Remarks by the President at the Export-Import Bank’s Annual Conference

April 30th, 2010

On March 11, 2010 EXIM City State Partners Larry Stewart and George Rex attended the Export-Import Bank’s Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. Below are some excerpts from President Obama’s full speech.

For more information on Wyoming’s export assistance program view our Export-Import Bank section or contact George Rex or Larry Stewart.

Now, in my State of the Union address I set a goal of doubling America’s exports over the next five years – an increase that will support 2 million American jobs. And I’ve come to the Export-Import Bank Conference today to discuss the initial steps that we’re taking to achieve that goal.

We remain the number one exporter of goods and services in the world. So we’ve got a terrific foundation to build on. But we can’t be satisfied with being number one right now. We shouldn’t assume that our leadership is guaranteed. When other markets are growing, and other nations are competing, we’ve got to get even better. We need to secure our companies a level playing field. We need to guarantee American workers a fair shake. In other words, we need to up our game.

And that’s why, for the first time, the United States of America is launching a single, comprehensive strategy to promote American exports. It’s called the National Export Initiative, and it’s an ambitious effort to marshal the full resources of the United States government behind American businesses that sell their goods and services abroad.

Let me talk a little bit about what the National Export Initiative will do. First, we will substantially increase access to trade financing for businesses that want to export their goods but just need a boost –- especially small businesses and medium-sized businesses. Some of the biggest factors limiting a firm’s decisions to export are the high upfront costs of establishing a foothold in a new market, and the ability of the customers in that market to finance the purchase of their products.

Many businesses want to export their products but just don’t have the resources required to identify new markets or set up shop overseas. And that’s where we can help. We’ll bring together the Ex-Im Bank, the SBA, the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture, and the Trade Development Agency to set up one-stop shops across the country and in our 250 embassies and consulates abroad, to help American businesses gain a foothold in the fastest-growing markets with the most demand. And we’ll provide a comprehensive toolkit of services – from financing to counseling to promotion – to help potential exporters grow and expand.

We’ll create public-private partnerships to help firms break into new markets with the help of those who have been there – shipping and supply-chain companies, for example. And we’ll increase funding for existing promotion efforts. We’ll increase funding for the International Trade Administration at the Department of Commerce, and strengthen the USDA’s ability to connect farmers with new overseas markets. So we’re going to increase financing, advocacy, and assistance for American businesses to locate, set up shop, and win new markets. Those are the first three aims of the National Export Initiative.

This is a difficult time for our country. And in times like these, questions have always arisen about whether or not America’s best days are behind us. That’s standard fare. It happens every so often. There have always been naysayers and skeptics. There were always those who’ve waxed fatalistic, fearing that we lacked the capacity to adapt, to succeed – at times even to survive – in a changing world.

But what makes America great, what continues to make America the envy of our competitors, what makes this a place where people come not just to invest but to start lives and businesses and families, is something that has been inexorable and enduring, especially in times of great challenge and great change. It’s that spirit of adventurousness and entrepreneurship that has for generations turned wild-eyed tinkerers into world-changing entrepreneurs; that led us westward and skyward; that led to roads and railways cutting through wilderness, and ships and planes and fiber optic lines carrying American goods and services around the world. It’s the spirit that has advanced America’s leadership in the world and held aloft the American Dream for generations. And it is, ultimately, that spirit that’s given us the tools and the toughness to overcome every obstacle and adapt to every circumstance – and today is no different.

It hasn’t always been easy. Our success is by no means guaranteed. But if we summon a sense of national purpose equal to the seriousness of these times; if we combine our creativity, our innovation, and our eternal optimism; if we come together in common cause as we have so many times before – we will succeed. We will define our destiny once again. And we will make this century another American Century – with your help.

Thank you very much, everybody. God bless you. God bless the United States of America.

– President Obama

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Learn more about the Export-Import Bank.