[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 22 (Tuesday, February 12, 2013)]
[House]
[Pages H443-H449]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 2040
JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS PURSUANT TO HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 11 TO
RECEIVE A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
The recess having expired, the House was called to order by the
Speaker at 8 o'clock and 40 minutes p.m.
The Deputy Sergeant at Arms, Mrs. Kerri Hanley, announced the Vice
President and Members of the U.S. Senate, who entered the Hall of the
House of Representatives, the Vice President taking the chair at the
right of the Speaker, and the Members of the Senate the seats reserved
for them.
The SPEAKER. The joint session will come to order.
The Chair appoints as members of the committee on the part of the
House to escort the President of the United States into the Chamber:
The gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cantor);
The gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy);
The gentlewoman from Washington (Mrs. McMorris Rodgers);
The gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden);
The gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lankford);
The gentlewoman from Kansas (Ms. Jenkins);
The gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx);
The gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi);
The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer);
The gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn);
The gentleman from California (Mr. Becerra);
The gentleman from New York (Mr. Crowley);
The gentleman from New York (Mr. Israel); and
The gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Duckworth).
The VICE PRESIDENT. The President of the Senate, at the direction of
that body, appoints the following Senators as members of the committee
on the part of the Senate to escort the President of the United States
into the House Chamber:
The Senator from Nevada (Mr. Reid);
The Senator from Vermont (Mr. Leahy);
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The Senator from Illinois (Mr. Durbin);
The Senator from New York (Mr. Schumer);
The Senator from Washington (Mrs. Murray);
The Senator from Colorado (Mr. Bennet);
The Senator from Michigan (Ms. Stabenow);
The Senator from Alaska (Mr. Begich);
The Senator from Kentucky (Mr. McConnell);
The Senator from Texas (Mr. Cornyn);
The Senator from South Dakota (Mr. Thune);
The Senator from Missouri (Mr. Blunt);
The Senator from Wyoming (Mr. Barrasso); and
The Senator from Kansas (Mr. Moran).
The Deputy Sergeant at Arms announced the Dean of the Diplomatic
Corps, His Excellency Roble Olhaye, the Ambassador of the Republic of
Djibouti.
The Dean of the Diplomatic Corps entered the Hall of the House of
Representatives and took the seat reserved for him.
The Deputy Sergeant at Arms announced the Chief Justice of the United
States and the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court.
The Chief Justice of the United States and the Associate Justices of
the Supreme Court entered the Hall of the House of Representatives and
took the seats reserved for them in front of the Speaker's rostrum.
The Deputy Sergeant at Arms announced the Cabinet of the President of
the United States.
The members of the Cabinet of the President of the United States
entered the Hall of the House of Representatives and took the seats
reserved for them in front of the Speaker's rostrum.
At 9 o'clock and 9 minutes p.m., the Sergeant at Arms, the Honorable
Paul D. Irving, announced the President of the United States.
The President of the United States, escorted by the committee of
Senators and Representatives, entered the Hall of the House of
Representatives and stood at the Clerk's desk.
(Applause, the Members rising.)
The SPEAKER. Members of the Congress, I have the high privilege and
the distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United
States.
(Applause, the Members rising.)
The PRESIDENT. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress,
fellow Americans:
Fifty-one years ago, John F. Kennedy declared to this Chamber that
``the Constitution makes us not rivals for power but partners for
progress . . . It is my task,'' he said, ``to report the State of the
Union--to improve it is the task of us all.''
Tonight, thanks to the grit and determination of the American people,
there is much progress to report. After a decade of grinding war, our
brave men and women in uniform are coming home. After years of grueling
recession, our businesses have created over 6 million new jobs. We buy
more Americans cars than we have in 5 years, and less foreign oil than
we have in 20. Our housing market is healing, our stock market is
rebounding, and consumers, patients, and homeowners enjoy stronger
protections than ever before.
So together, we have cleared away the rubble of crisis, and we can
say with renewed confidence that the state of our Union is stronger.
But we gather here knowing that there are millions of Americans whose
hard work and dedication have not yet been rewarded. Our economy is
adding jobs--but too many people still can't find full-time employment.
Corporate profits have skyrocketed to all-time highs--but for more than
a decade, wages and incomes have barely budged. It is our generation's
task, then, to reignite the true engine of America's economic growth--a
rising, thriving middle class.
It is our unfinished task to restore the basic bargain that built
this country--the idea that if you work hard and meet your
responsibilities, you can get ahead, no matter where you come from, no
matter what you look like, or whom you love.
It is our unfinished task to make sure that this government works on
behalf of the many, and not just the few; that it encourages free
enterprise, rewards individual initiative, and opens the doors of
opportunity to every child across this great Nation.
The American people don't expect government to solve every problem.
They don't expect those of us in this Chamber to agree on every issue.
But they do expect us to put the Nation's interests before party. They
do expect us to forge reasonable compromise where we can, for they know
that America moves forward only when we do so together, and that the
responsibility of improving this union remains the task of us all.
Now, our work must begin by making some basic decisions about our
budget, decisions that will have a huge impact on the strength of our
recovery.
Over the last few years, both parties have worked together to reduce
the deficit by more than $2.5 trillion, mostly through spending cuts
but also by raising tax rates on the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans.
As a result, we are more than halfway towards the goal of $4 trillion
in deficit reduction that economists say we need to stabilize our
finances.
Now we need to finish the job. And the question is, how?
In 2011, Congress passed a law saying that if both parties couldn't
agree on a plan to reach our deficit goal, about a trillion dollars'
worth of budget cuts would automatically go into effect this year.
These sudden, harsh, arbitrary cuts would jeopardize our military
readiness. They'd devastate priorities like education and energy and
medical research. They would certainly slow our recovery and cost us
hundreds of thousands of jobs. And that's why Democrats, Republicans,
business leaders and economists have already said that these cuts,
known here in Washington as ``the sequester,'' are a really bad idea.
Now, some in Congress have proposed preventing only the defense cuts
by making even bigger cuts to things like education and job training,
Medicare and Social Security benefits.
That idea is even worse. Yes, the biggest driver of our long-term
debt is the rising cost of health care for an aging population. And
those of us who care deeply about programs like Medicare must embrace
the need for modest reforms, otherwise our retirement programs will
crowd out the investments we need for our children and jeopardize the
promise of a secure retirement for future generations.
But we can't ask senior citizens and working families to shoulder the
entire burden of deficit reduction while asking nothing more from the
wealthiest and the most powerful. We won't grow the middle class simply
by shifting the cost of health care or college onto families that are
already struggling, or by forcing communities to lay off more teachers
and more cops and more firefighters.
Most Americans--Democrats, Republicans and Independents--understand
that we can't just cut our way to prosperity. They know that broad-
based economic growth requires a balanced approach to deficit
reduction, with spending cuts and revenue, and with everybody doing
their fair share. And that's the approach I offer tonight.
On Medicare, I'm prepared to enact reforms that will achieve the same
amount of health care savings by the beginning of the next decade as
the reforms proposed by the bipartisan Simpson-Bowles commission.
Already, the Affordable Care Act is helping to slow the growth of
health care costs. And the reforms I'm proposing go even further.
We'll reduce taxpayer subsidies to prescription drug companies and
ask more from the wealthiest seniors. We'll bring down costs by
changing the way our government pays for Medicare, because our medical
bills shouldn't be based on the number of tests ordered or days spent
in the hospital; they should be based on the quality of care that our
seniors receive.
And I am open to additional reforms from both parties, so long as
they don't violate the guarantee of a secure retirement. Our government
shouldn't make promises we cannot keep, but we must keep the promises
we've already made.
To hit the rest of our deficit reduction target, we should do what
leaders in both parties have already suggested and save hundreds of
billions of dollars by getting rid of tax loopholes and deductions for
the well-off and the well-
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connected. After all, why would we choose to make deeper cuts to
education and Medicare just to protect special interest tax breaks?
How's that fair?
Why is it that deficit reduction is a big emergency, justifying
making cuts in Social Security benefits but not closing some loopholes?
How does that promote growth?
Now is our best chance for bipartisan, comprehensive tax reform that
encourages job creation and helps bring down the deficit. We can get
this done.
The American people deserve a tax code that helps small businesses
spend less time filling out complicated forms and more time expanding
and hiring; a tax code that ensures billionaires with high-powered
accountants can't work the system and pay a lower rate than their
hardworking secretaries; a tax code that lowers incentives to move jobs
overseas and lowers tax rates for businesses and manufacturers that are
creating jobs right here in the United States of America. That's what
tax reform can deliver. That's what we can do together.
I realize that tax reform and entitlement reform will not be easy.
The politics will be hard for both sides. None of us will get 100
percent of what we want. But the alternative will cost us jobs, hurt
our economy, visit hardship on millions of hardworking Americans. So
let's set party interests aside and work to pass a budget that replaces
reckless cuts with smart savings and wise investments in our future.
And let's do it without the brinksmanship that stresses consumers and
scares off investors.
The greatest Nation on Earth cannot keep conducting its business by
drifting from one manufactured crisis to the next. We can't do it.
Let's agree right here, right now, to keep the people's government open
and pay our bills on time, and always uphold the full faith and credit
of the United States of America. The American people have worked too
hard for too long rebuilding from one crisis to see their elected
officials cause another.
Now, most of us agree that a plan to reduce the deficit must be part
of our agenda. But let's be clear: Deficit reduction alone is not an
economic plan. A growing economy that creates good middle-class jobs--
that must be the North Star that guides our efforts. Every day, we
should ask ourselves three questions as a Nation: How do we attract
more jobs to our shores? How do we equip our people with the skills
they need to get those jobs? And how do we make sure that hard work
leads to a decent living?
A year and a half ago, I put forward an American Jobs Act that
independent economists said would create more than 1 million new jobs,
and I thank the last Congress for passing some of that agenda. I urge
this Congress to pass the rest. Tonight, I'll lay out additional
proposals that are fully paid for and fully consistent with the budget
framework both parties agreed to just 18 months ago. Let me repeat:
Nothing I'm proposing tonight should increase our deficit by a single
dime. It's not a bigger government we need but a smarter government
that sets priorities and invests in broad-based growth. That's what we
should be looking for.
Our first priority is making America a magnet for new jobs and
manufacturing. After shedding jobs for more than 10 years, our
manufacturers have added about 500,000 jobs over the past three.
Caterpillar is bringing jobs back from Japan. Ford is bringing jobs
back from Mexico. And this year, Apple will start making Macs in
America again. There are things we can do right now to accelerate this
trend. Last year, we created our first manufacturing innovation
institute in Youngstown, Ohio. A once-shuttered warehouse is now a
state-of-the-art lab where new workers are mastering the 3-D printing
that has the potential to revolutionize the way we make almost
everything. There's no reason this can't happen in other towns.
So, tonight, I'm announcing the launch of three more of these
manufacturing hubs where businesses will partner with the Departments
of Defense and Energy to turn regions left behind by globalization into
global centers of high-tech jobs. And I ask this Congress to help
create a network of 15 of these hubs and guarantee that the next
revolution in manufacturing is made right here in America. We can get
that done.
Now, if we want to make the best products, we also have to invest in
the best ideas. Every dollar we invested to map the human genome
returned $140 to our economy--every dollar. Today, our scientists are
mapping the human brain to unlock the answers to Alzheimer's. They're
developing drugs to regenerate damaged organs. Devising new materials
to make batteries 10 times more powerful. Now is not the time to gut
these job-creating investments in science and innovation. Now is the
time to reach a level of research and development not seen since the
height of the space race. We need to make those investments. Today, no
area holds more promise than our investments in American energy.
After years of talking about it, we are finally poised to control our
own energy future. We produce more oil at home than we have in 15
years. We have doubled the distance our cars will go on a gallon of gas
and the amount of renewable energy we generate from sources like wind
and solar--with tens of thousands of good American jobs to show for it.
We produce more natural gas than ever before, and nearly everyone's
energy bill is lower because of it. And over the last 4 years, our
emissions of the dangerous carbon pollution that threatens our planet
have actually fallen. But for the sake of our children and our future,
we must do more to combat climate change.
Now, it's true that no single event makes a trend, but the fact is
the 12 hottest years on record have all come in the last 15. Heat
waves, droughts, wildfires, floods--all are now more frequent and more
intense. We can choose to believe that Superstorm Sandy and the most
severe drought in decades and the worst wildfires some States have ever
seen were all just a freak coincidence or we can choose to believe in
the overwhelming judgment of science--and act before it's too late.
The good news is we can make meaningful progress on this issue while
driving strong economic growth. I urge this Congress to get together
and pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change like
the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few years
ago. But if Congress won't act soon to protect future generations, I
will. I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can
take now and in the future to reduce pollution, prepare our communities
for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to
more sustainable sources of energy.
Four years ago, other countries dominated the clean energy market and
the jobs that came with it. We've begun to change that. Last year, wind
energy added nearly half of all new power capacity in America, so let's
generate even more. Solar energy gets cheaper by the year. Let's drive
down costs even further. As long as countries like China keep going
all-in on clean energy, so must we.
In the meantime, the natural gas boom has led to cleaner power and
greater energy independence. We need to encourage that, and that's why
my administration will keep cutting red tape and speeding up new oil
and gas permits. That has got to be part of an all-of-the-above plan.
But I also want to work with this Congress to encourage the research
and technology that helps natural gas burn even cleaner and protects
our air and our water.
In fact, much of our newfound energy is drawn from lands and waters
that we, the public, own together. So, tonight, I propose we use some
of our oil and gas revenues to fund an energy security trust that will
drive new research and technology to shift our cars and trucks off oil
for good. If a nonpartisan coalition of CEOs and retired generals and
admirals can get behind this idea, then so can we. Let's take their
advice and free our families and businesses from the painful spikes in
gas prices we've put up with for far too long.
I'm also issuing a new goal for America: Let's cut in half the energy
wasted by our homes and businesses over the next 20 years. We'll work
with the States to do it. Those States with the best ideas to create
jobs and lower energy bills by constructing more efficient buildings
will receive Federal support to help make that happen.
America's energy sector is just one part of an aging infrastructure
badly in need of repair. Ask any CEO where
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they'd rather locate and hire: a country with deteriorating roads and
bridges or one with high-speed rail and Internet, high-tech schools,
self-healing power grids? The CEO of Siemens America, a company that
brought hundreds of new jobs to North Carolina, said that if we upgrade
our infrastructure they'll bring even more jobs, and that's the
attitude of a lot of companies all around the world. And I know you
want these job-creating projects in your districts. I've seen all those
ribbon-cuttings.
So, tonight, I propose a ``fix it first'' program to put people to
work as soon as possible on our most urgent repairs, like the nearly
70,000 structurally deficient bridges across the country. And to make
sure taxpayers don't shoulder the whole burden, I'm also proposing a
Partnership to Rebuild America that attracts private capital to upgrade
what our businesses need most: modern ports to move our goods; modern
pipelines to withstand a storm; modern schools worthy of our children.
Let's prove there's no better place to do business than here in the
United States of America, and let's start right away. We can get this
done.
Part of our rebuilding effort must also involve our housing sector.
The good news is our housing market is finally healing from the
collapse of 2007. Home prices are rising at the fastest pace in 6
years. Home purchases are up nearly 50 percent, and construction is
expanding again. But even with mortgage rates near a 50-year low, too
many families with solid credit who want to buy a home are being
rejected. Too many families who never missed a payment and want to
refinance are being told no. That's holding our entire economy back,
and we need to fix it.
Right now, there is a bill in this Congress that would give every
responsible homeowner in America the chance to save $3,000 a year by
refinancing at today's rates. Democrats and Republicans have supported
it before. So what are we waiting for? Take a vote, and send me that
bill. Why would we be against that? Why would that be a partisan issue,
having folks refinance? Right now, overlapping regulations keep
responsible young families from buying their first home. What's holding
us back? Let's streamline the process and help our economy grow.
These initiatives in manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, and
housing, all these things will help entrepreneurs and small business
owners expand and create new jobs, but none of it will matter unless we
also equip our citizens with the skills and training to fill those
jobs. And that has to start at the earliest possible age.
Study after study shows that the sooner a child begins learning, the
better he or she does down the road. But today, fewer than three in ten
4-year-olds are enrolled in a high-quality preschool program. Most
middle class parents can't afford a few hundred bucks a week for a
private preschool. And for poor kids who need help the most, this lack
of access to preschool education can shatter them for the rest of their
lives.
Tonight, I propose working with States to make high-quality preschool
available to every single child in America. That's something we should
be able to do. Every dollar we invest in high-quality early childhood
education can save more than $7 later on by boosting graduation rates,
reducing teen pregnancies, even reducing violent crime.
In States that make it a priority to educate our youngest children,
like Georgia or Oklahoma, studies show students grow up more likely to
read and do math at grade level, graduate high school, hold a job, and
form more stable families of their own. We know this works. So let's do
what works and make sure none of our children start the race of life
already behind. Let's give our kids that chance.
Let's also make sure that a high school diploma puts our kids on a
path to a good job. Right now, countries like Germany focus on
graduating their high school students with the equivalent of a
technical degree from one of our community colleges. So those German
kids, they're ready for a job when they graduate high school; they've
been trained for the jobs that are there. Now, at schools like P-Tech
in Brooklyn, a collaboration between New York Public Schools and City
University of New York and IBM, students will graduate with a high
school diploma and associate's degree in computers or engineering. We
need to give every American student opportunities like this.
Four years ago, we started Race to the Top--a competition that
convinced almost every State to develop smarter curricula and higher
standards, all for about 1 percent of what we spend on education each
year. Tonight, I'm announcing a new challenge to redesign America's
high schools so they better equip graduates for the demands of a high-
tech economy. We'll reward schools that develop new partnerships with
colleges and employers and create classes that focus on science,
technology, engineering, and math--the skills today's employers are
looking for to fill jobs that are there right now and will be there in
the future.
Now, even with better high schools, most young people will need some
higher education. It's a simple fact: The more education you have, the
more likely you are to have a good job and work your way into the
middle class. But today, skyrocketing costs price too many young people
out of a higher education or saddle them with unsustainable debt.
Through tax credits, grants, and better loans, we have made college
more affordable for millions of students and families over the last few
years. But taxpayers can't keep on subsidizing higher and higher and
higher costs for higher education. Colleges must do their part to keep
costs down, and it's our job to make sure that they do.
So tonight, I ask Congress to change the Higher Education Act so that
affordability and value are included in determining which colleges
receive certain types of Federal aid. And tomorrow, my administration
will release a new ``College Scorecard'' that parents and students can
use to compare schools based on a simple criteria: where you can get
the most bang for your educational buck.
Now, to grow our middle class, our citizens have to have access to
the education and training that today's jobs require. But we also have
to make sure that America remains a place where everyone who's willing
to work hard has the chance to get ahead.
Our economy is stronger when we harness the talents and ingenuity of
striving, hopeful immigrants; and right now, leaders from the business,
labor, law enforcement, and faith communities all agree that the time
has come to pass comprehensive immigration reform. Now is the time to
do it. Now is the time to get it done. Now is the time to get it done.
Real reform means stronger border security. And we can build on the
progress my administration has already made--putting more boots on the
southern border than at any time in our history and reducing illegal
crossings to their lowest levels in 40 years.
Real reform means establishing a responsible pathway to earned
citizenship--a path that includes passing a background check, paying
taxes and a meaningful penalty, learning English, and going to the back
of the line behind the folks trying to come here legally. And real
reform means fixing the legal immigration system to cut waiting periods
and attract the highly skilled entrepreneurs and engineers that will
help create jobs and grow our economy.
In other words, we know what needs to be done. As we speak,
bipartisan groups in both Chambers are working diligently to draft a
bill, and I applaud their efforts. Now let's get this done. Send me a
comprehensive immigration reform bill in the next few months and I will
sign it right away, and America will be better for it. Let's get it
done. Let's get it done.
But we can't stop there. We know our economy is stronger when our
wives, our mothers, and our daughters can live their lives free from
discrimination in the workplace and free from the fear of domestic
violence. Today, the Senate passed the Violence Against Women Act that
Joe Biden originally wrote almost 20 years ago, and I now urge the
House to do the same. And I ask this Congress to declare that women
should earn a living equal to their efforts and finally pass the
Paycheck Fairness Act this year.
We know our economy is stronger when we reward an honest day's work
with honest wages. But today, a full-time worker making the minimum
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wage earns $14,500 a year. Even with the tax relief we've put in place,
a family with two kids that earns the minimum wage still lives below
the poverty line. That's wrong. That's why, since the last time this
Congress raised the minimum wage, 19 States have chosen to bump theirs
even higher.
Tonight, let's declare that in the wealthiest Nation on Earth, no one
who works full-time should have to live in poverty, and raise the
Federal minimum wage to $9 an hour. We should be able to get that done.
This single step would raise the incomes of millions of working
families. It could mean the difference between groceries or the food
bank, rent or eviction, scraping by or finally getting ahead. For
businesses across the country, it would mean customers with more money
in their pockets. And a whole lot of folks out there would probably
need less help from government. In fact, working folks shouldn't have
to wait year after year for the minimum wage to go up while CEO pay has
never been higher. So here's an idea that Governor Romney and I
actually agreed on last year: Let's tie the minimum wage to the cost of
living so that it finally becomes a wage you can live on.
Tonight, let's also recognize that there are communities in this
country where, no matter how hard you work, it's virtually impossible
to get ahead: factory towns decimated from years of plants packing up;
inescapable pockets of poverty, urban and rural, where young adults are
still fighting for their first job. America is not a place where chance
of birth or circumstance should decide our destiny, and that's why we
need to build new ladders of opportunity into the middle class for all
who are willing to climb them.
Let's offer incentives to companies that hire Americans who've got
what it takes to fill that job opening but who have been out of work
for so long that no one will give them a chance anymore. Let's put
people back to work rebuilding vacant homes in run-down neighborhoods.
And this year, my administration will begin to partner with 20 of the
hardest-hit towns in America to get these communities back on their
feet. Now, we'll work with local leaders to target resources at public
safety, education, and housing. We'll give new tax credits to
businesses that hire and invest, and we'll work to strengthen families
by removing the financial deterrents to marriage for low-income
couples, and doing more to encourage fatherhood--because what makes you
a man isn't the ability to conceive a child, but having the courage to
raise one. And we want to encourage that. We want to help that.
Stronger families. Stronger communities. A stronger America. It is
this kind of prosperity--broad, shared, and built on a thriving middle
class--that has always been the source of our progress at home. It's
also the foundation of our power and influence throughout the world.
Tonight, we stand united in saluting the troops and civilians who
sacrifice every day to protect us. Because of them, we can say with
confidence that America will complete its mission in Afghanistan and
achieve our objective of defeating the core of al Qaeda. Already, we've
brought home 33,000 of our brave servicemen and -women. This spring,
our forces will move into a support role, while Afghan security forces
take the lead. Tonight, I can announce that over the next year, another
34,000 American troops will come home from Afghanistan. This drawdown
will continue, and by the end of next year, our war in Afghanistan will
be over.
Beyond 2014, America's commitment to a unified and sovereign
Afghanistan will endure, but the nature of our commitment will change.
We're negotiating an agreement with the Afghan Government that focuses
on two missions: training and equipping Afghan forces so that the
country does not again slip into chaos, and counterterrorism efforts
that allow us to pursue the remnants of al Qaeda and their affiliates.
Today, the organization that attacked us on 9/11 is a shadow of its
former self. It's true that different al Qaeda affiliates and extremist
groups have emerged--from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa. The threats
these groups pose is evolving. But to meet this threat, we don't need
to send tens of thousands of our sons and daughters abroad or occupy
other nations. Instead, we'll need to help countries like Yemen, Libya,
and Somalia provide for their own security, and help allies who take
the fight to terrorists, as we have in Mali. And, where necessary,
through a range of capabilities, we will continue to take direct action
against those terrorists who pose the gravest threat to Americans.
As we do, we must enlist our values in the fight. That's why my
administration has worked tirelessly to forge a durable legal and
policy framework to guide our counterterrorism operations. Throughout,
we have kept Congress fully informed of our efforts. I recognize that
in our democracy, no one should just take my word for it that we're
doing things the right way. So, in the months ahead, I will continue to
engage Congress to ensure not only that our targeting, detention, and
prosecution of terrorists remains consistent with our laws and system
of checks and balances, but that our efforts are even more transparent
to the American people and to the world.
Of course, our challenges don't end with al Qaeda. America will
continue to lead the effort to prevent the spread of the world's most
dangerous weapons. The regime in North Korea must know they will only
achieve security and prosperity by meeting their international
obligations. Provocations of the sort we saw last night will only
further isolate them, as we stand by our allies, strengthen our own
missile defense, and lead the world in taking firm action in response
to these threats.
Likewise, the leaders of Iran must recognize that now is the time for
a diplomatic solution, because a coalition stands united in demanding
that they meet their obligations, and we will do what is necessary to
prevent them from getting a nuclear weapon. At the same time, we'll
engage Russia to seek further reductions in our nuclear arsenals, and
continue leading the global effort to secure nuclear materials that
could fall into the wrong hands--because our ability to influence
others depends on our willingness to lead and meet our obligations.
America must also face the rapidly growing threat from cyberattacks.
Now, we know hackers steal people's identities and infiltrate private
emails. We know foreign countries and companies swipe our corporate
secrets. Now our enemies are also seeking the ability to sabotage our
power grid, our financial institutions, our air traffic control
systems. We cannot look back years from now and wonder why we did
nothing in the face of real threats to our security and our economy.
That's why earlier today I signed a new executive order that will
strengthen our cyberdefenses by increasing information-sharing and
developing standards to protect our national security, our jobs, and
our privacy. Now, Congress must act as well, by passing legislation to
give our government a greater capacity to secure our networks and deter
attacks. This is something we should be able to get done on a
bipartisan basis.
Even as we protect our people, we should remember that today's world
presents not just dangers, not just threats, but it presents
opportunities. To boost American exports, support American jobs, and
level the playing field in the growing markets of Asia, we intend to
complete negotiations on a transpacific partnership. Tonight, I'm
announcing that we will launch talks on a comprehensive transatlantic
trade and investment partnership with the European Union because trade
that is fair and free across the Atlantic supports millions of good-
paying American jobs.
We also know that progress in the most impoverished parts of our
world enriches us all. Not only because it creates new markets, more
stable order in certain regions of the world, but also because it's the
right thing to do. In many places, people live on little more than a
dollar a day. So the United States will join with our allies to
eradicate such extreme poverty in the next two decades by connecting
more people through the global economy; by empowering women; by giving
our young and brightest minds new opportunities to serve and helping
communities to feed and power and educate themselves; by saving the
world's children from preventible deaths; and by realizing the promise
of an AIDS-free generation, which is within our reach.
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You see, America must remain a beacon to all who seek freedom during
this period of historic change. I saw the power of hope last year in
Rangoon, in Burma, when Aung San Suu Kyi welcomed an American President
into the home where she had been imprisoned for years; when thousands
of Burmese lined the streets waving American flags, including a man who
said, ``There is justice and law in the United States. I want our
country to be like that.''
In defense of freedom, we'll remain the anchor of strong alliances
from the Americas to Africa, from Europe to Asia. In the Middle East,
we will stand with citizens as they demand their universal rights and
support stable transitions to democracy. We know the process will be
messy, and we cannot presume to dictate the course of change in
countries like Egypt. But we can and will insist on respect for the
fundamental rights of all people. We'll keep the pressure on a Syrian
regime that has murdered its own people and support opposition leaders
that respect the rights of every Syrian. And we will stand steadfast
with Israel in pursuit of security and a lasting peace. These are the
messages I'll deliver when I travel to the Middle East next month.
All this work depends on the courage and sacrifice of those who serve
in dangerous places at great personal risk: our diplomats, our
intelligence officers, and the men and women of the United States Armed
Forces. As long as I'm Commander in Chief, we will do whatever we must
to protect those who serve their country abroad, and we will maintain
the best military the world has ever known. We'll invest in new
capabilities, even as we reduce waste and wartime spending. We will
ensure equal treatment for all servicemembers and equal benefits for
their families, gay and straight. We will draw upon the courage and
skills of our sisters, daughters, and moms, because women have proven
under fire that they are ready for combat. We will keep faith with our
veterans, investing in world-class care, including mental health care,
for our wounded warriors; supporting our military families; and giving
our veterans the benefits, education, and job opportunities that they
have earned. And I want to thank my wife Michelle and Dr. Jill Biden
for their continued dedication to serving our military families as well
as they have served us. Thank you, honey. Thank you, Jill.
Defending our freedom, though, is not just the job of our military
alone. We must all do our part to make sure our God-given rights are
protected here at home. That includes one of the most fundamental
rights of a democracy: the right to vote. When any Americans--no matter
where they live or what their party--are denied that right because they
can't afford to wait for 5, 6, or 7 hours just to cast their ballot, we
are betraying our ideals. So tonight I'm announcing a nonpartisan
commission to improve the voting experience in America, and it
definitely needs improvement. I'm asking two longtime experts in the
field, who by the way recently served as the top attorneys for my
campaign and for Governor Romney's campaign, to lead it. We can fix
this, and we will. The American people demand it, and so does our
democracy.
Of course, what I've said tonight matters little if we don't come
together to protect our most precious resource, our children.
It has been 2 months since Newtown. I know this is not the first time
this country has debated how to reduce gun violence. But this time is
different. Overwhelming majorities of Americans, Americans who believe
in the Second Amendment, have come together around commonsense reform,
like background checks, that will make it harder for criminals to get
their hands on a gun. Senators of both parties are working together on
tough new laws to prevent anyone from buying guns for resale to
criminals. Police chiefs are asking for our help to get weapons of war
and massive ammunition magazines off our streets because these police
chiefs, they're tired of seeing their guys and gals being outgunned.
Each of these proposals deserves a vote in Congress. If you want to
vote ``no,'' that's your choice. But these proposals deserve a vote.
Because in the 2 months since Newtown, more than 1,000 birthdays,
graduations, and anniversaries have been stolen from our lives by a
bullet from a gun. More than 1,000.
One of those we lost was a young girl named Hadiya Pendleton. She was
15 years old. She loved Fig Newtons and lip gloss. She was a majorette.
She was so good to her friends, they all thought they were her best
friend. Just 3 weeks ago, she was here, in Washington, with her
classmates, performing for her country at my inauguration--and, a week
later, she was shot and killed in a Chicago park after school, just a
mile away from my house.
Hadiya's parents, Nate and Cleo, are in this Chamber tonight along
with more than two dozen Americans whose lives have been torn apart by
gun violence. They deserve a vote.
Gabby Giffords deserves a vote.
The families of Newtown deserve a vote.
The families of Aurora deserve a vote.
The families of Oak Creek and Tucson and Blacksburg and the countless
other communities ripped open by gun violence--they deserve a simple
vote.
They deserve a simple vote.
Our actions will not prevent every senseless act of violence in this
country. In fact, no laws, no initiatives, no administrative acts will
perfectly solve all of the challenges I've outlined tonight. But we
were never sent here to be perfect. We were sent here to make what
difference we can--to secure this Nation, expand opportunity, uphold
our ideals through the hard, often frustrating, but absolutely
necessary work of self-government.
We were sent here to look out for our fellow Americans the same way
they look out for one another every single day, usually without
fanfare, all across this country. We should follow their example.
We should follow the example of a New York City nurse named Menchu
Sanchez. When Hurricane Sandy plunged her hospital into darkness, she
wasn't thinking about how her own home was faring. Her mind was on the
20 precious newborns in her care and the rescue plan she devised that
kept them all safe.
We should follow the example of a north Miami woman named Desiline
Victor. When Desiline arrived at her polling place, she was told the
wait to vote might be 6 hours. As time ticked by, her concern was not
with her tired body or aching feet, but whether folks like her would
get to have their say. Hour after hour, a throng of people stayed in
line to support her--because Desiline is 102 years old--and they
erupted in cheers when she finally put on a sticker that read, ``I
voted.''
We should follow the example of a police officer named Brian Murphy.
When a gunman opened fire on a Sikh temple in Wisconsin and Brian was
the first to arrive, he did not consider his own safety. He fought back
until help arrived, and ordered his fellow officers to protect the
safety of the fellow Americans worshipping inside--even as he lay
bleeding from 12 bullet wounds.
And when asked how he did that, Brian said, ``That's just the way
we're made.''
That's just the way we're made.
We may do different jobs and wear different uniforms and hold
different views than the person beside us, but as Americans, we all
share the same proud title: We are citizens.
It's a word that doesn't just describe our nationality or our legal
status. It describes the way we're made. It describes what we believe.
It captures the enduring idea that this country only works when we
accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations;
that our rights are wrapped up in the rights of others; and that well
into our third century as a Nation, it remains the task of us all, as
citizens of these United States, to be the authors of the next great
chapter of our American story.
Thank you. God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
(Applause, the Members rising.)
At 10 o'clock and 17 minutes p.m., the President of the United
States, accompanied by the committee of escort, retired from the Hall
of the House of Representatives.
The Deputy Sergeant at Arms escorted the invited guests from the
Chamber in the following order:
The members of the President's Cabinet; the Chief Justice of the
United States and the Associate Justices of
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the Supreme Court; the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps.
The SPEAKER. The Chair declares the joint session of the two Houses
now dissolved.
Accordingly, at 10 o'clock and 24 minutes p.m., the joint session of
the two Houses was dissolved.
The Members of the Senate retired to their Chamber.
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