I just listened to Obama's student speech. What's the problem?

Absolutely nothing. The only reason it was controversial was because those on the far right wing were looking for anything to bash Obama, even if it meant speaking to kids about staying in school. His speech was very good, inspiring, looking at the big picture while putting personal experiences in it to show that he is living proof of what education can do.

The fact that there was outrage is utterly ubsurd. Many presidents including Reagan and the first Bush did it. The students are taught by government paid teachers, with government issued lesson plans...but when the President of the US wants to talk to them for 5 minutes it is cause for protest and outrage. Politics some makes people lose common sense.

And there was investigation into the COST of Bush's speech, not the contents. Why did a speech cost tens of thousands of dollars? Obama's cost nothing. travel fare.

eelfins- There is zero evidence that the speech was changed. Once there was an issue with it they released the text. People act like if they didn't protest the speech it would have brainwashed their children with communist propaganda. They did have an optional lesson plan to go with it that had like 20 questions. (even though after the speech they went to another gov circulum) One of these was "what can I do to help the president", not "serve" the president. And in 1991 George H. W. Bush gave a speech to children (which he didn't have to release the text or have outraged parents) and in it he asked the student to write letters to the president telling him how they can help him. Same thing. No outrage. I don't get it.

I loved it he is a very inspirational speaker and the kids responded to him..I think he is doing a wonderful Job being hands on and showing that he cares about the people as a whole and our future!

yea the kids wanted to hear the speech but the school is ran by morons

Rochester -- Linda Key's ninth-grader was hoping to see President Barack Obama's address to America's schoolchildren today.

Instead, her son, Graham, 14, is expecting a lesson in disappointment on his first day at Stoney Creek High School this year because the Rochester school doesn't plan on showing it to him or his classmates.

"He really wanted to hear it," said Key, 50, of Rochester Hills who also has a fifth-grader in the district. Rochester Community Schools and at least five others in Metro Detroit are opting against showing the broadcast, adding to a firestorm of controversy nationwide about the message.

People are stupid, that's the problem. And yes, I mean stupid. Ignorant is fixable, but stupid is forever, and some of these people's skulls are so thick that I just don't think it is fixable.

The people crapping their pants over this speech are the same ones who are in denial saying we don't need vast health care overhaul. They are the same people under the impression that it is still 1950 and America is on top. Unfortunately, they haven't examined the recent numbers. America is at the bottom of the list for industrialized countries in most of the categories that matter.

The sooner these stupid people let the smarter people run things, the better off we will be as a nation.

I'm sure the dem's would have kept their mouth shut also, You think.

President George H.W. Bush delivered a similar speech in October 1991 to students at a junior high school in Washington, D.C., Democratic critics went much further and investigated the event, Washington Examiner columnist Byron York reported Tuesday.

Democrats, who controlled Congress at the time, ordered the General Accounting Office to probe the production of the speech and later summoned top Bush administration officials to Capitol Hill for a hearing, York wrote.

The Bush speech at Alice Deal Junior High School cost $26,750 -- an expenditure paid by the Department of Education -- and drew fire from Rep. William Ford, then chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, who ordered the probe.

"As the chairman of the committee charged with the authorization and implementation of education programs, I am very much interested in the justification, rationale for giving the White House scarce education funds to produce a media event."

The GAO found no wrongdoing on the part of the Bush administration

But after Bush spoke, The Washington Post implied in a front-page story that the speech was staged for the president's political benefit, and Democratic allies continued to pounce on Bush for the cost of the event.

Also don't forget that when (9-11) happened you made a big deal out of the fact that George Jr. was in a class room full of school kids reading to them at the time the planes hit the towers.

Life as a two headed coin.

You want your way only!

Here is a link so you can hear both of them for yourselfs.

No problem at all. From the reaction by kids that I have seen on TV, they seem truly inspired. Which of course if you are a Republican is a bad thing. They are scared. They realize that every 15 year old will be able to vote in 2012. For some reason I can't picture those 18 year olds standing in line for hours waiting to vote for Mitt Romney.

I got it on PDF and there's nothing special about it - it could be a lecture by any President to schoolkids to work hard and DYB. Every President in recent history has done that.

BIG difference. It was NEVER about what the kids could do for him! They never questioned these very famous words from a very famous Democrat .

"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what can you do for your country".

That shows you what their paranoia is all about. Obama, period !

Who had a problem with it? I'm not sure what you're talking about.

Sorry I dont watch TV. Maybe you can link to someone not approving of his speech. I'm not saying you're lying either just that sources would be better.

People on the far right hate him so much that they are against everything he does.

Well, you know how some people really, really hate things like evolution, global warming and Harry Potter?