4:11 PM PT: President Obama starts out, describing the central problem we face as a political crisis—and the main victims of that crisis, he says, are the people of America.
The millions of Americans who are watching right now: they don’t care about politics. They have real life concerns. Many have spent months looking for work. Others are doing their best just to scrape by – giving up nights out with the family to save on gas or make the mortgage; postponing retirement to send a kid to college.
These men and women grew up with faith in an America where hard work and responsibility paid off. They believed in a country where everyone gets a fair shake and does their fair share – where if you stepped up, did your job, and were loyal to your company, that loyalty would be rewarded with a decent salary and good benefits; maybe a raise once in awhile. If you did the right thing, you could make it in America.
But for decades now, Americans have watched that compact erode. They have seen the deck too often stacked against them. And they know that Washington hasn’t always put their interests first.
The people of this country work hard to meet their responsibilities. The question tonight is whether we’ll meet ours. The question is whether, in the face of an ongoing national crisis, we can stop the political circus and actually do something to help the economy; whether we can restore some of the fairness and security that has defined this nation since our beginning.
4:15 PM PT: President Obama says his proposal is bipartisan and fully paid for. The first specific: cutting the payroll tax in half for every worker in 2012. He calls on Congress to take immediate action.
4:16 PM PT: Obama taunts Republicans a bit, though I'm not sure it came through as well on TV as it did in print, saying: "So for everyone who speaks so passionately about making life easier for 'job creators,' this plan is for you."
4:18 PM PT: Obama raises the prospect of China outcompeting us if we don't get to work on strengthening our infrastructure immediately. Democrats stand up and applaud. Republicans sit on their hands, apparently content to let China kick our asses.
4:17 PM PT: Haha -- Obama singles out a bridge between Kentucky (McConnell) and Ohio (Boehner) that needs rebuilding.