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
And part of our rebuilding effort must also involve our housing sector.
The good news is, our housing market is finally healing from the
collapse of 2007. Home prices are rising at the fastest pace in 6 years.
Home purchases are up nearly 50 percent, and construction is expanding
again.
But even with mortgage rates near a 50-year low, too many families with
solid credit who want to buy a home are being rejected. Too many
families who never missed a payment and want to refinance are being
told no. That's holding our entire economy back. We need to fix it.
Right now there's a bill in this Congress that would give every
responsible homeowner in America the chance to save $3,000 a year by
refinancing at today's rates. Democrats and Republicans have supported
it before, so what are we waiting for? Take a vote and send me that
bill. Why are--why would we be against that? Why would that be a
partisan issue, helping folks refinance? Right now overlapping
regulations keep responsible young families from buying their first
home. What's holding us back? Let's streamline the process and help our
economy grow.
These initiatives in manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, housing,
all these things will help entrepreneurs and small-business owners
expand and create new jobs. But none of it will matter unless we also
equip our citizens with the skills and training to fill those jobs.
And that has to start at the earliest possible age. Study after study
shows that the sooner a child begins learning, the better he or she
does down the road. But today, fewer than 3 in 10 4-year-olds are
enrolled in a high-quality preschool program. Most middle class parents
can't afford a few hundred bucks a week for a private preschool. And
for poor kids who need help the most, this lack of access to preschool
education can shadow them for the rest of their lives. So tonight I
propose working with States to make high-quality preschool available to
every single child in America. That's something we should be able to do.
Every dollar we invest in high-quality early childhood education can
save more than 7 dollars later on: by boosting graduation rates,
reducing teen pregnancy, even reducing violent crime. In States that
make it a priority to educate our youngest children, like Georgia or
Oklahoma, studies show students grow up more likely to read and do math
at grade level, graduate high school, hold a job, form more stable
families of their own. We know this works. So let's do what works and
make sure none of our children start the race of life already behind.
Let's give our kids that chance.
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