Obama's Weekly Address: White House Not to Blame for Rising Gas Costs

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) -- In his weekly address, President Obama continues to defend his energy strategy and claim his administration is not to blame for the spike in gas prices.
 
Echoing a speech he gave in Miami earlier this week, the president warns that politicians criticizing his administration’s energy policy are simply trying to score political points from the pain at the pump.
 
“Some politicians always see this as a political opportunity.  And since it’s an election year, they’re already dusting off their three-point plans for $2 gas.  I’ll save you the suspense:  Step one is drill, step two is drill and step three is keep drilling.  We hear the same thing every year,” the president says.
 
“The American people aren’t stupid.  You know that’s not a plan -- especially since we’re already drilling.  It’s a bumper sticker.  It’s not a strategy to solve our energy challenge.  It’s a strategy to get politicians through an election,” he says in the address.
 
Instead the president argues there “are no quick fixes to this problem” and that an all-of-the-above approach is the “only real solution” to solve the nation’s energy challenges.
 
Hammering home the point that his administration’s actions are not the cause of rising oil costs, the president boasts that “America is producing more oil today than at any time in the last eight years” and notes that dependence on foreign oil was under 50 percent in 2010, the first time in more than a decade.
 
“While there are no short-term silver bullets when it comes to gas prices, I’ve directed my administration to look for every single area where we can make an impact and help consumers in the months ahead, from permitting to delivery bottlenecks to what’s going on in the oil markets,” he says, calling for an end to oil and gas subsidies and for Congress to renew clean energy tax credits.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Weekly Address: 'Always Something We Can Do' for Manufacturers

JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images(EVERETT, Wash.) -- President Obama uses his weekly address -- set against the backdrop of the newest American-designed passenger, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner -- to reprise a call for legislative action aimed at boosting productivity and employment at U.S. manufacturers.
 
“In America, there’s always something we can do to create new jobs and new manufacturing and new security for the middle-class,” Obama says. “In America, we don’t give up, we get up.”
 
Obama heralds the resurgence of the U.S. manufacturing sector led by companies like Boeing, the nation’s largest exporter.  "Manufacturers are hiring for the first time since the 1990s," he notes. But, the president says, companies need new tax incentives to keep the momentum going.
 
“It’s time to stop rewarding businesses that ship jobs overseas, and start rewarding businesses that create jobs here in America.  And Congress should send me that kind of tax reform right away.”

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Weekly Address: Extending the Payroll Tax Cut

Kevin Lamarque-Pool/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- In his weekly address, President Obama urges Congress to extend the payroll tax cut without “drama” or “delay,” saying now is not the time for “self-inflicted wounds to our recovery.”
 
“At the end of the month, taxes are set to go up on 160 million working Americans. If you’re one of them, then you know better than anyone that the last thing you need right now is a tax hike. But if Congress refuses to act, middle class taxes will go up.  It’s that simple,” the president says.
 
Obama urges lawmakers not to put the American people through the same “bickering” and “political posturing” that occurred when Congress faced the same predicament last December.
 
“Congress needs to stop this middle class tax hike from happening. Period,” he says. “And no ideological side issues that have nothing to do with this tax cut. Now is not the time for self-inflicted wounds to our recovery. Now is the time for common-sense action.”

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Weekly Address: Reviving the Housing Market

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) -- Calling the housing crisis the “single biggest drag on our recovery,” President Obama is urging Congress to act on his latest housing refinance plan.
 
“In order to lower mortgage payments for millions of Americans, we need Congress to act. They’re the ones who have to pass this plan.  And as anyone who has followed the news in the last six months can tell you, getting Congress to do anything these days is not an easy job,” the president says in his weekly address, as he enlisted Americans to help him “keep up the pressure on Congress to do the right thing.”
 
The president’s plan asks Congress for a tax on large banks to help “responsible homeowners” refinance at today’s low rates, saving the average borrower roughly $3,000 a year, according to the White House.
 
“No more red tape. No more endless forms. And a small fee on the largest financial institutions will make sure it doesn’t add a dime to the deficit,” Obama says.
 
The president also repeats a veiled stab at Republican frontrunner Mitt Romney over how to best revive the housing market. “It is wrong for anyone to suggest that the only option for struggling, responsible homeowners is to sit and wait for the housing market to hit bottom. I don’t accept that. None of us should,” he says.
 
The former Massachusetts governor told the Las Vegas Review-Journal in October that the housing market should “run its course and hit the bottom.”

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Address: Ending Political Games to Make Progress in Washington

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) -- After three days on the road selling his State of the Union message, President Obama is urging Congress to act on his proposals to stem the “corrosive influence of money in politics” and to give judicial and public service nominations “up-or-down” votes.
 
As he traveled through Iowa, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Michigan this week the president says he met people who believe in America but are skeptical that progress can be made in Washington. “Frankly, when you look at some of the things that go on in this town, who could blame them for being a little cynical?” Obama says in his weekly address.
 
The president calls out Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah for vowing to block any nominations he makes this year. Still fuming over Obama’s decision to sidestep the Senate and appoint Richard Cordray to lead the new consumer watchdog agency, Lee said the president should rescind his recess appointments.
 
“This isn’t about me,” Obama says. “We weren’t sent here to wage perpetual political campaigns against each other.  We were sent here to serve the American people.  And they deserve better than gridlock and games. One senator gumming up the whole works for the entire country is certainly not what our founding fathers envisioned.”
 
“The truth is, neither party has been blameless in tactics like these. But it’s time for both parties to put an end to them. I’m asking Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, to stop this kind of behavior by passing a rule that allows all judicial and public service nominations a simple up-or-down vote within 90 days,” he says.
 
Repeating a call he made in his State of the Union address, the president also asks lawmakers to send him a bill that limits the influence of money in politics. “The House and Senate should send me a bill that bans insider trading by Members of Congress, and I will sign it immediately.  They should limit any elected official from owning stocks in industries they impact.  And they should make sure people who bundle campaign contributions for Congress can’t lobby Congress, and vice versa,” he says.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Address: State of the Union Will Be 'Blueprint' for Joint Action

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) -- President Obama says he will lay out a “blueprint for actions we need to take together” to improve the U.S. economy when he addresses a joint session of Congress and the nation with his State of the Union address Tuesday night.
 
The framework, Obama says in his weekly address, will apply to “not just me, or Congress, but every American, to rebuild an economy where hard work and responsibility are rewarded.”
 
White House aides say Obama will spend the weekend working on the content of his speech with head writer Jon Favreau, but is not yet at the stage of practicing its delivery. That will likely happen Tuesday, they said.
 
“There will be news in the speech, new ideas,” White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters on Friday, “and we’re hoping the newness of those ideas will be preserved for him to announce them.”
 
Senior Obama adviser David Plouffe told a gathering of U.S. mayors that Obama will lay out plans on energy, manufacturing, education and other "reforms." He will be "putting some flesh on the bones there," Plouffe said.
 
The president is also likely to appeal directly to members of Congress, urging them to act on economic proposals that have received bipartisan support in the past -- one of the central themes of his “we can’t wait” campaign meant to portray himself as an active executive working hard for the American people.
 
On Thursday, Obama traveled to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla. to underscore his message with a series of new initiatives aimed at encouraging more foreign tourism to destinations inside the U.S.
 
“To Sasha and Malia’s great disappointment, I was not there to hang out with Mickey or ride Space Mountain,” Obama said. “Instead, I was there to talk about steps we’re taking to boost tourism and create jobs.”
 
“We want more visitors coming here.  We want them spending money here.  It’s good for our economy, and it will help provide the boost more businesses need to grow and hire,” he said. “And we can’t wait to make it happen.”

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Weekly Address: Bringing Jobs Back to the US

SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- In his weekly address, President Obama urges companies to bring jobs back to the U.S. and make products stamped “Made in America.”
 
Surrounded by items manufactured in the U.S. -- a padlock, a pair of socks, a candle -- the president hails a “hopeful trend” in his administration: the “insourcing” of jobs back to the United States.
 
“No, we’re not having a yard sale,” he jokes. “These products may not appear to have much in common.  But they’re united by three proud words: ‘Made in America.’ They’re manufactured by American workers, in American factories, and shipped to customers here and around the world.”
 
“You’ve heard of outsourcing -- well, this is insourcing.  And in this make or break moment for the middle class and those working to get into the middle class, that’s exactly the kind of commitment to country that we need,” Obama says.
 
The president made a similar pitch at a White House “insourcing” jobs forum this week, where he urged business leaders to bring jobs back home. “Ask yourself what you can do to bring more jobs back to the country that made your success possible.  And I’ll make sure you’ve got a government that does everything in its power to help you succeed,” Obama says.
 
To encourage companies, the president plans to outline tax incentives for businesses hiring in the U.S. and has asked Congress to grant him authority to consolidate government agencies.
 
The president says streamlining the federal government will make it easier for small businesses to get loans and sell their products around the world. “Let me be clear: I will only use this authority for reforms that result in more efficiency, better service, and a leaner government,” he states.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Weekly Address: His New Year's Resolution

Kevin Lamarque-Pool/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Following the better-than-expected December jobs report, President Obama says the country is “headed in the right direction” and vows not to “let up” when it comes to growing the economy in 2012.

“This year, I’m going to keep doing whatever it takes to move this economy forward and to make sure that middle class families regain the security they’ve lost over the past decade. That’s my New Year’s resolution to all of you,” the president says in his weekly address.
 
The declaration comes just days after Obama defiantly bypassed Senate Republicans to install Richard Cordray as the nation’s top consumer watchdog.
 
“I nominated Richard for this job last summer.  And yet, Republicans in the Senate kept blocking his confirmation -- not because they objected to him, but because they wanted to weaken his agency.  That made no sense.  Every day we waited was a day you and consumers all across the country were at greater financial risk,” Obama says.
 
The president announces that next Wednesday the White House will host a “Insourcing American Jobs” forum where he will “hear from business leaders who are bringing jobs back home and see how we can help other businesses follow their lead.”
 
“Because this is a make or break moment for the middle class and all those working to get there.  We’ve got to keep at it. We’ve got to keep creating jobs.  And we’ve got to keep rebuilding our economy so that everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share -- and everyone plays by the same rules,” he says.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Obama's Address: 2012 Will Be A 'Make Or Break' for Middle Class

Official White House Photo by Pete Souza(WASHINGTON) -- With the New Year just around the corner, President Obama said there will be “difficult debates” and “tough fights” ahead but that he’s hopeful the American people will come together to grow the economy and strengthen the middle class.
 
“There’s no doubt that 2012 will bring even more change,” the president said in his weekly address from Hawaii where he’s vacationing with his family. “As we head into the New Year, I’m hopeful that we have what it takes to face that change and come out even stronger -- to grow our economy, create more jobs, and strengthen the middle class.”
 
Obama continued to describe the year to come as a “make-or-break” moment for the middle class, explaining “the actions we take in the months ahead will help determine what kind of country we want to be, and what kind of world we want our children and grandchildren to grow up in.”
 
The president said he’s optimistic about the upcoming year, in part, because of the way lawmakers came together to extend the payroll tax cut and because the American public got involved. “It was good to see Members of Congress do the right thing for millions of working Americans.  But it was only possible because you added your voices to the debate,” he said as he enlisted Americans’ help in the challenges ahead. “You had the courage to believe that your voices could make a difference.  And at the end of the day, they made all the difference.”
 
“I’m confident that if we work together, and if you keep reminding folks in Washington what’s at stake, then we will move this country forward and guarantee every American the opportunities they deserve,” Obama said as he wished Americans a “Happy New Year.”

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Obama's Address: Congress Can Learn from Those Who Served in Iraq

SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- As a divisive 12-month legislative session comes to a close, President Obama said lawmakers can learn from the men and women who served in the war in Iraq.
 
“Every day, they meet their responsibilities to their families and their country,” the president says of the troops who sacrificed in the nearly nine-year war. “Now it’s time to meet ours -- especially those of us who you sent to serve in Washington.  This cannot be a country where division and discord stand in the way of our progress.  This is a moment where we must come together to ensure that every American has the chance to work for a decent living, own their own home, send their kids to college and secure a decent retirement.”
 
With Republicans and Democrats long at odds over how to extend the payroll tax cuts before they would expire at the end of the year, the president said it’s time for lawmakers to follow the example of the more than 1.5 million men and women who served in Iraq.
 
“They don’t see themselves or each other as Democrats first or Republicans first. They see themselves as Americans first,” the president says in the address. “For all our differences and disagreements, they remind us that we are all a part of something bigger; that we are one nation and one people.  And for all our challenges, they remind us that there is nothing we can’t do when we stick together.”
 
“This is a moment for us to build a country that lives up to the ideals that so many of our bravest Americans have fought and even died for.  That is our highest obligation as citizens.  That is the welcome home that our troops deserve,” Obama says.
 
After years of rebuilding Iraq, the president says it’s time to also enlist veterans in the work of “rebuilding America.”
 
“Today’s generation of veterans -- the 9/11 Generation of veterans -- is armed with the skills, discipline and leadership to attack the defining challenge of our time: rebuilding an economy where hard work pays off, where responsibility is rewarded, where anyone can make it if they try,” he says.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio