President Barack Obama Monday unveiled his budget request to fund the federal government for 2013.
Obama said that the American economy is healing, with manufacturing growing and jobs being created, but more remains to be done.
Most immediately, Obama said, Congress needs to reach an agreement to prevent the payroll tax cut from expiring for the remainder of the year and extend a clean extension of unemployment insurance benefits.
"The time for self-inflicted wounds to our economy has to be over. Now is the time for action," he said. "Now is the time for all of us to move forward."
He added, "Preventing a tax hike on the middle class -- that's only the beginning, that's just starters."
Obama said that the main goal of his budget proposal was to keep the economic recovery on track.
"Part of our job is to bring down our deficit. And if Congress adopts this budget, then along with the cuts that we've already made, we'll be able to reduce our deficit by $4 trillion by the year 2022," he said. "By reducing our deficit in the long term, what that allows us to do is to invest in the things that will help grow our economy right now."
He added, "We can't just cut our way into growth. We can cut back on the things that we don't need, but we also have to make sure that everyone is paying their fair share for the things that we do need."
The country, Obama said, needs to cut tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas and reinvest those fund in those creating jobs in the U.S. while also cutting oil subsidies and "doubling down" on green energy initiatives.
Further investments in education will also be critical, he said.
"Employers today are looking for the most skilled, educated workers," he said. "I don't want them to find them in India or China. I want businesses to find those workers right here, in the United States."
He added, "So I want this Congress to give our schools the resources to keep good teachers on the job, and reward the best teachers. And in return, they also need to give schools the flexibility to stop just teaching to the test, and replace teachers who aren't helping kids learn."
Obama also called on states, colleges and universities to get cost increases - which have even outpaced the health care sector - to work to keep tuition under control.
"Higher education cannot be a luxury," he said. "It is an economic imperative that every family in America should be able to afford. That's part of the American promise in the 21st century."
Obama noted that there is also a mismatch in the skills many workers now have compared to the job openings available and he said he was committed to working with the nation's community colleges to address that gap.
"An economy built to last demands that we keep doing everything we can to help students learn the skills that businesses are looking for," he said. "It means we have to keep strengthening American manufacturing. It means we've got to keep investing in American energy. We've got to double down on the clean energy that's creating jobs."
He added, "The budget that we're releasing today is a reflection of shared responsibility. It says that if we're serious about investing in our future and investing in community colleges, and investing in new energy technology, and investing in basic research, well, we've got to pay for it."
Obama also reiterated his call to allow tax breaks for the most wealthy in the nation to expire, rejecting his opponents claims that such a move would be class warfare.
"We don't begrudge success in America; we aspire to it," he said "I want everybody here to go out there and do great. I want you to make loads of money if you can. That's wonderful."
He added, "We expect people to earn it -- study hard, work hard for it. So we don't envy the wealthy. But we do expect everybody to do their fair share, so that everybody has opportunity, not just some."
Obama said that a spirit of shared responsibility, sacrifice and achievement has been among the things that makes America great.
"We don't give up in this country. We look out for each other. We pull together. We work hard. We reach for new opportunities. We pull each other up. That's who we are," he said. "And if we work together in common purpose, we will build an economy that lasts, and remind people around the world why America is the greatest country on Earth."
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