President Obama speaks on government shutdown and increase of federal debt limit

(UPI) -- President Obama spoke on Thursday at the White House about the end of the government shutdown and the lifting of the federal debt limit.

During his speech, Obama thanked the leaders of both parties and stressed that “the good news is, we’ll bounce back from this.”

He cautioned, however, that the sort of political gridlock that shut down the government for 16 days certainly had its consequences.

“There are no winners here. These last few weeks have inflicted completely unnecessary damage on our economy. We don't know yet the full scope of the damage, but every analyst out there believes it's slowed our growth…We know that just the threat of default, of America not paying all the bills that we owe on time, increased our borrowing costs, which adds to our deficit. And of course, we know that the American people's frustration with what goes on in this town has never been higher.”

The president took aim at the people he held responsible for the first government shutdown in 17 years.

“Some of the same folks who pushed for the shutdown and threatened default claim their actions were needed to get America back on the right track, to make sure we're strong.

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But probably nothing has done more damage to America's credibility in the world, our standing with other countries, than the spectacle that we've seen these past several weeks. It's encouraged our enemies, it's emboldened our competitors, and it's depressed our friends, who look to us for steady leadership.”

Obama pointed out there is reason for optimism now that the shutdown is over and federal parks and monuments are back in business.

“Now the good news is, we'll bounce back from this. We always do. America's the bedrock of the global economy for a reason. We are the indispensable nation that the rest of the world looks to as the safest and most reliable place to invest, something that's made it easier for generations of Americans to invest in their own futures.”

"We have earned that responsibility over more than two centuries because of the dynamism of our economy and our entrepreneurs, the productivity of our workers, but also because we keep our word and we meet our obligations," Obama said. "That's what full faith and credit means. You can count on us."