (Laughter.)  We have one engineer and one member of Congress, so you've got a -- and a whole bunch of press here, so it's a pretty motley crew.  And one President.

But I just wanted to let you guys know how proud we are of all of you at what you guys have been accomplishing.  I've had a chance to take a look at what Tranquility Module is doing.  Everybody here back home is excited about this bay on the world that you guys are opening up, and Stephen Colbert at least is excited about his treadmill.  (Laughter.)

And so we just wanted to let you know that the amazing work that's being done on the International Space Station not only by our American astronauts but also our colleagues from Japan and Russia is just a testimony to the human ingenuity; a testimony to extraordinary skill and courage that you guys bring to bear; and is also a testimony to why continued space exploration is so important, and is part of the reason why my commitment to NASA is unwavering.

But instead of me doing all the talking, I wanted you guys to maybe let us know what this new Tranquility Module will help you accomplish.  One of the things that we've done with our NASA "Vision for the Future" is to extend the life of our participation in the Space Station.  And so we just want to get a sense of the kind of research that you guys are doing, and then maybe I'll turn it over to some young people to see if they've got any questions.

COMMANDER ZAMKA:  Well, thank you very much, Mr. President. It is a large team effort.  In front of you, you have the joint crew of Endeavour and the Space Station, and we are the ones that are fortunate enough to be able to accomplish this great mission together in space.  But there are many thousands of people around the world that gave the best of themselves over many years in order to have the days that we've been having up here.

For your question, I'm going to turn it over to ISS Commander Jeff Williams.

COMMANDER WILLIAMS:  Well, Mr. President, as you know, the ISS has been under assembly for many years, over a decade now.  And as George said, it's because of the efforts of thousands of people around the world among the international partnerships.

The arrival of this module means several things.  It means, of course, that we -- everybody is aware of this new grand view that we have of the world below us, and that brings a special significance.  But the Tranquility Module also is going to serve as a gym, as a hygiene area, as a place a crew can maintain themselves for a long duration.  And a long duration living and working in space is what the Space Station is all about -- to do the research and the science necessary to take us beyond Earth orbit.

That was the ultimate purpose of the Space Station, and the arrival of this module will enable us to do that.  And it really marks the end of the major assembly of at least the U.S. orbiting segment to -- as we transition into full utilization of this magnificent orbiting laboratory.

THE PRESIDENT:  Do you guys want to just mention some of the research and experiments that you can conduct on the Space Station that you could not be doing back here at home?

FLIGHT ENGINEER CREAMER:  That's a great question, Mr. President.  Let me start off by saying one of the nice things about where we physically are right now is that we remove the effects of gravity, so we're able to do experiments that involve the effect of gravity basically on Earth as we look at what happens with the absence of it.

For instance, when you do combustion studies, flames on Earth burn in a teardrop fashion because the air comes in from underneath it and feeds the flame, but we can't do that here since the air doesn't know where up is, there's no convection.  So the flames burn very purely in a ball.

In a similar sense, when we do cellular research for even -- like for cancer research, for instance, on Earth the cells actually collapse under their own weight and so their growth on Earth are a little bit distorted.  Here, without the gravity effect, we can grow cells very purely and understand the mechanisms by which they are replicating.

We're also doing metallic research and materials research to help us understand how to make materials on Earth better, but also to find out what materials are better for long-duration missions and traveling beyond Earth's orbit.

Some of the other experiments involve biological, where we actually have, for instance, butterflies up here and we watch the life process of the butterflies.  Many, many experiments up and down the stack are quite exciting when we are able to remove the variable of gravity.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, some of the things that you talked about are in line with where we want to see NASA going increasingly:  What are those transformational technologies that would allow us to potentially see space travel of longer durations?  If we want to get to Mars, if we want to get beyond that, what kinds of technologies are going to be necessary in order for us to make sure that folks can get there in one piece and get back in one piece and that -- the kinds of fuels that we use and the technologies we use are going to facilitate something that is actually feasible?  And we're very excited about the possibilities of putting more research dollars into some of these transformational technologies.

So we're excited about what you're doing and what folks back on Earth as part of NASA's engineering teams and scientific teams are doing.

What I want to do is give some of these young people a chance to ask a couple of questions, but I'm not sure I've got any volunteers so I'm going to have to turn around -- oh, look.  (Laughter.)  This is a serious bunch here, I can tell.  So I'm going to hand the phone over to the first one -- hold on -- what's your name?

Q    Ruth.

THE PRESIDENT:  This is Ruth, coming from North Carolina.

Q    What are some of the benefits of exploring space as opposed to exploring other places on Earth?

THE PRESIDENT:  Okay.  A pretty serious question, guys.  You better have a good answer -- the NASA folks are sitting here listening.  (Laughter.)

MISSION SPECIALIST:  Ruth, I can tell you your curiosity reaches far, and so does ours.  And that's sort of the human spirit, to find out what can humans really do.
One thing that's always been I think amazing to every person who travels in space is that the human body is adaptable to this environment.  But adaptable in what way, and how does the human body and even the human brain adapt to this very, very different environment?  Learning about how we, ourselves, work and how we can handle changes if we go somewhere very different than what we're used to is something that's valuable also on Earth, because our environment changes on Earth, too -- and in terms of health and medicine, we understand better how our own bodies work.  So there’s a lot to be learned.

THE PRESIDENT:  All right, who's next?

Q    Mary.

THE PRESIDENT:  All right, this is Mary coming at you.

Q    What inspired you to become an astronaut?

THE PRESIDENT:  Got any takers on that one?

MISSION SPECIALIST PATRICK:  Mary, hello.  This is Nick Patrick.  The thing that inspired me to become an astronaut was watching the Apollo moon landings many, many years ago with my parents.  I thought I wanted to be a space explorer then and I stuck to my dream.  I stayed in school and I studied hard, and through schoolwork and also an interest in things like sailing and flying I was able to realize my dream.

So I would have some advice to all of you there, which is study really hard in school, listen to your teachers.  They’re full of knowledge and experience that you really can use in whatever path your future life takes you along -- whether it be engineering, science, a job in business, or even space exploration.

THE PRESIDENT:  All right, let’s get -- we have one of our young people from --

Q    From Nebraska.

THE PRESIDENT:  From Nebraska.  And what’s your name?

Q    Jordan.

THE PRESIDENT:  This is Jordan from Nebraska.

Q    Do you think it will ever be possible to create artificial gravity in space?

THE PRESIDENT:  That's a big physics question there, guys.  Anybody want to tackle that one?

PILOT VIRTS:  Hi, Jordan, this is Terry Virts here.  And that's a great question because one of the hard things about long-duration space flight is the human body dealing with weightlessness and a lack of gravity.

And one way you can create gravity is to spin things.  If you take a bucket of water or paint you can spin it around and you’ll notice that the water stays pressed up against the bucket because you're accelerating it.  And so you can artificially create that acceleration that makes you feel like you're in gravity just by rotating something like a centrifuge.

So it is possible, but to do that it requires a really large structure.  And so that's something that we haven’t done here on the Space Station, but that's one way you can do it.

THE PRESIDENT:  That was a great question.  All right, we need a Michigan -- we’ve got to make sure every state is represented here.  What’s your name?

Q    Shanae.

THE PRESIDENT:  Okay, go ahead and introduce yourself.

Q    I was just wondering, what kind of training did you have to go through before you were able to get into space?

THE PRESIDENT:  That was Shanae from Michigan.

MISSION SPECIALIST HIRE:  Well, that's a great question.  You know, it takes a lot of experience to be an astronaut and it’s not just in one field.  We’ve all been through many, many years of school, but also experience in our own fields.  So we have engineers, scientists, mathematicians, medical doctors and physicists.  We have quite a range of experience that become astronauts.

And the important thing is that you have a good, solid background in the technical fields -- the science, the technology, the engineering and the math -- to build on that, because once everyone comes and is selected as an astronaut, we all train generically for space flight, and then we train specifically for our mission.

For the International Space Station it's a very complicated and very large spacecraft, so the training is over multiple years just for a specific flight.  For the Space Shuttle, being a shorter-duration flight of just a couple of weeks, we still train for over one year just specifically on the task that we'll accomplish on our mission.

So it's quite a bit of time, but it certainly is worth it.  It's quite rewarding to us to be able to execute the mission that we've been training for, for so long.

THE PRESIDENT:  And I think we need to have at least one Floridian -- is that right?  We already had a Floridian?  Do we have every state covered so far?

All right, we've got time for a couple more questions.  We were going to get a little gender balance here.  (Laughter.)  This young man back here, what's your name?

Q    Joseph.

THE PRESIDENT:  Joseph.

Hold on one second.  You've got a question from Joseph from Nebraska.

Q    Are there any recognizable landmarks that you can see from space?

THE PRESIDENT:  Yes, the rumor was, is that you can see the Great Wall from space, but I'm not sure that's true.  So are there at least -- if there aren't manmade landmarks, are there some natural landmarks other than continents that you can see?

FLIGHT ENGINEER:  Yes, Mr. President and Joseph, that's a great question.  Actually, one of the great -- in this mission, we have a great window, big window, that we are really fascinated by the great view of the Earth.  And, yes, we can see a lot of great landmarks.  We can see the Golden Gate Bridge, the great skyscrapers in New York.  And the Grand Canyon is just breathtaking.  And also while in the night pass we can see all the lights -- that means that the humans are active even in the night.  And this is a great benefit that we all benefit from, being in space.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, there you go.

All right, we've got -- looks like I've got a couple more questions.  Hold on.  What's your name?

Q    Barbara.

THE PRESIDENT:  This is Barbara.  From?

Q    From Florida.

THE PRESIDENT:  From Florida.  Hold on.

Q    Hi, I'm curious about the thoughts and emotions that you guys feel when you're in space.

THE PRESIDENT:  There you go.  Do you start getting lonely?  Do you feel a little claustrophobic?

MISSION SPECIALIST:  That's an excellent question, and I think that probably it ranges quite a bit over the period of a space shuttle mission, And I expect it probably varies quite a bit over the range of a long-duration mission.

Kind of starting off, for the shuttle mission, at least for me, I've done that twice now; you kind of get into orbit, and you're just kind of finding the equivalent of your sea legs, if you will.  And so you're -- you've arrived on orbit and you kind of have a feeling of joy, having accomplished it.  Your body has just gone through kind of a little bit of a violent experience through the launch, and you have a little bit of adrenaline probably getting out of your system.  So it's a little bit of a joyous, giddy moment, at the same time that you're disoriented as you deal with the first couple of hours of actually being on orbit.

After that passes, after a couple of days, for me it was kind of a sense of wonder as you explore what you can do in zero gravity and the things that you can see out the window and just how the entire complex works together to make it happen.  So it's just a sense of wonder.

After -- a little while after that, I think you start to think a little bit about the people who are back on Earth that are most precious to you, and then that little bit of loneliness can kick in.  And one of the really nice things that we have and the long-duration crews have is the opportunity to use a telephone or to perform a videoconference similar to like we're doing with you guys with our families.  And I think that's really important for folks to maintain that contact when you're up here on orbit.

Of course, you have your crew members, but you do really want to maintain those precious relationships with all your family members and friends that are on the ground.  And they do a remarkable job actually supporting us while we're in space to make sure that we can still speak with our families and that our families are informed and able to stay in contact with us.

But all those emotions kind of wrap up together.  Kind of the final one is kind of when you do return to Earth and kick off all those relationships that, whether they were two weeks or six months later, have -- time has passed and you have to kind of rebuild them a little bit.  But it's a very joyous experience, and something that you can share with both the people on the ground and the people who are part of your crew throughout the entire mission.

Great question.

THE PRESIDENT:  All right.  So I think we're going to make this the last question.  We've been keeping you guys overtime.  So what's your name?

Q    Alex.

THE PRESIDENT:  This is Alex.  Hold on one sec.

Q    Does being up in space allow you to see things such as the weather?  Like could you see the storm over Washington?

THE PRESIDENT:  That's a good point.  Obviously we're using a lot of satellite imagery these days, and this is going to be a major focus of some of the work NASA is doing here at home, thinking about how we can get better information about our own climate.  Is that something that you guys are tracking from the Space Station?

COMMANDER WILLIAMS:  Well, we view a lot of the weather phenomena.  We've seen many hurricanes and typhoons and whatnot around the world.  We can see fronts crossing continents.  We see the whole variety of cloud formations.  We sometimes can see the aftermath of a storm or other major impact on the Earth after the sky clears.

So there's a whole lot of details that we can see here from the Space Station -- and observe every day.  We can see things -- we pass over the same portion of the Earth every day, so it's a regular observation that we can make over a long period of time, as well.

THE PRESIDENT:  You guys have been extraordinarily generous with your time, and I just want to repeat, and I think I speak for all the young people here, everybody back home, how proud we are of you, how excited we are about the work that's being done on the Space Station, and how committed we are to continuing human space exploration in the future.

So you guys continue to be great pioneers and great role models for all of us, and we thank you for your courage.  And tell your families we appreciate them letting you float up into space like this.  (Laughter.)  All right?

Bye-bye, guys.

END
5:41 P.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 17, 2010

Remarks by the President and the Vice President on the One-Year Anniversary of the Signing of the Recovery Act

South Court Auditorium, Eisenhower Executive Office Building

10:26 A.M. EST

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Good morning, folks.  Thank you all for being here.  It's been one year today since the President signed the Recovery Act into law, and I'm probably preaching to the choir here as to how beneficial it's been.  I stand before you, as I said, actually one day -- actually the exact day to a year that we signed this act.  And what I want to talk about is what we've accomplished, where we were back then, where I think we are now, and where we're going. 

And you and I know without any question the Recovery Act is working.  It's working well, and maybe even most importantly, it's working towards something.  It's not only helping American workers get back on their feet today but it's laying a foundation for long-term growth for tomorrow -- a little bit what we were talking about in the anteroom.  And you're the living proof of just what the Recovery Act is capable of.

But the President and I, we realize that there's still a great deal more to do.  We know that every success story that you could talk about there's another story about a man or woman who just lost a job, just been laid off, a plant that's been closed down, a mortgage that's been foreclosed on.  We know times are tough for too many people and -- throughout the country.  I don't find -- I've traveled now to I think it's 60-some cities talking about the Recovery Act, and every day, every community I go to, you can see the pain that some of the communities are going through -- communities that were battered by the economy.

I was just in Saginaw, Michigan.  Through no fault of their own -- I've looked into the eyes of those out-of-work teachers, out-of-work businessmen and women, small business owners, construction workers who've been laid off.  But I've seen something else as I've gone through those cities and towns.  I've seen a sense of hope and optimism as well. 

Just yesterday, as I said, in Saginaw, Michigan, I was with a gentleman who has his B.A. -- his name is Gonzalez -- Mr. Gonzalez.  He worked for an automobile company and he got laid off.  His wife and two kids were there at this event.  But because of the Recovery Act and the job training program at a community college in his town, he went back and took a 16-hour course in being able to begin to deal with -- 16-week course -- in being able to deal with chemicals related to how they produced solar panels.  And DOW Corning has a plant nearby.  They added a thousand people over the last year because of some help they got as well, and in their great reach, he's now working.  He's working at a decent salary.  And that community college is going to train this year -- another hundred people are going to go right from that training program directly to a job. 

The other thing I've noticed is -- and I notice particularly from you all -- and I use "you" in an editorial sense -- is this emphatic, unrelenting belief that there is no reason why America has to be number two.  None whatsoever.  I find even that laid-off worker refuses to believe America is going to be number two in the world -- whether it's in ultimately the construction of wind turbines, or whether it's in any other renewable energy form, or new automobiles and battery technology.  I mean, there is this sense, there is this sense among Americans, even in these tough times, there's no reason we're not going to come out of this stronger than when we went into it.

     And so that's what we've been having -- we've been able to deal with.  And the Recovery Act has just provided some significant degree of optimism.  Rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, sparking a clean energy revolution, transforming American health care, creating the best education system in the world -- that's our future.

     I always say to my friends who think -- in politics who voted against this act -- I say, any of you tell me how we can possibly lead in the 21st century with the same education system, with the same health care system, and the same energy policy we've had the last 35 years?  Everyone knows the truth.  The truth is that without a transformation in health care, without a transformation in education, without a transformation in energy, we're not going to succeed; we will not lead the 21st century -- which is an unacceptable proposition to the American people.

     But sadly, some of my friends who were willing to acknowledge we need to lead in all those areas and make transformational changes, they're unwilling to take what I admit are difficult steps to make this transformation.  They're unwilling to step up. 

     Well, not us.  The President and I know we can do better.  You know we can do better.  We know this is a new economy, and there's no reason why we won't lead it.  That's why we think we have to usher in a new era of innovation and global leadership for America, and we owe much of the Recovery Act -- behind the Recovery Act, which we don't talk much about, is those elements of innovation and change we're looking for.  And we also owe it to the clear-eyed leadership of not only the President but many of you. 

I'll conclude by saying that many of you have taken advantage of the sort of spark that the Recovery Act provides in some of the tax incentives and others.  But we don't think the government is the one that's going to ignite this revolution we need.  You all take a little bit of help and you go out and you risk a lot.  You go out and you get some help from the government, and then you go out to capital markets and you've been out there and you go on the line for a whole lot more -- a whole lot more risk.  And we admire you for it.  That's the way we're going to get through this. 

That, along with the President's leadership -- he's the reason, in my view, why we stand here today with so much hope for tomorrow.  His leadership has taken us very far from where we were last year.  It's easy to forget, the first quarter of last year, this economy shrunk over 6 percent.  The last quarter of this year it grew over 6 percent.  Something's happening.  Something positive is happening.

     So, ladies and gentlemen, I think the main reason it's happening, at least in terms of government guidance, is because of the man I'm about to introduce:  the President of the United States of America, President Barack Obama.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, everybody.  Thank you.  Please, have a seat.  Thank you very much.  Thank you to Blake and Chuck, and thank you to my outstanding Vice President and his extraordinary team that have done just a great job managing this program.

     I want to begin by recalling where we were one year ago.  Millions of jobs had already been lost to the recession before I was sworn into office.  Another 800,000 would be lost in the month of January.  We'd later learn that our economy had shrunk by an astounding 6.4 percent in the first quarter of 2009.  And economists from across the political spectrum warned that if dramatic action was not taken to break the back of the recession, the United States could spiral into another depression. 

That was the backdrop against which I signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in Denver with Blake alongside.  It certainly wasn't a politically easy decision to make for me or for the members of Congress who supported it -- because, let's face it, no large expenditure is ever that popular, particularly at a time when we're also facing a massive deficit.  But we acted because failure to do so would have led to catastrophe.  We acted because we had a larger responsibility than simply winning the next election.  We had a responsibility to do what was right for the U.S. economy and for the American people.

One year later, it is largely thanks to the Recovery Act that a second depression is no longer a possibility.  It's one of the main reasons the economy has gone from shrinking by 6 percent to growing at about 6 percent.  And this morning we learned that manufacturing production posted a strong gain.  So far, the Recovery Act is responsible for the jobs of about 2 million Americans who would otherwise be unemployed.  These aren't just our numbers; these are the estimates of independent, nonpartisan economists across the spectrum.

Now, despite all this, the bill still generates some controversy.  And part of that is because there are those, let's face it, across the aisle who have tried to score political points by attacking what we did, even as many of them show up at ribbon-cutting ceremonies for projects in their districts.  (Laughter and applause.)  But if we're honest, part of the controversy also is, is that despite the extraordinary work that has been done through the Recovery Act, millions of Americans are still without jobs.  Millions more are struggling to make ends meet.  So it doesn't yet feel like much of a recovery.  And I understand that.  It's why we're going to continue to do everything in our power to turn this economy around.

Now the truth is the Recovery Act was never intended to save every job or restore our economy to full strength.  No bill or government program can do that.  Businesses are the true engines of growth; businesses are the engines of job creation in this country.  They always will be.  But during a recession, when businesses pull back and people stop spending, what government can do is provide a temporary boost that puts money in people's pockets, and keeps workers on the job, cuts taxes for small businesses, generates more demand; gives confidence to entrepreneurs that maybe they don’t have to cut back right now, maybe they can hold steady in their plans and in their dreams.  That's exactly what we've been able to do with the Recovery Act.

And I just want to point this out -- there has never been a program of this scale, moved at this speed, that has been enacted as effectively and as transparently as the Recovery Act.  I’m grateful that Congress agreed to my request that the bill include no earmarks, that all projects receive funding based solely on their merits.  And despite that, I was still concerned -- Joe and I were just talking in the back -- when this thing passed we said $787 billion -- somewhere there’s going to be some story of some money that ended up being misspent; $787 billion spent out over 18 months, that's a lot -- that's a lot of money.  And it is a testimony to Vice President Biden and his team that, as Joe puts it, the dog, so far at least, hasn't barked.  (Laughter.)

This team has done an outstanding job overseeing the Recovery Act.  It doesn't mean that everything has been perfect, but when you think about the scope, the magnitude of this thing, this program has run cleanly, smoothly, transparently.  We brought in one of the toughest inspector generals in Washington as well as professionals from private industry to help run the implementation.  And every American can see how and where this money has been spent just by going on www.recovery.gov.
 
Now, just to review:  One-third of the money in this bill -- one-third -- was made up of tax cuts.  I talked about this at the State of the Union.  Tax cuts for 95 percent of working Americans.  I just want to say to the American people, because we see some polling where about twice as many people think we've raised taxes as lowered taxes -- 95 percent of you got a tax cut. (Applause.)  Tax cuts for 95 percent of working Americans.  Tax cuts for small businesses.  Tax cuts for first-time homebuyers.  Tax cuts for parents trying to -- trying to care for their kids. Tax cuts for 8 million Americans paying for college.  So far, we've provided $120 billion in tax relief to families and small businesses. 

Now, up until this point I've never met a Republican who didn't like a good tax cut -- (laughter) -- but you remember when I mentioned this at the State of the Union, Joe, they were all kind of squirming in their seats.  They weren't sure whether to clap or -- (laughter) -- or not because most of them had voted against all these tax cuts, which I thought was -- it was interesting to watch.  (Laughter.)

The second third of this bill was made up of relief for those who have been most affected by this recession.  We've extended or increased unemployment benefits for more than 19 million Americans.  We made health insurance 65 percent cheaper for families who lost their jobs and had to get temporary coverage through COBRA.  And we gave relief to states that were struggling to balance their budgets -– relief that has allowed 300,000 teachers and education workers to keep their jobs, as well as tens of thousands of cops and firefighters and first responders and correctional officers.  And Joe Biden will tell you that not one of the 50 governors we've spoken to -– Democrat or Republican -– has failed to show appreciation for this relief. 
     And I also have to tell you that I am concerned because state budgets have not yet recovered, and you're now seeing a whole bunch of state and local governments who were able to put off layoffs last year, as the recovery money is running out, having to make some very tough decisions.  And we could potentially see layoffs taking place this year because we haven't re-upped in terms of providing some help to those states and local governments.  That's something that we're watching and we're concerned about.

Now, the last third of the Recovery Act is what I want to talk a little bit about more today.  It's the reason Blake and Doug are here.  That third is about rebuilding our economy on a new and stronger foundation for growth over the long term.  See, we knew when we came into office that it wasn't enough simply to solve the immediate crisis before us.  We knew that even before the crisis hit, we had come through what some people are calling the "lost decade" -– a period where there was barely any job growth, and where the income of the average American household declined.  This is before the recession, over the course of the decade, the average American household, they saw their incomes decline even as the cost of health care and college tuition were skyrocketing, had reached record highs.  The prosperity was built on little more than a housing bubble and on financial speculation -- people maxing out on their credit cards, taking out home equity loans.

We can't go back to that kind of economy.  That's not where the jobs are.  The jobs of the 21st century are in areas like clean energy and technology, advanced manufacturing, new infrastructure.  That kind of economy requires us to consume less and produce more; to import less and export more.  Instead of sending jobs overseas, we need to send more products overseas that are made by American workers and American business.  And we need to train our workers for those jobs with new skills and a world-class education.

Other countries already realize this.  They're putting more emphasis on math and science.  They're building high-speed railroads and expanding broadband.  They're making serious investments in clean energy because they want those jobs. 

And America cannot stand still in the face of this challenge.  We can't afford to put our future on hold.  So that's why a big part of the Recovery Act has been about investing in that future.  Yes, it created jobs now.  Yes, it created business opportunities now.  But more importantly, it's laying the foundation for where we need to go.

So instead of just pouring more money into America's schools, regardless of their performance, we launched a national competition between states that only rewards success and reform  -- reform that raises student achievement, and inspires students to excel in math and science, and turns around failing schools -- failing schools that steal the future of too many young Americans. 

We're also making sure that our nation has an infrastructure that's built to compete in the 21st century.  So we now have projects in 31 states that are laying the ground for the first high-speed rail network in the United States of America.  I mean, for years, Japan and Europe have had high-speed rail.  China has got about 40 times as many projects that have been going on, on this front.  We're playing catch-up; we shouldn't be. 

The Recovery Act has made possible over 12,500 transportation construction projects, from rebuilding highways to improving our airports.  And today we announced funding for over 50 innovative transportation projects across America –- everything from railroads in Appalachia to a new passenger terminal in New Orleans. 

These projects will put hundreds of thousands of Americans to work.  And in many cases, they already have.  That's part of the reason that Chuck is here today -- he's the president of a construction company in Pennsylvania, and the Recovery Act will fund about a third of the work his paving company will do this year.  That's allowed him to hire two engineers and about a hundred employees.  So in case people are wondering whether or not the Recovery Act has created jobs and opportunity for businesses, talk to Chuck.  (Laughter.)  The new equipment he's ordered to help pave these roads will save an additional 40 jobs on an assembly line out in California.  These are well-paying, long-lasting, private sector jobs that wouldn't be possible without the Recovery Act.  They’ll be doing the work that America needs done to stay competitive in a global economy.

In no area is this more important than in energy.  Because of the Recovery Act, we have finally jumpstarted the clean energy industry in America, and made possible 200,000 jobs in the clean energy and construction sectors. 

Just take one example:  Consider the investment that we've made in the kind of batteries used in hybrid and electric cars.  You've heard about these, right?  Before the Recovery Act was signed, 98 percent of the world's advanced battery production was done in Asian countries. The United States did less than 2 percent of this advanced battery manufacturing that's going to be the key to these high-mileage, low-emission cars. 

Then we invested in new research and battery technologies, and supported the construction of 20 battery factories that will employ tens of thousands of Americans -– batteries that can make enough -- factories that can make enough batteries each year to power half a million plug-in hybrid vehicles.  So as a result, next year -- next year, two years after the Recovery Act -- the United States will have the capacity to produce nearly 20 percent of the world's advanced batteries -- from less than 2 percent to 20 percent.  And we’ll be able to make 40 percent of these advanced batteries by 2015 -- an entire new industry because of the Recovery Act. 

This kind of progress is happening throughout our clean energy sector.  Yesterday I announced loan guarantees to break ground on America's first new nuclear power plant in nearly three decades -– a plant that will create thousands of construction jobs and 800 permanent jobs in years to come.  There's the manufacturer in Philadelphia who makes energy-efficient windows. He used to be skeptical about the Recovery Act until he had to add two more shifts just to keep up with the new business it's created. 

And Blake at Namaste Solar -- it's based in Boulder, Colorado.  One year ago, Blake gave us a tour of one of his company's solar installations, on top of a museum in Denver, right before I signed the Recovery Act into law.  And at the time, Blake was pretty sure that the recession would force him to lay off about half of his staff.  One year later, because of the clean energy investments in the Recovery Act, he has instead added about a dozen new workers, and expects to hire about a dozen more by year's end.  His company continues to install solar panels all over Colorado, from the Governor's Mansion to the Denver Museum of Natural -- Nature and Science. 

So that's our future.  That's what's possible in America.  You can argue, rightly, that we haven't made as much progress as we need to make when it comes to spurring job creation.  That's part of the reason why the Recovery Act is on track to save or create another 1.5 million jobs in 2010.  That's part of the reason why I expect Congress to pass additional measures as quickly as possible that will help our small business owners create new jobs; give them more of an incentive to hire.

But for those skeptics who refuse to believe the Recovery Act has done any good, who continue to insist that the bill didn't work, I'd ask you to take that argument up with Blake and his employees.  Take that argument up with Chuck and his construction workers.  Take it up with the Americans who are working in those battery plants, or building those new highways, or teaching our children new skills -- all because the Recovery Act made it possible.

     So our work is far from over, but we have rescued this economy from the worst of this crisis.  And slowly, in new factories and research facilities and small businesses, the American people are rebuilding a better future.  And we will continue to support their efforts.  We will leave our children an economy that is stronger and more prosperous than it was before.

     Thank you very much, everybody.  (Applause.)

END
10:50 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 16, 2010

Remarks by the President on Energy in Lanham, Maryland

IBEW Local 26, Lanham, Maryland

11:05 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, everybody.  Thank you.  Please have a seat.  Have a seat.  Good morning, everybody.  Before I begin let me just acknowledge some of the people who are standing behind me here:  First of all, two people who have been working really hard to make this day happen -- Secretary Steven Chu, my Energy Secretary -- Steven Chu.  (Applause.)  And my White House advisor on everything having to do with energy, Carol Browner.  (Applause.)

I want to acknowledge the outstanding governor of Maryland, Martin O'Malley, as well as his lieutenant governor, Anthony Brown.  (Applause.)  We've got Mark Ayers from the building trades, and Billy Hite from the UA Plumbers and Pipefitters -- give them a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  Gregory Jaczko, who's with the Nuclear Energy Commission, is here.  Where is he? (Applause.)  Ed Hill, president of IBEW International.  (Applause.)  And I want to thank Chuck Graham and everybody here at Local 26 for their great hospitality.  (Applause.)

Thank you for the warm welcome.  Thanks for showing me around.  I was just mentioning that I got a chance to pull the first fire alarm since I was in junior high.  (Laughter.)  And I didn't get in trouble for it. 

This is an extraordinarily impressive facility, where workers are instructed on everything from the installation of sophisticated energy hardware and software to the basics of current and resistance.  We need to look no further than the workers and apprentices who are standing behind me to see the future that's possible when it comes to clean energy. 

It's a future in which skilled laborers are helping us lead in burgeoning industries.  It's a future in which renewable electricity is fueling plug-in hybrid cars and energy-efficient homes and businesses.  It's a future in which we're exporting homegrown energy technology instead of importing foreign oil.  And it's a future in which our economy is powered not by what we borrow and spend but what we invent and what we build.

That's the bright future that lies ahead for America.  And it's one of -- it's a future that my administration is striving to achieve each and every day.  We've already made the largest investment in clean energy in history as part of the Recovery Act -- an investment that is expected to create more than 700,000 jobs across America -– manufacturing advanced batteries for more fuel-efficient vehicles, upgrading the power grid so that it's smarter and it's stronger, doubling our nation's capacity to generate renewable energy.  And after decades in which we have done little to increase the efficiency of cars and trucks, we've raised fuel economy standards to reduce our dependence on foreign oil while helping folks save money at the pump. 

But in order to truly harness our potential in clean energy we're going to have to do more, and that's why we're here.  In the near term, as we transition to cleaner energy sources, we're going to have to make some tough decisions about opening up new offshore areas for oil and gas development.  We'll need to make continued investments in advanced biofuels and clean coal technologies, even as we build greater capacity in renewables like wind and solar.  And we're going to have to build a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in America. 

That's what brings us here.  Through the Department of Energy -– under the leadership of Nobel prize-winning physicist, Steven Chu –- although, just a quick side note:  When he was talking to some of the instructors here, and they were talking about currents and this and that and the other, I indicated to him that he could have saved a lot of money.  Instead of getting a Ph.D., he could have come here and learned some of the same stuff.  (Laughter and applause.)  You know, the instructors here were just keeping up -- they were right there with him. 

But through the Department of Energy and Secretary Chu's leadership, we are announcing roughly $8 billion in loan guarantees to break ground on the first new nuclear plant in our country in three decades -- the first new nuclear power plant in nearly three decades.  (Applause.) 

It's a plant that will create thousands of construction jobs in the next few years, and some 800 permanent jobs -- well-paying permanent jobs -- in the years to come.  And this is only the beginning.  My budget proposes tripling the loan guarantees we provide to help finance safe, clean nuclear facilities -– and we'll continue to provide financing for clean energy projects here in Maryland and across America.

Now, there will be those that welcome this announcement, those who think it's been long overdue.  But there are also going to be those who strongly disagree with this announcement.  The same has been true in other areas of our energy debate, from offshore drilling to putting a price on carbon pollution.  But what I want to emphasize is this:  Even when we have differences, we cannot allow those differences to prevent us from making progress.  On an issue that affects our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, we can’t keep on being mired in the same old stale debates between the left and the right, between environmentalists and entrepreneurs.

See, our competitors are racing to create jobs and command growing energy industries.  And nuclear energy is no exception.  Japan and France have long invested heavily in this industry.  Meanwhile, there are 56 nuclear reactors under construction around the world:  21 in China alone; six in South Korea; five in India.  And the commitment of these countries is not just generating the jobs in those plants; it's generating demand for expertise and new technologies. 

So make no mistake:  Whether it’s nuclear energy, or solar or wind energy, if we fail to invest in the technologies of tomorrow, then we’re going to be importing those technologies instead of exporting them.  We will fall behind.  Jobs will be produced overseas, instead of here in the United States of America.  And that's not a future that I accept.

Now, I know it’s been long assumed that those who champion the environment are opposed to nuclear power.  But the fact is, even though we’ve not broken ground on a new power plant -- new nuclear plant in 30 years, nuclear energy remains our largest source of fuel that produces no carbon emissions.  To meet our growing energy needs and prevent the worst consequences of climate change, we'll need to increase our supply of nuclear power.  It's that simple.  This one plant, for example, will cut carbon pollution by 16 million tons each year when compared to a similar coal plant.  That's like taking 3.5 million cars off the road.

On the other side, there are those who have long advocated for nuclear power -- including many Republicans -- who have to recognize that we're not going to achieve a big boost in nuclear capacity unless we also create a system of incentives to make clean energy profitable.  That's not just my personal conclusion; it's the conclusion of many in the energy industry itself, including CEOs of the nation's largest utility companies.  Energy leaders and experts recognize that as long as producing carbon pollution carries no cost, traditional plants that use fossil fuels will be more cost-effective than plants that use nuclear fuel. 

That's why we need comprehensive energy and climate legislation, and why this legislation has drawn support from across the ideological spectrum.  I raised this just last week with congressional Republican leaders.  I believe there's real common ground here.  And my administration will be working to build on areas of agreement so that we can pass a bipartisan energy and climate bill through the Senate.

Now, none of this is to say that there aren't some serious drawbacks with respect to nuclear energy that have to be addressed.  As the CEOs standing behind me will tell you, nuclear power generates waste, and we need to accelerate our efforts to find ways of storing this waste safely and disposing of it.  That's why we've asked a bipartisan group of leaders and nuclear experts to examine this challenge.  And these plants also have to be held to the highest and strictest safety standards to answer the legitimate concerns of Americans who live near and far from these facilities.  That's going to be an imperative. 

But investing in nuclear energy remains a necessary step.  What I hope is that with this announcement, we're underscoring both our seriousness in meeting the energy challenge and our willingness to look at this challenge not as a partisan issue but as a matter that's far more important than politics -- because the choices we make will affect not just the next generation but many generations to come.

The fact is changing the ways we produce and use energy requires us to think anew; it requires us to act anew; and it demands of us a willingness to extend our hand across some of the old divides, to act in good faith, and to move beyond the broken politics of the past.  That's what we must do; that's what we will do.

Thank you very much, everybody.  Appreciate it.  (Applause.)

END
11:15 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 10, 2010

Remarks by the President at "In Performance at the White House: A Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement"

East Room

8:08 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Welcome to the White House, everybody.  And thank you for braving the storm.  I am thrilled to see all of you here today -- friends, guests, members of my Cabinet, members of Congress, our Vice President and Dr. Jill Biden, and everyone watching at home -- for the fifth in a series of evenings celebrating the music that tells the story of America.

Tonight, we celebrate the music of a movement.

To help us do that, Michelle and I are thrilled to welcome a tremendous group of artists who influenced that music, and artists who were influenced by it:

Yolanda Adams; Joan Baez; Natalie Cole; Morgan Freeman; Jennifer Hudson; John Mellencamp; Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon; Smokey Robinson; the Blind Boys of Alabama; the Howard University Choir; and a man who was good enough to take a night off from his Never Ending Tour -- Mr. Bob Dylan.

I want to thank some of them for spending some time earlier here today, leading a workshop of high school students -- perhaps even inspiring the next generation of civil rights leaders.

Let me also just acknowledge a good friend to us all, Dr. Joseph Lowery, who was here -- who couldn’t be here with us today, but he is recuperating after an illness and we want to keep him in our thoughts and prayers tonight.

Now, the civil rights movement was a movement sustained by music.  It was lifted by spirituals inspired by the Bible.  It was sharpened by protest songs about wrongs that needed righting.  It was broadened by folk artists like a New York-born daughter of immigrants, and a young storyteller from Minnesota, who captured the hardships and hopes of people who were worlds different from them, in ways that only song can do.

It was a movement with a soundtrack -- diverse strains of music that coalesced when the moment was right.  But that soundtrack wasn’t just inspired by the movement; it gave strength in return -- a fact not lost on the movement’s leaders.

It’s been said that when Dr. King and his associates were looking for communities to organize and mobilize, they’d know which were disciplined enough and serious enough when they saw folks singing freedom songs.  Dr. King himself once acknowledged that he didn’t see “the real meaning of the movement” until he saw young people singing in the face of hostility.

You see, it’s easy to sing when you’re happy.  It’s easy to sing when you’re among friends.  It’s easy to sing when times are good.  But it is hard to sing when times are rough.  It’s hard to sing in the face of taunts, and fear, and the constant threat of violence.  It’s hard to sing when folks are being beaten, when leaders are being jailed, when churches are being bombed.

It’s hard to sing in times like that.  But times like that are precisely when the power of song is most potent.  Above the din of hatred; amidst the deafening silence of inaction; the hymns of the civil rights movement helped carry the cause of a people and advance the ideals of a nation.

Bernice Johnson Reagon knew this.  One day when she was young, she was sitting in church when a local sheriff and his deputies showed up to intimidate the congregation.  “They stood at the door,” Bernice wrote, “making sure everyone knew they were there.  Then,” she said; “a song began.  And the song made sure that the sheriff and his deputies knew that we were there.”

Joan Baez and Bob Dylan knew this.  One day in 1963, they joined hundreds of thousands on the National Mall and sang of a day when the time would come; when the winds would stop; when a ship would come in.  They sang of a day when a righteous journey would reach its destination.

And Congressman John Lewis -- a man of that Moses Generation; a man who couldn’t be here tonight, but whose sacrifices helped make it possible for me to be here tonight -- he knew this too.  For in the darkest hour, he said, “the songs fed our spirits and gave us hope.”

So to everyone here, or watching at home, let us enjoy the music we hear tonight.  Let the music feed our spirits; give us hope; and carry us forward -- as one people, and as one nation.  Enjoy.  (Applause.)

END
8:13 P.M. EST

The White House

Office of the First Lady

For Immediate Release
February 09, 2010

Remarks of First Lady Michelle Obama

Washington, DC

Let’s Move Launch

February 9, 2010

Hello everyone, thank you so much.  It is such a pleasure to be here with all of you today.

Tammy, thank you for that wonderful introduction and for your outstanding work in the White House garden.

I want to recognize the extraordinary Cabinet members with us today – Secretaries Vilsack, Sebelius, Duncan, Salazar, Donovan and Solis – as well as Surgeon General Benjamin.  Thanks to all of you for your excellent work.

Thanks also to Senators Harkin and Gillibrand, and Representatives DeLauro, Christensen and Fudge for their leadership and for being here today.

And I want to thank Tiki Barber, Dr. Judith Palfrey, Will Allen, and Mayors Johnson and Curtatone for braving the weather to join us, and for their outstanding work every day to help our kids lead active, healthy lives.

And I hear that congratulations are in order for the Watkins Hornets, who just won the Pee Wee National Football Championship.  Let’s give them a hand to show them how proud we are.

We’re here today because we care deeply about the health and well-being of these kids and kids like them all across the country.  And we’re determined to finally take on one of the most serious threats to their future: the epidemic of childhood obesity in America today – an issue that’s of great concern to me not just as a First Lady, but as a mom.

Often, when we talk about this issue, we begin by citing sobering statistics like the ones you’ve heard today – that over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled; that nearly one third of children in America are now overweight or obese – one in three.

But these numbers don’t paint the full picture.  These words – “overweight” and “obese” – they don’t tell the full story.  This isn’t just about inches and pounds or how our kids look.  It’s about how our kids feel, and how they feel about themselves.  It’s about the impact we’re seeing on every aspect of their lives.

Pediatricians like Dr. Palfrey are seeing kids with high blood pressure and high cholesterol – even Type II diabetes, which they used to see only in adults.  Teachers see the teasing and bullying; school counselors see the depression and low-self-esteem; and coaches see kids struggling to keep up, or stuck on the sidelines.

Military leaders report that obesity is now one of the most common disqualifiers for military service.  Economic experts tell us that we’re spending outrageous amounts of money treating obesity-related conditions like diabetes, heart disease and cancer.  And public health experts tell us that the current generation could actually be on track to have a shorter lifespan than their parents.

None of us wants this kind of future for our kids – or for our country.  So instead of just talking about this problem, instead of just worrying and wringing our hands about it, let’s do something about it.  Let’s act…let’s move.

Let’s move to help families and communities make healthier decisions for their kids.  Let’s move to bring together governors and mayors, doctors and nurses, businesses, community groups, educators, athletes, Moms and Dads to tackle this challenge once and for all.  And that’s why we’re here today – to launch “Let’s Move” – a campaign that will rally our nation to achieve a single, ambitious goal: solving the problem of childhood obesity in a generation, so that children born today will reach adulthood at a healthy weight.

But to get where we want to go, we need to first understand how we got here.  So let me ask the adults here today to close your eyes and think back for a moment…think back to a time when we were growing up.

Like many of you, when I was young, we walked to school every day, rain or shine – and in Chicago, we did it in wind, sleet, hail and snow too.  Remember how, at school, we had recess twice a day and gym class twice a week, and we spent hours running around outside when school got out.  You didn’t go inside until dinner was ready – and when it was, we would gather around the table for dinner as a family.  And there was one simple rule: you ate what Mom fixed – good, bad, or ugly.  Kids had absolutely no say in what they felt like eating.  If you didn’t like it, you were welcome to go to bed hungry.  Back then, fast food was a treat, and dessert was mainly a Sunday affair.

In my home, we weren’t rich.  The foods we ate weren’t fancy.  But there was always a vegetable on the plate.  And we managed to lead a pretty healthy life.

Many kids today aren’t so fortunate.  Urban sprawl and fears about safety often mean the only walking they do is out their front door to a bus or a car.  Cuts in recess and gym mean a lot less running around during the school day, and lunchtime may mean a school lunch heavy on calories and fat.  For many kids, those afternoons spent riding bikes and playing ball until dusk have been replaced by afternoons inside with TV, the Internet, and video games.

And these days, with parents working longer hours, working two jobs, they don’t have time for those family dinners.  Or with the price of fresh fruits and vegetables rising 50 percent higher than overall food costs these past two decades, they don’t have the money.  Or they don’t have a supermarket in their community, so their best option for dinner is something from the shelf of the local convenience store or gas station.

So many parents desperately want to do the right thing, but they feel like the deck is stacked against them.  They know their kids’ health is their responsibility – but they feel like it’s out of their control.  They’re being bombarded by contradictory information at every turn, and they don’t know who or what to believe.  The result is a lot of guilt and anxiety – and a sense that no matter what they do, it won’t be right, and it won’t be enough.

I know what that feels like.  I’ve been there.  While today I’m blessed with more help and support than I ever dreamed of, I didn’t always live in the White House.  

It wasn’t that long ago that I was a working Mom, struggling to balance meetings and deadlines with soccer and ballet.  And there were some nights when everyone was tired and hungry, and we just went to the drive-thru because it was quick and cheap, or went with one of the less healthy microwave options, because it was easy.   And one day, my pediatrician pulled me aside and told me, “You might want to think about doing things a little bit differently.”

That was a moment of truth for me.  It was a wakeup call that I was the one in charge, even if it didn’t always feel that way.

And today, it’s time for a moment of truth for our country; it’s time we all had a wakeup call.  It’s time for us to be honest with ourselves about how we got here.  Our kids didn’t do this to themselves.  Our kids don’t decide what’s served to them at school or whether there’s time for gym class or recess.  Our kids don’t choose to make food products with tons of sugar and sodium in super-sized portions, and then to have those products marketed to them everywhere they turn.  And no matter how much they beg for pizza, fries and candy, ultimately, they are not, and should not, be the ones calling the shots at dinnertime.  We’re in charge.  We make these decisions.

But that’s actually the good news here.  If we’re the ones who make the decisions, then we can decide to solve this problem.  And when I say “we,” I’m not just talking about folks here in Washington.  This isn’t about politics.  There’s nothing Democratic or Republican, liberal or conservative, about doing what’s best for our kids.  And I’ve spoken with many experts about this issue, and not a single one has said that the solution is to have government tell people what to do.  Instead, I’m talking about what we can do.  I’m talking about commonsense steps we can take in our families and communities to help our kids lead active, healthy lives.

This isn’t about trying to turn the clock back to when we were kids, or preparing five course meals from scratch every night.  No one has time for that.   And it’s not about being 100 percent perfect 100 percent of the time.  Lord knows I’m not.  There’s a place for cookies and ice cream, burgers and fries – that’s part of the fun of childhood.

Often, it’s just about balance.  It’s about small changes that add up – like walking to school, replacing soda with water or skim milk, trimming those portion sizes a little – things like this can mean the difference between being healthy and fit or not.

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution here.  Instead, it’s about families making manageable changes that fit with their schedules, their budgets, and their needs and tastes.

And it’s about communities working to support these efforts.  Mayors like Mayors Johnson and Curtatone, who are building sidewalks, parks and community gardens.  Athletes and role models like Tiki Barber, who are building playgrounds to help kids stay active.  Community leaders like Will Allen who are bringing farmers markets to underserved areas.  Companies like the food industry leaders who came together last fall and acknowledged their responsibility to be part of the solution.  But there’s so much more to do.

And that’s the mission of Let’s Move – to create a wave of efforts across this country that get us to our goal of solving childhood obesity in a generation.

We kicked off this initiative this morning when my husband signed a presidential memorandum establishing the first ever government-wide Task Force on Childhood Obesity.  The task force is composed of representatives from key agencies – including many who are here today.  Over the next 90 days, these folks will review every program and policy relating to child nutrition and physical activity.  And they’ll develop an action plan marshalling these resources to meet our goal.  And to ensure we’re continuously on track to do so, the Task Force will set concrete benchmarks to measure our progress.

But we can’t wait 90 days to get going here.  So let’s move right now, starting today, on a series of initiatives to help achieve our goal.

First, let’s move to offer parents the tools and information they need – and that they’ve been asking for – to make healthy choices for their kids.  We’ve been working with the FDA and several manufacturers and retailers to make our food labels more customer-friendly, so people don’t have to spend hours squinting at words they can’t pronounce to figure out whether the food they’re buying is healthy or not.  In fact, just today, the nation’s largest beverage companies announced that they’ll be taking steps to provide clearly visible information about calories on the front of their products – as well as on vending machines and soda fountains.  This is exactly the kind of vital information parents need to make good choices for their kids.

We’re also working with the American Academy of Pediatrics, supporting their groundbreaking efforts to ensure that doctors not only regularly measure children’s BMI, but actually write out a prescription detailing steps parents can take to keep their kids healthy and fit.

In addition, we’re working with the Walt Disney Company, NBC Universal, and Viacom to launch a nationwide public awareness campaign educating parents and children about how to fight childhood obesity.

And we’re creating a one-stop shopping website – LetsMove.gov – so with the click of a mouse, parents can find helpful tips and step-by-step strategies, including healthy recipes, exercise plans, and charts they can use to track their family’s progress.  

But let’s remember: 31 million American children participate in federal school meal programs – and many of these kids consume as many as half their daily calories at school.  And what we don’t want is a situation where parents are taking all the right steps at home – and then their kids undo all that work with salty, fatty food in the school cafeteria.

So let’s move to get healthier food into our nation’s schools.  That’s the second part of this initiative.  We’ll start by updating and strengthening the Child Nutrition Act – the law that sets nutrition standards for what our kids eat at school.  And we’ve proposed an historic investment of an additional $10 billion over ten years to fund that legislation.

With this new investment, we’ll knock down barriers that keep families from participating in school meal programs and serve an additional one million students in the first five years alone.  And we’ll dramatically improve the quality of the food we offer in schools – including in school vending machines.  We’ll take away some of the empty calories, and add more fresh fruits and vegetables and other nutritious options.

We also plan to double the number of schools in the HealthierUS School Challenge – an innovative program that recognizes schools doing the very best work to keep kids healthy – from providing healthy school meals to requiring physical education classes each week.  To help us meet that goal, I’m thrilled to announce that for the very first time, several major school food suppliers have come together and committed to decrease sugar, fat and salt; increase whole grains; and double the fresh produce in the school meals they serve.  And also for the first time, food service workers – along with principals, superintendents and school board members across America – are coming together to support these efforts.  With these commitments, we’ll reach just about every school child in this country with better information and more nutritious meals to put them on track to a healthier life.

These are major steps forward.  But let’s not forget about the rest of the calories kids consume – the ones they eat outside of school, often at home, in their neighborhoods.  And when 23.5 million Americans, including 6.5 million American children, live in “food deserts” – communities without a supermarket – those calories are too often empty ones.  You can see these areas in dark purple in the new USDA Food Environment Atlas we’re unveiling today.  This Atlas maps out everything from diabetes and obesity rates across the country to the food deserts you see on this screen.

So let’s move to ensure that all our families have access to healthy, affordable food in their communities.  That’s the third part of this initiative.  Today, for the very first time, we’re making a commitment to eliminate food deserts in America – and we plan to do so within seven years.  Now, we know this is ambitious.  And it will take a serious commitment from both government and the private sector.  That’s why we plan to invest $400 million a year in a Healthy Food Financing initiative that will bring grocery stores to underserved areas and help places like convenience stores carry healthier food options.  And this initiative won’t just help families eat better, it will help create jobs and revitalize neighborhoods across America.

But we know that eating right is only part of the battle.  Experts recommend that children get 60 minutes of active play each day.  If this sounds like a lot, consider this: kids today spend an average of seven and a half hours a day watching TV, and playing with cell phones, computers, and video games.  And only a third of high school students get the recommended levels of physical activity. 

So let’s move.  And I mean that literally.  Let’s find new ways for kids to be physically active, both in and out of school.  That’s the fourth, and final, part of this initiative.

We’ll increase participation in the President’s Physical Fitness Challenge.  And we’ll modernize the challenge, so it’s not just about how athletic kids are – how many sit-ups or push-ups they can do – but how active they are.  We’ll double the number of kids who earn a Presidential Active Lifestyle Award in the next school year, recognizing those who engage in physical activity five days a week, for six weeks.  We’ve also recruited professional athletes from a dozen different leagues – including the NFL, Major League Baseball, and the WNBA – to promote these efforts through sports clinics, public service announcements and more.

So that’s some of what we’re doing to achieve our goal.  And we know we won’t get there this year, or this Administration.  We know it’ll take a nationwide movement that continues long after we’re gone.  That’s why today, I’m pleased to announce that a new, independent foundation has been created to rally and coordinate businesses, non-profits, and state and local governments to keep working until we reach our goal – and to measure our progress along the way.  It’s called the Partnership for a Healthier America, and it’s bringing together some of the leading experts on childhood obesity, like The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The California Endowment, The Kellogg Foundation, the Brookings Institution, and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, which is a partnership between the American Heart Association and the Clinton Foundation.  And we expect others to join in the coming months.

So this is a pretty serious effort.  And I know that in these challenging times for our country, there are those who will wonder whether this should really be a priority.  They might view things like healthy school lunches and physical fitness challenges as “extras” – as things we spring for once we’ve taken care of the necessities.  They might ask, “How can we spend money on fruits and vegetables in our school cafeterias when many of our schools don’t have enough textbooks or teachers?”  Or they might ask, “How can we afford to build parks and sidewalks when we can’t even afford our health care costs?”

But when you step back and think about it, you realize – these are false choices.  If kids aren’t getting adequate nutrition, even the best textbooks and teachers in the world won’t help them learn.  If they don’t have safe places to run and play, and they wind up with obesity-related conditions, then those health care costs will just keep rising.

So yes, we have to do it all…we’ll need to make some modest, but critical, investments in the short-run…but we know that they’ll pay for themselves – likely many times over – in the long-run.  Because we won’t just be keeping our kids healthy when they’re young.  We’ll be teaching them habits to keep them healthy their entire lives.

We saw this firsthand here at the White House when we planted our garden with students like Tammy last Spring.  One of Tammy’s classmates wrote in an essay that her time in the garden, and I quote, “…has made me think about the choices I have with what I put in my mouth…”  Another wrote with great excitement that he’d learned that tomatoes are both a fruit and a vegetable and contain vitamins that fight diseases.  Armed with that knowledge, he declared, “So the tomato is a fruit and is now my best friend.”

Think about the ripple effect when children use this knowledge to make healthy decisions for the rest of their lives.  Think about the effect it will have on every aspect of their lives.  Whether they can keep up with their classmates on the playground and stay focused in the classroom.  Whether they have the self-confidence to pursue careers of their dreams, and the stamina to succeed in those careers.  Whether they’ll have the energy and strength to teach their own kids how to throw a ball or ride a bike, and whether they’ll live long enough to see their grandkids grow up – maybe even their great grandkids too. 

In the end, we know that solving our obesity challenge won’t be easy – and it certainly won’t be quick.  But make no mistake about it, this problem can be solved.

This isn’t like a disease where we’re still waiting for the cure to be discovered – we know the cure for this.  This isn’t like putting a man on the moon or inventing the Internet – it doesn’t take some stroke of genius or feat of technology.  We have everything we need, right now, to help our kids lead healthy lives.  Rarely in the history of this country have we encountered a problem of such magnitude and consequence that is so eminently solvable.  So let’s move to solve it.

I don’t want our kids to live diminished lives because we failed to step up today.  I don’t want them looking back decades from now and asking us, why didn’t you help us when you had a chance?  Why didn’t you put us first when it mattered most?

So much of what we all want for our kids isn’t within our control.  We want them to succeed in everything they do.  We want to protect them from every hardship and spare them from every mistake.  But we know we can’t do all of that.  What we can do…what is fully within our control…is to give them the very best start in their journeys.  What we can do is give them advantages early in life that will stay with them long after we’re gone.  As President Franklin Roosevelt once put it: “We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.”

That is our obligation, not just as parents who love our kids, but as citizens who love this country.  So let’s move.  Let’s get this done.  Let’s give our kids what they need to have the future they deserve.

Thank you so much.
 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 09, 2010

Remarks by the President Before Meeting with Bipartisan Leaders of the House and Senate

Cabinet Room

10:21 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, everybody.  Well, I want to thank both Democratic and Senate Leaders -- Democratic Senate Leaders, Democratic House Leaders, as well as Republican Leaders from the House and Senate for joining us.

As I said in my State of the Union, part of what we’d like to see is the ability of Congress to move forward in a more bipartisan fashion on some of the key challenges that the country is facing right now.  I think it’s fair to say that the American people are frustrated with the lack of progress on some key issues.  And although the parties are not going to agree on every single item, there should be some areas where we can agree and we can get some things done even as we have vigorous debates on some of those issues that we don’t agree on.

A good place to start, and what I hope to spend a lot of time on in these discussions today, is how we can move forward on a jobs package that encourages small business to hire, that is helping to create the kind of environment where now that we have economic growth people actually are starting to add to their payroll.  I think there are some ideas on both the Republican and Democrat side that allow us to potentially, for example, lower rates for small businesses on their taxes, to help spur on some growth.  And my hope is is that both in the House and the Senate we’ll see some packages moving over the next several weeks that can provide a jumpstart to hiring and start lowering the unemployment rate.

Another area where I hope we can find some agreement is on the issue of getting our deficits and debt under control.  Both parties have stated their concerns about it; I think both parties recognize that it’s going to take a lot of work.  I have put forward the idea of a fiscal commission and I'm going to be discussing both with my Democratic and Republican colleagues how we can get that moving as quickly as possible so that we can start taking some concrete action.  I think the American people want to see that concrete action.

I'm also going to just be talking about some more mundane matters, things like making sure that we have our government personnel in place on critical positions -- in critical positions that involve our basic government function and seeing if we can accelerate that and try to find some agreement in those areas.  And then I'm going to spend some time listening because there may be some priorities that both the Republican and Democratic Leaders have that they want to raise at this meeting.

My hope is this is not going to be a rare situation; we’re going to be doing these on a regular basis.  And I'm very thankful that everybody here has taken the time to come.  I'm confident that if we move forward in a spirit of keeping in mind what’s best for the American people that we should be able to accomplish a lot.

All right.  Thank you very much everybody.

END
10:24 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 09, 2010

Remarks by the President at Signing of Memorandum on Childhood Obesity

Oval Office

9:16 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Good morning, everybody.  I am so proud of the work that the First Lady, along with the Cabinet Secretaries behind me, have done in trying to tackle one of the most urgent health issues that we face in this country, and that is the increase of childhood obesity.

And because of the outstanding planning that they've done, they are going to be rolling out a terrific plan of action that involves the private sector as well as government agencies coordinating much more effectively a lot of public information out there to help parents make good decisions about allowing their children to be active and eating healthier.

And what the executive order I'm going to be signing today does is to create a 90-day plan that allows optimal coordination as we move forward, in addition to the coordination that we're doing with private sector companies and not-for-profits and other organizations out there that are interested in this issue.

So we think that this has enormous promise in improving the health of our children, in giving support to parents to make the kinds of healthy choices that oftentimes are very difficult in this kind of environment.  And so I just want to say how proud I am of the First Lady for her outstanding work and I will now sign this order.

(The executive order is signed.)

There you go.

MRS. OBAMA:  Nice job.

THE PRESIDENT:  It's done, honey.  Thanks.  (Applause.)

MRS. OBAMA:  Now we work.

THE PRESIDENT:  Now they get to work.  Thank you, guys.

END
9:19 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 06, 2010

Remarks by The President at Democratic National Committee Meeting

Capital Hilton Hotel
Washington, D.C.

10:26 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you very much.  Thank you.  Thank you very much.  Thank you.  Thank you, DNC.  Everybody have a seat -- have a seat.  Thank you.  Oh, it is good to see you -- good to be among friends so committed to the future of this party and this country that they’re willing to brave a blizzard.  (Laughter.)  Snowmageddon here in D.C.  (Laughter.)  I noticed somebody had “Californians for Obama” and I was thinking -- (applause) -- you guys are not used to this.  (Laughter.)

I’ve got some special thanks to the folks here.  First of all I want to thank Eleanor Holmes Norton for fighting the good fight here in the District of Colombia.  (Applause.)  Ray Buckley, Our DNC vice chair from New Hampshire.  (Applause.)   Alice Germond, DNC secretary.  Andy Tobias, DNC treasurer.  Thanks for the great work that you guys do.

I want to thank Tim Kaine, who’s not only an outstanding former governor, but an outstanding leader of this party –- (applause) -- busy building the best online and in-field grassroots organization we’ve ever had.  Give Tim Kaine a big round of applause.  (Applause.)

And if I'm not mistaken we’ve got a couple of terrific members of Congress here, Mike Honda, congressman and DNC vice chair -- Mike, are you here?  He’s on his way; he’s still shoveling.  (Laughter.)  And how about Barbara Lee, is Barbara here?  Well, we love her anyway.  So give Barbara and Mike a big round of applause.  (Applause.)

I want to thank the governors, the legislators, the mayors from across this country for working to move their states and local communities forward in extraordinarily challenging times.  They’ve done heroic work.  I want to thank the DNC members, state party leaders and, most of all, I want to thank the millions of Americans who’ve taken up the cause of change at the grassroots level in all 50 states.

Now, Tim alluded to this, but I just want to remind everybody -- we knew from the beginning that this would not be easy.   Change never is.  But that’s especially true in these times, when we face an array of challenges as tough as any we have seen in generations.  President Kennedy once said:  “When we got into office, the thing that surprised me most was to find that things were just as bad as we’d been saying they were.”  (Laughter.)  Truth was things were worse.

We took office facing a financial crisis that was something we hadn’t seen since the Great Depression, an economy that we now know was bleeding 750,000 jobs a month, a $1.3 trillion deficit, and two wars that were costly in every sense of the word.  From the specter of terrorism to the impacts of globalization, we face tremendous new challenges in this young century.  And all of this comes on top of one of the toughest decades our middle class had ever faced -- a decade where jobs grew more slowly than during any prior expansion; where the income of the average American household actually declined; where the costs of everything seemed to keep going up.

Everything we’ve done over the past year has been not only to right our economy, to break the back of this recession, but also to restore some of the security middle-class families have felt slipping away for over a decade now.  Some of the steps we took were done without the help of the other party, which made a political decision all too often to jump in the backseat, let us do the driving and then critique whether we were taking the right turns.  That's okay.  That's part of what it means to govern.

And all the steps we took were necessary.  None of us wanted to throw a lifeline to the banks.  But the outrage shouldn’t be that we did –- because it had to happen in order to prevent millions more from losing their jobs, millions of businesses and homes foreclosed.  The real outrage is that we had to do it in the first place in order to fend off the collapse of the financial system.  That's the outrage.  (Applause.)

Then we passed almost $300 billion in tax relief -- tax cuts for small businesses; tax cuts for 95 percent of working Americans.  We put Americans to work building the infrastructure of tomorrow -- doing the work America needs done.  We passed a Credit Card Bill of Rights to protect consumers from getting ripped off by credit card companies.  (Applause.)   We put the law behind the principle of equal pay for equal work.  (Applause.)  We extended the promise of health care to 4 million more children of working families, we protected every child from being targeted from tobacco companies.  (Applause.)

We passed a service bill named for Ted Kennedy –- (applause) -- that gives young folks and old folks new ways to give back to their communities.  We appointed Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court.  (Applause.)  And we’ve begun working with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country that they love because of who they are.  (Applause.)

Overseas -- overseas we’ve begun a new era of engagement.  We’re working with our partners to stop the spread of nuclear weapons, and to seek a world free of nuclear weapons.  We banned torture.  We have begun to leave Iraq to its own people.  We’ve charted a new way forward in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and made good progress in taking the fight to al Qaeda across the globe.  I went to Cairo on behalf of America to begin a new dialogue with the Muslim world.  And we are living up to a moment that demands American leadership by standing side-by-side with the people of Haiti.  (Applause.)

So if you look at a tally of the things we said we would do –- even in the midst of this extraordinarily challenging economy –- we’ve kept our promises.  We’ve kept our commitments.  We have moved forward on behalf of a more prosperous and more secure future for the American people.

But for all our efforts, we have to acknowledge change can’t come fast enough for many Americans.  In recent weeks, I’ve visited Allentown, Pennsylvania; Elyria, Ohio; Tampa, Florida; Nashua, New Hampshire; talking with workers in factories, and families in diners.  And they want to know, how are they going to find a job when they only know one trade in their life.  Or how are they going to afford to send their kids to college.  How are they going to pay their medical bills when they get sick.  How can they retire with their 401(k) so banged up.  And most of all, they’re wondering if anyone can or will do anything about it -- especially here in Washington.

Now, I understand their frustration –- you understand it as well.  I was talking to Michelle the other day –- Michelle is always a good barometer –- and, you know, the front page was, oh, what’s Obama going to do to get his poll numbers up, and, are the Democrats all in a tizzy and this and that.  And she said, you know, listen, if you're the average family, if I'm a mom out there and I'm working and my husband is working but we’re worried about losing our jobs, our hours have been cut back, the cost of our health care premium just went up 30 percent, the credit card company just jacked up our interest rates 39 percent, and our home value has gone down by $100,000, our 401(k) is all banged up –- and suddenly somebody calls up and says, so, how do you think President Obama is doing right now?  (Laughter.)   What are they going to say?  What are they going to say?  (Applause.)

Of course people are frustrated.  And they have every right to be.  And I know that during the course of this gathering, you know, some of the press have been running around, well, what do you think we should be doing and this and that and the other, you know, what’s the strategy.

Look, when unemployment is 9.7 percent, when we are still digging ourselves out of an extraordinary recession -– people are going to be frustrated.  And they’re going to be looking to the party in power to try to fix it.  And when you’ve got another party that says, we don’t want to do anything about it –- of course people are going to be frustrated.

Folks are out there working hard every day, trying to meet their responsibilities.  But all around them during this last, “lost” decade, what they’ve seen is a wave of irresponsibility from Wall Street to Washington –- they see a capital city where every day is treated like Election Day, and every act, every comment, every gesture passes through a political filter.  They’ve seen the outsized influence of lobbyists and special interests, who too often hijack the agenda by leveraging campaign money and connections.   Of course they wonder if their leaders can muster the will to overcome all of that and confront the real problems that touch their lives.

But here's what everybody here has to remember:  That's why I ran for President.  That's why you worked so hard to elect a Democratic Congress.  (Applause.)  We knew this stuff was tough.  But we stepped up because we decided we were going to take the responsibility of changing it.  And it may not be easy, but change is coming.  (Applause.)

I believe so strongly, I believe so strongly if we're going to deal with the great challenges of our time; if we're going to secure a better future just as past generations did for us; then we're going to have to change the prevailing politics in this town, and it's not going to be easy.  We're going to have to care less about scoring points and more about solving problems that are holding us back.  (Applause.)  At this defining moment, that's never been more important.

We can continue, for example, to be consumed by the politics of energy.  But we know that the nation that leads the clean energy revolution will lead the 21st century global economy.   We know that a failure to act will put our planet in deeper peril.  We know that China isn't waiting and India isn't waiting and Germany isn't waiting to seize that future.  And America can't afford to wait, either.  (Applause.)  And I don't intend to spend all my time taking polls to figure out whether we're going to seize that future or not.

We can continue to spin our wheels with the old education debates; pitting teachers' unions against reformers, and meanwhile our kids keep trailing their counterparts from South Korea to Singapore.  But we know that the countries that out-educate us today will out-compete us tomorrow.  (Applause.)  We know that kids who are consigned to failing schools today will be condemned to lifetimes of lower wages and unfulfilled dreams.  America can't afford to wait.  And I'm not going to take a poll to figure out whether or not we're going to tackle education.

We can continue to allow the same special interests who stacked the deck in favor of financial speculators in the last decade to block reform again in this decade.  But if we've learned anything from the devastating recession, it's that we know that wise regulation actually can enhance the market and make it more stable and make our economy work better.  We can't return to the dereliction of duty that helped deliver this recession.  We know that to do so would be to put at risk our jobs, our families, our businesses, and our future.  America can't afford to wait, and we can't look backwards.

And, yes, we could continue to ignore the growing burden of runaway costs of health care.  The easiest thing to do right now would be to just say this is too hard; let's just regroup and lick our wounds and try to hang on.  We've had a long and difficult debate on health care.  And there are some, maybe even the majority in this town, who say perhaps it's time to walk away.

But here's the thing, Democrats.  If we walk away, we know what will happen.  We know that premiums and out-of-pocket expenses will skyrocket this decade, and the decade after that, and the decade after that, just as they did in the past decade.  More small businesses will be priced out of coverage; more big businesses will be unable to compete internationally; more workers will take home less pay and fewer raises.  We know that millions more Americans will lose their coverage; we know that our deficits will inexorably continue to grow because health care costs are the single biggest driver.

So just in case there's any confusion out there, let me be clear.  I am not going to walk away from health insurance reform.  (Applause.)  I'm not going to walk away from the American people.  I'm not going to walk away on this challenge.  I'm not going to walk away on any challenge.  We're moving forward.  (Applause.)  We are moving forward.  (Applause.)  Sometimes – sometimes we may be moving forward against the prevailing winds.  Sometimes it may be against a blizzard.  (Laughter.)  But we're going to live up to our responsibility to lead.

And I'm confident that if we stay steady, if we stay focused on all the people that we meet each and every day who are out there struggling, if we’ve got them in mind and we are working to deliver on their behalf, that in the end that'll be good politics as well as good policy.  It'll be good for America, not just good for Democrats.

But in order to get any of these battles done, we're going to have to change the way that Washington works.   Now, we may not get a lot of attention for it, but we've actually already begun to do that.  We've reined in the power of the special interests with the toughest ethics and transparency rules of any administration in the modern era.  We're the first White House ever to post our visitors online.  We've excluded lobbyists from policymaking jobs or seats on federal boards and commissions.  I've called on Congress to make all earmark requests public on one central website before they come up for a vote so that you know how the money is spent.  We have -- we're going to have to confront the gaping loophole that the Supreme Court recently opened in our campaign finance laws –- (applause) --that allows special interests to spend without limit to influence American elections.

We also said that as we worked to change the ways of Washington, we'd also change the way we do things as a party.  This committee is the first to ban contributions from political action committees and lobbyists.  And I'm pleased to see the recommendations submitted by the Change Commission aimed at improving our nominating process -- because I believe that the more Americans that get involved in this party, the stronger this party will be.  (Applause.)

And, yes, we need to change the way we work with the other party as well.  Now, I'm proud to be a Democrat.  I'm proud to be a leader of this great party.  But I also know that we can't solve all of our problems alone.  So we need to extend our hands to the other side -- we've been working on it -- (laughter) -- because if we're going to change the ways of Washington, we're going to have to change its tone.

Now, as a step in that direction, I went and visited with the House Republican Caucus last Friday.  (Laughter and applause.)  And we had a good –- we had a good discussion about the challenges -- we had a good discussion about the challenges facing the American people and our ideas to solve them.  It was good for the country to see a robust debate.  I had fun.  (Laughter.)

And we have to acknowledge there are going to be some issues that Democrats and Republicans just don't see eye to eye on, and that's how it should be.  That's how our democracy works.  But there have to be some issues on which we can find some common ground.  It's one thing to disagree out of principle; it's another to simply stand in the way because of politics.

Now is not the time for sitting on the sidelines, or blocking progress, or pointing figures, or assigning blame.  Now is not the time to do just what's right for your party or your poll numbers.  Now is the time to do what's right for the country.  Now is the time to do what's necessary to see us through these difficult times.  Now is the time to do everything in our power to keep the American Dream alive for the next generation.

And that's our mission, Democrats.

I know we've gone through a tough year.  But we've gone through tougher years.  We're the party of Thomas Jefferson, who declared that all men are created equal.  And we had to work long and hard to ensure that those words meant something.

We're the party of Franklin Roosevelt, who, in the midst of depression, said all we had to fear was fear itself; who saved freedom and democracy from being extinguished here on Earth.  And that was hard because the natural impulse was to fear.  But we as a party helped to lead the country out of that fear.

We're the party of John F. Kennedy, who summoned us to serve; who called us to pay any price and bear any burden.

And we're the party of Edward M. Kennedy, whose cause endures; who said that here, in the United States of America, the promise of health care should not be a privilege, but a fundamental right.

That is who we are, Democrats.  (Applause.)  That's who we've got to be today.  For all the stories we've heard, after all the campaigns we've waged, after all the promises we've made, this is our best chance to deliver change that the American people need.  (Applause.)

And if we do that -- if we speak to the hopes of the American people instead of their fears; if we inspire them instead of divide them; if we respond to their challenges with the same sense of urgency they feel in their own lives -- we're not just going to win elections -- elections will take care of themselves -- we will once again be the party that turns around the economy and moves this country forward, and secures the American Dream for another generation.  (Applause.)

Thanks very much, everybody.  God bless you.  (Applause.)

END
10:48 A.M. EST

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
February 05, 2010

President Obama and CIA Director Panetta Speak at CIA Memorial Service

The Central Intelligence Agency today held a memorial service at its headquarters for the seven Americans killed in eastern Afghanistan on December 30th. Family members and more than a thousand Agency officers gathered in attendance, along with guests including President Obama and senior officials from the Intelligence Community, the White House, and the Pentagon, as well as members of Congress.

President Obama spoke of the country’s gratitude to the families. “Everything you instilled in them -- the virtues of service and decency and duty -- were on display that December day. That is what you gave them. That is what you gave to America. And our nation will be forever in your debt.” He told CIA officers that their “seven heroes” were at the vanguard of a mission vital to national security. “Let their sacrifice be a summons. To carry on their work. To complete this mission. To win this war, and to keep our country safe.”

CIA Director Leon E. Panetta paid tribute to the talent and accomplishments of the fallen, telling their loved ones that Agency officers “simply cannot do these jobs—we can’t do these jobs—without the love and support of our families.” He called the seven “genuine patriots” who “lived up to our highest principles,” and pledged that CIA would strive to be worthy of them. Panetta added: “As they worked to protect lives, they sacrificed their own. For this, we honor them—now and always…We will carry this fight to the enemy. Our resolve is unbroken, our energy undiminished, and our dedication to each other and to our nation, unshakable.”

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Remarks by The President at Memorial for CIA Officers
CIA Headquarters
Langley, Virginia

THE PRESIDENT: America’s intelligence agencies are a community, and the CIA is a family. That is how we gather here today. I speak as a grateful Commander-in-Chief who relies on you. There are members of Congress here who support you. Leaders -- Leon Panetta, Steve Kappes -- who guide you. And most of all, family, friends and colleagues who love you and grieve with you.

For more than 60 years, the security of our nation has demanded that the work of this agency remain largely unknown. But today, our gratitude as citizens demands that we speak of seven American patriots who loved their country and gave their lives to defend it:

[Names redacted.]

They came from different corners of our country -- men and women -- and each walked their own path to that rugged base in the mountains. Some had come to this work after a lifetime of protecting others -- in law enforcement, in the military; one was just a few years out of college.

Some had devoted years, decades, even, to unraveling the dark web of terrorists that threatened us; others, like so many of you, joined these ranks when 9/11 called a new generation to service. Some had spent years on dangerous tours around the globe; others had just arrived in harm’s way.

But there, at the remote outpost, they were bound by a common spirit. They heard their country’s call and answered it. They served in the shadows and took pride in it. They were doing their job and they loved it. They saw the danger and accepted it. They knew that the price of freedom is high and, in an awful instant, they paid that price.

There are no words that can ease the ache in your hearts. But to their colleagues and all who served with them -- those here today, those still recovering, those watching around the world -- I say: Let their sacrifice be a summons. To carry on their work. To complete this mission. To win this war, and to keep our country safe.

To their parents -- it is against the natural order of life for parents to lay their children to rest. Yet these weeks of solemn tribute have revealed for all to see -- that you raised remarkable sons and daughters. Everything you instilled in them -- the virtues of service and decency and duty -- were on display that December day. That is what you gave them. That is what you gave to America. And our nation will be forever in your debt.

To the spouses -- your husbands and wives raised their hand and took an oath to protect and defend the country that they loved. They fulfilled that oath with their life. But they also took your hand and made a vow to you. And that bond of love endures, from this world to the next. Amidst grief that is sometimes unbearable, may you find some comfort in our vow to you -- that this agency, and this country, will stand with you and support you always.

And to the beautiful children -- I know that this must be so hard and confusing, but please always remember this. It wasn’t always easy for your mom or dad to leave home. But they went to another country to defend our country. And they gave their lives to protect yours. And as you grow, the best way to keep their memory alive and the highest tribute you can pay to them is to live as they lived, with honor and dignity and integrity.

They served in secrecy, but today every American can see their legacy. For the record of their service -- and of this generation of intelligence professionals -- is written all around us. It’s written in the extremists who no longer threaten our country -- because you eliminated them. It’s written in the attacks that never occurred -- because you thwarted them. And it’s written in the Americans, across this country and around the world, who are alive today -- because you saved them.

And should anyone here ever wonder whether your fellow citizens truly appreciate that service, you need only remember the extraordinary tributes of recent weeks: the thousands of Americans who have sat down at their computers and posted messages to seven heroes they never knew; in the outpouring of generosity to the memorial foundation that will help support these proud families.

And along a funeral procession in Massachusetts, in the freezing cold, mile after mile, friends and total strangers paying their respects, small children holding signs saying “thank you.” And a woman holding up a large American flag because, she said simply, “He died for me and my family.”

As a nation, we pledge to be there for you and your families. We need you more than ever. In an ever-changing world where new dangers emerge suddenly, we need you to be one step ahead of nimble adversaries. In this information age, we need you to sift through vast universes of data to find intelligence that can be acted upon swiftly. And in an era of technology and unmanned systems, we still need men and women like these seven -- professionals of skill and talent and courage who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to protect our nation.

Because of them, because of you, a child born in America today is welcomed into a country that is proud and confident, strong and hopeful -- just as Molly Roberson welcomed her daughter Piper this week, both of whom join us today. Piper will never know her dad, Scott. But thanks to Molly, she will know what her father stood for -- a man who served his country, who did his duty, and who gave his life to keep her safe.

And on some distant day, years from now, when she is grown, if Piper -- or any of these children -- seeks to understand for themselves, they’ll need only come here -- to Langley, through these doors, and stand before that proud Memorial Wall that honors the fallen.

And perhaps they’ll run their fingers over the stars that recall their parent’s service. Perhaps they’ll walk over to that Book of Honor, turn the pages, and see their parent’s names. And at that moment of quiet reflection, they will see what we all know today -- that our nation is blessed to have men and women such as these. That we are humbled by their service, that we give thanks for every day that you keep us safe.

May God bless these seven patriots, may he watch over their families. And may God bless the United States of America.

***

Excerpts from Remarks by CIA Director Leon E. Panetta
At Memorial Service Held at CIA Headquarters for Those Who Fell In The Line Of Duty In Afghanistan On December 30, 2009

Mr. President, Honored Guests, my colleagues from the CIA, Ladies and Gentlemen: Today we come together to honor seven courageous men and women. And to their loved ones, we come together to offer our comfort, our support, and our lasting gratitude.

As Director, I have never had a more difficult duty than to bid farewell to colleagues taken from us. From Dover, to the family services, to this memorial, it is tough to say good-bye. Within this Agency, they were more than co-workers or friends—they were part of our family. And as family, even knowing that God has a plan for each human life, it’s hard to accept the sudden loss of so many good and decent people.

Thank you, Mr. President, for being here–you honor us with your presence, and I thank you. Thank you, Madam Speaker—you also honor us with your presence. We are also joined this morning by many senior officials—from the Intelligence Community, the White House, the Congress, the Pentagon, and many other places. You, too, are part of our family, because the responsibility to protect and defend the nation belongs to all of us. On behalf of the entire Agency, I thank you for your support, both public and private, during these difficult days. Your presence here is important to all of us.

The deepest grief, of course, is felt by those who knew our officers best and who loved them most—who called them husband and wife, father, mother, son, daughter, sister, brother.

Despite the pain and the grief, the families of our fallen have been pillars of strength. As tragic as this event has been, you are our inspiration. Thank you for sharing with us your loved ones—these extraordinary people. All they are and all they achieved is because of you. We simply cannot do these jobs—we can’t do these jobs—without the love and support of our families. We are forever grateful for the support and for the love. We are forever grateful for the sacrifices all of you made as they faithfully served our nation. We are honored to have you as part of the CIA family because, in a very real way, your love is what made them patriots. They gave their lives because they loved you—and they wanted all of us, and all of you—to have a safer nation.

Six decades ago, Adlai Stevenson famously described patriotism as “the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.” What he said next was equally important, and I quote: “These are words that are easy to utter. But this is a mighty assignment. For it is easier to fight for principles than to live up to them.”

The men and women we remember today are genuine patriots. They took on that mighty assignment. They not only fought for this nation, they lived up to our highest principles. They understood that America is more than a place. It is the keeper of our ideal—that all people deserve to live in freedom and without fear.

Devotion to that ideal brought our colleagues to Khowst, that little known outpost in Afghanistan. Like others before them, they stepped forward to perform a very dangerous, but essential, mission. They collected intelligence—which was what they were trained to do—that simply cannot be obtained anywhere else. With courage and skill, they worked to defeat the most urgent threat of our time. And as they worked to protect lives, they sacrificed their own. For this, we honor them—now and always.

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These remarkable men and women are the story of America. They are the heart and soul of this great country. Their devotion to duty is the foundation of our country. Throughout history, our nation’s strength has rested on the service and the sacrifice of individual Americans—brave warriors who believed that the life of the nation was worth their own lives. The officers killed and wounded on December 30th upheld that enduring truth.

In silent service to our country, they accepted great risks, and they bore heavy burdens. They can rest now in the knowledge that they did their duty: They helped to keep our nation safe.

In their name and in their honor, the men and women of CIA will carry on their noble mission. Each of their stars—stars that we see here—will be emblazoned on our Memorial Wall, and will forever be a reminder of their sacrifice—and will forever be an inspiration to carry on their mission. For this Agency—by virtue of its purpose and its people—we find strength in adversity. We are on the front lines. We will carry this fight to the enemy. Our resolve is unbroken, our energy undiminished, and our dedication to each other and to our nation, unshakable.