america will continue to lead the effort to prevent the spread of the world's most dangerous weapons. the regime in north korea must know they will only achieve security and prosperity by meeting their international obligations. the provocations of the sort we saw last night will only further isolate them as we stand by our allies, strengthen our missile defense and lead the world in taking firm action in response to these threats. likewise, the leaders of iran must recognize that now is the time for a diplomatic solution because a coalition stands united in demanding that they meet their obligations. we will do what is necessary to prevent that from getting a nuclear weapon. ( applause ) at the same time, we'll engage

russia to seek further reductions in our nuclear arsenal and continue leading the global effort to secure nuclear materials that could fall into the wrong hands. because our ability to influence others depends on our willingness to lead. and meet our obligations. america must also face the rapidly growing threat from cyber attacks. now, we know hackers steal people's identities and infiltrate private emails. we know foreign countries and companies swipe our corporate secrets. now our enemies are also seeking the ability to sabotage our power grid, our financial institutions, our air traffic control systems. we cannot look back years from now and wonder why we did nothing in the face of real threats to our security and our economy. that's why earlier today, i signed a new executive order that will strengthen our cyber defenses by increasing

information sharing and developing standards to protect our national security, our jobs, and our privacy. (pplause ) but now congress must act as well. by passing legislation to give our government a greater capacity to secure our networks and deter attacks. this is something we should be able to get done on a bipartisan basis. ( applause ) now even as we protect our people, we should remember that today's world presents not just dangers, not just threats. it presents opportunities. to boost american exports, support american jobs, and level the playing field in the growing markets of asia. we intend to complete negotiations on a transpacific partnership. and tonight i'm announcing that we will launch talks on a

compress i have transatlantic straight and partnership with the european union because trade that is fair and free across the atlantic supports millions of good-paying american jobs. we also know that progress in the most impoverished parts of our world enriches us all. not only because it creates new markets, more stable order in certain regions of the world but also because it's the right thing to do. in many places people live on little more than a dollar a day. the united states will join with our allies to eradicate such extreme poverty in the next two decades by connecting more people to the global economy. by empowering women, by giving our young and brightest minds new opportunities to serve. and helping communities to feed and power and educate themselves. by saving the world's children

from preventible deaths, and by realizing the promise of an aids-free generation which is within our reach. ( applause ) you see, america must remain a beacon to all who seek freedom during this period of historic change. i saw the power of hope last year in burma when ain ain welcomed an american president into a home where she had been in prison for years when thousands of burmese lined the streets waving american flags including a man who said there is justice and law in the united states. i want our country to be like that. in defense of freedom, we'll remain the anchor of strong alliances from the americas to

africa, from europe to asia. in the middle east, we will stand with citizens as they demand their universal rights and support stable transitions to democracy. (slight applause) we know the process will be messy. and we cannot presume to dictate the course of change in countries like egypt, but we can and will insist on respect for the fundamental rights of all people. we'll keep the pressure on a syri regime that has murdered its own people and support opposition leaders that respect the rights of every syrian. we will stand steadfast with israel in pursuit of security and a lasting peace. ( applause )

these are the messages i'll deliver when i travel to the middle east next month. and all this work depends on the courage and sacrifice of those who serve in dangerous places at great personal risk. our diplomats, our intelligence officers, and the men and women of the united states armed forces. as long as i'm commander in chief, we will do whatever we must to protect those who serve their country abroad and we will maintain the best military the world has ever known. ( applause ) we'll invest in new capabilities, even as we reduce waste and more time spending. we will ensure equal treatment

for all service members and equal been anies for their families -- gay and straight. ( applause ) we will draw upon the courage and skills of our sisters and daughters and moms because women have proven under fire that they are ready for combat. we will keep faith with our veterans, investing in world class care including mental health care, for our wounded warriors. ( applause ) supporting our military famili families, giving our veterans the benefits and education and job opportunities that they have earned. i want to thank my wife michelle and dr. jill biden for their continued dedication to serving

our military families as well as they have served us. thank you, honey. thank you, jill. defending our freedom though is not just the job of our military alone. we must all do our part to make sure our god-given rights are protected here at home. that includes one of the most fundamental rights of a democracy, the right to vote. ( applause ) when any american, no matter where they live or what their

party, are denied that right because they can't afford to wait for five or six or seven hours just to cast their ballot, we are betraying our ideals. so tonight i'm announcing a nonpartisan commission to improve the voting experience in america. and it definitely needs improvement. i'm asking two long-time experts in the field who, by the way, recently served as the top attorneys for my campaign and for governor romney's campaign to lead it. we can fix this. and we will. the american people demand it and so does our democracy. ( applause )

of course what i've said tonight matters little if we don't come together to protect our most precious resource, our children. it has been two months since newtown. i know this is not the first time this country has debated how to reduce gun violence. but this time it's different. 9! overwhelming majorities of americans, americans who believe in the second amendment, have common together around common sensory form like backgrounds checks that will make it harder for criminals to get their hands on a gun. ( applause ) senators, senators, senators of both parties are working together on tough new laws to prevent anyone from buyin buyins for resale to criminals. police chiefs are asking our...

to get weapons of war and massive magazines off our streets because these police chiefs are seeing their guys and gals being outgunned. each of these proposals deserves a vote in congress. ( applause ) now, if you want to vote no, that's your choice. but these proposals deserve a vote. because in the two months since newtown, more than 1,000 birthdays, graduations, anniversaries have been stolen from our lives by a bullet from a gun. more than a thousand of them. one of those we lost was a young girl named ideah pendleton.

she was 15 years old. she loved fig newtons. she was a majorette. she was so good to her friends they all thought they were her best friend. just three weeks ago she was here in washington with her classmates performing for her country at my inauguration. and a week later, she was shot and killed in a chicago park after school. just a mile away from my house. her parents are in this chamber tonight along with more than two dozen americans whose lives have been torn apart by gun violence. they deserve a vote. they deserve a vote.

they deserve a vote. gabby giffords deserves a vote. the families of newtown deserve a vote. ( cheers and applause ) the families of aurora deserve a vote. the families of tucson and blacks burg and the countless other communities ripped open by gun violence, they deserve a simple vote. ( cheers and applause ) they deserve a simple vote. our actions will not prevent every senseless act of violence in this country.

in fact, no laws, no initiatives, no administrative acts will perfectly solve all the challenges i've outlined tonight. but we were never sent here to be perfect. we were sent here to make what difference we can. to secure this nation. expand opportunities. uphold our ideals through the hard, often frustrating but absolutely necessary work of self-government. we were sent here to look out for our fellow americans the same way they look out for one another. every single day. usually without fanfare all across this country. we should follow their example. we should follow the example of a new york city nurse named menchu sanchez. when hurricane sandy plunged her

hospital into darkness she wasn't thinking about how her own home was faring. her mind was on the 20 precious newborns in her care and the rescue plan she devised that kept them all safe. we should follow the example of a north miami woman named desaline victor. when she arrived at her polling place she was told the wait to vote might be six hours. and as time ticked by, her concern was not with her tired body or aching feet or whether folks like her would get to have their say. hour after hour a throng of people stayed in line to support her because desiline is 102 years old. they erupted in cheers when she finally put on a sticker that read, "i voted." ( applause )

there's desiline. we should follow the example of a police officer named brian murphy. when a gunman opened fire on a siek temple in wisconsin, brian was the first to arrive. he did not consider his own safety. he fought back until help arrived and ordered his fellow officers to protect the safety of the fellow americans worshipping inside. even as he lay bleeding from 12 bullet wounds. when asked how he did that, brian said, "that's just the way

we're made." that's just the way we're made. we may do different jobs and wear different uniforms and hold different views than the person beside us, but as americans we all share the same proud title: we are citizens. it's a word that doesn't just describe our nationality or our legal status. it describes the way we're made. it describes what we believe. it captures the enduring idea that this country only rks when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations. and our rights are wrapped up in the rights of others. and that well into our third century as a nation, it remains the task of us all as citizens of these united states to be the

authors of the next great chapter of our american story. thank you. god bless you and god bless these united states of america. ( cheers and applause ) >> woodruff: for exactly one hour, just a second or two shy of one hour, president obama delivers his fifth state of the union address. the first state of the union of his second term in office after having been re-elected in november. it is a speech that touched on so many domestic issues, principally first and foremost the budget deficit. went through a list of other issues from energy to manufacturing, touched on foreign policy and at the end reached, i think it's fair to say, an emotional crescendo when he talked about gun violence in america and recognized a number of individuals there in the house chamber who have been touched by gun violence. either they're the survivors,

surviving family members or who themselves have been victims of gun violence. mark, we were counting, i think, as he went through... i know i made some notes. almost a dozen new initiatives the president announced on everything from international trade to higher education to doing something about the voting experience in america. it seemed like the president was trying to inject some energy into his second term. >> i agree wu, judy. i just want to underline the emotional apex of the evening was undoubtedly the "deserve a vote" chant that the president led when he spoke on gun control and the need, making the argument that our police departments were outgunned by those with assault weapons with criminal intent. and i thought that a speech that quite frankly lacked a lot of

energy and emotional response until that point. i mean there were moments -- and you're right there was a lot of substance in the speech -- the idea of the war in afghanistan being over. a pledge by the end of next year. >> woodruff: but, david, i think it's fair to say the crowd didn't really come to its feet in any sustained way until he got to guns >> ll, it didn't really have much rhetoric to it. it was a list of programs. they may have made a conscious decision they don't want to have a big f.d.r. type theory behind it. they want to say here are small, common sense things we can do. not to make people afraid of some huge encroaching big government. it may be a temperament or a strategy. let's keep it prosaic. there were a list of all these different things he wants done. it was easy to see the size and the scope, raising the minimum wage to $9. something very clear. helping people refinance their

mortgages. tough to know exactly what he wants to do. i was struck by how much time was spent on the budget and fiscal stuff and especially tax reform. we've never seen him talk about tax reform. he's been very luke warm about it for the past four years. secondly early childhood education. he emphasized that. he's mentioned it frequently but never again in the space that he gave it. you don't know what he's going to do. is he really going to reform head start and take it out of h.s.s. and put it in the department of education where it belongs or is it just more symbolic >> woodruff: he had made this statement early on in his speech that the programs he would be announcing or the initiatives he would be announcing tonight he said won't cost us a dime. and yet you listen to that. launching something to make early childhood education available to every child in america? how do you do that >> he said it wouldn't increase the deficit >> woodruff: i stand corrected. he can raise taxes by closing loopholes. he was not quite fair on the

loophole closing. to raise money he talked about getting rid of special interest loopholes. you have to do the charitable giving deductions. those are popular loopholes. i'm not sure he's going to raise a lot of money because i don't think those things are doable >> woodruff: the question is can the two parties come together on this? we've heard a lot of... we've heard democrats and republicans all over the map on the loopholes >> there were a couple of other points, judy, that hit me. one was, i mean, there are facts that he brought in that most americans were unaware of. last year wind energy added nearly half of all capacity in america. i think that would come to most americans as interesting. and the home purchases are up by 50%. but, you're right. the language he used was fewer than three in ten four-year-olds are in high-quality preschool program today. and the two states he cited,

both have republican governors and republican delegations. georgia and oklahoma as the models that he wanted... >> woodruff: which is interesting. he's talking about spending money now that will be paid back later. but children will go on to get a lot of education. they will be contributing members of society >> great programs. oklahoma is the model program. it's done by republicans. so it should be a bipartisan source of agreement. but still these things do cost a lot of money. when they've tried to expand early childhood in places like california with rob reiner's proposition it's hit political head wind and was defeated. these are not easy lists. they're reasonably expensive. to me worth doing but they're heavy. >> woodruff: what about raising the minimum wage? we just double checked it. it's $7.25 i believe right now. to raise it to $9 an hour? >> well, you know, i think it's a pretty straightforward argument. if you work 40 hours a week, 52 hours or 52 weeks a year, you

should rise above poverty. i mean... >> woodruff: that was his argument >> that's the argument. i think it's a straightforward one. $9 an hour. 10 states already linked their minimum wage to inflation. >> the counterargument of course is that actually relatively few people are working full-time at the minimum wage. it's generally part-time workers. the second argument is and this is reasonably well established although somewhat debated among economists you do lose a lot of jobs. the restaurants and other places cut workers if they have to pay each individual more. >> woodruff: even if it's a dollar or something >> they're competing... re are competing economic views on that. in fact, between pennsylvania and new jersey study suggests that that was not the case. you know, the idea that if somebody can't pay the minimum wage to their workers then they probably shouldn't be in business. >> woodruff: while we're chewing over, shall we say, the president's remarks, he continues to make his way out of the house chamber.

followed by a group of leaders of the house and senate greeted maybe by some of the same people who welcomed him when he came in. they're there to say hello to him and thank him as he goes out. i guess he's being asked for autographs, copies of the speech. >> that's exactly what it is. woodruff: we just want to let our audience know that once the president leaves the house chamber five minutes later i guess the clock will start running after he leaves, we hear the republican response from the junior senator from the state of florida, marco rubio. so, we will be looking for that. >> the president spoke about learning english. and as a precondition to citizenship. marco rubio one of the reasons he was chosen is that he is totally, perfectly bilingual and will deliver the speech in both english and spanish.

>> woodruff: he'll go back and forth >> i think he's already done it in spanish. >> woodruff: and they'll be broadcasting it. but he's of course the son of cuban emigres. >> and demate coras have been doing this for a long time. i mean and toneeville rogue owes a did. they combined one republican. >> woodruff: we're listen to go the house speaker saying the house will come to order. we see the president just about to exit the door wanting to shake every single hand. i remember when president clinton was in office, reaching three and four and five rows back to make sure he didn't miss a single hand. on his way out the door. >> and the pages. they line up back there. >> woodruff: we will wait a few minutes before we hear from senator rubio. let's go back and talk about what the president had to say, david. when it comes to the deficit.

and dealing with the debt. it sounded to me as if he not only stood his... he didn't say anything new but he stood his ground. he said, i don't believe this country needs to do something about taxes, cut taxes on the backs of senior citizens who are counting on medicare and counting on social security. >> though he did very interestingly say he was in favor of modest medicare reform. he's always given a sort of gesture to that. it was not enthusiastically embraced by a crowd. there was not a standing ovation for reforming medicare >> woodruff: didn't he say, i'm referring to those wealthy seniors, seniors who are, you know, who are at the the gher income bracket >> and he has talked about leaving everything that was on the table in the earlier budget negotiations all that stuff is mostly still on the table. some of that is what they call chain c.p.i. which is the cost of living adjustment for social security, means testing, a little medicare. some of the more affluent recipients would see some of the been anies cut.

some of that stuff is provisionally still on the table. i remain a little dubious we'll have the sort of budget deal that has eluded us so far. he was pretty aggressionive on the sequestration and pretty in your face on the republicans some of eir proposals on the sequestration. a lot of republicans welcome sequestration at this point which is the automatic spending cuts. >> woodruff: explain why the consumer price index, the c.p.i., solution to making a change in medicare and means testing are not enough for many republicans. why are they saying that there must be a rise in the eligibility age? >> that or that the republicans think as long as you have a free-for-service system which is what medicare is, where you're paid by the amount of services you're delivered not by the outcomes that's the fundamental that the messed up. there are two ways of measuring inflation. this would raise you more money because it would give you a higher inflation measure that produces more revenue as people

have to pay into it. that would produce some, a bit of money. and raising retirement age wouldn't produce that much money. means testing would have a bit of money. these are chunks to close the deficit but the get is now $16 trillion. these programs are going to consume every single dollar of federal revenue in 15 or 20 years. so it's a gigantic problem. and the things that are now on the table none of them come close to solving the problem. they're little steps. >> woodruff: so, mark, are republicans talking about dramatic changes in social security? >> republicans basically the budget the republicans go for is a form of voucherrizing, as democrats call it, or bringing privatization to social security. to medicare. and what i think we saw tonight was that the middle is is a very lonely place. i mean, the president talked about some trimming of the cost and limiting the cost growth of

medicare. and not even heart-hearted applause. it mean it was muted applause. so the republicans are not pleased and the democrats are displeased >> woodruff: i'm not sure vice president even biden applauded >> i don't think he did. he applauded just about everything. >> the president made the core point and this really should appeal to democrats, if you believe in head start spending and all the other stuff democrats believe in education, infrastructure, there's no money for it because it's all going to medicare, social security, defense and other big-ticket items. the president made this core point. if you please in the domestic discretionary program you have to pay attention to entitlements >> woodruff: and where is this money going to come from? we're less than a minute now i believe from marco rubio delivering the republican response. we should point on the, mark, that in addition to senator rubio tonight, senator rand paul of kentucky is going to be making the tea party response. we're not... we don't happen to be showing that but it's happening in washington at the.

.. >> he's the triple play preceded by michelle bachman and herman kaine, the two presidential candidates over the previous two years. he's doing it this year. >> to be fair he made a very substantive speech on foreign policy. he has a much more conservative if you want to put thait way foreign policy vision than either the republican party or the democratic party. i'd say it's a real addition to the debate >> woodruff: you're talking about senator rand paul >> he's a significant figure. woodruff: we are just'm told just about to be able to go to the place where senator marco rubio is appearing from speaker boehner's conference room at the capitol. >> good evening i'm mark owe reub over. i'm blessed to represent florida in the united states senate. let me begin by congratulating president obama on the start of his second term. tonight i have the honor of

responding to his state of the union address on behalf of my fellow republicans. and i'm especially honored to be addressing our brave men and women serving in the armed forces and diplomatic posts around the world. you may be thousands of miles away but you are always in our prayers. the state of the union address is always a reminder of how unique america is. for much of human history most people were trapped in stagnant societies where a tiny minority always stayed on top. and no one else even had a chance. but america's exceptional because we believe that every life at every stage is precious and that everyone everywhere has a god-given right to go as far as their talents and hard work will take them. like most americans for me, this ideal is personal. my parents immigrated here in pursuit of the opportunity to improve their life and to give their children the chance at an even better one. they made it to the middle class. my dad working as a bartender and my mother as a cashier and a

maid. i didn't inherit any money from them but i inheritedded something far better: the opportunity to accomplish my dreams. this opportunity, to make it to the middle class or beyond no matter where you start out in life, it isn't bestowed on us from washington. it comes from a vibrant free economy where people can risk their own money to open a business. when they succeed they hire more people who in turn invest or spend their money they make helping others start a business and create jobs. presidents in both parties from john f. kennedy to ronald reagan have known that our free enterprise economy is the source of our middle class prosperity. but president obama? he believes it's the cause of our problems. that the economic downturn happened because our government didn't tax enough, spend enough or control enough. and therefore as you heard tonight, his solution to virtually every problem we face is for washington to tax more, borrow more and spend more. this idea that our problems were

caused by a government that was too small is just not true. in fact the major cause of our recent downturn was a housing crisis created by reckless government policies, and the idea that more taxes and more government spending is the best way to help hard-working middle class tax payers, that's an old idea that's failed every time it's been tried. more government isn't going to help you get ahead. it's going to hold you back. more government isn't going to create more opportunities. it's going to limit them. and more government isn't going to inspire new ideas. new businesses and new private sector jobs. it's going to create uncertainty because more government breeds complicated rules and laws that small businesses can't afford to follow. because more government raises taxes on employers who then pass the costs on to their employees through fewer hours, lower pay and even lay-offs. and because many government programs that claim to help the middle class often end up hurting them. for example, obama care.

it was supposed to help middle class americans afford health insurance. but now some people are losing their health insurance they were happy with. because obama care created expensive requirements for companies with more than 50 employees, now many of these companies aren't hiring. not only that, they're being forced to lay people off and switch from full-time employees to part-time workers. now does this mean there's no role for government? of course not. it pls a crucial part in keeping us safe, enforcing rules and providing some security. against the risks of modern life. but government's role is wisely limited by the constitution. and it can't play an essential role when it ignores those limits. there are valid reasons to be concerned about the president's plan to grow our government. but any time anyone opposes the president's agenda, he and his allies usually respond by falsely attacking their motives. when we point out that no matter how many job-killing laws we pass, our government can't

control the weather, he accuses of wanting dirty water and dirty air. when we suggest we strengthen our safety net programs by giving states more flexibility to manage them, he accuses us much wanting to leave the elderly and the disabled to fend for themselves. tonight he even criticized us for refusing to raise taxes to delay military cuts, cuts that were his idea in the first pla place. but his favorite attack of all is that those of us who don't agree with him, that we only care about rich people. mr. president, i still live in the same working class neighborhood i grew up in. my neighbors aren't millionaires. they're retirees that depend on social security and medicare. their workers who have to get up early tomorrow morning and go to work to pay the bills. they're immigrants who came here because they were stuck in poverty and the countries where the government dominated the economy. the tax increases and the deficit spending you propose will hurt middle class families. it will cost them their raises.

it will cost them their benefits. it may even cost some of them their jobs. it will hurt seniors because it does nothing to save medicare and social security. mr. president, i don't oppose your plans because i want to protect the rich. i oppose your plans because i want to protect my neighbors. hard-working middle class americans who don't need us to come up with a plan to grow the government. they need a plan to grow the middle class. economic growth is the best way to help the middle class. unfortunately our economy actually shall rank during the last three months of 2012. but as if we can get the economy to glow at just 4% a year, it would create middle class jobs and it would reduce our deficits by almost $4 trillion over the next decade. tax increases can't do this. raising taxes won't create private sector jobs and there's no realistic tax increase that could lower our deficits by almost $4 trillion. that's why i hope the president will abandon his obsession with raising taxes and instead work

with us to achieve real growth in our economy. one of the best ways to encourage growth is through our energy industry. of course, solar and wind energy should be a part of our energy portfolio. but god also blessed america with abundant coal, oil and natural gas. instead of wasting more tax payer money on so-called clean energy companies like open up more federal lands for safe and responsible exploration. let's reform our energy regulations so that they're reasonable and based on common sense. if we can grow our energy industry, it will make us energy independent. it will create middle class jobs and it will help bring manufacturing back from places like china. simplifying our tax code will also help the middle class because it will maket easier for small businesses to hire and grow. now we agree with the president. we should lower our corporate tax rate which is one of the highest in the world. so the companies will start bringing their money and their jobs back here from overseas.

we can also help grow our economy if we have a legal immigration system that allows us to attract and assimilate the world's best and brightest. we need a responsible, permanent solution to the problem of those who are here illegally. but first we must follow through on the broken promises of the past to secure our borders and enforce our laws. helping the middle class grow will also require an educational system that gives people the skills today's jobs entail and the knowledge that tomorrow's world will require. we need to incentivize local school districts to offer more a.p. courses and more vocational and career training and we need to give all parents especially the parents of children with special needs the opportunity to send their children to the school of their choice. and because college tuition costs have grown so fast we need to change the way we pay for higher education. i believe in federal financial aid. i couldn't have gone to college without it. but it's not just about spending more money.

it's also about strengthening and modernizing. the 21st century work force should not be forced to accept 20thson tur he'll education solutions. today students aren't only 18-year-olds. they're returning veterans. they're single parents who stied to get the education they need to earn a decent wage and they're workers who have lost jobs that are never coming back and need to be retrained. we need student aid that does not discriminate against programs that nontraditional students rely on like on-line courses or degree programs that give you credit for work experience. when i finish school i owed over $100,000 in student loans. a debt i paid off just a few months ago. today many graduates face massive student loans. we must give students more information on the costs and benefits of the student loans they're taking out. all these measures are key to helping grow the economy. we won't be able to sustain a vibrant middle class unless we solve our debt problem.

every dollar our government borrows is money that isn't being invested to create jobs. and the insert tee created by the debt is one reason why many businesses aren't hiring. the president loves to blame the debt on president bush but president obama created more debt in four years than his predecessor did in eight. the real cause of our debt is that our government has been spending $1 trillion more than it takes in every year. that's why we need a balanced budget amendment. the biggest obstacle to balancing the budget are programs where spending is already locked in. one of these programs is medicare that is especially important to me. it provided my father the care he needed to battle cancer and ultimately to die with dignity. and it pays for the care of my mother is receiving right now. i would never support any changes to medicare that would hurt seniors like my mother. but anyone who is in favor of leaving medicare exactly the way it is right now is in favor of bankrupting it. republicans have offered a

detailed and credible plan that helps save medicare without hurting today's retirees. instead of playing politics with medicare when is the president going to offer his detailed plan to save it? tonight would have been a good time for him to do it. of course we face other challenges as well. we were all heart broken by the recent tragedy in connecticut. we must effectively be able to rise to the violence in our country. but unconstitutionally undermining the second amendment rights of law-abiding americans is not the way to do it. on foreign policy, america continues to be indispensable to the global liberty. property and safeguarding human rights. the world is a better place when america is the strongest nation on earth. but we can't remain powerful. if we don't have an economy that can afford it. in the short time i've been here in washington nothing has frustrated me more than false choices like the one the president laid out tonight. the choice isn't just between big government or big business.

what we need is an accountable, efficient and effective government that allows small and new businesses to create more middle class jobs. we don't have to raise taxes to avoid the president's devastating cuts to our military. republicans have passed a plan that replaces these cuts with responsible spending reform. in order to balance our budget the choice doesn't have to be either higher taxes or dramatic benefit cuts for those in need. instead we should grow our economy so we can create new tax payers not new taxes. our government can afford to help those who truly can't help themselves. truth is every problem can't be solved by the government. many are caused by the moral breakdown in our society, and the answer to these challenges lie primarily in our families and our faith. not our politicians. despite our differences, i know that both republicans and democrats love america. i pray we can come together and solve our problems. because the choices before us could not be more important.

if we can get our economy healthy again, our children will be the most prosperous americans ever. and if we do not, we will forever be known as the generation responsible for america's decline. out a time when one showdown after another ends in short-term deals that do little or nothing about our real problems some are starting to believe that our government leaders just can't or won't make the right choices anymore. but our strength has never come from the white house or the capitol. it's always come from our people. a people united by the american idea that if you have a dream and you're willing to work hard, nothing should be impossible. americans have always sell brailted and been inspiredded by those who succeed. but it's the dreams of those who are still trying to make it that sets our nation apart. tonight all across this land, parents will hold their newborn children in their arms for their first time. many of these parents... for many of these parents life has

not gone the way they planned. maybe they were born in circumstances they found difficult to escape. maybe they've made some mistakes along the way. they're they're young mothers all along the father of their child long gone but tonight when they look into the eyes of their child for the first time, their lives will change forever. because when those eyes, they will see what my parents saw in me and what your parents saw in you. they will see all the hopes and dreams they once had for themselves. this dream of a better life for their children, it's the hope of parents everywhere. politicians here and throughout the world have long promised that more government can make those dreams come true. but we americans have always known better. from our earliest days we embraced economic liberty and because we did, mercury mains one of the few places on earth where dreams like these even have a chance. each time our nation has faced great challenges, what has kept

us together was our shared hope for a better life. now let that hope bring us together again to solve the challenges of our times and write the next chapter in the amazing story of the greatest nation man has ever known. thank you for listening. may god bless all of you. may god bless our president. and may god continue to bless the united states of america. >> woodruff: florida republican senator marco rubio delivering his party's response to president obama's state of the union address. taking issue with virtually every point the president made tonight, particularly on the economy, particularly on a solution to deal with the deficit and the debt. and even on issues like immigration and particularly on gun control saying, yes, we need to do something to address gun violence but not in a way that threatens americans second amendment right, of course,

being the second amendment for the constitution. david brooks, marco rubio, a rising star in the republican party? did he live up to his billing tonight? >> he ishe rising star. he's the only hope some people say. he'd say he is the most impressive of the young people to be running for the nomination and already is running from what we saw in the last ten minutes. i thought he delivered it as effectively as you can these things. i i liked the lane if you're for keeping medicare the way it is you're in favor of bankrupting. on substance i was disappointed by the speech. republican party has lost five out of the last six elections. probably should have a new ssage. they're doing a locality of rethinking but none of it was evident in this speech. he ended with maybe the single mom looking into her child's eyes. what are you offering her? you don't have to believe in big government to think there must be some positive thing that could help that young woman and

her kid achieve social mobility. if your whole story is economic liberty you're not offering much. i didn't see much rethinking in this speech given by any republican in the last 20 years >> woodruff: what did you hear mark? >> i think david hit it right on the nose. i really do. he's a great message just a very mediocre message. there really wasn't anything to it. you can understand why... this is probably the most startling development for republicans out of 2012 was that hispanic vote or an increasing percentage of the electorate and an increasing percentage of them are voting democratic. here's the statistic why marco rubio is the hottest property. only 36% of mexican-born immigrants to america who are eligible for citizenship have applied for citizenship. that abut half of most immigrants who come to this country. if they were ever energized the republicans are just, i mean... >> woodruff: they vote democratic >> yes. a similar percentage of those

who are already voting. so i mean the urgency they need for a messenger with marco rubio's personal story, he's bilingual, his personal history is understandable but i just didn't get... there was not a mean speech. democrats love america. republicans love america. it was not mean toward the president i didn't think. but it was just boilerplate: it didn't upset anybody in the tea party i don't think >> woodruff: he attacked the president for talking growing government much bigger government and being in favor of government programs but it seemed to me that president obama went out of his way to say that that's not what he wanted to do. he did list programs. .. >> judy, he had a wish list. the president did. that was kind of startling. it made harry truman look like a piper just pushing medicare and the marshal plan. i mean he had a lot of lists the

president did >> woodruff: okay. we won't debate it here but i mean he wasn't talking about creating a new government agency. he was saying we need to do something to get colleges to reduce their tuition. what did he say a college scorecard? >> well, if we're going to consider giving a scorecard to colleges i would say that's an expansion of federal power. i do think the president wants to expand federal power. the trick for republicans to say we don't want to go as far as they do. they have a lot more faith in central planning than we do. nonetheless we do understand that the rising tide in longer lifts all boats. we can see the statistics as much as anybody else. middle class people are not seeing their wages go up. somehow there's a market failure there. we don't want to go all the way over into barack obama land. we do want to do this. here's our positive agenda. where was the positive agenda here? >> does anybody seriously believe that you can do this with just cuts? thoughtful people understand it's going to require tax increases as well as spending cuts.

to bring a solvency back to this country. to bring a fiscal sanity. senator rubio just preferred to just talk about these cuts. these painless ouchle cuts that, you know, we don't know where they're coming from and nobody will be hurt. economic liberty is a marvelous marvelous concept. deregulation, you know, nobody wants that, you know, flying a new plane where the batteries are in trouble. you want to know what the federal government is going to do about it >> in a lot of the republican speeches in the last month or two there has been some rethinking. this guy is running for president. his agenda is how do i make republican primary voters in ohio happy with me with this speech. he's playing to that crowd rather than the people who are doing the rethinking. if we have something doing the republican response who was not a resumed candidate maybe we would have heard something different >> woodruff: if you were an american out there watching the president tonight and maybe you stuck around and you heard

senator rubio, do you think that things are going to get done in washington? they're going to change your life? i mean, you're right, mark, the president did tick off a number of initiatives... >> global locations. i mean that is earmark city. >> woodruff: my question is, okay, so if he hadn't done that, if he had just come and talked about the fight he's having with the republicans over what to do about the deficit, he could have spoken for 10 or 15 minutes and said thank you very much >> i thought the president was upbeat tonight. i really did. i thought he was. we talked about the lack of energy in the hall but i thought he was upbeat. i thought he gave positive news and good developments. when he did return to the 70,000 bridges that we know have to be repaired and we all understand that and the ports, i mean, there was a lot in terms of economic sort of ambition to it.

so i think that the president gave, to me, what was sort of a tradition conventional message and the highlight came back to his moment on gun control. i don't know if that's what they want. if that is going to be remembered. intensive on the part of the obama people that they thaw, judy, he had talked too much about human rights and sort of liberal agenda, social rights at the inaugural. this was going to be meat and potatoes >> woodruff: let's listen to a part of what the president said at the end when he talked about the victims of gun violence. here's what he said. >> one of those we lost was a young girl named ideah pendleton. she was 15 years old. she love love newtons.

she was a majorette. she was so good to her friends they all thought they were her best friend. just three weeks ago she was here in washington with her classmates performing for her country at my inauguration. and a week later, she was shot and killed in a chicago park after school just a mile away from my house. her parents, nate and chleo are in this chamber tonight along with more than two dozen americans whose lives have been torn apart by gun violence. they deserve a vote. ( applause ) they deserve a vote. they deserve a vote.

gabby giffords deserves a vote. ( applause ) the families of newtown deserve a vote. the families of aurora deserve a vote. the families of tucson and blacks burg and the countless other communities ripped open by gun violence, they deserve a mple vote. >> woodruff: david brooks, you can see why the president decided to put that at the end of the speech. that was clearly the high point >> it was beautifully delivered moment but the composure of the pendletons is sort sort of what made that... their ability to say, you know, to really be about the issue to stand up and give that applause, to keep it together, to see gabby giffords unable to clap. you know, that adds power. >> woodruff: coming off this, mark, we don't know what is

going to happen with gun control legislation. most people think assault weapons ban will not happen. maybe a background check >> the chances improve tonight. it got a lift, judy. i really do. i think there was a sense in this city tonight that it's possible. and that there's a human face to this right now that newtown has given it, the pendletons have given it. i think that it gives it a new urgency >> woodruff: that crosses party lines. you saw both republicans and democrats >> speaker boehner stood and applauded. to the give us a vote. >> woodruff: thank you both, mark sheedle and david brooks for being with us on this special state of the union night. with that we end our coverage of the president's state of the union address. we will be back at our regular time tomorrow for the newshour. don't forget you can still join our google-plus hangout hosted by news political editor

christina bellantoni on the web. you can watch all of tonight's speeches on our you-tube site. i'm judy wood rough. on behalf of all of us at the newshour, thank you for joining us and good night. ♪ ♪ moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy, productive life.

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