'We Will Win Iowa' President Obama Tells Iowa City Crowd
Fresh off the Democratic National Convention, President and Michelle Obama, and the Bidens traveled to Iowa City on Friday.
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President Barack Obama laid out his plans for a second term during a stop Friday afternoon at the University of Iowa in a speech that lifted many of the talking points from Thursday night's acceptance address at the Democratic National Convention.
If re-elected, the president said his goals include: creating one million manufacturing jobs; reducing the deficit by $4 trillion, and encouraging the development of cars that go twice as far on a gallon of gas.
"You'll save money, and it's good for the environment," he told the supportive crowd in Iowa City during the speech, which lasted about 30 minutes.
The president, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, spoke outdoors on the UI Pentacrest lawn -- an iconic setting in the heart of campus -- on a drizzly afternoon in Iowa City.
Obama and Biden focused on familiar themes: building the economy and protecting the middle class, railing against "top-down economic policies," and creating jobs through "education, energy, innovation, and infrastructure.
The message was clearly tailored to Iowa and university students with promises of wind energy credits, holding down student debt and putting more people through college.
Obama urged the crowd estimated at more than 8,000 to register to vote, go to the polls and to buy into what he called "achievable goals."
"We will win Johnson County, we will win Iowa, we will finish what we started in 2008," Obama said at the rally.
He told the students in attendance that they helped start the change in Iowa four years ago when he upset then Sen. Hillary Clinton in the Iowa Caucuses. Obama pledged to control student debt so they can start life "without being saddled with student debt."
"I'm not just asking for your vote, I'm asking you to rally around achievable goals for our country," Obama said.
Speakers at the GOP national convention talked only about the country's problems and their answer to fix everything is "tax cuts, tax cuts, tax cuts," Obama said.
"Cut taxes when times are good, cut taxes when times are bad. I cut taxes for those who need it, middle-class families," he said.
Vice President Biden introduced Obama. He said the president has the courage to make tough calls "such as ending the war in Iraq, killing Osama Bin Laden."
Biden challenged the notion that the country is heading in the wrong direction.
"America's not on the decline, it's on the rise. It's never a good bet to bet against the American people."
Iowans' Take on the Election
Paul Stokstad of Fairfield attended the event with his son, Johan Stockstad, 9, of Cedar Rapids, who missed school today to see the president.
"This is not about the economy, it's who do you trust to be in office if something bad happens. After George W. Bush, I don't trust any Republican to be in office," Paul Stockstad said.
He said there is no other option in the race besides re-electing the president.
Rain was intermittent as the crowd awaited the president's party to arrive, but it held off while during the speech.
Claire Murphy, 23, a senior at the University of Iowa from Council Bluffs, said she's an off-and-on volunteer for the Obama campaign. This is her eighth time seeing the president speak.
Of Obama's first term she said, "I think he's done a lot of what we wanted him to do. In modern American politics we tried to reform health care, we hired him to do that and he has. It's not perfect, but we're working on that."
The audience was a mix of students, young and old voters. Jefferson Jr. and Ava Challenger, 7-year-old twins and third-graders in Cedar Rapids, were able to skip school for the visit.
Their mother, Monica, said the family is interested in politics and watched both the Republican and Democratic conventions the past two weeks on TV.
When asked what he thought of getting to see the president in person, Jefferson said, "It's cool."
Republican Nominee Also in Iowa Today
GOP nominee Mitt Romney was also in Iowa on Friday. Romney campaigned at noon at Northwestern College in Orange City. Romney and Obama (and the three other principals) also both had campaign stops in New Hampshire on Friday.
The campaigns are neck and neck nationally. Real Clear Politics shows Obama polling at 45 percent and Romney at 44.8 percent, and Iowa (and its six delegates) is considered one of only eight toss up states.
For updates on Obama's visit and other local news, 'like' Iowa City Patch on Facebook and Twitter, and sign up for the free email newsletter.
A university spokesman said the White House asked them to be able to accommodate 8,000 people for the visit. University Democrats, a student group, is sponsored the event, and some of the students had a chance to meet the president.
Obama has been a frequent visitor to the key battleground state of Iowa, which fueled his election run in 2008 with a surprise win in the caucus.
Obama appears fond of Iowa City, which is perhaps the most Democratic part of the state, as well as UI. UI was the first stop after he signed the historic Obamacare legislation into law in 2010 and UI was one of three campuses Obama visited this past spring to kickoff a push to freeze interest rates on student loans. On Friday, Obama returned again fresh off his keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night.
The campaign stop adds to the craziness on campus, with the all-important in-state rivalry game between Iowa and Iowa State on Saturday.
John Andrews
8:20 pm on Friday, September 7, 2012
Obomney will win, and we'll lose.
Matthew Georges
12:15 am on Monday, September 17, 2012
I prefer, "Romama"
lobo solo
9:04 pm on Friday, September 7, 2012
campaigning in the peoples republic should signal something is wrong. this is a county which democrats outnumber republicans 8 to 1. there should be no need to campaign here unless they have some troubling polling.
Kurt B.
7:01 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
8 to 1 ? These numbers are nowhere near accurate. If they were, there would be no need for any campaigning and both sides could donate their campaign funds to the national debt and then we'd have a chance to get it paid down in the next 100 years.
B.A. Morelli
7:37 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Slightly more than 2 to 1, Dem to GOP.
B.A. Morelli
7:39 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
And, nearly 3 to 1 in Iowa City.
CFBusinessOwner
9:16 pm on Friday, September 7, 2012
Your disdain for IC and the fact that the county is heavily D. only fires us up to Get.Out.The.Vote. Thanks for the incentive!
B.A. Morelli
11:05 pm on Friday, September 7, 2012
Some really nice photos have been added courtesy of Ray Bennett on I-80 and Benjamin Roberts, of the Press-Citizen, who was a pool photographer at the Obama rally.
CONCERNED PHYSICIAN
12:42 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
These two dingalings and their spouses, Michelle "My Belle" and DOCTOR Jill Biden are in deep doodoo and they know it!
Kurt B.
7:09 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
You really need to think "how" are we going to do this - - - with cars going twice as far on a gallon of gas as they do now. Switching over to electric is not really the answer because you have to consider : how will they be re-charged ? If we simply plug them into the wall..... this is electricity generated by fossil fuels for the most part. If we do like Europe and go with more fuel efficient diesels, this is a possibility to gain some ground. Or, we can do like some other countries ( Brazil , China ) and go with much smaller cars and put more people in the car. We won't actually double the fuel efficiency but with a gain in efficiency and more people in the car, we will gain that way. But, if we continue to insist on driving gigantic SUV's ( Tahoes, Expeditions, etc. ) we'll never get there. The continuing increase in gas price may be the catalyst by which we are forced to go to smaller and smaller cars.
Joe Dygas
7:56 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Obama is unquestionnably the worst president in the history of the US. 16 Trillion in debt and 6 of it due to obama, worst unemployment since great depression, a fouled up health care system due to obamacare, no fix for medicare plus loss of 500 million from medicare which is headed for bankruptcy in a few years, screwy environmental policies that have cost Americans both jobs and cheap energy.
Vote Nobama in 2012. Remember in November.
V. Scheurich
11:20 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
He Buddy............."Can I have a dime"!
http://weaselzippers.us/2012/09/07/mooch-to-obamabots-youre-amazing-can-i-have-5/
V. Scheurich
11:39 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
When is she leaving for her "new planet"?
http://weaselzippers.us/2012/09/07/lady-gaga-if-obama-loses-we-have-to-build-a-new-planet-and-go-live-there/
B.A. Morelli
12:57 pm on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Here's some more pictures from the stop: http://cedarfalls.patch.com/articles/photos-presidential-pizza-the-baroccoli-obama-adam-scott-from-parks-and-rec-and-more-photos-from-obama-stop-in-iowa-city
Joseph Robert
3:26 pm on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Republican leaders, including PAUL RYAN, began planning Obama’s political demise
on January 20, 2009, the night of Obama’s inauguration.
How twisted is that? Ryan, Gingrich and other top Republicans have been working toward hurting America for nearly four years now. Read about it below -- it's true:
http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-08-26/news/33389618_1_mitt-romney-george-romney-evan-vucci
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/25/robert-draper-anti-obama-campaign_n_1452899.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0E_lQoYbPc
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/26/democrats-gop-plot-obstruct-obama
I'm voting for Obama-Biden. They are proven leaders that are moving America FORWARD! -- not backward.
chrystal harwood
9:22 pm on Monday, September 10, 2012
what? I was thinking about how amazing it would be for some millionaire men that know nothing about me to make my reproductive decisions for me.
V. Scheurich
1:49 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
You wouldn't think that the Huffington Post is just a little left wing biased would you there Mr. Joseph Robert?
Your articles are so over the top even liberals are laughing at you!
V. Scheurich
7:27 pm on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Bread and Circuses’ is the cancer of democracy, the fatal disease for which there is no cure. Democracy often works beautifully at first. But once a state extends the franchise to every warm body, be he producer or parasite, that day marks the beginning of the end of the state. For when the plebs discover that they can vote themselves bread and circuses without limit and that the productive members of the body politic cannot stop them, they will do so, until the state bleeds to death, or in its weakened condition the state succumbs to an invader—the barbarians enter Rome.” ― Robert A. Heinlein
chrystal harwood
9:20 pm on Monday, September 10, 2012
Hello anyone that was there, my son recieved a hug from Michelle Obama while her and President Obama greeted people in front of the stage. He is a little 9 year old with light brown hair. I have looked all over for a picture of the encounter but most pictures of the front were taken at an angle that would have been impossible to see him. He says that they had quite the conversation. He asked for an autograph, she told him that secret service wouldn't let her, he told her that was mean of them and he then asked where the girls were. He was so excited that she stopped to talk to him and gave him a hug but he squeezed out of there when the crowd got too big. Anyway, if anyone has a photo of my son's once in a lifetime event please let me know. I will check back here. Thank you.
V. Scheurich
11:44 am on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Why I will "never" vote Democratic again!
http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/48634
People Person
12:05 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Veterans will be the losers if Romney wins. The Romney-Ryan budget has cut tens of billions. Yesterday's NY Times (Sept 10) brought it all to light and the method the GOP is making to hide it in the budget details. Because this is a complicated area of the budget, it's difficult to read and even more so to explain, so the Democrats have left it alone.
I think Romney and Ryan have to be asked the question directly; "Are you cutting VA benefits?" If they say no, frankly they're lying.
martin, bob
12:35 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Troll
V. Scheurich
1:47 pm on Tuesday, September 11, 2012
The left wing money The President is drying up and here is why:
http://therealrevo.com/blog/?p=83318
V. Scheurich
11:27 am on Friday, September 14, 2012
The Democratic Party and their ideology and rhetoric and liberal policies have now led America and the world to riots and death.
The Leader of the free world, Barack Obama, does NOT care about America and actually does NOT care what happens to Americans. He talks a good game but won't walk his talk:
http://townhall.com/tipsheet/guybenson/2012/09/13/unreal_obama_skipped_daily_intel_briefing_immediately_following_assassination_of_us_ambassador
Fred 'n Freeda
5:46 pm on Friday, September 14, 2012
Sheldon Adelson, Romney's uber-billionaire casino owner and financial backer, pledged to give Romney $100 million -- or "whatever it takes" -- to defeat Obama.
Do you know why???
As Bill Clinton reminded us, sometimes the answer is as simple as arithmetic. So let's do the math:
According to a new report from the Center for American Progress Action Fund, Adelson will get $2 billion in tax savings from Romney in return for his support. And it will be paid for by every taxpayer reading this blog, so pass the word QUICKLY.
If Obama wins, everyone pays their fair share of taxes...including Mr. Adelson!
Tell me...
WHICH ONE IS MORE FAIR FOR AMERICAN FAMILIES?
WHICH ONE CAN YOU AFFORD?
Americans cannot afford to live the Romney-Ryan lifestyle without having the same personal wealth.
We can DREAM...but we know that it's not reality. Romney is still dreaming.
Bye Bye Romney
10:28 am on Sunday, September 16, 2012
Sheldon Adelson, Romney's uber-billionaire casino owner and financial backer, pledged to give Romney $100 million -- or "whatever it takes" -- to defeat Obama.
Do you know why???
As Bill Clinton reminded us, sometimes the answer is as simple as arithmetic. So let's do the math:
According to a new report from the Center for American Progress Action Fund, Adelson will get $2 billion in tax savings from Romney in return for his support. And it will be paid for by every taxpayer reading this blog, so pass the word QUICKLY.
If Obama wins, everyone pays their fair share of taxes...including Mr. Adelson!
Tell me...
WHICH ONE IS MORE FAIR FOR AMERICAN FAMILIES?
WHICH ONE CAN YOU AFFORD?
Americans cannot afford to live the Romney-Ryan lifestyle without having the same personal wealth.
We can DREAM...but we know that it's not reality. Romney is still dreaming.
Postman Sharp
7:28 pm on Sunday, September 16, 2012
Romney is coming unglued and we're seeing inside him. Americans don't like what they see. He's not a leader. He's not that smart. He's a little man bent on becoming president and that just isn't good enough.
Americans wanted Obama. They got him. He's not perfect. But he's not Romney. We'll have him again because Obama has BECOME a GREAT President.
Romney does not have that ability and his ego stands in the way of changing. Sorry, Mitt, you don't get my vote.