[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 47 (Wednesday, April 10, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2552-S2558]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     61ST NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST

  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, on behalf of Senator Pryor and myself, I 
ask unanimous consent that the transcript of the 61th Annual National 
Prayer Breakfast be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

[[Page S2553]]

61st National Prayer Breakfast, Thursday, February 7, 2013, Washington, 
        DC, Co-Chairs: Senator Jeff Sessions, Senator Mark Pryor

       Senator Mark Pryor: Let me open by saying, ``Good morning 
     fellow sinners.'' My name is Mark Pryor, from Arkansas, and 
     this is my brother, Jeff Sessions, from Alabama. Together, 
     Jeff and I chair the weekly Senate breakfast group, which 
     means we get to chair this ``slightly larger'' event this 
     morning.
       Senator Jeff Sessions: Thank you all for taking on the 
     adventure of getting here this morning. We have a challenging 
     experience planned for you this morning. We call this the 
     Prayer Breakfast, not only because we come together to pray, 
     but because so much prayer goes into this event, and 
     hopefully, so much prayer comes out of it.
       Senator Pryor: Everything that happens over the next 90 
     minutes has really come about through prayer. As a matter of 
     fact, one of the hundreds of volunteers that make this 
     morning possible, literally came in very early this morning 
     and prayed over each place setting here--prayed over each of 
     you.
       Senator Sessions: Prayer is not a spectator sport. We hope 
     this experience enriches your own life of prayer, for the 
     good of the nation, for the world and for your family.
       Senator Pryor: Let us join our hearts in prayer. God of the 
     universe, who we individually worship in many different ways 
     and languages, bring us together this morning in a shared 
     experience of praise, understanding and commitment. Our world 
     and our lives fall short of what you created them to be. Use 
     this time to bless us, to bless our leaders, and especially 
     our President, with a sense of who you are and how we all 
     need to change. We are thankful for the food we are enjoying 
     and friendships old and new. Be present in each of our hearts 
     today, in your Holy, precious and matchless name, Amen.
       Senator Sessions: Enjoy (what's left of) your breakfast.
       Good morning. We've had a wonderful time together to 
     discuss issues and have a joyful noise. We thank you for your 
     attention.
       Senator Pryor: It's overwhelming to think of the pathways 
     that each person took to get to this event today. Some from 
     little villages halfway around the world and some from just 
     12 blocks away, so thank you all for coming.
       Senator Sessions: This huge event, which has taken place 
     for 61 years now, began with a group of people who happened 
     to be leaders wanting to get together for breakfast and for 
     prayer. One thing I know for sure is that life is complicated 
     and is likely to get more complicated tomorrow than 
     yesterday. But as members of the weekly Senate prayer 
     breakfast group, we've learned that taking time each week to 
     meet, to take off the disguises that we wear and pray and 
     share our lives together, makes life better.
       Senator Pryor: In the modern world and especially in a city 
     like this, there are thousands of things that drive us 
     apart--politics, ideology and even religion. Today, though, 
     we come together in the Spirit of Jesus who taught us to love 
     one another, treat others as we want to be treated and to 
     love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. It 
     would be a whole lot better world if we just listened to Him.
       Senator Sessions: As you look around the room, understand 
     that you're sharing this meal with people from more than 140 
     countries, all 50 states, heads of government, and leaders of 
     all kinds. Through prayer, we believe God has brought us 
     together for a reason. As you listen closely to the program, 
     try to figure out what God is saying to you. And as you've 
     heard, this event is hosted by members of the House and 
     Senate and I would like to ask all the members of the House 
     and Senate who are present, to stand at this time. We're also 
     honored to be joined by two prime ministers, the Prime 
     Minister of Serbia, His Excellency Ivica Dacic, and the Prime 
     Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, His Excellency 
     Augustin Matata Ponyo. Thank you so much for being with us.
       Senator Pryor: I would like to introduce the head table 
     that will lead us through this experience. I'll start on my 
     right. Today you could say that you ate breakfast with the 
     President and a gold medalist. At the end of our program, our 
     closing prayer will be offered by Olympic champion, Gabrielle 
     Douglas, whose new book is appropriately subtitled ``My Leap 
     of Faith.'' Next to her is former U.S. Senator, Cabinet 
     member and President of the Red Cross, Elizabeth Dole. 
     Elizabeth, believe it or not, was our breakfast speaker 26 
     years ago. She will give a reading from the Holy Scriptures. 
     Next to her is California Representative, Janice Hahn, one of 
     two co-chairs of the House prayer breakfast group, and next 
     year she'll be standing in my place here. Then we have 
     Admiral and Mrs. Jonathan Greenert. He is the U.S. Chief of 
     Naval Operations, which puts him in charge of about 300,000 
     sailors, 300 ships and 3,500 aircraft. He will offer a prayer 
     for our national leaders. Next, we have the spouse of my co-
     chair, Mary Sessions. And please join me in welcoming the 
     passionate, principled and inspirational First Lady of the 
     United States, Michelle Obama.
       Senator Sessions: Continuing down the table, we have our 
     friend and former colleague, the good Vice President of the 
     United States, Joe Biden. On the other side of our speaker is 
     my colleague and friend, Chuck Schumer. He's the pride of 
     P.S. 197 in Brooklyn, New York and a dedicated member of 
     Congress for amazingly 30 years, and a key member of the 
     Democratic leadership. Chuck will be offering a reading from 
     the Holy Scripture. Next to him is another good friend and 
     former colleague of ours, the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, 
     Ken Salazar. In his day job, Ken is responsible for more than 
     500 million acres of United States land. He is a former chair 
     of this Senate prayer breakfast and will be offering a prayer 
     for world leaders. Next to him is Janice Hahn's sidekick for 
     the next year, co-chair of the House breakfast group, Louie 
     Gohmert. He is a member of the House for 8 years and is from 
     East Texas. And finally, visiting from Italy, Mr. Andrea 
     Primicerio, and our soloist, Andrea Bocelli. Mr. Bocelli has 
     gone from a small farming village near Pisa, Italy to selling 
     more than 80 million records worldwide. I read that, at last 
     count, in addition to song writing, he plays 9 instruments. 
     This morning, he will play the most beautiful instrument God 
     has created, the human voice. Join me in welcoming our 
     soloist, Andrea Bocelli.
       [Song.]
       Senator Charles Schumer: Good morning. In the Jewish 
     tradition, we are given not only an English name but a Hebrew 
     name and my Hebrew name is Yesha'yahu--Isaiah. So I was 
     particularly honored when Mark asked me to read from the Book 
     of Isaiah. This is Isaiah 55:6-13,
       ``Seek the Lord, while He may be found, call on him while 
     he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways, and the 
     unrighteous their thoughts; let them turn to the Lord and he 
     will have mercy on them; and to our God, for He will freely 
     pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are 
     your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are 
     higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, 
     and my thoughts than your thoughts. As the rain and the snow 
     come down from the heaven, and do not return to it without 
     watering the earth, and making it bud and flourish so that it 
     yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my 
     word that goes out from my mouth; it will not return to me 
     empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the 
     purpose for which I sent it. You will go out in joy and be 
     led forth in peace. The mountains and hills will burst into 
     song before you and all the trees of the fields will clap 
     their hands. Instead of the thorn bush will grow the juniper 
     and instead of briars the myrtle will grow. This will be for 
     the Lord's renowned for an everlasting sign that will endure 
     forever.''
       Representative Louie Gohmert: It is such a pleasure to be 
     here and it's such a pleasure to share our Thursday morning 
     prayer breakfast with you. My co-chair in the House is Janice 
     Hahn. It's a surprise for some people, after they see the way 
     we go back and forth and debate, to see that the Prayer 
     Breakfast is truly bipartisan. We work together. We pray 
     together. And there's something that really brings people 
     together when you pray together. It's the belief in the power 
     of prayer that brings us together.
       My wife and I have tried to teach that to our three girls. 
     When they were old enough to pray, Cathy and I and our three 
     girls would gather around one of the girls' beds and we would 
     pray each night. One night we had some nose spray that a 
     doctor prescribed for our middle daughter, Caroline--she'd 
     been having real serious sinus problems. She didn't want it 
     up her nose--but I was bigger than her. It was going to be 
     good for her according to the doctor, so we got it up the 
     nose. But there was a lot of crying, wailing and gnashing of 
     teeth. But once the nose spray had been administered and the 
     tears subsided, the crying stopped, we gathered for prayers. 
     Katie prayed first and then Caroline and Caroline finished 
     her prayer by saying ``And please God, help Sarah (the little 
     one), mind her own business and quit being such a pest. And 
     help her to just leave me and Katie alone.'' Little Sarah had 
     the last prayer, and in her little angelic voice she said, 
     ``Please God, help Daddy stick some more medicine up 
     Caroline's nose.'' We had taught them how to pray but not 
     necessarily what it was for.
       So on Thursday mornings we gather, not to pray that God 
     will help us to stick something up our opponent's nose, but 
     we pray; and God grants mending and healing and blessing and 
     leadership, and it's a beautiful thing to see those come 
     together. It does make us better. It makes us stronger. And 
     it makes the government work better. Which is why Benjamin 
     Franklin, in his own words--his own handwriting--said, ``In 
     the beginning contest with Great Britain when we were 
     sensible of danger, we had daily prayer in this room. Our 
     prayers are heard and they were graciously answered.'' Janice 
     and I and our other colleagues have seen those prayers 
     answered and it's what brings us together. Thanks for joining 
     with us today.
       Representative Janice Hahn: Good morning. Mr. President, 
     Madam First Lady, Mr. Vice President, Senators, distinguished 
     guests; I'm so delighted to be here this morning with all of 
     you. It's such an honor to co-chair the House Congressional 
     prayer breakfast with my friend and colleague, Congressman 
     Louie Gohmert. His colleagues have said, ``This is the only 
     chairmanship that Speaker Boehner can't remove him from for 
     bad behavior.'' Only God can do that.
       Today's Prayer Breakfast offers an opportunity for us to 
     set aside political labels and come together to be inspired 
     and pray for the critical issues that are facing our nation 
     and the world. I was elected to Congress in the middle of one 
     of the most bitter, rancorous

[[Page S2554]]

     and divided periods in our nation's history. But in the midst 
     of that discord, there was one place that I found that we 
     could set aside our partisan bickering and our differences 
     and come together--a place where once a week, we could be 
     there for each other with our God. That place was the weekly 
     Congressional prayer breakfast. I've found some unlikely 
     friends in that breakfast. But they have helped me to be a 
     better member of Congress and to better serve my God and my 
     constituents.
       Faith has always been a strong part of my life and my 
     story. I grew up in the church. My grandparents on my 
     mother's side were missionaries to Japan. And my grandmother 
     on my father's side, in a moment of deep despair and 
     helplessness, turned to God for help in raising her seven 
     little boys under the age of 10 when her husband died 
     suddenly. That decision that my grandmother Hattie made, 
     helped me find my journey of faith. Every week when a member 
     of Congress comes to our prayer breakfast and tells their own 
     journey of faith, it gives us a bond that can't be broken. We 
     believe in the power of prayer and every week, we give thanks 
     when God has answered our prayers. Abraham Lincoln said, ``I 
     have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming 
     conviction that I have nowhere else to go. My own wisdom and 
     that of all about me seemed insufficient for the day.'' May 
     we all continue to believe that our own wisdom is 
     insufficient. God bless you all.
       Admiral Jonathan Greenert: Good Morning. Mr. President, 
     Mrs. Obama, Mr. Vice President, Senators, Congressmen, 
     distinguished guests. Many times many of you have said, even 
     today, to those of us that wear the cloth of the nation,'' 
     thank you for your service.'' And on behalf of our soldiers, 
     sailors, airmen, Marines and Coastguardsmen, may I say thank 
     you for your service and your support to your armed forces. 
     Please join me in a prayer for our national leaders.
       Oh Lord, we come before you today, thankful for the many 
     blessings you have bestowed upon our nation. And we humbly 
     ask for your continued guidance and strength. On this day, we 
     are reminded to give thanks for the extraordinary freedoms 
     that we enjoy, made possible by the efforts of past 
     generations of men and women who have served this great 
     nation. Your word tells us of King David whose willingness to 
     place his faith in you during difficult times serves as an 
     example for us all. Like David, there are many in this nation 
     who have answered the call to serve, both in and out of 
     uniform. Lord, we are thankful for their dedication, their 
     passion, their perseverance and for the families that support 
     their every effort. When it comes to our search for 
     inspiration, Scripture clearly speaks about where we should 
     begin charting our course--we begin with prayer. We ask that 
     you continue to guide our leaders with wisdom and 
     understanding as they weather the storms that confront our 
     nation. Provide them, God, with the vision necessary to see 
     the way ahead. The strength required to act on difficult 
     decisions and the compassion to care for the wellbeing of 
     those that they lead. Fortify the resolve of the men and 
     women who lead our great nation and provide us with bold, 
     confident and accountable leaders capable of carrying out 
     those actions that your wisdom directs. In your Holy Name we 
     pray, amen.
       The Honorable Elizabeth Dole: Mr. President, Mrs. Obama, 
     Mr. Vice President, honored guests, ladies and gentlemen. 
     It's my privilege today to read selected portions of Hebrews 
     11, which has been called the Hall of Faith. And I'll end 
     with Hebrews 12 versus 1-3 and verse 14.
       ``Now, faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain 
     of what we do not see. By faith we understand that the 
     universe was formed at God's command so that what is seen was 
     not made out of what was visible. And without faith, it is 
     impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him 
     must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who 
     earnestly seek him. By faith, Noah, when warned about things 
     not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. 
     By faith, Abraham, even though he was past age and Sarah 
     herself was barren was unable to become a father because he 
     considered him faithful who had made the promise. By faith, 
     Abraham when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He 
     who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one 
     and only son even though God had said to him ``it is through 
     Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.'' Abraham 
     reasoned that God could raise the dead and figuratively 
     speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death. By faith, 
     Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future. By 
     faith, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph's 
     sons and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff. By 
     faith, Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus 
     of the Israelites from Egypt. By faith, Moses' parents hid 
     him for three months after he was born because they saw he 
     was no ordinary child and they were not afraid of the king's 
     edict. By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be 
     known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. By faith, he left 
     Egypt not fearing the king's anger. He persevered because he 
     saw him who is invisible. By faith the people passed through 
     the Red Sea as on dry land. By faith, the walls of Jericho 
     fell after the people had marched around them for seven days. 
     By faith, the prostitute Rehab because she welcomed the 
     spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient. And 
     what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about 
     Gideon, Barack, Sampson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the 
     prophets who through faith, conquered kingdoms, administered 
     justice and gained what was promised. Who shut the mouths of 
     lions, quenched the fury of the flames and escaped the edge 
     of the sword, whose weakness was turned to strength. Others 
     were tortured and refused to be released so that they might 
     gain a better resurrection. Some faced years of flogging 
     while still others were chained and put in prison. They were 
     stoned, they were sawed in two, they were put to death by the 
     sword. These were all commended for their faith. Therefore, 
     since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, 
     let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so 
     easily entangles and let us run with perseverance, the race 
     that is set before us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the 
     author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before 
     him, endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at 
     the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him, who 
     endured such opposition from sinful men so that you will not 
     grow weary and lose heart. Make every effort to live in peace 
     with all men and to be holy, for without holiness no one will 
     see the Lord.''
       The Honorable Ken Salazar: Mr. President, Mrs. Obama, Vice 
     President Biden, members of the United States Senate, fellow 
     Cabinet members, members of the House of Representatives and 
     distinguished guests. The following prayer was written by 
     Cesar Chavez, the great leader of the United States Farm 
     Workers of America. Last year, President Obama visited the 
     gravesite of Cesar Chavez and his office at a place in La 
     Paz, California; and there, he made this place a national 
     monument so that we can honor the work of a true hero and a 
     follower of Christ and a follower of Gandhi. It was a moving 
     time for the President and all of us who were there that day.
       Chavez was a servant leader who followed the teachings of 
     Jesus Christ. He followed the teachings of Gandhi and Dr. 
     Martin Luther King. He was ever prayerful to Nuestra Senora 
     de Guadalupe (Our Lady of Guadalupe). Today as the world, in 
     many different places, rages in a debate about the peopling 
     of our nations and immigration, and as our nation does the 
     same thing, let us pray that all of our world leaders and all 
     of our leaders here in the United States, will be inspired by 
     the true story of the peopling of our nations and give voice 
     to those who now live in the fear of the shadows of our 
     society. And so, inspired by the teachings and life of Saint 
     Francis and Jesus Christ, let us pray as Cesar Chavez prayed, 
     as he fasted for those who have no voice, who are the most 
     vulnerable in our society.
       He prayed: ``Show me the suffering of the most miserable, 
     so that I will know my people's plight. Free me to pray for 
     others, because you are present in every person. Help me to 
     take responsibility for my own life, so that I can be free at 
     last. Grant me the courage to serve others, for in service 
     there is true life. Give me honesty and patience, so that I 
     can work with others. Bring forth song and celebration, so 
     that the Spirit will be alive among us. Let the Spirit 
     flourish and grow, so that we will never tire of the 
     struggle. Let us remember those who have died for justice, 
     for they have given us life. Help us love even those who hate 
     us, so we can change the world.'' God bless you, God bless 
     the United States of America, God bless all of our leaders.
       Senator Sessions: Of all of the complex things in the 
     world, perhaps the most complex is the human brain. How come 
     I can remember the words of the preamble of the Constitution 
     but can't find my glasses? We've invited as our guest speaker 
     this morning a gentleman for three reasons: he loves Jesus, 
     he has a compelling life story and he is a distinguished man 
     of science and healing. We hope that he can help us sort some 
     things out. May I introduce, the director of Pediatric 
     Neurosurgery at one of the world's great hospitals, Johns 
     Hopkins in Baltimore, Dr. Benjamin Carson, Sr.
       Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, Sr.: Thank you so much. Mr. 
     President, Mr. Vice President, Mrs. Obama, distinguished 
     guests--which includes everybody. Thank you so much for this 
     wonderful honor to be at this stage again. I was here 16 
     years ago and the fact that they've invited me back means 
     that I didn't offend too many people--so that was great. I 
     want to start by reading four texts, which will put into 
     context what I'm going to say.
       Proverbs 11:9. ``With his mouth, the godless destroys his 
     neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous escape.''
       Proverbs 11:12, ``A man who lacks judgment derides his 
     neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his tongue.''
       Proverbs 11:25, ``A generous man will prosper; he who 
     refreshes others will himself be refreshed.''
       2nd Chronicles 7:14, ``If my people who are called by my 
     name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and 
     turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and 
     will forgive their sins and heal their land.''
       I have an opportunity to speak in a lot of venues--this is 
     my fourth speech this week--and to talk to a lot of people. 
     And I've been asking people--what concerns you? What are you 
     most concerned about in the terms of the spirituality and the 
     direction of our nation and our world? I've talked to very 
     prominent Democrats, and very prominent Republicans and I was 
     surprised by the uniformity of their answers. And those have 
     informed my comments this morning.

[[Page S2555]]

       It's not my intention to offend anyone. I have discovered, 
     however, in recent years that it's very difficult to speak to 
     a large group of people these days and not offend someone. 
     And I know people walk around with their feelings on their 
     shoulders waiting for you to say something--``Ah, did you 
     hear that?'' And they can't hear anything else you say. The 
     PC police are out in force at all times. I remember once I 
     was talking to a group about the difference between a human 
     brain and a dog's brain. And a man got offended--he said, 
     ``You can't talk about dogs like that.'' But people just 
     focus in on that and completely miss the point of what you're 
     saying. We've reached the point where people are afraid to 
     actually talk about what they want to say--because somebody 
     might be offended. People are afraid to say, ``Merry 
     Christmas'' at Christmastime. It doesn't matter whether the 
     person you're talking to is Jewish or whether they're any 
     religion--that's a salutation of greeting, of good will. 
     We've got to get over this sensitivity. It keeps people from 
     saying what they really believe.
       I'm reminded of a very successful young businessman who 
     loved to buy his mother these exotic gifts for Mother's Day. 
     And he ran out of ideas, and then he ran across these birds. 
     These birds were cool. They cost 5,000 dollars apiece--they 
     could dance, they could sing, they could talk. He was so 
     excited, he bought two of them; sent them to his mother; 
     couldn't' wait to call her up on Mother's Day, ``Mother, 
     mother, what did you think of those birds?'' And she said, 
     ``They was good.'' He said, ``No, no, no, mother, you didn't 
     eat those birds; those birds cost 5,000 dollars apiece--they 
     could dance, they could sing, they could talk.'' And she 
     said, ``Well, they should have said something.'' And that's 
     where we end up too if we don't speak up for what we believe. 
     What we need to do in this PC world is forget about unanimity 
     of speech and unanimity of thought and we need to concentrate 
     on being respectful to those people with whom we disagree--
     that's when I think we begin to make real progress.
       One last thing about political correctness--which I think 
     is a horrible thing, by the way. I'm very, very compassionate 
     and I'm not ever out to offend anyone, but PC is dangerous 
     because in this country, one of the founding principles was 
     freedom of thought and freedom of expression and it muffles 
     people, it puts a muzzle on them. And at the same time, keeps 
     people from discussing important issues while the fabric of 
     their society is being changed. And we cannot fall for that 
     trick. What we need to do is start talking about things, 
     talking about things that are important, things that were 
     important in the development of our nation. One of those 
     things was education. I'm very passionate about education 
     because it made such a big difference in my life. But here we 
     are at a time in the world, the information age, the age of 
     technology, and yet 30 per cent of people who enter high 
     school in this country do not graduate. 44 percent of the 
     people who start a four year college program do not finish it 
     in four years. What is that about?
       Think back to a darker time in our history. 200 years ago 
     when slavery was going on, it was illegal to educate a slave, 
     particularly to teach him to read. Why do you think that was? 
     Because when you educate a man, you liberate the man. And 
     there I was as a youngster placing myself in the same 
     situation that a horrible institution did because I wasn't 
     taking advantage of the education, because I was a horrible 
     student. Most of my classmates thought I was the stupidest 
     person in the world. They called me ``dummy.'' I was the butt 
     of all the jokes. Admittedly, it was a bad environment--a 
     single parent home--my mother and father had gotten divorced 
     early on. My mother got married when she was 13. She was one 
     of 24 children; had a horrible life, discovered that her 
     husband was a bigamist, had another family, and she only had 
     a third grade education. She had to take care of us, in dire 
     poverty. I had a horrible temper, poor self-esteem; all of 
     the things that you think would preclude success. But I had 
     something very important. I had a mother who believed in me. 
     And I had a mother who would never allow herself to be a 
     victim, no matter what happened. She never made excuses and 
     she never accepted an excuse from us. And if we ever came up 
     with an excuse, she always said, ``Do you have a brain?'' And 
     if the answer was ``Yes,'' then she said, ``Then you could of 
     thought your way out of it; it doesn't matter what John or 
     Susan or Mary or anybody else did or said.'' And it was the 
     most important thing she did for my brother and myself 
     because if you don't accept excuses, pretty soon people stop 
     giving them and they start looking for solutions and that is 
     a critical issue when it comes to success.
       We did live in dire poverty and one of the things that I 
     hated was poverty. Some people hate spiders, some people hate 
     snakes--I hated poverty. I couldn't stand it. But my mother 
     couldn't stand the fact that we were doing poorly in school. 
     She prayed, she asked God to give her wisdom, what could she 
     do to get her young sons to understand the importance of 
     developing their minds, so that they could control their own 
     lives? And you know what? God gave her the wisdom, at least 
     in her opinion. My brother and I didn't think it was that 
     wise because it was to turn off the TV. She let us only watch 
     two or three TV programs during the week. And with all that 
     spare time, read two books apiece from the Detroit public 
     libraries and submit to her written book reports, which she 
     couldn't read but we didn't know that--she'd put checkmarks 
     and highlights and stuff. But you know, I just hated this, 
     and my friends were out having a good time. Her friends would 
     criticize her, they would say, ``You can't make boys stay in 
     the house reading books, they'll grow up, they'll hate you.'' 
     I would overhear them and I would say, ``You know, mother, 
     they're right.'' But she didn't care. But after a while, I 
     actually began to enjoy reading those books. Even though we 
     were very poor, between the covers of those books, I could go 
     anywhere, I could be anybody, I could do anything. I began to 
     read about people of great accomplishment. And as I read 
     those stories, I began to see a connecting thread. I began to 
     see that the person that has the most to do with you and what 
     happens to you in life is you. You make decisions. You decide 
     how much energy you want to put behind that decision. And I 
     came to understand that I had control of my own destiny. At 
     that point, I didn't hate poverty anymore because I knew it 
     was only temporary. I knew I could change that. It was 
     incredibly liberating for me, it made all the difference.
       And to continue on that theme of education, in 1831, Alexis 
     de Tocqueville came to America to study this country. The 
     Europeans were fascinated--how could a fledgling nation 
     barely 50 years old already be competing with them on 
     virtually every level. This is impossible--de Tocqueville was 
     going to sort it out. And he looked at our government and he 
     was duly impressed by the three branches of government--four 
     now because now of special interest groups, but it was only 
     three back in those days. And he said, ``Wow, this is really 
     something.'' And then he said, ``Let me look at their 
     educational system,'' and he was blown away. Anybody 
     finishing second grade was completely literate. He could find 
     a mountain man on the outskirts of society--the man could 
     read a newspaper, could have a political discussion, could 
     tell him how the government worked.
       If you really want to be impressed, take a look at the 
     chapter on education in my latest book, ``America the 
     Beautiful,'' which I wrote with my wife; it came out last 
     year. And in that education chapter, you will see questions 
     extracted from a sixth grade Exit Exam from the 1800's--a 
     test you had to pass to get your sixth grade certificate. I 
     doubt most college graduates today could pass that test. We 
     have dumbed things down to that level. And the reason that 
     that is so dangerous is because the people who founded this 
     nation said that our system of government was designed for a 
     well informed and educated populous. And when they become 
     less informed, they become vulnerable. Think about that, our 
     system of government, and that's why the education is so 
     vitally important.
       Now some people say ``Ah, you're overblowing it, things 
     aren't that bad, and you're a doctor, a neurosurgeon, why are 
     you concerned about these things?'' I've got news for you. 
     Five doctors signed the Declaration of Independence. Doctors 
     were involved in the framing of the Constitution, the Bill of 
     Rights, and a whole bunch of things. It's only been in recent 
     decades that we've extracted ourselves--which I think is a 
     big mistake. We need doctors and we need scientists, 
     engineers, we need all of those people involved in 
     government, not just lawyers. I don't have anything against 
     lawyers, but here's the thing about lawyers--and I'm sorry 
     but I got to be truthful--what do lawyers learn in law 
     school? To win, by hook or by crook, you got to win. So 
     you've got all these Democrat lawyers and you've got all 
     these Republican lawyers and their side wants to win. We need 
     to get rid of that. What we need to start thinking about is: 
     how do we solve problems?
       Now, before I get shot, let me finish here. I don't like to 
     bring up problems without coming up with solutions. My wife 
     and I started the Carson Scholars Fund 16 years ago after we 
     heard about an international survey looking at the ability of 
     eighth graders in 22 countries to solve math and science 
     problems; and we came out number 21 out of 22, barely beat 
     out number 22, very concerning. And we'd go into schools and 
     we'd see all these trophies, All State basketball, All State 
     wrestling, All State this, that and the other. The 
     quarterback was the big man on campus, What about the 
     intellectual superstar? What did they get? A National Honor 
     Society pin, a pat on the head, ``there, there little 
     nerd''--nobody cared about them. And is it any wonder that 
     sometimes the smart kids try to hide; they don't want anybody 
     to know that they're smart? This is not helping us as a 
     nation. So we started giving out scholarships to students 
     from all backgrounds for superior academic performance and 
     demonstration of humanitarian qualities. Unless you cared 
     about other people, it didn't matter how smart you were. 
     We've got plenty of people like that, we don't need those. We 
     need smart people who care about other people. We will give 
     them money, the money would go into a trust, they would get 
     interest on it and then when they went to college, they get 
     the money. But also, the school gets a trophy, every bit as 
     impressive as the sports trophies. It goes right out there 
     with the others. They get a medal. They get to go to a 
     banquet. And we try to put them on the same kind of pedestal 
     as we do the All State athletes.
       Now, I have nothing against athletics or entertainment, 
     please believe me. I'm from Baltimore, the Ravens won, this 
     is great, okay. But what will maintain our position in the 
     world, the ability to shoot a 25 foot jump

[[Page S2556]]

     shot or the ability to solve a quadratic equation? We need to 
     put things into proper perspective. Many teachers have told 
     us that when we put a Carson Scholar in their class room, the 
     GPA of the whole class goes up over the next year. And it's 
     been very gratifying. We started 16 years ago with 25 
     scholarships in Maryland; now we've given out more than 5,000 
     and we're in all 50 states. But we also put in reading rooms. 
     These are fascinating places that no little kid could 
     possibly pass up. They get points for the amount of time they 
     spend in their reading, the number of books that they read, 
     and they can trade them in for prizes. In the beginning, they 
     do it for the prizes, but it doesn't take long before their 
     academic performance begins to improve. We particularly 
     target Title 1 schools where kids come from homes with no 
     books and they go to schools with no libraries. Those are the 
     ones who drop out and we need to truncate that process early 
     on because we can't afford to waste any of those young 
     people. For every one of those people that we keep from going 
     down that path, that path of self-destruction and mediocrity, 
     that's one less person you have to protect yourself and your 
     family from. One less person you have to pay for in the penal 
     or the welfare system. One more tax paying productive member 
     of society who may invent a new energy source or come up with 
     a cure for cancer. They're all important to us and we need 
     every single one of them, it makes a difference. When you go 
     home tonight, please read about it, Carson Scholar Fund, 
     Carsonscholars.org.
       But, why is it so important that we educate our people? 
     Because we don't want to go down the same pathway as many 
     other pinnacle nations have who have preceded us. I think 
     particularly about ancient Rome--very powerful, nobody could 
     even challenge them militarily. But what happened to them? 
     They destroyed themselves from within--moral decay, fiscal 
     irresponsibility--they destroyed themselves. And if you don't 
     think that can happen to America, you get out your books and 
     you start reading. But you know we can fix it. Why can we fix 
     it? Because we're smart; we have some of the most 
     intellectually gifted people leading our nation. All we need 
     to do is remember what our real responsibilities are so we 
     can solve the problems. I think about these problems all the 
     time and my role model was Jesus and he used parables to help 
     people understand things.
       One of our big problems right now--and like I said, I'm not 
     politically correct so, I'm sorry--our deficit is a big 
     problem. Think about it. Our national debt, 16\1/2\ trillion 
     dollars, you think that's not a lot of money. I tell you 
     what, count one number per second, which you can't even do 
     because when you get to a thousand, you can't, it'll take you 
     longer than a second, but one number per second. You know how 
     long that'll take you to count to 16 trillion? 507,000 
     years--more than a half a million years to get there. We have 
     to deal with this. Here's the parable. A family falls on hard 
     times--dad loses his job or is demoted, gets part time work, 
     has five children. He comes to the five children and he says 
     ``We're going to have to reduce your allowance.'' Well, 
     they're not happy about it; but he says, ``Except for John 
     and Susan, they're special. They can keep their allowance; in 
     fact, I may give them more.'' How do you think that's going 
     to go down? Not too well. Same thing happens, enough said.
       What about our taxation system? So complex there is no one 
     who can possibly comply with every jot and tittle of our tax 
     system. If I wanted to get you, I could get you on a tax 
     issue. That doesn't make any sense. What we need to do is 
     come up with something that is simple. When I pick up my 
     Bible, you know what I see? I see the fairest individual in 
     the universe, God. And he's given us a system, it's called, 
     tithe. Now, we don't necessarily have to do it 10 per cent, 
     but it's the principle. He didn't say, ``If your crops fail, 
     don't give me any tithes.'' He didn't say, ``If you have a 
     bumper crop, give me triple tithes.'' So there must be 
     something inherently fair about proportionality. You make 10 
     billion dollars, you put in a billion. You make 10 dollars, 
     you put in one. Of course, you've got to get rid of the 
     loopholes. But now some people say, ``Well that's not fair 
     because it doesn't hurt the guy who made 10 billion dollars 
     as much as the guy who made 10.'' Where does it say you have 
     to hurt the guy? He just put a billion dollars in the pot; 
     you know we don't need to hurt him. It's that kind of 
     thinking that has resulted in 602 banks in the Cayman 
     Islands. That money needs to be back here building our 
     infrastructure and creating jobs. And we're smart enough to 
     figure out how to do that.
       We've already started down the path of solving one of the 
     other big problems, health care. We need to have good health 
     care for everybody. It's the most important thing that a 
     person can have. Money means nothing, titles means nothing, 
     when you don't have your health. But, we've got to figure out 
     efficient ways to do it. We spend a lot of money on health 
     care, twice as much per capita as anybody else in the world 
     and yet we're not very efficient. What can we do? Here's my 
     solution. When a person is born, give them a birth 
     certificate, an electronic medical record and a health 
     saving's account to which money can be contributed pre-tax 
     from the time you're born to the time you die. When you die, 
     you can pass it on to your family members so that when you're 
     85 years old and you've got six diseases, you're not trying 
     to spend up everything, you're happy to pass it on and 
     there's nobody talking about death panels. That's number one. 
     And also, for the people who are indigent, who don't have any 
     money; we can make contributions to their HSA each month 
     because we already have this huge pot of money. Instead of 
     sending it to some bureaucracy, let's put it in their HSA's. 
     Now they have some control over their own health care. And 
     what do you think they're going to do? They're going to learn 
     very quickly how to be responsible. When Mr. Jones gets that 
     diabetic foot ulcer, he's not going to the emergency room and 
     blowing a big chunk of it. He's going to go to the clinic. He 
     learns that very quickly. He gets the same treatment in the 
     emergency room they send him out to the clinic and say ``Now 
     let's get your diabetes under control so you're not back here 
     in three weeks with another problem. That's how we begin to 
     solve these kinds of problems. It's much more complex than 
     that and I don't have time to go into it all but we can do 
     all of these things because we're smart people.
       And let me just begin to close here by another parable. A 
     sea captain is out on the sea, near to the area where the 
     Titanic went down. He looks ahead and there's a bright light 
     right there, another ship he figures. He tells his signaler; 
     signal that ship, ``Deviate 10 degrees to the south.'' Back 
     comes the message ``No, you deviate 10 degrees to the 
     north.'' Well he's a little bit incensed, he says, ``Send a 
     message, This is Captain Johnson, deviate 10 degrees to the 
     north'.'' Back comes the message, ``This is Ensign 4th Class 
     Riley, deviate 10 degrees to the south.'' Now he's really 
     upset. He says, ``Send them a message, this is a naval 
     destroyer.'' Back comes the message, ``This is a light 
     house.'' Enough said.
       What about the symbol of our nation, the eagle, the bald 
     eagle. It's an interesting story how we chose that but a lot 
     of people think we call it the bald eagle because it looks 
     like it has a bald head. That's not the reason. It comes from 
     the Old English word, piebald, which means crowned with 
     white; and we just shortened it to bald. Now use that the 
     next time you see somebody who thinks they know everything--
     you get them with that one. But, why is that eagle able to 
     fly high, to fly forward? Because it has two wings, a left 
     wing and a right wing. Enough said.
       And I want to close with this story. 200 years ago this 
     nation was involved in a war, the War of 1812. The British, 
     who are now our good friends, thought that we were young 
     whippersnappers; it was time for us to become a colony again. 
     They were winning that war, marching up the Eastern Seaboard, 
     destroying city after city, destroyed Washington D.C., burned 
     down the White House; next stop, Baltimore. As they came into 
     the Chesapeake Bay, that armada of ships--war ships as far as 
     the eye could see--it was looking grim; Fort McHenry standing 
     right there. General Armistead, who was in charge of Fort 
     McHenry, had a large American flag commissioned to fly in 
     front of the fort. The admiral in charge of the British fleet 
     was offended and said, ``Take that flag down. You have until 
     dusk to take that flag down. If you don't take it down, we 
     will reduce you to ashes.'' There was a young amateur poet on 
     board by the name of Francis Scott Key, sent by President 
     Madison to try to obtain the release of an American physician 
     who was being held captive. He overheard the British plans; 
     they were not going to let him off the ship. He mourned as 
     dusk approached. He mourned for his fledgling young nation. 
     And as the sun fell, the bombardment started, bombs bursting 
     in air, missiles, so much debris. He strained trying to see--
     was the flag still there? Couldn't see a thing. All night 
     long it continued. At the crack of dawn he ran out to the 
     banister, he looked, straining his eyes, but all he could see 
     was dust and debris. And then there was a clearing and he 
     beheld the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen--the torn and 
     tattered stars and stripes still waving. And many historians 
     say that was the turning point in the War of 1812. We went on 
     to win that war and to retain our freedom. And if you had 
     gone onto the grounds of Fort McHenry that day, you would 
     have seen at the base of that flag the bodies of soldiers who 
     took turns propping up that flag. They would not let that 
     flag go down because they believed in what that flag 
     symbolized. And what did it symbolize? One nation under God, 
     indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you, God 
     bless.
       Senator Pryor: Thank you Dr. Carson. It is now my great 
     honor to introduce our President. One of the striking 
     measures of the passage of time since you first were with us 
     Mr. President is the comparison photographs of your daughters 
     at your first Inauguration and you're second. You have a 
     beautiful and wonderful family. And they remind us of the 
     core American values of faith, family and optimism in the 
     future. Mr. President, we want to express our love and our 
     respect for you this morning. You carry burdens none of us in 
     this room can imagine. Thank you for keeping the unbroken 
     commitment of ten former presidents to join us for breakfast 
     and prayer. Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the United 
     States, Barack Obama.
       President Barack Obama: Thank you very much. Please have a 
     seat. Mark, thank you for that introduction. I thought he was 
     going to talk about my gray hair. It is true that my 
     daughters are gorgeous. That's because my wife is gorgeous. 
     And my goal is to improve my gene pool. To Mark and Jeff, 
     thank you for your wonderful work on behalf of

[[Page S2557]]

     this breakfast. To all of those who worked so hard to put 
     this together; to the heads of state, members of Congress, 
     and my Cabinet, religious leaders and distinguished guests. 
     To our outstanding speaker. To all the faithful who've 
     journeyed to our capital, Michelle and I are truly honored to 
     be with you this morning.
       Before I begin, I hope people don't mind me taking a moment 
     of personal privilege. I want to say a quick word about a 
     close friend of mine and yours, Joshua Dubois. Now, some of 
     you may not know Joshua, but Joshua has been at my side--in 
     work and in prayer--for years now. He is a young reverend, 
     but wise in years. He's worked on my staff. He's done an 
     outstanding job as the head of our Faith-Based office. Every 
     morning he sends me via email a daily meditation--a snippet 
     of Scripture for me to reflect on. And it has meant the world 
     to me. And despite my pleas, tomorrow will be his last day in 
     the White House. So this morning I want to publically thank 
     Joshua for all that he's done, and I know that everybody 
     joins me in wishing him all the best in his future 
     endeavors--including getting married.
       It says something about us--as a nation and as a people--
     that every year, for 61 years now, this great prayerful 
     tradition has endured. It says something about us that every 
     year, in times of triumph and in tragedy, in calm and in 
     crisis, we come together, not as Democrats or Republicans, 
     but as brothers and sisters, and as children of God. Every 
     year, in the midst of all our busy and noisy lives, we set 
     aside one morning to gather as one community, united in 
     prayer. We do so because we're a nation ever humbled by our 
     history, and we're ever attentive to our imperfections--
     particularly the imperfections of our President. We come 
     together because we're a people of faith. We know that faith 
     is something that must be cultivated. Faith is not a 
     possession. Faith is a process.
       I was struck by the passage that was read earlier from the 
     Book of Hebrews: ``Without faith it is impossible to please 
     God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He 
     exists and He rewards those who diligently seek Him.'' He 
     rewards those who diligently seek Him--not just for one 
     moment, or one day, but for every moment, and every day. As 
     Christians, we place our faith in the nail-scarred hands of 
     Jesus Christ. But so many other Americans also know the close 
     embrace of faith--Muslims and Jews, Hindus and Sikhs. And all 
     Americans--whether religious or secular--have a deep and 
     abiding faith in this nation.
       Recently I had occasion to reflect on the power of faith. A 
     few weeks ago, during the inauguration, I was blessed to 
     place my hand on the Bibles of two great Americans, two men 
     whose faith still echoes today. One was the Bible owned by 
     President Abraham Lincoln, and the other, the Bible owned by 
     Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As I prepared to take the sacred 
     oath, I thought about these two men, and I thought of how, in 
     times of joy and pain and uncertainty, they turned to their 
     Bibles to seek the wisdom of God's word--and thought of how, 
     for as long as we've been a nation, so many of our leaders, 
     our Presidents, and our preachers, our legislators and our 
     jurists have done the same. Each one faced their own 
     challenges; each one finding in Scripture their own lessons 
     from the Lord. And as I was looking out on the crowd during 
     the inauguration I thought of Dr. King. We often think of him 
     standing tall in front of the endless crowds, stirring the 
     nation's conscience with a bellowing voice and a mighty 
     dream. But I also thought of his doubts and his fears, for 
     those moments came as well--the lonely moments when he was 
     left to confront the presence of long-festering injustice and 
     undisguised hate; imagined the darkness and the doubt that 
     must have surrounded him when he was in that Birmingham jail, 
     and the anger that surely rose up in him the night his house 
     was bombed with his wife and child inside, and the grief that 
     shook him as he eulogized those four precious girls taken 
     from this Earth as they gathered in a house of God. And I was 
     reminded that, yes, Dr. King was a man of audacious hope and 
     a man of relentless optimism. But he was also a man 
     occasionally brought to his knees in fear and in doubt and in 
     helplessness. And in those moments, we know that he retreated 
     alone to a quiet space so he could reflect and he could pray 
     and he could grow his faith. And I imagine he turned to 
     certain verses that we now read. I imagine him reflecting on 
     Isaiah, that we wait upon the Lord; that the Lord shall renew 
     those who wait; that they shall mount up with wings as 
     eagles, and they shall run and not be weary, and they shall 
     walk and not faint. We know that in Scripture, Dr. King found 
     strength; in the Bible, he found conviction. In the words of 
     God, he found a truth about the dignity of man that, once 
     realized, he never relinquished.
       We know Lincoln had such moments as well. To see this 
     country torn apart, to see his fellow citizens waging a 
     ferocious war that pitted brother against brother, family 
     against family--that was as heavy a burden as any President 
     will ever have to bear. We know Lincoln constantly met with 
     troops and visited the wounded and honored the dead. And the 
     toll mounted day after day, week after week. And you can see 
     in the lines of his face the toll that the war cost him. But 
     he did not break. Even as he buried a beloved son, he did not 
     break. Even as he struggled to overcome melancholy, despair, 
     grief, he did not break. And we know that he surely found 
     solace in Scripture; that he could acknowledge his own 
     doubts, that he was humbled in the face of the Lord. And 
     that, I think, allowed him to become a better leader. It's 
     what allowed him in what may be one of the greatest speeches 
     ever written, in his second Inaugural, to describe the Union 
     and the Confederate soldier alike--both reading the same 
     Bible, both prayed to the same God, but ``the prayers of both 
     could not be answered. That of neither has been answered 
     fully. The Almighty has His own purposes.'' In Lincoln's 
     eyes, the power of faith was humbling, allowing us to embrace 
     our limits in knowing God's will. And as a consequence, he 
     was able to see God in those who vehemently opposed him.
       Today, the divisions in this country are, thankfully, not 
     as deep or destructive as when Lincoln led, but they are 
     real. The differences in how we hope to move our nation 
     forward are less pronounced than when King marched, but they 
     do exist. And as we debate what is right and what is just, 
     what is the surest way to create a more hopeful--for our 
     children--how we're going to reduce our deficit, what kind of 
     tax plans we're going to have, how we're going to make sure 
     that every child is getting a great education--and, Doctor, 
     it is very encouraging to me that you turned out so well by 
     your mom not letting you watch TV. I'm going to tell my 
     daughters that when they complain. In the midst of all these 
     debates, we must keep that same humility that Dr. King and 
     Lincoln and Washington and all our great leaders understood 
     is at the core of true leadership. In a democracy as big and 
     as diverse as ours, we will encounter every opinion. And our 
     task as citizens--whether we are leaders in government or 
     business or spreading the word--is to spend our days with 
     open hearts and open minds; to seek out the truth that exists 
     in an opposing view and to find the common ground that allows 
     for us as a nation, as a people, to take real and meaningful 
     action. And we have to do that humbly, for no one can know 
     the full and encompassing mind of God. And we have to do it 
     every day, not just at a prayer breakfast. I have to say this 
     is now our fifth prayer breakfast and it is always just a 
     wonderful event. But I do worry sometimes that as soon as we 
     leave the prayer breakfast, everything we've been talking 
     about the whole time at the prayer breakfast seems to be 
     forgotten--on the same day of the prayer breakfast. I mean, 
     you'd like to think that the shelf life wasn't so short. But 
     I go back to the Oval Office and I start watching the cable 
     news networks and it's like we didn't pray.
       And so my hope is that that humility carries over every 
     day, every moment. While God may reveal His plan to us in 
     portions, the expanse of His plan is for God, and God alone, 
     to understand. ``For now we see through a glass, darkly; but 
     then face to face; now I know in part, but then shall I know 
     even as also I am known.'' Until that moment, until we know, 
     and are fully known, all we can do is live our lives in a 
     Godly way and assume that those we deal with every day, 
     including those in an opposing party, they're groping their 
     way, doing their best, going through the same struggles we're 
     going through. And in that pursuit, we are blessed with 
     guidance. God has told us how He wishes for us to spend our 
     days. His Commandments are there to be followed. Jesus is 
     there to guide us; the Holy Spirit, to help us. Love the Lord 
     God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all 
     your mind. Love your neighbor as yourself. See in everyone, 
     even in those with whom you disagree most vehemently, the 
     face of God. For we are all His children. That's what I 
     thought of as I took the oath of office a few weeks ago and 
     touched those Bibles--the comfort that Scripture gave Lincoln 
     and King and so many leaders throughout our history; the 
     verses they cherished, and how those words of God are there 
     for us as well, waiting to be read any day that we choose. I 
     thought about how their faith gave them the strength to meet 
     the challenges of their time, just as our faith can give us 
     the strength to meet the challenges of ours. And most of all, 
     I thought about their humility, and how we don't seem to live 
     that out the way we should, every day, even when we give lip 
     service to it.
       As President, sometimes I have to search for the words to 
     console the inconsolable. Sometimes I search Scripture to 
     determine how best to balance life as a President and as a 
     husband and as a father. I often search for Scripture to 
     figure out how I can be a better man as well as a better 
     President. And I believe that we are united in these 
     struggles. But I also believe that we are united in the 
     knowledge of a redeeming Savior, whose grace is sufficient 
     for the multitude of our sins, and whose love is never 
     failing. And most of all, I know that all Americans--men and 
     women of different faiths and, yes, those of no faith that 
     they can name--are, nevertheless, joined together in common 
     purpose, believing in something that is bigger than 
     ourselves, and the ideals that lie at the heart of our 
     nation's founding--that as a people we are bound together.
       And so this morning, let us summon the common resolve that 
     comes from our faith. Let us pray to God that we may be 
     worthy of the many blessings He has bestowed upon our nation. 
     Let us retain that humility not just during this hour but for 
     every hour. And let me suggest that those of us with the most 
     power and influence need to be the most humble. And let us 
     promise Him and to each other, every day as the sun rises 
     over America that it will rise over a people who are striving 
     to make this a more perfect union. Thank you. God bless you, 
     and God bless the United States of America.

[[Page S2558]]

       Senator Sessions: Thank you. Thank you Mr. President. We're 
     not of the same political party, sometimes we disagree, but 
     speaking as an American, we are one nation and we have one 
     President who serves us all. Thank you for being my 
     President, thank you for being our President.
       So let's all enjoy now a final selection from Andrea 
     Boccelli.
       [Song]
       Mr. Andrea Bocelli: Thank you very much. I'm very ashamed 
     of my English because I would like to tell you many, many 
     things but I can't because my English is very poor. But I 
     live this moment like a dream, because very often my country 
     has been in trouble, just because the left and the right 
     never are able to speak with each other. And in this country 
     where I received a lot, a big, big affection, incredible 
     affection, today I received also a big teaching. I will try 
     going back to my country, Italy, to transmit this will that 
     for me is the most important thing--the will to pray 
     together. Thank you very much.
       Senator Pryor: Thank you Andrea. Just like your songs that 
     was very beautiful. At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, 
     Jesus said, ``Therefore, everyone who hears these words of 
     mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built 
     his house on the rock.'' Let's be wise people in the 
     important roles that we're about to step back into in a few 
     minutes and put what we've heard and learned here into 
     practice.
       Senator Sessions: Love God. Love your neighbor. Let's make 
     that simple rule our guide and make our complex world a 
     better one today. And to offer our closing prayer, please 
     welcome Olympic gold medalist, Gabrielle Douglas.
       Ms. Gabrielle Douglas: Thank you. It's such an honor to be 
     here today with so many distinguished leaders, especially Mr. 
     President, Mrs. Obama, Mr. Vice President and the Honorable 
     Mark Pryor and the Honorable Jeff Sessions. Now please, 
     please join me as we bow our heads and pray.
       Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the many continued 
     blessings. We uplift every leader from every nation and ask 
     that you continue to give them wisdom as they govern. Teach 
     us to walk in humility, strengthen us as we strive to fulfill 
     your plan, your purpose for our lives. And as we go from 
     here, I pray we would all pursue your peace, your love and 
     your grace, in Jesus' name, Amen.
       Senator Pryor: We're done, thank you, God bless you.

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