ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)<br/> <br />U.S. economic growth accelerated more than expected in the second quarter and the decline in output in the prior period was less steep than previously reported, bolstering views for a stronger performance in the last six months of the year.<br/> <br />The growth lifted President Barack Obama's spirits for a speech in Kansas City on Wednesday (July 30).<br/> <br />"This morning we found out that in the second quarter of this year our economy grew at a strong pace and businesses are investing. Workers are building new homes. Consumers are spending. America is exporting goods around the world," Obama told the crowd.<br/> <br />Gross domestic product expanded at a 4.0 percent annual rate as activity picked up broadly after shrinking at a revised 2.1 percent pace in the first quarter, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday.<br/> <br />That pushed GDP above the economy's potential growth trend, which analysts put somewhere between a 2 percent and 2.5 percent pace. Econ
