Obama, Live from New Orleans

President Obama is conducting a town hall from New Orleans. Here is play-by-play:

2:16 p.m. - Obama introduces Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal -- a Republican who promptly gets booed. "No, no," Obama tells the partisan crowd. "Bobby is doing a good job." He adds playfully, "Bobby, if it makes you feel any better, I get that all the time."

2:25 p.m. -- Obama tells a "feisty" crowd that Hurricane Katrina may have swept through the city in 2005, but it "did not destroy this community." He also knocks the "breakdown of government" that made bad things worse. Begins a run down of his administration's efforts to rebuild the Gulf Coast region. Pledges "competence and accountability."

2:32 p.m.-- Turns from local recovery efforts -- "we will not forget about New Orleans" -- to national programs designed to meet "the economic storm" that struck about nine months ago. Lauds stock market recovery, but says we need more jobs. Touts his plans for education, green energy development, and, in particularly, health care. "We're gonna get health care done this year," he pledges.

He adds: "I never said it was going to be easy." He also says, "I don't quit." Big applause for that second line. He added more: "I'm just getting started." Even bigger applause from crowd that starts chanting, "yes we can! Yes, we can!"

2:37 p.m. -- Obama wraps up opening remarks. It's question time.

2:43 p.m. -- A Rev. Smith asks about education. Obama lauds post-Katrina New Orleans for experimenting with new ways of teaching, such as charter schools. Pledges to help schools meet the requirements of No Child Left Behind. Urges parents to demand excellence of their children. "Just that home training makes a big difference."

Sorry, we lost our video feed for awhile, but we're back.

2:52 p.m.-- A man complains that he and others are still being "nickled and dimed" over recovery money. Obama says "there are all sort of complications" among the federal, state, and city governments before money can be disbursed. "We've got to go through procedures," he says, but Sen. Mary Landrieu and others are working to cut red tape. "We are still working through the backlog of problems that existed," Obama adds.

2:58 p.m. -- An immigration question -- too many kids are getting lost in the system. Obama says there needs to be a  comprehensive overhaul over the entire immigration system. "We are a nation of laws and we are a nation of immigrants," he says. He calls for strengthening borders, going after employers who knowingly hire illegals, and giving the existing undocumented works a pathway to legality, with an emphasis on families. Hopes to deal with this "in a year or two."

3:06 p.m. -- A senior citizen, married 50 years, asks how a new health care bill will affect Social Security and Medicare recipients. Obama promotes his one-time-only $250 payment to folks on Social Security and that health care reform will "streamline" Medicare costs. "It is a certainty that if we do nothing," insurance premiums will rise, the president says. He promotes his health care initiative, and blasts its opponents.

3:15 p.m. -- A woman named Davida asks about global warming, and how it fits into a crowded agenda. Obama calls the environment "a huge challenge," but also an "opportunity." Says the U.S. must learn to use energy more efficiently and develop alternatives to foreign oil; on the other hand, those projects will provide jobs for others. Adds that this issue will probably follow health care. "I can't do it all at once," he says.

3:18 p.m. -- A fourth grader wonders why so many people "hate" Obama, and that he "loves" him. Obama tells the young man not to worry about it; some of the bad stuff is just politics, while others folks are just worried about the economy and their future.

"I did get elected president," he reminds the questioner. "So not everybody hates me."

And we're outta here.