Remarks by the First Lady in Commencement Address to Dillard University

UNO Lakefront Arena

New Orleans, Louisiana

10:33 A.M. CDT

MRS. OBAMA: Oh, my goodness! Good morning!

AUDIENCE: Good morning.

MRS. OBAMA: I am so happy to be here with you all. I'm proud to be here in the Big Easy. Look at you all! (Applause.) You look good.

STUDENT: You do too!

MRS. OBAMA: Thank you. (Laughter.) I want to start by thanking Nicole for that very kind introduction and for sharing her story, which is not too unfamiliar to me -- because they told me I couldn't be where I am, too. So I want to thank Nicole. I'm proud of her. Thank you for the selfie; I think that's the first selfie I've done at a commencement. So, Nicole, you're my first. (Laughter.)

And of course, I want to thank the Dillard University Choir. Oh, oh, oh! (Applause.) Oh! That's all I can say. It's like you want to start something up in here, right? (Laughter.) It's like, now we got a commencement going on up in here. (Laughter.) That was beautiful, beautiful. Thank you so much.

I also want to recognize Senator Mary Landrieu, who is here. Let's give her a hand. (Applause.) She has been a strong supporter of this university.

I want to thank the Dillard University Board of Trustees. I want to thank the faculty, the staff, and, of course, your tremendous president, Dr. Walter Kimbrough. (Applause.) Now, my husband has been called a few things over the years, but he has never had the honor of being referred to as the “Hip Hop President.” (Applause.)

I also want to thank all the folks from the University of New Orleans for hosting us here today. And I know they're hosting the folks at Southern University at New Orleans for their commencement later on today as well, so we wish them a wonderful day. And thank you for having us. (Applause.)

And of course, I've got to give a big shout-out to all the family members in the crowd, all of the family members -- (applause) -- especially to the mothers, because it is the day before Mother's Day. To all the mothers, Happy Mother's Day. (Applause.)

Now, graduates, you all handled your business, right? Just because you were graduating didn't mean you -- come on, now. (Laughter.) Okay, well, if you didn't, you have my permission to get up and go right now, because there is nothing more important -- no, no, don't get up. (Laughter.) Your mothers would kill you if you got up at this moment. (Laughter.) So just stay in your seats, and when this is all over make sure you take care of mom.

But in all seriousness, to all the moms out there -- as well as the dads and the grandparents, the uncles, the aunts, the brothers, the sisters, all of you who have helped raise these graduates -- you have seen them through their ups and downs, and you have poured your hearts and souls into these men and women. So today is your day, too, and you should be very proud. You really should. (Applause.)

And finally, most of all, I want to congratulate the beautiful and handsome men and women of the Dillard University Class of 2014. Yay! (Applause.) You all have come so far, I know, to make it to this day -- from all those early days when the girls were sneaking out of Williams Hall to go see the boys over at the Duals -- oh yeah, I did my research -- (laughter) -- to all those tests you crammed for, to the plans you're making now for your careers, to go on to graduate school.

You all have seen so much. You've witnessed this school's rebirth after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina -- the new buildings that replaced the ones you lost, the classrooms that started filling back up again, the service projects that you all have done to help this community bounce back. And I know along the way that each of you has written your own story of resilience and determination to make it here to this day.

For example, as you heard, Nicole was told back in high school that she just wasn't college material. But now she is your class president, and she's headed off to Yale for her graduate degree. So there. (Applause.) That's it.

And I know that some of you may come from tough neighborhoods; some of you may have lost your homes during Katrina. Maybe you're like DeShawn Dabney, a graduate who was raised by his grandmother -- (applause) -- maybe -- that's your grandmother, isn't it, DeShawn? (Laughter.) Raised by his grandmother while some of his family members were dealing with issues. Maybe just like him, you've been working part-time jobs since you were a teenager to make your dream of going to college come true. And now, today, you're all here ready to walk across this stage and get that diploma.

And no matter what path you took to get here, you all kept your hearts set on this day. You fought through every challenge you encountered, and you earned that degree from this fine university. And in doing so, you are following in the footsteps of all those who came before you, and you have become an indelible part of the history of this school -- a history that, as you all know, stretches back to well before the Civil War, back to 1826, the year a child named Emperor Williams was born.

Now, Emperor was born into slavery. But as he grew up, he managed to teach himself to read and write well enough to create a pass that allowed him to come and go around the city without getting hassled. But one day, his master saw the pass and he said, where did you learn to write like that? Now, just imagine the fear Emperor must have felt when he heard that question -- because remember, back then it was illegal for a slave to learn to read or write. So who knows what kind of punishment he may have gotten -- a beating, a whipping, even worse.

We don't exactly know what happened on that day, but we do know that when Emperor turned 32, after more than three decades in bondage, he became a free man. He decided to stay in New Orleans, and he went on to become a minister -- even founded a church right here in town. And in 1869, when abolitionists, missionaries, black folks and white folks came together to create a school for freed slaves here in New Orleans, Emperor was one of the original signers of the charter.

They decided to name the school New Orleans University, because even though most of the classes would be taught at a high school level or below, oh, their aspirations were much higher than that. And when they laid the cornerstone for that university's first building down on St. Charles Avenue, Emperor got a chance to speak.

He said -- and these are his words -- he said, “For twenty years I was a slave on these streets. It was a penitentiary offense to educate a Negro. I have seen my fellow-servants whipped for trying to learn; but today here I am [am I], speaking where a building is to be erected for the education of the children of my people.” He goes on to say, “I wonder if this is the world I was born in.”

See, in the course of his short lifetime, Emperor saw education go from being a crime for black folks to being a real possibility for his kids and grandkids. So no wonder he was asking whether this was the same world he'd been born into. See, for a man like Emperor, getting an education could open up a whole new world of opportunity. An education meant having real power. It meant you could manage your own money. It meant you couldn't get swindled out of land or possessions when somebody told you to just sign on the dotted line; sometimes even determined whether or not you could vote.

So most folks back then saw education as the key to real and lasting freedom. That's why, when New Orleans University and the other African American college in town, Straight University, first opened their doors, one of the biggest problems they faced was too many students. That's right -- too many students. Many of these students barely spoke English; they'd grown up speaking Creole or French. Few had ever seen the inside of a classroom or even been taught their ABCs.

But let me tell you, those students were hungry -- you hear me? Hungry. They studied like their lives depended on it. They blazed through their lessons. And that hunger for education lasted for generations in the African American community here in New Orleans.

When an arsonist set fire to the school's library in 1877, they built a new one. When those two original schools ran into financial troubles years later, they started making plans to build an even bigger and better university. And in the 1930s, when white folks complained that this new school would mean too many black students on their buses, the folks at the school got the city to add a bus line just for their students, because nothing -- nothing -- was going to stop them from achieving the vision of those early founders. (Applause.)

And finally, in May of 1934, they broke ground for this school, Dillard University -- (applause) -- a university that would go on to produce some of the leading thinkers and achievers in our country. And the day the cornerstone was laid for your library, the President of Howard University spoke these words: He said, “There lies in this Southland today, buried in unmarked graves, many a black genius who would have blessed this city and this section of our country, if [only] his parents could have had before them the Dillard University you are now building.”

And in the years since then, through segregation and depression, through threats of violence and the floodwaters of a devastating storm, students like you have come here to study and to learn, and to carry forward those hopes and dreams. And today, I stand before a sea of young geniuses. Oh, yeah. (Applause.)

So, graduates, I hope that you understand that this day is not just the culmination of your own dreams, but the realization of the dreams of so many who came before you. And you should be so proud, and so happy, and so excited about your futures. But what you shouldn't be is satisfied. (Applause.) See, because while it is a wonderful thing that all of you are here today, we have to ask ourselves, what about all those geniuses who never get this chance?

I'm talking about the young people from right here in New Orleans and across the country who aren't part of a commencement like this one today, kids no different from all of us, kids who never made it out of high school. The fact is that today, the high school graduation rate for black students is improving, but it is still lower than just about any other group in this country. And while college graduation rates have risen for nearly every other demographic, including African American women, the college graduation rate for African American men has flatlined.

See, and the thing is, when our young people fall behind like that in school, they fall behind in life. Last year, African Americans were more than twice as likely as whites to be unemployed. They were almost three times as likely to live in poverty. And they were far more likely to end up in prison or be the victims of violent crimes.

Now, perhaps when you hear these statistics, you might think to yourself, well, those numbers are terrible, but I'm not part of the problem. And you might be thinking that since you're not one of those statistics, and you're sitting here wearing that nice black robe today, you can go on your way and never look back.

But folks like you and me, we can't afford to think like that -- never. See, because we're the lucky ones, and we can never forget that we didn't get where we are today all on our own. We got here today because of so many people who toiled and sweat and bled and died for us -- people like our parents and grandparents and all those who came before them, people who never dreamed of getting a college education themselves but who worked, and saved, and sacrificed so that we could be here today. We owe them. (Applause.) We owe them.

And the only way to pay back that debt is by making those same kinds of sacrifices and investments for the next generation. And I know sitting here right now, that task could seem a bit overwhelming. I know it could seem like the deck is stacked way too high against our young people. And the truth is that some of the problems we face -- structural inequality, schools that lag behind, workplace and housing discrimination -- those problems are too big for one person to fix on their own.

But that's still no excuse to stand on the sidelines. Because we know that today, education is still the key to real and lasting freedom -- it is still true today. So it is now up to us to cultivate that hunger for education in our own lives and in those around us. And we know that hunger is still out there -- we know it.

We see it in students like DeShawn and Nicole and all of you who scraped and clawed so you could make it to this day. We see it in the single moms who work three jobs so their kids might have a shot at earning a degree like yours. (Applause.) We see that hunger all around the world -- in that young woman named Malala who was shot on her school bus in Pakistan just for speaking out in support of girls getting an education, and the more than 200 girls kidnapped from their own school in Nigeria for wanting an education -- (applause) -- young people who are knowingly risking their lives every day just to go to school.

And in fact, you've seen that hunger right here at Dillard: your valedictorian, three salutatorians are all from Nigeria. (Applause.) They studied hard at an early age, earned scholarships to come here to this university, achieved 4.0 GPAs. And now they are off pursuing master's degrees, work in software development, teaching math and science to young people here in the United States.

See, now, that's the kind of hunger for education that we have to reignite in all of our communities. It's the same hunger that gave life to this university, the same hunger that defined so many of our parents and grandparents -- including my own. You see, my parents never went to college, but they were determined to see me and my brother and all the kids in our neighborhood get a good education. (Applause.)

So my mother volunteered at my school -- helping out every day in the front office, making sure our teachers were doing their jobs, holding their feet to the fire if she thought they were falling short. I'd walk by the office and there she'd be. (Laughter.) I'd leave class to go to the bathroom, there she'd be again, roaming the halls, looking in the classrooms. And of course, as a kid, I have to say, that was a bit mortifying, having your mother at school all the time.

But looking back, I have no doubt that my classmates and I got a better education because she was looking over those teachers' shoulders. (Applause.) You see, my mom was not a teacher or a principal or a school board member. But when it came to education, she had that hunger. So she believed that our education was very much her business.

And we need more people who think and act like my mother, and all those mothers out there, because the education of our young people is all of our business. That's what Emperor Williams thought. That's what the folks here in New Orleans thought as they worked to rebuild this campus after Katrina. And as graduates of Dillard University, that's how we need you to think every single day for the rest of your lives.

You all have opportunities and skills and education that so many folks who came before you never could have dreamed of. So just imagine the kind of impact that you're going to make. Imagine how you can inspire those around you to reach higher and complete their own education.

And you can start small. Start by volunteering at an after-school program, or helping some high school kids fill out their college applications. Show them the path that you took. Or you can think a little bigger -- you can get your entire congregation or your community to start a mentoring program; maybe convince your new employer to sponsor scholarships for underprivileged kids. Or maybe you could think a little higher -- maybe you could run for school board or Congress, or, yes, even President of the United States. (Applause.)

And then maybe you could build preschools for every single one of our kids. Maybe you could help turn that pipeline to prison into a highway to college; help give every child in America an education that is truly worth of their promise. Those are the kind of big dreams that folks who founded this university reached for. That is how high they set their bar.

And so we owe it to those folks -- the folks who had the audacity to call their little schools “universities” and name their baby boys “Emperor” -- we owe it to them to reach as high as they did, and to bring others along the way. As the history of this school has taught us, no dream is too big, no vision is too bold; as long as we stay hungry for education and let that hunger be our North Star, there is nothing, graduates, nothing that we cannot achieve.

So, graduates, that is your mission. This is your obligation. I want you to keep reaching higher. I want you all to keep raising your bars. Let the next generation know that there is no greater investment than a good education. And if you do all of this, then I am confident that you will uphold that duty and write your own chapter into the legacy of this great university. And let me tell you something, I cannot wait to see the world that your children will be born into.

Congratulations. I love you all. I am honored to be here. I am proud of you. God bless you. And thank your families. (Applause.)

END 10:56 A.M. CDT

Remarks by the President on American Energy

Walmart
Mountain View, California

9:48 A.M. PDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Mountain View!  (Applause.)  It’s good to be in California.  Everybody, have a seat.  Have a seat.  This is actually my third day on the West Coast.  On Wednesday, we went to L.A., then we went to San Diego, we’re here in the Bay Area.  But I have to get back because Sunday is what?

AUDIENCE:  Mother’s Day!

THE PRESIDENT:  It is Mother’s Day.  That is a public service announcement -- do not forget.  (Laughter.)  It’s Mother’s Day. 

I told Michelle one time, I said, how come people put so much emphasis on Mother’s Day, and Father’s day not so much?  (Laughter.)  She said every day other than Mother’s Day is Father’s Day.  (Laughter and applause.)  Which I thought kind of quieted me down.

I want to thank your mayor, Chris Clark, for hosting us.  (Applause.)  I want to thank the folks at Walmart.  And I know this looks like a typical Walmart, but it is different -- and that’s why I’m here.  A few years ago, you decided to put solar panels on the roof of the store.  You replaced some traditional light bulbs with LEDs.  You made refrigerator cases more efficient.  And you even put in a charging station for electric vehicles.  And all told, those upgrades created dozens of construction jobs and helped this store save money on its energy bills.  And that’s why I’m here today -- because more and more companies like Walmart are realizing that wasting less energy isn’t just good for the planet, it’s good for business.  It’s good for the bottom line.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Yes, see, he agrees.  (Applause.)  And it means jobs.

Changing the way we use energy is just one of the ways Americans have been working so hard to move this country forward.  In the wake of the worst financial and economic crisis in generations, our businesses now have created over 9.2 million new jobs.  A housing market that was reeling is rebounding.  An auto industry that was flat-lining is now booming.  You’ve got a manufacturing sector that had lost a third of its jobs during the ‘90s and now is adding jobs for the first time.  More than 8 million Americans have now signed up for health care coverage through the Affordable Care Act.  (Applause.)  Troops that were fighting two wars are coming home.  And rather than create jobs in other countries, more companies are actually choosing to create jobs and invest right here in the United States of America.

But we’ve got a long way to go before we get to where we need to be -- which is an economy where everybody who works hard, everybody who takes responsibility has a chance to get ahead, and that we have a chance to build an economy that works not just for a few at the top, but for everybody.  That’s our goal -- the idea that no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, no matter where you come from, what your last name is, if you work hard, if you take responsibility, you can make it here in America. 

And that starts with helping businesses create more good jobs.  One of the biggest factors in bringing jobs back to America has been our commitment to American energy over the last five years.  When I took office, we set out to break our dependence on foreign oil.  Today, America is closer to energy independence than we have been in decades.  We generate more renewable energy than ever, with tens of thousands of good American jobs to show for it.  We produce more natural gas than anyone -- and nearly everybody’s energy bill is lower because of it.  So are our carbon emissions that cause climate change.

We set new fuel standards for our cars and trucks so that they’ll go twice as far on a gallon of gas by the middle of the next decade.  That saves the typical family about $8,000 at the pump.  And for the first time in nearly 20 years, America produces more oil here at home than we buy from other countries. 

So we’re producing more traditional energy, but we’re also becoming a leader in the energy sources of the future.  We’re becoming a global leader in solar, thanks in part to the investments we’ve made in the Recovery Act.  Over the past few years, the cost of solar panels have fallen by 60 percent; solar installations have increased by 500 percent.  Every four minutes, another American home or business goes solar, and every panel is pounded into place by a worker whose job cannot be overseas.

So today, no matter where you live or where you do business, solar is getting cheaper and is getting easier to use than before.  And with more businesses and rural cooperatives and homes choosing solar, prices keep coming down, manufacturers keep getting more innovative, and more jobs are created.  Last year, jobs in the solar industry increased by 20 percent.
 
But we’ve got more work to do.  And I want to work with Congress to do it.  Unfortunately, Congress has not always been as visionary on these issues as we would like.  It can be a little frustrating.  But in this Year of Action, wherever I can go ahead and create my own opportunities for new jobs, I'm going to take it. 

And so far, I’ve taken more than 20 executive actions -- from launching new hubs to attracting more high-tech manufacturing jobs to America, to reforming our job training programs to make sure more Americans are getting the skills they need to get the jobs that exist right now.

And so today, here at Walmart, I want to announce a few more steps that we’re taking that are going to be good for job growth and good for our economy, and that we don't have to wait for Congress to do.  They are going to be steps that generate more clean energy, waste less energy overall, and leave our kids and our grandkids with a cleaner, safer planet in the process.

So let me list these out.  Number one, we know that making buildings more energy efficient is one of the easiest, cheapest ways to create jobs, save money, and cut down on harmful pollution that causes climate change.  It could save our businesses tens of billions of dollars a year on their energy bills -- and they can then use that money to grow and hire more folks.  It would put construction workers back to work installing new systems and technologies.  So this is what you call a win-win-win.

So that’s why, three years ago, I announced what we called the Better Buildings Initiative.  It's an ambitious plan to improve the energy efficiency of America’s commercial buildings by 20 percent by the year 2020.  And already we've got 190 businesses and organizations that have signed on.  On average, they’re on track to meet their goal -- cutting energy use by 2.5 percent every single year.  Together, they’ve already saved $300 million in energy costs.  So we know it works. 

And that’s why, over the past few months, I’ve been picking up the phone and reaching out to more leaders to get them on board.  And today, they’re stepping up -- from cities, school districts, businesses, universities, you're seeing folks move on energy efficiency.  GM is pledging to improve energy efficiency in 31 plants.  The University of Virginia is doing the same thing in its buildings.  Cities like Little Rock, Kansas City and Detroit are replacing regular street lights with more efficient LEDs. 

And at Walmart, you’ve committed to reducing energy consumption across 850 million square feet of space.  That's a lot.  That's enough to cover more than half of the city of San Francisco.  Taken together, this is going to make a difference, and it's the right thing to do for the planet, but it’s also the right thing to do for the bottom line.  Because when you save that money you can pass that money back to consumers in the form of lower prices, or you can use it to create more jobs. 

So folks in the private sector are doing their part to create jobs and reduce pollution and cut waste.  I’m making sure the federal government does its part.  Two years ago, I ordered $2 billion in energy upgrades to federal buildings.  Today, I’m ordering an additional $2 billion in upgrades over the next three years.  And these upgrades will create tens of thousands of construction jobs and save taxpayers billions of dollars. 

The Department of Energy is putting a new efficiency standard -- set of efficiency standards in place that could save businesses billions of dollars in energy costs and cut carbon pollution -- and it's the equivalent of taking about 80 million cars off the road.  And I want to thank Ernie Moniz, Secretary of Energy, and Secretary Donovan -- Shaun Donovan of HUD -- who are here today because they’ve shown extraordinary leadership on these issues.  That's worth applauding.  (Applause.)

So that’s the first announcement.  Cities, schools, businesses, the federal government -- we’re all going to pledge to waste less energy and we’ve got concrete strategies that we know work.   

The second announcement is about more Americans coming together to use more clean energy.  Last month, I called up leaders from a whole range of industries and made the economic case for why solar is a good idea.  And they listened.  And today, more than 300 organizations -- from homebuilders, to affordable housing owners, to companies like Home Depot and Apple -- announced that they are going to expand the use of solar energy, thereby creating more jobs and cutting carbon pollution. 

We’ve got public banks like Connecticut’s Green Bank and private banks like Goldman Sachs ready to invest billions of dollars in renewable energy.  The Treasury Department and the IRS are making it easier for renewable energy companies to operate and attract investment.  And we’re going to support training programs at community colleges across the country that will help 50,000 workers earn the skills that solar companies are looking for right now.

Walmart has already got the most installed on-site solar capacity of any company in America.  And now you’ve announced plans to double that capacity.  And it’s all part of your goal to buy or produce 7 billion kilowatt hours of renewable energy by 2020 -- something that could save Walmart $1 billion a year in energy costs. 

So we know that generating more clean energy, using less dirty energy, and wasting less energy overall can be good for business and consumers.  And it’s also good for the world that we leave for our children.

So together, the commitments we’re announcing today prove that there are cost-effective ways to tackle climate change and create jobs at the same time.  So often, when we hear about how we’re going to deal with this really serious issue, people say we can’t afford to do it; it won’t be good for the economy.  It will be good for the economy long term -- and if we don’t, that will be bad for the economy.  Rising sea levels, drought, more wildfires, more severe storms -- those are bad for the economy.  So we can’t afford to wait.  And there’s no reason why we can’t even go further than we are so far by working with states and utilities, and other organizations to change the way we power our economy.  Climate change is real and we have to act now.

Earlier this week, I issued -- or we issued a report that was years in the making called the National Climate Assessment.  Hundreds of scientists, experts and businesses, not-for-profits, local communities all contributed over the course of four years.  What they found was unequivocally that climate change is not some far-off problem in the future.  It’s happening now.  It’s causing hardship now.  It’s affecting every sector of our economy and our society -- more severe floods, more violent wildfires.  It’s already costing cities and states and families and businesses money.

Here in California, you’ve seen these effects firsthand.  You know what’s happening.  And increasingly, more and more Americans do -- including, by the way, many Republicans outside of Washington.

So unfortunately, inside of Washington we’ve still got some climate deniers who shout loud, but they’re wasting everybody’s time on a settled debate.  Climate change is a fact.

And while we know the shift to clean energy won’t happen overnight, we’ve got to make some tough choices along the way.  And we know that if we do, it’s going to save us ultimately money and create jobs over the long term.  That's what Walmart understands, and Walmart is pretty good at counting its pennies.

So that’s why this fight is so important.  That’s why the sooner we work together to adapt the economy to this reality of climate change, the more likely it is that we do right by our kids and leave a more stable world.  And ultimately that's what motivates a whole lot of us.

As Americans, we don’t look backwards.  We look forward.  We don’t fear the future, we seize it.  We shape it.  And when it comes to energy, we have a chance to shape that sector that is probably going to have more to do with how well our economy succeeds than just about any other.  We are blessed when it comes to energy, but we’re much more blessed when it comes to the innovation and the dynamism and the creativity of our economy. 

If we do our part right now to rebuild an economy and transition to a clean energy future, we will create new jobs, we will reduce our dependence on foreign oil, we will leave our children with a better America and a better future.

So thank you very much, everybody.  God bless you.  (Applause.)  Thanks to all the companies who are doing the great work, and the not-for-profits.  We appreciate your leadership. 

Thank you, guys.  Happy Mother’s Day, moms!  (Applause.)

END
10:02 A.M. PDT

Remarks by the President at DNC Reception -- San Jose, CA

Fairmont San Jose
San Jose, California

7:50 P.M. PDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, everybody!  (Applause.)  Hello, California! 
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love you!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  I love you back!  It is good to be back in San Jose.  (Applause.)  I think one of the times I came here I started singing the Dionne Warwick song -- did I do that?  (Laughter.)  It was pretty good. 
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Do it again!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  No, I'm not going to do it tonight.  (Laughter.)  Maybe after the midterms.  Maybe I'll sing it to you separately.  (Laughter.) 
 
A couple of people I want to thank -- first of all, our outstanding co-hosts, Sam and Marissa.  Please give them a big round of applause.  (Applause.)  We've got your own State Assemblywoman, Nora Campos, here.  (Applause.)  Way to go, Nora! There she is.  And we have our outstanding DNC Finance Chair Henry Muñoz here.  (Applause.)  And all of you are here.  (Applause.)  Yay!
 
I am thrilled to see all of you.  Some of you are old friends who have been working with me since I was a U.S. senator and nobody could pronounce my name.  Some of you have been knowing me since I was a state senator.  (Applause.)  Exactly.  See, you’ve got an Illinois guy here.
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  North Side.
 
THE PRESIDENT:  We've got a Chicago guy.  All right, I can't name all the places you guys are from.  (Laughter.)  A lot of you worked on the campaign and on OFA -- (applause) -- and I couldn't be more grateful for that.  And I want to give you a little update about where we are.
 
We came into office at a time when America was in dire straits, and we have made enormous progress over the last five-something years.  We've created 9.2 million jobs.  (Applause.)  Auto industry has come roaring back.  (Applause.)  We have reduced our oil imports.  We are producing more clean energy than ever before.  We have seen college attendance go up; we've seen high school dropouts go down.  And there are millions of Americans all across the country, including right here in California, who finally have the financial and emotional security of affordable health care.  (Applause.)  That has all happened over the last five and a half years. 
 
But for all that we've done, for the war in Iraq that we've ended and the war in Afghanistan that we're bringing to an honorable close -- (applause) -- for all the work we're doing on climate change and making sure that we bequeath to our children and our grandchildren the kind of planet that allows them to thrive and prosper -- for all those efforts, we know that we've got more work to do.
 
We know that despite economic growth and close to record corporate profits, despite the fact that folks at the very top are doing better than ever, that there are too many families all across the country who are still struggling to get by, who work hard every day but have trouble making ends meet at the end of the month.  We know that people still feel insecure about their future, about the possibilities of retirement.  We know that there are folks who work hard every day and are still in poverty. We know that there are folks who work hard every day, but are still living in the shadows because of a broken immigration system.  (Applause.) 
 
We know that the investments that we need to make sure that every child in America -- not just my kid or your kid, but every child in America -- has an opportunity to get a world-class education -- that those investments have not yet been fully forthcoming.  We know that.  (Applause.)   
 
And that's why November is so important.  The Republicans who run the House of Representatives right now and want to take over the Senate --
 
AUDIENCE:  Booo --
 
THE PRESIDENT:  Don't boo --
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Vote!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  -- vote!  Work!  (Applause.) 
 
But they have said no to every proposal that we know could make a difference in the lives of hardworking Americans.  They’ve said no to proposals that would rebuild our infrastructure.  They’ve said no to proposals that would increase basic research that drives the innovation that has made this region the envy of the world.  They have said no to equal pay for equal work.  In fact, they’ve denied that there’s even a problem.
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Really?
 
THE PRESIDENT:  I'm just saying.  (Laughter.) 
 
They said no to increasing the minimum wage.  They’ve said no to helping kids afford college.  They even shut down the government and almost created another global financial catastrophe because they wanted to get their way.
 
Now, to be fair, they did say yes to their own budget, except when you look at the budget, what they’re saying yes to are cuts in Medicaid, cuts in education, cuts in basic research. But what they do preserve are tax breaks for folks who don't need them, that aren’t going to grow the economy. 
 
And, look, Republicans are patriots.  They love their country.  They love their families.  They want America to thrive. But they are operating on a theory that time and again has proven to be wrong. It’s a theory that says you’re on your own.  It’s a theory that says if we just reward folks at the very top, then everybody else is going to do just fine.  It’s a theory that discounts the possibility of common action in order to make sure that opportunity is real for every American, and not just some.  (Applause.)  They have a different theory about how America moves forward.  And so they just keep on offering again and again the same failed theories that have been punishing the middle class and failing America for decades now. 
 
And so, when I think about what’s at stake in this election, it’s not just a matter of a seat here or a seat there.  It’s about competing visions of how America moves forward.  And I believe that America moves forward when we recognize that we’re all in it together.  I believe in an America where we rise together, where the economy is built from the bottom up and the middle out. 
 
I believe in an America where we are investing in innovation and where, although the private sector is driving our growth, it is based on an acknowledgment that when we’ve got skilled people and we’ve got outstanding teachers, and we are honoring our researchers and our universities, that’s the dynamism that has always put us at the forefront.  That’s what’s at stake.  That’s what I believe.
 
And so the question is, what are we going to do about it in this midterm?  The choices couldn’t be clearer.  The choices could not be clearer.  As Democrats, I believe that we should be fighting for equal pay for equal work; they do not.  That’s a choice.  (Applause.)  As a Democrat, I believe that opportunity for all means that if you work full-time, you should not be in poverty.  We should increase the minimum wage.  It’s the right thing to do.  (Applause.) 
 
As a Democrat, I believe in investing in early childhood education.  We know it works.  We want to give every child the best chance possible to succeed.  (Applause.) 
They have a different view.  As a Democrat, I believe that we should make college affordable for every young person who’s got the energy and drive to succeed -- every child, not just some.  (Applause.)  They’ve got a different view.
 
So I know what we stand for.  And sometimes, I’ve got to say, that when you look at reporting of what’s happening in Washington -- and let’s face it, Washington is not working the way it’s supposed to -- then sometimes you’d get the impression that, yeah, both parties are just bickering and arguing and that’s why things don’t work. 
 
Now, I’ve got a confession to make -- the Democratic Party is not perfect.  (Laughter.)  I know that’s crazy to say at a DNC event.  (Laughter.)  But there are times where folks make mistakes.  There are some elected officials who don’t show the courage of their convictions.  There are times where I get frustrated.  And we have to be self-critical and make sure that we’re constantly asking ourselves are we serving the folks who sent us here as well as we should.  But on the big issues, on our core convictions, we’re on the right side of the issues.  (Applause.) 
 
On immigration, we believe in comprehensive immigration reform that gives people a chance and that would improve our economy.  (Applause.)  On climate change, we believe in science
-- (applause) -- and we think it’s important for us to take action, and that if we invest in clean energy, we can create jobs and opportunity here in the United States at the same time as we’re making sure that we’ve got an environment that is what we want for our children and our grandchildren.  We're on the right side of that.  The other side isn't.  That's just the bottom line.
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Amen.
 
THE PRESIDENT:  When it comes to education, when it comes to the minimum wage, when it comes to equal pay, when it comes to making investments in infrastructure, when it comes to basic research -- when it comes to the things that would help drive this economy right now, we're on the right side of the issues.  And the reason that we've got gridlock right now is you’ve got another party that has been captured by folks who are on the wrong side of the issue.
 
Now, that's on inevitable.  I come from Illinois -- (laughter) -- and that’s the Land of Lincoln, a great Republican President.  Those of you who care about the environment -- probably our greatest environmental President -- Teddy Roosevelt, Republican.  So it's not inevitable, this does not have to be how it is.  But it is how it is right now.  And if we are serious about solving the problems that matter for future generations, if we are serious about making sure that there are good jobs out there that pay a living wage, if we’re serious about fixing a broken immigration system, if we are serious about investing in our schools, if we are serious about making college affordable, if we are serious about making sure that our veterans are properly cared for -- (applause) -- if we are serious about a clean-energy economy, if we’re serious about innovation, then we’ve got to fix Congress. 
 
And the way we’re going to fix Congress is not just to get cynical and sit back and complain and grouse and say, a plague on both your houses.  The way to fix Congress is to take a look at who stands for the things you care about and who doesn’t, and get the folks who don’t out of the way so we can make progress in America.  And that’s what this midterm election is all about.  (Applause.)
 
I mean, what exactly are the plans of the other side right now?
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Nothing!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  No, that’s not true.  They’ve got one plan. They’ve taken 50 votes to repeal Obamacare, the Affordable Care Act, and I guess they’re going to try to take 50 more -- because that’s all they talk about.  And let me tell you something. You’ve got 8 million people who signed up on these exchanges, you’ve got millions more who are benefiting from expanded Medicaid.  (Applause.)  You’ve got 3 million young people who are able to stay on their parents' plan.  Millions of people across the country --
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Need it.
 
THE PRESIDENT:  -- are better off.  I meet them every day.  And I can’t explain to you why it is that they are so obsessed with making sure those folks don’t have health insurance.  But we’re on the right side of history on that issue.  (Applause.)  And if that’s all they’ve got -– if that’s all they’ve got, then they shouldn’t be running either chamber.  They shouldn’t be running the House and they sure should not be running the Senate. And they sure shouldn’t be making appointments to the Supreme Court.
 
AUDIENCE:  No!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  And they shouldn’t be blocking mine.  (Applause.)   
 
Now, I know I’m preaching to the choir.  (Laughter.)  But we’re just kind of getting started here on this campaign season and I want to kind of get us warmed up.  You’ve got to get the vocal chords are working.  (Laughter.) 
 
There’s one problem we’ve got.  Our problem is not that the public doesn’t agree with us.  If you look on the issues that we’re fighting for, the majority of the American public is on our side.  The majority believes in raising the minimum wage.  The majority of Americans believe in equal pay for equal work.  The majority of Americans want to see us invest in education and job training and apprenticeships.  The majority of Americans think we should be putting people back to work rebuilding our infrastructure.  A majority of Americans think that it’s the right thing to do to develop a clean-energy economy.  A majority of Americans want immigration reform.  So what’s the problem?
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Not voting.
 
THE PRESIDENT:  Say that again.
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  They’re not voting!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  They’re not voting.  And in particular, Democrats have a congenital defect when it comes to our politics, and that is we like voting during presidential years and during the midterms we don’t vote.  And so you already have lower voting totals during the midterms, and it’s our folks that stay home.
  
And maybe in normal times that’s okay -- although I don’t think it’s ever okay for us not to vote.  But in this midterm, with the stakes as high as they are, with the progress that needs to be made, with families out there who are desperate to see a Washington that is on their side -- we’re going to have to make sure that we are coming out with the same urgency and the same enthusiasm that we typically show during presidential years.  (Applause.)  That’s what we’re going to need.
 
And that’s where all of you come in.  It’s not enough that you’re going to vote.  You’re going to have to grab your mom, dad, cousins, uncles, co-workers, friends, family, and you are going to have to explain to them the stakes involved in this election. 
 
And that’s what the DNC is about.  The contributions you make today are to ensure that we’ve got the infrastructure, the architecture, so that an army of young people and not-so-young people but young at heart, young in spirit are out there working in precincts and in neighborhoods, delivering a message about what the stakes are in this election and making sure that people know they need to come out and vote.
 
Now, I know that we live in a time where cynicism too often passes off as wisdom.  And this country has been through a lot over these last five years.  But I want to close by just letting you know this:  I travel around the world a lot; I study global trends; I speak to world leaders and prominent businesses who operate in every corner of the Earth.  And I will tell you that the assessment outside of the United States is that we’ve got all the best cards.  We still have the most innovative, dynamic economy in the world.  We still have the best universities in the world.  We still have the most productive workers in the world. 
 
We have this incredible opportunity to develop a clean energy economy -- even as traditional sources of energy, we’ve got more than most advanced countries.  We have this incredible vibrancy that is on display right here in this community -- people from all around the world coming here, hungry, striving, ready to innovate.  There’s no other country that looks like us. It’s a huge gift.  The problem is that we’ll waste that gift if we don’t make the right choices. 
 
So what I want everybody to know is, is that for all the challenges we have and for all the legitimate reasons why people get discouraged, our future is bright if we make the right choices.  Our future is bright if people shake off whatever is holding them back and they go to the polls.  Our future is bright if people understand the stakes involved.  Our future is bright if you and I, we’re all out there working together to make sure that folks know that the decisions we make right now are going to matter to that young man and that young lady, and our kids and our grandkids.  And we don’t have time to wait.
 
So I don’t have patience for cynicism right now.  I think it’s too easy.  I think it’s an excuse.  The future is there for us to seize -- but we’ve got to seize it.  And if we do, then we guarantee you --
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  President Obama!  Freedom for Ethiopia!  Freedom!  Freedom for Ethiopia, sir!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  Hold on.  I agree with you, although why don’t I talk about it later because I’m just about to finish.  (Laughter.)  You and me, we’ll talk about it.  I’m going to be coming around.
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible)--
 
THE PRESIDENT:  There you go.
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible) --
 
THE PRESIDENT:  I agree with you.
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)
 
THE PRESIDENT:  I want to hear from you.
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love you!
 
THE PRESIDENT:  I love you back.  You kind of screwed up my ending, but that’s okay.  (Laughter and applause.)  That’s okay. And we’ve got free speech in this country -- (applause) -- which is great, too.
 
So, bottom line is this -- bottom line is this:  This is not the end; this is just the beginning.  I’m going to need every one of you to sign up to make sure that you are going to continue to work with the DNC.  I am going to be, I guarantee you, back in California sometime before November.  (Applause.)  And when I come back, I expect everybody here to report back to me that you have been out there working to make sure that we are having a Democratic Senate and a Democratic House.  (Applause.) 
 
Are you with me?  (Applause.)  Are you fired up?  (Applause.)  You ready to go?  (Applause.)
 
Thank you very much, everybody.  God bless you.  God bless America.  Thank you.  (Applause.)
 
END
8:12 P.M. PDT

Remarks by the First Lady at Museum and Library Services National Medal Awards Ceremony

East Room

11:11 A.M. EDT

MRS. OBAMA:  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Good afternoon, everyone.  It’s a -- afternoon or morning?  Good morning.  (Laughter.)  Well, hello, everyone, and welcome to a little museum that we like to call the White House.  (Laughter.)   

I want to welcome all of you -- our election officials, all the board members, the community members.  We are grateful to have you here.  And, Susan, thank you very much for that tremendous introduction, as well as your outstanding leadership. We are so grateful. 

And of course, I want to recognize our guests of honor, this year’s winners of the National Medal for Museums and Library Services.  You all are redefining what it means to lead a museum or a library in the 21st century.  All across the country –- from Brooklyn, New York, to Independence, Missouri, to Gallup, New Mexico –- you all are putting our -- your programs and exhibitions up to help us expand our horizons and connect us with the rest of the world. 

You offer dynamic classrooms for folks of all ages, from toddlers to grandparents.  You serve as a gateway to technology for so many in your communities.  And as any mom with young kids will tell you, on a rainy weekend afternoon, you are a welcome haven -- (laughter) -- where kids can learn and explore.

And really, the work to engage and empower our young people is some of the most important work that all of you do.  You’re teaching kids how to get their hands dirty in community gardens
-- my favorite.  You’re showing them how to dance and choreograph moves of their own -- another one of my favorites.  You’re opening up your planetarium doors and taking these young people on trips to outer space.  And when schools get out in the summers, you all are stepping up with all sorts of camps and learning opportunities.  So instead of spending months sitting in front of the television, our young people are stretching their minds, they’re making new friends, and they’re having a great time as they do it.

For example, at the Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, you’re leading summer expeditions where kids excavate dinosaur bones alongside professional paleontologists.  At the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut, you’re offering summer internships to teach young people about marine biology, and you’re doing it by helping them feed and train beluga wales -- very impressive.  And at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, you’re offering a weeklong “Summer Ed-Venture” program with hikes and overnight camping to help kids discover the science that surround us in our natural environment.

So the work that you do in the summers, and throughout the year, quite frankly, is filling a crucial role for our country as we strive to give our young people a world-class education.  And as First Lady, as many of you know, that’s one of the issues that I am very passionate about.  I am passionate about giving our kids the skills and support they need to reach their fullest potential. 

And that’s why, just last week, I announced my Reach Higher initiative, where we’re hoping to inspire young people to continue their education beyond high school.  And whether that’s at a professional training program or a community college, or a four-year college or university, we all know that in order for today’s young people to be able to compete in a global economy, a high school diploma just is not enough. 

So we’re helping students understand the path they need to take to achieve their education by focusing on things like financial aid, college visits, supporting our high school counselors, and providing young people with summer learning opportunities to give them a chance to compete and understand what they want to get out of their education. 

So we’re helping students in that way because we’re depending on young people to set big goals for themselves.  That’s one of my messages, for them to reach higher and to work harder, to work like crazy to get where they want to be.  But we all know that these kids can’t do it alone.  That’s why we need all of us -- all of us -- helping these kids step up in every way.

So we’re going to be getting everybody involved in this effort -- from business owners and government leaders, to congregations and community groups, and of course, libraries and museums like the ones you all represent.  In fact, all of you are providing perfect examples of the kind of opportunities that we need to make sure that all our young people have. 

So I want to applaud you for those efforts.  But I also want to challenge you.  I want to challenge you to reach even higher for those kids in your communities who you might not see so often -- the kids who only make it to your buildings on a class field trip, the kids who don’t know how to get a library card, the kids whose neighborhoods don’t offer a lot of positive learning environments.   

And these kids exist in every single one of our communities.  And I know many of you are already touching these kids, but it is up to us to reach higher for them and to give them the opportunities they need to fulfill their boundless potential.  And, again, all of you are already well on your way, which is why we’re so thrilled and honored to have you here. 

This is a special privilege for me, to be here with all of you.  And I am particularly excited that you have brought community members along with you to share in this day.  So once again, congratulations on this honor. 

And now, I want to turn it over to Gladstone Payton from the Institute for Museum and Library Services to present the medals.  Thank you, all, and welcome.  (Applause.)

(Awards are presented.)

Well, what an excellent array of programs.  We are so proud of all of you.  We’re just hopeful that this is the boost that you need to keep doing the great work that you’re doing.  Having it here at the White House, having the media here, remembering that you all are opening so many doors for people in communities across this country.  It is an honor and a privilege.  Everyone, let’s give these awardees another round of applause.  (Applause.)

And that concludes our program, but we’re going to open up those doors.  We have a wonderful reception for everyone here.  I promised someone over there some cookies.  (Laughter.)  And he’s been suffering through all of this -- (laughter) -- just waiting for the cookies.  So I don't think I will delay any longer.

Once again, it’s an honor to have you all here.  Congratulations, and we look forward to seeing you again next year.  So enjoy.  (Applause.)

END
11:31 A.M. EDT