President Obama delivered his last State of the Union address on January 12, 2016, focusing more on broader concepts for the nation and less on the typical list of legislative priorities that will be difficult to enact given the limitations of the President's last year in office and an election year.

"I'll keep pushing for progress on the work that still needs doing. Fixing a broken immigration system. Protecting our kids from gun violence. Equal pay for equal work, paid leave, raising the minimum wage. All these things still matter to hardworking families; they are still the right thing to do; and I will not let up until they get done," the President said. "But for my final address to this chamber, I don't want to talk just about the next year. I want to focus on the next five years, ten years, and beyond. I want to focus on our future."

Among the issues addressed in the speech were giving "everyone a fair shot at opportunity and security in this new economy" and making "technology work for us, and not against us — especially when it comes to solving urgent challenges like climate change."

President Obama touted the successes of the current economy but noted the challenges of the fact that "companies in a global economy can locate anywhere, and face tougher competition." He listed as areas in which Americans should broadly agree making college affordable, strengthening Social Security and Medicare, improving economic security, and expanding tax cuts for low-income workers without kids. He said the American people have a choice to make in areas where it's been more difficult to find agreement, including whether the system should favor the wealthiest and biggest corporations.

"In this new economy, workers and start-ups and small businesses need more of a voice, not less. The rules should work for them," the President said. "And this year I plan to lift up the many businesses who've figured out that doing right by their workers ends up being good for their shareholders, their customers, and their communities, so that we can spread those best practices across America."

He also said "medical research is critical," as is the "same level of commitment when it comes to developing clean energy sources." The President noted the successes of past investments in clean energy, including that "solar is saving Americans tens of millions of dollars a year on their energy bills, and employs more Americans than coal."

The President said the nation needs to: "accelerate the transition away from dirty energy. Rather than subsidize the past, we should invest in the future — especially in communities that rely on fossil fuels. That's why I'm going to push to change the way we manage our oil and coal resources, so that they better reflect the costs they impose on taxpayers and our planet."

He described the benefits of the Trans-Pacific Partnership — in opening markets, protecting workers and the environment, and advancing American leadership in Asia — and called on Congress to approve the agreement and "give us the tools to enforce it."

More broadly, the President said the future we want will only happen if we work together; have rational, constructive debates; and "fix our politics," which "doesn't mean we have to agree on everything." He said, "It's one of the few regrets of my presidency — that the rancor and suspicion between the parties has gotten worse instead of better."

Text of the President's remarks as prepared are attached.

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