afternoon, westchester! first to chris horton, it is an with mario confused cuomo. let me tell you that, chris. let's give a big thank you to and all of his colleagues who are doing a .antastic job for us [applause] i have been out there during the winter months when they've been bridge.on this i can tell you those are really rough and tough conditions. and they're doing a great job. time.e on they're on budget. let's give them another round of applause. [applause] good afternoon to all of you and welcome, mr. president, to the great state of new york. let's give the president a great new york welcome. [cheers and applause]

behind me is the tappan zee 1952, which was built in intended to be a temporary bridge at the time. over 140,000 vehicles go over the tappan zee bridge, theh is more than twice capacity and design of the bridge. outdated, unsafe, in need of repair for many, many years. this state has said on many occasions that the bridge had to replaced. $80 millionspent and 10 years talking about bridge.g the but we just couldn't get it done. complex.emingly too it was too big. we couldn't even get it started. metaphor for a what had happened to our state,

gridlock, government parial sis, fear, and indecision had taken control. my friends, is not the new york way. bold, the state of the the state of the daring, the state of performance, the state , of intricate transit systems. works the state of public that challenge the imagination. north of here, straight up the hudson river, the erie canal, one of the most ambitious public the nation at the time. people said it couldn't be done. was clinton who set canal.build the erie thomas jefferson said the , literally toad he could build the canal through the wilderness. well, we built the canal, built

time, built it on budget. enthe rest is history. it opened up upstate new york west to thep the nation. ingenuity andork new york hard work. in that spirit, october 2011, we with our new bridge. we said we were done talking and procrastinating. we forged new partnerships, we challenged ourselves to do it better than ever before. we're using a new development that combines the design and construction phases in one step, saving time and saving money over $1 billion saved from the original estimate by this new construction method. [applause] agreed tol government fast track the project. d.o.t. exceeded all expectations in making government perform.

saying to secretary foxx on the way up, it is incredible this federal government moved and moved this complex project. foxx aive secretary round of applause. [cheers and applause] the united states department of transportation provided unprecedented financial support, the largest loan ever awarded under the transportation innovationure and act, $1.6 billion. .hank you very much [applause] of we owe a special debt gratitude to our champion in securing that loan, our congresswoman lowey. let's give her a round of applause. [cheers and applause] i want to thank the new york state legislature and many of my today.ues are here

both houses and both sides of the aisle, democrats and republicans. to thank them for breaking the political gridlock state.ng paralyzed this we just passed our fourth intime budget in if a row -- a row, not done for 40 years. [applause] project inoved this record time. this bridge will create tens of of jobs. it will speed commutation. it will increase safety. the region to new growth. before.er but, mr. president, we want you to know that to new york we are not just building a bridge from rockland to westchester. a bridge that symbolizes be. was and what can this is a bridge from gridlock to bipartisanship.

bridge from paralysis to progress. and this is a bridge from tomorrow.to [applause] and, mr. president, we owe you a gratitude because without your leadership and without the assistance of the federal government, we would not be building this bridge today, period. ladies and gentlemen, please join me in giving a big welcome the unitedident of .tates, barack obama ♪ applause]d >> hello, new york! hey! hello, new york! [cheers and applause] it turned out to be a beautiful

day. wonderful to be here with all of you. take a seat. take a seat. relax. first of all, i want to thank governor cuomo for that great joboduction and the great he's doing. fixel forthank mayor having me. go?e did he is there he is right there. this is a gorgeous part of the world. lucky to be here. i'm going to be coming back soon. honor weeks i've got the of delivering the commencement at west point, just a little bit further up. but today i'm here along with our secretary of transportation, anthony foxx. [applause] about one of the best ways to create new jobs and spur economy, and that is to rebuild america's infrastructure. it's been about five and a half years since the financial crisis that rocked wall street and then

ultimately spread to main street. thanks to the grit, the determination of the american people, we've been steadily fighting our way back. four years our businesses have now created jobs.llion new auto industry that was booming.g is now a manufacturing sector is adding ins for the first time years. troops fighting two wars are home. home or are coming rather than creating jobs in if other countries more and more itpanies are recognizing makes good business sense to locate right here in the united states of america without standing american work -- with outstanding american workers. made progress, but here's the thing we could be doing a lot more.

we could make the decision easier for businesses to locate here in the united states, here york state if we do a job rebuilding our roads, rebuilding our bridges, upgrading our ports, unclogging commute times. do nothingtive is to and watch businesses go to places that have outstanding .nfrastructure behind me is the old tappan zee bridge, the longest bridge in the busiest one of bridges around. you,y commuter will tell it is crowded. thanrry a lot more traffic when it was built back in 1955. times you can see the river throughout cracks in the pavement. now, i'm not an engineer, but i that's not good. thanks to the efforts of governor cuomo, thanks to your outstanding

delegation led by lowey, elliott engle, jerry of whom are here today -- stand up, congressional delegation. proud of you. [cheers and applause] thanks to their outstanding efforts workers are building a replacement, the first new in new york in 50 years. new new yorkhe namee which is fine as a but for your next bridge you should come up with something a little more fresh. [laughter] .ere's the thing this never happens. you are building this bridge schedule. three years ago after republicans in congress refused to pass multiple bills that would have put construction work, i tookto

action on my own to fasttrack process for major projects like this one. normally it would have taken permito five years to this bridge. we did it in a year and a half. in a year and a half. [applause] that meant we were creating faster, doingobs right by workers, intending -- and tending to the environment. the vice president is in cleveland today at another tracked, at we fast rapid transit station that will make life easier for a lot of residents there. so today we're releasing a new plan to apply the same strategy major projects all across america. we're announcing 11 more projects to accelerate to get moving faster from boston south pensacola bay bridge to new light rail projects north

seattle. of we're cutting bureaucratic red tape that stalls good projects breaking ground. we're launching a new national permitting center to implement reforms. we are aiming to put every major infrastructure project on a dashboard so everybody can go online, track our accountable,d us make sure things are coming in on budget. make sure your taxpayer money is being used well, but also make folkshat we're putting back to work rebuilding america. that's our goal. applause]d now, all of these steps we can do without congress. and all of these steps mean more good jobs because nobody was hurt worse than construction financial crisis. plummeted. market and a lot of guys in hardhats and gals in hardhats suddenly

job.off the and that's why the recovery act, 2009, 2010, included the most important public works jobs program since the new deal, jump-starting more than 15,000 construction projects around the country. past five years american workers have repaired or replaced more than 20,000 bridges, improved more than roads. miles of american four years ago when we were just starting to clear away the damage from the financial unemployment rate for construction workers stood at 20%. in fact, it was over 20%. we've cut it by more than half. but we can do better. we can build better, and we have to. we've got ports that aren't generation ofnext cargo ships. we got more than 100,000 bridges qualify old enough to for medicare. we got leaky pipes that lose of drinkinggallons water every single day, even as we've got a severe drought in

much of the west. nearly half our people don't all.access to transit at and i don't have to tell you what some of our airports look like. a world class transportation system is one of the reasons america became an economic superpower in the first place. 50 years as past the share of our economy, our investment in transportation has by 50%. think about that. our investment in transportation been cut by half. you know what other countries doing? european countries now invest .wice as much as we do china invests four times as much transportation. one study recently found that fallen to 19th place when it comes to the quality of our infrastructure. place. i don't know about you, but i don't like america being 19th.

like america being second. i want us to be first when it comes to infrastructure around world because businesses are going to come where there's good infrastructure to move people, moveove services. [applause] we shouldn't watch the top-rated airports and seaports or the fastest rail lines or fastest internet networks get built somewhere else. righteed to be built here, in new york, right here in the united states. first-class infrastructure attracts first-class jobs. owners don't want a crumbling road or bridge because then they can't move out their their workers aren't as productive because it's harder for them to get to work. shop whereo set up there's high-speed rail, high-speed broadband, high-tech schools, self-healing power .rids, new ports, tunnels that allows them when they make goods here in america to move those goods out and sell them

the world. now, unfortunately helping states and cities fund infrastructure is one of congress's chief responsibilities. outstandingot some members here but let me talk a little before congress right now. the end of't act by the summer, federal funding for transportation, projects, will run out. will run out. there will be no money. cupboard will be bare. nearly 700,000 jobs would be at risk over the next year. that's like the population of and st. louis combined. right now there are more tha active projects, paving roads and rebuilding transit modernizing our systems. states might have to choose break on. to put the some states are already starting to slow down work because they're worried congress won't untangle the gridlock on time. that's something you should remember every time you see a

construction project stopped or machines idled or workers laid off their jobs. that's why earlier this year in trackingto fast projects, working with secretary plan toput forward a rebuild our transportation infrastructure in a more responsible way. support millions of jobs across america it would give cities and states and investors the certainty they need to plan ahead and invest. ourit wouldn't add to deficits because we'd pay for it in part by closing wasteful tax companies shipping jobs overseas that are in the tax code right now and that we help pay toout and put folks back to work rebuilding america. [applause] now, so far at least republicans who run this congress seem to different priority. not only have they prevented so far efforts to make sure funding is still in place for what we

got, but their proposal would actually cut job-creating grant programs that have funded high-priority transportation projects in if all 50 states. aboutould cut them by 80%. they can't say it's to save money but at the very same time they voted for trillions of dollars in new tax cuts. weighted towards folks at the top. so think about that for a seco second. instead of putting more workers the job, they put those workers' jobs at risk. breaking ground on new projects that improve quality of life for millions of people, they voted to give a massive tax cut to households making more than $1 million a year. making investments that grow our economy by growing the middle class, they're still convinced prosperity trickles down from the very top. to tell them what you think about that, don't worry because usually they show ribbon cuttings for projects that they refuse to

.und and here's the sad part. rebuilding america, that issue.'t be a partisan my favorite president happens to have been a republican. a guy named abram lincoln, in my illinois. of it was lincoln who committed to a railroad connecting east to west, even while he was struggling mightily to hold together the north and south. republican, dwight eisenhower, who built the system.te highway it was ronald reagan who said that rebuilding our investmenture is an in tomorrow that we must make today. since when are the republicans against ronald reagan? problem.s part of the we've gotten so partisan, everything's becoming political. they're more interested in saying no because they're they'd have maybe

to be at a bill signing with me at actually doing a job that they know would be good for america. to stope for folks running around saying what's wrong with america. sleeves and let's get to work and help america rebuild. [cheers and applause] what we should be doing. we don't need a can't do spirit. can do spirit. that's what governor cuomo has. it sounds like the state legislature was willing to work with him on this. we need congress to work with us issues. it doesn't mean they're going to agree with us on everything. i guarantee you they will have disagree enough to with me about. but let's not fight on something makes sense. after all, we're the people who the depressionf lifted a great bridge in california and laid a great damn lifted upe southwest,

rural america. we shrank a sprawling continent when we pounded in that final railroad spike, connected up this amazing country of ours, network of highways across america from coast-to-coast. and then we connected the world with our imaginations and the internet. a great nation does these things. no wet nation doesn't say can't. it says yes, we can. line, tarrytown, is america doesn't stand still. be done.ork to there are workers ready to do it. some of them are here. they're already on the job doing work. [cheers and applause] we're proud of them. there are people all across this country that are ready and eager move this country forward. so i'm going to keep on fighting

alongside all of you have to make sure that we're doing everything we can to rebuild america. not just rebuild one bridge but i want us rebuild every bridge. don't want us to rebuild one school. i want us to rebuild every school that needs help. [applause] i want us to, most of all, most rebuild an economy where hard work is valued and respected and is rewarded and where opportunity to someable not just but to every single hard-working american. for.s what i'm fighting i know that's what you care about. thank you very much, everybody. good job, workers! forward to seeing this bridge. thank you very much. [cheers and applause] you.less god bless america. thank you. ♪

your suitcase it's rolling down those tracks you don't know where you're nowg but you know you won't be back well, darling upon my chest we'll take can carry reste'll leave the well, big wheels fieldsrough

sun rides through meet me a land of dreams ♪ ♪ i will provide for you stand by your side companion nowd for this part of the ride ♪ >> some news today from the naacp which has chosen a new cornellt, williambrooks. during a meeting last night in naacp'sderdale, the board of directors voted mr. brooks to serve as the organization's 18th president

and c.e.o. and some details about him today in "usa today." mr. brooks lives in annandale, jersey with his wife and two sons. he's currently the executive jerseyr of the new institute for social justice and he's an ordained minister. he'll be taking over from interim president lorraine miller who's been serving after benjamin stepped down last year. brooks will begin his new role july at an naacp board meeting in las vegas. >> c-span's newest book "sundays eight" a collection of interviews with the nation's best story tellers including david mccullough. sitting here today in a ,ity designed by a frenchman andfrench engineer architect, the great symbolic sculpture at the gateway to the country and new york, the statue of