Previously:
President Obama speaks in Kansas City July 30, 2014 (July 30, 2014)
President Obama will be in KC on Wednesday… (July 29, 2014)
President Obama spoke to a large crowd at the Uptown Theater in Kansas City on Wednesday morning. Jerry Schmidt, as always, took stellar still images:
President Obama speaking at the Uptown Theater in Kansas City – July 30, 2014. Photo: Jerry Schmidt.
“…And that’s what’s at stake right now — making sure our economy works for every American. See, I’m glad that GDP is growing, and I’m glad that corporate profits are high, and I’m glad that the stock market is booming. But what really I want to see is a guy working nine to five, and then working some overtime, I want that guy making more than the minimum wage…”
There were protesters outside the Uptown Theater:
Protesters outside the Uptown Theater. Photo: Jerry Schmidt.
Just guessing, but they don’t appear to be in the top one tenth of one percent in income.
“…And what I really want is somebody who has worked for 20, 30 years being able to retire with some dignity and some respect. [applause] What I really want is a family that they have the capacity to save so that when their child is ready to go to college, they know they can help and that it’s affordable, and that that child is not going to be burdened down with debt. That’s the measure of whether the economy is working; not just how well it’s doing overall, but is it doing well for ordinary folks who are working hard every single day and aren’t always getting a fair shot. That’s what we’re fighting for. That’s why I ran for President. That’s what I’m focused on every day…”
Protesters outside the Uptown Theater. Photo: Jerry Schmidt.
Spelling and graphic design skills may need some upgrading.
“…Rather than investing in education, they actually voted to give another massive tax cut to the wealthiest Americans…”
For the republicans in Congress that’s a feature, not a bug.
“…And these actions, they come with a cost. When you block policies that would help millions of Americans right now, not only are those families hurt, but the whole economy is hurt. So that’s why this year, my administration, what we’ve said was we want to work with Congress, we want to work with Republicans and Democrats to get things going, but we can’t wait. So if they’re not going to do anything, we’ll do what we can on our own. And we’ve taken more than 40 actions aimed at helping hardworking families like yours. [applause] That’s when we act — when your Congress won’t…”
Photo: Jerry Schmidt.
“…by the way, here’s something interesting: The states that have increased their minimum wages this year, they’ve seen higher job growth than the states that didn’t increase their minimum wage. [applause] So remember, you give them a little bit more money, businesses have more customers. They got more customers, they make more profit. They make more profit, what do they do? They hire more workers. America deserves a raise, and it’s good for everybody…”
Photo: Jerry Schmidt.
“…I mean, everybody recognizes this is a political stunt, but it’s worse than that, because every vote they’re taking like that means a vote they’re not taking to actually help you. When they have taken 50 votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act, that was time that could have been spent working constructively to help you on some things. [applause] And, by the way, you know who is paying for this suit they’re going to file? You….”
Photo: Jerry Schmidt.
“…Don’t double down on top-down economics. Let’s really fight to make sure that everybody gets a chance and, by the way, that everybody plays by the same rules. [applause] We could do so much more if we got that kind of economic patriotism that says we rise or fall as one nation and as one people…”
Photo: Jerry Schmidt.
“…I do not believe in a cynical America; I believe in an optimistic America that is making progress. [applause] And I believe despite unyielding opposition, there are workers right now who have jobs who didn’t have them before because of what we’ve done; and folks who got health care who didn’t have it because of the work that we’ve done; and students who are going to college who couldn’t afford it before; and troops who’ve come home after tour after tour of duty because of what we’ve done. [applause] …”