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The President:
Hi, everybody.
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This week, I went down to an
Amazon warehouse in Tennessee
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to talk more about
what we need to do
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to secure a better bargain
for the middle class -
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to make sure that anyone who
works hard can get ahead
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in the 21st century economy.
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Over the past four
and a half years,
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we've fought our way back
from the worst recession
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of our lifetimes and begun
to lay a foundation
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for stronger, more durable economic growth.
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Today, our businesses
have created 7.3 million
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new jobs over the
last 41 months.
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We now sell more
products made in America
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to the rest of the
world than ever before.
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Health care costs are growing
at the slowest rate in 50 years,
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and our deficits are falling at
the fastest rate in 60 years.
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But as any middle-class
family will tell you,
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we're not where
we need to be yet.
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Even before the crisis hit,
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we were living through a decade where a few at the top
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were doing better and better,
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while most families were working
harder and harder
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just to get by.
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Reversing this trend must be
Washington's highest priority.
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It sure is mine.
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But too often over
the past two years,
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Washington has taken
its eye off the ball.
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They've allowed an endless
parade of political posturing
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and phony scandals to distract
from growing our economy
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and strengthening
the middle class.
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That's why I'm laying out my
ideas for how we can build
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on the cornerstones
of what it means
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to be middle class in America.
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A good education.
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A home of your own.
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Health care when you get sick.
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A secure retirement
even if you're not rich.
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And the most important
cornerstone of all:
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a good job in a durable,
growing industry.
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When it comes to creating more
good jobs that pay decent wages,
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the problem is not
a lack of ideas.
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Plenty of independent
economists,
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business owners and people
from both parties agree
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on what we have to do.
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I proposed many of these
ideas two years ago
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in the American Jobs Act.
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And this week, I put forward
common-sense proposals
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for how we can create more
jobs in manufacturing;
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in wind, solar and natural gas;
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and by rebuilding
America's infrastructure.
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What we're lacking is
action from Washington.
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And that's why, in
addition to proposing ideas
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that we know
will grow our economy,
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I've also put
forward a strategy
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for breaking through
the Washington logjam -
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a "grand bargain"
for the middle class.
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I'm willing to work with
Republicans to simplify
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our tax code for businesses
large and small,
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but only if we take the money
we save by transitioning
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to a simpler tax system and
make a significant investment
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in creating good,
middle-class jobs.
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We can put
construction workers
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back on the job rebuilding
our infrastructure.
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We can boost manufacturing,
so more American companies
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can sell their products
around the world.
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And we can help our community
colleges arm our workers
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with the skills they
need in a global economy -
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all without adding
a dime to the deficit.
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I'll keep laying out my
ideas to give the middle class
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a better shot
in the 21st century,
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and I'll keep reaching out
to Republicans for theirs.
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But gutting critical
investments in our future
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and threatening national default
on the bills that Congress
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has already racked up -
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that's not an economic plan.
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Denying health care
to millions of Americans,
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or shutting down the government
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just because I'm
for keeping it open -
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that won't help
the middle class.
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The truth is,
there are no gimmicks
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when it comes to creating jobs.
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There are no tricks
to grow the economy.
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Reversing the long erosion
of middle-class security
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in this country won't be easy.
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But if we work together and
take a few bold steps -
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and if Washington is
willing to set aside politics
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and focus on what
really matters -
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we can grow our economy
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and give the middle class
a better bargain.
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And together, we can make
this country a place
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where everyone who works
hard can get ahead.
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Thanks,
and have a great weekend.
