Still watching the Guardian liveblog, here.
Executive order to raise Federal service workers’ minium wage to $10.10/hour.
Some kind of “new savings bond” — per the Guardian:
The president announces a new savings bond designed to promote retirement savings. That’s not long after he was explaining how people who work full time should be able to make a living wage.
A Social Security check often isn’t enough on its own. And while the stock market has doubled over the last five years, that doesn’t help folks who don’t have 401ks. That’s why, tomorrow, I will direct the Treasury to create a new way for working Americans to start their own retirement savings: MyRA. It’s a new savings bond that encourages folks to build a nest egg. MyRA guarantees a decent return with no risk of losing what you put in.
**********
“This needs to be the year we close Guantanamo Bay!” YES!
**************
End of the speech:
My fellow Americans, men and women like Cory remind us that America has never come easy. Our freedom, our democracy, has never been easy. Sometimes we stumble; we make mistakes; we get frustrated or discouraged. But for more than two hundred years, we have put those things aside and placed our collective shoulder to the wheel of progress – to create and build and expand the possibilities of individual achievement; to free other nations from tyranny and fear; to promote justice, and fairness, and equality under the law, so that the words set to paper by our founders are made real for every citizen. The America we want for our kids – a rising America where honest work is plentiful and communities are strong; where prosperity is widely shared and opportunity for all lets us go as far as our dreams and toil will take us – none of it is easy. But if we work together; if we summon what is best in us, with our feet planted firmly in today but our eyes cast towards tomorrow – I know it’s within our reach.
Believe it.
God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
***********
Aaaaand I just sent $100 to Okiciyap. Which is as much as we can really afford right now, but I’m sure some of you will tell me if President Obama actually used the word “opportunity” more than that!
SotU Address Open Thread #2: $10.10! MyRA!Post + Comments (271)