In Weekly Address, President Obama Summons the American Spirit

In celebration of the Fourth, President Obama used his weekly address to speak about patriotism and the power of the American spirit. President Obama explained that throughout history, each generation of Americans has faced its own set of unique challenges. But just as each generation faced tough times, each generation found the strength to overcome them by believing that, in America, anything is possible. It is this sense of pride in America and in our fellow Americans that President Obama asks us to bring back as we confront our contemporary challenges.

Our list is long and continues to grow everyday:

We are facing an array of challenges on a scale unseen in our time. We are waging two wars. We are battling a deep recession. And our economy – and our nation itself – are endangered by festering problems we have kicked down the road for far too long: spiraling health care costs; inadequate schools; and a dependence on foreign oil.

The length and nature of this list explains the need to act now. We can't wait and we can't listen to the naysayers who defend the status quo. To those people, our ever-eloquent POTUS had this to say:

These naysayers have short memories. They forget that we, as a people, did not get here by standing pat in a time of change. We did not get here by doing what was easy. That is not how a cluster of 13 colonies became the United States of America.

On this distinctly American holiday, I hope you'll join me in doing what President Obama asked by celebrating not only the birth of our nation but also what it means to be an American.

You can read the full text of the transcript or check out the full video address below.