THE WASHINGTON REVIEW & COMMENTARY: Weekly News From The White House

Remarks by Vice President Biden Marking the 50^th Anniversary of President Kennedy’s “Moon Shot” Speech, As Prepared For Delivery

President John F. Kennedy Library & Museum

Boston, Massachusetts

I want you to imagine—I want you to imagine the benefits to the first country that develops smart anti-cancer therapies that kill cancer cells and leave ordinary cells untouched.

Imagine the first country that develops regenerative medicines that can re-grow damaged organs, eliminating the agonizing wait for an organ transplant, allowing patients to recover from spinal cord injuries, and curing diseases like diabetes.

Imagine the first country that makes solar power as cheap as fossil fuels, and builds the first buildings that are able to produce all the energy they consume.

Imagine the first country to build a supercomputer capable of performing a million-trillion calculations a second – a computer fast enough to not only sequence every gene in the human body, but to test every combination of genes – giving us a new ability to fundamentally decode the complex interactions between genetics and disease.

Imagine the first country that creates a car battery that’s even lighter and cheaper than the new lithium ion batteries of today – able to store enough energy from one charge to take a car 1,000 miles.

Of one thing I am convinced:  If President Kennedy were standing here today, this is what he would imagine, this is what he would envision – and then he would challenge America to accomplish all of these goals and more.  He would challenge us to push the boundaries of our own knowledge and our present capacity.  To bridge the gap between the possible and the unimaginable.

For it would have been beyond his comprehension that the United States would fail to invest in visionary new ideas. Ideas needed to make the 21^st century livable.

I don’t believe he could have imagined the United States continuing to rely on fossil fuels.  I don’t believe he could have imagined the United States failing to cultivate new brilliant young scientists, and to challenge them to end the diseases that have plagued humanity for generations.

In an ever-more complicated and interconnected world, Ladies and gentlemen, I believe if he were standing here today, he would tell us, as he did 50 years ago, that we have a choice about what kind of country we are going to be. That vision should not be a hard sell today, in 2011.  For because of President Kennedy’s vision, leadership, and confidence, we’ve already met such a challenge – by relying on all the resources and talents America possesses today.

50 years ago, President Kennedy said, “I believe we possess all the resources and talents necessary.  But the facts of the matter are that we have never made the national decisions or marshaled the national resources required for such leadership.  We have never specified long-range goals on an urgent time schedule, or managed our resources and our time so as to insure their fulfillment…”

He said that we needed,  “a degree of dedication, organization, and discipline which have not always characterized our research and development efforts.”But because of him, we don’t have to say that.

We have made national decisions on this scale and of this magnitude.  We have marshaled the national resources required for such leadership.  We have specified long range goals on an urgent time schedule. Because of the visionary leadership of a young president, we know it can be done. We know we can mobilize to meet the challenges of the moment.

I was 18 years old when President Kennedy gave his moon shot speech.  An 18 year old kid from Scranton, who never dreamed that he would one day be standing here to pay tribute to the power and vision and achievement that grew out of President Kennedy’s words that day – and to urge a new generation to honor his actions with our own.  What a great honor.

I remember President Kennedy saying it was up to us—up to the nation—to decide whether to commit ourselves to the challenge of sending a man to the moon and bringing him safely back to earth. That if we weren’t going to go for it full tilt, we might as well not go for it at all.

In 1961, President Kennedy’s character and makeup was a reflection not only of his generation, but of America’s character. Well, I am confident my generation and yours is not only up to the task – but even better position to meet the daunting challenges of this young century.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Society is like a wave….”America has not changed, it’s gotten better. Nothing incremental.  He had, as I do, an unlimited faith in the character and the aspirations of the American people.  He knew that the American people had never failed to rise to a challenge, never failed to overcome adversity,  and never let their country down.

From a revolution for independence, to a war to keep us united, the throes of a Great Depression, to building and deploying an arsenal of democracy and expanding democracy at home through Civil Rights and civil justice American has always been at its best when challenged.  That’s when you see our national grit.  Determination.  Ingenuity.

That’s why President Kennedy said, speaking of the challenge to go to the moon, that if we came together and took up the challenge, then “in a very real sense, it [would] not be one man going to the moon…for all of us must work to put him there.” I knew, as a young man, how bold it was.  How exciting it was. It appealed to America’s essential exceptionalism, the idea that we were a special nation, meant to do extraordinary things.  Even then, my friends,  I sensed that this challenge was about more than landing on the moon.

It was bigger than that.  It was about a truly new frontier.

You just knew in your gut that the process of getting there, the pursuit of the moon, would open whole new vistas to humanity.  It would be a new measure of possibility—a new mark of human achievement.

President Kennedy knew that going to the moon would change the way we lived on earth.  That it wasn’t about going to a distant world, but bringing the United States into the modern world, and making sure we didn’t lose our place in it. And he was right.

The pursuit of the moon inspired thousands in my generation to pursue careers in engineering, science and technology.  It unleashed one of the most significant expansions of scientific capacity the world had ever known.   And my impression was that he never had a doubt that it would.  Because he knew our history.   He knew the equation of America:  challenge plus investment equals progress.

A half century later, President Obama and I share that same conviction, that same faith, and that same certitude. For the new frontiers here on earth are equally as challenging, and equally capable of being conquered. A new energy policy that will save the planet from global warming, increase our independence, and renew our economy.

Advances in science and health that will increase the quality of life for millions of Americans and tens of millions of people the world over. This is an incredible time in which we live, a time of extraordinary possibilities.   We are a nation of people who are always about – possibilities.

What is truly unique about America is that we have the political system, the economic system, the education system, and, most importantly, the will to turn those possibilities into realities.

But like President Kennedy we understand that it takes a national vision, it takes a leader to set the goal, and if he does, investment and innovation, and ultimately, commercialization will follow.  Over and over again, that’s been the American model of innovation, allowing us to lead the world in technological advancement the past 250 years.  It’s part of our nation’s DNA; it’s embedded in our nation’s history.

But the goals are not America’s alone. Other nations are seeking to win the future as well. You see it in China and India and Brazil, countries that are making massive investments in research, development, infrastructure, education.

If we shrink from President Kennedy’s bold approach, we run the risk of being left behind.  We and the world are at a critical juncture, and the United States needs to reassert its commitment to competitiveness – competitiveness that puts us in a position to be the global economic leader of the 21^st century.

That is why President Obama has set such bold goals to meet the challenges of this generation. Think about it:  We know we can be generating 80% of America’s electricity from clean sources by 2035.   We launched what we call a “SunShot” to make solar energy as affordable as traditional forms of energy.  And I assure you, just as in the moonshot – in pursuit of that goal – we will develop new technologies that will leapfrog anything we’re thinking about right now.

We know that with the seed money we’ve already provided through the Recovery Act, that private industry can put a million advanced technology vehicles – electrics and plug-in hybrids – on the road by 2015.  But we also know, along the way, they will develop a whole new generation of batteries that will ultimately be able to carry a car father than 1,000 miles on a single charge – and batteries that can store the energy we harvest from the sun, not only from automobiles but for industrial use as well.

We know that we must and will lead the world in the percentage of college graduates by the end of the decade, because we know our people.  We know America.  There is no reason why, in the 21^st century, America cannot have the best educated, best trained population mankind has ever known.  We have the talent, resources, and know-how.

In the process of doing all this, your generation will be responsible for fundamental breakthroughs not only in the far reaches of space, or the depths of the sea, in the confines of our own bodies, and in the mysteries of the human brain.

A great deal has been written about the advances we’ve made in the last quarter century in understanding the brain functions and the potential that will come from further study.  There’s been a great of research in the last half decade, research that has attracted the interest not only of neuroscientists and surgeons, but gifted persons from other disciplines – psychologists, sociologists, and journalists.

One example that I recommend to you all is David Brooks’ new book, “The Social Animal” – that points out with greater understanding of the potential we have to affect social interaction in ways we haven’t ever thought of before.

The promise in this area is unlimited, and the need for further research is immediate.  Thousands of our wounded warriors are retuning with Post Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injuries. For these and other reasons, our administration has made an unprecedented commitment to advancing understanding of the brain – through the NIH, through the National Science Foundation, through the Department of Defense, and through the VA.

We’re supporting the Human Connectome Project – dedicated to discovering the “wiring diagram” for the human brain. The Human Connectome Project will lead to major advances in our understanding of how our brain circuitry changes as we age and how it differs in people with neurological or psychiatric illnesses.

We’re supporting a consortium of researchers to create stem cells from patients with Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, Lou Gehrig’s disease, and Alzheimer’s.  This allows researchers to better understand the progression of these diseases, and to screen potential drug candidates.

We’re supporting the development of “neural prosthesis,” which is in the nascent stages of allowing individuals with prosthesis to control them by their thought process.

We’re also supporting Congressman Patrick Kennedy’s bold new campaign, called One Mind for Research.

Many of you are here today as part of that effort.  Your work truly is a modern moonshot. There’s no question that President Kennedy’s spirit is alive today in this nation, in this audience, and in the DNA of Patrick Kennedy.

The truth is, just as JFK couldn’t have known that shooting for the moon would create the semiconductor industry, which would give birth to the personal computer industry, which would give us IBM and Microsoft and Apple, who gave us the iPhone – and who knows where this goes next?

We cannot know with certainty what our fundamental recommitment to science, and research and development will yield.  But we do know, from experience that the results will be greater than the sum of the parts, and the rewards will be far greater than the original investment. And we also know that the march into the future will continue whether we lead it or not.

President Kennedy understood this 50 years ago.  Here’s what he said, “The exploration of space will go ahead whether we join in it or not…and no nation which expects to be the leader of other nations can expect to stay behind in this race for space.”

No nation that expects to be the leader of others can afford to be a follower on confronting the critical challenges of today. But just as there were naysayers in 1961, there are naysayers in 2011. They say our economy is too fragile for us to be so bold.  I say, our economy will stay fragile, unless we are bold. They say we cannot afford to invest in these endeavors.  I say, we cannot fail to invest.

This argument is not new to America.  There are those in the political leadership who hold the view that government has no role, and should not be setting out a vision for America’s future. I would argue that at every juncture, they’ve been proven wrong.

If we had listened to those voices in 1774, private enterprise and government would not have collaborated to build the rifles with interchangeable parts needed to win the Revolutionary War.

If we had listened to these voices in 1843, Congress never would have collaborated with Samuel Morse build a demonstration telegraph line, from Washington to Baltimore and unleashing a telecommunications revolution.

If President Lincoln had listened to those voices in the middle of the Civil War, he wouldn’t have paid private railroad companies $16,000 dollars for every 40 miles of track on a transcontinental railroad they laid down.

If President Eisenhower had listened to those voices in 1957, he never would have invested millions of government dollars in a new research endeavor called ARPA, which invented the Arpanet, which became the Internet.

And if President Kennedy has listened to those voices, we never would have reached for the moon, and reaped the incredible benefits that flowed from that effort. And I assure you that neither President Obama and I are going to listen to those voices, and mortgage the future of your generation.

In his inaugural address, President Kennedy said, “In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than in mine, will rest the final success or failure of our course.  Since this country was founded, each generation of Americans has been summoned to give testimony to its national loyalty.”

Today, we are summoned again. Let us have the strength, courage, and vision to answer that call.

For in the words of President Obama, “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”

Thank you.  May God bless America.  And may God protect our troops.

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT

TO PARLIAMENT

Westminster Hall

London, United Kingdom

3:47 P.M. BST

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you very much.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

My Lord Chancellor, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Prime Minister, my lords, and members of the House of Commons:

I have known few greater honors than the opportunity to address the Mother of Parliaments at Westminster Hall.  I am told that the last three speakers here have been the Pope, Her Majesty the Queen, and Nelson Mandela — which is either a very high bar or the beginning of a very funny joke.  (Laughter.)

I come here today to reaffirm one of the oldest, one of the strongest alliances the world has ever known.  It’s long been said that the United States and the United Kingdom share a special relationship.  And since we also share an especially active press corps, that relationship is often analyzed and overanalyzed for the slightest hint of stress or strain.

Of course, all relationships have their ups and downs.  Admittedly, ours got off on the wrong foot with a small scrape about tea and taxes.  (Laughter.)  There may also have been some hurt feelings when the White House was set on fire during the War of 1812.  (Laughter.)  But fortunately, it’s been smooth sailing ever since.

The reason for this close friendship doesn’t just have to do with our shared history, our shared heritage; our ties of language and culture; or even the strong partnership between our governments.  Our relationship is special because of the values and beliefs that have united our people through the ages.

Centuries ago, when kings, emperors, and warlords reigned over much of the world, it was the English who first spelled out the rights and liberties of man in the Magna Carta.  It was here, in this very hall, where the rule of law first developed, courts were established, disputes were settled, and citizens came to petition their leaders.

Over time, the people of this nation waged a long and sometimes bloody struggle to expand and secure their freedom from the crown.  Propelled by the ideals of the Enlightenment, they would ultimately forge an English Bill of Rights, and invest the power to govern in an elected parliament that’s gathered here today.

What began on this island would inspire millions throughout the continent of Europe and across the world.  But perhaps no one drew greater inspiration from these notions of freedom than your rabble-rousing colonists on the other side of the Atlantic.  As Winston Churchill said, the “…Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights, Habeas Corpus, trial by jury, and English common law find their most famous expression in the American Declaration of Independence.”

For both of our nations, living up to the ideals enshrined in these founding documents has sometimes been difficult, has always been a work in progress.  The path has never been perfect. But through the struggles of slaves and immigrants, women and ethnic minorities, former colonies and persecuted religions, we have learned better than most that the longing for freedom and human dignity is not English or American or Western –- it is universal, and it beats in every heart.  Perhaps that’s why there are few nations that stand firmer, speak louder, and fight harder to defend democratic values around the world than the United States and the United Kingdom.

We are the allies who landed at Omaha and Gold, who sacrificed side by side to free a continent from the march of tyranny, and help prosperity flourish from the ruins of war.  And with the founding of NATO –- a British idea –- we joined a transatlantic alliance that has ensured our security for over half a century.

Together with our allies, we forged a lasting peace from a cold war.  When the Iron Curtain lifted, we expanded our alliance to include the nations of Central and Eastern Europe, and built new bridges to Russia and the former states of the Soviet Union. And when there was strife in the Balkans, we worked together to keep the peace.

Today, after a difficult decade that began with war and ended in recession, our nations have arrived at a pivotal moment once more.  A global economy that once stood on the brink of depression is now stable and recovering.  After years of conflict, the United States has removed 100,000 troops from Iraq, the United Kingdom has removed its forces, and our combat mission there has ended.  In Afghanistan, we’ve broken the Taliban’s momentum and will soon begin a transition to Afghan lead.  And nearly 10 years after 9/11, we have disrupted terrorist networks and dealt al Qaeda a huge blow by killing its leader –- Osama bin Laden.    

Together, we have met great challenges.  But as we enter this new chapter in our shared history, profound challenges stretch before us.  In a world where the prosperity of all nations is now inextricably linked, a new era of cooperation is required to ensure the growth and stability of the global economy.  As new threats spread across borders and oceans, we must dismantle terrorist networks and stop the spread of nuclear weapons, confront climate change and combat famine and disease.  And as a revolution races through the streets of the Middle East and North Africa, the entire world has a stake in the aspirations of a generation that longs to determine its own destiny.

These challenges come at a time when the international order has already been reshaped for a new century.  Countries like China, India, and Brazil are growing by leaps and bounds.  We should welcome this development, for it has lifted hundreds of millions from poverty around the globe, and created new markets and opportunities for our own nations.

And yet, as this rapid change has taken place, it’s become fashionable in some quarters to question whether the rise of these nations will accompany the decline of American and European influence around the world.  Perhaps, the argument goes, these nations represent the future, and the time for our leadership has passed.

That argument is wrong.  The time for our leadership is now. It was the United States and the United Kingdom and our democratic allies that shaped a world in which new nations could emerge and individuals could thrive.  And even as more nations take on the responsibilities of global leadership, our alliance will remain indispensable to the goal of a century that is more peaceful, more prosperous and more just.

At a time when threats and challenges require nations to work in concert with one another, we remain the greatest catalysts for global action.  In an era defined by the rapid flow of commerce and information, it is our free market tradition, our openness, fortified by our commitment to basic security for our citizens, that offers the best chance of prosperity that is both strong and shared.  As millions are still denied their basic human rights because of who they are, or what they believe, or the kind of government that they live under, we are the nations most willing to stand up for the values of tolerance and self-determination that lead to peace and dignity.

Now, this doesn’t mean we can afford to stand still.  The nature of our leadership will need to change with the times.  As I said the first time I came to London as President, for the G20 summit, the days are gone when Roosevelt and Churchill could sit in a room and solve the world’s problems over a glass of brandy  -– although I’m sure that Prime Minister Cameron would agree that some days we could both use a stiff drink.  (Laughter.)  In this century, our joint leadership will require building new partnerships, adapting to new circumstances, and remaking ourselves to meet the demands of a new era.

That begins with our economic leadership.

Adam Smith’s central insight remains true today:  There is no greatergenerator of wealth and innovation than a system of free enterprise that unleashes the full potential of individual men and women.  That’s what led to the Industrial Revolution that began in the factories of Manchester.  That is what led to the dawn of the Information Age that arose from the office parks of Silicon Valley.  That’s why countries like China, India and Brazil are growing so rapidly — because in fits and starts, they are moving toward market-based principles that the United States and the United Kingdom have always embraced.

In other words, we live in a global economy that is largely of our own making.  And today, the competition for the best jobs and industries favors countries that are free-thinking and forward-looking; countries with the most creative and innovative and entrepreneurial citizens.

That gives nations like the United States and the United Kingdom an inherent advantage.  For from Newton and Darwin to Edison and Einstein, from Alan Turing to Steve Jobs, we have led the world in our commitment to science and cutting-edge research, the discovery of new medicines and technologies.  We educate our citizens and train our workers in the best colleges and universities on Earth.  But to maintain this advantage in a world that’s more competitive than ever, we will have to redouble our investments in science and engineering, and renew our national commitments to educating our workforces.

We’ve also been reminded in the last few years that markets can sometimes fail.  In the last century, both our nations put in place regulatory frameworks to deal with such market failures – safeguards to protect the banking system after the Great Depression, for example; regulations that were established to prevent the pollution of our air and water during the 1970s. 

But in today’s economy, such threats of market failure can no longer be contained within the borders of any one country.  Market failures can go global, and go viral, and demand international responses.

A financial crisis that began on Wall Street infected nearly every continent, which is why we must keep working through forums like the G20 to put in place global rules of the road to prevent future excesses and abuse.  No country can hide from the dangers of carbon pollution, which is why we must build on what was achieved at Copenhagen and Cancun to leave our children a planet that is safer and cleaner.

Moreover, even when the free market works as it should, both our countries recognize that no matter how responsibly we live in our lives, hard times or bad luck, a crippling illness or a layoff may strike any one of us.  And so part of our common tradition has expressed itself in a conviction that every citizen deserves a basic measure of security -– health care if you get sick, unemployment insurance if you lose your job, a dignified retirement after a lifetime of hard work.  That commitment to our citizens has also been the reason for our leadership in the world.

And now, having come through a terrible recession, our challenge is to meet these obligations while ensuring that we’re not consuming — and hence consumed with — a level of debt that could sap the strength and vitality of our economies.  And that will require difficult choices and it will require different paths for both of our countries.  But we have faced such challenges before, and have always been able to balance the need for fiscal responsibility with the responsibilities we have to one another.

And I believe we can do this again.  As we do, the successes and failures of our own past can serve as an example for emerging economies -– that it’s possible to grow without polluting; that lasting prosperity comes not from what a nation consumes, but from what it produces, and from the investments it makes in its people and its infrastructure.

And just as we must lead on behalf of the prosperity of our citizens, so we must safeguard their security.  Our two nations know what it is to confront evil in the world.  Hitler’s armies would not have stopped their killing had we not fought them on the beaches and on the landing grounds, in the fields and on the streets.  We must never forget that there was nothing inevitable about our victory in that terrible war.  It was won through the courage and character of our people.

Precisely because we are willing to bear its burden, we know well the cost of war.  And that is why we built an alliance that was strong enough to defend this continent while deterring our enemies.  At its core, NATO is rooted in the simple concept of Article Five:  that no NATO nation will have to fend on its own; that allies will stand by one another, always.  And for six decades, NATO has been the most successful alliance in human history.

Today, we confront a different enemy.  Terrorists have taken the lives of our citizens in New York and in London.  And while al Qaeda seeks a religious war with the West, we must remember that they have killed thousands of Muslims -– men, women and children -– around the globe.  Our nations are not and will never be at war with Islam.  Our fight is focused on defeating al Qaeda and its extremist allies.  In that effort, we will not relent, as Osama bin Laden and his followers have learned.  And as we fight an enemy that respects no law of war, we will continue to hold ourselves to a higher standard -– by living up to the values, the rule of law and due process that we so ardently defend.

For almost a decade, Afghanistan has been a central front of these efforts.  Throughout those years, you, the British people, have been a stalwart ally, along with so many others who fight by our side.

Together, let us pay tribute to all of our men and women who have served and sacrificed over the last several years -– for they are part of an unbroken line of heroes who have borne the heaviest burden for the freedoms that we enjoy.  Because of them, we have broken the Taliban’s momentum.  Because of them, we have built the capacity of Afghan security forces.  And because of them, we are now preparing to turn a corner in Afghanistan by transitioning to Afghan lead.  And during this transition, we will pursue a lasting peace with those who break free of al Qaeda and respect the Afghan constitution and lay down arms.  And we will ensure that Afghanistan is never a safe haven for terror, but is instead a country that is strong, sovereign, and able to stand on its own two feet.

Indeed, our efforts in this young century have led us to a new concept for NATO that will give us the capabilities needed to meet new threats — threats like terrorism and piracy, cyber attacks and ballistic missiles.  But a revitalized NATO will continue to hew to that original vision of its founders, allowing us to rally collective action for the defense of our people, while building upon the broader belief of Roosevelt and Churchill that all nations have both rights and responsibilities, and all nations share a common interest in an international architecture that maintains the peace.

We also share a common interest in stopping the spread of nuclear weapons.  Across the globe, nations are locking down nuclear materials so they never fall into the wrong hands — because of our leadership.  From North Korea to Iran, we’ve sent a message that those who flaunt their obligations will face consequences -– which is why America and the European Union just recently strengthened our sanctions on Iran, in large part because of the leadership of the United Kingdom and the United States.  And while we hold others to account, we will meet our own obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty, and strive for a world without nuclear weapons.

We share a common interest in resolving conflicts that prolong human suffering and threaten to tear whole regions asunder.  In Sudan, after years of war and thousands of deaths, we call on both North and South to pull back from the brink of violence and choose the path of peace.  And in the Middle East, we stand united in our support for a secure Israel and a sovereign Palestine.

And we share a common interest in development that advances dignity and security.  To succeed, we must cast aside the impulse to look at impoverished parts of the globe as a place for charity.  Instead, we should empower the same forces that have allowed our own people to thrive:  We should help the hungry to feed themselves, the doctors who care for the sick.  We should support countries that confront corruption, and allow their people to innovate.  And we should advance the truth that nations prosper when they allow women and girls to reach their full potential.

We do these things because we believe not simply in the rights of nations; we believe in the rights of citizens.  That is the beacon that guided us through our fight against fascism and our twilight struggle against communism.  And today, that idea is being put to the test in the Middle East and North Africa.  In country after country, people are mobilizing to free themselves from the grip of an iron fist.  And while these movements for change are just six months old, we have seen them play out before -– from Eastern Europe to the Americas, from South Africa to Southeast Asia.

History tells us that democracy is not easy.  It will be years before these revolutions reach their conclusion, and there will be difficult days along the way.  Power rarely gives up without a fight -– particularly in places where there are divisions of tribe and divisions of sect.  We also know that populism can take dangerous turns -– from the extremism of those who would use democracy to deny minority rights, to the nationalism that left so many scars on this continent in the 20th century.

But make no mistake:  What we saw, what we are seeing in Tehran, in Tunis, in Tahrir Square, is a longing for the same freedoms that we take for granted here at home.  It was a rejection of the notion that people in certain parts of the world don’t want to be free, or need to have democracy imposed upon them.  It was a rebuke to the worldview of al Qaeda, which smothers the rights of individuals, and would thereby subject them to perpetual poverty and violence.

Let there be no doubt:  The United States and United Kingdom stand squarely on the side of those who long to be free.  And now, we must show that we will back up those words with deeds.  That means investing in the future of those nations that transition to democracy, starting with Tunisia and Egypt -– by deepening ties of trade and commerce; by helping them demonstrate that freedom brings prosperity.  And that means standing up for universal rights -– by sanctioning those who pursue repression, strengthening civil society, supporting the rights of minorities.

We do this knowing that the West must overcome suspicion and mistrust among many in the Middle East and North Africa -– a mistrust that is rooted in a difficult past.  For years, we’ve faced charges of hypocrisy from those who do not enjoy the freedoms that they hear us espouse.  And so to them, we must squarely acknowledge that, yes, we have enduring interests in the region -– to fight terror, sometimes with partners who may not be perfect; to protect against disruptions of the world’s energy supply.  But we must also insist that we reject as false the choice between our interests and our ideals; between stability and democracy.  For our idealism is rooted in the realities of history -– that repression offers only the false promise of stability, that societies are more successful when their citizens are free, and that democracies are the closest allies we have.

It is that truth that guides our action in Libya.  It would have been easy at the outset of the crackdown in Libya to say that none of this was our business -– that a nation’s sovereignty is more important than the slaughter of civilians within its borders.  That argument carries weight with some.  But we are different.  We embrace a broader responsibility.  And while we cannot stop every injustice, there are circumstances that cut through our caution -– when a leader is threatening to massacre his people, and the international community is calling for action.  That’s why we stopped a massacre in Libya.  And we will not relent until the people of Libya are protected and the shadow of tyranny is lifted.

We will proceed with humility, and the knowledge that we cannot dictate every outcome abroad.  Ultimately, freedom must be won by the people themselves, not imposed from without.  But we can and must stand with those who so struggle.  Because we have always believed that the future of our children and grandchildren will be better if other people’s children and grandchildren are more prosperous and more free -– from the beaches of Normandy to the Balkans to Benghazi.  That is our interests and our ideals.  And if we fail to meet that responsibility, who would take our place, and what kind of world would we pass on?

Our action -– our leadership -– is essential to the cause of human dignity.  And so we must act -– and lead -– with confidence in our ideals, and an abiding faith in the character of our people, who sent us all here today.

For there is one final quality that I believe makes the United States and the United Kingdom indispensable to this moment in history.  And that is how we define ourselves as nations.

Unlike most countries in the world, we do not define citizenship based on race or ethnicity.  Being American or British is not about belonging to a certain group; it’s about believing in a certain set of ideals — the rights of individuals, the rule of law.  That is why we hold incredible diversity within our borders.  That’s why there are people around the world right now who believe that if they come to America, if they come to New York, if they come to London, if they work hard, they can pledge allegiance to our flag and call themselves Americans; if they come to England, they can make a new life for themselves and can sing God Save The Queen just like any other citizen.

Yes, our diversity can lead to tension.  And throughout our history there have been heated debates about immigration and assimilation in both of our countries.  But even as these debates can be difficult, we fundamentally recognize that our patchwork heritage is an enormous strength — that in a world which will only grow smaller and more interconnected, the example of our two nations says it is possible for people to be united by their ideals, instead of divided by their differences; that it’s possible for hearts to change and old hatreds to pass; that it’s possible for the sons and daughters of former colonies to sit here as members of this great Parliament, and for the grandson of a Kenyan who served as a cook in the British Army to stand before you as President of the United States.  (Applause.)

That is what defines us.  That is why the young men and women in the streets of Damascus and Cairo still reach for the rights our citizens enjoy, even if they sometimes differ with our policies.  As two of the most powerful nations in the history of the world, we must always remember that the true source of our influence hasn’t just been the size of our economies, or the reach of our militaries, or the land that we’ve claimed.  It has been the values that we must never waver in defending around the world — the idea that all beings are endowed by our Creator with certain rights that cannot be denied.

That is what forged our bond in the fire of war — a bond made manifest by the friendship between two of our greatest leaders.  Churchill and Roosevelt had their differences.  They were keen observers of each other’s blind spots and shortcomings, if not always their own, and they were hard-headed about their ability to remake the world.  But what joined the fates of these two men at that particular moment in history was not simply a shared interest in victory on the battlefield.  It was a shared belief in the ultimate triumph of human freedom and human dignity -– a conviction that we have a say in how this story ends.

This conviction lives on in their people today.  The challenges we face are great.  The work before us is hard.  But we have come through a difficult decade, and whenever the tests and trials ahead may seem too big or too many, let us turn to their example, and the words that Churchill spoke on the day that Europe was freed:

“In the long years to come, not only will the people of this island but…the world, wherever the bird of freedom chirps in [the] human heart, look back to what we’ve done, and they will say ‘do not despair, do not yield…march straightforward’.”

With courage and purpose, with humility and with hope, with faith in the promise of tomorrow, let us march straightforward together, enduring allies in the cause of a world that is more peaceful, more prosperous, and more just.

Thank you very much.  (Applause.)

Strengthened Collaboration Between the United States and United Kingdom

The Prime Minister and President Obama announced today six specific areas where the United Kingdom and the United States will strengthen our cooperation in the coming months. They span security and support to Armed Forces personnel; commitments to collaboration in science, higher education, volunteerism and international development; and the development of cyberspace.

In summary:

Strengthened collaboration in science and higher education
The UK and the United States will increase the links between our higher education institutions through increased post-graduate student and researcher exchange programs. We will also collaborate on a number of significant research projects and will embark together on an ambitious program to create the world’s first combined space weather model.

Support for Armed Forces Personnel
The UK and the U.S. will work together through the establishment of a Service Personnel and Veterans Task Force with the aim of delivering the best possible support for serving members of the Armed Forces and veterans.  It will focus on linking service personnel, veterans and families to their local communities; helping those leaving the Services into civilian life; and supporting wounded, injured and sick personnel.

UK-U.S. Partnership for Global Development
The Prime Minister and President reaffirmed their commitment to changing the lives of 1.2 billion people in the world today. The UK and the U.S. will work together to advance economic growth; prevent conflict in fragile states; improve global health particularly for girls and women; and mitigate the effects of climate change.

U.S. Peace Corps and VSO Partnership on Volunteerism
The U.S. Peace Corps and VSO will jointly promote volunteering and active citizenship through people to people exchanges. They will work together alongside local communities and organisations on development priorities and they will enhance their effectiveness by sharing best practice in training, systems and innovation.

Increased cooperation in cyberspace
The UK and the U.S. will work together to nurture and accelerate the opportunities and growth that cyberspace offers the global economy by building international consensus on the broad principles that will sustain and enhance the prosperity, security and openness of our networked world.

Analyzing future challenges in the global economic and security environment
A UK-U.S. Joint Strategy Board will help to develop a coordinated approach to long term challenges in the global economic and security environment. The Board will be co-chaired by the U.S. National Security Staff and the UK National Security Secretariat. It will meet quarterly and will report to the U.S. and UK National Security Advisors, Thomas E. Donilon and Sir Peter Ricketts.

Joint Fact Sheet: Peace Corps and VSO Partnership on Volunteerism to Promote Global Development

“And I want to particularly say this to young people of every faith, in every country – you, more than anyone, have the ability to reimagine the world, to remake this world.”

– President Barack Obama, June 4, 2009

“I want young people from this country to have the chance to really understand the challenges faced by people in very poor countries, by living and working alongside them to improve their lives.”

                                                — Prime Minister David Cameron, March 9, 2011

The partnership between Peace Corps and VSO will leverage the resources of both organizations to improve the lives of poor and marginalized people, and to promote the value of volunteering in global development.  Peace Corps and VSO will harness complementary strengths, share knowledge and collaborate on key development interests, building on our nations’ shared history of volunteerism.

Leaders in International Volunteerism for more than 50 Years

Peace Corps and VSO are leading global organizations that fight poverty by using the power of people and volunteers to bring about lasting change.  Both organizations are founded on an approach that puts people first, and fosters capacity building and knowledge exchange in a way that transforms poor and marginalised communities worldwide.  Peace Corps and VSO’s joint network of almost 10,000 currently serving volunteers in nearly 95 countries, combined with an alumni base of more than 250,000 former volunteers, will enhance global volunteerism efforts and create lasting change.

Complementing One Another, Building on Strengths

Peace Corps and VSO have informally collaborated for more than a decade through sharing training resources and collaborating on volunteer site assignments.  In line with best practice, the two organizations will capitalize on this joint work, thereby increasing the global impact of their efforts in the more than 25 countries where both organizations currently operate.  Volunteers from both organizations will work alongside local communities and organizations on development priorities, as well as supporting them in building a lasting legacy of local volunteerism, that will make a real and sustainable difference to the lives of poor people.

Increased Impact through Partnership

• Peace Corps and VSO will promote volunteering and active citizenship. Through people to people exchanges, Peace Corps and VSO will support together the efforts of countries to develop their own volunteer programs to engage local citizens in shaping their communities and futures.

• Peace Corps and VSO will address urgent development challenges in areas such as education, health, HIV/AIDS, youth development, gender, climate change and citizen participation by sharing knowledge, resources, and training capabilities to further enhance each organization’s current programming and training.

• Peace Corps and VSO will collaborate on organizational effectiveness. By sharing best practice in training, systems and innovation, the partnership will enhance the effectiveness of both organizations.

Joint Fact Sheet: U.S. and UK Cooperation on Cyberspace

Today, President Obama and PM Cameron reaffirmed their close bilateral cooperation, and charted important new steps forward, on an area of increasing attention: cyberspace issues, particularly cybersecurity.

A shared vision for cyberspace’s future.  Leaders noted that networked technology now provides one of the essential foundations for opportunities and growth within any modern prosperous global economy, and outlined their shared vision for cyberspace which places at its heart fundamental freedoms of speech and association, individual privacy, and the free flow of information.

Building consensus on responsible behavior.  Both recognized that the same kinds of “rules of the road” that help maintain peace, security, and respect for individual rights internationally must equally apply in cyberspace.  Leaders’ highlighted their commitment to building consensus on the basic principles, and participating in the London International Cyber Conference in November 2011.

Protecting our citizens and building the rule of law.  Through its deposit of instruments of accession in Strasbourg today, the United Kingdom has now joined the U.S. and 30 other states as parties to the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, the world’s foremost treaty to combat cybercrime internationally.  The Convention sets standards for national laws in dealing with online fraud and abuse, but even more importantly permits effective cooperation between nations — a crucial tool since so many cybercrimes cross national boundaries.  Noting this landmark achievement, leaders’ agreed to continue work to expand the reach of this important treaty.

Partnering with industry to win the future.  In recent months, President Obama and Prime Minister Cameron each hosted milestone discussions with leaders from their respective technology industries.  These innovators help spur the investment and long-term job growth on which economies depend; noting their contribution, Prime Minister Cameron and President Obama will continue to find ways to join with industry to maintain national competitiveness.

Expanding the reach of networked technologies.  The U.S. and UK are committed to partnering to help more countries benefit from information and communications technologies.  Leaders’ will direct new and regular government-wide consultations, sharing strategies and plans to more effectively deploy resources in building technological capacity in the developing world.

Sharing a responsibility for cybersecurity.  Leaders’ concluded by noting the relationship on cybersecurity issues remains deeper than ever; that both nations benefit from a shared awareness of threats to national networks, share measures to better defend them.  To maintain that leadership and better confront tomorrow’s threats, the President and Prime Minister noted new trans-Atlantic initiatives to provide joint funding and review of cybersecurity research and development (R&D) projects.

Joint Fact Sheet: U.S.-UK Task Force to Support Our Armed Forces Personnel, Veterans and Their Families

Defense is a cornerstone of the UK-U.S. relationship.  Since World War II, seven decades ago, British and American Service personnel have operated side-by-side in conflicts around the world.  From the Korean and the Cold Wars to the Gulf and Iraq Wars, our alliance has evolved and strengthened.  British personnel serve in U.S. units, and American soldiers, sailors, marines and air force personnel operate in British units. In Afghanistan, where we and our NATO allies and partners are working side-by-side in support of the Afghan Government, our alliance is stronger than ever.  We intend to keep it that way.  We also share a commitment to deliver the best possible support for the men and women of our Armed Forces and our Veterans. To that end, we have agreed to establish a new Service Personnel Task Force to build on existing cooperation and share best practices on support to Service personnel and their families.

Background

Both the U.K. and U.S. Armed Forces have shouldered an enormous burden in recent years.  When our people – our greatest assets – go to war, they and their families need to have the best possible support both then and in the future.  Therefore, we have agreed to build on existing cooperation by establishing a Task Force to share best practice in supporting our Veterans, Service personnel and their families.  As our servicemen and women have stood shoulder to shoulder in recent operations so the U.S. and UK will stand together in recognizing the sacrifices made by them and their families and in ensuring that we give them the best support possible.

The Task Force will bring together teams of UK and U.S. experts from inside government and will seek the views and involvement of the charitable and business sector where appropriate.  The President and the Prime Minister have named the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (Dr. Clifford Stanley) and the Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans (Mr. Andrew Robathan MP) to lead the task force jointly.

The task force will initially focus on three strands of work:

• Supporting Service personnel, veterans and families, in particular linking them to local communities.

• Supporting the transition of those leaving the Services into civilian life, including vocational training and education.

• Supporting wounded, injured and sick personnel, including physical and psychological care and rehabilitation.

Joint Fact Sheet: U.S.-UK Higher Education, Science, and Innovation Collaboration

Prime Minister Cameron and President Obama agree that science and higher education are the foundation stones of their two nations’ 21^st century economies and that the UK and U.S. have a responsibility to further their global leadership roles in these essential fields. The U.S. funds approximately one-third of the world’s scientific research and the UK is first among G-8 countries in scientific publications and citations as a fraction of GDP.  In higher education, the U.S. and UK are home to the world’s ten highest ranking universities.

Recognizing the great potential for productive cooperation in these domains, the Prime Minister and President reaffirmed during the State visit their mutual commitment to strong collaboration in science and higher education and agreed to work to increase the number of joint endeavours among individuals in cutting-edge laboratories, universities, scientific societies, think tanks, government agencies to develop human capital and ensure a strong and agile knowledge base. They expressed particular support for cooperation in fields that will create jobs and generate new economic opportunities in both countries while tackling some of the most pressing global challenges facing the world today. The leaders also expressed a determination to maintain research excellence that leads to economic growth and job creation.

The UK and the U.S. are world-leading knowledge economies and enjoy the most productive bilateral higher education relationship in the world, with each country being the other’s top destination for overseas study—a partnership worth more than $1 billion annually.  The Prime Minister and President welcomed the forthcoming meeting of the UK-U.S. Higher Education Policy Forum.  They also encouraged further strengthening of institutional higher education links including international internships and other modes of mutual mobility for students and faculty members—between the U.S. and UK and in cooperation with other global partners—to better equip American and British students with the skills needed to succeed in and bolster the global economy.

The leaders welcomed in particular the growing partnership between the UK Meteorological Office (Met Office) and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Weather Service, codified with the signing of an historic Memorandum of Agreement in February 2011. This agreement provides for a coordinated U.S.-UK partnership in the delivery of space weather alerts to help provide critical infrastructure protection around the globe. The two governments announced today that they will embark together on an ambitious program to create the world’s first combined space weather model capable of forecasting terrestrial weather with great accuracy and also indicating where, when, and for how long space weather effects will persist in our upper atmosphere and whether these anomalies are likely to disrupt and degrade GPS-enabled positioning, navigation, and timing capabilities.

In addition, the leaders announced a package of significant ongoing and future activities intended to deepen their partnership and commitment to meeting global challenges in the following areas: Space Science and Exploration, Clean Energy and Climate Science, Food Security, Health and Wellbeing, Innovation and Growth. Each of these is detailed on the corresponding Joint Statement Addendum on Higher Education, Science, and Innovation Collaboration.

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Addendum on Higher Education, Science, and Innovation Collaboration

The Prime Minister and President highlighted the long and distinguished tradition of bilateral collaboration in science and innovation, noting that some 30 percent of the UK’s internationally co-authored papers are with US partners and those papers produce an impact that is 50 percent higher than the UK research-base average. The leaders expressed their determination to maintain research excellence that leads to economic growth and job creation and asked their respective science advisers to advance strategic discussions on areas of mutual interest while also encouraging closer ties between the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) and the Prime Minister’s Council for Science and Technology (CST). The leaders also agreed to work together in several specific research areas including:

Innovation, Jobs, and Growth:  The U.S. and the UK are two of the world’s most active investors in venture capital. The leaders agreed to work together to ensure that innovative, high-growth businesses have access to venture capital to fund their growth and create highly skilled jobs. The Prime Minister and President also noted their respective countries’ achievements in attracting research and development investment from overseas.  They welcomed the decision by Johnson & Johnson’s Corporate Office of Science and Technology and its company Janssen to partner with six leading British Universities to undertake cutting edge neuroscience research.

Space Science and Exploration: The Prime Minister and President noted that the U.S. and the UK have enjoyed fruitful bilateral cooperation in earth and space science and look forward to new initiatives in these areas and in space exploration.  The leaders also acknowledged the significant contributions to understanding our own planet and noted the UK’s important contributions, through the European Space Agency and in collaborations with the U.S., relating to Mars exploration, astronomy, and space physics.

Terrestrial and Space Weather:  In addition to the collaborations detailed above, the Met Office and NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center will establish a second 24/7 space weather forecast office to complement and coordinate the dissemination of actionable space weather information. At this years’ World Meteorological Congress, the two countries have agreed to work together with other international partners to implement a fully operational global space weather warning system. This close engagement will reflect the increasingly international nature of space whilst respecting our separate national priorities.

Health and Wellbeing: The two leaders endorsed collaboration between world-class longitudinal studies in the U.S. and UK, with the potential to transform our understanding of issues such as childhood obesity, cancer, aging, and emotional wellbeing. The President and PM Cameron also welcomed the involvement of the Economic and Social Research Council in partnership with the National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health in the development of a U.S. National Research Council Panel on Measuring Subjective Wellbeing, which has the potential to generate new insights that will directly inform social and economic policies. The two leaders also noted the new programme of joint research on the ecology of infectious diseases.

Clean Energy and Climate Science: The two leaders agreed on the importance of continued collaboration and concerted international effort in clean energy and climate science.  They expressed their strong support for the next Clean Energy Ministerial, which will take place in London in 2012. They endorsed the announcement of UK co-funding of the National Science Foundation’s Partnerships for International Research and Education program in the area of Sustainable Materials for Energy, agreeing that sustainability should be a key consideration when making choices among competing energy technology options. The U.S., through its Department of Agriculture (USDA), will continue working with the UK as a part of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases to address mitigation of greenhouse gases from croplands, livestock production systems, and paddy rice, while enhancing food security.  In addition, the UK and U.S. entities are engaging African and Asian developing countries in the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project to better understand the implications of climate change on food production and food security around the world and to develop adaption strategies.  They emphasized the importance of data sharing and open science data policies that support climate research and modelling.

FACT SHEET: The U.S.-UK Joint Strategy Board

The United States and the United Kingdom today are announcing the creation of a Joint Strategy Board.  The Board will help enable a more guided, coordinated approach to analyze the “over the horizon” challenges we may face in the future and also how today’s challenges are likely to shape our future choices.  It is designed to better integrate long-term thinking and planning into the day-to-day work of our governments and our bilateral relationship, as we contemplate how significant evolutions in the global economic and security environment will require shifts in our shared strategic approach.

The Joint Strategy Board, co-chaired by the U.S. National Security Staff and the U.K. National Security Secretariat, will include representatives from the Departments of State and Defense, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Ministry of Defense, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Joint Intelligence Organization.  It will report to the U.S. and U.K. National Security Advisors, Thomas E. Donilon and Sir Peter Ricketts.

The Joint Strategy Board will meet quarterly alternating between sites in the United States and United Kingdom.  The U.S. and U.K. National Security Advisors will review the status of the Board after one year and decide whether to renew its mandate.

Joint Fact Sheet: The U.S.-UK Partnership for Global Development

Prime Minister Cameron and President Obama reaffirm our commitment to changing the lives of the 1.2 billion poor people in the world today. Recent success and new technologies provide hope and opportunities to accelerate progress towards the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.

Combating poverty, mitigating disasters and preventing conflict is morally right and is firmly in line with our respective national interests and fundamental values.  The President and Prime Minister are pleased to announce our collective interventions to achieve the best results for the world’s poorest people—advance economic growth, prevent conflict in fragile states, improve global health particularly for girls and women, and mitigate the effects of climate change.

Economic Growth

The private sector is the key to stimulating sustainable economic growth, which helps countries pull themselves out of poverty.  We will help create the right environment for business, markets and investments in education, skills and innovation, in addition to building capable and accountable institutions and governments. Together, we will tackle corruption and bribery that prevent resources from reaching the people they are intended to help. We will renew our efforts to stimulate trade and regional integration – especially in Africa, where the potential is immense.

We will redouble our collaboration with other countries in the G-20 to promote sustained economic growth through the Seoul Multi-Year Action Plan for Development and commit to the promises made at L’Aquila to invest heavily in agriculture and nutrition, and ensuring young children have adequate nutrition during the initial phase of their lives. Over the next five years, we will: help 18 million vulnerable women, children and family members escape the grip of hunger and poverty; prevent stunting and child mortality in 17 million undernourished children; generate $2.8 billion agricultural GDP through research and development activities; and leverage $70 million in private investment to improve market opportunities and links with smallholders.

Conflict and Fragility

Fragile states pose a significant, yet distinct, development challenge.  As a group, fragile states have not achieved a single Millennium Development Goal, and most remain heavily dependent on foreign assistance.  The United States and the United Kingdom were among the first to recognize this unique development challenge and we are working closely together in countries such as Sudan and Afghanistan using the new approaches we have developed. We will strengthen local economies, make job creation a priority and ensure that women are involved in every level of the decision-making process.  We will promote greater openness in order for citizens to hold their governments and officials accountable, and will strengthen civilian policing and local forms of dispute resolution so citizens feel safer.  We are the two largest humanitarian aid donors and are coordinating our operations to help vulnerable countries to prepare for disasters and to enhance their resilience. We will continue to work together to improve international responses and to encourage other donors to bear their share of responsibility.  In all of our programmes, we will measure the results we achieve so that we base our investment and policy decisions on solid evidence.

Aid Effectiveness – Accountability, Transparency and Results

The United States and the United Kingdom believe the quantity of our aid must be seen as equal in importance to its quality and we must be open, transparent and accountable in how we are spending our taxpayers’ money. Together, we have put in place mechanisms such as the UK Aid Transparency Guarantee and the U.S. Foreign Assistance Dashboard so the public – both at home and abroad – are able to access clear, comparable information about our aid programs.  In so doing, we will help individuals understand the results being achieved, provide developing countries a stronger voice, and encourage other donors to follow our lead. We will ensure that the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in November 2011 transforms the way bilateral aid is delivered around the world and we will continue to work together to strengthen multilateral organisations.

Global Health

Twenty first century technology and innovation can help us achieve our development goals. We will continue to work together, not least at the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) Replenishment Conference in June, and to ensure the GAVI Alliance has the resources it needs to do its job. The introduction of new and underused vaccines could result in another 250 million children being immunized and prevent four million childhood deaths by 2015.  We will also work to increase the level of care given to pregnant women and newborn babies by supporting the UN Secretary-General’s Global Strategy for Women and Children.  Our alliance with Australia and the Gates Foundation should help 100 million more women meet their need for modern family planning by 2015.

Girls and Women

Women disproportionately bear the burden of poverty as they own only 10 percent of the world’s property and represent two-thirds of the developing world’s illiterate.  But we know that investing in girls and women has transformative impacts on growth and poverty reduction.  It is also cost-effective as women tend to invest returns in their families and communities. Over the next five years, our investments alone will: save the lives of at least 50,000 women in pregnancy and childbirth; get more than five million girls into primary and secondary school; help 18 million women to access financial services and; do more to prevent violence towards women in at least 15 countries.

Climate Change

Without urgent global action, climate change could reverse our hard-won gains and increase the risk of insecurity and fragility in many parts of the world. The United States and the United Kingdom therefore continue to seek to hold the increase in temperature below two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. We also continue to work towards implementing the key agreements reached in Cancun, including making the very best use of the climate financing and encouraging innovation that will help the poorest countries get on a climate resilient, low emissions path to sustainable economic growth and development.  By employing existing technologies, such as drought and flood resistant crops, and new ways of delivery clean and affordable energy, we will work with the private sector and other stakeholders to ramp up investments in clean technologies while protecting the world’s precious forests and rich biodiversity. Our support for the REDD+ partnership will increase the incomes of the 1.2 billion of the world’s poorest people who depend on forests for their livelihoods.

President Obama Nominates Three to the United States District Court

WASHINGTON, DC – President Obama announced today that he has nominated Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr., James Rodney Gilstrap and Judge Gina Marie Groh.  Carter is a nominee for the Southern District of New York, Gilstrap for the Eastern District of Texas and Groh for the Northern District of West Virginia.

“Throughout their careers, these nominees have displayed unwavering commitment to justice and integrity,” said President Obama.  “Their records of public service are distinguished and impressive and I am confident that they will serve the American people well from the United States District Court bench.  I am honored to nominate them today.”

Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr.:  Nominee for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York

Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr. is a United States Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of New York, a position he has held since 2009.  From 2005 until his appointment to the bench, Judge Carter worked for the Federal Defenders of New York, first as a staff attorney and then as a supervising attorney.  From 1996 until 2005, he was an attorney at the Legal Aid Society, working in the Federal Defender Division from 2000 to 2005 and in the Criminal Defense Division from 1996 to 2000.  Judge Carter was a program assistant at the Ford Foundation from 1994 to 1996.  He received his J.D. in 1994 from Harvard Law School and his B.A. in 1991 from the University of Texas at Austin.

James Rodney Gilstrap:  Nominee for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

James Rodney Gilstrap has been a partner at the law firm of Smith & Gilstrap in Marshall, Texas, since 1984, where his practice is broad and covers a wide range of issues, including oil and gas, real estate, and probate law.  From 1989 until 2002, Gilstrap also served as County Judge in Harrison County, Texas.  Prior to founding Smith & Gilstrap, Gilstrap was an associate at the law firm of Abney, Baldwin & Searcy from 1981 to 1984.  Gilstrap received his J.D. in 1981 from Baylor University School of Law and his B.A. magna cum laude in 1978 from Baylor University.

Judge Gina Marie Groh:  Nominee for the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia

Judge Gina Marie Groh has served as a Judge on the 23rd Judicial Circuit Court of West Virginia since 2006.  Prior to her appointment to the bench, Judge Groh was an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in West Virginia for approximately eight years, first in Berkeley County from 1998 to 2002 and later in Jefferson County from 2002 to 2006.  Before entering public service, Judge Groh worked at the law firm of Semmes, Bowen & Semmes from 1995 to 1998, at the law firm of Mell, Brownell & Baker from 1991 to 1995, and at the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson from 1989 to 1991.  She received her J.D. in 1989 from West Virginia University College of Law and her B.S. summa cum laude in 1986 from Shepherd University.

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

S. 953 – Offshore Production and Safety Act of 2011

(Sen. McConnell, R-KY, and 17 cosponsors)

The Administration is committed to promoting safe and responsible domestic oil and gas production as part of a broad energy strategy that will protect consumers and reduce our dependence on oil.  Safety and environmental reforms that the Administration implemented in response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill are critical to achieving those objectives.  These reforms strengthen requirements for issues ranging from well design to workplace safety to corporate accountability, and they require operators to show that they can contain a subsea oil spill like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.  S. 953 generally would undercut these critical reforms; therefore, the Administration opposes S. 953.

S. 953 would undermine the Administration’s work to ensure that environmental analysis required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is conducted in a rigorous manner.  S. 953 would hastily open areas of the Gulf of Mexico, Alaska, and the Atlantic to leasing, and require the Department of the Interior (DOI) to hold multiple lease sales in the Gulf and Alaska using outdated NEPA analysis that was conducted before the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.  The Administration has strengthened NEPA analysis in light of lessons learned from the spill and is committed to responsible development in the Gulf and the Arctic.  DOI intends to hold the Gulf lease sales referenced in the bill by mid-2012.  With respect to Alaska, DOI has committed to holding annual lease sales in the National Petroleum Reserve while respecting sensitive areas, encouraging development of existing leases by establishing a high-level interagency working group to coordinate the permitting process (including necessary environmental and safety reviews), and extending certain offshore leases.

S. 953 would constrain the ability of DOI to ensure that permits meet safety standards by requiring permitting decisions to be made within 30 days of receiving an application, thereby curtailing the review period.  Two 15-day extensions would be possible, though DOI would be required to submit burdensome justifications.  The bill would grant permits automatically at the end of this 60-day window, regardless of whether the applicant satisfied safety standards.  These concerns also arise over environmental safeguards and reviews.  The Administration believes these statutory time constraints are unwarranted.  Fifty-three new shallow water permits have been issued since the Administration’s stronger safety standards were put in place, and deepwater permit applications also are being processed in a timely manner.  Since the end of February, when industry first demonstrated to safety regulators the capability to contain a subsea spill, fourteen deepwater wells have been permitted.

S. 953 also would require the Secretary of the Interior to grant an automatic one-year suspension of leases (effectively extending the term of the leases) in the Gulf.  The Administration fully supports suspensions for Gulf leaseholders directly impacted by the drilling moratorium.  Ten such suspensions have already been granted using administrative procedures to leaseholders who demonstrated that they were affected by the moratoria.

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

Terry D. Garcia, of Florida, to be Deputy Secretary of Commerce, vice Dennis F. Hightower, resigned.

Dan W. Mozena, of Iowa, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh.

Frankie Annette Reed, of Maryland, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of the Fiji Islands, and to serve concurrently and without additional compensation as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Nauru, the Kingdom of Tonga, Tuvalu, and the Republic of Kiribati.

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, the White House released the President and Vice President’s 2010 financial disclosure reports.  The reports can be accessed via the White House blog HERE.

White House Blog: The President & Vice President’s 2010 Financial Disclosure Forms

Posted by Bob Bauer on May 16, 2011 at 02:18 PM EDT

Today, the President and Vice President released their 2010 financial disclosure reports.

The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 requires high-level federal officials to publicly disclose their personal financial interests. The public filing system serves to prevent financial conflicts of interest by providing for a systematic review of the finances of government officials. Those finances are set forth in annual disclosures which are reviewed and certified by ethics officials.  Neither the President nor the Vice President have any conflicts of interest, and their reports have been reviewed and certified by the independent Office of Government Ethics. We are continuing this Administration’s practice of affirmatively posting these forms online here in the interests of transparency:

• View the President’s 2010 financial disclosure report (pdf)
• View the Vice President’s 2010 financial disclosure report (pdf)

White House staff are also completing their forms and we anticipate they will be available here next month, also in electronic form.

Bob Bauer is Counsel to the President

• Terry D. Garcia, Deputy Secretary, Department of Commerce
• Dan W. Mozena, Ambassador to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Department of State
• Frankie A. Reed, Ambassador to the Republic of the Fiji Islands, the Republic of Nauru, the Kingdom of Tonga, Tuvalu, and the Republic of Kiribati, Department of State

• Brad Barber, Member, Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission
• Richard Binder, Member, Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health
• Sandy Hoa Dang, Member, Board of Directors of the Vietnam Education Foundation
• Alan H. Fleischmann, Member, Commission on Presidential Scholars
• James F. Karpowitz, Member, Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission
• Judith Palfrey, Member, Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health
• Isaac F. Silvera, Member, Board of Directors of the Vietnam Education Foundation
• Richard H. Weisberg, Member, Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad

White House Releases The Small Business Agenda: Growing America’s Small Businesses to Win the Future Highlighting Critical Support for Small Businesses Across the Country

Report release marks kickoff of 2011 National Small Business Week

WASHINGTON – Today, the President’s National Economic Council released The Small Business Agenda: Growing America’s Small Businesses to Win the Future, a report highlighting the importance of expanding and supporting the growth of entrepreneurs and small businesses across the nation.   The report, which kicks off National Small Business Week, outlines the critical investments this Administration has made to support small businesses, create jobs and strengthen our economy.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and the cornerstones of our communities. They create two of every three new jobs in America, spur economic growth, and spark new industries across the country,” said President Obama.  “We will continue to create new incentives to help small business owners hire new workers, promote growth and do what America does best – invest in the creativity and imagination of our people.”

View the full report, which includes small business success stories from around the country, here:

FACT SHEET: THE SMALL BUSINESS AGENDA: GROWING AMERICA’S SMALL BUSINESSES TO WIN THE FUTURE

Over the past two years, the Obama Administration has taken decisive action in seven critical areas aimed at empowering America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners to create jobs and strengthen the economy.  The Administration will continue to build on these accomplishments.

        I.            More tax relief.   The President enacted 17 tax cuts for small businesses, including billions of dollars in tax credits, write-offs, and deductions for Americans who:

o   start a new business

o   invest or buy stock in startups and small businesses

o   hire people who’ve been unemployed to work at their business

o   buy new equipment or machinery for their business

o   provide health insurance for their employees

    II.            More access to capital.  After lending froze in 2008, the new Administration implemented critical tools to increase the flow of capital to small businesses.  This included:

o   SBA lending support totaling $53 billion for 113,000 small businesses

o   a Small Business Lending Fund to help community banks increase small business lending

o   a State Small Business Credit Initiative to support up to $15 billion in small business lending through innovative state small business programs

o   billions of dollars in loans and other support to small businesses hit by disasters such as the BP Oil Spill, floods, and tornadoes

o   new SBA programs to increase small-dollar lending to spur business growth among women, minorities, veterans and others in underserved communities

III.            More federal contracting opportunities.  Starting in FY2009, an increasing percentage of federal contracting dollars have gone to small business, totaling about $221 billion by April 2011.  Efforts to augment contracting opportunities for small businesses included:

o   delivering nearly one-third of Recovery Act contracts to small businesses while also exceeding all goals for underserved small business groups with these contracts

o   actions from the President’s Interagency Taskforce on Federal Contracting Opportunities for Small Business to strengthen rules, to create a better-trained acquisition workforce, and to strengthen outreach to more small businesses

o   implementing the woman-owned-small-business contracting program to help women compete in 83 industries where they are underrepresented in the federal contracting arena, building on the $16 billion women-owned firms won in FY 2009

o   reducing the time it takes to pay small businesses who do work for the Department of Defense from 30 to 20 days, potentially impacting more than $60 billion of goods and services

IV.            More exporting support and opportunities.  The President’s National Export Initiative places a strong focus on helping small businesses as they begin or expand exporting.  In its first year, the U.S. exported $1.83 trillion in goods and services supporting 10.3 million jobs.  Efforts to identify, prepare and support small exporters have included:

o   the President’s advocacy with world leaders in India, Korea, Colombia, Panama, and others, including advancing trade agreements that will lower tariffs on U.S. exports

o   35 trade missions totaling $2 billion in anticipated success, with small businesses representing nearly 80% of participants

o   increasing training and expert-level counseling to create growth plans for manufacturers through the Department of Commerce’s ExportTech program

o   increasing authorizations from $3.2 billion in 2008 to $5 billion in 2010 from Export-Import Bank

V.            More counseling and training.  Over the past two years, agencies that provide or coordinate free counseling have helped serve more than 2 million entrepreneurs and small business owners.  Key efforts have included:

o   launching four new Women’s Business Centers, bringing the total to 110 centers nationwide, building on the momentum in women’s business ownership

o   launching the President’s Interagency Task Force on Veterans Small Business Development which expanded opportunities for veterans, reservists, and their families

o   strengthening SBA’s efforts to inspire and empower the next generation of young entrepreneurs

o   coordinating multiagency efforts to foster “clustering,” an economic development strategy that maximizes innovation and job creation by building on a region’s existing strengths and assets

o   creating the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Commerce

o   streamlining patent services and providing patent fee reductions for small businesses

o   strengthening education in order to promote small business ownership through the America COMPETES Act, Race to the Top, the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, and more

VI.            More support for “high-growth” small businesses.  The vast majority of net new jobs created in the U.S. come from startups and small business poised for high-growth and innovation.  The Administration has focused intently on this subset of small businesses, with efforts including:

o   creating the President’s Jobs and Competitiveness Council, led by top U.S. executive business leaders

o   creating Startup America, a set of initiatives that include: $2 billion in growth capital, a mentoring corps, efforts to reduce regulatory barriers and commercialize federal research, and a new Partnership of top U.S. investors, corporations, universities, and foundations committed to fostering entrepreneurial ecosystems which secured $400 million in commitments in April 2011

o   awarding more than $4.5 billion in research funding through the Small Business Innovation Research program during FY 2009 and FY 2010

o   developing two Recovery Act programs through NIH to help early-stage companies catalyze research in new areas and to help more advanced companies bridge the commercialization gap

o   new “challenge” grants from the Commerce that spur commercialization of new technologies

o   increasing the percentage of small companies involved in the National Science Foundation’s Engineering Research Centers from 23% to 44% between 2006 and 2010

o   strengthening USDA commercialization, licensing, and patenting efforts for small businesses involved in agricultural technology transfer and innovation through research partnerships

o   expanding broadband to small businesses in rural and remote areas through nearly $7 billion in grants through the Recovery Act

o   providing women veterans, veterans with disabilities, and reservists with entrepreneurship “boot camps,” in-person training sessions, and online resources through partnerships with universities

o   organizing the White House Women Entrepreneurs Conference and continuing with regional women’s entrepreneurship summits around the country led by SBA and the National Women’s Business Council

VII.            More small business protection.  Providing stability and protections for small businesses in the wake of the recession is critical for future economic growth.  Administration efforts in this area have included:

o   strengthening financial markets and community banking in order to ensure access to conventional credit through the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Report and Consumer Protection Act.

o   protecting small businesses from unfair and deceptive credit card practices through the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act

o   saving small businesses $15 billion in foregone regulatory costs in 2010 through the SBA Office of Advocacy’s efforts to ensure flexibility with regulations that disproportionately affect small businesses.

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

S. 940 – Close Big Oil Tax Loopholes Act  

(Sen. Menendez, D-New Jersey, and 28 cosponsors)

The Administration strongly supports Senate passage of S. 940, which would repeal tens of billions of dollars in special tax breaks for oil and gas companies over the next decade.

While there is no single solution to addressing the effect of rising gas prices on American families in the short term, the Administration has put forth a long-term plan to cut the Nation’s oil imports by one-third by 2025.  The plan includes increasing domestic production in the short term, while investing in domestic alternative fuels, and increasing efficiency in the vehicles Americans drive.  It is also clear that there are much more responsible ways to utilize the billions in taxpayer dollars provided to oil and gas companies through unwarranted tax breaks.

The Nation’s outdated tax laws currently provide the oil and gas industry billions of dollars per year in these subsidies, even though oil and gas prices are high and the industry is reporting outsized profits.  Furthermore, heads of the major oil and gas companies have in the past made it clear that high oil prices provide more than enough profit motive to invest in domestic exploration and production without special tax breaks.

The Administration believes that, at a time when it is working with the Congress on proposals to reduce Federal deficits, the Nation cannot afford to maintain these wasteful subsidies.  The President proposed eliminating these subsidies in his FY 2010, FY 2011, and FY 2012 Budgets.  The Administration believes these resources are better used for efforts that will help the American people, such as deficit reduction or investments in clean home-grown sources of energy.  The Administration considers this bill to be an important step toward more responsible fiscal and energy policies and looks forward to continuing to work with the Congress to end these subsidies.

FACT SHEET: “A Moment of Opportunity” in the Middle East and North Africa

“So we face an historic opportunity. We have embraced the chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator. There must be no doubt that the United States of America welcomes change that advances self-determination and opportunity. Yes, there will be perils that accompany this moment of promise. But after decades of accepting the world as it is in the region, we have a chance to pursue the world as it should be.”

President Barack Obama

May 19, 2011 Washington, DC

Today, recognizing the irreversible changes that have taken place in the Middle East and North Africa in recent months, President Obama announced a new approach to promoting democratic reform, economic development, and peace and security across the region.

Aligning Our Interests and Our Values:  The President reaffirmed his commitment to a set of core principles that have guided the U.S. response to events in the Middle East and North Africa for the past six months.  First, the United States opposes the use of violence and repression against the people of the region. Second, we support a set of universal rights including free speech; the freedom of peaceful assembly and association; equality for men and women under the rule of law; the right to practice your religion without fear of violence or discrimination; and the right to choose your own leaders through democratic elections. Third, we support political and economic change in the Middle East and North Africa that can meet the legitimate aspirations of the people throughout the region.

Our support for these principles is a top priority and central to the pursuit of other interests in the region.  The U.S. will marshal all our diplomatic, economic, and strategic tools to support these principles.  The status quo is not fair, nor stable.  And it can no longer secure the core interests of the United States.  Ultimately, our values and our interests will be better advanced by a region that is more democratic and prosperous.

Promoting Democratic Reform:  It will be the policy of the United States to promote reform across the region and to support transitions to democracy.  Real and durable democratic change in Tunisia and Egypt could have a transformative effect on the region and beyond.  We will support free and fair elections, a vibrant civil society,basic rights to speak your mind and access information, and strong democratic institutions in both nations.  We will empower women as drivers of peace and prosperity, supporting their right to run for office and meaningfully participate in decision-making because, around the world, history shows that countries are more prosperous and peaceful when women are more empowered.  And we will deliver an economic program that reinforces our strong support for the transitions that are now underway.

The United States will also stand up for human rights and democracy in those countries where transitions have yet to take place.  We will make the case to our partners that reform is in our shared interest.  We will be a strong voice for democratic reform – a message we will deliver consistently, at high-levels, and across the U.S. government.  We will strengthen and protect advocates for reform.  Our message to governments in the region will be simple and clear: if you take the risks that reform entails, you will have the support and partnership of the United States.

A New Chapter of American Diplomacy: As the U.S. continues to work with governments, we will broaden and elevate our engagement with the people of the region.  Building on our efforts since Cairo, our engagement will reach beyond elites and extend beyond capitals, cultivating reformist voices both inside and outside government.  We will engage with and listen to those that will shape the future, particularly young people and women.  Across the region, we will provide assistance to legitimate and independent groups, including some not officially recognized by governments.  And we will expand and deepen our ties with entrepreneurs, and our cooperation on science and technology.  We will engage, too, with all groups that reject violence, support democratic practices, and respect the rights of minorities, even if we don’t agree with them. Using the same connective technologies that helped power the protests, we will connect and listen to the people of the region and factor the concerns of all these individuals and groups into our policy choices.

Making this strategic shift in our own approach will not always be easy.  It demands that we renew and reshape our partnerships with governments in the region, and forge a deeper connection to a new generation that is desperate for a new beginning.  President Obama will issue a Presidential Directive in the coming weeks to direct his Cabinet and national security team to put this new approach into action.

The United States is already putting this approach into practice across the region:

• Bahrain: The United States is committed to Bahrain’s security.  However, we believe that reform is the only path to enduring stability in Bahrain and that both sides must compromise to forge a just future for all Bahrainis. The only way forward is for the government and opposition to engage in a dialogue. The government must create the conditions for dialogue, and the opposition must participate to forge a just future for all Bahrainis.

• Egypt: The United States supports an orderly, peaceful, and legitimate transition to a representative and responsive government committed to democratic principles in Egypt.  It is important to empower positive models, and Egypt is critical as the largest Arab country and an enduring partner of the United States.  We are encouraged by some of the steps that the interim government has taken on the political front, and we support a fully transparent and inclusive process moving forward.  The U.S. is working with the international community to identify ways to stabilize Egypt’s economy in the short-term and promote economic policies for the medium and long-term that will help ensure economic prosperity accompanies the transition.

• Jordan: The United States is committed to our long-standing partnership with Jordan – a regional leader on political and economic reform.  We recognize the government’s efforts to respond to the legitimate demands of citizens through the National Dialogue Committee, and urge Jordan’s leadership to seize this opportunity to advance meaningful reforms.  U.S economic assistance supports Jordan’s economic growth and development and promotes political, economic, and social reforms though programs in judicial reform, education, public health, job creation, and youth empowerment.  We are also working with non-governmental partners is Jordan to cultivate a vibrant civil society.  The United States also remains committed to Jordan’s security and continues to provide security assistance aimed at, among other things, modernizing the Jordanian military and enhancing border security.   

• Libya: The United States led an international effort to intervene in Libya to stop a massacre – joining with with our allies at the UN Security Council to pass a historic resolution that authorized a no-fly zone and further authorized all necessary measures to protect the Libyan people.  At the start of the air campaign, the President pledged to the American people that U.S. military action would be limited in duration and scope and that we would ultimately transition from a U.S. to a coalition lead. The President has made good on that pledge. Now that we have transitioned to a NATO lead, we will continue to play an important role in the international community’s effort to put pressure on Col. Qaddafi and to protect innocent civilians that his regime continues to attack.  The President has made clear, Qaddafi has lost the confidence of the Libyan people and he must go.  At the same time, the United States is engaging and assisting the Transitional National Council, a legitimate and credible interlocutor, which is committed to an inclusive, democratic political transition in Libya.  We are also working to address humanitarian needs in Libya and along its borders.

• Morocco:  The United States supports Morocco’s efforts to promote ongoing democratic development through constitutional, judicial, and political reforms.  We recognize the Moroccan government’s efforts to respond the demands of its citizens and we urge the government to implement these crucial reforms.  We are working with the people and the government of Morocco to support their efforts to consolidate the rule of law, protect human rights, improve governance, empower youth, and works towards meaningful constitutional reform.  This includes a robust dialogue on human rights and political freedom.

• Syria: The United States condemns the Syrian government’s murder and mass arrests of its people.  We have imposed additional sanctions on the regime, including on President Assad and his inner circle. We stand by the Syrian people who have shown their courage in demanding dignity and a transition to democracy. President Assad now has a choice: he can lead that transition, or get out of the way.  

• Tunisia: The United States is committed to supporting the Tunisian people as they build the stronger democratic foundations needed for long-term stability and broad-based economic growth.  We welcome the significant steps that have been taken to advance the democratic transition, and will support Tunisians inside and outside of government as they hold democratic elections, craft a new constitution, and implement a broad-based reform agenda. We will support a new partnership between Tunisian civil society groups and technology companies in order to get more information, communications capacity available broadly throughout society.

• Yemen:  The United States supports the aspirations of the Yemeni people for a more stable, unified, and prosperous nation, and we are committed to assisting them in this courageous pursuit.  We are also committed to assisting Yemen to eradicate the security threat from al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula.  President Saleh needs to follow through on his commitment to transfer power. We support a peaceful and orderly transfer of power that begins immediately. 

Supporting Economic Development:  To ensure that democratic change is reinforced by increasing economic opportunity, the President laid out a new economic vision for the region to support nations that commit to transition to democracy. We will also focus on rooting out corruption and other barriers to progress.  Our efforts will create incentives for nations to pursue a path to democracy and modern economies and will also help tap the enormous potential of the region’s young people. Our approach is based around four key pillars – support for economic policy formulation, support for economic stability, support for economic modernization, and the development of a framework for trade integration and investment.

• Support for Better Economic Management: We will offer concrete support to foster improved economic policy formulation and management alongside our democratization efforts.  We will focus not only on promoting economic fundamentals, but also transparency and the prevention of corruption.  We will use our bilateral programs to support economic reform preparations, including outreach and technical assistance from our governments, universities, and think tanks to regional governments that have embraced reform, individuals, and NGOs.  We will mobilize the knowledge and expertise of international financial institutions to support home grown reforms that increase accountability.

• Support for Economic Stability: Egypt and Tunisia have begun their transitions.  Their economic outlooks were positive before recent events, but they are now facing a series of economic dislocations.

o   Galvanizing Financial Support:  We are galvanizing financial support from international financial institutions and Egypt and Tunisia’s regional partners to help meet near term financial needs.

o   Turning the Debts of the Past Into Investments in the Future: The United States will relieve Egypt of up to $1 billion in debt by designing a debt swap arrangement, and swap it in a way that allows Egypt to invest these resources in creating jobs and fostering entrepreneurship.

• Support for Economic Modernization: We realize that the modernization of the economies in Middle East and North Africa will require a stronger private sector.  To address that, we are committed to working with our international counterparts to support a reorientation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to support countries in the region.  The Bank played a crucial role in supporting democratization and economic transition in Central and Eastern Europe and can make a great contribution in Middle East and North Africa as well.  We also seek to establish Egyptian-American and Tunisian-American Enterprise Funds to stimulate private sector investment, to promote projects and procedures that support competitive markets, and to encourage public/private partnerships.  And as Secretary Clinton announced in Cairo, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) will provide up to $2 billion dollars in financial support for private sectors throughout the MENA region.

• Develop a Framework for Trade Integration and Investment:  The United States will launch a comprehensive Trade and Investment Partnership Initiative in the Middle East and North Africa. We will work with the European Union as we launch step-by-step initiatives that will facilitate more robust trade within the region, build on existing agreements to promote greater integration with U.S. and European markets, and open the door for those countries who adopt high standards of reform and trade liberalization to construct a regional trade arrangement.

(For more detail, see the Economic Support for the Middle East and North Africa Fact Sheet, see: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/05/18/factsheet-economic-support-middle-east-and-north-africa) 

Promoting Peace and Security: Even as we change our policy approach in response to political and economic changes in region, the United States maintains its commitment to pursue peace and stability in the region.  We remain committed to our non-proliferation agenda in the region and worldwide and continue to demand that Iran meets its international obligation to halt its nuclear weapons program.  Our counterterrorism agenda is as robust as ever, as evidenced by the recent takedown of Osama bin Laden.  We will continue to take the fight to al Qa`ida  and its affiliates wherever they are.

The Broad Outlines of Middle East Peace:   The President seeks to shape an environment in which negotiations can restart when the parties are ready.   He intends to do this laying out principles on territorial borders and security.

On territory, the boundaries of Israel and the Palestinian state should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps. On security the Palestinian state must be non-militarized, and the full and phased withdrawal of Israeli forces would be geared to the ability of Palestinian security forces and other arrangements as agreed to prevent a resurgence of terrorism; stop the infiltration of weapons; and provide effective border security.  The duration of this transition period must be agreed, and may vary for different areas like borders. But it must be sufficient to demonstrate the effectiveness and credibility of security arrangements.  Once Palestinians can be confident in the outlines of their state, and Israelis are confident that the new Palestinian state will not imperil its security, the parties will be in a position to grapple with the core issues of refugees and Jerusalem.

Ultimately, it is up to Israelis and Palestinians to take action. No peace can be imposed upon them, nor can endless delay make the problem go away. But what America and the international community can do is state frankly what everyone knows: a lasting peace will involve two states for two peoples. Israel as a Jewish state and the homeland for the Jewish people, and the state of Palestine as the homeland for the Palestinian people; each state enjoying self-determination, mutual recognition, and peace.

Ending the Combat Mission in Iraq, Building a Strategic Partnership: President Obama kept his commitment to responsibly end our combat mission in Iraq, bringing home 100,000 troops and transitioning to a full Iraqi lead for security in the country. Consistent with the 2008 Security Agreement, the United States intends to withdraw our remaining troops by the end of the year, while our civilians strengthen an enduring partnership with the Iraqi people and government in economic, diplomatic, cultural, and security fields.

Surged in Afghanistan: The strategy in Afghanistan is working.  With the addition of 30,000 U.S. forces, nearly 10,000 coalition forces, and almost 1000 civilians, the surge is achieving its intended effect.  We have arrested the Taliban’s momentum and placed the insurgency under significant military pressure.  Increasingly, our collective efforts are focused intensely on providing trainers and funding for Afghan National Security Forces to support their assuming lead security responsibility, significantly growing the Afghan Security Forces to nearly 300,000. Even as we begin to reduce our U.S. combat forces this July, and increasingly focus on advising and assisting the Afghan security forces, we are working toward completion of a renewed partnership agreement with the Afghans that will affirm our enduring commitment to stability in Afghanistan.  Finally, we are equally committed to an Afghan-led political process toward a peaceful resolution.

Focused on Al Qa`ida: We have applied unprecedented pressure to disrupt, dismantle and defeat al Qa`ida and its adherents. We have disrupted plots at home, and increased military, intelligence, and diplomatic support to expand the capacity of our partners from Pakistan to Yemen; from Southeast Asia to Somalia. Over half of Al Qa`ida’s top leadership has been killed or captured, including, most recently, Al Qa`ida’s leader, Osama bin Laden.  As the President noted in announcing Bin Laden’s death to the American people, his demise does not mark the end of our effort, as al-Qa`ida remains intent on and capable of striking the United States and our partners.

Political Change in the Middle East and North Africa: The United States has demonstrated with its response to the political change in the Middle East and North Africa that promoting representative, responsive governance is a core tenet of U.S. foreign policy and directly contributes to our counterterrorism goals.  Governments that place the will of their people first and encourage peaceful change through their policies, systems, and actions directly contradict the al-Qa`ida ideology, which at its core advocates for violent change and dismisses the right of the people to choose how they will be governed.  Effective governance reduces the traction and space for al-Qa`ida, limiting its resonance and contributing to what it most fears—irrelevance.

Standing Up for Universal Rights in Iran: The Administration has strongly condemned Iran’s violent repression at home and will continue to call on the government of Iran to allow the Iranian people the universal right to peacefully assemble and communicate.  Just as we hold Iran accountable for its defiance of its international obligations on the nuclear program, we will continue to take actions to hold the Iranian government accountable for its gross human rights violations, including by designating Iranian officials and entities engaged in such violations.  We will continue to provide capacity building training and new media tools to help Iranian citizens and civil society make their voices heard in calling for greater freedoms, transparency, and rule of law from their government.

Remarks of President Barack Obama – As Prepared for Delivery

“A Moment of Opportunity”

U.S. Department of State

May 19, 2011

As Prepared for Delivery –

I want to thank Hillary Clinton, who has traveled so much these last six months that she is approaching a new landmark – one million frequent flyer miles. I count on Hillary every day, and I believe that she will go down as of the finest Secretaries of State in our nation’s history.

The State Department is a fitting venue to mark a new chapter in American diplomacy. For six months, we have witnessed an extraordinary change take place in the Middle East and North Africa.  Square by square; town by town; country by country; the people have risen up to demand their basic human rights. Two leaders have stepped aside. More may follow. And though these countries may be a great distance from our shores, we know that our own future is bound to this region by the forces of economics and security; history and faith.

Today, I would like to talk about this change – the forces that are driving it, and how we can respond in a way that advances our values and strengthens our security. Already, we have done much to shift our foreign policy following a decade defined by two costly conflicts. After years of war in Iraq, we have removed 100,000 American troops and ended our combat mission there. In Afghanistan, we have broken the Taliban’s momentum, and this July we will begin to bring our troops home and continue transition to Afghan lead. And after years of war against al Qaeda and its affiliates, we have dealt al Qaeda a huge blow by killing its leader – Osama bin Laden.

Bin Laden was no martyr. He was a mass murderer who offered a message of hate – an insistence that Muslims had to take up arms against the West, and that violence against men, women and children was the only path to change. He rejected democracy and individual rights for Muslims in favor of violent extremism; his agenda focused on what he could destroy – not what he could build.

Bin Laden and his murderous vision won some adherents. But even before his death, al Qaeda was losing its struggle for relevance, as the overwhelming majority of people saw that the slaughter of innocents did not answer their cries for a better life. By the time we found bin Laden, al Qaeda’s agenda had come to be seen by the vast majority of the region as a dead end, and the people of the Middle East and North Africa had taken their future into their own hands.

That story of self-determination began six months ago in Tunisia. On December 17, a young vendor named Mohammed Bouazizi was devastated when a police officer confiscated his cart. This was not unique. It is the same kind of humiliation that takes place every day in many parts of the world – the relentless tyranny of governments that deny their citizens dignity. Only this time, something different happened. After local officials refused to hear his complaint, this young man who had never been particularly active in politics went to the headquarters of the provincial government, doused himself in fuel, and lit himself on fire.

Sometimes, in the course of history, the actions of ordinary citizens spark movements for change because they speak to a longing for freedom that has built up for years. In America, think of the defiance of those patriots in Boston who refused to pay taxes to a King, or the dignity of Rosa Parks as she sat courageously in her seat. So it was in Tunisia, as that vendor’s act of desperation tapped into the frustration felt throughout the country.  Hundreds of protesters took to the streets, then thousands. And in the face of batons and sometimes bullets, they refused to go home – day after day, week after week, until a dictator of more than two decades finally left power.

The story of this Revolution, and the ones that followed, should not have come as a surprise. The nations of the Middle East and North Africa won their independence long ago, but in too many places their people did not.  In too many countries, power has been concentrated in the hands of the few. In too many countries, a citizen like that young vendor had nowhere to turn – no honest judiciary to hear his case; no independent media to give him voice; no credible political party to represent his views; no free and fair election where he could choose his leader.

This lack of self determination – the chance to make of your life what you will – has applied to the region’s economy as well. Yes, some nations are blessed with wealth in oil and gas, and that has led to pockets of prosperity. But in a global economy based on knowledge and innovation, no development strategy can be based solely upon what comes out of the ground. Nor can people reach their potential when you cannot start a business without paying a bribe.

In the face of these challenges, too many leaders in the region tried to direct their people’s grievances elsewhere. The West was blamed as the source of all ills, a half century after the end of colonialism. Antagonism toward Israel became the only acceptable outlet for political expression. Divisions of tribe, ethnicity and religious sect were manipulated as a means of holding on to power, or taking it away from somebody else.

But the events of the past six months show us that strategies of repression and diversion won’t work anymore. Satellite television and the Internet provide a window into the wider world – a world of astonishing progress in places like India, Indonesia and Brazil. Cell phones and social networks allow young people to connect and organize like never before. A new generation has emerged. And their voices tell us that change cannot be denied.

In Cairo, we heard the voice of the young mother who said, “It’s like I can finally breathe fresh air for the first time.”

In Sanaa, we heard the students who chanted, “The night must come to an end.”

In Benghazi, we heard the engineer who said, “Our words are free now. It’s a feeling you can’t explain.”

In Damascus, we heard the young man who said, “After the first yelling, the first shout, you feel dignity.”

Those shouts of human dignity are being heard across the region. And through the moral force of non-violence, the people of the region have achieved more change in six months than terrorists have accomplished in decades.

Of course, change of this magnitude does not come easily. In our day and age – a time of 24 hour news cycles, and constant communication – people expect the transformation of the region to be resolved in a matter of weeks. But it will be years before this story reaches its end. Along the way, there will be good days, and bad days. In some places, change will be swift; in others, gradual. And as we have seen, calls for change may give way to fierce contests for power.

The question before us is what role America will play as this story unfolds. For decades, the United States has pursued a set of core interests in the region: countering terrorism and stopping the spread of nuclear weapons; securing the free flow of commerce, and safe-guarding the security of the region; standing up for Israel’s security and pursuing Arab-Israeli peace.

We will continue to do these things, with the firm belief that America’s interests are not hostile to peoples’ hopes; they are essential to them. We believe that no one benefits from a nuclear arms race in the region, or al Qaeda’s brutal attacks. People everywhere would see their economies crippled by a cut off in energy supplies. As we did in the Gulf War, we will not tolerate aggression across borders, and we will keep our commitments to friends and partners.

Yet we must acknowledge that a strategy based solely upon the narrow pursuit of these interests will not fill an empty stomach or allow someone to speak their mind. Moreover, failure to speak to the broader aspirations of ordinary people will only feed the suspicion that has festered for years that the United States pursues our own interests at their expense. Given that this mistrust runs both ways – as Americans have been seared by hostage taking, violent rhetoric, and terrorist attacks that have killed thousands of our citizens – a failure to change our approach threatens a deepening spiral of division between the United States and Muslim communities.

That’s why, two years ago in Cairo, I began to broaden our engagement based upon mutual interests and mutual respect. I believed then – and I believe now – that we have a stake not just in the stability of nations, but in the self determination of individuals. The status quo is not sustainable. Societies held together by fear and repression may offer the illusion of stability for a time, but they are built upon fault lines that will eventually tear asunder.

So we face an historic opportunity. We have embraced the chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator. There must be no doubt that the United States of America welcomes change that advances self-determination and opportunity. Yes, there will be perils that accompany this moment of promise. But after decades of accepting the world as it is in the region, we have a chance to pursue the world as it should be.

As we do, we must proceed with a sense of humility. It is not America that put people into the streets of Tunis and Cairo – it was the people themselves who launched these movements, and must determine their outcome. Not every country will follow our particular form of representative democracy, and there will be times when our short term interests do not align perfectly with our long term vision of the region. But we can – and will – speak out for a set of core principles – principles that have guided our response to the events over the past six months:

The United States opposes the use of violence and repression against the people of the region.

We support a set of universal rights. Those rights include free speech; the freedom of peaceful assembly; freedom of religion; equality for men and women under the rule of law; and the right to choose your own leaders – whether you live in Baghdad or Damascus; Sanaa or Tehran.

And finally, we support political and economic reform in the Middle East and North Africa that can meet the legitimate aspirations of ordinary people throughout the region.

Our support for these principles is not a secondary interest– today I am making it clear that it is a top priority that must be translated into concrete actions, and supported by all of the diplomatic, economic and strategic tools at our disposal.

Let me be specific. First, it will be the policy of the United States to promote reform across the region, and to support transitions to democracy.

That effort begins in Egypt and Tunisia, where the stakes are high –as Tunisia was at the vanguard of this democratic wave, and Egypt is both a longstanding partner and the Arab World’s largest nation. Both nations can set a strong example through free and fair elections; a vibrant civil society; accountable and effective democratic institutions; and responsible regional leadership.  But our support must also extend to nations where transitions have yet to take place.

Unfortunately, in too many countries, calls for change have been answered by violence. The most extreme example is Libya, where Moammar Gaddafi launched a war against his people, promising to hunt them down like rats. As I said when the United States joined an international coalition to intervene, we cannot prevent every injustice perpetrated by a regime against its people, and we have learned from our experience in Iraq just how costly and difficult it is to impose regime change by force – no matter how well-intended it may be.

But in Libya, we saw the prospect of imminent massacre, had a mandate for action, and heard the Libyan people’s call for help. Had we not acted along with our NATO allies and regional coalition partners, thousands would have been killed. The message would have been clear: keep power by killing as many people as it takes. Now, time is working against Gaddafi. He does not have control over his country. The opposition has organized a legitimate and credible Interim Council. And when Gaddafi inevitably leaves or is forced from power, decades of provocation will come to an end, and the transition to a democratic Libya can proceed.

While Libya has faced violence on the greatest scale, it is not the only place where leaders have turned to repression to remain in power. Most recently, the Syrian regime has chosen the path of murder and the mass arrests of its citizens. The United States has condemned these actions, and working with the international community we have stepped up our sanctions on the Syrian regime – including sanctions announced yesterday on President Assad and those around him.

The Syrian people have shown their courage in demanding a transition to democracy. President Assad now has a choice: he can lead that transition, or get out of the way. The Syrian government must stop shooting demonstrators and allow peaceful protests; release political prisoners and stop unjust arrests; allow human rights monitors to have access to cities like Dara’a; and start a serious dialogue to advance a democratic transition. Otherwise, President Assad and his regime will continue to be challenged from within and isolated abroad

Thus far, Syria has followed its Iranian ally, seeking assistance from Tehran in the tactics of suppression. This speaks to the hypocrisy of the Iranian regime, which says it stand for the rights of protesters abroad, yet suppresses its people at home. Let us remember that the first peaceful protests were in the streets of Tehran, where the government brutalized women and men, and threw innocent people into jail. We still hear the chants echo from the rooftops of Tehran. The image of a young woman dying in the streets is still seared in our memory. And we will continue to insist that the Iranian people deserve their universal rights, and a government that does not smother their aspirations.

Our opposition to Iran’s intolerance – as well as its illicit nuclear program, and its sponsorship of terror – is well known. But if America is to be credible, we must acknowledge that our friends in the region have not all reacted to the demands for change consistent with the principles that I have outlined today. That is true in Yemen, where President Saleh needs to follow through on his commitment to transfer power. And that is true, today, in Bahrain.

Bahrain is a long-standing partner, and we are committed to its security. We recognize that Iran has tried to take advantage of the turmoil there, and that the Bahraini government has a legitimate interest in the rule of law. Nevertheless, we have insisted publically and privately that mass arrests and brute force are at odds with the universal rights of Bahrain’s citizens, and will not make legitimate calls for reform go away. The only way forward is for the government and opposition to engage in a dialogue, and you can’t have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition are in jail. The government must create the conditions for dialogue, and the opposition must participate to forge a just future for all Bahrainis.

Indeed, one of the broader lessons to be drawn from this period is that sectarian divides need not lead to conflict. In Iraq, we see the promise of a multi-ethnic, multi-sectarian democracy. There, the Iraqi people have rejected the perils of political violence for a democratic process, even as they have taken full responsibility for their own security. Like all new democracies, they will face setbacks. But Iraq is poised to play a key role in the region if it continues its peaceful progress. As they do, we will be proud to stand with them as a steadfast partner.

So in the months ahead, America must use all our influence to encourage reform in the region. Even as we acknowledge that each country is different, we will need to speak honestly about the principles that we believe in, with friend and foe alike. Our message is simple: if you take the risks that reform entails, you will have the full support of the United States. We must also build on our efforts to broaden our engagement beyond elites, so that we reach the people who will shape the future – particularly young people.

We will continue to make good on the commitments that I made in Cairo – to build networks of entrepreneurs, and expand exchanges in education; to foster cooperation in science and technology, and combat disease. Across the region, we intend to provide assistance to civil society, including those that may not be officially sanctioned, and who speak uncomfortable truths. And we will use the technology to connect with – and listen to – the voices of the people.

In fact, real reform will not come at the ballot box alone. Through our efforts we must support those basic rights to speak your mind and access information. We will support open access to the Internet, and the right of journalists to be heard – whether it’s a big news organization or a blogger. In the 21st century, information is power; the truth cannot be hidden; and the legitimacy of governments will ultimately depend on active and informed citizens.

Such open discourse is important even if what is said does not square with our worldview. America respects the right of all peaceful and law-abiding voices to be heard, even if we disagree with them. We look forward to working with all who embrace genuine and inclusive democracy. What we will oppose is an attempt by any group to restrict the rights of others, and to hold power through coercion – not consent. Because democracy depends not only on elections, but also strong and accountable institutions, and respect for the rights of minorities.

Such tolerance is particularly important when it comes to religion. In Tahrir Square, we heard Egyptians from all walks of life chant, “Muslims, Christians, we are one.” America will work to see that this spirit prevails – that all faiths are respected, and that bridges are built among them. In a region that was the birthplace of three world religions, intolerance can lead only to suffering and stagnation. And for this season of change to succeed, Coptic Christians must have the right to worship freely in Cairo, just as Shia must never have their mosques destroyed in Bahrain.

What is true for religious minorities is also true when it comes to the rights of women. History shows that countries are more prosperous and peaceful when women are  empowered. That is why we will continue to insist that universal rights apply to women as well as men – by focusing assistance on child and maternal health; by helping women to teach, or start a business; by standing up for the right of women to have their voices heard, and to run for office. For the region will never reach its potential when more than half its population is prevented from achieving their potential.

Even as we promote political reform and human rights in the region, our efforts cannot stop there. So the second way that we must support positive change in the region is through our efforts to advance economic development for nations that transition to democracy.

After all, politics alone has not put protesters into the streets. The tipping point for so many people is the more constant concern of putting food on the table and providing for a family. Too many in the region wake up with few expectations other than making it through the day, and perhaps the hope that their luck will change. Throughout the region, many young people have a solid education, but closed economies leave them unable to find a job. Entrepreneurs are brimming with ideas, but corruption leaves them unable to profit from them.

The greatest untapped resource in the Middle East and North Africa is the talent of its people. In the recent protests, we see that talent on display, as people harness technology to move the world. It’s no coincidence that one of the leaders of Tahrir Square was an executive for Google. That energy now needs to be channeled, in country after country, so that economic growth can solidify the accomplishments of the street. Just as democratic revolutions can be triggered by a lack of individual opportunity, successful democratic transitions depend upon an expansion of growth and broad-based prosperity.

Drawing from what we’ve learned around the world, we think it’s important to focus on trade, not just aid; and investment, not just assistance.  The goal must be a model in which protectionism gives way to openness; the reigns of commerce pass from the few to the many, and the economy generates jobs for the young. America’s support for democracy will therefore be based on ensuring financial stability; promoting reform; and integrating competitive markets with each other and the global economy – starting with Tunisia and Egypt.

First, we have asked the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to present a plan at next week’s G-8 summit for what needs to be done to stabilize and modernize the economies of Tunisia and Egypt. Together, we must help them recover from the disruption of their democratic upheaval, and support the governments that will be elected later this year.  And we are urging other countries to help Egypt and Tunisia meet its near-term financial needs.

Second, we do not want a democratic Egypt to be saddled by the debts of its past. So we will relieve a democratic Egypt of up to $1 billion in debt, and work with our Egyptian partners to invest these resources to foster growth and entrepreneurship. We will help Egypt regain access to markets by guaranteeing $1 billion in borrowing that is needed to finance infrastructure and job creation. And we will help newly democratic governments recover assets that were stolen.

Third, we are working with Congress to create Enterprise Funds to invest in Tunisia and Egypt. These will be modeled on funds that supported the transitions in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall. OPIC will soon launch a $2 billion facility to support private investment across the region.  And we will work with allies to refocus the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development so that it provides the same support for democratic transitions and economic modernization in the Middle East and North Africa as it has in Europe.

Fourth, the United States will launch a comprehensive Trade and Investment Partnership Initiative in the Middle East and North Africa. If you take out oil exports, this region of over 400 million people exports roughly the same amount as Switzerland. So we will work with the EU to facilitate more trade within the region, build on existing agreements to promote integration with U.S. and European markets, and open the door for those countries who adopt high standards of reform and trade liberalization to construct a regional trade arrangement. Just as EU membership served as an incentive for reform in Europe, so should the vision of a modern and prosperous economy create a powerful force for reform in the Middle East and North Africa.

Prosperity also requires tearing down walls that stand in the way of progress – the corruption of elites who steal from their people; the red tape that stops an idea from becoming a business; the patronage that distributes wealth based on tribe or sect. We will help governments meet international obligations, and invest efforts anti-corruption; by working with parliamentarians who are developing reforms, and activists who use technology to hold government accountable.

Let me conclude by talking about another cornerstone of our approach to the region, and that relates to the pursuit of peace.

For decades, the conflict between Israelis and Arabs has cast a shadow over the region. For Israelis, it has meant living with the fear that their children could get blown up on a bus or by rockets fired at their homes, as well as the pain of knowing that other children in the region are taught to hate them. For Palestinians, it has meant suffering the humiliation of occupation, and never living in a nation of their own. Moreover, this conflict has come with a larger cost the Middle East, as it impedes partnerships that could bring greater security, prosperity, and empowerment to ordinary people.

My Administration has worked with the parties and the international community for over two years to end this conflict, yet expectations have gone unmet. Israeli settlement activity continues. Palestinians have walked away from talks. The world looks at a conflict that has grinded on for decades, and sees a stalemate. Indeed, there are those who argue that with all the change and uncertainty in the region, it is simply not possible to move forward.

I disagree.  At a time when the people of the Middle East and North Africa are casting off the burdens of the past, the drive for a lasting peace that ends the conflict and resolves all claims is more urgent than ever.

For the Palestinians, efforts to delegitimize Israel will end in failure. Symbolic actions to isolate Israel at the United Nations in September won’t create an independent state. Palestinian leaders will not achieve peace or prosperity if Hamas insists on a path of terror and rejection. And Palestinians will never realize their independence by denying the right of Israel to exist.

As for Israel, our friendship is rooted deeply in a shared history and shared values. Our commitment to Israel’s security is unshakeable. And we will stand against attempts to single it out for criticism in international forums. But precisely because of our friendship, it is important that we tell the truth: the status quo is unsustainable, and Israel too must act boldly to advance a lasting peace.

The fact is, a growing number of Palestinians live west of the Jordan River. Technology will make it harder for Israel to defend itself. A region undergoing profound change will lead to populism in which millions of people – not just a few leaders – must believe peace is possible. The international community is tired of an endless process that never produces an outcome. The dream of a Jewish and democratic state cannot be fulfilled with permanent occupation.

Ultimately, it is up to Israelis and Palestinians to take action. No peace can be imposed upon them, nor can endless delay make the problem go away. But what America and the international community can do is state frankly what everyone knows: a lasting peace will involve two states for two peoples. Israel as a Jewish state and the homeland for the Jewish people, and the state of Palestine as the homeland for the Palestinian people; each state enjoying self-determination, mutual recognition, and peace.

So while the core issues of the conflict must be negotiated, the basis of those negotiations is clear: a viable Palestine, and a secure Israel. The United States believes that negotiations should result in two states, with permanent Palestinian borders with Israel, Jordan, and Egypt, and permanent Israeli borders with Palestine. The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states. The Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves, and reach their potential, in a sovereign and contiguous state.

As for security, every state has the right to self-defense, and Israel must be able to defend itself – by itself – against any threat.  Provisions must also be robust enough to prevent a resurgence of terrorism; to stop the infiltration of weapons; and to provide effective border security. The full and phased withdrawal of Israeli military forces should be coordinated with the assumption of Palestinian security responsibility in a sovereign, non-militarized state. The duration of this transition period must be agreed, and the effectiveness of security arrangements must be demonstrated.

These principles provide a foundation for negotiations.  Palestinians should know the territorial outlines of their state; Israelis should know that their basic security concerns will be met. I know that these steps alone will not resolve this conflict. Two wrenching and emotional issues remain: the future of Jerusalem, and the fate of Palestinian refugees. But moving forward now on the basis of territory and security provides a foundation to resolve those two issues in a way that is just and fair, and that respects the rights and aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians.

Recognizing that negotiations need to begin with the issues of territory and security does not mean that it will be easy to come back to the table. In particular, the recent announcement of an agreement between Fatah and Hamas raises profound and legitimate questions for Israel – how can one negotiate with a party that has shown itself unwilling to recognize your right to exist. In the weeks and months to come, Palestinian leaders will have to provide a credible answer to that question. Meanwhile, the United States, our Quartet partners, and the Arab states will need to continue every effort to get beyond the current impasse.

I recognize how hard this will be. Suspicion and hostility has been passed on for generations, and at times it has hardened. But I’m convinced that the majority of Israelis and Palestinians would rather look to the future than be trapped in the past. We see that spirit in the Israeli father whose son was killed by Hamas, who helped start an organization that brought together Israelis and Palestinians who had lost loved ones. He said, “I gradually realized that the only hope for progress was to recognize the face of the conflict.” And we see it in the actions of a Palestinian who lost three daughters to Israeli shells in Gaza. “I have the right to feel angry,” he said. “So many people were expecting me to hate. My answer to them is I shall not hate…Let us hope,” he said, “for tomorrow”

That is the choice that must be made – not simply in this conflict, but across the entire region – a choice between hate and hope; between the shackles of the past, and the promise of the future. It’s a choice that must be made by leaders and by people, and it’s a choice that will define the future of a region that served as the cradle of civilization and a crucible of strife.

For all the challenges that lie ahead, we see many reasons to be hopeful. In Egypt, we see it in the efforts of young people who led protests. In Syria, we see it in the courage of those who brave bullets while chanting, ‘peaceful,’ ‘peaceful.’ In Benghazi, a city threatened with destruction, we see it in the courthouse square where people gather to celebrate the freedoms that they had never known. Across the region, those rights that we take for granted are being claimed with joy by those who are prying lose the grip of an iron fist.

For the American people, the scenes of upheaval in the region may be unsettling, but the forces driving it are not unfamiliar. Our own nation was founded through a rebellion against an empire. Our people fought a painful civil war that extended freedom and dignity to those who were enslaved. And I would not be standing here today unless past generations turned to the moral force of non-violence as a way to perfect our union – organizing, marching, and protesting peacefully together to make real those words that declared our nation: “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal.”

Those words must guide our response to the change that is transforming the Middle East and North Africa – words which tell us that repression will fail, that tyrants will fall, and that every man and woman is endowed with certain inalienable rights. It will not be easy. There is no straight line to progress, and hardship always accompanies a season of hope. But the United States of America was founded on the belief that people should govern themselves. Now, we cannot hesitate to stand squarely on the side of those who are reaching for their rights, knowing that their success will bring about a world that is more peaceful, more stable, and more just.

When President Barack Obama announced to the world late Sunday that Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was killed in a raid of his compound in Abbottadad, Pakistan, an air of suspicion was born. The doubters and conspiracy theorists have concocted full narratives as to the ‘true’ story of the demise of Bin Laden. Some say Osama Bin Laden died in 2007  from complications of kidney failure. Others say he was killed around 2006. Still, several days after  DNA confirmation, a small but growing segment of Americans and world watchers alike are doubtful of the U.S. government’s proclamation that Bin Laden is dead and was buried at sea. They want evidence. Photographic proof.

It appears that the Obama White House is caving in to the pressure to release death photos of Osama Bin Laden. CIA Director Leon Panetta said that the administration knows that it has to “reveal to the rest of the world” photographic documentation of Osama Bin Laden in death. However, sources note that Osama Bin Laden was shot in the head, near the left eye with a powerful, technologically advanced firearm. What does that mean? That perhaps the whole side of Bin Laden’s head was obliterated?

Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters Tuesday that the administration is “taking into consideration” the release of the Bin Laden death photos even though these could be “inflammatory.” Carney also admitted that the photos are “gruesome” and that “there are sensitivities here in the terms of the appropriateness of releasing photos of Osama Bin Laden after the fire fight and the sensitivities involved.”

However, the press is hot on the trail of those death pictures. If these are as “gruesome” as the White House would have the public believe, why is there an outcry to see them? Maybe it is the craving for senastionalism that the media has nurtured in the minds of the public. The desire to feed off of violence is thoroughly ingrained in the psyche of Americans due to insidious, horrifically violent movies thick with grotesque killings and murders. Prime time tv is filled to the brim with CSI dramas and programming about rogue medical examiners. And this is not the “Quincy” or “Kojak” type of fare either. Crime on television shows have gone high tech and very graphic. There are scenes of dead bodies, decomposing in the alley or the park. Television crime is more visual than ever before. Local news stations are notorious for the adoption of the mantra “if it bleeds, it leads” five and six o’clock daily news broadcasts. YouTube, cable news websites, and blogs all feature uncanny fascination stories about the dead. Such as the story about a Puerto Rican man standing at his own funeral. Or video surveillance of a man being shot to death outside a neighborhood store while talking on his cell phone. Crime sites awash with fresh spilled blood on the sidewalk or floor of a home, splattered blood on a terrorist bombed bus, the video cam operator can not resist. Or is it really the appetite of the public?

With this in mind, is it really a stretch of the imagination that the world and the press want to see a dead Osama Bin Laden in all his blown out head glory? If the White House concedes that the death photos are “gruesome,” will the pictures be subjected to photo-shopping? If the decision of photo-shopping or cropping is done, won’t that affect the authenticity of the death shot that the public and Al Qaeda want to view? Will those who scream ‘conspiracy!’ or ‘Osama is alive!’ be satisfied with the release of the death photo of Bin Laden? Will Al Qaeda throw its’ hands up and scatter like rats into a hole, giving up on their murderous philosophy because their leader was killed? Probably not. So why should the White House even consider releasing these pictures? Why did the White House consider and release President Obama’s long form birth certificate only to have the President admit that the whole matter was “silly” to begin with?

The Washington Review and Commentary will not be among those blogs and news outlets who will run the death pictures of Osama Bin Laden. That is, if the Obama administration decides to release these photos. There is too much hatred, anger, and all around hostility in the world today against America for the justification of publishing such “gruesome” pictures. Also, what earthly good will publishing pictures of a dead Osama Bin Laden with a huge, gapping hole in his head, possibly no face or eyes, do for the media and the public? For the press and the media in general, high ratings and millions of hits for blogs and websites. For the public? A freak show, free for all frenzy to gaze upon death without emotion or understanding causing an even more intense case of desensitizing. No matter how it is viewed through the prism of ethics, politics, religion, and morality, the decision to release the death pictures of Osama Bin Laden, or not, should be a no brainer.

If the Obama administration concedes to this demand, like it conceded to Donald Trump with the release of President Obama’s long form birth certificate, what does that really say? That the Obama White House can be bullied into more “silliness” and has become a part of the “side show” that it claims to detest.

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT

AWARDNG THE MEDAL OF HONOR TO

PRIVATE FIRST CLASS ANTHONY KAHO’OHANOHANO

AND PRIVATE FIRST CLASS HENRY SVEHLA

East Room

12:08 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Good morning, everybody.  Please be seated. On behalf of Michelle and myself, welcome to the White House.  To our many guests from Hawaii, aloha.  And thank you, Chaplain Carver, for that wonderful invocation.

I think we can all agree this is a good day for America.  Our country has kept its commitment to see that justice is done. The world is safer; it is a better place because of the death of Osama bin Laden.

Today, we are reminded that, as a nation, there’s nothing we can’t do —- when we put our shoulders to the wheel, when we work together, when we remember the sense of unity that defines us as Americans.  And we’ve seen that spirit -— that patriotism -— in the crowds that have gathered, here outside the White House, at Ground Zero in New York, and across the country — people holding candles, waving the flag, singing the National Anthem — people proud to live in the United States of America.

And we’re reminded that we are fortunate to have Americans who dedicate their lives to protecting ours.  They volunteer.  They train.  They endure separation from their families.  They take extraordinary risks so that we can be safe.  They get the job done.  We may not always know their names.  We may not always know their stories.  But they are there, every day, on the front lines of freedom, and we are truly blessed.

I do want to acknowledge before we begin the ceremony two individuals who have been critical as part of my team who are here today:  First of all, I think somebody who will go down as one of the finest Secretaries of Defense in our history, Secretary Bob Gates, who is here.  (Applause.)  And sitting beside him, someone who served with incredible valor on behalf of this country and is now somebody who I think will go down as one of the greatest Secretaries of Veterans Affairs in our history — Eric Shinseki.  (Applause.)

Now, I have to say that as Commander-in-Chief, I could not be prouder of our men and women in uniform.  That is true now, in today’s wars.  It has been true in all of our wars.  And it is why we are here today.

Long ago, a poet of the First World War wrote of the sacrifice of young soldiers in war:

They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old,

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

Today, we are joined by two American families who six decades ago gave our nation one of their own —- Private First Class Henry Svehla and Private First Class Anthony Kaho’ohanohano.

They did not grow old.  These two soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice when they were just 19 and 21 years old.  Age did not weary them.  In the hearts of their families, they remain forever young —- loving sons, protective brothers, hometown kids who stood tall in America’s hometown — in America’s uniform.

Today, we remember them.  And we honor them with the highest military decoration that our nation can bestow — the Medal of Honor.  In so doing we also honor their families, who remind us that it is our extraordinary military families who also bear the heavy burden of war.

We are joined by members of Congress who are here.  We very grateful for you.  We are also joined by leaders from the Army and our Armed Forces, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen and the Vice Chairman, General Jim “Hoss” Cartwright.  Where — there they are right there.  (Applause.)

And this is not in the script, but let me just acknowledge that without the leadership of Bob Gates, Mike Mullen, Hoss Cartwright, today and yesterday would not have happened.  And their steadiness and leadership has been extraordinary.  I could not be prouder of them, and I am so grateful that they have been part of our team.  (Applause.)

I especially want to welcome some of those who fought so bravely 60 years ago —- our inspiring Korean veterans — Korean War veterans who have made the trip here.  And I also want to acknowledge those who are welcoming two more American heroes into their ranks — members of the Medal of Honor Society.  Thank you so much for your presence.  (Applause.)

This past November, I paid a visit to South Korea — a visit that coincided with the 60th anniversary of the start of the Korean War, as well as November 11th, Veterans Day.  And I was privileged to spend part of the day with our troops and with dozens of veterans of the Korean War — members of a generation who, in the words of their memorial here in Washington, fought for “a country they never knew and a people they never met.”

It was a generation that included Private First Class Anthony Kaho’ohanohano.  Tony grew up in Hawaii, in Maui.  He learned early that we have a duty to others — from his father, a dedicated police officer, and his mother, who devoted herself to their nine children.  Tony was a tall guy.  He loved Hawaii, swimming in the ocean, playing basketball —- sounds like my kind of guy.  (Laughter.)  His siblings remember him as the big brother — quiet but strong — who took care of them, stood up for them in the neighborhood, and who would treat them to ice cream.

Tony’s loyalty to family was matched by his love of country — even though Hawaii wasn’t even a state yet.  By September 1951, the Korean War had been raging for more than a year, and Tony was part of the 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, which had been fighting for strategic hills that could shape the course of the war.

His squad was near a village called Chupa-ri when they came under a ferocious attack.  With the enemy advancing, with his men outnumbered, Tony made a decision.  He ordered his squad to fall back and seek cover.  And then Tony did something else.  He stayed behind.  Machine gun in hand, he laid down fire so his men could get to safety.  He was one American soldier, alone, against an approaching army.

When Tony was wounded in the shoulder, he fought on.  He threw grenade after grenade.  When his weapon ran out of ammunition, he grabbed another.  And when he ran out of ammo, he reached for the only thing left — a shovel.  That’s when the enemy overran his position.  And in those final moments, the combat was hand to hand.

It was that bravery — that courage — of a single soldier that inspired his men to regroup, to rally and to drive the enemy back.  And when they finally reached Tony’s position, the measure of his valor became clear.  After firing so many bullets, the barrel of his machine gun was literally bent.  But Tony had stood his ground.  He had saved the lives of his men.

After his death, Tony was awarded the Army’s second highest award for valor — the Distinguished Service Cross.  But his family felt he deserved more.  And so did Senator — and World War II vet — Danny Akaka.  We’re honored that Senator Akaka has joined us, as well as Mazie Hirono.  And obviously we are extraordinarily grateful that we’re joined by another Senator and a Medal of Honor recipient, Dan Inouye.  Thank you so much for your presence.  (Applause.)

Now, Hawaii is a small state, but the Kaho’ohanohanos are a very big family.  In fact, I went to high school with one of their cousins, Whitey.  Tell Whitey I said, “How’s it?”  (Laughter.)

This is a remarkable family.  Service defines them. Tony’s father and all six sons served in the military.  Another member of the family has served in Afghanistan.  Nearly 30 members of the family have traveled from Hawaii to be here, including Tony’s sister Elaine and brother Eugene.

For the sacrifice that your family endured, for the service that your family has rendered — thank you so much.  Mahalo nui loa.

I would ask that you all join me in welcoming Tony’s nephew George, who worked for many years to get his uncle the honor that he deserved.  George.  (Applause.)

MILITARY AIDE READS THE CITATION:  The President of the United States of America, authorized by act of Congress,     March 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of Congress, the Medal of Honor to Private First Class Anthony T. Kaho’ohanohano, United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.

Private First Class Anthony T. Kaho’ohanohano, Company H, 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action against the enemy in the vicinity of Chupa-ri, Korea, on one September 1951.  On that date, Private First Class Kaho’ohanohano was in charge of machine-gun squads supporting the defense positioning of Company F when a numerically superior enemy force launched a fierce attack.  Because of the enemy’s overwhelming numbers, friendly troops were forced to execute a limited withdrawal.  As the men fell back, Private First Class Kaho’ohanohano ordered his squad to take up more defensible positions and provide covering fire for the withdrawing friendly force.

Although having been wounded in the soldier during the initial enemy assault, Private First Class Kaho’ohanohano gathered a supply of grenades and ammunition and returned to his original position to face the enemy alone.

As the hostile troops concentrated their strength against his emplacement and in an effort to overrun it, Private First Class Kaho’ohanohano fought fiercely and courageously, delivering deadly accurate fire into the ranks of the onrushing enemy.

When his ammunition was depleted, he engaged the enemy in hand-to-hand combat until he was killed.  Private First Class Kaho’ohanohano’s heroic stand so inspired his comrades that they launched a counter-attack that completely repulsed the enemy.

Upon reaching Private First Class Kaho’ohanohano’s emplacement, friendly troops discovered 11 enemy soldiers lying dead in front of the emplacement, and two inside it, killed in hand-to-hand combat.

Private First Class Kaho’ohanohano’s extraordinary heroism and selfish devotion to duty are in keeping with the finest traditions of military service, and reflect great credit upon himself, the 7th Infantry Division and the United States Army.

(The Medal is presented.)  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  About the time that Tony was inspiring his men, another young soldier was joining up with the 7th Infantry Division in Korea — Private First Class Henry Svehla.  He grew up in New Jersey.  He loved fishing on the Jersey shore.  He was one of six kids and the youngest son, but the one who seemed to take care of everybody else.

His sister Dorothy remembers how their mom would be in the kitchen, at the end of a long day, trying to cook dinner for six kids.  Henry — a teenager — would walk in, grab his mother’s hand and dance her around the kitchen. “If anybody needed him,” said Dorothy, “Henry was there.”

And he was there for America, in Korea, as the war neared its third and final year.  Henry knew the dangers.  And in one of his last letters home, he wrote, “I may not return.”

That June of 1952, the heat was unbearable.  The monsoon rains and mosquitoes were relentless.  But the 7th Infantry Division pushed on — probing enemy lines, fighting bunker by bunker, hill by hill.  And as Henry and his company neared the top of one hill, the rocky slopes seemed to explode with enemy fire.  His unit started to falter, and that’s when Henry made his move.

He stood up.  He looked ahead.  And he charged forward into a hail of bullets.  Those who were there describe how he kept firing his weapon, kept hurling grenades, and how — even after being wounded in the face — he refused medical attention and kept leading the charge.

That’s when an enemy grenade landed among his men.  Every human instinct, every impulse, would tell a person to turn away. But at that critical moment, Henry Svehla did the opposite.  He threw himself on that grenade.  And with his sacrifice, he saved the lives of his fellow soldiers.

Henry Svehla’s body has never been recovered.  That’s a wound in the heart of his family that has never been fully healed.  It’s also a reminder that, as a nation, we must never forget those who didn’t come home, are missing in action, who were taken prisoner of war — and we must never stop trying to bring them back to their families.

Henry was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, but his family believed that he had earned this nation’s highest military honor.  They contacted their congressman and his staff, who made it their mission, and we thank Representative Bill Pascrell for making this day possible.

Henry’s parents and brothers did not live to see this day, but two of his sisters — Dorothy and Sylvia — are with us.  Dorothy, Sylvia, you remind us that behind every American who wears our nation’s uniform stands a family who serves with them. And behind every American who lays down their life for our country is a family who mourns them, and honors them, for the rest of their lives.  Every day, for nearly 60 years, you have lived the poet’s words:

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

And so I want to conclude today by inviting everyone to join me in welcoming Henry’s sister Dorothy to the stage for the presentation of the medal.  (Applause.)

MILITARY AIDE READS THE CITATION:  The President of the United States, authorized by Act of Congress, March 3, 1863, has awarded, in the name of Congress, the Medal of Honor to Private First Class Henry Svehla, United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity and the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.  Private First Class Henry Svehla distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a rifleman with F Company, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, in connection with combat operations against an armed enemy in Pyongony, Korea, on 12 June, 1952.

That afternoon, while Private First Class Svehla and his platoon were patrolling a strategic hill to determine enemy strength and positions, they were subjected to intense enemy automatic weapons and small arms fire at the top of the hill.  Coming under heavy fire, the platoon’s attack began to falter.  Realizing the success of mission and the safety of the remaining troops were in peril, Private First Class Svehla leapt to his feet and charged the enemy positions, firing his weapon and throwing grenades as he advanced.

In the face of this courage and determination, the platoon rallied to attack with renewed vigor.  Private First Class Svehla, utterly disregarding his own safety, destroyed enemy positions and inflicted heavy casualties, when suddenly, fragments from a mortar round exploding nearby seriously wounded him in the face.  Despite his wounds, Private First Class Svehla refused medical treatment and continued to lead the attack.

When an enemy grenade landed among a group of his comrades, Private First Class Svehla, without hesitation and undoubtedly aware of extreme danger, threw himself upon the grenade.  During this action, Private First Class Svehla was mortally wounded.  Private First Class Svehla’s extraordinary heroism and selflessness at the cost of his own life, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit and the United States Army.

(The Medal is presented.)  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Let’s give both families a big round of applause — (applause) — for Anthony and for Henry.  (Applause.)

CHAPLAIN CARVER:  Please join me in prayer.

Gracious God, you’ve stirred our hearts once again today as we’ve heard the accounts of two great American soldiers, who valued the lives of those under their care more than their very own.

You’ve told us in the Holy Scripture that there’s no greater love than this.  And so, would you etch this eternal truth in our own hearts as we carry out our responsibilities to you, our families and our great nation.

Bless the young men and women of our armed services, who walk in the footsteps of both Anthony and Henry, protecting and defending our lives in freedom’s cost.  And, Lord, continue to bless, empower and give great wisdom to our President, Barack Obama, as he leads our nation in these challenging times.

And God bless America.  In your holy name, we pray.  Amen.

AUDIENCE:  Amen.

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you so much, everyone.  Please enjoy the reception.

And again, to the families, we could not be prouder of Anthony and Henry.  We are grateful for their sacrifice.  We are grateful for your sacrifice.  You have made this country safer.  Tony and Henry stand as a model of courage and patriotism.

God bless you.  And God bless the United States of America.  Thank you, everyone.  (Applause.)