Obama To Call For Job Programs In State Of The Union (SPEECH EXCERPTS)

President Barack Obama outlines his fiscal policy during an address at George Washington University in Washington, Wednesday, April 13, 2011.
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President Obama will call for an expanded focus on the middle class and job creation in Tuesday’s State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress, according to excerpts of the speech, as prepared for delivery, that were released in advance by the White House.

“A growing economy that creates good, middle-class jobs – that must be the North Star that guides our efforts,” Obama will say. “Every day, we should ask ourselves three questions as a nation: How do we attract more jobs to our shores? How do we equip our people with the skills needed to do those jobs? And how do we make sure that hard work leads to a decent living?”

Obama will also call on Congress to act on several proposals to create jobs that he says will be deficit neutral.

“Tonight, I’ll lay out additional proposals that are fully paid for and fully consistent with the budget framework both parties agreed to just 18 months ago,” he will say. “Let me repeat – nothing I’m proposing tonight should increase our deficit by a single dime. It’s not a bigger government we need, but a smarter government that sets priorities and invests in broad-based growth.”

Additional excerpts from the prepared speech, scheduled for 9 p.m. ET, before a joint session of Congress:

“It is our generation’s task, then, 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 country – the idea that if you work hard and meet your responsibilities, you can get ahead, no matter where you come from, what you look like, or who you love.

 

It is our unfinished task to make sure that this government works on behalf of the many, and not just the few; that it encourages free enterprise, rewards individual initiative, and opens the doors of opportunity to every child across this great nation of ours.”

 

 

“A growing economy that creates good, middle-class jobs – that must be the North Star that guides our efforts.  Every day, we should ask ourselves three questions as a nation:  How do we attract more jobs to our shores?  How do we equip our people with the skills needed to do those jobs?  And how do we make sure that hard work leads to a decent living?”

 

 

“Tonight, I’ll lay out additional proposals that are fully paid for and fully consistent with the budget framework both parties agreed to just 18 months ago.  Let me repeat – nothing I’m proposing tonight should increase our deficit by a single dime.  It’s not a bigger government we need, but a smarter government that sets priorities and invests in broad-based growth.”

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