State of the Union Addresses of Barack Obama, 2009-2016Obama, Barack
General
State of the Union Addresses of Barack Obama, 2009-2016
Obama, Barack
Presidents -- United States -- Messages; United States -- Politics and government -- Sources
So tonight I'm announcing the launch of three more of these
manufacturing hubs, where businesses will partner with the Department
of Defense and Energy to turn regions left behind by globalization into
global centers of high-tech jobs. And I ask this Congress to help
create a network of 15 of these hubs and guarantee that the next
revolution in manufacturing is made right here in America. We can get
that done.
Now, if we want to make the best products, we also have to invest in
the best ideas. Every dollar we invested to map the human genome
returned $140 to our economy--every dollar. Today, our scientists are
mapping the human brain to unlock the answers to Alzheimer's. They're
developing drugs to regenerate damaged organs, devising new materials
to make batteries 10 times more powerful. Now is not the time to gut
these job-creating investments in science and innovation, now is the
time to reach a level of research and development not seen since the
height of the space race. We need to make those investments.
Today, no area holds more promise than our investments in American
energy. After years of talking about it, we're finally poised to
control our own energy future. We produce more oil at home than we have
in 15 years. We have doubled the distance our cars will go on a gallon
of gas and the amount of renewable energy we generate from sources like
wind and solar, with tens of thousands of good American jobs to show
for it. We produce more natural gas than ever before, and nearly
everyone's energy bill is lower because of it. And over the last 4
years, our emissions of the dangerous carbon pollution that threatens
our planet have actually fallen.
But for the sake of our children and our future, we must do more to
combat climate change. Now, it's true that no single event makes a
trend. But the fact is, the 12 hottest years on record have all come in
the last 15. Heat waves, droughts, wildfires, floods--all are now more
frequent and more intense. We can choose to believe that Superstorm
Sandy and the most severe drought in decades and the worst wildfires
some States have ever seen were all just a freak coincidence. Or we can
choose to believe in the overwhelming judgment of science and act
before it's too late.
Now, the good news is we can make meaningful progress on this issue
while driving strong economic growth. I urge this Congress to get
together, pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change,
like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few
years ago. But if Congress won't act soon to protect future generations,
I will. I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we
can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our
communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the
transition to more sustainable sources of energy.
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