Video….speeches…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMwmk7D0BoI&feature=youtu.be
You're Going to Want to Watch This Speech
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/07/21/youre-going-want-watch-speech?utm_source=snapshot&utm_medium=email&utm_content=072213-video
I just finished reading the draft of a speech the President
plans to deliver on Wednesday, and I want to explain why it’s one worth
checking out.
Eight years ago, not long after he was elected to the United
States Senate, President Obama went to Knox
College in his home state of Illinois where he laid
out his economic vision for the country. It’s a vision that says America
is strongest when everybody’s got a shot at opportunity – not when our economy
is winner-take-all, but when we’re all in this together.
Revisiting that speech, it’s clear that it sowed the seeds
of a consistent vision for the middle class he’s followed ever since. It’s a
vision he carried through his first campaign in 2008, it’s a vision he carried
through speeches like the one he gave at Georgetown University shortly after
taking office that imagined a new foundation for our economy and one in
Osawatomie, Kansas on economic inequality in 2011 -- and it’s a vision he
carried through his last campaign in 2012.
All of these speeches – Knox
College, Georgetown, Osawatomie – make clear that
since day one, the President has had one clear economic philosophy: The
American economy works best when it grows from the middle-out, not the top
down.
This Wednesday, almost five years after the financial crisis
fueled a devastating recession, and two years after a debate over whether or
not America would pay its bills that harmed our recovery, the President will
return to Knox College to kick off a series of speeches that will lay out his
vision for rebuilding an economy that puts the middle class and those fighting
to join it front and center. He’ll talk about the progress we’ve made together,
the challenges that remain, and the path forward.
And over the next several weeks, the President will deliver
speeches that touch on the cornerstones of what it means to be middle class in America: job
security, a good education, a home to call your own, affordable health care
when you get sick, and the chance to save for a secure, dignified retirement.
They will include new ideas and new pushes for ideas he has discussed before.
They’ll outline steps Congress can take, steps he’ll take on his own, and steps
the private sector can take that benefit us all.
The point is to chart a course for where America needs to go – not just in
the next three months or even the next three years, but a steady, persistent
effort over the long term to restore this country’s basic bargain for the
middle class.
Why now? Well, we've made important progress with the Senate
passing comprehensive immigration reform and will continue to work with the
House to push to get that enacted into law. But the President thinks Washington has largely
taken its eye off the ball on the most important issue facing the country.
Instead of talking about how to help the middle class, too many in Congress are
trying to score political points, refight old battles, and trump up phony
scandals. And in a couple of months, we will face some more critical budget deadlines
that require Congressional action, not showdowns that only serve to harm
families and businesses -- and the President wants to talk about the issues
that should be at the core of that debate.
As I was reading through his draft, I was reminded what
drives this President to work so hard. I hope you’ll watch this video showing
the context of the last eight years and then tune in on Wednesday to find out.
I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.