Politics & Government

23,000 RSVP for Obama's Facebook Town Hall Meeting

Palo Alto Patch will join local press at FB headquarters Wednesday.

President Barack Obama will expand upon his fiscal message this week by answering questions at a virtual town hall hosted live from Facebook's headquarters in Palo Alto on Wednesday.

The 1:45 p.m. event, which will stream on the White House's Facebook page, follows the theme of "Shared Responsibility and Shared Prosperity" that Obama laid out in remarks about the budget he delivered last Wednesday at George Washington University.

"I think coming to Facebook puts him in touch with the younger generation, and I think it’s a great idea," said Emily Thurber, local regional director for the California Democratic Party.

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Thurber said that Wednesday's town hall event offers the president a good chance to address growing concerns among liberals that he has strayed from the values he espoused during his election campaign.

"I would urge him to stand firm and stand for his original sense of values," Thurber said. "I think his base has been concerned that he’s been too much of a compromiser and that he needs to stand up for these enduring values."

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As of Tuesday morning, nearly 23,000 people had RSVP'd to participate in the town hall online. The actual event with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg will not be open to the public.

Last week, Obama said his fiscal plan would reduce the nation's deficit by a cumulative $4 trillion over 12 years, in part by cutting defense spending, reducing health care costs and eliminating tax breaks for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans. The federal deficit was $1.3 trillion last year.

Obama said America doesn't have to choose between "a future of spiraling debt and one where we forfeit our investment in our people and our country."

The president said limiting itemized deductions for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans would reduce the deficit by $320 billion over 10 years. He refused to further extend the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy as long as he is president.

"I say that at a time when the tax burden on the wealthy is at its lowest level in half a century, the most fortunate among us can afford to pay a little more," Obama said. "I don't need another tax cut. Warren Buffett doesn't need another tax cut."

Questions for the town hall can be submitted up to and during the event at facebook.com/WhiteHouse or WhiteHouse.gov/facebooktownhall.

Two panels focused on women in technology and startups in America—both of which will include opportunities for questions from the audience—will be held after the president's remarks.

The entire event will be streamed at facebook.com/WhiteHouse.

—Bay City News Service


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