[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 34 (Thursday, February 26, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H2864-H2866]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 A NEW ERA OF RESPONSIBILITY--MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED 
                      STATES (H. DOC. NO. 111-19)

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Kissell) laid before the House the 
following message from the President of the United States; which was 
read and, without objection, referred to the Committee on 
Appropriations and ordered to be printed:

  Throughout America's history, there have been some years that 
appeared to roll into the next without much notice or fanfare. Budgets 
are proposed that offer some new programs or eliminate an initiative, 
but by and large continuity reigns.
  Then there are the years that come along once in a generation, when 
we look at where the country has been and recognize that we need a 
break from a troubled past, that the problems we face demand that we 
begin charting a new path. This is one of those years.
  We start 2009 in the midst of a crisis unlike any we have seen in our 
lifetimes. Our economy is in a deep recession that threatens to be 
deeper and longer than any since the Great Depression. More than three 
and a half million jobs were lost over the past 13 months, more jobs 
than at any time since World War II. In addition, another 8.8 million 
Americans who want and need full-time work have had to settle for part-
time jobs. Manufacturing employment has hit a 60-year low. Our capital 
markets are virtually frozen, making it difficult for businesses to 
grow and for families to borrow money to afford a home, car, or college 
education for their kids. Many families cannot pay their bills or their 
mortgage payments. Trillions of dollars of wealth have been wiped out, 
leaving many workers with little or nothing as they approach 
retirement. And millions of Americans are unsure about the future--if 
their job will be there tomorrow, if their children will be able to go 
to college, and if their grandchildren will be able to realize the full 
promise of America.
  This crisis is neither the result of a normal turn of the business 
cycle nor an accident of history. We arrived at this point as a result 
of an era of profound irresponsibility that engulfed both private and 
public institutions from some of our largest companies' executive 
suites to the seats of power in Washington, D.C. For decades, too many 
on Wall Street threw caution to the wind, chased profits with blind 
optimism and little regard for serious risks--and with even less regard 
for the public good. Lenders made loans without concern for whether 
borrowers could repay them. Inadequately informed of the risks and 
overwhelmed by fine print, many borrowers took on debt they could not 
really afford. And those in authority turned a blind eye to this risk-
taking; they forgot that markets work best when there is transparency 
and accountability and when the rules of the road are both fair and 
vigorously enforced. For years, a lack of transparency created a 
situation in which serious economic dangers were visible to all too 
few.
  This irresponsibility precipitated the interlocking housing and 
financial crises that triggered this recession. But the roots of the 
problems we face run deeper. Government has failed to fully confront 
the deep, systemic problems that year after year have only become a 
larger and larger drag on our economy. From the rising costs of health

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care to the state of our schools, from the need to revolutionize how we 
power our economy to our crumbling infrastructure, policymakers in 
Washington have chosen temporary fixes over lasting solutions.
  The time has come to usher in a new era--a new era of responsibility 
in which we act not only to save and create new jobs, but also to lay a 
new foundation of growth upon which we can renew the promise of 
America.
  This Budget is a first step in that journey. It lays out for the 
American people the extent of the crisis we inherited, the steps we 
will take to jumpstart our economy to create new jobs, and our plans to 
transform our economy for the 21st Century to give our children and 
grandchildren the fruits of many years of economic growth.

  It is true that we cannot depend on government alone to create jobs 
or to generate long-term growth. Ours is a market economy, and the 
Nation depends on the energy and initiative of private institutions and 
individuals. But at this particular moment, government must lead the 
way in providing the short-term boost necessary to lift us from a 
recession this severe and lay the foundation for future prosperity. 
That's why immediately upon taking office, my Administration worked 
with the Congress to pass the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. 
This plan's provisions will put money in the pockets of the American 
people, save or create at least three and a half million jobs, and help 
to revive our economy.
  This moment is one of great paradox and promise: while there are 
millions of Americans trying to find work, there is also so much work 
to be done. That's why the Recovery Act and our Budget will make long 
overdue investments in priorities--like clean energy, education, health 
care, and a new infrastructure--that are necessary to keep us strong 
and competitive in the 21st Century.
  To finally spark the creation of a clean energy economy, we will make 
the investments in the next three years to double our Nation's 
renewable energy capacity. We will modernize Federal buildings and 
improve the energy efficiency of millions of American homes, saving 
consumers and taxpayers billions on our energy bills. In the process, 
we will put Americans to work in new jobs that pay well--jobs 
installing solar panels and wind turbines; constructing energy 
efficient buildings; manufacturing fuel efficient vehicles; and 
developing the new energy technologies that will lead to even more jobs 
and more savings, putting us on the path toward energy independence for 
our Nation and a cleaner, safer planet in the process.
  To improve the quality of our health care while lowering its cost, we 
will make the immediate investments needed to computerize all of 
America's medical records within five years while protecting the 
privacy of patients. This is a necessary step to reducing waste, 
eliminating red tape, and avoiding the need to repeat expensive medical 
tests. We also will fundamentally reform our health care system, 
delivering quality care to more Americans while reducing costs for us 
all. This will make our businesses more competitive and ease a 
significant and growing burden middle-class families are bearing.
  To give our children a fair shot to thrive in a global, information-
age economy, we will equip thousands of schools, community colleges, 
and universities with 21st Century classrooms, labs, and libraries. 
We'll provide new technology and new training for teachers so that 
students in Chicago and Boston can compete with kids in Beijing for the 
high-tech, high-wage jobs of the future. We will invest in innovation, 
and open the doors of college to millions of students. We will pursue 
new reforms--lifting standards in our schools and recruiting, training, 
and rewarding a new generation of teachers. And in an era of 
skyrocketing college tuitions, we will make sure that the doors of 
college remain open to children from all walks of life.
  To create a platform for our entrepreneurs and workers to build an 
economy that can lead this future, we will begin to rebuild America for 
the demands of the 21st Century. We will repair crumbling roads, 
bridges, and schools as well as expand broadband lines across America, 
so that a small business in a rural town can connect and compete with 
its counterparts anywhere in the world. And we will invest in the 
science, research, and technology that will lead to new medical 
breakthroughs, new discoveries, and entire new industries.
  Regaining our economic strength also is critical to our national 
security. It is a major source of our global leadership, and we must 
not let it waver. That's why this Budget makes critical investments in 
rebuilding our military, securing our homeland, and expanding our 
diplomatic efforts because to provide for the security of the United 
States we need to use all elements of our power. Moreover, to honor the 
service of those who have worn our military's uniform, we will make the 
investments necessary to take care of our veterans.

  For these initiatives to lay a foundation for long-term economic 
growth, it's important that we not only change what Washington invests 
in, but how Washington does business. We must usher in a new era of 
responsibility in which we empower citizens with the information they 
need to hold their elected representatives accountable for the 
decisions they make. We need to put tired ideologies aside, and ask not 
whether our Government is too big or too small, or whether it is the 
problem or the solution, but whether it is working for the American 
people. Where it does not, we will stop spending taxpayer dollars; 
where it has proven to be effective, we will invest. This is the 
approach, for example, we have begun in allocating funds to education, 
health care, and national security. And as we continue the budgetary 
process, we will identify more cuts and reallocations for the full 
Budget presented this spring, and undertake efforts to reform how the 
programs you fund are managed so that overruns are avoided, waste is 
cut, and you get the most effective and efficient Government possible.
  In the little more than a month my Administration has had in office, 
we have not had the time to fully execute all the budget reforms that 
are needed, and to which I am fully committed. Those will come in the 
months ahead, and next year's budget process will look much different.
  But this Budget does begin the hard work of bringing new levels of 
honesty and fairness to your Government. It looks ahead a full 10 
years, making good-faith estimates about what costs we would incur; and 
it accounts for items that under the old rules could have been left 
out, making it appear that we had billions more to spend than we really 
do. The Budget also begins to restore a basic sense of fairness to the 
tax code, eliminating incentives for companies that ship jobs overseas 
and giving a generous package of tax cuts to 95 percent of working 
families.
  Finally, while we have inherited record budget deficits and needed to 
pass a massive recovery and reinvestment plan to try to jump-start our 
economy out of recession, we cannot lose sight of the long-run 
challenges that our country faces and that threaten our economic 
health--specifically, the trillions of dollars of debt that we 
inherited, the rising costs of health care, and the growing obligations 
of Social Security. Therefore, while our Budget will run deficits, we 
must begin the process of making the tough choices necessary to restore 
fiscal discipline, cut the deficit in half by the end of my first term 
in office, and put our Nation on sound fiscal footing.
  Some may look at what faces our Nation and believe that America's 
greatest days are behind it. They are wrong.
  Our problems are rooted in past mistakes, not our capacity for future 
greatness. We should never forget that our workers are more innovative 
and industrious than any on earth. Our universities are still the envy 
of the world. We are still home to the most brilliant minds, the most 
creative entrepreneurs, and the most advanced technology and innovation 
that history has ever known. And we are still the Nation that has 
overcome great fears and improbable odds. It will take time, but we can 
bring change to America. We can rebuild that lost trust and confidence. 
We can restore opportunity and prosperity. And we can bring about a new 
sense of responsibility among Americans from every walk of life and 
from every corner of the country.
                                                        Barack Obama.  
                                    The White House, February 26, 2009.

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