President Barack Obama walks through the Colonnade on his way to the Oval Office of the White House on January 28, 2014 in Washington.
Marking the start of what he hopes to be a “year of action,” President Barack Obama will use his fifth State of the Union address Tuesday night to call on Congress to restore the promise of “opportunity for all.”
Obama, whose legislative agenda has been stalled by Congress, will highlight executive actions his administration can take on its own to further that agenda without the House and Senate. The president will also call on lawmakers to start working with him to address economic inequality, according to excerpts of the speech released by the White House.
“Today, after four years of economic growth, corporate profits and stock prices have rarely been higher, and those at the top have never done better,” Obama will say, according to excerpts of the speech. “But average wages have barely budged. Inequality has deepened. Upward mobility has stalled.”
See more excerpts below:
“In the coming months, let’s see where else we can make progress together. Let’s make this a year of action. That’s what most Americans want – for all of us in this chamber to focus on their lives, their hopes, their aspirations. And what I believe unites the people of this nation, regardless of race or region or party, young or old, rich or poor, is the simple, profound belief in opportunity for all – the notion that if you work hard and take responsibility, you can get ahead.
Let’s face it: that belief has suffered some serious blows. Over more than three decades, even before the Great Recession hit, massive shifts in technology and global competition had eliminated a lot of good, middle-class jobs, and weakened the economic foundations that families depend on.
Today, after four years of economic growth, corporate profits and stock prices have rarely been higher, and those at the top have never done better. But average wages have barely budged. Inequality has deepened. Upward mobility has stalled. The cold, hard fact is that even in the midst of recovery, too many Americans are working more than ever just to get by – let alone get ahead. And too many still aren’t working at all.
Our job is to reverse these tides. It won’t happen right away, and we won’t agree on everything. But what I offer tonight is a set of concrete, practical proposals to speed up growth, strengthen the middle class, and build new ladders of opportunity into the middle class. Some require Congressional action, and I’m eager to work with all of you. But America does not stand still – and neither will I. So wherever and whenever I can take steps without legislation to expand opportunity for more American families, that’s what I’m going to do.”
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“Opportunity is who we are. And the defining project of our generation is to restore that promise.”