Barack Obama's State of Union address: highlights

Washington: In his State of the Union address, US President Obama laid out the agenda for the second term of his Presidency. Below are the highlights: 

• Quoting Kennedy: It is my task to report the State of the Union - to improve it is the task of us all
• Tonight, thanks to the grit & determination of the American people, there is much progress to report
• After years of gruelling recession, our businesses have created over six million new jobs
• We buy more American cars than we have in five years, and less foreign oil than we have in twenty
• Housing market is healing, our stock market is rebounding & consumers, patients & homeowners enjoy stronger protections
• The state of our union is stronger
• Hard work & daily determination of millions of Americans have not yet been rewarded 
• Economy is adding jobs - but too many people still can't find full-time employment.
• Corporate profits have rocketed to all-time highs - but for more than a decade, wages & incomes have barely budged
• It is our generation's task, then, to reignite the true engine of America's economic growth - a rising, thriving middle class
• It is our unfinished task to restore the basic bargain that built this country - the idea that if you work hard...you can get ahead
• It is our unfinished task to make sure that this government works on behalf of the many, and not just the few
• The American people don't expect government to solve every problem...but they do expect us to put the nation's interests before party
• The responsibility of improving this union remains the task of us all
• Both parties have worked together to reduce the deficit by more than $2.5 trillion
• More than halfway towards the goal of $4 trillion in deficit reduction
• Sudden, harsh, arbitrary cuts would jeopardize our military readiness
• People who care about programs like Medicare must embrace the need for modest reforms
• Can't ask "working families to shoulder the entire burden of deficit reduction while asking nothing more from the wealthiest
• Can't just cut our way to prosperity
• Broad-based economic growth requires a balanced approach to deficit reduction
• The Affordable Care Act is helping to slow the growth of health care costs
• Open to additional reforms from both parties, so long as they don't violate the guarantee of a secure retirement
• The American people deserve a tax code that helps small businesses spend less time filling out complicated forms
• Let's set party interests aside & work to pass a budget that replaces reckless cuts with smart savings & wise investments
• The greatest nation on Earth cannot keep conducting its business by drifting from one manufactured crisis to the next
• A growing economy that creates good, middle-class jobs must be the North Star that guides efforts
• Nothing I'm proposing tonight should increase our deficit by a single dime
• First priority is making America a magnet for new jobs and manufacturing
• After shedding jobs for more than 10 years, our manufacturers have added about 500,000 jobs over the past three
• This year, Apple will start making Macs in America again
• Have to invest in the best ideas
• Now is the time to reach a level of research and development not seen since the height of the Space Race
• We are finally poised to control our own energy future. We produce more oil at home than we have in 15 years. We produce more natural gas than ever before - and nearly everyone's energy bill is lower because of it
• Over the last 4 years, emissions of the dangerous carbon pollution have actually fallen. We must do more to combat climate change
• Last year, wind energy added nearly half of all new power capacity in America. So let's generate even more.
• If Congress won't act soon to protect future generations, I will
• As long as countries like China keep going all-in on clean energy, so must we
• I propose we use some of our oil & gas revenues ... to shift our cars & trucks off oil for good
• Also issuing a new goal for America: let's cut in half the energy wasted by our homes & businesses over the next 20 years
• I propose a "Fix-It-First" program to put people to work as soon as possible on our most urgent repairs.
• I'm also proposing a Partnership to Rebuild America that attracts private capital to upgrade what our businesses need
• Housing market is finally healing from the collapse of 2007
• Home prices are rising at the fastest pace in 6 years, home purchases are up nearly 50% & construction is expanding again
• I propose working with states to make high-quality pre-school available to every child in America
• At schools like P-Tech ... students will graduate with a high school diploma & an associate degree in computers or engineering
• Through tax credits, grants, and better loans, we have made college more affordable
• Our economy is stronger when we harness the talents and ingenuity of striving, hopeful immigrants
• Real reform means strong border security
• Real reform means establishing a responsible pathway to earned citizenshipReal reform means fixing the legal immigration system to cut waiting periods
• Send me a comprehensive Immigration Reform bill in the next few months and I will sign it right away
• Senate passed the Violence Against Women Act...urge the House to do the same
• Ask this Congress to declare that women should earn a living equal to their efforts
• Let's declare that in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty
• Let's tie the minimum wage to the cost of living, so that it finally becomes a wage you can live on
• America is not a place where chance of birth or circumstance should decide our destiny
• What makes you a man isn't the ability to conceive a child; it's having the courage to raise one
• Stronger families. Stronger communities. A stronger America
• Tonight, we stand united in saluting the troops and civilians who sacrifice every day to protect us
• By the end of next year, US war in Afghanistan will be over.
• America's commitment to a unified and sovereign Afghanistan will endure, but the nature of commitment will change
• Today, the organization that attacked us on 9/11 is a shadow of its former self
• Will need to help countries like Yemen, Libya and Somalia provide for their own security
• Where necessary, US will continue to take direct action against those terrorists who pose the gravest threat
• America will continue to lead the effort to prevent the spread of the world's most dangerous weapons
• North Korea must know that they will only achieve security & prosperity by meeting their international obligations
• The leaders of Iran must recognize that now is the time for a diplomatic solution
• Will engage Russia to seek further reductions in our nuclear arsenals
• America must also face the real and rapidly growing threat from cyber-attacks
• Earlier today, I signed a new executive order that will strengthen cyber defensesTo boost American exports, support American jobs, we intend to complete negotiations on a Trans-Pacific Partnership
• The US will join with our allies to eradicate such poverty in the next two decade
• In defence of freedom, we will remain the anchor of strong alliances from the Americas to Africa; from Europe to Asia
• In the Middle East, we will stand with citizens as they demand their universal rights & support stable transitions to democracy
• We can - and will - insist on respect for the fundamental rights of all people
• We will stand steadfast with Israel in pursuit of security and a lasting peace
• As long as I'm Commander-in-Chief, we will maintain the best military the world has ever known
• We will ensure equal treatment for all service members, and equal benefits for their families - gay and straight
• We will draw upon the courage and skills of our sisters...because women have proven under fire that they are ready for combat."
• I'm announcing a non-partisan commission to improve the voting experience in America
• This is not the first time this country has debated how to reduce gun violence. But this time is different
• As Americans, we all share the same proud title: We are citizens