Transcript for President Obama’s Full Speech at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner

Criticized for his caution is now doing things his own ways. Find Gil in China he's issued immigration ordered we'll see how far you can take. Everybody. Welcome to the White House correspondents dinner. The night when Washington. Celebrates itself. Somebody's got to do it. And welcome to the fourth quarter of my presidency. It's true line. I was Michelle pure and. Fact is I film more loose and relaxed than ever. Those. Joseph Biden shoulder massages there like magic. Mutual. Or you have. I am determined to make. The most. Every moment have left. After the midterm elections my advice left me Mr. President do you have a bucket list. And I said well. I have something there lions would bucket list. Take executive action on immigration. But it. This moment let's. But that. My new added. But in my Cuba policy. The Castro Brothers are here tonight. The fulfill. Well it. If the capsule from Texas. All. Iowa cream. I drew him. Anyway. Big president is never easy and I still have to fix a broken immigration system. Issue veto threats negotiate with the Ron. All while finding time to pray five times and wonder the people keep. Pointing out how the president CN paged me. Alex old John Boehner Carter invited many doubters figured my funeral. Meanwhile Michelle has amazed today. After order secretive she just says. Fresh fruits and vegetables. It's aggravated. Effective though at this point my legacy is finally beginning to take shape. Their economy is getting better. Mind that in ten Americans now have health coverage. War. Kill you no longer have to worry about losing your insurance if you lose your job. You're welcome senate Democrats. Not look it is through I have not managed to make everybody happy. Six years and in my presence through some people still say I'm arrogant. And aloof. Condescending. Some people are sold down. I mean wouldn't. And that's not all people say about. A few weeks ago Dick Cheney says he thinks I'm the worst president of his lifetime. Which is uninteresting because I think Dick Cheney is the worst president in my lifetime. What it went through months. Never was got somebody say these days. Mike Huckabee recently said people shouldn't join our military until a true conservative is elected president. Think about that. It was so outrageous 47 Ayatollah wrote us a letter. Trying to explain. The Huckabee how our system works. It gets worse. Does this week Michelle Bachmann. Action. Actually predicted. That I would bring about the biblical and debates and. Now that's a legacy. A man Lincoln Washington and let them do that. Okay. But you know I just have to put this other side I'm gonna stay focused on my job. Because for many Americans this is still time of deep uncertainty. For example I've one friend just a few weeks ago. She was making millions of dollars a year and she's now living out of a van in Iowa. Meanwhile. Back here our nation's capital we're always dealing with a new challenge us and I'm happy to report that. The Secret Service thanks to some excellent reporting by White House correspondents their really. Focusing on some of issues that come up and they finally figured out a full proof way to keep people off my long. It works. As not just fence jumpers. Some you know a few months ago drone crash landed. Out back that was pretty serious but don't worry. We've installed a new state of the art security system. You know what. Let me so the record straight you know I teased Joseph sometimes but he has been at my side. For seven years I love that man. He's not go to great vice president he has a great friend. We've done so close in some places and Indiana they want service beats anymore. I want to thank our host. For the men. Chicago girl they're incredibly talented. Syphilis around. Bomb Saturday Night Live Sicily in person makes CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin. Which is surprising because usually the only people impersonating journalists on CNN. Are journalists on CNN. ABC is there was some of the stars from their big new comedy black ash. As a great show but to give ABC fair warning. Being black issue only makes you popular for so long for us. There's a shelf life development. As all of us. The reporters here have a lot to cover over the last year here on the East Coast. One big story with the brutal winter. The polar vortex because so my record lows they renamed it. MSNBC. But of course. Let's face it there is one issue on every reporter's mind matters points sixteen. Already we've seen some missteps. Turns out Jeb Bush identified himself as Hispanic back in 2009. Which annoy look I understand there's an it was a mistake. Reminds me of when I identified myself as American back and 1961. Ted Cruz said the denying the existence of climate change. Made him like Galileo. That's not really an apt. Comparison. Galileo believed the earth revolves around the sun. Ted Cruz believes the earth revolves around Ted proves. I and Mandelson must not only point out when a guy. Who had this based on a hope pollster calls you self centered. You know you've got a problem. Martin from the men veterans. Creeping up all through high. Meanwhile Rick Santorum announced that he would not at ten the same sex wedding of a friend or a loved one. George gays and lesbians across the country responded that's not going to be a problem. Don't what them. And Donald Trump is it. Still. Anyway. But the man how time flies. Soon the first presidential contest will take place. An odd or one cannot wait to see who are called Brothers peck. The decline in. Marco Rubio Rand Paul that crews Jeb Bush Scott Walker. Who will finally get that red robes. The winner gets a billion dollar war chest. The runner up gets to be. The bachelor on the ninth season of the bachelor. Been through this like a billion dollars. From death to. It's just me or does that feel a little excessive. Ms. almost insulting to recant the next. Both the typical brother think they need to spend a billion dollars to get folks to white one of these people. Gotta hurt their feelings a little bit. And look I'm ivory is lot of money to but. An offense my middle name is Hussein. The trail from the navy for my fellow Democrats either. As we all know Hillary's brother emails Goddard trouble. Frankly I thought it was going to be your private instead Graham account that was gonna cause a bigger problems. Hillary things off by going completely unrecognized. And a triple what. Not to be outdone. Martin O'Malley kicked things off by going completely and recognize that it Martin O'Malley campaign about. And Bernie Sanders might right. I like Vernon birds there's been apparently some folks really wants a pot smoking socialist in the White House. We could get a third Obama term after all. And we're as always are close on more serious note. And I often joke about tensions between me in the press but. Honestly what they say doesn't bother me I understand we've gotten adversarial system. On the mellow sort of guy. And that's why I invited. Luther my anger translator. American life. Paul Collins who you admit it why blacks. In our fast changing world traditions like the White House correspondents dinner are important. Us. Because despite our differences we count on the press to shed light on the most important issues of the day. I'm. They have my whole life it was. I. We want only. There is closed little wall while he bona club. The bush yeah. Always. A step. Ahead. What you'd have noticed. Well. But I felt it clears. Appreciate the work that you do. All. Mexican. Cop. It's all good free know what that woman. That nineteen. What what what that's what it looked an ultimatum. Protecting our democracy. Is more important than ever. For example Supreme Court ruled that the donor who gave Ted Cruz six million dollars was just exercising free speech this. As the kind of speech like this I just waste is six million dollars. Republicans. Hillary will have to raise huge sums of money to Lowell you. So you don't get that money. We don't get and I did. Please see and talk and told west morale. Nonstop focus on billionaire donors creates real problems for our democracy. Whitman oh. But we do need to stay focused on some big challenges like climate thing. I've got and jump and it and Iraq. That's what happened back me up and Ned. Bradley who. Does he wants the point that's not. Oh. The fact is we're nine. Out of the ten hottest years ever came in the last decade. And has a new Norma targeted. Rodman scenes. More violent storms got loose. Don't sweat it people on the train spanking and out. Is didn't ask him. I meant what little what. Look at what's happening right now. Every serious scientist says we need to. The Pentagon says it's a national security rips. Miami was on a sunny day at. Instead of doing everything about it we got elected official points not but that's not okay but it's. Got a bright is quietly. What about our trick what kind of stupid short sighted airlift bond above all. A good. Out all the respect. You'll need an Internet but. Unique. I'm a lot of him. Try to get an audit. A trip later. Now that I got that off my chest. You know investigative journalism. Explanatory. Journalism. Journalism that exposed corruption. And injustice. Gives voice to the different and the marginalized. The voiceless. That's power. It's a privilege. It says important to America's trajectory. To our values our ideals than anything we could do in elected office. We remember journalist we lost over the past year. Journalists like Steve and saw Lofton James Foley. Murdered for nothing more than trying to shine a light in the some of the world's darkest corners. The journalists unjustly imprisoned around the world including. Our own Jason. Brazen. Jason has been imprisoned and Tehran heard nothing more than writing about the hopes and fears of Iran in people. Hearing their stories to the readers the Washington Post an effort to bridge our common humanity. As was already mentioned Jason's brother Ali is here tonight and I have told him personally we will not rest until we bring him home. Whose family six. He's journalists and so many others do their work as more than just a profession. But as a public good. An indispensable pillar of our society. Are given the toast of or is a glass. To them and all of you. The words of the American foreign correspondent north of Toms. It is not the fact of liberty. But the way in which liberty is exercise that ultimately determines. Whether liberty itself survivors. Thank you for your devotion exercising our liberty and the telling our American sort god bless you. God bless the United States of America.

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