Before delivering his powerful keynote on innovation and civic responsibility at Austin’s South by Southwest festival last Friday, President Barack Obama visited Austin’s infamous Torchy’s Tacos where he ordered a Democrat taco, a Republican taco and an Independent taco. If you’ve never experienced Torchy’s Tacos you’re totally missing out.
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But one thing President Obama does not want us to miss out on is our right to vote. In a call to action, the president challenges both tech innovators to make technology work for the community and for private citizens to engage in technology to help influence change.
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“We’re the only advanced democracy in the world that makes it harder for people to vote,” Obama said. He noted that it was “easier to order a pizza than vote.”
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“How do we redesign our systems so we don’t have 50% voter participation?” he asked.
Who’s to say we couldn’t be looking to a future of simultaneously ordering Torchy’s politically named tacos on a voting app?
Obama also addressed issues regarding the U.S government and private citizens’ smartphones in criminal cases and outlined what would happen if the government couldn’t access digital communications.
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President Obama became the first sitting president to appear at Austin’s South by Southwest Festival on its 30th anniversary. His entire conversation can be caught here.
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