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The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Obama says the state of the union is getting stronger, and he says the country has come too far to turn back now.
Obama is delivering an election-year State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress and millions of television viewers.
COMPARE: What was emphasized in 2010 and 2011 in the State of the Union
He says American values are at stake and must be reclaimed.
Obama says no challenge is more urgent than how to restore the basic American promise that hard work pays off.
READ: Obama's 2012 State of the Union
Incentives to bring jobs back to America
Citing the recovery of the U.S. automobile industry, the president called on business leaders to ask what they can do to return jobs to their country.
He said the government should help -- taking tax breaks away from companies that outsource jobs, and giving it to companies that are bringing jobs back.
He also called for a "basic minimum tax" on multinational companies, with the money going to lower taxes for companies that "choose to stay here and hire here."
And he urged a bigger tax cut for American manufacturers.
Higher taxes for the wealthy
Obama says the wealthy should pay their fair share in taxes, saying anyone who makes more than $1 million should pay a minimum tax rate of at least 30 percent.
The president is using the State of the Union to provide more details about the so-called Buffett rule, which sets a goal of a minimum tax rate for those earning $1 million or more a year.
Households making more than $1 million typically pay a federal tax rate of about 24 percent.
The Buffett rule is named after billionaire Warren Buffett, who has said it's unfair that his secretary pays a higher tax rate than he does.
To emphasize the point, Buffett's secretary, Debbie Bosanek, is attending the address in first lady Michelle Obama's box.
Refinancing for homeowners
The president proposes a program to allow homeowners with privately held mortgages to refinance at lower interest rates.
The program would cover both loans issued by government-controlled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and private mortgage lenders. Congress would have to approve, a difficult hurdle.
A punctured housing bubble was at the center of the recession, prompting widespread foreclosures and leaving millions of homeowners with houses valued at less than their mortgages.
Under the plan, any homeowner current on his or her mortgage could take advantage of lending rates now at 4 percent or below.
Administration officials offered few details but estimated savings at $3,000 a year for average borrowers.
Keeping tuition in check
Obama wants to keep college affordable by yanking federal aid from colleges that don't keep tuition down and provide good value.
Obama also called on Congress to keep interest rates down on subsidized federal student loans. And he wants to make more work-study jobs available for students who are paying their own tuition.
As he has in the past, Obama asked Congress to permanently extend a tuition tax credit that pays up to $10,000 over four years.
Part of Obama's argument focuses on the need to keep college within reach for middle-class families. He'll discuss college affordability in greater detail during a trip to Michigan on Friday.
The Associated Press