Being attentive to inequality and not tone deaf to it. But offering prescriptions that are actually going to help folks in communities that feel forgotten. That's going to be our most important strategy. And I think we can successfully do that. Barack Obama More Quotes by Barack Obama More Quotes From Barack Obama Immigration keeps this country young, it keeps it dynamic, we have entrepreneurs and strivers who come here and are willing to take risks, and that's part of the reason why America historically has been successful. Barack Obama successful country america I don't think Donald Trump is ideological. Barack Obama ideological trump thinking One of the things I advised Donald Trump to do was to make sure that, before he commits to certain courses of action, he has really dug in and thought through how various issues play themselves out. Barack Obama issues action play How do we in the African American community build a culture in which we are saying to our kids, "Here's what it takes to succeed. Here's the sacrifices you need to make to be able to get ahead. Here's how we support each other. Here's how we look out for each other." Barack Obama support sacrifice kids It is my view that if society was doing the right thing with respect to you, [and there were] programs targeted at helping people rise into the middle class and have a good income and be able to save and send their kids to school, and you've got a vigorous enforcement of anti-discrimination laws, then I have confidence in the black community's capabilities to then move forward. Barack Obama kids school moving I'm not so optimistic as to think that you would ever be able to garner a majority of an American Congress that would make those kinds of investments above and beyond the kinds of investments that could be made in a progressive program for lifting up all people. Barack Obama optimistic people thinking Bernie Sanders would say, "You still have millions of African Americans who aren't insured, and if we had a single-payer system, that wouldn't be the case." And that's true. Barack Obama african-american cases stills It is my judgment that had I spent the first two years trying to get a single-payer system, all those folks who now have health insurance that didn't have it would still be uninsured. And those are millions of people whose lives are impacted right now. Barack Obama two people years I get letters from [people getting insurance] right now. "You saved my child's life." "I did not have to sell my home when my wife got sick." And that is what, as a policy maker, I'm trying to achieve during the short period of time that I'm here. Barack Obama sick home children Sometimes I wonder how much of these debates have to do with the desire, the legitimate desire, for that history to be recognized. Because there is a psychic power to the recognition that is not satisfied with a universal program, it's not satisfied by the Affordable Care Act, or an expansion of Pell grants, or an expansion of the earned-income tax credit. Barack Obama income psychics desire My hope would be that, as we're moving through the world right now, we're able to get that psychological or emotional peace by seeing very concretely our kids doing better and being more hopeful and having greater opportunities. Barack Obama opportunity kids moving There is a certain percentage of the white population ... if they started having more middle-class black kids who are friends with their kids, eating Cheerios in their kitchen, their attitudes start changing. Barack Obama class attitude kids I don't want to exaggerate; having as many African American men as we've had in the criminal-justice system, and the amount of time it takes for the damage done by that to wash through our society and our communities, the disadvantages born out of kids being undiagnosed with mental-health problems early, or not getting the kind of exposure to reading and math when they're 4 or 5 or 6 years old, that carries a cost. Barack Obama reading math kids You don't take it personally. You understand that if people are angry that somehow the government is failing, then they are going to look to the guy who represents government. Barack Obama guy government people Even if the criticism is not always perfectly informed and in some cases I would deem unfair, just the noise, attention, fuss probably keeps powerful officials or agencies on their toes. And they should be on their toes when it comes to the use of deadly force. Barack Obama agency powerful criticism My first job as commander in chief is to keep the American people safe. Barack Obama safe jobs people Part of American leadership is making sure that we're doing nation building here at home. That will help us maintain the kind of American leadership that we need. Barack Obama home helping needs Moammar Gadhafi had more American blood on his hands than any individual other than Osama bin Laden. Barack Obama osama-bin-laden hands blood America remains the one indispensable nation. And the world needs a strong America. Barack Obama strong america needs I will stand with Israel if they are attacked. Barack Obama israel ifs
