To sustain a governing majority, that requires an ability for Republicans and Democrats to find some common ground. And right now, the structure of the system is such where it makes it really hard for people to work together.

No matter how much you've done, or how successful you've been, there's always more to do, always more to learn, and always more to achieve.

... the country deserves us to be willing to compromise on behalf of the greater good.

Mexico is going to need the United States to cooperate in order to rid itself of the violence and corruption that results from the drug trade.

I know many of you are hurting and angry about the economy, and I don't blame you. It's the worst economy since the Great Depression. When consumers can't buy and businesses won't expand for lack of customers, the government has to be the purchaser and employer of last resort. We learned that in the Great Depression, but Republicans obviously didn't - and they've blocked every jobs program I've offered.

If poverty is a disease that infects the entire community in the form of unemployment and violence, failing schools and broken homes, then we can't just treat those symptoms in isolation . We have to heal that entire community.

It is in the interests of all of us - the United States, China and the rest of the world - to make sure that the rules of the road are upheld. These rules and norms are part of the foundation of regional stability, and they have allowed nations across the region, including China, to grow and prosper.