[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 22 (Tuesday, February 12, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S651-S655]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   REPORT ON THE STATE OF THE UNION DELIVERED TO A JOINT SESSION OF 
                  CONGRESS ON FEBRUARY 12, 2013--PM 2

  The PRESIDING OFFICER laid before the Senate the following message 
from the President of the United States which was ordered to lie on the 
table:

To The Congress of the United States:
  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, fellow 
citizens:
  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 six million new jobs. We 
buy more American cars than we have in five years, and less foreign oil 
than we have in twenty. Our housing market is healing, our stock market 
is rebounding, and consumers, patients, and homeowners enjoy stronger 
protections than ever before.
  Together, we have cleared away the rubble of crisis, and 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 rocketed 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, 
what you look like, or who 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.
  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, energy, and 
medical research. They would certainly slow our recovery, and cost us 
hundreds of thousands of jobs. 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 this 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 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, 
cops, and 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. 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

[[Page S652]]

long as they don't violate the guarantee of a secure retirement. Our 
Government shouldn't make promises we can't 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 well-connected. After all, why would we choose to make 
deeper cuts to education and Medicare just to protect special interest 
tax breaks? How is that fair? 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. 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 
pay a lower rate than their hard-working secretaries; a tax code that 
lowers incentives to move jobs overseas, and lowers tax rates for 
businesses and manufacturers that create jobs right here in America. 
That's what tax reform can deliver. That's what we can do together.
  I realize that tax reform and entitlement reform won't 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, and 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. Let's agree, right here, right now, to keep the people's 
Government open, 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 
needed to do 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 one million new 
jobs. I thank the last Congress for passing some of that agenda, and 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.
  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. After 
locating plants in other countries like China, Intel is opening its 
most advanced plant right here at home. 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 3D 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 fifteen of these hubs 
and guarantee that the next revolution in manufacturing is Made in 
America.
  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. Today, our scientists are mapping the human brain 
to unlock the answers to Alzheimer's; developing drugs to regenerate 
damaged organs; devising new material to make batteries ten 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. And 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 four 
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. Yes, 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, and floods--all are now 
more frequent and 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 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--so let's 
drive costs down 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. That's why my Administration will keep 
cutting red tape and speeding up new oil and gas permits. 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 water.
  Indeed, much of our new-found 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 non-partisan 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 twenty years. The States with the best ideas 
to create jobs and lower energy bills by constructing more efficient 
buildings will receive Federal support to help make it happen.

[[Page S653]]

  America's energy sector is just one part of an aging infrastructure 
badly in need of repair. Ask any CEO where they'd rather locate and 
hire: a country with deteriorating roads and bridges, or one with high-
speed rail and internet; high-tech schools and self-healing power 
grids. The CEO of Siemens America--a company that brought hundreds of 
new jobs to North Carolina--has said that if we upgrade our 
infrastructure, they'll bring even more jobs. And I know that you want 
these job-creating projects in your districts. I've seen you all at the 
ribbon-cuttings.
  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 that there is no better place to do business than the 
United States of America. And let's start right away.
  Part of our rebuilding effort must also involve our housing sector. 
Today, our housing market is finally healing from the collapse of 2007. 
Home prices are rising at the fastest pace in six 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 have 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's 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. What are we waiting for? Take a vote, and send me 
that bill. 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 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 3 in 10 
four-year-olds are enrolled in a high-quality preschool program. Most 
middle-class parents can't afford a few hundred bucks a week for 
private preschool. And for poor kids who need help the most, this lack 
of access to preschool education can shadow them for the rest of their 
lives.
  Tonight, I propose working with states to make high-quality preschool 
available to every child in America. Every dollar we invest in high-
quality early education can save more than seven dollars later on--by 
boosting graduation rates, reducing teen pregnancy, 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. 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 that they're 
ready for a job. At schools like P-Tech in Brooklyn, a collaboration 
between New York Public Schools, the City University of New York, and 
IBM, students will graduate with a high school diploma and an 
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, 
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 right now and 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 job and work your way into the middle 
class. But today, skyrocketing costs price way 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 cannot continue to subsidize the soaring cost of 
higher education. Colleges must do their part to keep costs down, and 
it's our job to make sure they do. 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 
criterion: where you can get the most bang for your educational buck.
  To grow our middle class, our citizens must 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 immigration reform.
  Real reform means strong border security, and we can build on the 
progress my Administration has already made--putting more boots on the 
souther 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, reduce bureaucracy, 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 and 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.
  But we can't stop there. We know our economy is stronger when our 
wives, mothers, and 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. I 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 
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, nineteen 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

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in poverty, and raise the Federal minimum wage to $9.00 an hour. 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. 
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 is 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 have been out of work so 
long that no one will give them a chance. 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. 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; it's having the courage to raise one.
  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 is 
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 
have 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 are 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 counter-terrorism 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. Different al Qaeda affiliates and extremist groups have 
emerged--from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa. The threat 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 will 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 is 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 that we're doing 
things the right way. So, in the months ahead, I will continue to 
engage with 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 that they will 
only achieve security and prosperity by meeting their international 
obligations. Provocations of the sort we saw last night will only 
isolate them further, 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 will 
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.
  America must also face the rapidly growing threat from cyber-attacks. 
We know hackers steal people's identities and infiltrate private e-
mail. 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, and 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 cyber defenses 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.
  Even as we protect our people, we should remember that today's world 
presents not only dangers, but 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 Trans-
Pacific Partnership. And tonight, I am announcing that we will launch 
talks on a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership 
with the European Union--because trade that is free and fair 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. 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 to the global economy and empowering women; by giving our 
young and brightest minds new opportunities to serve and helping 
communities to feed, power, and educate themselves; by saving the 
world's children from preventable deaths; and by realizing the promise 
of an AIDS-free generation.
  Above all 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--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 will 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. 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

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rights of all people. will 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 will 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 in the world. We will invest in new capabilities, 
even as we reduce waste and wartime spending. We will ensure equal 
treatment for all service members, and equal benefits for their 
families--gay and straight. We will draw upon the courage and skills of 
our sisters and daughters, 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 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 serve us.
  But defending our freedom is not 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 our most fundamental right as citizens: the 
right to vote. When any Americans--no matter where they live or what 
their party--are denied that right simply because they can't wait for 
five, six, or seven hours just to cast their ballot, we are betraying 
our ideals. That's why, tonight, I'm announcing a non-partisan 
commission to improve the voting experience in America. And I'm asking 
two long-time experts in the field, who've 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 two 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 2nd 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 our help to get weapons 
of war and massive ammunition magazines off our streets, because they 
are tired of 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 two months since Newtown, more than a thousand 
birthdays, graduations, and anniversaries have been stolen from our 
lives by a bullet from a gun.
  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 three 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.
  Our actions will not prevent every senseless act of violence in this 
country. Indeed, no laws, no initiatives, no administrative acts will 
perfectly solve all 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, and 
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, her 
thoughts were not with how her own home was faring--they were with the 
twenty 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 she arrived at her polling place, she was told the wait to 
vote might be six hours. And 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 in support of 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 Americans worshipping inside--even as he lay bleeding 
from twelve bullet wounds.
  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 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 in our American story.
  Thank you, God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
                                                        Barack Obama.  
The White House, February 12, 2013.

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