WASHINGTON,Jan26,2012: Against the backdrop of a re-election bid this year, US president Barack
Obama made a commitment to maintaining America's primacy in the world, warning China and Iran against confrontation, railing against
US companies outsourcing jobs, and promising greater economic equality at home. In an extended 70-minute State of the Union address, more like a campaign opener, Obama also implicitly outlined the difference between himself and Mitt Romney, his likely opponent in the presidential elections, by proposing a tax reforms that will levy higher taxes on the wealthy. "If you make more than $1 million a year, you should not pay less than 30% in taxes," Obama said, calling his proposal the Buffett Rule after the world's wealthiest man, Warren Buffett, who revealed he was paying less tax than his secretary under the current tax code, and who has pushed for reform. "Now, call this class warfare if you want, but asking a billionaire to pay at least as much taxes as his secretary would be common sense." The remarks were also a jibe at his Republican opponents, some of whom have accused him of instigating the poor and initiating a class war. Although, Obama did not take Romney's name, the oblique reference was unmistakable. While much of his address was directed at mollifying a restive American electorate chafing at economic hardship, Obama also made a strong case of a resurgent America which would not cede its leadership role in the world. "America is back," the US president thundered, reeling off achievements on the foreign policy front that included eliminating Osama bin Laden in the past year. "Anyone who tells you otherwise, anyone who tells you that America is in decline or that our influence has waned, doesn't know what they're talking about." In an implicit challenge to China, Obama presented US as a Pacific power and maintained that the "renewal of American leadership can be felt across the globe". America is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon and challenge China and other competitors if they don't play by fair trade rules, he pledged. He promised to "safeguard America's own security against those who threaten our citizens, our friends, and our interests," boasting that "from Pakistan to Yemen, the al-Qaida operatives who remain are scrambling, knowing that they can't escape the reach of US". But it was his rant against outsourcing of jobs that would be most striking to Indian industry, although much of it was aimed at US tax code that punished companies that chose to stay at home with high taxes. "It is time to stop rewarding businesses that ship jobs overseas, and start rewarding those that create jobs right here in America," Obama said, asking lawmakers to send him tax reforms and pledging huge tax breaks to US manufacturers who kept jobs at home or brought them back from abroad. Obama also urged Congress to process immigration reform that would keep foreign students in US instead of sending them back to their home countries to start businesses and create jobs that America needed.
