[applause]

It is great to be back in California.

It is great to be with all of you.

I love San Francisco.

[applause]

You got great food.

You got great people, beautiful scenery --

no more super villains because Batkid cleaned up the streets.

[applause]

Love Batkid.

[laughter]

I want to start by thanking Geetha for the wonderful

introduction and the great work that she's doing.

Give her a big round of applause.

[applause]

I want to thank your Mayor, Ed Lee.

[applause]

Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom.

[applause]

I want to recognize some wonderful members of Congress

who are fighting every day for the people of California --

Mike Honda, Eric Swalwell, Judy Chu.

They are all doing great work every single day.

[applause]

We have a special guest, Janet Napolitano,

who is now overseeing the entire UC system

and going to be doing a great job.

[applause]

We miss her back in Washington,

but she is going to be outstanding leading

the University of California.

Now, before I begin, I want to say a few words

about the news from the weekend.

I'm here to talk about immigration reform,

but I'm also here in my capacity as Commander-in-Chief,

and this weekend, together with our allies and our partners,

the United States reached an agreement with Iran --

[applause]

-- on a first step towards resolving our concerns

over its nuclear program.

Now, some of you may recall that when I first ran for President,

I said it was time for a new era of American leadership

in the world -- one that turned the page on a decade of war,

and began a new era of our engagement with the world.

And as President and as Commander-in-Chief,

I've done what I said.

We ended the war in Iraq; we brought our troops home.

Osama bin Laden met justice;

the war in Afghanistan will end next year.

And as the strongest, most powerful nation

on the face of the Earth,

we've engaged in clear-eyed and principled diplomacy --

even with our adversaries --

in order to begin to destroy Syria's chemical weapons

and to place the first real constraints in a decade

on Iran's nuclear program.

Because I firmly believe in what President Kennedy once said:

He said, "Let us never negotiate out of fear,

but let us never fear to negotiate."

I believe that.

And this diplomacy, backed by the unprecedented sanctions

we brought on Iran, has brought us the progress

that was achieved this weekend.

For the first time in a decade, we've halted the progress

on Iran's nuclear program.

Key parts of the program will be rolled back.

[applause]

International inspectors will have unprecedented access

to Iran's nuclear-related facilities.

So this will help Iran from building a nuclear weapon.

And over the coming months, we're going to continue our

diplomacy, with the goal of achieving a comprehensive

solution that deals with the threat of Iran's nuclear program

once and for all.

And if Iran seizes this opportunity and chooses

to join the global community, then we can begin to chip away

at the mistrust that's existed for many,

many years between our two nations.

None of that is going to be easy.

Huge challenges remain.

But we cannot close the door on diplomacy.

And we cannot rule out peaceful solutions

to the world's problems.

We cannot commit ourselves to an endless cycle of conflict.

And tough talk and bluster may be the easy thing to do

politically, but it's not the right thing for our security.

It is not the right thing for our security.

[applause]

Now, this progress, and the potential it offers,

reminds us of what is possible when the United States

has the courage to lead -- not just with the force of arms,

but with the strength of our diplomacy

and our commitment to peace.

That's what keeps us strong.

That's what makes us a beacon to the world.

That's how I'll continue to lead so long as I'm President

of the United States.

And that spirit --

not just what we can criticize or tear down or be against,

but what we can build together --

that's what brings me here today.

Because it's long past time

to fix our broken immigration system.

[applause]

We need to make sure Washington finishes

what so many Americans just like you started.

We've got to finish the job.

And it's fitting that we're here in Chinatown,

just a few miles away from Angel Island.

In the early 1900s, about 300,000 people --

maybe some of your ancestors --

passed through on their way to a new life in America.

And for many, it represented

the end of a long and arduous journey --

they'd finally arrived in a place where they believed

anything was possible.

And for some, it also represented the beginning

of a new struggle against prejudice in a country

that didn't always treat its immigrants fairly or afford them

the same rights as everybody else.

Obviously, Asians faced this, but so did the Irish;

so did Italians; so did Jews; and many groups still do today.

That didn't stop those brave men and women from coming.

They were drawn by a belief in the power of opportunity;

in a belief that says, maybe I never had a chance

at a good education, but this is a place

where my daughter can go to college.

Maybe I started out washing dishes,

but this is a place where my son can become

mayor of San Francisco.

[applause]

Maybe I have to make sacrifices today,

but those sacrifices are worth it if it means

a better life for my family.

And that's a family story that will be shared by millions

of Americans around the table on Thursday.

It's the story that drew

my gre at-great-great-great-grandfather

from a small village in Ireland,

and drew my father from a small village in Kenya.

It's the story that drew so many of your ancestors here --

that America is a place where you can make it if you try.

And here's something interesting: Today,

more than one in four residents born outside the United States

came here from Asian countries --

many through our family immigration system.

They're doctors and business owners, laborers, refugees.

This rec center's namesake, Betty Ong, was a hero on 9/11.

[applause]

But she was also the daughter of immigrants who grew up

not far from here.

And we're honored to have her family with us here today.

[applause]

But too often when we talk about immigration,

the debate focuses on our southern border.

The fact is we're blessed with immigrants

from all over the world who've put down roots

in every corner of this country.

Here in San Francisco, 35 percent of business owners

are immigrants --

and your economy is among the fastest growing in the country.

That's not an accident.

That's the impact that our talented,

hardworking immigrants can have.

That's the difference they can make.

They're hungry and they're striving and they're working

hard and they're creating things that weren't there before.

And that's why it is long past time to reform an immigration

system that right now doesn't serve America

as well as it should.

We could be doing so much more to unleash our potential

if we just fix this aspect of our system.

And I know out here in California that you watch

the news and you share the country's not very sunny view

of Washington these days.

For the last few months,

you've seen a lot of headlines about

gridlock and partisan bickering, and too often one faction

of one party in one house of Congress has chosen courses

of action that ended up harming our businesses, or our economy,

or our workers.

Or they want to refight old political battles

rather than create jobs and grow the economy

and strengthen the middle class,

or take 40 more votes to undermine or repeal

the Affordable Care Act --

[laughter]

-- instead of passing a single serious jobs bill,

despite the fact that Americans

want us to focus on jobs and business and growth.

And, by the way, thousands of Californians are signing up

every day for new health care plans all across this state.

[applause]

So even as we're getting this darn website up to speed --

[laughter]

-- and it's getting better --

states like California are proving the law works.

People want the financial security of health insurance.

Audience Member: Thanks to you!

The President: And even if you're already insured,

reach out to a friend or neighbor who's not

and help them get covered.

But when it comes to immigration reform,

we have to have the confidence to believe we can get this done.

And we should get it done.

And, by the way, most Americans agree.

The only thing standing in our way right now is the

unwillingness of certain Republicans in Congress to catch

up with the rest of the country.

I met the other day with the CEOs

of some of America's biggest companies.

And I'm positive not all of them voted for me.

[laughter]

I'm pretty sure.

[laughter]

Maybe some of them, but definitely not all of them.

But the thing they wanted to talk about,

their top priority was the fact that we invite the brightest

minds from around the world to study here --

many of them enrolled in the University of California

system -- and then we don't invite them to stay.

We end up sending them home to create new jobs and start new

businesses someplace else.

So we're training our own competition,

rather than invite those incredibly talented young

people, like Geetha, to stay here and start businesses

and create jobs here.

I hear from folks who've been separated from their families

for years because of green card backlogs who desperately want

their loved ones to be able to join them here in America.

I hear from young DREAMers who are Americans through

and through in every way but on paper,

and they just want a chance to study and serve and contribute

to the nation that they love.

[applause]

I talk to business owners who play by the rules,

but get frustrated because they end up being undercut by those

who exploit workers in a shadow economy -- aren't getting paid

overtime, aren't required to meet the same obligations.

And so those companies end up losing out on business.

Right now, I'm seeing brave advocates who have been fasting

for two weeks in the shadow of the Capitol,

sacrificing themselves in an effort to get Congress to act.

And I want to say to Eliseo Medina, my friend from SEIU,

and the other fasters who are there as we speak,

I want them to know we hear you.

We're with you.

The whole country hears you.