While the outgoing president didn’t touch on some major business issues, he did talk at length about the economy and healthcare.
Pres. Barack Obama bid farewell to the nation on Tuesday night, sharing both warnings and optimism.
LEARN HOW OBAMA’S PRESIDENCY IMPACTED SMALL BUSINESS.
When listing his various successes as president, Obama added that “for every two steps forward, it often feels we take one step back.”
Obama also stressed the importance of a peaceful transition of power between himself and President-elect Donald Trump, who will take office Jan. 20.
“Democracy does not require uniformity,” he said. “Our founders quarreled and compromised, and expected us to do the same. But they knew that democracy does require a basic sense of solidarity—the idea that for all our outward differences, we are all in this together, that we rise or fall as one.”
Obama also had a message for ordinary citizens: To spur change, get involved in the political discourse. Don’t shy away from it.
“After eight years as your president, I still believe that. And it’s not just my belief. It’s the beating heart of our American idea—our bold experiment in self-government.”
While Obama didn’t talk much about minimum wage, regulations on business, or taxes, he did go into some detail on the economy and healthcare. Here’s what he had to say on those topics, according to a Washington Post transcript.
Economy
“[T]oday the economy is growing again. Wages, incomes, home values, and retirement accounts are all rising again. Poverty is falling again. The wealthy are paying a fair share of taxes. Even as the stock market shatters records, the unemployment rate is near a 10-year low. The uninsured rate has never, ever been lower.”
“Our economy doesn’t work as well or grow as fast when a few prosper at the expense of a growing middle class.”
“Last year, incomes rose for all races, all age groups, for men and for women.”
“[O]ur trade should be fair and not just free. But the next wave of economic dislocations won’t come from overseas. It will come from the relentless pace of automation that makes a lot of good middle class jobs obsolete. And so we’re going to have to forge a new social compact to guarantee all our kids the education they need. To give workers the power to unionize for better wages. To update the social safety net to reflect the way we live now. And make more reforms to the tax code so corporations and the individuals who reap the most from this new economy don’t avoid their obligations to the country that’s made their very success possible.”
Healthcare
“Healthcare costs are rising at the slowest rate in 50 years… Anyone [who] can put together a plan that is demonstrably better than the improvements we’ve made to our healthcare system, that covers as many people at less cost, I will publicly support it.”
NFIB and our members have long been vocal about the failings of Obamacare. Learn more >>
Photo credit: Pete Souza
Related:
Regulation Nation: A Look at Obama’s Legacy
The Last Address: Where Did Obama Stand on Small Business Issues?
