In Obama's Words

Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao at joint press conference

"As we look to the future, what's needed, I believe, is a spirit of cooperation that is also friendly competition. In areas like those that I've just mentioned, we will cooperate, forging partnerships and making progress that neither nation can achieve alone."”

• Other issues:Foreign Policy

Obama delivers major speech on national security

We are an imperfect people. Every now and then, there are those who think that America's safety and success requires us to walk away from the sacred principles enshrined in this building.”

• Other issues:National Security and Intelligence

Obama participates in LinkedIn town hall meeting in Mountain View, Calif.

• Other issues:Government and Politics

Obama Holds Town Hall in Strasbourg, France

In America, there's a failure to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world. Instead of celebrating your dynamic union and seeking to partner with you to meet common challenges, there have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive.”

• Other issues:Foreign Policy, Government and Politics

Obama holds a town hall meeting in Alpha, Ill.

There's nothing wrong with our country, but there's a lot wrong with our politics right now. And that's what I aim to fix. That's what we have to fix.”

• Other issues:Agriculture, Economy

Obama delivers speech on the national debt

...without even looking at a poll, my finely honed political instincts tell me that almost nobody believes they should be paying higher taxes.”

• Other issues:Government and Politics

Obama holds a town hall on clean energy in Fairless Hills, Pa.

Reducing our dependence on oil, doubling the clean energy we use, helping to grow our economy by securing our energy future -- that's going to be a big challenge. And it's going to require effort. It's going to require ingenuity. It's going to require us coming together. It's going to require us getting past some of the petty politics that we play sometimes. But we can meet that challenge.”

• Other issues:Economy, Energy and Environment

Obama holds a town hall with students; the First Lady also attends

...I am absolutely convinced that the country that has the biggest stake in Pakistan's success is India.”

• Other issues:Foreign Policy

Obama Remarks on Math, Science and Technology Education

[This nation] was forged of stronger stuff by bold men and women who dared to invent something new or improve something old, who took big chances on big ideas, who believed that in America all things are possible.”

• Other issues:Education, Science and Technology

Obama Delivers Remarks to State Department Employees

We want to send a signal to all kinds of young people who may be thinking about the Foreign Service that they are going to be critical in terms of projecting not just America's power, but also America's values and America's ideals.”

• Other issues:Foreign Policy

Obama holds joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel

Along with the entire world, we have an enormous stake in seeing that these transitions to democracy succeed. And given the chancellor's own remarkable life story and her experience in helping to heal the wounds of the past and built a united Germany, I very much appreciate her leadership and her partnership in this effort.”

• Other issues:Foreign Policy

Obama hosts a “Moving America Forward” town hall meeting

The most important message I can deliver to all of you today is, number one, over the last 20 months, not only have we prevented America from slipping into a Great Depression, but we've finally started tackling those structural, fundamental issues that all of you cared so much about and that we campaigned on.”

• Other issues:Government and Politics

Obama addresses the United Nations General Assembly

The common thread of progress is the principle that government is accountable to its citizens. And the diversity in this room makes clear -- no one country has all the answers, but all of us must answer to our own people.”

• Other issues:Foreign Policy

Obama speaks at House Republican retreat in Baltimore

Now, I understand some of you had some philosophical differences, perhaps, on just the concept of government spending, but as I recall, opposition was declared before we had a chance to actually meet and exchange ideas. And I saw that as a missed opportunity.”

• Other issues:Defense, Economy, Education, Foreign Policy, Government and Politics, Health Care, National Security and Intelligence

Obama Holds Town Hall in Arnold, Mo.

Today, on my 100th day in office, I've come back to report to you, the American people, that we have begun to pick ourselves up and dust ourselves off, and we've begun the work of remaking America.”

• Other issues:Economy, Government and Politics

Obama holds a news conference

I would love nothing more than to see Congress act so aggressively that I can't campaign against them as a do-nothing Congress.”

• Other issues:Economy

Obama holds a town hall meeting in Decorah, Iowa

I want you to help hold all of us accountable, me included. I am enlisting you in this fight, because if you are -- if you're making your voices heard, if you're letting people know that enough is enough, it is time to move forward, it is time for us to win the future -- if your voices are heard, then sooner or later these guys have to start paying attention. And if they don't start paying attention then they're not going to be in office and we will have a new Congress in there that will start paying attention to what is going on all across America.”

• Other issues:Economy

Obama holds a town hall at Facebook headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif.

The Republican budget that was put forward I would say is fairly radical. I wouldn't call it particularly courageous. I do think Mr. Ryan is sincere. I think he's a patriot. I think he wants to solve a real problem which is our long-term deficit. But I think that what he and the other Republicans in the House of Representatives also want to do is change our social compact in a pretty fundamental way.”

• Other issues:Economy, Government and Politics

Obama delivers remarks on energy security

We're already paying a price for our inaction. Every time we fill up at the pump, every time we lose a job or a business to countries that are investing more than we do in clean energy, when it comes to our air, our water, and the climate change that threatens the planet that you will inherit -- we're already paying a price. These are costs that we are already bearing. And if we do nothing, the price will only go up.”

• Other issues:Energy and Environment

Obama and President Yudhoyono hold a joint press conference

Now, obviously, much has been made of the fact that this marks my return to where I lived as a young boy. I will tell you, though, that I barely recognized it. As I was driving down the streets, the only building that was there when I first moved to Jakarta was Sarinah. Now it's one of the shorter buildings on the road.”

• Other issues:Foreign Policy