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Subscribe to RSSPresident Obama said he related to middle class Americans “looking for a chance,” as he highlighted his administration’s efforts to retrain unemployed workers for new jobs.
Accusing his Republican rivals of trying to revive trickle-down economics instead of spending money on priorities to help the middle class, President Obama says those Republicans "don't seem to remember how America was built."
"I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth. Michelle wasn't, either," the president said to a crowd of 400 students at Lorain County Community College in Elyria, Ohio. “But somebody gave us a chance. Just like these folks up here are looking for a chance.”
The Obama campaign has pushed wealth and economic fairness arguments against Mitt Romney, who would be one of the wealthiest presidents in history -- and that quote was quickly seen as a veiled reference to his GOP opponent this fall.
Amy Sancetta / AP
President Barack Obama reaches out to shake hands with Lorain County Community College student Bronson Harwood after speaking at the college Wednesday in Elyria, Ohio.
And as he criticized Republicans for opposing Democrats’ efforts to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans, he told the crowd that, like them, he doesn’t enjoy paying taxes, but unlike most Americans, he can afford to pay more.
“They want to give me more of a tax break,” he said of Republicans. “Now, I just paid taxes. It’s not like I love paying taxes. But I can afford it. I don't need another tax break."
Obama argued that tax cuts alone don't make the economy stronger and that GOP policies have been tried before and almost brought the “entire financial system” to a collapse.
“Take a look at what happened in Ohio between 2000 and 2008," Obama said. "It's not like we didn't try it. And instead of faster job growth, we had the slowest job growth in half a century.”
But the president also seemed on the defensive, acknowledging arguments against him -- from debt, deficits, and big-government spending. He asserted twice that investing in job training programs and cutting tax cuts for the wealthy did not amount to wealth redistribution, a common conservative criticism.
“Understand, this is not a redistribution argument," Obama said. "This is not about taking form rich people to give to poor people. This is about us together making investments in our country so everybody’s got a fair shot."
And, when arguing that government-subsidized community-college training programs were vehicles for economic growth, he said, “These investments are not part of some grand scheme to redistribute wealth, they’ve been made by Democrats and Republicans for generations, because they benefit all of us.”
Before he spoke, the president held a round table with four unemployed workers who are participating in the Lorain County Community College’s job training programs. He said those individuals represent the American notion that “we don't quit.”
“And so the question now is, how do we make sure that all of America is expressing that spirit through making sure that everybody is getting a fair shot?” he continued. “Because that’s going to be a major debate that we have not just for the next few months but the next few years.”
Following his speech, the president headed to the Cleveland airport en route to Michigan, where he was expected to give two evening campaign speeches and raise money.
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Obama gets $3 million vacations funded by the taxpayers. That's awfully "silver spoon-ish" to me. If he doesn't have to outlay much of his own money for meals, lodging, insurance, etc since that's offered to him via taxpayer funds then the amount he takes home is all the greater since he can bank more of it. That's a true 1%er if I ever saw one. Coming from humble beginnings IN NO WAY means you will STAY humble. Obama is a true politician now - greedy and out of touch.
No silver spoon? Obama went to Punahou, the most expensive and exclusive private school in Hawaii. It's an election year and the BS is getting deep ...
But he didn't work for a darn thing. Affirmative action was his silver spoon. Why are his school transcripts hidden, is he ashamed of where and what he studied? His close friends and associates are examples of what not to become. If a republican had the associates he had they would be crucified by the media.
Mittens wont even release his tax records- never saw nor heard what his grades were have you.
the tax return he release is pretty good example of what his previous years look like I would guess. But his transcripts are available...why is that?
He is releasing the same as every other president has the past 2 years to bad Obama wants to go all the way to 1970. Were are the grades and the thesis three years and still waiting.
His records are sealed so we can't see that he went to school on a foreign student status. This guy is so full of BS.
Bishop Mitt will make coffee illegal and underage brides the norm.
Obama doesn't have a silver spoon, just a big old Gubba'mint tit. He has never worked a day in his life. Mitt pays 17% in taxes and GIVES 15% to Charities. Obama paid 16% in taxes and gave 00.031% to charities .... that's nice Obama.
Obama hates America.
Blacks are 12 % of the population and over 60% of those in jail/prison.
Blacks are 12% of the population and over 38% of those on welfare.
Blacks are 12% of the population, and 50% of all murder victims. 94% of these murders were committed by
other blacks.
Welfare, white liberals, and Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have done more harm to blacks than slavery or any other event.
When you reward bad behavior with welfare, all you get is more bad behavior.
The beauty of America is that anyone can end up with a "silver spoon" in their mouth if they work hard, make smart decisions, and take responsibility. Welfare has created reverse evolution where the dumbest, laziest, and least productive and least intelligent survive and pass on the bad genes to litters of poor offspring... and the cycle grows and grows.
The problem with Obamas Socialism is that eventually you run out of people to take from.
When the doctor and window washer are paid the same, good luck finding a doctor when you need one.
Collecting Income Tax from the bottom 49% of Americans who currently pay nothing due to all the writeoffs they get, is the way to go. EVERYONE should pay their fair share, starting at the bottom who pay nothing. The rich have paid more than their fair share for years.
In fact, the average tax paid by the wealthy is 24%... while 49% pay nothing and the other 50% average a 9% tax rate.
face the facts-tax the poor? The rich pay more than their share? You are a deluded wanna be. Why tax yourself.
I agree, Obama wasn't born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He was born with a splintery, Socialist stick up his backside.
No he was not born with a silver spoon because Africa is a very poor country.
Willard is the Paris Hilton of politics.
Guess that makes your messiah the Pied Piper.
Obama, has paid 'One Million "per year, to attorney's since he has been in office to keep all his records sealed.
Lots of Fox Noose racist posting today.
Typical Liberal Racist statement. If you do not agree with Obama you are a Racist. Martin Luther King is doing snap rolls in his grave when ever he hears the Obama name after all he worked for. He was a true and firdst class Republican.
Bishop,
OK, all reasoning stops!! Bishop just used the words "racist" and "FOX NOOSE". Bishop wins by default.
Is that all you got, putz?
If it walks like a duck, it's a duck.
Go burn a cross Jethro.
Hey Bishi,
Let's have Romney release a years worth of tax returns for every year of Obama transcripts. How does that grab you? I suspect Obama won't come out looking too good on that deal!
What is wrong with being a racist? Anyone who thinks that all the human races are uniformly created with equal intelligence and skills is just plain in butterfly lala land denial.... Look at breeds of dogs...would you leave your newborn child with a Labrador or a Pit Bull?? Of course there is the bee that won't sting out there, and the cobra that does not bite, but those are exceptions... and obviously there are exceptions to everything.
BISHOPMITT .... if you looked at Obama's record and his affect on the African American Communities without knowing who was President you would have to come to the conclusion that the record belonged to a secret Grand Cyclopse of the KU KLUX KLAN .... OBAMA HATES BLACK PEOPLE !!!!
The more desperate he gets the faster the lies come out of his mouth. He is going to crash his Teleprompter if he is not care full.
He is talented though he can lie a mile a minuet and still get both feet in his mouth every time.
I hear Chicago calling they are 1 crook short and want you
No we know it wasn't a silver spoon Barry. It's a forked tongue you were born with in your mouth you lying hypocrite.
I've seen his records.
Teabaggers can't read English?
Were you born a raving loon nutjob, or did you have to work at it?
666 is one of the leg humping Obama Campaign staffers. He's a white dude under the age of 26 who is still on his parent's health insurance policy.
Of course he wasn't born with a silver spoon in his mouth. They don't even use silver in Kenya. He had lie, cheat and steal his way to the top.
crud...you stole my joke...
'I wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth'
--------------------
No but my grandma was a Bank President and my step-father was one of the richest men in Indonesia.
What Bullchit....."I wasn't born with a silver spoon". 99% of us aren't. What a stupid comment.
If someone gave you a chance, who was it? You made it....Why can't or shouldn't others? Should certain people get special chances?
Do you expect the government to give everyone a chance or can a private individual or person do it?
A bunch of crap.
This guy's a mixed up putz.
Oh yea, and he "just paid taxes". Why in the phuck didn't he pay more? He had the opportunity to.
And to think there are dumb schmucks hanging on every word he says.
If you teabaggers had a job, you would understand what it's like to pay double the tax that Willard does.
Bishop,
Willard paid $6,000,000 in taxes the past two years and I'd like to know how much government services he got for it.
Some people pay nothing and get a million dollars worth of services.
Don't be such a dumb ass.
You must be in charge of the entitlemnet crowd and living in Mom and Dads basement. We started our job in 2010 and took control of the House. This election it will be the Senate and the Oval Office.
Kiss your entitlements goodbye you Left Wing Liberal Socialist.
Kudos to the Tea Party
Kudos to the 2nd Amendment
Kudos to the Electoral College
Kudos to ther Constitution
The tea party is led by Dick Armory (a multi millionaire) and funded by the Koch Bros. and other elitists who have to laugh their butts off thinking about how easy and cost effective it is to get low information voters to actually work against their own interests. The tea party members should not be hated they should be pitied.
No, Mr. Obama--you may not have had a silver spoon in your mouth------you had something much better----Affirmative Action.
booyah
Bull yah.
Bishop Mitt will make pardon Warren Jeffs and other pedophiles.
More dumb rants by Bishop.
But, please don't stop. Show the world how really stupid you are. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE.....Keep it up!
Humberto Leal raped, tortured and murdered 16 year old Adrea Sauceda in San Antonio. Last year, Obama tried to stop his execution.
Obama's tax rate was 30% while Romneys is around 15%. I'd like to know why a superstar athlete or actor who are actually paid for their talent makes 21 million and pay 35% fed taxes but someone like Romney pays 15% for leaving it in investments. Some like Peyton Manning earning 21 million would do a lot more for the economy because they spend it rather than Romney and his ilk who use tax laws made specially for them to pay so little.
he didn't write the tax code...did you?
That means that Mitt is smarter than Obama. Kudos to Mitt
Because Mitt pays MILLIONS more than Obama does to CHARITY. Easy answer. He, literally, puts his money where his mouth is.
Why must he lie? He attend one of the most prestigious and expensive schools in Hawaii. His grandmother was the President of a bank branch. In Indonesia he attended a madras and had nannies to take care of him. This man did not see a ghetto till he was an adult but he dares say he did not have a "silver spoon"? The jobs-community organizer, part time law professor and senator- tell me again who deprived he was, how he worked his way through school. Such a LIAR!
Those who didn't listen to the speech or had a preconceived idea spew the usual BS about President Obama and what he supposedly believes. Those who actually listen with an open mind will see that he is all for personal responsibility and that everyone should work together. Some things, he pointed out, according to Lincoln people just can't do for themselves and when that is the case it is the responsibility of the community to pitch in and do it. The problem these days is that people have become selfish and greedy. I got mine get your own is the mentality. Greed will be the downfall of the US as it was for many other great empires, countries, realms in history.
Obama is greedy and out of touch, and worried the White House gravy train and Million Dollar "free" vacations are coming to an end.
Time to boot this socialist loser to the curb!
So what?
...after all, they didn't have silver spoons in Kenya....
Please put a bag on that face immediately!
let me guess? A tolerant, kind, peace loving, bully-hating liberal? You guys crack me up.
You're a jerk, Bishop!
666 wouldn't dare post a pic of himself. He'd get beat up riding his skateboard home from the Obama campaign office.
... if you didn't know who was President and you could look at the record and the affect on minorities you could only come to one conclusion ... this President HATES BLACK PEOPLE.
This President is a secret GRAND CYCLOPSE OF THE KU KLUX KLAN ...