Code to benefit particular companies and industries. Those with
accountants or lawyers to work the system can end up paying no taxes at
all. But all the rest are hit with one of the highest corporate tax
rates in the world. It makes no sense, and it has to change.
So tonight I'm asking Democrats and Republicans to simplify the system,
get rid of the loopholes, level the playing field, and use the savings
to lower the corporate tax rate for the first time in 25 years without
adding to our deficit. It can be done.
To help businesses sell more products abroad, we set a goal of doubling
our exports by 2014. Because the more we export, the more jobs we
create here at home. Already, our exports are up. Recently, we signed
agreements with India and China that will support more than 250,000
jobs here in the United States. And last month, we finalized a trade
agreement with South Korea that will support at least 70,000 American
jobs. This agreement has unprecedented support from business and labor,
Democrats and Republicans, and I ask this Congress to pass it as soon
as possible.
Now, before I took office, I made it clear that we would enforce our
trade agreements and that I would only sign deals that keep faith with
American workers and promote American jobs. That's what we did with
Korea, and that's what I intend to do as we pursue agreements with
Panama and Colombia and continue our Asia-Pacific and global trade
talks.
To reduce barriers to growth and investment, I've ordered a review of
Government regulations. When we find rules that put an unnecessary
burden on businesses, we will fix them. But I will not hesitate to
create or enforce commonsense safeguards to protect the American people.
That's what we've done in this country for more than a century. It's
why our food is safe to eat, our water is safe to drink, and our air is
safe to breathe. It's why we have speed limits and child labor laws.
It's why last year, we put in place consumer protections against hidden
fees and penalties by credit card companies and new rules to prevent
another financial crisis. And it's why we passed reform that finally
prevents the health insurance industry from exploiting patients.
Now, I have heard rumors that a few of you still have concerns about
our new health care law. [Laughter] So let me be the first to say that
anything can be improved. If you have ideas about how to improve this
law by making care better or more affordable, I am eager to work with
you. We can start right now by correcting a flaw in the legislation
that has placed an unnecessary bookkeeping burden on small businesses.
What I'm not willing to do--what I'm not willing to do--is go back to
the days when insurance companies could deny someone coverage because
of a preexisting condition.
I'm not willing to tell James Howard, a brain cancer patient from Texas,
that his treatment might not be covered. I'm not willing to tell Jim
Houser, a small-businessman from Oregon, that he has to go back to
paying $5,000 more to cover his employees. As we speak, this law is
making prescription drugs cheaper for seniors and giving uninsured
students a chance to stay on their patients'--parents' coverage.
So I say to this Chamber tonight: Instead of refighting the battles of
the last 2 years, let's fix what needs fixing, and let's move forward.
Now, the final critical step in winning the future is to make sure we
aren't buried under a mountain of debt.
We are living with a legacy of deficit spending that began almost a
decade ago. And in the wake of the financial crisis, some of that was
necessary to keep credit flowing, save jobs, and put money in people's
pockets.
But now that the worst of the recession is over, we have to confront
the fact that our Government spends more than it takes in. That is not
sustainable. Every day, families sacrifice to live within their means.
They deserve a Government that does the same.
So tonight I am proposing that starting this year, we freeze annual
domestic spending for the next 5 years. Now, this would reduce the
deficit by more than $400 billion over the next decade and will bring
discretionary spending to the lowest share of our economy since Dwight
Eisenhower was President.
This freeze will require painful cuts. Already, we've frozen the
salaries of hard-working Federal employees for the next 2 years. I've
proposed cuts to things I care deeply about, like community action
programs. The Secretary of Defense has also agreed to cut tens of
billions of dollars in spending that he and his generals believe our
military can do without.
Now, I recognize that some in this Chamber have already proposed deeper
cuts, and I'm willing to eliminate whatever we can honestly afford to
do without. But let's make sure that we're not doing it on the backs of
our most vulnerable citizens. And let's make sure that what we're
cutting is really excess weight. Cutting the deficit by gutting our
investments in innovation and education is like lightening an
overloaded airplane by removing its engine. It may make you feel like
you're flying high at first, but it won't take long before you feel the
impact. [Laughter]
Now, most of the cuts and savings I've proposed only address annual
domestic spending, which represents a little more than 12 percent of
our budget. To make further progress, we have to stop pretending that
cutting this kind of spending alone will be enough. It won't.
The bipartisan fiscal commission I created last year made this crystal
clear. I don't agree with all their proposals, but they made important
progress. And their conclusion is that the only way to tackle our
deficit is to cut excessive spending wherever we find it, in domestic
spending, defense spending, health care spending, and spending through
tax breaks and loopholes.
This means further reducing health care costs, including programs like
Medicare and Medicaid, which are the single biggest contributor to our
long-term deficit. The health insurance law we passed last year will
slow these rising costs, which is part of the reason that nonpartisan
economists have said that repealing the health care law would add a
quarter of a trillion dollars to our deficit. Still, I'm willing to
look at other ideas to bring down costs, including one that Republicans
suggested last year: medical malpractice reform to rein in frivolous
lawsuits.
To put us on solid ground, we should also find a bipartisan solution to
strengthen Social Security for future generations. We must do it
without putting at risk current retirees, the most vulnerable, or
people with disabilities, without slashing benefits for future
generations, and without subjecting Americans' guaranteed retirement
income to the whims of the stock market.
And if we truly care about our deficit, we simply can't afford a
permanent extension of the tax cuts for the wealthiest 2 percent of
Americans. Before we take money away from our schools or scholarships
away from our students, we should ask millionaires to give up their tax
break. It's not a matter of punishing their success, it's about
promoting America's success.
In fact, the best thing we could do on taxes for all Americans is to
simplify the individual Tax Code. This will be a tough job, but members
of both parties have expressed an interest in doing this, and I am
prepared to join them.
So now is the time to act. Now is the time for both sides and both
Houses of Congress, Democrats and Republicans, to forge a principled
compromise that gets the job done. If we make the hard choices now to
rein in our deficits, we can make the investments we need to win the
future.
Let me take this one step further. We shouldn't just give our people a
Government that's more affordable, we should give them a Government
that's more competent and more efficient. We can't win the future with
a Government of the past.
We live and do business in the Information Age, but the last major
reorganization of the Government happened in the age of black-and-white
TV. There are 12 different agencies that deal with exports. There are
at least five different agencies that deal with housing policy. Then
there's my favorite example: The Interior Department is in charge of
salmon while they're in fresh water, but the Commerce Department
handles them when they're in saltwater. [Laughter] I hear it gets even
more complicated once they're smoked. [Laughter]
Now, we've made great strides over the last 2 years in using technology
and getting rid of waste. Veterans can now download their electronic
medical records with a click of the mouse. We're selling acres of
Federal office space that hasn't been used in years, and we'll cut
through redtape to get rid of more. But we need to think bigger. In the
coming months, my administration will develop a proposal to merge,
consolidate, and reorganize the Federal Government in a way that best
serves the goal of a more competitive America. I will submit that
proposal to Congress for a vote, and we will push to get it passed.
In the coming year, we'll also work to rebuild people's faith in the
institution of Government. Because you deserve to know exactly how and
where your tax dollars are being spent, you'll be able to go to a web
site and get that information for the very first time in history.
Because you deserve to know when your elected officials are meeting
with lobbyists, I ask Congress to do what the White House has already
done: put that information online. And because the American people
deserve to know that special interests aren't larding up legislation
with pet projects, both parties in Congress should know this: If a bill
comes to my desk with earmarks inside, I will veto it. I will veto it.
The 21st-century Government that's open and competent, a government
that lives within its means, an economy that's driven by new skills and
new ideas--our success in this new and changing world will require
reform, responsibility, and innovation. It will also require us to
approach that world with a new level of engagement in our foreign
affairs.
Just as jobs and businesses can now race across borders, so can new
threats and new challenges. No single wall separates East and West. No
one rival superpower is aligned against us.
And so we must defeat determined enemies, wherever they are, and build
coalitions that cut across lines of region and race and religion. And
America's moral example must always shine for all who yearn for freedom
and justice and dignity. And because we've begun this work, tonight we
can say that American leadership has been renewed and America's
standing has been restored.
Look to Iraq, where nearly 100,000 of our brave men and women have left
with their heads held high. American combat patrols have ended,
violence is down, and a new Government has been formed. This year, our
civilians will forge a lasting partnership with the Iraqi people, while
we finish the job of bringing our troops out of Iraq. America's
commitment has been kept. The Iraq war is coming to an end.
Of course, as we speak, Al Qaida and their affiliates continue to plan
attacks against us. Thanks to our intelligence and law enforcement
professionals, we're disrupting plots and securing our cities and skies.
And as extremists try to inspire acts of violence within our borders,
we are responding with the strength of our communities, with respect
for the rule of law, and with the conviction that American Muslims are
a part of our American family.
We've also taken the fight to Al Qaida and their allies abroad. In
Afghanistan, our troops have taken Taliban strongholds and trained
Afghan security forces. Our purpose is clear: By preventing the Taliban
from reestablishing a stranglehold over the Afghan people, we will deny
Al Qaida the safe haven that served as a launching pad for 9/11.
Thanks to our heroic troops and civilians, fewer Afghans are under the
control of the insurgency. There will be tough fighting ahead, and the
Afghan Government will need to deliver better governance. But we are
strengthening the capacity of the Afghan people and building an
enduring partnership with them. This year, we will work with nearly 50
countries to begin a transition to an Afghan lead, and this July, we
will begin to bring our troops home.
In Pakistan, Al Qaida's leadership is under more pressure than at any
point since 2001. Their leaders and operatives are being removed from
the battlefield. Their safe havens are shrinking. And we've sent a
message from the Afghan border to the Arabian Peninsula to all parts of
the globe: We will not relent, we will not waver, and we will defeat
you.
American leadership can also be seen in the effort to secure the worst
weapons of war. Because Republicans and Democrats approved the new
START Treaty, far fewer nuclear weapons and launchers will be deployed.
Because we rallied the world, nuclear materials are being locked down
on every continent so they never fall into the hands of terrorists.
Because of a diplomatic effort to insist that Iran meet its obligations,
the Iranian Government now faces tougher sanctions, tighter sanctions
than ever before. And on the Korean Peninsula, we stand with our ally
South Korea and insist that North Korea keeps its commitment to abandon
nuclear weapons.
This is just a part of how we're shaping a world that favors peace and
prosperity. With our European allies, we revitalized NATO and increased
our cooperation on everything from counterterrorism to missile defense.
We've reset our relationship with Russia, strengthened Asian alliances,
built new partnerships with nations like India.
This March, I will travel to Brazil, Chile, and El Salvador to forge
new alliances across the Americas. Around the globe, we're standing
with those who take responsibility, helping farmers grow more food,
supporting doctors who care for the sick, and combating the corruption
that can rot a society and rob people of opportunity.
Recent events have shown us that what sets us apart must not just be
our power; it must also be the purpose behind it. In south Sudan--with
our assistance--the people were finally able to vote for independence
after years of war. Thousands lined up before dawn. People danced in
the streets. One man who lost four of his brothers at war summed up the
scene around him. "This was a battlefield for most of my life," he said.
"Now we want to be free."
And we saw that same desire to be free in Tunisia, where the will of
the people proved more powerful than the writ of a dictator. And
tonight let us be clear: The United States of America stands with the
people of Tunisia and supports the democratic aspirations of all people.
We must never forget that the things we've struggled for and fought for
live in the hearts of people everywhere. And we must always remember
that the Americans who have borne the greatest burden in this struggle
are the men and women who serve our country.
Tonight let us speak with one voice in reaffirming that our Nation is
united in support of our troops and their families. Let us serve them
as well as they've served us, by giving them the equipment they need,
by providing them with the care and benefits that they have earned, and
by enlisting our veterans in the great task of building our own Nation.
Our troops come from every corner of this country. They're Black, White,
Latino, Asian, Native American. They are Christian and Hindu, Jewish
and Muslim. And yes, we know that some of them are gay. Starting this
year, no American will be forbidden from serving the country they love
because of who they love. And with that change, I call on all our
college campuses to open their doors to our military recruiters and
ROTC. It is time to leave behind the divisive battles of the past. It
is time to move forward as one Nation.
We should have no illusions about the work ahead of us. Reforming our
schools, changing the way we use energy, reducing our deficit, none of
this will be easy. All of it will take time. And it will be harder
because we will argue about everything: the costs, the details, the
letter of every law.
Of course, some countries don't have this problem. If the central
government wants a railroad, they build a railroad, no matter how many
homes get bulldozed. If they don't want a bad story in the newspaper,
it doesn't get written.
And yet, as contentious and frustrating and messy as our democracy can
sometimes be, I know there isn't a person here who would trade places
with any other nation on Earth.
We may have differences in policy, but we all believe in the rights
enshrined in our Constitution. We may have different opinions, but we
believe in the same promise that says this is a place where you can
make it if you try. We may have different backgrounds, but we believe
in the same dream that says this is a country where anything is
possible, no matter who you are, no matter where you come from.
That dream is why I can stand here before you tonight. That dream is
why a working class kid from Scranton can sit behind me. [Laughter]
That dream is why someone who began by sweeping the floors of his
father's Cincinnati bar can preside as Speaker of the House in the
greatest nation on Earth.
That dream--that American Dream--is what drove the Allen Brothers to
reinvent their roofing company for a new era. It's what drove those
students at Forsyth Tech to learn a new skill and work towards the
future. And that dream is the story of a small-business owner named
Brandon Fisher.
Brandon started a company in Berlin, Pennsylvania, that specializes in
a new kind of drilling technology. And one day last summer, he saw the
news that halfway across the world, 33 men were trapped in a Chilean
mine, and no one knew how to save them.
But Brandon thought his company could help. And so he designed a rescue
that would come to be known as Plan B. His employees worked around the
clock to manufacture the necessary drilling equipment, and Brandon left
for Chile.
Along with others, he began drilling a 2,000-foot hole into the ground,
working 3 or 4 hour--3 or 4 days at a time without any sleep. Thirty-
seven days later, Plan B succeeded and the miners were rescued. But
because he didn't want all of the attention, Brandon wasn't there when
the miners emerged. He'd already gone back home, back to work on his
next project.
And later, one of his employees said of the rescue, "We proved that
Center Rock is a little company, but we do big things."
We do big things.
From the earliest days of our founding, America has been the story of
ordinary people who dare to dream. That's how we win the future.
We're a nation that says, "I might not have a lot of money, but I have
this great idea for a new company." "I might not come from a family of
college graduates, but I will be the first to get my degree." "I might
not know those people in trouble, but I think I can help them, and I
need to try." "I'm not sure how we'll reach that better place beyond
the horizon, but I know we'll get there. I know we will."
We do big things.
The idea of America endures. Our destiny remains our choice. And
tonight, more than two centuries later, it's because of our people that
our future is hopeful, our journey goes forward, and the state of our
Union is strong.
Thank you. God bless you, and may God bless the United States of
America.
***
Address Before a Joint Session of Congress on the State of the Union
Barack Obama
January 24, 2012
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, distinguished
guests, and fellow Americans: Last month, I went to Andrews Air Force
Base and welcomed home some of our last troops to serve in Iraq.
Together, we offered a final, proud salute to the colors under which
more than a million of our fellow citizens fought and several thousand
gave their lives.
We gather tonight knowing that this generation of heroes has made the
United States safer and more respected around the world. For the first
time in 9 years, there are no Americans fighting in Iraq. For the first
time in two decades, Usama bin Laden is not a threat to this country.
Most of Al Qaida's top lieutenants have been defeated. The Taliban's
momentum has been broken, and some troops in Afghanistan have begun to
come home.
These achievements are a testament to the courage, selflessness, and
teamwork of America's Armed Forces. At a time when too many of our
institutions have let us down, they exceed all expectations. They're
not consumed with personal ambition. They don't obsess over their
differences. They focus on the mission at hand. They work together.
Imagine what we could accomplish if we followed their example. Think
about the America within our reach: a country that leads the world in
educating its people; an America that attracts a new generation of
high-tech manufacturing and high-paying jobs; a future where we're in
control of our own energy and our security and prosperity aren't so
tied to unstable parts of the world; an economy built to last, where
hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded.
We can do this. I know we can, because we've done it before. At the end
of World War II, when another generation of heroes returned home from
combat, they built the strongest economy and middle class the world has
ever known. My grandfather, a veteran of Patton's army, got the chance
to go to college on the GI bill. My grandmother, who worked on a bomber
assembly line, was part of a workforce that turned out the best
products on Earth.
The two of them shared the optimism of a nation that had triumphed over
a depression and fascism. They understood they were part of something
larger, that they were contributing to a story of success that every
American had a chance to share, the basic American promise that if you
worked hard, you could do well enough to raise a family, own a home,
send your kids to college, and put a little away for retirement.
The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive. No
challenge is more urgent. No debate is more important. We can either
settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well
while a growing number of Americans barely get by. Or we can restore an
economy where everyone gets a fair shot and everyone does their fair
share and everyone plays by the same set of rules. What's at stake
aren't Democratic values or Republican values, but American values. And
we have to reclaim them.
Let's remember how we got here. Long before the recession, jobs and
manufacturing began leaving our shores. Technology made businesses more
efficient, but also made some jobs obsolete. Folks at the top saw their
incomes rise like never before, but most hard-working Americans
struggled with costs that were growing, paychecks that weren't, and
personal debt that kept piling up.
In 2008, the house of cards collapsed. We learned that mortgages had
been sold to people who couldn't afford or understand them. Banks had
made huge bets and bonuses with other people's money. Regulators had
looked the other way or didn't have the authority to stop the bad
behavior.
It was wrong, it was irresponsible, and it plunged our economy into a
crisis that put millions out of work, saddled us with more debt, and
left innocent, hard-working Americans holding the bag. In the 6 months
before I took office, we lost nearly 4 million jobs. And we lost
another 4 million before our policies were in full effect.
Those are the facts. But so are these: In the last 22 months,
businesses have created more than 3 million jobs. Last year, they
created the most jobs since 2005. American manufacturers are hiring
again, creating jobs for the first time since the late 1990s. Together,
we've agreed to cut the deficit by more than $2 trillion. And we've put
in place new rules to hold Wall Street accountable so a crisis like
this never happens again.
The state of our Union is getting stronger. And we've come too far to
turn back now. As long as I'm President, I will work with anyone in
this Chamber to build on this momentum. But I intend to fight
obstruction with action, and I will oppose any effort to return to the
very same policies that brought on this economic crisis in the first
place.