Bush continued to campaign across the country and touted his record as Governor of Texas. During his campaign, Bush criticized his Democratic opponent, incumbent Vice President Al Gore, over gun control and taxation. Unemployment originally rose from 4.2 percent in January 2001 to 6.3 percent in June 2003, but subsequently dropped to 4.5 percent in July 2007. In March 2006, then-Senator Barack Obama said when he voted against raising the debt ceiling: 'The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure.' In March 2009, he delivered his first post-presidency speech in Calgary, Alberta, appeared via video on The Colbert Report during which he praised U.S. troops for earning a 'special place in American history,' and attended the funeral of Senator Ted Kennedy.