Hoping to return the nation’s attention to the beleaguered economy, President Barack Obama lamented Wednesday that Washington has grown obsessed with “an endless parade of distractions, political posturing and phony scandals.”
Obama made the remark during a major speech in Galesburg, Ill. in what was the launch of a campign-style tour aimed at shifting the focus of the press and Capitol Hill back to the economy. Following his speech in Illinois, the President will press on to Missouri to continue the tour.
Below, an excerpt of Obama’s speech as prepared for delivery:
With an endless parade of distractions, political posturing and phony scandals, Washington has taken its eye off the ball. And I am here to say this needs to stop. Short-term thinking and stale debates are not what this moment requires. Our focus must be on the basic economic issues that the matter most to you – the people we represent. And as Washington prepares to enter another budget debate, the stakes for our middle class could not be higher. The countries that are passive in the face of a global economy will lose the competition for good jobs and high living standards. That’s why America has to make the investments necessary to promote long-term growth and shared prosperity. Rebuilding our manufacturing base. Educating our workforce. Upgrading our transportation and information networks. That’s what we need to be talking about. That’s what Washington needs to be focused on.
