Politics & Government

President's Speech to Camp Pendleton Troops to be Streamed Live

The president will speak with Marines and sailors on Camp Pendleton Wednesday afternoon.

President Barack Obama will conclude a two-day West Coast swing today by visiting troops and their families at Camp Pendleton to thank them for their service to the nation.

The speech will be streamed live shortly before 1 p.m. Wednesday on DVIDS

Obama will arrive at the Marine Corps base in northern San Diego County from the Los Angeles area after fielding online questions from homeowners, renters and prospective buyers in a virtual housing roundtable discussion.

Find out what's happening in Oceanside-Camp Pendletonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Obama began the trip Tuesday in Arizona where he toured a construction company and delivered a speech at a Phoenix high school, calling for sweeping housing reforms, including the elimination of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. He then flew to Los Angeles aboard Air Force One to appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," where he attempted to win Republican congressional support for increased spending on infrastructure.

"For the last three years I've said let's work together," Obama said. "Let's find a financing mechanism and let's go ahead and fix our bridges, fix our roads, sewer systems, our ports."

Find out what's happening in Oceanside-Camp Pendletonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Obama cited the widening of the Panama Canal  to accommodate supertankers, set to be completed in 2015, as one reason to support increased spending on domestic infrastructure.

"If we don't deepen our ports all along the Gulf (of Mexico) -- places like Charleston, S.C., Savannah, Ga. or Jacksonville, Fla. -- ... those ships are going to go somewhere else. We'll lose jobs. Businesses won't locate here."

Obama also criticized a new law in Russia banning "propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations."

"I have no patience for countries that try to treat gays and lesbians and transgender persons in ways that intimidate them or are harmful to them," Obama said.

"What's happening in Russia is not unique. When I traveled to Africa, there were some countries that are doing a lot of good things for their people, who are working with them and helping them on development issues, but in some cases they persecute gays and lesbians and it makes for some uncomfortable press conferences sometimes.

"But one of the things I think is very important for me to speak out on is making sure that people are treated fairly and justly because that's what we stand for."

Obama said he did not think the law would impact next year's Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

"I think (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and Russia have a big stake in making sure that the Olympics work and I think that they understand that for most of the counties that participate in the Olympics, we wouldn't tolerate gays and lesbians being treated differently. They are athletes. They are there to compete.

"If Russia wants to uphold the Olympic spirit, then every judgment should be made on the track, or swimming pool or on the balance beam and people's sexual orientation shouldn't have anything to do with it."

Asked if he was surprised that Putin's government had given NSA leaker temporary asylum, the president responded in relatively muted terms that suggested the issue might not become a major bone of contention in the long term in U-S-Russian relations.

"I was disappointed," he said, adding that American authorities try to work with the Russians on issues involving globe-trotting lawbreakers despite the absence of an extradition treaty. "They didn't do that with us, and in some ways it's reflective of some underlying challenges that we've had with Russia lately."

Obama said, however, that the Russians remain helpful on some issues, including counter-terrorism and supplying U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

In a wide-ranging interview, Obama also fielded questions on topics including government surveillance and the safety of vacationing abroad. He acknowledged government surveillance programs have "raised a lot of questions for people," but are a "critical component to counterterrorism."

"We don't have a domestic spying program," Obama said. "What we do have is some mechanisms that can track a phone number or an email address that is connected to some sort of terrorist threat. That information is useful."

The State Department issued a travel alert Friday that is set to expire Aug. 31, reminding U.S. citizens of the potential for terrorist attacks, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa.

"The general rule is just show some common sense and some caution," Obama said. "If people are paying attention, checking with the State Department or embassy, going on the website before you travel and find out what kind of precautions you should be taking, then I think it still makes sense for people to take vacations. They just have to make sure that they are doing so in a prudent way."

The "Tonight Show" appearance was Obama's fourth as president. He is the only sitting president to have appeared on the NBC late-night talk show, which premiered in 1954.

—City News Service. Patch editor Daniel Woolfolk contributed to the report. 


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