2011_0416WeeklyAddress奥巴马每周演讲：美国的财政前景

Weekly Address: America's Fiscal Future

This week, I laid out my plan for our fiscal future. It’s a balanced plan that

reduces spending and

brings down the deficit, putting America back on track

toward paying down our debt.

We know why this challenge is so critical. If we don’t act, a rising tide of

borrowing will damage our economy, costing us jobs and risking our future

prosperity by sticki

ng our children with the bill.

At the same time, we have to take a balanced approach to reducing our

deficit –

an approach that protects the middle class, our commitments to

seniors, and job

-creating investments in things like education and clean

energy. W

hat’s required is an approach that draws support from both parties,

and one that’s based on the values of shared responsibility and shared

prosperity.

Now, one plan put forward by some Republicans in the House of

Representatives aims to reduce our deficit

by $4 trillion over the next ten

years. But while I think their goal is worthy, I believe their vision is wrong for

America.

It’s a vision that says at a time when other nations are hustling to out-

compete us for the jobs and businesses of tomorrow, we hav

e to make

drastic cuts in education, infrastructure, and clean energy

– the very

investments we need to win that competition and get those jobs.

It’s a vision that says that in order to reduce the deficit, we have to end

Medicare as we know it, and make cu

ts to Medicaid that would leave millions

of seniors, poor children, and Americans with disabilities without the care

they need.

But even as this plan proposes these drastic cuts, it would also give $1 trillion

in tax breaks to the wealthiest 2% of American

s – an extra $200,000 for

every millionaire and billionaire in the country.

I don’t think that’s right. I don’t think it’s right to ask seniors to pay

thousands more for health care, or ask students to postpone college, just so

we don’t have to ask those w

ho have prospered so much in this land of

opportunity to give back a little more.

To restore fiscal responsibility, we all need to share in the sacrifice

– but we

don’t have to sacrifice the America we believe in.

That’s why I’ve proposed a balanced approa

ch that matches that $4 trillion in

deficit reduction. It’s an approach that combs the entire budget for savings,

and asks everyone to do their part. And I’ve called on Democrats and

Republicans to join me in this effort

– to put aside their differences to

help

America meet this challenge. That’s how we’ve balanced our budget before,

and it’s how we’ll succeed again.

We’ll build on the savings we made from last week’s bipartisan budget

agreement, while protecting the job

-creating investments that are critic

al to

our future.

We’ll find additional savings in our defense budget. Over the last two years,

the Secretary of Defense has taken on wasteful spending that does nothing to

protect our troops or our nation, saving $400 billion in current and future

spendin

g. I believe we can do that again.

We’ll reduce health care spending, and strengthen Medicare and Medicaid

through common

-sense reforms that will get rid of wasteful subsidies and

increase efficiency.

We’ll reduce spending in our tax code with tax reform t

hat’s fair and simple

–

so that the amount of taxes you pay doesn’t depend on how clever an

accountant you can afford. And we should end the tax cuts for the wealthiest

Americans, too. Because people like me don’t need another tax cut.

So that’s my approac

h to reduce the deficit by $4 trillion over the next 12

years while protecting the middle class, keeping our promise to seniors, and

securing our investments in our future. I hope you’ll check it out for yourself

on WhiteHouse.gov. And while you’re there, you can also find what we’re

calling the taxpayer receipt. For the first time ever, there’s a way for you to

see exactly how and where your tax dollars are spent, and what’s really at

stake in this debate.

Going forward, Democrats and Republicans in Washin

gton will have our

differences, some of them strong. But you expect us to bridge those

differences. You expect us to work together and get this done. And I believe

we can. I believe we can live within our means and live up to the values we

share as America

ns. And in the weeks to come, I’ll work with anyone who’s

willing to get it done.

Thanks for listening. Have a great weekend.