“There are still a lot of folks hurting out there. We’ve got to put people back to work. We’ve got to grow the economy. We’ve got to reduce the deficit. We’ve got to pass immigration reform. We’ve got to have an energy plan that works for all Americans. And that’s before I start talking about international affairs.” Those were President Barak Obama’s words at the Sony Commissary, where about 50 people, including Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, philanthropist Eli
Broad and Motown founder Berry Gordy, gathered to support the president in his bid for re-election.
Afterward, the president spoke at a rally on a studio sound stage to a crowd of about 2,500 people. He said he shared their frustration with the pace of changes he promised during his 2008 campaign, but addressed what he believed were his successes and told the crowd that the country is moving in the right direction.
“We knew that on a journey like this there were going to be setbacks, there were gonna be detours,” he said. “There were gonna be times where we stumbled and we had to get up and dust ourselves off and then keep going. Because we knew that at each and every juncture in our history, when the future was on the line, when we were at the crossroads like we are now, the country somehow came together.
“The country somehow found a way to make ourselves more prosperous and deal with the transition from an agricultural to an industrial economy and then to an information economy. We figured out how to absorb new immigrants and finally deal with the stain of slavery, make sure that women were full participants in our democracy.
“At every juncture, we’ve been able to make the changes that we need. So when you hear people say our problems are too big or we can’t bring about the changes that we seek, I want you to think about all the progress we’ve already made and I want you to think about all the unfinished business that lies ahead. I want you to be excited about the next 18 months and then the next four years after that, and I want you to remind everybody else those simple
words that summed up our campaign in 2008 and still sum up our spirit – yes we
can.”
Obama rallied the crowd by addressing the cornerstones of his campaign, including a reduction in the country’s reliance on foreign oil, cutting taxes and ending tax breaks for oil companies and the wealthiest 2% of Americans.
“I want everybody to understand it’s not that I want to punish success,” he said. “I want everybody here to be rich … what we do want is a society where if we’re going to ask everybody to sacrifice a little bit, we don’t just tell millionaires and billionaires, ‘Oh you don’t have to do anything, you just go ahead and relax. Count your money.’”
Obama pointed out that his administration has cracked down on abuses in the banking industry and helped the auto industry to rebound. He also pointed to substantial investments in alternative energy as an effort to fight rising gas prices.
As for goals the president said he still wants to achieve, he cited cutting waste in government spending, adopting sweeping changes in immigration policy and developing a more comprehensive energy policy.
“We’ve got to keep moving forward,” he said. “We have to keep working for the America that we believe in; the America we want to leave to our children. And that is the debate that we’re having in Washington right now. That’s what this budget debate is all about.”
The president ended his day by speaking at a fundraiser at Brentwood’s Tavern restaurant, where crowds gathered outside for the chance of a glimpse. Tickets cost $35,800. About 60 donors attended the event, including actors George Clooney, Tom Hanks and Will Ferrell, director Steven Spielberg and Gov. Jerry Brown.