My conviction is that those fights need to be fought right now and can be won. And if in fact we have finite political capital, energy, resources, we need to win those fights. Barack Obama More Quotes by Barack Obama More Quotes From Barack Obama The arts are what makes life worth living. You've got food, you've got shelter, yeah. But the things that make you laugh, make you cry, make you connect - make you love are communicated through the arts. They aren't extras. Barack Obama shelter laughing art So we don't need more top-down economics. We've tried that theory. We've seen what happens. We can't afford to go back to it. Barack Obama top-down economics needs So I'm not proposing anything radical. I just believe that anybody making over $250,000 a year should go back to the income tax rates we were paying under Bill Clinton. Back when our economy created nearly 23 million new jobs, the biggest budget surplus in history, and plenty of millionaires to boot. ... At the same time, most people agree that we should not raise taxes on middle-class families or small businesses -- not when so many folks are just trying to get by. Barack Obama jobs believe years You know, it's fashionable right now for people to be cynical. We go in cycles like this and right now a lot of people are saying, 'Oh, America is doing terribly' and 'What are we going to do?' Barack Obama cynical america people We created a whole lot of millionaires to boot. Businesses did just fine. And you know there are plenty of patriotic, successful Americans all across the country -- I meet them every day -- who'd be willing to make this contribution again because they understand there is such a thing as the common good. They understand that we're in this thing together. Barack Obama patriotic successful country Ours is a nation of laws: of citizens who live under them and for the citizens who enforce them. So, to a community in Ferguson that is rightly hurting and looking for answers, let me call once again for us to seek some understanding rather than simply holler at each other. Let's seek to heal rather than to wound each other. Barack Obama community hurt law No one is exempt from the call to find common ground. Barack Obama common-ground common One of the things that we have to change in this country is the idea that people can't disagree without challenging each other's character and patriotism. I have never suggested that Sen. McCain picks his positions on national security based on politics or personal ambition. I have not suggested it because I believe that he genuinely wants to serve America's national interest. Now, it's time for him to acknowledge that I want to do the same. Let me be clear: I will let no one question my love of this country. Barack Obama ambition believe country I find it amusing that those who helped to authorize and engineer the biggest foreign policy disaster in our generation are now criticizing me for making sure that we are on the right battlefield and not the wrong battlefield in the war against terrorism. Barack Obama our-generation generations war I have always believed that what brings us together is stronger than what pulls us apart. Barack Obama always-believe stronger together It's time to fundamentally change the way that we do business in Washington. To help build a new foundation for the 21st century, we need to reform our government so that it is more efficient, more transparent, and more creative. That will demand new thinking and a new sense of responsibility for every dollar that is spent. Barack Obama creativity responsibility thinking I found this national debt doubled, wrapped in a big bow waiting for me as I stepped into the Oval Office. Barack Obama debt office waiting And we can see the positive impacts right here at Solyndra. Less than a year ago, we were standing on what was an empty lot. But through the Recovery Act, this company received a loan to expand its operations. This new factory is the result of those loans. Barack Obama recovery impact positive I have Muslim members of my family. I have lived in Muslim countries. Barack Obama my-family family country Even when folks are hitting you over the head, you can't stop marching. Even when they're turning the hoses on you, you can't stop. Barack Obama hitting folks powerful In America, there's a failure to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world. Barack Obama failure europe america I'm a Christian by choice. Barack Obama choices christian We need somebody who's got the heart, the empathy, to recognize what it's like to be a young teenage mom, the empathy to understand what it's like to be poor or African-American or gay or disabled or old - and that's the criterion by which I'll be selecting my judges. Barack Obama teenage mom mother No one is pro-abortion. Barack Obama abortion choices life One of the great strengths of the United States is... we have a very large Christian population - we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation or a Jewish nation or a Muslim nation. We consider ourselves a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of values. Barack Obama population united-states christian
