In Obama's Words

Obama holds a news conference

There are a lot of folks out there who are still struggling with the effects of the recession. Many people are still looking for work or looking for a job that pays more. Families are wondering how they deal with a broken refrigerator or a busted transmission or how they're going to finance their kids' college education, and they're also worrying about the possibility of layoffs. The struggles of middle-class families were a big problem before the recession hit in 2007. They weren't created overnight, and the truth is our economic challenges are not going to be solved overnight.”

• Other issues:Defense, Economy, Foreign Policy, Immigration, National Security and Intelligence, Social Issues

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 holds Twitter townhall meeting

We're not all tied together by ethnicity or a single religion. What ties us together is this idea that everybody has got a shot. As long as you carry out your responsibilities, you can make it. You can get into the middle class and beyond. And you can start a company and suddenly help bring the whole world together. That's what makes this country outstanding. But in order to do that, it requires us to both have a commitment to our individualism and our freedom and our creativity and our idiosyncrasies. But it also requires us to have a commitment to each other, and recognize that I would not be President if somebody hadn't helped provide some scholarships for my school, and you would not have Twitter if the Department of Defense, at some point, and a bunch of universities hadn't made some investments in something that ended up being the Internet. And those were public goods that were invested in.”

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 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 delivers remarks on deficit reduction

This is not class warfare. It's math. The money is going to have to come from someplace. And if we're -- if we're not willing to ask those who've done extraordinarily well to help America close the deficit, and we are trying to reach that same target of $4 trillion, then the logic, the math says everybody else has to do a whole lot more.”

• Other issues:Economy, Government and Politics

Obama holds a town hall meeting in Atkinson, Ill.

There's no reason to think that putting people back to work is somehow in conflict with us getting our fiscal house in order.”

• Other issues:Agriculture, Economy

Obama holds a town hall on debt reduction in Annandale, Va.

We can't just tell the wealthiest among us, you don't have to do a thing. You just sit there and relax, and everybody else, we're going to solve this problem. Especially when we know that the only way to pay for these tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans is by asking seniors to pay thousands of dollars more for their health care, or cutting children out of Head Start, or doing away with health insurance for millions of Americans on Medicaid -- seniors in nursing homes, or poor children, or middle-class families who may have a disabled child, an autistic child.”

• Other issues:Economy, Government and Politics

Obama delivers remarks on the economy in Osawatomie, Kansas

'The market will take care of everything,' they tell us. If only we cut more regulations and cut more taxes -- especially for the wealthy -- our economy will grow stronger. Sure, there will be winners and losers. But if the winners do really well, jobs and prosperity will eventually trickle down to everyone else. And even if prosperity doesn't trickle down, they argue, that's the price of liberty. It's a simple theory -- one that speaks to our rugged individualism and healthy skepticism of too much government. It fits well on a bumper sticker. Here's the problem: It doesn't work. It's never worked.”

• Other issues:Economy

Obama holds a discussion on the economy

A lot of folks think it's an easy way to score political points is by trying to act as if there's a "them" and an "us," instead of just an "us."”

• Other issues:Economy

Obama delivers the State of the Union address in Washington, D.C.

Think about the America within our reach: a country that leads the world in educating its people; an America that attracts a new generation of high-tech manufacturing and high-paying jobs; a future where we're in control of our own energy; and our security and prosperity aren't so tied to unstable parts of the world. An economy built to last, where hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded. We can do this. I know we can, because we've done it before.”

• Other issues:Government and Politics

Obama participates in town hall meeting on the economy on CBS Early Show

Well, Harry and Erica, I appreciate you guys hosting this to the audience, not only here live, but who are watching, just remember that we've gone through tougher times than this. We always come out on top. Yeah, Bernard was nice enough to-- to thank me for what we did a-- a week ago. Obviously, that's because of our men and women in uniform, as well as great intelligence work. But it's an example of, when America puts its mind to it, there's nothing we can't do. The same is true for the economy. If everybody is pulling together, Democrats, Republicans, business, labor, if everybody is focused on how we're investing in this future. How we're making sure our kids are getting the best education. How we're making sure that we're building good infrastructure, how are we getting our debt under control in a way that shares the burden. If we do those things, we are going to be as strong as ever and I'm confident we're going to be able to do that.”

• Other issues:Economy

Obama holds Tele Town Hall meeting with seniors

Case in point: Beginning this week, tens of thousands of seniors who fall into the doughnut hole, like Fran, will receive a $250 rebate check to help you cover the cost of your prescriptions.”

• Other issues:Health Care

Obama delivers remarks at a campaign event in Orlando, Fla.

Si, se puede! We're not people who just sit there and watch things happen. We make things happen. We're Americans. We are tougher than the times we live in and we're sure a lot better than the politics we've been seeing.”

• Other issues:Government and Politics

Obama meets with Des Moines family

All right, we're going way afield now. I mean, the -- so let me focus on your question...”

• Other issues:Economy

Obama, with Vice President Joe Biden, hold town hall on high speed rail in Tampa, Fla.

I seem to remember coming to Tampa two weeks before the election and you know what I said? This is a quote, people can check -- I'm sure it was reported in the newspapers. I said, "Change never comes without a fight." That was true then. It's true now.”

• Other issues:Other

Obama's Address to a Joint Session of Congress on Health Care

We did not come here just to clean up crises, we came to build a future. I am not the first president to take up this cause, but I am determined to be the last.”

• Other issues:Health Care

Obama Holds Town Hall in Albuquerque, N.M.

It's time for strong, reliable protections for our consumers.”

• Other issues:Economy

Obama's Press Conference

The most critical part of our strategy is to ensure that we do not return to an economic cycle of bubble and bust in this country.”

• Other issues:Economy, Government and Politics, Health Care

Obama delivers remarks at a campaign event in Dallas, Texas

Dallas, we are not a nation that just sits back and waits for things to happen to us. We make things happen. We're Americans. We are tough and we are resilient, and I am absolutely confident about our future, because I believe we are tougher than the times we live in and we are bigger than the politics that we've been seeing.”

• Other issues:Government and Politics