English subtitles for clip: File:West Wing Week- 12-10-10 or "It's Alive!".webm

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♪(Drum and bugle corps)♪

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Narrator:
Welcome to the "West
Wing Week," your guide to

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everything that's happening
at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

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After a surprise visit to
Afghanistan, the President's

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week focused on the economy,
including his efforts to forge a

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bipartisan compromise that stops
middle class taxes

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from going up, spurs private sector job growth,

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and extends unemployment
insurance for millions of Americans.

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That's December 3rd to
the 9th, or, "It's Alive!"

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On Friday, December 3rd,
President Obama visited

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Afghanistan to personally thank
our men and women in uniform for

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their service, and to check
in with the commander of

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U.S. forces in Afghanistan,
General David Petraeus,

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to hear about conditions on the ground.

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President Obama:
As President of the United States, I have no greater

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responsibility than keeping the American people secure.

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I could not meet that
responsibility, we could not

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protect the American people, we
could not enjoy the blessings of

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our liberty without the
extraordinary service that each

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and every one of you
perform each and every day.

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Narrator:
On Saturday, December 4th, after arriving home from Afghanistan,

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the President crossed the street to the EEOB,

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where he announced
the successful negotiation of a

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landmark free trade agreement
with South Korea, a major step

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toward creating jobs for
American workers,

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and standing up for the interests of American businesses.

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President Obama:
This deal is
a win for American workers,

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for our farmers and ranchers.

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It will increase exports of
American agricultural products

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from aerospace to electronics.

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It will increase our
manufacturing exports to Korea,

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which already support some
200,000 American jobs and

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many small businesses.

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Narrator:
On Monday, December
6th, President Obama left

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Washington for an unseasonably
chilly Winston-Salem,
North Carolina.

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President Obama:
I thought it was supposed to be warm down in North Carolina.

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Narrator:
The President visited Forsyth Technical Community College

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and saw biotechnology classrooms where students of all ages

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and backgrounds are retraining for jobs in the competitive

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biotech industry.

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Mr. Street:
If you work in any kind of laboratory or do any kind

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of research you're going to
need some culture experience so

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I figured I'm looking at getting
maybe a master's or a Ph.D. later,

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and that would
be a good idea to have.

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President Obama:
This is a great place to start.

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Mr. Street:
Correct, sir.

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Because it's skills that maybe
I didn't see at a four-year college,

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but it's very specific
for the field I want to go into.

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Narrator:
After the tour, the President outlined his vision to keep our

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economy strong, growing and competitive in the 21st century.

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President Obama:
Fifty years later our generation's

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Sputnik moment is back.

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If the recession has taught us
anything, it's that we cannot

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go back to an economy that's
driven by too much spending.

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We've got to rebuild on a new
and stronger foundation for

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economic growth.

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We need to do what America has
always been known for: Building,

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innovating, educating,
making things.

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Narrator:
On Tuesday, December 7th, President Obama

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attended a series of meetings at
the White House and also held a

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news conference in the briefing
room to answer questions about

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balancing the Republican tax
cuts for the top American

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earners with unemployment
benefits and middle class tax relief,

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including the earned income tax credit, the child tax credit,

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and the American
opportunity tax credit,

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which helps families pay for college.

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President Obama:
But in the meantime I'm not here to play games with

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the American people
or the health of our economy.

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My job is to do whatever I can
to get this economy moving.

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My job is to do whatever I
can to spur job creation.

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My job is to look out for
middle class families who are

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struggling right now to get by,
and Americans who are out of

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work through no
fault of their own.

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Narrator:
On Wednesday, December 8th, President Obama

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met with President
Komorowski of Poland.

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They discussed issues of mutual
concern, such as the new START Treaty,

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missile defense, and
the mission in Afghanistan.

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President Obama:
I indicated to him how important it was for U.S. senators

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to hear from those
who are Russia's neighbors,

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that they feel it is very
important to make sure that the

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new START Treaty is ratified
so that we can continue the

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verification process that is
so important in reducing risks

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throughout that region.

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Narrator:
Later that day, the President held a cabinet meeting,

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and then signed the
Claims Resolution Act of 2010,

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settling long neglected claims
of African-American and native American farmers.

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President Obama:
I'm very proud of your advocacy, we're glad we got this done.

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Obviously we had a lot of good
friends in Congress who helped us out.

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Mr. Boyd:
Yes, we did.

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President Obama:
But if it hadn't been for you guys keeping on pushing on it,

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it wouldn't have happened.

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Narrator:
On Thursday, December 9th, President Obama

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met with his Export Council
to discuss ways to promote a

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strong, growing and competitive
economy, including increasing

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American exports to
the rest of the world.

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He also discussed the ongoing
tax cut debate on Capitol Hill

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that will ensure our
economy moves forward.

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President Obama:
And growing our exports today will create

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the jobs of tomorrow.

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Ninety-five percent of the
world's customers and the

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fastest growing markets
are beyond our borders.

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If we want to find new growth
streams for our economy we've

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got to compete aggressively for
those customers because other

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nations are competing
aggressively.

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And as long as I'm President of
the United States, we are going

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to fight for every job,
every industry, every market

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everywhere, and
we intend to win.

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Narrator:
That evening, President Obama was joined by the First Lady,

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Sasha, and Malia
on the Ellipse, where they lit

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the national Christmas
tree for the season.

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Three, two, one.

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(cheering)

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President Obama:
Now, this is a very proud holiday tradition,

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snow or shine.

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In good times and in periods of
hardship, folks like you have

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gathered with presidents to
light our national tree.

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Narrator:
To find out more
information on any of these

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topics or to see complete
videos of these events,

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go to Whitehouse.gov, and thanks again for checking out your 

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West Wing Week.

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President Obama:
It's alive!

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(laughter)

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That's just a joke, guys.

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Don't worry.