Weekly Address - The american spirit of innovation
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The President: Hi, everybody.
One of the things that makes America so strong is our
spirit of innovation.
Our drive to invent and harness new technologies to
tackle our greatest challenges.
It's how we won the race to invent the lightbulb and the
Internet; it's why we were first to the Moon and Mars.
It's why I keep models of American inventions like the
telegraph in the Oval Office.
It's a daily reminder of the genius that's embedded in
our DNA; the way we've always shaped the future
through our ideas and discoveries.
That's truer than ever today,
with the constant stream of new apps and tools and data
that are still changing the way we live - from getting a
ride to paying our bills to developing smarter ways to
combat climate change.
That's why, next week, I'll travel to Austin, Texas,
to visit South by Southwest.
It's an annual gathering of some of our most creative
thinkers, coders, makers, and entrepreneurs from
across the country.
And while I'm there, I'm going to ask everyone for
ideas and technologies that can help update our
government and our democracy to be as modern and dynamic
as America itself.
This has been a goal of mine since
before I was President.
On my campaign in 2008, we saw how technology could
bring people together and help them engage as citizens
in their own communities.
So when I came to the White House,
I wanted apply that experience
to the federal government.
It hasn't always been easy.
And we've had some bumps along the way.
But we've also made good progress.
Over the past few years, for example,
we've done something that government never has.
We asked some of the sharpest minds from
companies in Silicon Valley and across the country to
come help us modernize the federal government for the
way we live today.
And they came ready to serve,
tackling some of our biggest challenges - like high-tech
special ops units.
These teams are partnering with the government's
existing policy and technical experts to
re-imagine the way we do business and deliver
services that work better and cost less.
Already, we've made it easier for students to find
the college that's right for them.
For immigrants to track the green card and
naturalization process online.
For veterans to access their medical records.
And yes, after an initial false start,
we've made it much easier for tens of millions of
Americans to compare and buy health insurance and the
peace of mind that goes with it.
That's what this is all about - making sure our
government of the people and by the people works better
for the people in the 21st century.
It's about Americans working together to make a real
difference in people's lives.
Because the easiest thing to do is to blame government
for our problems.
Some people have made a career out of that.
But our founders trusted us with the keys to this system
of self-government because it's the best tool we've got
to settle our differences and solve
our collective challenges.
And it's only as good as we make it.
That's why I'm going to Austin and South by
Southwest - to keep asking everyone from all walks of
life, working inside or outside of government,
to help us make this democracy even stronger.
And I hope you join us.
Thanks everybody, have a great weekend.
