WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.640 --> 00:00:05.119 My fellow citizens. [ APPLAUSE ] 2 00:00:06.099 --> 00:00:11.069 I stand here today humbled 3 00:00:11.569 --> 00:00:15.639 by the task before us. On January, 20th, 2009, 4 00:00:16.059 --> 00:00:19.699 President Obama was inaugurated. The theme of the 5 00:00:19.699 --> 00:00:23.339 inauguration was a new birth of freedom. It included a 6 00:00:23.719 --> 00:00:27.304 symbolic train ride from Philadelphia to Washington, 7 00:00:27.304 --> 00:00:30.989 and the same thing as President Abraham Lincoln's trip 8 00:00:31.019 --> 00:00:35.459 to Washington in 1861. It symbolized the 9 00:00:35.649 --> 00:00:38.539 peaceful transition of power from George W. Bush to 10 00:00:38.539 --> 00:00:42.829 Barak Obama. And also, this image of a 11 00:00:42.829 --> 00:00:46.029 young African- American man with his wife and his two 12 00:00:46.029 --> 00:00:50.269 daughters by his side taking the office was profound. 13 00:00:50.359 --> 00:00:53.023 It was in a way the realization of Martin Luther King's 14 00:00:53.023 --> 00:00:54.099 dream. Free at last. Free at last. Thank God almighty 15 00:00:54.249 --> 00:01:00.699 we are free at last. I, Barack Hussein Obama 16 00:01:00.819 --> 00:01:05.299 do solemnly swear. That I will execute the Office 17 00:01:05.299 --> 00:01:08.879 of the President of the United States faithfully. That I 18 00:01:10.529 --> 00:01:11.861 will execute- Faithfully the Office of President of the 19 00:01:11.862 --> 00:01:14.119 United States the Office of President of the United 20 00:01:14.139 --> 00:01:16.927 States faithfully. And will to the best of my ability- And 21 00:01:16.927 --> 00:01:19.989 will to the best of my ability- Preserve, protect and 22 00:01:19.989 --> 00:01:23.029 defend the Constitution of the United States. Preserve, 23 00:01:23.049 --> 00:01:25.149 protect, and defend the Constitution of the United 24 00:01:25.149 --> 00:01:26.909 States. So help you God? So help me God. 25 00:01:26.909 --> 00:01:28.957 Congratulations Congratulations, Mr. President. 26 00:01:28.957 --> 00:01:32.244 [ APPLAUSE ] But today does mark the beginning of the 27 00:01:32.244 --> 00:01:36.669 end. The beginning of what we need to do to create 28 00:01:36.929 --> 00:01:39.839 jobs for Americans scrambling in the wake of layoffs. 29 00:01:40.329 --> 00:01:44.039 The president can take credit for in the first 200 days 30 00:01:44.039 --> 00:01:48.559 of his presidency stopping the fall. They are down 110 31 00:01:48.979 --> 00:01:51.029 points on the [ INAUDIBLE ]. His advisors as they were 32 00:01:51.029 --> 00:01:54.119 coming in were saying. We don't know if in a month or 33 00:01:54.119 --> 00:01:56.399 two the ATMs will be working in this country. People 34 00:01:56.399 --> 00:01:59.599 are losing their homes and there's really no solution, 35 00:01:59.829 --> 00:02:01.959 nobody really saw a way out other than massive 36 00:02:01.959 --> 00:02:04.119 stimulus. The American Recovery and Reinvestment 37 00:02:04.119 --> 00:02:07.819 Act, it was a combination of broad tax cuts and credits 38 00:02:07.899 --> 00:02:09.725 that went basically to every American. [ INAUDIBLE ] 39 00:02:09.725 --> 00:02:13.519 [ APPLAUSE ] Took several months, there was a lot of 40 00:02:13.519 --> 00:02:17.289 pain, there was very high unemployment, upwards of 41 00:02:17.519 --> 00:02:21.239 10 %. Percent, and by the third or fourth month, those 42 00:02:21.239 --> 00:02:23.779 scary numbers began to tank down, the stock market 43 00:02:23.809 --> 00:02:26.449 bottomed. Layoffs that were projected for the public 44 00:02:26.449 --> 00:02:29.454 sector were delayed because of the stimulus bill, and 45 00:02:29.454 --> 00:02:34.659 you had Beginnings of a recovery. [ BLANK_AUDIO ] 46 00:02:34.659 --> 00:02:36.779 People, even as the economy recovered, even as the 47 00:02:36.779 --> 00:02:39.679 stock market recovered, continued to feel like they 48 00:02:39.679 --> 00:02:42.549 were not better off. Because in a lot of ways people 49 00:02:42.549 --> 00:02:44.869 weren't better off Their health care costs have gone 50 00:02:44.869 --> 00:02:47.209 up, education costs have gone up, their ability to get a 51 00:02:47.209 --> 00:02:50.619 loan had gone away, the value of their home had 52 00:02:50.619 --> 00:02:53.699 declined in many places. Many Americans now find 53 00:02:53.699 --> 00:02:56.799 themselves in competition with lower wage workers all 54 00:02:56.799 --> 00:02:59.899 over the world. Automation has kept wages down. His 55 00:02:59.899 --> 00:03:02.744 inability early on Certainly and maybe even now just 56 00:03:02.744 --> 00:03:04.749 sort of make that change easier for people or at least 57 00:03:04.749 --> 00:03:08.374 communicate the difficulty of that change is something 58 00:03:08.374 --> 00:03:13.409 that will hang over his legacy. [ MUSIC ] Today after 59 00:03:13.409 --> 00:03:17.959 almost a century of trying. Today 60 00:03:17.989 --> 00:03:24.389 after Over a year of debate. Today, after 61 00:03:24.389 --> 00:03:25.492 all of the votes have been tallied, health insurance 62 00:03:25.492 --> 00:03:28.653 reform becomes law in the United States of America. 63 00:03:28.653 --> 00:03:32.859 [ APPLAUSE ] One of the central promises 64 00:03:32.859 --> 00:03:36.879 of Obama's 2008 campaign was to, in a way, 65 00:03:36.879 --> 00:03:40.929 complete the American social safety net, specifically for 66 00:03:41.309 --> 00:03:44.929 Americans who were working were not necessarily 67 00:03:45.209 --> 00:03:47.451 poor, but he could not afford health insurance, and 68 00:03:47.451 --> 00:03:49.669 therefore didn't have regular medical care. This is 69 00:03:50.369 --> 00:03:52.899 something that most other Western nations provide 70 00:03:52.899 --> 00:03:55.899 their citizens that the US hasn't historically. And he did 71 00:03:55.899 --> 00:03:59.259 this with a massive bill that did that any many other 72 00:03:59.259 --> 00:04:02.909 things. Since the 1960s when Medicare and Medicaid 73 00:04:02.909 --> 00:04:05.479 passed which basically guaranteed health care for the 74 00:04:05.479 --> 00:04:08.429 poor and for the elderly. It has been a priority of 75 00:04:08.759 --> 00:04:12.499 Democratic leaders going back decades to try and 76 00:04:12.499 --> 00:04:16.819 extend that to working people. And so when Obama 77 00:04:16.819 --> 00:04:19.399 came on the scene He was really promising to 78 00:04:19.399 --> 00:04:23.419 complete this generation long democratic project. He 79 00:04:23.419 --> 00:04:26.199 was able to do it because the win in 2008 had been so 80 00:04:26.199 --> 00:04:30.554 grand. It had been such a big win. So that, for 81 00:04:30.554 --> 00:04:34.604 a time, he had a filibuster proof majority in the Senate. 82 00:04:34.604 --> 00:04:37.809 He had large majorities in House. Most Americans 83 00:04:37.809 --> 00:04:40.679 didn't really understand all the parts of Obamacare. It 84 00:04:40.679 --> 00:04:42.879 was a very complicated bill but they had strong 85 00:04:42.879 --> 00:04:45.409 feelings and those feelings tended to follow their 86 00:04:45.409 --> 00:04:47.349 political leanings. If they were conservative Republican 87 00:04:47.349 --> 00:04:48.961 they were concerned. It looked like government 88 00:04:48.961 --> 00:04:53.249 expansion overreach. If they were liberal and fans 89 00:04:53.249 --> 00:04:56.889 of the president They embraced it. Mr. President, for 90 00:04:56.889 --> 00:04:59.169 years, the American people have been calling on 91 00:04:59.169 --> 00:05:02.619 Washington to build a bridge away from Obamacare. 92 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:05.409 The story of Republican opposition to Obamacare isn't 93 00:05:05.409 --> 00:05:07.869 about Obamacare. It's about the way Republicans 94 00:05:08.069 --> 00:05:10.569 decided to oppose President Barack Obama from the 95 00:05:10.569 --> 00:05:12.889 very beginning. They lost the ability in some ways, to 96 00:05:12.889 --> 00:05:14.339 shape some of the legislation to make it more 97 00:05:14.339 --> 00:05:17.529 palatable But they decided that political opposition, a 98 00:05:17.529 --> 00:05:20.139 permanent campaign, was more beneficial for them 99 00:05:20.139 --> 00:05:23.129 politically. And the biggest changes, the most visible 100 00:05:23.349 --> 00:05:26.059 ones and the ones that are almost certain to stay, that 101 00:05:26.059 --> 00:05:28.119 even President- elect Donald Trump sort of wants to 102 00:05:28.119 --> 00:05:31.109 keep around, are the very popular provisions around 103 00:05:31.109 --> 00:05:33.019 children and young adults staying on their parents' 104 00:05:33.209 --> 00:05:35.349 healthcare plans until they're 26. And then getting rid 105 00:05:35.349 --> 00:05:38.159 of preexisting conditions, that is a tremendous change 106 00:05:38.159 --> 00:05:40.679 and that really just, a dramatic rethinking of the way 107 00:05:40.709 --> 00:05:45.779 insurance has been carried out in this country. 108 00:05:45.779 --> 00:05:48.069 The United States has conducted an operation that 109 00:05:48.089 --> 00:05:51.839 killed Osama bin Laden. The leader of Al- Qaeda. So 110 00:05:51.839 --> 00:05:54.729 President Obama had run for office, promising to fight 111 00:05:54.729 --> 00:05:57.029 the war on terror differently than President Bush. But 112 00:05:57.029 --> 00:05:59.429 he did say from the beginning that he would, if he 113 00:05:59.429 --> 00:06:02.759 could, kill the man responsible for the September 11 114 00:06:02.759 --> 00:06:06.532 attacks. [ SOUND ] 115 00:06:06.532 --> 00:06:10.039 [ APPLAUSE ] 116 00:06:10.039 --> 00:06:13.439 The day before The raid launched, he went to the 117 00:06:13.439 --> 00:06:15.834 White House correspondence association dinner, which 118 00:06:15.834 --> 00:06:20.619 was a comedic event broadcast live on C- SPAN. Well, 119 00:06:22.439 --> 00:06:25.579 back to square one. But at that point we found out 120 00:06:25.579 --> 00:06:28.809 later, he had already Basically knew that this raid was 121 00:06:28.809 --> 00:06:32.759 going to be happening, that they had identified footage 122 00:06:32.759 --> 00:06:35.279 and some other intelligence a compound in Pakistan 123 00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:38.129 where it appeared Bin Laden was living. The President 124 00:06:38.499 --> 00:06:41.749 had to make one of the most difficult decisions of his 125 00:06:42.099 --> 00:06:45.009 Presidency. The intelligence was good, but it was not 126 00:06:45.009 --> 00:06:48.049 conclusive. To authorize the mission. President Obama 127 00:06:48.049 --> 00:06:52.249 had to invade essentially Pakistani airspace. 128 00:06:52.269 --> 00:06:55.079 And there was a disagreement among his senior staff 129 00:06:55.579 --> 00:06:59.049 about whether the risk was worth it. This could really 130 00:06:59.049 --> 00:07:02.489 tar his administration, his presidency and be a real 131 00:07:02.939 --> 00:07:06.069 disrupting event For the world. But the President 132 00:07:06.429 --> 00:07:09.989 decided to go forward with it. And so 24 hours after 133 00:07:10.159 --> 00:07:13.309 going to laugh with a comedian in front of the 134 00:07:13.309 --> 00:07:15.769 international press, and Washington dignitaries, and 135 00:07:15.769 --> 00:07:18.599 celebrities, it began to leak out that Bin Laden was 136 00:07:18.599 --> 00:07:21.879 dead. And people spontaneously began streaming to 137 00:07:21.879 --> 00:07:25.959 the White House. For Obama it sort of proved that 138 00:07:25.959 --> 00:07:29.189 he had what it took to be Commander in Chief and a 139 00:07:29.189 --> 00:07:32.729 lot of those early days, during the Afghanistan surge, 140 00:07:32.729 --> 00:07:34.789 there were a lot of doubts about how he was going to 141 00:07:34.789 --> 00:07:37.919 lead America's military. Those doubts all ended with 142 00:07:38.019 --> 00:07:42.599 the month. Over 143 00:07:42.599 --> 00:07:46.359 the next few months eligible individuals who do not 144 00:07:46.769 --> 00:07:49.829 present a risk to national security or public safety will 145 00:07:49.829 --> 00:07:54.739 be able to request temporary relief from deportation. 146 00:07:55.284 --> 00:07:58.759 In 2012, President Obama implemented a policy that 147 00:07:58.759 --> 00:08:01.799 protected children who were brought to the US by their 148 00:08:01.799 --> 00:08:04.699 parents, undocumented children, called the Deferred 149 00:08:04.719 --> 00:08:07.209 Action for Childhood Arrivals. It protected about 150 00:08:07.209 --> 00:08:11.219 700, 000 young people from deportation. This is 151 00:08:11.239 --> 00:08:14.639 a temporary, stop gap measure that lets us focus our 152 00:08:14.669 --> 00:08:18.119 resources wisely while giving a degree of relief and 153 00:08:18.159 --> 00:08:22.199 hope to talented, driven, patriotic young 154 00:08:22.199 --> 00:08:26.319 people. It ended up being his main policy on 155 00:08:26.319 --> 00:08:29.499 immigration. The only problem with that policy was it's 156 00:08:29.719 --> 00:08:32.514 largely temporary and can easily be rolled back by the 157 00:08:32.514 --> 00:08:35.939 Their next president. Obama, es gauche. Barak 158 00:08:35.939 --> 00:08:38.409 Obama leaves a a bit of a mixed bag on immigration 159 00:08:38.409 --> 00:08:42.959 reform. While he was helping these young arrivals, he 160 00:08:43.059 --> 00:08:48.139 also was enforcing immigration laws 161 00:08:48.139 --> 00:08:52.109 that saw 2. 4 million And people deported from the 162 00:08:52.109 --> 00:08:56.369 U. S. And the president failed to get legislation passed 163 00:08:56.409 --> 00:08:59.429 during his first term, when he had the majority in the 164 00:08:59.479 --> 00:09:02.844 House and Senate. So, in 2012 when he implemented 165 00:09:02.844 --> 00:09:06.049 DACA, you know it was seen kind of as a watershed 166 00:09:06.049 --> 00:09:08.019 moment. People were very excited, thinking that this 167 00:09:08.019 --> 00:09:11.224 would be the first in many uses of executive power to 168 00:09:11.224 --> 00:09:14.179 kind of. Make a dent on immigration reform, but never 169 00:09:14.419 --> 00:09:18.219 happened. The majority of those who died today were 170 00:09:18.219 --> 00:09:21.469 children. [ MUSIC ] 171 00:09:21.469 --> 00:09:23.199 Beautiful little kids, between the ages of 5 and 10 172 00:09:23.199 --> 00:09:28.719 years old. [ MUSIC ] The 173 00:09:28.719 --> 00:09:32.489 Sandy Hook massacre is one of the Hardest days of 174 00:09:32.489 --> 00:09:36.139 the presidency for Barack Obama, and I think after 175 00:09:36.139 --> 00:09:39.939 that moment the president really thought there was an 176 00:09:39.989 --> 00:09:42.344 opportunity for something that needed to be done to 177 00:09:42.344 --> 00:09:46.869 address gun control in the U. S. He fought 178 00:09:47.029 --> 00:09:51.059 to get gun control legislation passed in the Congress, 179 00:09:51.059 --> 00:09:55.549 but it failed, and And he fought again to implement an 180 00:09:55.549 --> 00:09:58.839 executive action on gun control. Every time I think 181 00:09:58.839 --> 00:10:02.339 about those kids, it gets me mad. But all the while 182 00:10:02.979 --> 00:10:06.464 there were maybe over a dozen mass shootings under 183 00:10:06.464 --> 00:10:08.994 the Obama Administration. Gun control is something 184 00:10:08.994 --> 00:10:12.369 that he had always favored, but he just couldn't do 185 00:10:12.369 --> 00:10:15.649 anything about because the country is really divided on 186 00:10:15.669 --> 00:10:19.009 It's a urban versus rural issue. It's a Republican versus 187 00:10:19.009 --> 00:10:21.229 Democratic issue. So the Sandy Hook massacre 188 00:10:21.229 --> 00:10:24.159 happened just a few weeks after his re- election in 189 00:10:24.159 --> 00:10:27.839 2012. Many of his staff will say that it was the most 190 00:10:27.839 --> 00:10:31.189 emotional day they remember at the White House. It 191 00:10:31.189 --> 00:10:34.279 was a combination of The enormous feeling of elation 192 00:10:34.279 --> 00:10:36.559 that came out of the campaign, and then the 193 00:10:36.559 --> 00:10:39.509 realization of the limits of his power. Because while 194 00:10:39.649 --> 00:10:43.339 nothing can feel the space of a lost child or loved one, 195 00:10:44.589 --> 00:10:48.979 all of us can extend a hand to those in need, to 196 00:10:48.979 --> 00:10:52.959 remind them that we are there for them. That we are 197 00:10:52.959 --> 00:10:57.489 praying for them, that the love they felt for those 198 00:10:57.489 --> 00:11:01.219 they lost, endures not just in their memories, but also 199 00:11:01.789 --> 00:11:05.919 in ours. When Trayvon Martin was first 200 00:11:05.919 --> 00:11:12.849 shot, I said that this could have been my Son. Another 201 00:11:12.849 --> 00:11:15.349 way of saying that is, a Trayvon Martin could have 202 00:11:15.349 --> 00:11:19.587 been me, 35 years ago. What do 203 00:11:19.587 --> 00:11:23.389 we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now! One of the 204 00:11:24.379 --> 00:11:27.319 earliest criticisms from the black community was that 205 00:11:27.319 --> 00:11:30.719 the President was not doing enough. To address issues 206 00:11:30.719 --> 00:11:35.199 facing that community. That kind of changed after the 207 00:11:35.199 --> 00:11:37.419 Zimmerman verdict. We the jury find George 208 00:11:37.509 --> 00:11:41.679 Zimmerman not guilty. So say we all, foreperson. 209 00:11:41.839 --> 00:11:45.349 And after that moment in history, there was kind of a 210 00:11:45.349 --> 00:11:48.419 shift in the Obama presidency to finding a way to 211 00:11:48.419 --> 00:11:51.609 address. If she's facing communities of color. 212 00:11:51.609 --> 00:11:54.679 Particularly, you men in those communities. That was 213 00:11:54.679 --> 00:11:56.709 the moment that the Black Lives Matter movement kind 214 00:11:56.709 --> 00:12:04.429 of started. Young black men 215 00:12:04.429 --> 00:12:08.109 were being shot by police officers. And the President 216 00:12:09.129 --> 00:12:12.769 had to address the nation. Find a way to bring healing 217 00:12:12.769 --> 00:12:15.799 and bring people together. And see both sides. And I 218 00:12:15.799 --> 00:12:19.379 think in seeing both sides, a lot of the protestors and 219 00:12:19.379 --> 00:12:21.129 people on the ground, even though they wanted to 220 00:12:21.129 --> 00:12:23.129 hear from the President, they realize that there were 221 00:12:23.129 --> 00:12:24.741 things that he couldn't change. And that he wouldn't 222 00:12:24.741 --> 00:12:24.791 change. The people of our city. The people of our city. 223 00:12:24.791 --> 00:12:30.389 Get in front of their ****! They stopped looking 224 00:12:31.219 --> 00:12:35.399 to Obama to answer all of their questions, to 225 00:12:35.469 --> 00:12:37.929 solve all of their problems, and instead took to the 226 00:12:37.929 --> 00:12:40.989 streets, and demanded more of local government, 227 00:12:41.089 --> 00:12:44.799 demanded more of police officers within their own 228 00:12:44.829 --> 00:12:49.369 communities. People Saw the election 229 00:12:49.389 --> 00:12:53.409 of the first black president as this end of 230 00:12:53.519 --> 00:12:56.699 a period of racial strife in American history. But at the 231 00:12:56.699 --> 00:13:00.649 same time, you look at polling from the 2016 election. 232 00:13:00.959 --> 00:13:04.149 A lot of people blamed Obama for making race 233 00:13:04.529 --> 00:13:07.829 relations worse. He's leading behind A more socially 234 00:13:07.829 --> 00:13:13.709 divided nation than he inherited. This 235 00:13:13.709 --> 00:13:15.799 morning the Supreme Court recognized that the 236 00:13:15.799 --> 00:13:20.799 constitution guarantees marriage equality. In 237 00:13:20.799 --> 00:13:25.169 doing so, they've reaffirmed that all Americans Are 238 00:13:25.169 --> 00:13:28.359 entitled to the equal protection of the law. On June 239 00:13:29.219 --> 00:13:32.529 26th 2015, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of 240 00:13:32.799 --> 00:13:35.749 same- sex marriage. Making it the law of the land. The 241 00:13:35.749 --> 00:13:39.419 Supreme Court decision came after the President's own 242 00:13:39.419 --> 00:13:43.489 views on same- sex marriage shifted. And policy 243 00:13:43.489 --> 00:13:47.514 changed along with it. It started with the repeal of 244 00:13:47.514 --> 00:13:51.529 don't ask, don't tell. [ APPLAUSE ] Which was this 245 00:13:51.529 --> 00:13:54.379 very emotional moment for a lot of people in the 246 00:13:54.379 --> 00:13:57.924 military. My name is First Lieutenant Josh Seefried, and 247 00:13:57.924 --> 00:14:00.059 I am a gay first lieutenant in the United States Air 248 00:14:00.239 --> 00:14:03.409 Force. After that, the federal government And 249 00:14:03.409 --> 00:14:05.649 announced that they would no longer defend The 250 00:14:05.669 --> 00:14:07.609 Defense of Marriage Act. And the President's been 251 00:14:07.609 --> 00:14:10.219 defending the law for two years. But today, he called it 252 00:14:10.219 --> 00:14:14.539 unconstitutional. Which was kind of laying the ground 253 00:14:14.539 --> 00:14:18.849 work for Obama to come out in 2012 and declare that 254 00:14:18.849 --> 00:14:21.379 he believed- Same sex couples should be able to get 255 00:14:21.379 --> 00:14:24.589 married. And then in 2013 we had the first Supreme 256 00:14:24.589 --> 00:14:27.789 Court decision that kind of freed the states to 257 00:14:27.789 --> 00:14:30.524 implement policies that allowed same sex couples to 258 00:14:30.524 --> 00:14:34.529 marry. And then two years later, Supreme Court 259 00:14:34.529 --> 00:14:37.489 decides that same sex marriage is legal in al states in 260 00:14:37.489 --> 00:14:41.269 the U. S. I think it's one of the clearest incremental 261 00:14:41.269 --> 00:14:44.529 changes that we've seen over the. The course of the 262 00:14:44.529 --> 00:14:47.509 president's two terms in office. One of the starkest 263 00:14:47.509 --> 00:14:51.589 shifts not just in his own personal beliefs on a 264 00:14:51.589 --> 00:14:54.649 public stage but in the way the country felt about 265 00:14:54.799 --> 00:14:56.979 same- sex marriage. There's no way you can roll it 266 00:14:57.309 --> 00:15:01.639 back. Two weeks ago in Paris 267 00:15:02.699 --> 00:15:06.309 Said before the world that we needed a strong global 268 00:15:06.629 --> 00:15:10.639 agreement to accomplish this goal. An enduring 269 00:15:10.639 --> 00:15:13.459 agreement that reduces global carbon pollution and 270 00:15:13.459 --> 00:15:18.159 sets the world on a course to a low carbon future. A 271 00:15:18.159 --> 00:15:20.589 few hours ago, we succeeded. You had the Paris 272 00:15:20.589 --> 00:15:24.749 Climate Accords where, through rather complex 273 00:15:24.769 --> 00:15:28.459 and stepped framework, you had the worlds leading 274 00:15:28.459 --> 00:15:31.719 powers all agreeing that they would take steps to try 275 00:15:31.719 --> 00:15:34.039 and bring down the production of carbon. Nobody 276 00:15:34.039 --> 00:15:37.369 really expected China to Wake up one morning and 277 00:15:37.369 --> 00:15:40.339 agree to cap its own emissions. And over the course of 278 00:15:40.509 --> 00:15:43.559 several years of diplomatic negotiation the White House 279 00:15:43.579 --> 00:15:44.579 and the Chinese government had developed a real 280 00:15:45.679 --> 00:15:47.502 partnership with areas of common ground. Yes there 281 00:15:47.502 --> 00:15:50.469 are gonna be special dispensations for developing 282 00:15:50.469 --> 00:15:53.039 countries but the developed world will move first. 283 00:15:53.139 --> 00:15:55.602 Partly that was driven by Some issues of pollution in 284 00:15:55.602 --> 00:15:58.949 the air and the domestic issue of the climate in China. 285 00:15:58.949 --> 00:16:02.139 But also a desire within the United States. But, certainly 286 00:16:02.139 --> 00:16:05.619 by the President to turn climate into a legacy issue in 287 00:16:05.659 --> 00:16:09.369 an area that he thinks that in 20, 30 years he'll be 288 00:16:09.369 --> 00:16:11.659 remembered as a leader on. Our progress will be 289 00:16:11.699 --> 00:16:14.879 measured differently. And suffering that is averted. 290 00:16:16.089 --> 00:16:20.509 And a planet that's preserved. Whereas 291 00:16:20.509 --> 00:16:23.019 President Bush had been pretty unilateral in the way he 292 00:16:23.019 --> 00:16:26.899 approached things, President Obama envisioned a far 293 00:16:26.989 --> 00:16:30.769 more multi- lateral, internationally agreed upon 294 00:16:30.769 --> 00:16:34.739 framework, and he sought to heal a lot of the animosity 295 00:16:34.739 --> 00:16:39.039 that existed in the world. World. He sought quietly 296 00:16:39.039 --> 00:16:40.809 in his first term and then more aggressively on the 297 00:16:40.809 --> 00:16:43.524 second term to remake the US relationship with Cuba. 298 00:16:43.524 --> 00:16:46.749 And then the other big diplomatic effort he undertook 299 00:16:46.749 --> 00:16:50.309 also in the second term was to try and solve at least 300 00:16:50.309 --> 00:16:53.369 for a time the spread of nuclear weapons around the 301 00:16:53.369 --> 00:16:56.839 world. And this involved a multi year process of first 302 00:16:57.599 --> 00:17:01.859 Increasing sanctions and really harming the economy of 303 00:17:01.859 --> 00:17:05.229 Iran. And then promising at the end that those 304 00:17:05.229 --> 00:17:08.979 sanctions could be released if the country agreed to 305 00:17:09.269 --> 00:17:12.479 essentially abandon for a time it's nuclear research 306 00:17:12.479 --> 00:17:16.679 program. But it really reset in a very dramatic way 307 00:17:17.259 --> 00:17:20.469 The American relationship with Iran. I mean the 308 00:17:20.469 --> 00:17:22.839 president's legacy internationally will certainly be 309 00:17:22.839 --> 00:17:26.039 defined by his desire to work with international 310 00:17:26.039 --> 00:17:28.849 partners, international agencies. On the negative side 311 00:17:28.849 --> 00:17:30.949 you end up with things like Syria, sort of the quagmire 312 00:17:30.949 --> 00:17:34.159 there where the desire to sort of not go it alone, and 313 00:17:34.159 --> 00:17:36.179 foreign allies with different interests, different self 314 00:17:36.179 --> 00:17:39.549 interests, different moral views on the issue That led to 315 00:17:39.549 --> 00:17:41.519 the US not really doing much of anything. And that 316 00:17:41.519 --> 00:17:43.869 might be his most significant foreign policy failure. But 317 00:17:43.869 --> 00:17:45.799 it comes from the same place as some of his greatest 318 00:17:45.799 --> 00:17:47.549 foreign policy achievements. And that's sort of the 319 00:17:47.549 --> 00:17:52.829 grand irony of the Obama foreign policy. I 320 00:17:52.829 --> 00:17:56.129 had a chance to talk to President- elect Trump last 321 00:17:56.129 --> 00:17:59.679 night. About 3: 30 in the morning, I think it was. To 322 00:17:59.679 --> 00:18:02.679 congratulate him on winning the election, and I had a 323 00:18:02.679 --> 00:18:05.119 chance to invite him to come to the White House 324 00:18:05.289 --> 00:18:08.229 tomorrow to talk about making sure that there is a 325 00:18:08.229 --> 00:18:11.689 successful transition between our presidencies. In 326 00:18:11.689 --> 00:18:15.319 2016, president Obama spent a lot of time on the 327 00:18:15.319 --> 00:18:19.069 campaign trail, trying to rally the country around his 328 00:18:19.069 --> 00:18:22.297 former secretary of state Hillary Clinton In Hillary 329 00:18:22.297 --> 00:18:26.539 Clinton. [ APPLAUSE ] But on November 8th, Donald 330 00:18:26.539 --> 00:18:28.589 Trump was elected president of the United States. 331 00:18:28.799 --> 00:18:32.959 While the campaign is over our work on this 332 00:18:32.989 --> 00:18:36.529 movement is now really just beginning. Which was kind 333 00:18:36.529 --> 00:18:41.009 of a shock for the Obama administration and in a 334 00:18:41.009 --> 00:18:44.239 way it can be seen as a rebuke of His legacy and his 335 00:18:44.239 --> 00:18:47.359 policies. Trump presented himself as about as 336 00:18:47.359 --> 00:18:50.499 opposite a person from President Obama as you could 337 00:18:50.499 --> 00:18:53.259 be. Obama had talked about being inclusive and 338 00:18:53.259 --> 00:18:55.719 uniting. We should be doing everything we can to 339 00:18:55.719 --> 00:18:58.279 welcome new generations of hopeful, striving 340 00:18:58.279 --> 00:19:01.059 immigrants. Trump profited a great deal from being 341 00:19:01.059 --> 00:19:01.982 very divisive and alarming. Go ahead. Mr. Trump. Yes. 342 00:19:01.982 --> 00:19:02.021 So, the former president of Mexico says they will not 343 00:19:02.021 --> 00:19:02.059 pay for the wall. Mm- hm. What is your response to 344 00:19:02.059 --> 00:19:09.089 that? My 345 00:19:09.089 --> 00:19:11.969 response is the wall just got ten feet higher. I think the 346 00:19:11.969 --> 00:19:15.459 biggest issue that led to Trump's victory was that the 347 00:19:15.459 --> 00:19:17.799 same forces that had elected in Obama in 2008 and 348 00:19:17.799 --> 00:19:22.019 2012. Played in Trump's favor, and that was that 349 00:19:22.059 --> 00:19:24.599 Obama was able to sell the idea that he was the 350 00:19:24.599 --> 00:19:28.309 person who can best bring relief from the economic 351 00:19:28.339 --> 00:19:30.719 frustrations that the country was feeling. The fact that 352 00:19:30.799 --> 00:19:34.489 Obama was never able to deliver on what was really a 353 00:19:34.489 --> 00:19:37.989 central promise of his entire presidency, to really 354 00:19:37.989 --> 00:19:41.539 materially improve the life of middle- class Americans. 355 00:19:41.939 --> 00:19:42.819 That ended up being the decisive thing that helped 356 00:19:42.819 --> 00:19:46.839 Trump win. The conversation- For most Americans, 357 00:19:47.089 --> 00:19:49.124 are they better off the day Barack Obama left office 358 00:19:49.124 --> 00:19:51.619 than the day he entered? Almost without a doubt 359 00:19:52.139 --> 00:19:54.069 unquestionably so. The question is, do they get many 360 00:19:54.069 --> 00:19:56.939 credit for it, and how much credit will history give him? 361 00:19:57.129 --> 00:19:59.189 We don't know the answer to that yet. A new challenge 362 00:19:59.189 --> 00:20:02.429 for the President In a lot of ways, it's that the first 20 363 00:20:02.429 --> 00:20:06.429 lines of his obituary were written the minute he took 364 00:20:06.429 --> 00:20:09.141 office. His election itself was so historic that it 365 00:20:09.141 --> 00:20:12.939 overshadowed a lot of what came next. I think the lack 366 00:20:12.939 --> 00:20:16.299 of scandal in his administration is notable. The 367 00:20:16.299 --> 00:20:19.319 enormous Social change that happened under his 368 00:20:19.319 --> 00:20:23.449 presidency is notable. The fact that he was able to get 369 00:20:23.449 --> 00:20:26.929 so much legislation enacted in his first two years was 370 00:20:26.929 --> 00:20:31.479 very dramatic. At the same time his central promise 371 00:20:31.479 --> 00:20:34.759 that he would be able to unite red and blue America 372 00:20:34.759 --> 00:20:38.589 into something else never came to be. I think looking 373 00:20:38.589 --> 00:20:42.769 back, you see a man who ran on hope and change. 374 00:20:42.769 --> 00:20:45.919 Who brought his version of change to the country that 375 00:20:45.919 --> 00:20:49.199 people either liked or they didn't. Barack Obama, no 376 00:20:49.199 --> 00:20:51.739 matter what you thought about him going in was, at the 377 00:20:51.739 --> 00:20:55.809 end of the day, a man who tried to do 378 00:20:55.809 --> 00:20:58.249 his best for the sake of the country My fellow 379 00:20:58.249 --> 00:21:02.409 Americans it has been the honor of my 380 00:21:02.409 --> 00:21:05.081 life to serve you. I won't stop in fact I will be right there 381 00:21:05.081 --> 00:21:12.809 with you as a citizen for all 382 00:21:13.079 --> 00:21:17.169 my remaining days. [ APPLAUSE ] But 383 00:21:17.169 --> 00:21:19.639 for now whether you are young or whether you are 384 00:21:19.669 --> 00:21:23.749 young at heart. I do have one final ask of you, 385 00:21:24.199 --> 00:21:27.679 as your president. The same thing I asked when you 386 00:21:27.679 --> 00:21:31.689 took a chance on me eight years ago. I am asking 387 00:21:32.129 --> 00:21:36.419 you to believe, not in my ability to bring about 388 00:21:36.419 --> 00:21:36.990 change, but in yours. [ MUSIC ] Yes we can. 389 00:21:36.990 --> 00:21:37.049 [ APPLAUSE ] Yes we did! Yes we can! Thank you, God 390 00:21:37.049 --> 00:21:41.179 bless you. May God continue to bless the United 391 00:21:41.179 --> 00:21:45.979 States of America. 392 00:21:47.139 --> 00:21:48.654 Thank you. [ APPLAUSE ]