English subtitles for clip: File:2015-11-21 President Obama's Weekly Address.webm

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The Vice President:
Good morning everyone.

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This past week we've seen
the best and the worst

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of humanity.

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The heinous terrorist
attacks in Paris and Beirut,

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in Iraq and Nigeria.

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They showed us once
again the depths of the

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terrorist's depravity.

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And at the same time we saw
the world come together

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in solidarity.

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Parisians opening their
doors to anyone trapped in

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the street, taxi drivers
turning off their meters to

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get people home safety,
people lining up

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to donate blood.

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These simple human acts are
a powerful reminder that we

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cannot be broken and in the
face of terror we stand as one.

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In the wake of these
terrible events,

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I understand the anxiety
that many Americans feel.

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I really do.

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I don't dismiss the fear of
a terrorist bomb going off.

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There's nothing President Obama
and I take more seriously though,

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than keeping
the American people safe.

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In the past few
weeks though,

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we've heard an awful lot of
people suggest that the best

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way to keep America safe
is to prevent any Syrian

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refugee from gaining asylum
in the United States.

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So let's set the record
straight how it works

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for a refugee to get asylum.

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Refugees face the most
rigorous screening of anyone

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who comes to the
United States.

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First they are
finger printed,

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then they undergo a
thorough background check,

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then they are interviewed by

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the Department of Homeland Security.

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And after that the FBI,

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the National Counterterrorism Center,

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the Department of Defense
and the Department of State,

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they all have
to sign off on access.

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And to address the specific
terrorism concerns we are

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talking about now, we've
instituted another layer of

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checks just for
Syrian refugees.

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There is no possibility of
being overwhelmed by a flood

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of refugees landing on
our doorstep tomorrow.

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Right now, refugees wait
18 to 24 months while the

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screening process
is completed.

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And unlike in Europe,
refugees don't set foot in

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the United States until
they are thoroughly vetted.

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Let's also remember who
the vast majority of these

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refugees are: women,
children, orphans,

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survivors of torture, people
desperately

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in need of medical help.

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To turn them away and say
there is no way you can ever

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get here would play right
into the terrorists' hands.

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We know what ISIL - we
know what they hope

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to accomplish.

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They flat-out told us.

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Earlier this year, the top
ISIL leader al-Baghdadi

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revealed the true
goal of their attacks.

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Here's what he said: "Compel
the crusaders to actively

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destroy the gray
zone themselves.

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Muslims in the West will
quickly find themselves

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between one of two choices.

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Either apostatize or
emigrate to the Islamic State

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and thereby
escape persecution."

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So it's clear.

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It's clear what ISIL wants.

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They want to manufacture a
clash between civilizations.

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They want frightened people
to think in terms of

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"us versus them."

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They want us to turn our
backs on Muslims victimized

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by terrorism.

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But this gang of thugs
peddling a warped ideology,

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they will never prevail.

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The world is united in our
resolve to end their evil.

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And the only thing ISIL can
do is spread terror in hopes

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that we will in turn,
turn on ourselves.

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We will betray our
ideals and take actions,

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actions motivated by
fear that will drive more

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recruits into
the arms of ISIL.

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That's how they win.

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We win by prioritizing
our security

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as we've been doing.

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Refusing to compromise our
fundamental American values:

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freedom, openness,
tolerance.

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That's who we are.

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That's how we win.

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May God continue to bless
the United States of America

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and God bless our troops.