Hello, virginia you are looking mighty good tonight. Thank you for being here and thank you for your support. I have a couple of questions to ask you if we could get started. Are you ready to win on november 7 . [applause] are you ready to keep virginia blue . [applause] are you ready to make virginia bluer . [applause] argue ready to make Justin Fairfax the next Lieutenant Governor of virginia . [applause] are you ready to reelect our attorney general . [applause] are you ready to take back our majority in the house of delegates . [applause] for barackready obama . [applause] that is what i am talking about. Governor Terry Mcauliffe, thank you so much for the kind introduction. Thank you for your friendship, your leadership, a miraculous for years four years. Over 215,000 new jobs of, to the commonwealth of virginia, over 18. 5 billion in capital investment. Our Unemployment Rate has gone 3. 8 , the lowest it has been in the last nine years. Thank you, Terry Mcauliffe, for your leadership. I also want to commend our wonderful first lady of this commonwealth, dorothy mcauliffe. [applause] what an ambassador she has been to virginia, especially all of the work she has done with our children, making sure all of our children are well fed, that they have Good Nutrition before they start school. I want you all to get it up tonight for Terry Mcauliffe his wonderful lady, dorothy mcauliffe. [applause] dont know about you, but i am proud to be a democrat [cheering] when we elect democrats in the commonwealth of virginia, things happen. [applause] i am here tonight to bring you some good news. You know, we travel, put a lot of miles on the car. I listen to a lot of people. There is a tremendous amount of enthusiasm, tremendous amount of energy across the commonwealth of virginia right now. People are literally coming out and saying, what can i do to get involved . How can i help . Seeingwer of what we are across the commonwealth of virginia right now is a campaign that we watched in 2016 that was based on hatred and bigotry and discrimination and fear, and a lot of misinformation. We are seeing policies come out of washington, d. C. Things like the travel ban that are totally unamerican. [booing] things like trying to reverse daca. Things like pulling away from the paris accord. We have made so much progress. And things like trying to strip health care from millions of americans. [booing] unfortunately, my opponent, gillespie,ie, ed is cut from the same cloth as donald trump. He is nothing more than a lobbyist that has become Donald Trumps chief lobbyist. We cannot let that happen in the commonwealth of virginia. We all need to stand up on election day. We cannot accept this is a new normal, it is up to us on november 7. I ask all of you to help this happen. [applause] what we are going to do on november the seventh, not only are we going to elect a democratic governor, were going to elect Justin Fairfax as the next Lieutenant Governor. [applause] we are going to reelect mark ,erron as our attorney general and we are going to take back our majority in the house of delegates, finally, we as democrats are going to get back and back on offense and stop playing so much defense tiered we will be proactive rather than reactive. We can make it happen here in virginia. [applause] doctor, i tend a to listen the folks and here what is going on around the commonwealth. Let me tell you some things i hear. Number one, people across virginia want a job where they can support themselves and their families. They want they know they cannot support their families on 7. 25 per hour. We all have to stand up and raise the minimum wage. [cheering] they want to make sure their children have access to a worldclass education so that we can train our children for 21st century jobs. They want to make sure that their families have access to affordable and Quality Health care. [cheering] lt. Governor northam no individual, no family should be one medical illness away from financial demise. We cannot let that happen in the richest country in the world. [applause] lt. Governor northam for seven and a half years we have heard our opponents say that they want to repeal the Affordable Care act. I want to tell you as a doctor, there are good things about the Affordable Care act. No more preexisting conditions. Being able to keep our children on our policies until they are 26. Access to Mental Health care, access to preventive care. [cheering] lt. Governor northam all they are trying to do is take Barack Obamas name off of everything that he did. We cant let it happen. It is up to us to say no. We are not going to take Health Care Away from over 30 million americans. And Something Else we need to expand medicaid in the commonwealth of virginia. [cheering] lt. Governor northam right now, there are 400,000 working virginians that dont have access to health care. That is immoral. And every day that we dont expand medicaid in virginia, not only are we leaving on the table, but we are leaving to but we are giving to surrounding states we compete with over 6 million a day. Since january of 2014, we have given away over 10 million. Over 10 billion. I remind people, as a business person, if you come to me and you say that you know about business, and it is a good idea to give your competitors over 6 million a day, i will tell you as a neurologist you ought to have your head examined. [cheering] [applause] lt. Governor northam and you all have watched me, all the attacks that continue on womens Reproductive Health care. No longer in virginia. You know i have stood up in the floor of the senate. I stood up against the awful transvaginal ultrasound bill. I fought against the trap laws. I fought against the person our opponents tell us these pieces of legislation are to protect women. I dont think so. These pieces of legislation are to shame a woman, that is what they are intended to do, in a decision that should be made by the woman, her partner, and her provider. I want to remind you all one more time, there is no excuse that a group of legislators, most of them are men, should be telling women what they should or shouldnt do with their bodies. It needs to stop in virginia. [cheering] lt. Governor northam i hear virginians tell me that they want to live in an environment where the air and water are clean. We have a great opportunity by 2030 to have at least 40 of our energy come from renewable energy. We can make it happen right here in virginia. [cheering] lt. Governor northam people tell me that they want to live in communities that are safe, where there are not guns on every street corner. We can make it happen in virginia. And let me tell you something that our governor and our attorney general, and all the great legislators and all of you as democrats should be so proud of, look around this room tonight. We live in a diverse society. [cheering] lt. Governor northam that means that we need to be inclusive. It shouldnt matter your sexual orientation. It shouldnt matter the color of your skin. It shouldnt matter the country that you come from, or the religion that you practice. We welcome people to the commonwealth of virginia. Our lights are on, our doors are open. That is what virginia is about. That is the virginia way. You know we have this election on november 7. It is going to be a fight. It is not a cakewalk. It is going to take all of us together. But you know what, i want to remind you, i fought during desert storm to keep our soldiers alive. I have fought on the floor of the senate. I have fought as your Lieutenant Governor, and i am ready to fight for you to be the 73rd governor of the commonwealth of virginia. [cheering] lt. Governor northam but i cant do it by myself. I need your help. Are you ready to fight with me . [cheering] lt. Governor northam lets get it done. Lets go out there and knock on doors, and make phone calls, and keep the detrimental policies from coming across the potomac andr from washington, d. C. , lets take virginia to the next level. Thank you so much for being here tonight. Thank you for your support, and god bless all of you. [cheering] [applause] lt. Governor northam it is time. It is time my fellow virginians, to introduce to you a friend to virginia, a friend to this country. He and his wife michelle are a class act. When he took office, our country was in peril, about to go over the cliff economically. He led us through the great recession. Unemployment dropped from 10 to 4. 7 over his term. He signed the Affordable Care act, that provided health care to over 20 million americans. He brought Osama Bin Laden to justice. He supported our lgbtq community, and fought for american equality. Marriage equality. He fought for womens reproductive rights. He saved the u. S. Auto industry. He signed daca, keeping families together. He advocated for an environment where the air and water are clean. He and his wife michelle made us proud to be americans. [cheering] lt. Governor northam i want you to join me in welcoming back to virginia, the 44th president of the United States of america, president barack obama. [cheering] [cheering] pres. Obama hello, richmond. [cheering] pres. Obama oh, its good to be back. [cheering] pres. Obama how is everybody doing today . [cheering] pres. Obama are you fired up . You ready to go . [cheering] pres. Obama well, it is good to be back in richmond. I was going to say, it is good to be back in virginia, but i am in virginia pretty much every day. [laughter] pres. Obama it is just a little further north. I remember coming here in the closing days of my last race [cheering] pres. Obama five years ago, i remember [yelling] [cheering] know, thea you enthusiasm, the generosity, the warmth of the people of virginia. I remember that when i first announced my candidacy as president back in 2007, the first major elected official outside illinois was a certain gentleman named tim kaine. [cheering] pres. Obama and anne kaine is right there. And i came here and said, what the heck are yall doing . Because nobody can pronounce my name yet. [laughter] but they believed in me even before michelle did. [laughter] pres. Obama i will always have warm, fond memories of richmond, virginia. [cheering] pres. Obama part of the reason i have warm memories is because ive got friends here. That includes your governor, Terry Mcauliffe. That includes your attorney general, mark aaherron. That includes your next Lieutenant Governor, Justin Fairfax. That includes outstanding members of Congress Like bobby scott and don mceachin. Your mayor, levar stoney. And it includes the next governor of the commonwealth of virginia, Ralph Northam. [cheering] pres. Obama now, i want to thank ralph for getting me fired up backstage. And since he said a few nice things about me, i have to embarrass him in return. Richmond, this is somebody you will be proud to have as your governor. [cheering] pres. Obama ralphs whole life has been about honest, responsible service to others. One of the stories i love is about ralph, and how when he was a cadet at vmi, his fellow cadets elected him president of the honor court. Now, let me say this when i was in college, i was kind of a goof off, so they would have not given me that honor. [laughter] pres. Obama but think about that. Even as a young man, people already recognized that this is somebody whose character made him trustworthy. Somebody with a code of honor, and integrity. They trusted him to hold himself and all of them to a high standard. They trusted him to do the right thing, even when no one is looking. [cheering] pres. Obama and isnt that what we want in our leaders . Isnt that who we want making tough decisions on our behalf . Honesty, integrity, a willingness to put others before yourself. That is the way that ralph has always lived his life. [cheering] pres. Obama in the army, he served at walter reed. And i can tell you, as somebody who visited walter reed consistently throughout my eight years, what it meant to have a medical staff that would literally help to rebuild peoples lives after they had served our country in such a profound way. In germany, treating our Wounded Warriors from the first iraq war. When he left active duty, he and his wonderful wife pam, an educator, decided to settle down on the same Chesapeake Bay where he had grown up. And he took care of kids, specializing in pediatric neurology. You know you have to be smart to do pediatric neurology. [applause] pres. Obama you know, it is hard to pronounce, much less do. So he devoted himself to the next generation, just like pam did. He taught not just neurology to students at eastern virginia medical school, but he taught ethics. For nearly 20 years, he has given his time freely to care for terminally ill children and the unfortunate. [cheering] pres. Obama if you ask him, he will say those kids have given him more than he can ever give back. That is Ralph Northam. That is who is seeking your support for governor. [cheering] pres. Obama Justin Fairfaxs story isnt so different. He didnt grow up with much, but with scholarships, with help from a hardworking mom, justin went to college, went to law school, gave over his life to public service, to make sure that any striving young kid could have the same chance as he did. [cheering] [applause] pres. Obama the point is, youve got really good candidates. Youve got people who will make you proud. Youve got people who are in this race for the right reasons. At a time when so many of us can be so cynical about government and public service, to have somebody step up who you can trust, and who just wants to do right by the people of virginia, that is worth something. [cheering] pres. Obama and when ralph was tending to our Wounded Warriors, he wasnt thinking about whether they were democrats or republicans, he was thinking about them in only one way, as americans who defended our country, and how he could make sure they were healed. [applause] pres. Obama and so the question now, at a time when our politics seems so divided and so angry and so nasty, is whether we can recapture that spirit, whether we support and embrace somebody who wants to bring people together. Yes, we can. [cheering] pres. Obama we can do that. Look, i always believed in that kind of politics. [chanting] yes we can pres. Obama yes we can. Because that is american democracy at its best. That is the politics i have always believed in. That is what ralph believes in, justin and mark believes in. I believe that when everyone gets involved, when everyone gets engaged, when everyone pushes in the same direction, that is when good things happen. [cheering] pres. Obama we are at our best not when we are trying to put people down, but when we are trying to lift everybody up. [cheering] pres. Obama we are at our best not when we try to find what is wrong with somebody else, but when we find the decency and good will and common effort that so often we see in our neighborhoods and in our congregations, and that we try to impart into our children. That is what we believe. And we have to be honest, that kind of politics doesnt always carry the day. We live in a time when all sorts of forces conspire to turn good people off from politics. The way we get our news, the way money floods into our campaigns, the way our political districts are drawn so that candidates are rewarded for pandering to the extremes instead of trying to keep common ground. And forging consensus. And by the way, ralph wants to end the practice of gerrymandering, so our districts are drawn in a nonpartisan way. [cheering] pres. Obama we should not have politicians choosing their voters, we should have voters choosing those who would serve them. Thingsbama all of these conspire so that our politics to reflect our values. People did not so good right now about what they see. They do not feel as if our public life reflects our best. Instead of our politics reflecting our values, we have politics infecting our communities. Instead of looking for ways to Work Together to get things done in a practical way, we have people deliberately trying to make folks angry. To demonize people that have different ideas, to get the base all riled up, because it provides a shortterm tactical advantage. And so sometimes that can feel frustrated. And look, i have been in this arena for a while. But what i also know is, as frustrated as you get, the goodness of america, the goodness and decency and hard work and responsibility and sacrifice that is on display are by the American People every single day in their communities all across this country, all across this great state, people every walk of life. It doesnt matter whether they are white or black, hispanic or asian, native american, whether they are disabled, whether they are gay or straight there are people all across this country that want to do things better, that want to Work Together. [cheering] mr. Obama and i have seen the possibilities of our democracy. You have seen it. Look what we did over the last eight years. Jobs for the jobless. Made it easier for young people to earn an education. Covered more families with health insurance. Brought home more of our brave troops. Made sure we were looking after our veterans. Made america more respected leader around the world. Started making sure that we are dealing with Climate Change in a serious way. We know what we can achieve when we put our minds to it, and when we are working together. [cheering] mr. Obama and this year, we have seen countless people get active and organize and march, not just for themselves, not just for their own narrow interests, but for the wellbeing of others. We have seen people who never thought about jumping into the arena before. Suddenly they are gloving a grabbing a clipboard and putting on marching shoes. They are going to run for something. They are going to fight for a cause. Right here in virginia, there are 50 firsttime delegates running for your house of delegates. [cheering] mr. Obama people that will fight for fair wages and criminal justice reform. More than half of them are women. A dozen of them are millennials. If you want delegates that look more like virginia and understand your life, then make sure to get out and vote for the whole ticket, not just a little bit of the ticket. [cheering] mr. Obama because ultimately it does come down to you. I have said before, the most Important Office in a democracy is not present, not governor, not mayor, it is the office of citizen. Because in a democracy, ultimately, you decide what kind of politics we have. You decide by what you do and what you dont do. You decide by whether you are active or whether you are not. You decided by whether you decide to use your voice and your franchise to make things better, or whether you succumb to cynicism. It is in your hands. A question for you tonight is do you want politics of division and and distraction . Or do you believe in a better kind of politics, one where we listen to each other and move this country forward . [cheering] mr. Obama do you want an economy that only works for the very top . Or do you want an economy that works for everybody . That lifts up a strong vibrant middle class, and creates ladders of opportunity for everyone willing to work hard, so they can get their piece of the american dream. Do you believe that every child should get a good education . That every worker should get the skills they need to get a good job, with decent wages and decent benefits . Do you believe that everyone should be judged not by the color of their skin, or who they love, or their last name, but by the content of their character, and their contribution to this great state . [cheering] mr. Obama you have a choice to make. And this choice matters. I know what Ralph Northam believes. I know what Justin Fairfax believes. They have plans and policies that will reflect your values and your priorities to create jobs and educate kids, and to keep virginia clean and safe and healthy. The question is, will you show up to vote on november 7 and give him that chance . It is up to you. [applause] mr. Obama this election comes down to you. Off year elections, midterm elections, democrats sometimes [laughter] mr. Obama yall get a little sleepy. You get a little complacent. This is not my opinion, this is the data. This is the data. During president ial elections, everybody gets excited. When it is an off year election, suddenly everyone goes, there is an election going on . As a consequence, folks wake up and they are surprised. How come we cant get things through congress . How come we can get things through the statehouse . Because you slept through the election. [cheering] mr. Obama but the stakes now dont allow you to sleep. Because it is going to come down to how bad you want it. I dont want to hear folks complaining and not doing something about it. [cheering] mr. Obama all the young people out here. [cheering] mr. Obama i think it is great that you hashtag and meme, but i need you to vote. [cheering] mr. Obama i tend not to watch a lot of tv, even though i have a lot more time on my hands. [laughter] mr. Obama michele and i get the same commercials in d. C. As you all do here. I have seen enough of them to know that ralphs opponent is pulling from that same old playbook. [booing] mr. Obama dont boo, vote. Dont boo. Booing doesnt do any good. Voting does some good. [cheering] mr. Obama we have seen this so many times before. Youve got the advertisement. There is some ominous voice. Everything is kind of dark. Just letting you know that somebody is coming to get you. That our values are at risk if you vote for ralph. They dont really tell you exactly why. We have seen it before. And it is a tactic that shows ralphs opponent does not think highly of virginians. I dont think someone thinks that someone who spent his life performing surgery on soldiers and children is suddenly cozying up to street gangs. That strains credulity. That sounds like a fib. Sounds like an okiedoke. Nobody believes that. Does anybody really believe that ralph spent his whole life in old dominion, and then hes going to run for governor and suddenly try to erase virginias history . That is not what this election is about. That is distraction. That is phony. That is divisive. [applause] mr. Obama it is not true. Look, we all have valid concerns about crime. We have legitimate concerns, and even legitimate differences of how to manage immigration in a way that is orderly and fair. But the fact is crime and illegal immigration were as low as they have been in decades. And ralphs opponent knows it. He has gone on record in the past, condemning the same kind of rhetoric that hes using right now. [applause] mr. Obama and if he honestly thought these were serious issues, he would offer serious solutions. But he is not, because what he is really trying to deliver is fear. What he really believes is if you scare enough voters, you might score just enough votes to win an election. And that is what makes this anythinggoes politics so damaging and corrosive to our democracy. It is as cynical as politics gets. It is not going to create jobs, it is not going to educate kids, it wont clear of traffic, it wont clean up the environment, it wont protect your health care. [applause] mr. Obama i mean, i have not been commenting on politics lately, but here is one thing i know if you have to win a campaign by dividing people, you are not going to be able to govern them. You wont be able to unite them later if thats how you start. [cheering] mr. Obama so Ralph Northam believes we should have an orderly immigration system, that we should crack down on criminals and gangs and put them behind bars. If they are not from this country and engaged in criminal acts, they should be gone. He understands that, but he understands we can do those things without fanning antiimmigrant sentiment, which makes none of us safer. He believes every kid should get a good education, and workers should have the tools to find a good job and grow industry. That is what will make a difference in the lives of virginians all across this state. He is a hunter, and an army vet, and a doctor who knows better than most what assault weapons can do. He knows that we can protect our rights and our kids at the same time. Hes not trying to scare somebody. [cheering] mr. Obama he is trying to put in place sensible solutions. Let me just Say Something about history. Ralph believes if we are going to talk about our history, we should do it in a way that heals, not in a way that wounds, not in a way that divides. We should not use the most painful parts of our history just to score political points. We saw what happened in charlottesville, but we also saw what happened after charlottesville, when the biggest gathering of all rejected fear and hate. And the decency and good will of the American People came out. That is how we rise. We dont rise up by repeating the past, we rise up by learning from the past. And by listening to each other, and knowing that we are all flawed, but we still try to presume some baseline measure of goodness and decency, of patriotism. We look for the good in other people, not the worst. We think of ourselves as americans first. That is how we should be thinking about our history. I have written about this before. My father was from kenya, as you know. Well, some of you know. Some of you may have forgotten. [laughter] mr. Obama i was reading about the fact that my mother you can trace her lineage. Im 1 8th or 1 10th of a removed cousin from jefferson davis, the head of the confederacy. Think about that. I bet he is spinning in his grave. [cheering] mr. Obama the point is, that is america. And we claim all of our history, the good and the bank. The bad. And we can acknowledge that thomas jefferson, one of virginias most famous sons, owned and sold slaves. That is not disputable. We can acknowledge he wrote the words we hold these truths to be selfevident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. Among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. And we can recognize that even if our past is not perfect, we can honor the constitutional ideas that have allowed us to come this far, and to keep moving toward a more perfect union. That is what america is. That is who we are. [cheering] mr. Obama that is who we are. Why are we deliberately trying to misunderstand each other . And be cruel to each other, and put each other down . That is not who we are. It was those ideals provided to us by our founders that drew waves of immigrants to our shores, that drove waves of troops to foreign beaches to save our democracy. It was those ideals that led generations to march for workers rights and womens rights and Voting Rights and civil rights and lgbt rights. To expand the reach of our democracy. It is that conviction that we can choose our own course and shape our own destiny that is given generations of ordinary citizens the capacity, no matter how bleak things seem, to keep moving this country forward. That is who we are. And it started in part right here in virginia. That is what our founders understood. For all of our flaws, our fate is in our own hands. That was the radical idea of america, that we decide our direction, not some king, not some despot, but us, citizens. And our progress doesnt always go in a straight line. Sometimes we take two steps forward, and we might take a step back. They understand that too. The idea of america is not about going backwards, it is about pushing forwards. [applause] mr. Obama america is a story of progress. Ralph northam wants progress. He wants to take us forward, not backward. He wants to reach out for hope, not fear. That is where Justin Fairfax wants to take us. That is where you should want to take us. We need you to take this seriously. Because our democracy is at stake, and it is at stake right here in virginia. And if you play your part, not just voting yourself, but talking to your friends and neighbors and students and coworkers, then im confident virginia will make the right choice, just like you did with mark warner, tim kaine, just like you did with Terry Mcauliffe, just like you gave me a chance. We need your help. Elections matter. Voting matters. You cant take anything for granted. You cant sit this one out. It is up to you. If you believe in that better vision, not just of our politics, but of our common life, of our democracy, of who we are, if you want that reflected in our government, if you want our kids to see our government and feel good about it, and feel like they are represented, and you want those values that you are teaching your children reinforced, the values of generosity and tolerance and community and hard work and responsibility if you want to see that reflected, then youve got to go out there. You have 19 days to knock on some doors. You have 19 days to go out there and campaign. I started yesterday. That is why i need your help. I need your help to count and make sure that we are making enough phone calls to get Ralph Northam elected. To get are making enough Justin Fairfax elected. If you do, i guarantee it is not that Ralph Northam will beer next governor and Justin Fairfax will beer lieutenantgovernor, youll be sent a message all across this great country. All around the world, of just what it is that america stands for. I love you virginia. God bless you. [applause] announcer the u. S. Senate passed the 2018 budget resolution thursday night, clearing the way for work on tax reform. The final vote was 5149 with kentucky senator rand paul being the only one to vote against the legislation. Monday, the senate takes up the Disaster Relief will already passed in the u. S. House. Live coverage always on our companion network cspan2. Cspans washington journal live every day with news and policy issues that impact you. Coming up friday morning, a look at the federal response in the opioid epidemic. We will discuss the future of the iran nuclear agreement. Correspondent Carrie Johnson on attorney general Jeff Sessions current recent testimony. Join the discussion. President trump has made regulatory changes a major issue in his presidency. The Brookings Institution releases a report on the changes this administration has is the to did so far and host a panel with former white house officials. See the conversation they of at 10 00 a. M. On cspan. Federal reserve chairman janet yellen speaks that the National Economist club dinner friday. The coverage begins at them 15 p. M. Eastern on cspan. 7 15 p. M. Eastern on cspan. Announcer saturday, former Vice President al gore looks at the effect of time and change around the world with his book an inconvenient sequel, truth to power. We and our celebrities and ours silver litigation are learned to manage atoms and molecules with the that they used to manage bits of information. It is changing things dramatically. Co2 emissions have stabilized the last four years, starting a downward trend. We are going to win this, but the remaining question is whether we will win it in time to reduce the risk to an acceptable level that we will cross some point of no return. Betweendangerous race hope and the catastrophic consequences. An author discussion on political diversity and freeze h free speech on called on college campuses. I do not want to demonize and disparage these protesters. What is positive about what they are doing . They are passionately committed to social justice and racial justice. I want to thank them for that, but i would love to have the opportunity to persuade them that freedom of speech, especially is their most essential ally. Announcer for more of this weekends schedule, go to book tv. Org. Announcer House Speaker paul ryan was the posted speaker for the dinner in new york center. It is held annually to raise funds. This is 25 minutes
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