deregulatory action that better fits a competitive and dynamic marketplace. so let's get going with that. thanks again to steve and everyone on the report team, especially including alma mater, duke >> over the next couple of hours, highlights from the official visit and state dinner this week with german chancellor, angela merkel, we begin with sights and sounds on tuesday morning from the white house.

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♪ >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states, and mrs. michelle obama.

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[background sounds] [background sounds] >> ladies and gentlemen, the national anthem of the federal republic of germany, followed by the national anth of the uned states. ♪ ♪

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♪ >> after meeting in the oval office, president obama and chancellor merkel took questions in the eastern room of the white house.

>> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states and the federal chancellor of the republic of germany. >> good morning again. it is an honor to welcome my good friend, and partner, chancellor merkel, back to the white house. we had a wonderful dinner last night, one-on-one. although as you saw this morning, angela's english is much better than my german. michelle and i am very much looking forward to hosting the chancellor at tonight's state dinner, where i have the privilege of presenting angela with the medal of freedom. as i said earlier, germany is one of our strongest allieallie.

we see partnerships in the strongest trade relationship in the world. we see it in scientists and students and unlocking creations including greenhouse technologies and those of the future. and we see in afghanistan, where germans serve under americans and americans serve under germans. chancellor merkel, i want to thank you and the german people for your strong commitment to this vital mission. and our hearts go out to you and families, american and german, and others, whose loved ones have kept us safe. we honor them all. we stand by diplomats that stand

up against weapons to avert suffering like in sudan. this is the essence of our life, committed to values and those of citizens and those far beyond our borders. and that's essence of my partnership with chancellor merkel. this is our tenth meeting and that doesn't include the conference callings that we have all day and night. hardly any global issue that we don't consult one another. i said i always value angela's honesty and frankness, i trust her and as she said herself, it's fun to work together.

and it has been again fun today. as we address urgent challenges. germany is essential to create partnerships and as angela mentioned that hundreds of thousands of jobs for exports to germany, and hundreds of thousands have chosen to work for companies that have chosen to invest in america. and i am pleased in new plants, steel and alabama in tennessee, all that create thousands of new american jobs. the chancellor and i discuss regulations and barriers to discuss more trade and investment. including electric vehicles, where both of our countries are leaders and those possibilities of enormous. and i appreciate the chancellor's views on the

situation in europe. which we believe cannot be allowed to put the global economy at risk. and we have trained afghan forces that are prepared to turn the corner in our effort. we are scheduled for the afghan lead and we will have forces this summer supporting afghan fist their political and economic efforts to forge lasting peace. i thank the chancellor for her support of the principles i laid out last month for israelis and palestinia palestinians. and i want to commend angela for her efforts to bring parties back to the negotiation table. as we agree that both sides need to make choices. and we speak of actions of the general assembly should be avoided.

we agree that iran's nuclear program and its refusal to engage with meaningful talks with the international community is a concern. we agree that if the international community agrees that iran is continuing to ignore their obligations, we have no choice but to consider additional steps and sanctions to intensify the pressure on the iran regime. and with efforts for afghanistan and we are clear that qaddafi must step down and pressure will next until he does. and with our partners for

political and economic reform across the middle east in north africa, especially indonesia and egypt. the united states and germany are the two largest donors of assistance to the region. and we agree that this historic moment must not be squandered. along with the entire world we have an enormous stake that these efforts succeed. and given the chancellor's life story and to heal the wounds of the past, i appreciate her leadership and partnership in this effort. again i am very grateful to the chancellor to be here, and confident that our alliance will be a pillar in a world more secure, more prosperous and more just. and i appreciate the personal friendship i have with angela.

>> well, ladies and gentlemen, mr. president, mr. barack, i would like to use this opportunity to thank you warmly for this wonderful reception. the reception to the white house and this welcomed as i see a testament. we remind ourselves that in america today (inaudible) german, but can't safely say of the claims of the many leaders of german, all of the names with

reservations (inaudible) and grateful for the german asylum and the second world war in united states. we have a broad base of students. we have corporations and work in aerospace, we share a lot of success. i mentioned the 50,000 soldiers, that are present today in germany, very welcomed indeed in my country. let me say without the united states of america, i in all probability could not stand before you today, to overcome the cold war in europe, and it required western partners of many decades where many have had long, lost hope in europe and

many didn't want this. but then the president walker said that european unity is something that deserves our support. so there are a lot of talks we have in common, a lot of challenges to meet together. we are doing this in the spirit of freedom, we want to bring these to bear on the international agenda. we were dealing with and ever since the month of january, with these issues. and with syria and indonesia and europe, that's a great challenge. and if i remember, and let me take you perhaps to the period after the second world war, and germany was able to get back on their feet. and that was a task on the europeans and the americans and germans to support this change to. make it possible for the arab people to have a perspective for the future. we talked about this and germany

in particular with schemes offering alliance for jobs and training. and educational working for others for foundations and building up institutions. for example something we wanted to do. i said we should open up an office in benghazi that will serve as a clearing house for the training schemes, for example, the security forces on the ground. and we will pursue an additional commitment to afghanistan and contribution to the common challenge. we talked about economic issues and we will work closely together. and we have made a lot of progress there. and be successful. the situation in europe also of great interest over here. the finance minister talked about these issues and we too

talked about this to some length. and i said europe is not indispenable, and part of our identity. and it's one that served two parts of one same coin. but we want to boost this and aware that we are in a tough competition. so europe needs to be competitive and we need to be competitive to remain an interesting economic partner for the united states. this has to be done with strength and competitiveness. and why the germans are looking for a competitive europe, and an approach for solidarity. and we need to show solidarity to the countries that need it. we talked about a peace process, this is a very important initiative to point out that the united states of america, just as germany and the european

union, to promote part of the peace process. we are saying this to both countries. we want a two-state (inaudible) and measures are not helping at all. and we agree that we wish to cooperate closely on this. because we believe that time is of the essence. and looking at the changes of the arab area and region, it would be a very good signal indeed, if it came out that talks between the parties are possible. the commitment we take in afghanistan, and very close and grateful for the cooperation to the north of afghanistan. we share the opinion that in afghanistan we wish to approach the matters in sense of integrated security approach. and that approach said that we

want to build up not only the military side but the civil side. we wish to go in together and afghanistan will need our support. we will not abandon them. i think for this friendly talk and for the warm atmosphere to have this exchange of views. even though we look differently at predecessors, we have a lot in common and a lot to discuss. >> i will start with steve. >> which policies do are look to head off and the policies. >> i am not worried about a

double dip recession, but the economy we are on is not producing jobs as quicklyaise would like to happen. prior to this month, we had seen robust growth in the job sector. and encouraged by that. this month you still saw growth in the private sector but it slowed down. we don't know if it's a smaller episode or a longer trend. gas price being prominent, it has an enormous impact on the quality of consumers. we're taking enormous steps to have an energy policy to bring stability to world oil prices. but the overall trend over the last 16 months, over two million jobs created over the last 15 months. you know a rebounding of the

manufacturing sector in the united states, that's exemplified by the recovery of the big three automakers here. all indicates that we have set a path that will lead us to long-term economic growth. but we still have enormous work to do. and as long as some folks are unemployed looking for work, every morning i will think how to get them back to work. some cut in the lame duck session, the payroll taxes, the tax breaks for business investment and plants and equipment. all of those things have helped. and one thing i will be interesting in exploring with the members of both parties in congress, is how we continue some of these policies to make sure that we get this recovery

up and running in a robust way. we then have a set of long-term competitive challenges that aren't so different from what germany or any advance country is having to go through in the 21st century. where we have emerging markets becoming more competitive themselves, and we will have to step up our game. making sure our school systems are working well, and have the best trained in the world. and making sure we attract businesses to our shores. and the system is complex and transparent and getting a hold on our deficit in a way that is balanced and sensible. we will have days where things are not going as well as we like. we will be surprised sometimes with better economic data than we expected. we are on a path but it has to

accelerate with a continuation of the steps i discussed. with respect to the european situation. i have had extensive discussions with angela about the situation there. it's a tough situation. and i think we all acknowledge it. greece's debt is significant. and it is taking some difficult steps to improve its situation. but they are under the gun from the international capital markets. and as a member of the euro zone, they are necessarily going to be looking to other members of the euro zone to help them figure out a path forward. germany will be a key leader in that process. and the politics of it are tough. you recall how difficult it was for us to make investments or

our own auto industry and be sure we didn't have a meltdown here. and imagine making those decisions with 27 other countries with respect to someone else's economic problems. that gives you some sense of how tough the politics are. i am confident that germany's leadership along with other key actors in europe, will help us arrive at a path for greece to return to growth. for this debt to become more manageable. but it will require some patience and some time. and we have pledged to cooperate fully on a bilateral basis and financial institutions like the imf. >> well, in europe we are very well aware of responsibility for

the global economy. barack just outlined what the americans are doing in order to generate growth and combat unemployment. which is what we are doing in europe as well. for the global economic crisis, we have seen how independent we are and the stability of the euro zone is important for the whole global economy. we do see clearly our european responsibility and we are shortening that responsibility with the imf. we see that the security as the whole will be influenced with one country in trouble. that's what the assistance is about. there is a ban on bailouts on the treaty and the growth path. but if a country is in danger, it's in each country's interest to see that this common currency

area is not in danger. we will act in such a way that sustainability is guaranteed, as i said previously. barack with the situation in the united states, i think that each should deal with their own problems. we in europe have our hands full and i am convinced as we show responsibility and so will the united states of america. mr. balsa. >> a word for chancellor today, just a recognition of her accomplishments in the past. or is it as well an expression of expectations for the future. if so, where do you see areas where the chancellor of germany can do more. >> madam chancellor, addressed to you, germany is actually

being praised through america. does this mean also that it entails enhanced responsibility. and where you have to live up to the responsibilities or do you feel that germany has to do more? >> with respect to the medal of freedom, it's recognition of the chancellor's remarkable career. i think not only has she been an excellent steward of the germany economy and the european project. but she represents the unification of europe through her own life story. and the capacity to overcome the past and point to a brighter future. so the extraordinary work she's already done, i think, would by itself merit the medal of freedom.

fortunately she's going to be around quite a bit longer. so she is going to be doing outstanding work in the future. her leadership will be critical on economic issues of the sort that we just discussed in the euro zone. and i very much compliment her on the courage that she approaches some political issues, at some political costs to herself. on the international stage there is no issues that we don't coordinate closely with germany. and our work in afghanistan, our work together with nato, the approach that we have taken with respect to the middle east. and the arab spring, are approaches to development issues and how we help the poorest countries find their place in the international economy. these are all going to be areas where i think angela's

leadership will be welcomed. and will be critical for us to to be able to achieve a more peaceful and prosperous world that we want to see. she's not finished yet. she's got a lot more work to do. i know that sometimes she would not mind a couple of days off, but she will have to wait for that. >> well, i believe when you see me standing here before you today, and receiving this prestigious award, the medal of freedom. well perhaps this would be a moment one needs to look back to 1989 and german unification and what happened there. if you like germany entered into a new phase, we were all of a sudden a reunited country, with all the rights and also all

obligations. if you think back to the beginning of the 1990's, we were struggling with a decision to enable us to send ships to take part in missions. if you compare this to where we are today, you see the road that we have traveled in the direction of assuming more international responsibility. military missions, participating in military missions on the balkans and in afghanistan and in combat and other areas. but what is also important in this context, and that's an approach that we both share, barack and i. we need to combine military and civil engagement. so i think we live up to our international responsibilities. the world is full of problems that we need to address. that's a reality. and you cannot have enough partners that work together with you in a coordinated way.

and that's why this cooperation is so extremely important for our common future. and i am saying this also as someone who comes from europe. the changes in north africa are changes that happen on our door step. those are our immediate neighbors, and this can work out well or have an enormous problem. so out of charity we help people, not only morale obligation but to have a vested interest that this region comes on its feet. >> thank you, mr. president and chancellor merkel. you have called chancellor merkel one of your more important allies. in libya do you believe that

more germany operation would bring a conclusion and did you ask chancellor merkel for that. and did you ask her for the greek bailout and that is holding up that and which you blamed european sluggishness for the economy. and chancellor merkel, do you believe that it was a mistake to get militarily involved in libya and if not, what more could you do. and more about that recovery. >> first of all, with respect of libya, it's important to note that this is a nato operation, that's fully liberated. which means you have german personnel involved actively in these activitys in their nato

role. as i indicated before, germany has stepped up and taking responsibility in afghanistan to free up operations in libya. we share the belief that qaddafi needs to step down for the sake of his own people. with the pace of the operation, if you look at where we were three months ago. and where we are now, or two months ago and where we are now. the progress that has been made in libya is significant. our goal there was to protect the libyan people from a potential slaughter. we have done so. benghazi is free from threat of the libya regime now. they are hunkered down.

n nizrata that was under severe attack, is in a situation, still threatened qaddafi's forces have been pushed back. what you see across the country is a trend of the regime forces being pushed back, being incapacitted. you are see defections oftentimes of high profiles of the qaddafi government, as well as the military. and i think it's just a matter of time before qaddafi goes. and each country that is part of this coalition is playing a different role. so we did a whole bunch of stuff at the front end to take out significant fire power. now we are in more of a supportive role as other countries have stepped up. we did discuss last night

germany's role. and there will be a lot of work to do when qaddafi does step down to get the people on their feet. the economic political work to be done, and my expectation is that there will be full and robust german support as there has been in the past from germany on a wide range of issues. with respect to the economy, as i said before, this is a tough and complicated piece of business. and ultimately europeans will have to make decisions about how they proceed forward. what you have to do is balance the recognition that greece has to grow. and that means that there has to be private investment there, they have to make structural reforms to make them more

competitive. they have to have greater transparency in their economic system. but given their level of debt, it means that other countrys in thee euro zone will have to provide them a back stop. and people holding great debt will have to make decisions with european countries in the euro zone how that is managed. what we have done is to say to germany and other countries involved, we will be there for you. we are interested in being supportive. we think that america's economic growth depends on a sensible resolution of this issue. we think it would be disasterous for us to see an uncontrolled spiral and default in europe. because that could trigger a whole range of other events. and i think that angela shares that same view.

we will have to work through this issue methodically, and we will be supportive in any way we can to be sure that all the best ideas are brought to bear on the problem. and let me make one larger point that relates to the question that steve asked earlier. i think people on both sides of the atlantic, are understandably frustrated with the ups and downs of the economy. the world economy. and it's just very important for folks to remember how close we came to complete disaster. the world economy took a severe blow 2-1/2 years ago. and in part that was because of a whole set of policy decisions that had been made and

challenges that had been unaddressed over the course of the previous decade. and recovering from that body blow takes time. and unrecovery will be uneven. there will be times we are making progress but people are still skiddish and nervous, and the markets get skiddish and nervous. and they pull back because they are thinking about the traumas of 2-1/2 years ago. so economic data in better times would pass without comment. now suddenly people wonder if we are going back to this terrible crisis. and all of that affects consumer confidence, and business confidence. it affects the capital markets. so our task is to not panic, not overreact, to make sure we got a

plan, a path forward in terms of how we make our economies competitive. making sure we are dealing with the structural issues and the basic fundamentals that will allow us to grow. america for example, the need to get a handle on our debt and deficit is going to be important. making sure that our investments in education and clean energy and infrastructure that we find a way to do that. in germany and europe, they are going to be different sets of challenges. but the important thing is, and i think angela would agree, we try not to look day-to-day of what is happening in the marketplace or what headlines are taking place. and be reactive. our job is to set a course for the medium in the long-term that assures not only that both of our economies grow, but that the

world economy is stable and prosperous, and i think we can do that together. >> well, maybe i should comment briefly on this as well. 2-1/2 years ago we experienced something that didn't exist for decades. ever since the 1920's and 1930's in the previous century. and generally we were able to ward off the worse that could happen. and now we have a situation that we believe is something that meets the challenge of the future. before the crisis we discussed what strategy to choose, and we now have the g-20, that is proved to be a good format and to set this situation for the financial market. and that has strengthened our cooperation. and although we debate how much stimulus we need and savings and

cuts and what structural programs we need. i think that shows great openness, we are all in new ground, these are uncharted wate waters. we can't always depend on the financial community to advise each day and we are dependent on our own sound judgment. and for those decisions of qaddafi and he will step down because of this great progress. and there will still be a lot of work to do. and in the future we agree that germany will be showing that it is responsible to the libyan cause. and there will be a lot to contend with, and germany supports the nato operation by simply present in the stops.

and also by stepping up the commitment in afghanistan. it's a joint will that this nato mission is successful. and it's important for the people in libya, and also important for nato and the alliance at large. and we have one heart beating with the other allies. >> the german decision on libya has burdened the german/america relationship somewhat. were you surprised by these irritations and a reset button and breaking out into a new future, and to president obama and will this happen once in office? >> well, i believe that this present event today has been

agreed on for a long time. and our partnership and friendship is a broad basis, as i said this morning, and sometimes will be a difference in opinion. but what is important that we wish each other success, and each other can be on missions. and we had participation, and without mixing up things here. there will be areas in the world where we shoulder different responsibilities. partners doing together with others things that we believe can be useful and this is what we want to do. we want to see to it that our contribution is bringing about a success. encouraging other people to see, we wish to live in a democracy, this is good and sensible. i see today's event as a wonderful reception, but not something so unusual. i see it in continuity of close

relations and to meet other challenges of the future. on the future of germany, you said that the american president, some people say in germany has not been germany at all. he was in other areas, for the nato conference. berlin opens its arms to them everyday. but the berlinians can wait and have proved this in history. >> i look very much forward to being in berlin. and the last time i was there, we had a lot of fun. [laughter] and i am sure i will have a wonderful time the next time i am there as well. and i appreciate you assuming that i will have another term. and so i will have plenty of time to be able to put berlin on my schedule. all right, thank you very much, everyone.

>> and i can promise that the berlin brigade will be standing for some more time. >> earlier in the day, the white house offered a preview for

preparations for tuesday night's state dinner in honor of the chancellor. guests were arriving late in the afternoon, here's a look. >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable phillip gordon and his wife, mrs. rachel gordon.

>> dr. elizabeth sherwood randal, and her husband, dr. jeffrey randal. mr. brian lords and his guest, mr. bruce bozy. . force . .

>> dr. steven olestad and his wife, mrs. ruth olestad.

>> the honorable ambassador phillip murphy, u.s. ambassador to germany, and his wife, mrs. tammy murphy. >> mr. ullrich preav, and his

wife. mr. john schumacher and his wife, mrs. mary briggs. mrs. claus klineses and his wife, mrs. deidra klineses.

mrs. leland kennedy and her guest, ms. tina hoskaovich. the honorable secretary eric shinseki, secretary of veterans affairs, and his wife, mrs. patty shinseki.

mr. john john kuhni and his wif, mrs. barbara kuhni. >> i feel great about being here tonight and i'm wearing a rented tuxedo. no, what are you wearing? i'm a lawyer in chicago. you guys all look great.

mr. robert b. hansen and his wife, mrs. kathleen hansen.

mr. douglas redacker. the honorable senator amy clowbashar and her husband, mr. john mittsler. >> this would be, o.k., cost $170. >> and the shoes? >> $29. yes, that's correct, macy's. there you are. thank you.

>> mr. eric garsety and his wife, ms. amy wacliff. mr. james rogers and his wife, mrs. mary ann rogers. mrs. carol fulke and her husband, mr. bernie fulke.

mr. samuel palmisano. the honorable secretary timothy geithner, secretary of the treasury, and his wife, mrs. carol geithner.

mr. jerry sykes and mrs. barbara rosaovich mr. david leanhard and

his wife, mrs. laura lionhard. mr. euro -- antonio perez and his wife, mrs. laurie perez. mr. robert mcdonald and his wife, mrs. diane mcdonald.

mr. william drosniac and his daughter, ms. natallia drosniac. dr. eileen rosenfeld and her husband, mr. richard ilgin.

mr. robert gillette and his wife, ms. liza bunch. mr. mark ayers and his wife, mrs. deborah ayers.

the honorable tom barrett, mayor of milwaukee, and his wife, mrs. chris barrett. >> i'm german, also. half irish. >> dr. -- and his wife.

mrs. mauricea mayier and her husband, mr. zachary bowe. mrs. bonita bacell and her husband, mr. steven bacell.

dr. daniel levinsin, and his wife, mrs. nina levinsen. mr. liel ovaskasa.

the honorable john munhiem and his wife, sherry munhiem. mrs. kara mill. mr. duffy and his wife,

mrs. heidi duffy. mrs. naomi aferly and her husband, mr. larry liebowitz.

the honorable mr. davis and his wife, ms. olivia morgan. mrs. sarah blomenfield

mrs. winnie agel and her guest. mr. greg kennedy and his wife, mrs. karen guverman.

mr. robert sparks and a guest. mr. a.j.baeon and his wife ms. kate field and her husband.

the honorable norman mineta and his wife, mrs. veni mineta. and

mr. jeremy alters and guest, mrs. liana geriol. mr. richard faunte and his wife,

mrs. jenine faunte. mr. robert but -- bucini and his wife, mrs. elizabeth bucini. mr. haywood yan and his wife, mrs. yan. >> it's great. no better place. i was here years before at an

architecture group. >> nuremberg? >> yes. >> the honorable john roberts, chief justice of the united states, and his wife, mrs. jane roberts.

ms. darlene miller and her guest, ms. terry lee strauss. the honorable senator jeanne shaheen and her husband, mr. william shaheen. the honorable austin goolsby and his wife, mrs. robin goolsby.

ms. lisa budmoon and her husband, mr. mark kastoler. mr. doug hickey and his wife, ms. dawn ross. ms. susan eisenhower and her guest, mr. bucky clarkson. the honorable senator daniel coates and his wife, mrs. marcia coates.

the honorable representative schultz and her husband, mr. steven schultz. mr. david billings and his wife,

ms. rebecca goodhart. mr. norman and his guest,

ms. patricia lindbergh. mr. -- mr. volker bouffler.

>> you are also performing. are you nervous? >> no, a bit nervous but i'm looking very much forward to the event. >> will you play vaugner? >> not tonight. she likes classical music. >> what german composers will you play? >> beethoven, hendle. >> are there any challenges? >> might be, but these are not things that you worry about.

>> how many? >> about 30. but we perform in different groups. >> normally you would have others with you? >> we are 180. do you have a name for that? a symphony? >> for eight people, it's a sonata. there is a string orchestra.

leader mitch mcconnell and the honorable elaine chao. the honorable nancy pelosi and her husband, mr. paul pelosi

mr. stewart banum and his wife, mrs. sandra banum.

the honorable ellen coucher. the honorable samuel nunn and his wife, ms. colleen nunn. the honorable gregory meeks and his wife, mrs. mary meeks.

the honorable tom corbett, governor of pennsylvania. ms. jeannette weaver ruish. mr. perry white and his wife, mrs. phylicia white. the honorable william burns.

mr. james taylor and his wife, mrs. caroline taylor. >> have you performed at the white house before? >> no. >> we have, i think, five or six songs, no real surprises, sort of greatest hits. i'm just excited to be in this company and just to perform at the white house is a privilege. >> have you ever been here before? >> yes, we have. i received the national medal of

the arts. that's when we met. we met during the campaign. they actually suggested "you have a friend" for the theme of the evening. >> how is your german? [speaking german]

learned it in school. >> boarding school, new england boarding school. >> my father. >> what are you wearing tonight?

♪. >> the president, chancellor merkel and their spouses later appeared in the white house grand foyer for a traditional official photograph.

just before the state dinner, president obama and chancellor merkel delivered comments on the

relationship between the u.s. and germany and the president presented chancellor merkel with the medal of freedom, the highest honor. >> ladies and gentlemen, the president of the united states and mrs. obama accompanied by the chancellor of the republic of germany and professor sauer. ♪

[applause] >> good evening. michelle and i are honored to welcome you as we host chancellor merkel, professor sauer and the german delegation for the first official visit and state dinner for a european leader during my presidency. [applause]

angela, you and the german people have always shown me warmth in my visits to germany. i think of your gracious hospitality. we thought we would reciprocate with a little dinner in our rose garden. now, it's customary at these dinners to celebrate the values that bind nations.

tonight, we want to do something different. we want to pay tribute to an extraordinary leader who embodies these values and who has inspired millions around the world, including me. that's my friend, chancellor merkel. more than five decades ago, in 1957, the first german chancellor ever to address our congress, conrad adenaur, spoke of his people's will of freedom and the millions of his countrymen forced to live behind an iron curtain and one of those millions in a small east

germantown was a young girl named angela. she remembers when the wall went up and how everyone in her church was crying, told by the communists that she couldn't pursue her love of languages, she excelled as a physicist. she was asked to spy for the secret police and she refused. the night the wall came down, she crossed over, like so many others, and finally experienced what she calls the incredible gift of freedom.

tonight, we honor angela merkel not for being denied her freedom or even for attaining her freedom, but for what she achieved when she gained her freedom. determined to finally have her say, she entered politics, becoming the first east german to lead the republic of germany, the first woman chancellor in germany and an elegant voice for

germany around the world. the presidential medal of freedom is the highest honor a president can bestow on a civilian. most honorees are americans. only a few others have received it, among them, pope john paul ii, nelson mandela and helmut kohl. please join me in welcoming chancellor merkel for the presentation of the next medal of freedom. [applause]

>> presidential medal of freedom to dr. angela merkel. dr. angela merkel came to symbolize the triumph of freedom by becoming the first east german to serve as chancellor of the united federal republic of germany and made history when she became germany's first female chancellor. a dedicated public servant, chancellor merkel has promoted liberty and freedom in her own country and throughout the

world. >> you can all applaud. [applause]

i've got to do the toast. i want to conclude by inviting all of you to stand and join me in a toast. and i want to do so with the words that angela spoke two years ago when she became the first german leader to address our congress since chancellor adenaeur all those years ago. her words spoke not only to the dreams of the young girl in the east, but for the dreams of all those who yearn for rights and dignity today, to freedom, which must be struggled for and defended anew every day of our lives.

cheers. [applause]

>> mr. president, dear barack, dear michelle, ladies and gentlemen. the first political event during my childhood that i distinctly remember is the building of the berlin wall. 50 years ago.

i was 7 years old at the time. seeing the grown-ups around me, even my parents, so stunned that they actually broke out in tears, was something that shook me to the core. my mother's family was separated through the building of the wall i grew up in the part of germany that was not free. the german democratic republic. for many years, i dreamt of freedom just as many others did, also of the freedom to travel to the united states and i already had planned this out for the day that i would reach retirement

age, that was the age of 60 for men -- sorry, for women at the time and 65 for men. so we, as women, were somewhat privileged. [laughter] >> but imagining that i would one day stand in the rose garden of the white house and receive the medal of freedom from an american president, that was certainly beyond even my wildest dreams and believe me, receiving this prestigious award moves me deeply.

>> my thanks goes to the american people, first and foremost, for this extraordinary honor, knowing full well how much you have done for us germans. and i thank you, personally, mr. president, because you are a man of strong convictions. you touch people with your passion and your vision for a good future for these people,

also in germany. you have been able, time and again, to put on important international goalposts, injecting issues such as disarmament, the question of how to shape our relations with the countries of the middle east and last but not least, the solution to the middle east conflict with new dynamism. mr. president, i see the award of the medal of freedom as a testimony of the excellent german-american partnership.

our countries stand together for peace and freedom. history has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. it moves people to overcome their fears and openly confront dictators such as in east germany and eastern europe 22 years ago. .

>> it was this yearning it that brought down the iron curtain that divided the world into two blocs. it is to this resolved that we germans owe the unity of our country in peace and freedom. also today, the yearning for

freedom may well make totalitarian regimes of trimble and fall. we have followed with great interest and into the profound changes in north africa and in the arab world. freedom is indivisible. each and every one has the same right to freedom, be it in north africa, myanmar, or iran. still, the struggle for freedom is demanding for too many sacrifices and climbing far too many victims. soldiers, policemen, and the many volunteers who try to help, i am about to all those who risked their lives for the cause

of freedom. this year marks the 10th anniversary of the horrible a tax of 9/11. over the past 10 years, we have stepped up significantly our joint fight against terror and for freedom in many ways. we see that living in freedom and defending freedom are two sides of the same coin. for the precious gift of freedom does not come naturally. it has to be fought for,

nurtured, and defended, time and time again. sometimes this may seem like an endless fight against windmills, but my personal experience is a quite different one. what we dare not that will become reality tomorrow. -- may well become reality tomorrow. neither the chains of dictatorship more the threat