President Barack Obama urges Congress to tackle tough issues

“The American people don't expect government to solve every problem,” the president said in his fourth State of the Union speech before a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol.

“They don't expect those of us in this chamber to agree on every issue. But they do expect us to put the nation's interests before party. They do expect us to forge reasonable compromise where we can.”

Education, pay

A few weeks into his second term, the president laid out some new initiatives, including a proposal to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $9 an hour. With Oklahoma City prekindergarten teacher Susan Bumgarner sitting in the first lady's box, Obama called for high-quality early education in schools across the country.

“In states that make it a priority to educate our youngest children, like Georgia or Oklahoma, studies show students grow up more likely to read and do math at grade level, graduate high school, hold a job and form more stable families of their own,” the president said.

Gun control

With a first-grade teacher from Newtown, Conn., in the chamber, along with the parents of a recently slain Chicago girl, the president made an emotional pitch for lawmakers to consider proposals to expand background checks for gun purchases and ban certain semi-automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines.

“Each of these proposals deserves a vote in Congress,” the president said.

“If you want to vote no, that's your choice. But these proposals deserve a vote. Because in the two months since Newtown, more than a thousand birthdays, graduations and anniversaries have been stolen from our lives by a bullet from a gun.”

Spending

The president began his speech with a plea to head off the federal spending cuts set to be triggered in two weeks. Part of the 2011 debt ceiling deal, the $1.2 trillion in cuts — spread out over 10 years — would hit almost every federal department and agency, with about half of the reductions borne by the military.

Pentagon leaders warned Tuesday that 800,000 civilian workers may have to be furloughed if the cuts take effect. Studies have shown the cuts would have damaging ripple effects throughout the economy.