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Obama: 'There is much progress to report'

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    State of the Union, Part 1: President declares 'the state of our union is strong'

  • Duration 10:24
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Gentlemen president Barack Obama his fourth state of the union.

Members of congress.

I have the high privilege and distinct honor presented to you.

The president of the United States.

-- -- -- Mr.

vice president.

Members of congress.

Fellow Americans.

51 years ago and John F.

Kennedy.

Declared to this chamber.

That the constitution.

That makes us not rivals for power.

But partners for progress.

It is my test he said.

To report the state of the union.

To improve.

In the -- of assault.

Tonight thanks to the grit and determination of the American people.

There is much progress to report.

After a decade of grinding war.

Our brave men and women in uniform and are coming home.

After years.

-- of grueling recession.

Our businesses have created over six million new jobs.

We buy more American cars -- we haven't five years and less foreign oil.

No we haven't won -- our housing market is healing.

-- stock market is rebounding.

And consumers.

Patients.

And homeowners enjoy stronger protections.

-- never before.

We have cleared away.

The rubble of crisis.

-- and we can say it wasn't renewed confidence.

That the state of our union is strong.

But it.

But we gather here knowing that there are millions of Americans.

Whose hard work and dedication.

Have not yet been -- Our economy is adding jobs but it.

Too many people still can't find full time employment.

Corporate profits have skyrocketed to all time -- But for more than a decade wages and incomes and have barely budged.

It is our generation's -- meant to reignite the true engine of America's economic growth.

A rising.

Thriving middle class.

It is our unfinished task.

To restore the basic bargain that built this company.

The idea that if you work hard -- meet your responsibilities.

You can get ahead.

No matter where you come from no matter what you look like or who you love.

It is our unfinished -- to make sure that this government works on behalf of the many.

And not just -- few.

That it encourages free enterprise.

Warlords.

Individual nation.

And opens the doors of opportunity to every child across this great nation.

The American people don't expect government to solve every problem.

They don't expect those of us in this chamber to agree on every issue.

But they do it's.

To put the nation's interests before park.

They do expect us to -- reasonable compromise where we can't.

For they know that America moves forward only when we do so together.

And that the responsibility of improving this union remains the task of assault.

-- our work must begin by making some basic decisions about our budget.

Decisions -- we'll have a huge impact on the strength of our government.

Over the last few years both parties have worked together to reduce the deficit by more than 2.5.

Trillion dollars.

Mostly through spending cuts but also by raising tax breaks on the wealthiest 1% of Americans.

As a result we are more than halfway toward the goal.

A four trillion dollars in deficit reduction that economists say we need to stabilize our finance.

Now we need to finish the job.

The question is how.

In 2011 congress passed a law saying that if both parties couldn't agree on a plan to -- our deficit goal.

About a trillion dollars worth of budget cuts would automatically go into effect this year.

These sudden.

Harsh.

Arbitrary cuts would jeopardize our military -- us.

They devastate priorities like education and energy and medical research.

They would certainly slower recovery.

And cost us hundreds of thousands of -- That's why Democrats Republicans business leaders and economists have -- said that these cuts.

Known here in Washington as the sequester.

A really bad idea.

Not some in congress have proposed.

Preventing only -- the defense cuts.

By making even bigger cuts to things like education and job training.

Medicare.

And Social Security benefits.

-- That idea is even worse.

Yes the biggest driver of our long term debt.

Is the rising cost of health care for an aging population.

And those of us who care deeply about programs like Medicare must embrace the need for modest reforms.

Otherwise our retirement programs.

Will crowd -- investments we need for our children.

And jeopardize the promise of a secure retirement for future generations.

We can't -- senior citizens and working families to shoulder the entire burden of deficit reduction.

While asking nothing more from the wealthiest in the most powerful.

We won't grow the middle class simply by shifting the cost of health care or college on the families that already struggling.

Or -- forcing communities to lay out more teachers and more cups and more firefighters.

Most Americans.

Democrats Republicans and independents.

Understand that we can't just cut our way to prosperity.

They know that broad based economic growth requires a balanced approach to deficit reduction.

With spending cuts and revenue.

Than what everybody doing their fair share.

And that's the approach I offered -- On Medicare aren't prepared to enact reforms that will achieve the same amount of health care savings by the beginning of the next decade.

That the reforms proposed by the bipartisan Simpson Bowles commission.

Already be Affordable Care Act is helping to slow the growth of health care costs.

And the reforms I'm proposing go even further.

Will reduce taxpayer subsidies to prescription drug companies and asked more from the wealthiest state.

-- bring down costs by changing the way our government pays for Medicare because our medical bills should be based on the number of tests ordered her.

Days spent in the hospital.

They should be based on the quality of care that our seniors receive.

And I am open to additional reforms from -- parts.

So long as they don't violate the -- -- -- secure retirement.

Our government shouldn't make promises we cannot keep.

But we must keep the promises -- already made.

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