WASHINGTON (MNI) – The following is the text of the statement read
by President Obama to members of the press ahead of his meeting
Wednesday with U.S. business leaders:

Good morning, everybody. Today, the Senate is poised to pass tax
cuts and unemployment insurance, putting the House of Representatives in
the position to send me this critical economic package so I can sign it
into law.

I am absolutely convinced that this tax cut plan, while not
perfect, will help grow our economy and create jobs in the private
sector. It will help lift up middle-class families, who will no longer
need to worry about a New Year’s Day tax hike. It will offer emergency
relief to help tide folks over until they find another job. And it
includes tax cuts to make college more affordable; help parents provide
for their children; and help businesses, large and small, expand and
hire.

I know there are different aspects of this plan to which members of
Congress on both sides of the aisle object. That’s the nature of
compromise. But we worked hard to negotiate an agreement that’s a win
for middle-class families and a win for our economy, and we can’t afford
to let it fall victim to either delay or defeat. So I urge members of
Congress to pass these tax cuts as swiftly as possible.

Getting that done is an essential ingredient in spurring economic
growth over the short run. And spurring economic growth is what I’ll
talk about later this morning when I meet with some of America’s top
business leaders. That includes Jim McNerney of Boeing, who also heads
up my Export Council, and several members of my Economic Recovery
Advisory Board. This is one of many discussions we’ll be having in the
months ahead to find new ways to spur hiring, put Americans back to work
and move our economy forward.

As I said when I was running for President and as I’ve said since,
I believe that the primary engine of America’s economic success is not
government. It’s the ingenuity of America’s entrepreneurs. It’s the
dynamism of our markets. And for me, the most important question about
an economic idea is not whether it’s good short-term politics or meets
somebody’s litmus test. It’s whether it will help spur businesses, jobs
and growth.

That’s why I’ve set a goal of doubling U.S. exports in the next
five years — to create more jobs selling more products abroad. That’s
why I’m so pleased that earlier this month, after intensive
negotiations, we finalized a trade agreement with our ally South Korea
that will boost the annual exports of American goods by $11 billion — a
deal that, all told, will support at least 70,000 American jobs. It’s an
agreement that’s won support from business and labor because it’s good
for the economy.

This morning, I hope to elicit ideas from these business leaders
that will help us not only climb out of recession, but seize the promise
of this moment – ideas about tax reform; ideas about a balanced
approach to regulation that will promote, rather than undermine, growth;
ideas that will help encourage businesses to invest in America and
American jobs at a time when they’re holding nearly $2 trillion on their
books. I want to discuss our shared mission of building a strong
economy for the long run.

We know some of what we need to do to out-compete other countries
in the 21st century. We need to offer our children the best education in
the world. We need to spur innovation and new industries like clean
energy that will create the jobs of tomorrow. We need to upgrade
America’s crumbling infrastructure, its roads and bridges, update
high-speed rail and high-speed Internet to connect every community. And
we need to redouble our commitment to fiscal discipline and address our
long-term deficit challenges.

We know the path that will lead to economic success. The only
question is whether we will take it, whether we have the political will
to do the work. I’m committed to taking that path. I know America’s
business leaders are as well. And I look forward to talking to them this
morning and working with them in the months and years to come to make
sure that we’re adopting the best ideas for growing our economy and
making the 21st century another great American Century.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **

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