I think the big challenge that we’ve got on education is making sure that from kindergarten or prekindergarten through your 14th or 15th year of school, or 16th year of school, or 20th year of school, that you are actually learning the kinds of skills that make you competitive and productive in a modern, technological economy.

BARACK OBAMA, New York Times, Apr. 28, 2009

“So we need young people to start taking mandatory classes in unquestioning obedience to the government. Preferably taught in Chinese.”

The interests we share as human beings are far more powerful than the forces that drive us apart.

BARACK OBAMA, speech, Jun. 4, 2009

“Unles you spend a trillion dollars to give those forces a really good push. Yay! Discord!”

So long as our relationship is defined by our differences, we will empower those who sow hatred rather than peace, those who promote conflict rather than the cooperation that can help all of our people achieve justice and prosperity. This cycle of suspicion and discord must end.

BARACK OBAMA, speech, Jun. 4, 2009

“And I’ll make sure it ends with a victory for hatred-sowers and conflict-promoters like me.”

I believe it is not in our character, the American character, to follow. It’s our character to lead. And it is time for us to lead once again.

BARACK OBAMA, speech, Apr. 27, 2009

“Mostly in the area of government spending.”

So I’m here today to set this goal: We will devote more than 3 percent of our GDP to research and development. We will not just meet, but we will exceed the level achieved at the height of the space race, through policies that invest in basic and applied research, create new incentives for private innovation, promote breakthroughs in energy and medicine, and improve education in math and science. This represents the largest commitment to scientific research and innovation in American history. Just think what this will allow us to accomplish: solar cells as cheap as paint; green buildings that produce all the energy they consume; learning software as effective as a personal tutor; prosthetics so advanced that you could play the piano again…

BARACK OBAMA, speech, Apr. 27, 2009

“A bureaucracy so big it makes the Soviet Empire look like Galt’s Gulch…”

Part of my job I think is to bridge that gap between the status quo and what we know we have to do for our future.

BARACK OBAMA, New York Times, Apr. 28, 2009

“And I’ve hire the Tacoma Narrows team to build that bridge.”

Suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away.

BARACK OBAMA, speech, Jun. 4, 2009

“So MY plan is to suppress the people who hold them.”

Many … are simply skeptical that real change can occur. There is so much fear, so much mistrust that has built up over the years. But if we choose to be bound by the past, we will never move forward.

BARACK OBAMA, speech, Jun. 4, 2009

“So yeah, I’ve lied to you, but you can trust me now. Honest.”

The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights––are not simply words written into aging parchment. They are the foundation of liberty and justice in this country, and a light that shines for all who seek freedom, fairness, equality and dignity in the world.

BARACK OBAMA, speech, May 21, 2009

“They’re also a huge inconvenience to me, and they gotta go!”

We cannot meet the challenges of today with old habits and stale thinking. So much of our government was built to deal with different challenges from a different era. Too often, the result is wasteful spending, bloated programs, and inefficient results. It’s time to fundamentally change the way that we do business in Washington. To help build a new foundation for the 21st century, we need to reform our government so that it is more efficient, more transparent, and more creative.

BARACK OBAMA, weekly address, Apr. 25, 2009

“…at killing people and breaking things, which is all government is really good for.”

Globalization makes our economy, our health, and our security all captive to events on the other side of the world. And no other nation on earth has a greater capacity to shape that global system, or to build consensus around a new set of international rules that expand the zones of freedom, personal safety, and economic well-being. Like it or not, if we want to make America more secure, we are going to have to help make the world more secure.

BARACK OBAMA, The Audacity of Hope

“Or we can make America less secure. Either way, as long as it’s the same for everyone.”

I know that there are some on Wall Street and in Washington who’ve said that we should only focus on the banking crisis and one problem at a time. Well, we’re spending a lot of time focusing on this banking crisis, and we will continue to do so because until we get liquidity flowing again, we will not fully recover. But the American people don’t have the luxury of just focusing on Wall Street. They don’t have the luxury of choosing to pay either their mortgage or their medical bills. They don’t get to pick between paying for their kids’ college tuition and saving enough money for retirement. They have to do all these things. They have to confront all these problems. And as a consequence, so do we.

BARACK OBAMA, press conference, Mar. 17, 2009

“And I’ll make sure the American people won’t have enough money for ANY of those things, thus saving them the trouble of choosing.”

I might have arguments with the size of Reagan’s military buildup, but given the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, staying ahead of the Soviets militarily seemed a sensible thing to do. Pride in our country, respect for our armed services, a healthy appreciation for the dangers beyond our borders, an insistence that there was no easy equivalence between East and West–in all this I had no quarrel with Reagan. And when the Berlin Wall came tumbling down, I had to give the old man his due, even if I never gave him my vote.

BARACK OBAMA, The Audacity of Hope

“So really, the only thing I have against Reagan is that the Soviets lost.”

If we neglect or abandon those who are suffering in poverty … not only are we depriving ourselves of potential opportunities for markets and economic growth, but ultimately that despair may turn to violence that turns on us.

BARACK OBAMA, press conference, Apr. 2, 2009

“And to make sure that happens, I’m going to crush the economy and take guns away from law-abiding citizens.”

We’ll recover from this recession, but it will take time, it will take patience, and it will take an understanding that, when we all work together, when each of us looks beyond our own short-term interest to the wider set of obligations we have towards each other, that’s when we succeed, that’s when we prosper, and that’s what is needed right now.

BARACK OBAMA, press conference, Mar. 24, 2009

“That doesn’t apply to ME, of course, but the rest of you – get crackin’!”