TRANSCRIPT:
STEVE KROFT: The speech on Tuesday in Kansas sounded very much like a campaign speech. What were you trying to get across? PRESIDENT OBAMA: Our economy is in a transition of the sort that America’s gone through maybe every 70-75 years. We went from an agriculture economy to an information, to an industrial economy during Teddy Roosevelt’s period. We’ve now gone from an industrial to a knowledge-based, innovation society. And, you know, there are a lot of disruptions. And the middle class in America has really taken it on the chin, during this period. They haven’t seen their wages go up, they haven’t seen their incomes go up. You know, women went into the workforce to try to keep family incomes up. But then that wasn’t enough; they ended up getting into debt. And they’re not seeing enough prospects for a future where their kids are gonna do better than they are. Now the good news is, we can solve these problems and meet these challenges, because America, by definition, is an innovation society. We constantly remake ourselves. So there’s no reason why we should not succeed in this era, just like we’ve succeeded in past eras. But it requires us to make some adjustments. And it requires everybody to have a fair chance, everybody to do their fair share, and rules of the road that create fair play for everybody. And what people have been frustrated about, especially since the financial crisis, is the sense that the rules are rigged against middle-class families and those aspiring to get in the middle class. So, if we’re willing to make investments in education so that everybody gets a fair chance and kids aren’t coming out with $100,000 worth of debt to go to college. If we make sure that everybody’s doing their fair share, to pay for things like infrastructure improvements in basic science and research and advanced manufacturing and innovation, we ask those who’ve benefited the most over the last three decades, we ask them to do a little bit more. And if we’ve got tough rules of the road — like the financial reform package that we passed into law last year — there’s no reason why over the next five, ten years, we cannot reposition ourselves so that every single American, no matter what they look like, no matter where they come from, they can succeed. And that’s my goal as President. That’s what I think about every day. And that’s what led me to run for president in the first place. KROFT: Since the midterm elections, you’ve made an effort at bipartisanship. It hasn’t worked out that way. In Kansas, you didn’t mention it. And it seems to me, it appears, watching you the last month or so, that you have stopped reaching out to Republicans. That you’re going on the offensive… and taking your message to the voters. PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I think that when I came into office in 2008, it was my firm belief that at such an important moment in our history, there was no reason why Democrats and Republicans couldn’t put some of the old ideological baggage aside and focus on common sense, what works, practical solutions to the tough problems we were facing. And I think the Republicans made a different calculation, which was, “You know what? We really screwed up the economy. Obama seems popular. Our best bet is to stand on the sidelines, because we think the economy’s gonna get worse, and at some point, just blame him.” And so we haven’t gotten the kind of engagement from them that I would have liked. And the best example of this was when we were negotiating around reducing the deficit. The truth is that, compared to other countries around the world, our deficit problems are completely manageable. If we had a balanced package that reforms some of our health care programs, like Medicare and Medicaid, that cuts discretionary spending, which I’ve already agreed to do – and we’ve cut a trillion dollars’ worth of spending so far, and I’m willing to do more. And I’ve put forward specific plans to do more.
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