We’ve also been trying to help our state and local governments so that they’re not having to lay off as many teachers and firefighters and police officers, and I know that -- I think the mayor and the governor would acknowledge that the help that we provided them has really helped to plug some big budget holes.

And, in addition, what we’ve been trying to do is to build infrastructure¹ that puts people back to work but also improves the quality of life in communities like Columbus.  So Joe is an architect（建筑师） and he’s now working on a new police station that was funded in part with Recovery Act funds.

So all these things have made a difference.  But we still have got a long way to go.  And so a couple of things that we’re focused on right now is, number one, making sure that small businesses are getting help, because small businesses like Joe’s architectural firm are really the key to our economy.  They create two out of every three jobs.  And so we want to make sure that they’re getting financing.  We want to make sure that we are cutting their taxes in certain key areas.  One of the things that we’ve done, for example, is propose that we eliminate capital gains taxes on small businesses so that when they’re starting up and they don't have a lot of cash flow（资金流动） , that's exactly the time when they should get a break and they should get some help.

We’re focusing, as well, on trying to figure out can we build more infrastructure here in Ohio and all across the country that puts people back to work, not just building roads and bridges, but also building things like high-speed rail, or building broadband lines that could connect communities and give people access to the Internet at a time when that's going to be critical in terms of long-term economic development.

We’re also going to have to look at how do we, over the long term, get control of our deficit².  And that's obviously something that a lot of people have on their minds.  The key is to make sure that we do so in a way that doesn’t impede³（阻碍，妨碍） recovery, but rather gives people confidence over the medium and the long term. And I’m going to be happy to talk about what we’re doing in terms of spending.

But overall, the main message that I want to deliver before I start taking questions -- and I said this to Joe and Rhonda -- is slowly, but surely, we are moving in the right direction.  We’re on the right track.  The economy is getting stronger, but it really suffered a big trauma⁴（创伤） .  And we’re not going to get all 8 million jobs that were lost back overnight.  It’s going to take some time.  And businesses are still trying to get more confident out there before they start hiring.  And people -- consumers -- are not going to start spending until they feel a little more confident that the economy is getting stronger.

And so what we’re trying to do is create sort of a virtuous⁵ cycle（良性循环） where people start feeling better and better about the economy.  And a lot of it is sort of like recovering from an illness; you get a little bit stronger each day and you take a few more steps each day.  And that’s where our economy is at right now.

What we can’t afford to do is to start going backwards⁶ and doing some of the same things that got us into trouble in the first place.  This is why it’s been so important for us, for example, to pass something like Wall Street reform to make sure that we’re not creating the same kinds of financial bubbles and the massive leverage⁷（手段，影响力） and the reckless risks that helped to create this problem in the first place.