EMBARGOED: Weekly Address: President Obama Delivers Thanksgiving Greeting

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

______________________________________________________________________________

EMBARGOED UNTIL 6:00 AM ET, THURSDAY, November 26, 2009

 

WEEKLY ADDRESS: President Obama Delivers Thanksgiving Greeting

 

WASHINGTON – In the midst of these challenging times for our nation, President Barack Obama used his weekly address to express gratitude to America's military men and women and their families, and give thanks for our nation's many blessings.  He also discussed the steps his administration is taking to repair the damaged economy, so that next Thanksgiving, Americans across the country can give thanks for a brighter and stronger economy.

 

The audio and video will be available at 6:00am Thursday, November 26, 2009 at www.whitehouse.gov.

 

Prepared Remarks of President Barack Obama

Weekly Address

Thursday, November 26, 2009

 

For centuries, in peace and in war, in prosperity and in adversity, Americans have paused at this time of year to gather with loved ones and give thanks for life's blessings. This week, we carry on this distinctly American tradition.  All across our country, folks are coming together to spend time with family, to catch up with old friends, to cook and enjoy a big dinner – and maybe to watch a little football in between.

 

As always, we give thanks for the kindness of loved ones, for the joys of the previous year, and for the pride we feel in our communities and country. We keep in our thoughts and prayers the many families marking this Thanksgiving with an empty seat – saved for a son or daughter, or husband or wife, stationed in harm's way. And we say a special thanks for the sacrifices those men and women in uniform are making for our safety and freedom, and for all those Americans who enrich the lives of our communities through acts of kindness, generosity and service.

 

But as much as we all have to be thankful for, we also know that this year millions of Americans are facing very difficult economic times. Many have lost jobs in this recession – the worst in generations. Many more are struggling to afford health care premiums and house payments, let alone to save for an education or retirement. Too many are wondering if the dream of a middle class life – that American Dream – is slipping away.  It's the worry I hear from folks across the country; good, hard-working people doing the best they can for their families – but fearing that their best just isn't good enough. These are not strangers.  They are our family, our friends, and our neighbors. Their struggles must be our concern.

 

That's why we passed the Recovery Act that cut taxes for 95 percent of working people and for small businesses – and that extended unemployment benefits and health coverage for millions of Americans who lost their jobs in this turmoil.  That's why we are reforming the health care system so that middle-class families have affordable insurance that cannot be denied because of a pre-existing condition or taken away because you happen to get sick. We've worked to stem the tide of foreclosures and to stop the decline in home values. We're making it easier to save for retirement and more affordable to send a son or daughter to college.

 

The investments we have made and tough steps we have taken have helped break the back of the recession, and now our economy is finally growing again.  But as I said when I took office, job recovery from this crisis would not come easily or quickly. Though the job losses we were experiencing earlier this year have slowed dramatically, we're still not creating enough new jobs each month to make up for the ones we're losing.  And no matter what the economists say, for families and communities across the country, this recession will not end until we completely turn that tide.

 

So we've made progress. But we cannot rest – and my administration will not rest – until we have revived this economy and rebuilt it stronger than before; until we are creating jobs and opportunities for middle class families; until we have moved beyond the cycles of boom and bust – of reckless risk and speculation – that led us to so much crisis and pain these past few years.

 

Next week, I'll be meeting with owners of large and small businesses, labor leaders, and non-for-profits from across the country, to talk about the additional steps we can take to help spur job creation. I will work with the Congress to enact them quickly. And it is my fervent hope – and my heartfelt expectation – that next Thanksgiving we will be able to celebrate the fact that many of those who have lost their jobs are back at work, and that as a nation we will have come through these difficult storms stronger and wiser and grateful to have reached a brighter day.

 

Thank you, God bless you, and from my family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving.

EMBARGOED: Weekly Address: President Obama's Overseas Trip Focused on Better Relations with Asia and Creating Jobs at Home

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

______________________________________________________________________________

EMBARGOED UNTIL 6:00 AM ET, SATURDAY, November 21, 2009

 

WEEKLY ADDRESS: President Obama's Overseas Trip Focused on Better Relations with Asia and Creating Jobs at Home

 

WASHINGTON – In this week's address, President Barack Obama described the progress made during his trip to Asia, and detailed steps the administration is taking to spur job creation.  The President explained how increasing exports to Asia Pacific nations can create hundreds of thousands of jobs in America and described the upcoming jobs forum which will host CEOs, labor unions, economists, and nonprofits.

 

The full audio of the address is HERE. The video can be viewed online at www.whitehouse.gov.

 

Remarks of President Barack Obama

Weekly Address

Saturday, November 21, 2009

 

Hi.  I'm recording this message from Seoul, South Korea, as I finish up my first presidential trip to Asia.  As we emerge from the worst recession in generations, there is nothing more important than to do everything we can to get our economy moving again and put Americans back to work, and I will go anywhere to pursue that goal. 

 

That's one of the main reasons I took this trip.  Asia is a region where we now buy more goods and do more trade with than any other place in the world – commerce that supports millions of jobs back home.  It's also a place where the risk of a nuclear arms race threatens our security, and where extremists plan attacks on America's soil.  And since this region includes some of the fastest-growing nations, there can be no solution to the challenge of climate change without the cooperation of the Asia Pacific.

 

With this in mind, I traveled to Asia to open a new era of American engagement.  We made progress with China and Russia in sending a unified message to Iran and North Korea that they must live up to their international obligations and either forsake nuclear weapons or face the consequences.  As the two largest consumers and producers of energy, we developed a host of new clean energy initiatives with China, and our two nations agreed to work toward a successful outcome at the upcoming climate summit in Copenhagen – an outcome that leads to immediate action to reduce carbon pollution.  And I spoke to young men and women at a town hall in Shanghai and across the internet about certain values that we in America believe are universal:  the freedom of worship and speech; the right to access information and choose one's own leaders. 

 

But above all, I spoke with leaders in every nation I visited about what we can do to sustain this economic recovery and bring back jobs and prosperity for our people – a task I will continue to focus on relentlessly in the weeks and months ahead. 

 

This recession has taught us that we can't return to a situation where America's economic growth is fueled by consumers who take on more and more debt.  In order to keep growing, we need to spend less, save more, and get our federal deficit under control.  We also need to place a greater emphasis on exports that we can build, produce, and sell to other nations – exports that can help create new jobs at home and raise living standards throughout the world. 

 

For example, if we can increase our exports to Asia Pacific nations by just 5%, we can increase the number of American jobs supported by these exports by hundreds of thousands.  This is already happening with businesses like American Superconductor Corporation, an energy technology startup based in Massachusetts that's been providing wind power and smart grid systems to countries like China, Korea, and India.  By doing so, it's added more than 100 jobs over the last few years. 

 

Increasing our exports is one way to create new jobs and new prosperity.  But as we emerge from a recession that has left millions without work, we have an obligation to consider every additional, responsible step we can take to encourage and accelerate job creation in this country. That's why I've announced that in the next few weeks, we'll be holding a forum at the White House on jobs and economic growth. I want to hear from CEOs and small business owners, economists and financial experts, as well as representatives from labor unions and nonprofit groups, about what they think we can do to spur hiring and get this economy moving again.

 

It is important that we do not make any ill-considered decisions – even with the best of intentions – particularly at a time when our resources are so limited.  But it is just as important that we are open to any demonstrably good idea to supplement the steps we've already taken to put America back to work.  That's what I hope to achieve in this forum.  

 

Still, there is no forum or policy that can bring all the jobs we've lost overnight.  I wish there were, because so many Americans – friends, neighbors, family members – are desperately looking for work.  But even though it will take time, I can promise you this:  we are moving in the right direction; that the steps we are taking are helping; and I will not let up until businesses start hiring again, unemployed Americans start working again, and we rebuild this economy stronger and more prosperous than it was before.  That has been the focus of our efforts these past ten months – and it will continue to be our focus in the months and years to come. 

 

Thanks. 

Fwd: EMBARGOED: Weekly Address: President Obama Extends Condolences to the Fort Hood Community

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

______________________________________________________________________________

EMBARGOED UNTIL 6:00 AM ET, SATURDAY, November 7, 2009

 

WEEKLY ADDRESS: President Obama Extends Condolences to the Fort Hood Community

 

WASHINGTON – In this week's address, President Barack Obama expressed his sadness for the tragedy at Fort Hood and praised the selfless valor of those who came to the aid of the wounded. While we mourn the heartbreaking violence, we should honor the heroism of the soldiers and civilians who rushed to help their comrades. That is the heroism which makes the U.S. military the finest in the world. 

 

The audio and video will be available at 6:00am Saturday, November 7, 2009 at www.whitehouse.gov.

 

Remarks of President Barack Obama

As Prepared for Delivery

Weekly Address

Saturday, November 7, 2009

 

I'd like to speak with you for a few minutes today about the tragedy that took place at Ft. Hood. This past Thursday, on a clear Texas afternoon, an Army psychiatrist walked into the Soldier Readiness Processing Center, and began shooting his fellow soldiers.

 

It is an act of violence that would have been heartbreaking had it occurred anyplace in America. It is a crime that would have horrified us had its victims been Americans of any background. But it's all the more heartbreaking and all the more despicable because of the place where it occurred and the patriots who were its victims.

 

The SRP is where our men and women in uniform go before getting deployed. It's where they get their teeth checked and their medical records updated and make sure everything is in order before getting shipped out. It was in this place, on a base where our soldiers ought to feel most safe, where those brave Americans who are preparing to risk their lives in defense of our nation, lost their lives in a crime against our nation.

 

Soldiers stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan, and around the world called and emailed loved ones at Ft. Hood, all expressing the same stunned reaction: I'm supposed to be the one in harm's way, not you.

 

Thursday's shooting was one of the most devastating ever committed on an American military base. And yet, even as we saw the worst of human nature on full display, we also saw the best of America. We saw soldiers and civilians alike rushing to aid fallen comrades; tearing off bullet-riddled clothes to treat the injured; using blouses as tourniquets; taking down the shooter even as they bore wounds themselves.

 

We saw soldiers bringing to bear on our own soil the skills they had been trained to use abroad; skills that been honed through years of determined effort for one purpose and one purpose only: to protect and defend the United States of America.

 

We saw the valor, selflessness, and unity of purpose that make our servicemen and women the finest fighting force on Earth; that make the United States military the best the world has ever known; and that make all of us proud to be Americans.

 

On Friday, I met with FBI Director Mueller, Defense Secretary Gates, and representatives of the relevant agencies to discuss their ongoing investigation into what led to this terrible crime. And I'll continue to be in close contact with them as new information comes in.

 

We cannot fully know what leads a man to do such a thing. But what we do know is that our thoughts are with every single one of the men and women who were injured at Ft. Hood. Our thoughts are with all the families who've lost a loved one in this national tragedy. And our thoughts are with all the Americans who wear – or who've worn – the proud uniform of the United States of America; our soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and coast guardsmen, and the military families who love and support them.

 

In tribute to those who fell at Ft. Hood, I've ordered flags flying over the White House, and other federal buildings to be lowered to half-staff from now until Veterans Day next Wednesday. Veterans Day is our chance to honor those Americans who've served on battlefields from Lexington to Antietam, Normandy to Manila, Inchon to Khe Sanh, Ramadi to Kandahar.

 

They are Americans of every race, faith, and station. They are Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus and nonbelievers. They are descendents of immigrants and immigrants themselves. They reflect the diversity that makes this America. But what they share is a patriotism like no other. What they share is a commitment to country that has been tested and proved worthy. What they share is the same unflinching courage, unblinking compassion, and uncommon camaraderie that the soldiers and civilians of Ft. Hood showed America and showed the world.

 

These are the men and women we honor today. These are the men and women we'll honor on Veterans Day. And these are the men and women we shall honor every day, in times of war and times of peace, so long as our nation endures.