Welcome to West Wing Week, your direct to everything that's happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. This week, the President announced new initiatives that will put jobless veterans back to work and new fuel economy standards for trucks, buses and other heavy duty vehicles that will decrease oil consumption and pollution and save businesses money. He also traveled to Holland, Michigan to visit an higher battery facility that is using inventive technologies that will help America achieve these new fuel standards and used an address to the nation on the credit downgrade to talk about how we can create more jobs. That's August 5th to August 11th or "Made In America."
Showing posts with label White House. Show all posts
Showing posts with label White House. Show all posts
The Humanitarian Crisis in Africa: How You Can Help
Dr. Jill Biden and the US officials who connected her on a trip to a refugee center in Kenya want the American people to appreciate how severe the crisis caused by a combination of drought, famine and war has become, particularly on the most vulnerable population, the children of Somalia.
“It touched my heart,” said Dr. Biden about reading the news and seeing the footage of the spreading humanitarian crisis, “as a mother, I watched these children … saw them starving and thought, we have to do something.” Earlier this week, she traveled to the Dadaab refugee complex in Eastern Kenya, where about 420,000 people who have fled war-torn Somalia in search of food, water and shelter, are currently living in a tented city at first built to accommodate 90,000.
Former U.S. Senator Bill Frist, another member of the designation, says more must be done to help famine victims. "A lot of people don't understand, especially in this environment of what's happening in terms of the economy here and at home, that this is the most sharp food security emergency anywhere in the world now and in recent years," he said.
"The crisis is growing fast, and we saw that firsthand on the ground, talking to personage families as they were coming into refugee camps who factually had walked for 15 and 16 days - a mom with her four children; a husband, a father who is absent who is still in Somalia. They don't know whether or not he's alive," Frist said of the situation, which has resulted in the deaths of 29,000 children under the age of five in the past three months alone.
Contributions made by the U.S government and the international community are helping to relieve the suffering - but the famine is spreading and without life-saving assistance, hundreds of thousands of people – most of them children – could die from hunger and disease in the coming months. There is a role for all persons to take action and save lives.
First Lady Michelle Obama Announces Commitments to get bigger Access to Healthy, Affordable Food
Today, First Lady Michelle Obama announced nationwide commitments from major food retailers to open or get bigger over 1,500 stores to help provide healthy, affordable food to millions of people in areas that do not presently have easy access to fresh, nutritious food. Across the country, 23.5 million Americans – including 6.5 million children – live in underserved communities that do not have readily obtainable fresh foods for reasonable prices.
Rural Champions of Change – Sparking Innovation
Champions of Change is a weekly plan to highlight Americans who are making an impact in their communities and helping our country rise to meet the many challenges of the 21st century.
President Barack Obama talks with rural community leaders from across the country at a Rural Champions for Change Roundtable meeting in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building of the White House, July 6, 2011. With President Obama are Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, second from left, and Domestic Policy Council Director Melody Barnes.
One of the most gratifying aspects of working in the White House is that you never know who you might see on a daily basis. A wonderful and diverse cadre of Americans pass through for meetings and events, including well-known scientists, members of the U.S. Armed Forces, and occasionally even entertainment celebrities. Often, these visitors represent the most talented leaders in their individual fields.
With this in mind, I was particularly satisfied to recently participate in a Champions of Change roundtable with eighteen Rural Americans, representing the spectrum of excellence in Rural America. The group incorporated farmers, ranchers, local educators, small business owners, and folks who are improving their communities through inventive actions. These rural champions represent the best of the best in their relevant fields.
We were honored to be attached by President Obama, who shared his vision for economic growth and development in rural areas. The President highlighted the significance of exports in agricultural areas, and the critical nature of transportation issues. He emphasized the need for high-speed internet access and stated that rural areas should wait for to have opportunities equivalent to those in other areas of the nation. The President also discussed the significance of identifying rural Americans’ success stories and sharing that knowledge across the country.
STEM Jobs Help America Win the Future
Highlighting the significance of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education and jobs, the U.S. Commerce Department today free a new report profiling U.S. employment in the critical fields that drive our nation’s novelty and competitiveness. STEM workers are helping America win the future by generating new ideas, new companies and new industries.
Not surprisingly, President Obama has made STEM education a key precedence of his administration, with an ambitious agenda to move American students to the top of the pack globally in science and math achievement over the next decade.
Initiatives like Race to the Top and the “Educate to Innovate” campaign show the administration’s ongoing commitment to making sure Americans get the science and technology skills they require to fill the jobs of the future.
STEM: Good Jobs Now and for the Future, by Commerce’s Economics and Statistics Administration, shows that increase in STEM jobs has been three times greater than that of non-STEM jobs over the last 10 years. And all through the next decade, STEM occupations are projected to grow by 17 percent, compared to 9.8-percent growth for other occupations.
Statement by the President on World Refugee Day
As we mark World Refugee Day, I join with people around the sphere in highlighting the plight of the 15 million refugees in the world today, and we reiterate our commitment to support them as they seek a safe place to call home again. In particular, we honor the courage of those who have been compulsorily displaced from their homes, including men, women and children in Libya, Syria, Cote d'Ivoire who hark back us that somewhere in the world, refugees are forced to flee their homes virtually every day.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the 1951 Convention connecting to the Status of Refugees – a landmark achievement of international law that sets forth certain rights of refugees and legal obligations of States relating to refugees. Hundreds of thousands – and probably millions – of people around the world are alive today thanks to the help and guard they received from the international community when they were required to flee their countries to escape violence, oppression, abuse, and other forms of persecution.
This year is also the 50th anniversary of the 1961 Convention on the lessening of Statelessness. In at least 30 countries, nationality laws distinguish against women and limit their ability to acquire and transmit citizenship to their children or spouses, which can lead to statelessness. The United States will carry on to work to empower women and girls and ensure opportunities for displaced and stateless women all through the world.
Our values and our interests say that the protection of the most vulnerable is a critical component of our foreign policy. We have a moral vital to save lives. We also have interest in sustaining U.S. leadership, which enables us to drive the growth of international humanitarian principles, programs, and policies like no other government in the world. Such efforts endorse reconciliation, security, and well-being in circumstances where despair and misery intimidate stability and critical U.S. national security interests.
Taking the Time to be a Dad
This morning, President Obama sent the email under to the White House email list in honor of Father's Day. If you didn't get the email, be sure to sign up for the White House email list.
Good morning,
I grew up without a father around. I was blessed enough to be raised by a wonderful mother who, like so many heroic single mothers, never permitted my father's absence to be an excuse for me to slack off or not always do my best. But I often wonder what it would have been like if my father had a greater occurrence in my life.
So as a father of two young girls, I've tried hard to be a fine dad. I haven't always been just right – there have been times when work kept me away from my family too often, and most of the parenting duties fell to Michelle.
I know many other fathers face comparable challenges. Whether you're a military dad returning from deployment or a father doing his best to make ends meet for his family in a hard economy, being a parent isn't easy.
That's why my management is kicking off the Year of Strong Fathers, Strong Families. We're joining with dads across the country to do impressive about father absence. And we're taking steps to offer men who want to be good fathers but are facing challenges in their lives a little extra support, while partnering with businesses to offer fun opportunities for fathers to use time with their kids. For example, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Major League Baseball and the WNBA are offering discounts for fathers and their kids, and companies like Groupon and LivingSocial will be featuring special offers for behavior fathers can do with their children.
We know that every father has a personal responsibility to do right by their kids – to support them to turn off the video games and pick up a book; to teach them the difference between right and wrong; to show them through our own example the value in treating one another as we wish to be treated. And most of all, to play an active and occupied role in their lives.
But all of us have a stake in forging stronger bonds flanked by fathers and their children. All of us can support those who are eager to step up and be father figures to those children growing up without a dad. And that's what the Year of Strong Fathers, Strong Familiesis all about.
So I hope the dads out there will take benefit of some of the opportunities Strong Fathers, Strong Families will offer. It's one way of saying thank you to those who are doing the most significant job of all: playing a part in our children's lives.
West Wing Week: "Where the outlook Will Be Won"
Welcome to the West Wing Week, your direct to everything that's happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. This week, walk step-by-step with the President as he meets with his Jobs Council in North Carolina to talk about ideas that will go faster job growth and improve America's competitiveness, tours a manufacturer of energy competent lighting, travels to Puerto Rico, and more.
Welcoming the 2010 BCS National Champion Auburn Tigers to the White House
Today, President Obama welcomed the 2010 BCS National Champion Auburn Tigers to the White House and congratulated the team on “winning their first national title since before I was born.”
Former Press Secretary (and Auburn fan) Robert Gibbs and his son Ethan were also on hand to rejoice the occasion.
During his remarks, President Obama reflected on the team’s commitment to serving those in their home state of Alabama in the wake of the new devastating tornadoes:
Now, this visit was at first scheduled to happen a couple of months ago. But two days before this team was theoretical to be in Washington, the state of Alabama was hit by a series of devastating tornados.
So Michelle and I went down with many members of the congressional allocation to meet some of the folks who had lost loved ones, make sure everything possible was being done to help the community get back on its feet. And it was a heartbreaking visit. Coach and I were just talking about -- you don't understand the damage until you see it firsthand.
But what was also inspiring was the amount of strength and liberality that was shown by so many people in the midst of so much tragedy. And that includes the members of this program. Two days after the tornado, almost 70 Auburn coaches, players, and athletic department staff -– led by Coach -– traveled to agreeable Grove and Cullman to help out with relief efforts.
And even though one of the toughest-hit areas by the storm was the home of the Crimson Tide, this team knew what we all know in situations like this, which is we’re all on the same team. We’re all Americans first and foremost, and we’ve got an compulsion to support each other in times of need.
So I’ve said before, I will say again, we will continue to stand with the fatalities of these disasters -- whether they’re in Tuscaloosa or in Joplin, Missouri, which I just visited a couple weeks ago -- we’re going to do this as long as it takes pending families are able to rebuild.
Photo: President Obama’s Monthly gathering on Afghanistan and Pakistan
Today President Obama convened a monthly meeting on Afghanistan and Pakistan with his national security team. Check out the announce from the conference and photo below.
President Barack Obama, along with Vice President Joe Biden, meets with members of his national security team for a monthly meeting on Afghanistan in the location Room of the White House, June 6, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
West Wing Week: "One pace at a Time"
This week, President Obama traveled to Joplin, Missouri in the wake of significant and deadly tornadoes to see the destruction first hand. The President ended his week-long trip to Europe in Poland and visited Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day.
Equal way in to Transportation: A Right for All Americans
Transportation is about a lot more than just receiving around. Our roadways, runways, and railways connect people with all of the things that make life worth living: family, education, job opportunities, and recreation. That’s why we here at DOT--and the entire Obama Administration--are laser-focused on civilizing access to transportation for all Americans.
Last week, I joined the White House monthly disability call with the Special Assistant to President Obama on Disability Policy, Kareem Dale, to talk about with hundreds of stakeholders everything we’re doing at DOT to get better transportation access for people with disabilities. In the twenty years since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, there’s no doubt we’ve made important strides forward. But we won’t rest awaiting everyone has equal access to all forms of transportation.
Saving You Money at the Pump and Protecting the Air We Breathe
To make stronger our economy, save drivers money at the gas pump and decrease harmful pollution in the air we breathe, President Obama has made cleaner, innovative and more fuel efficient vehicles a precedence for this administration. Today, we’re taking one more step to help put more fuel efficient cars on our streets and highways.
To match a new creation of vehicles rolling off the lines in American auto plants, we’re releasing a new generation of fuel wealth labels to help consumers decide which vehicle is right for them and their families. These new labels represent the most important redesign of fuel economy labels in 35 years – and one of the most powerful tools car buyers have ever had to find a vehicle that will meet their requirements and save them money.
The new fuel economy labels will still give the familiar, and important, information about city and highway mileage for new vehicles. But they will also cover new categories to help car buyers who are comparing a wide assortment of different vehicles on the market.
New Obama Administration Jobs and Innovation plan to Spur Regional Economic Growth
Regional innovation clusters are based on a simple but critical idea: if we foster organization between the private sector and the public sector to build on the unique strengths of different regions - while creating the incentives for them to do so - we will be better prepared to marshall the knowledge and resources that America needs to contend in the global economy.
The $33 million Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge that the Obama Administration announced yesterday will help make the most of on shared strengths, encouraging America's regions to plan more deliberately to support long-term growth and an environment where the private sector can succeed. It reflects an understanding by both private sector leaders and policymakers that we must apply strategies that capitalize on the full extent of regional assets and ensure that the benefits of cluster development expand to all workers and communities throughout the region.
Sixteen federal agencies are working together on this unparalleled initiative to drive job growth through public-private partnerships in at least 20 regions around the country. High-growth clusters from rural and urban regions across the nation will fight for award funds. Each Challenge investment will serve as a catalyst for leveraging extra private capital to the winning regions from sources including foundations, financial institutions, corporations and other private-sector partners.
The Innovation Accelerator Challenge represents the Obama Administration's commitment to speed up the development of strong industry clusters - like the Research Triangle in North Carolina - that promote robust economic ecosystems and the development of a capable workforce, both of which are critical to long-term regional success. We're looking to be a means for regional clusters that can:
* Promote sustainable economic development in the region;
* Support business pattern, especially of small businesses, while leveraging existing businesses' assets;
* Advance commercialization of federal and private research;
* Increase exports;
* Develop a expert workforce through outreach, training, and the creation of career pathways, and;
* Integrate historically underserved businesses and communities into the economic behavior of the cluster.
This cluster announcement reflects another significant goal of the Obama Administration - to streamline government while maximizing resources. Applicants will submit ONE application, instead of multiple applications to several agencies, cutting down on costs and time. Awardees will be given funds in a coordinated, integrated manner that is more well-organized and predictable. When President Obama was elected, he promised to change the way government does business. The Accelerator and 40 other innovation cluster projects that were awarded in FY 2010 reflect his vow to deliver on his promise.
As President Obama said during a Winning the prospect forum in February, "This cluster notion is so important...When you get a group of people together, and industries together, and institutions like universities together around exacting industries, then the synergies that develop from all those different facets coming together can make the whole superior than the sum of its parts."
Calhoun to Obama in White House ceremony: 'Yes, we did'
President Barack Obama saluted the University of Connecticut men's basketball team at the White House on Monday for winning the national championship and joshed that he had made a "big mistake" by worsening to pick them to win.
"I have to be honest -- this is a bittersweet day for me," Obama said. "On the one hand, I get to congratulate a great team and a great coach on winning the national championship. On the other hand, I'm reminded once again that my bracket was a bust. I did not pick UConn to win it all. That was a big error."
Obama continued: "Next time you guys make a decision to reel off 11 straight wins, please let me know ahead of time," referring to the Huskies amazing season closing.
UConn's streak was "a surprise to everybody but themselves and the coach," the president said. "These guys knew they had something special."
Obama cited Coach Jim Calhoun and players Shabazz Napier, Jeremy Lamb and Kemba Walker.
Walker "will go down in history as one of the greatest ever to wear the Huskies uniform," Obama said. "And a player who always lived by his dad's advice: `It's not the size of the person, it's the size of the heart."
When his turn at the mike came, Calhoun joked that Walker required a "one-on-one game" with Obama.
"I'm ready," Obama replied. "As long as he's wearing street shoes and a suit."
Rebuilding in the Midwest and South, Our National Responsibility
Earlier today, Vice President Joe Biden visited Berkeley, Missouri – a St. Louis suburb harshly damaged by a recent wave of tornadoes that swept through the area. The Vice President’s visit came on the heels of Missouri's disaster statement – a step that will speed up federal assistance to the region as a result of severe storms, tornadoes and flooding.
Joined by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon and Berkeley Mayor Kyra Watson, Vice President Biden took a walking tour of one of the hardest-hit neighborhoods, talking with local homeowners unnatural by the storms and pledging to help get “roofs back over their heads” as soon as possible. “We know people’s lives are disrupted … it’s all about giving people a shot to repair or relocate,” the Vice President said. “We get it, we understand it, and we’re on top of it.”
From Missouri to Alabama, rebuilding the homes, towns and cities overwhelmed by tornadoes and floods and helping communities recover across the Midwest and the South is a “national responsibility,” said Vice President Biden.
Obama to journey to Texas to Push for Immigration Legislation
President Barack Obama schedule to Texas on Tuesday to make the case that his administration has worked hard to safe the border and the time has come for Congress to deal with the 10.8 million people previously in the U.S. illegally.
He will also dispute that those who care about this subject need to step up pressure on Congress to act, a point he has made privately in a cord of meetings with business executives, evangelical leaders and Hispanic celebrities.
Many activists guilt the White House for not making the issue more of a priority, and Tuesday's speech is an effort, in part, to shift notice to Republicans who are blocking action.
Many Republicans and some Democrats resist the measures Mr. Obama favors that would create a path to citizenship for some people who entered the country unlawfully, saying it would reward law-breaking. Opponents also say not enough has been done to secure the border with Mexico. The White House says it has put more "boots on the ground" along the southwest border than ever previous to and has cracked down on employers who hire undocumented workers.
The administration has also deported a record number of illegal immigrants, a point that has angered Hispanic activists. Federal officials say deportations of unlawful immigrants hit a record 392,000 in fiscal year 2010.
Hoping to push from side to side the political stalemate, Mr. Obama has held private meetings to talk about immigration with political figures such as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, business leaders such as John Engler, president of the Business Roundtable; and religious leaders such as Leith Anderson, president of the National Association of Evangelicals.
He also met with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and with a number of Hispanic celebrities. On Thursday, he will speak at the National Hispanic Prayer Breakfast.
In Congress, Sen. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.) said he and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.), who worked for months on a complete bill before talks fell apart last year, are talking again about a political plan to pass the legislation. But the seriousness of those talks is unclear.
Mr. Schumer said Friday that talks had intensified in the last month and that he and Mr. Graham have only one substantive issue to work out—the crafting of a guest-worker program. But a spokesman for Mr. Graham suggested the talks weren't serious, saying the two senators have been talking for two years but have unsuccessful to produce legislation.
President Obama Welcomes the injured Warrior Project's Soldier Ride
This afternoon, the South Lawn of the White House was full of veterans, military families, and their bicycles, as the injured Warrior Project's Soldier Ride came to the White House. The Soldier Ride in progress as a way to help offended soldiers recover from their injuries through adaptive cycling. Nearly a decade later, the program has prolonged to involve civilians as well, raising money for and promoting the cause of America's wounded warriors.
In welcoming the riders, President Obama said a few words about the early stages of the Soldier Ride effort:
Today is a reminder -- as Michelle and Jill Biden have already said -- that every American, every single person in this country, can do amazing to support our remarkable troops and their families. Everybody can do somewhat.
So seven years ago, a bartender from Long Island had the same idea. He wasn’t from a military family. He had never served in the military. But he knew that he payable our military something. He was just an ordinary American who was thankful for the service of all those who wear the uniform. And he said, “I just sought to give something back.”
So he jumped on his bike and rode across the country -- over 5,000 miles -- to raise funds and awareness for our injured warriors. Today, there are Soldier Rides all across America giving our wounded warriors the assurance and support they need to recover. That’s the difference a single person can make. Today we want to thank Chris Carney and everyone from the Wounded Warrior Project for reminding us of our obligations to each other as Americans.
After taking special note of a few individual soldiers with whom he had met before, President Obama thanked the riders for the motivation they provide him and so many other Americans:
So to all the riders here today, I want to say, as your Commander-in-Chief and as an American, thank you. We are grateful for you. You symbolize the very best in America. And in your fight to recover and in the ride that you’re about to begin, we see the values and qualities that make our country great.
We may take a hit. We may tolerate great loss. But we are a strong and resilient people. We push on. We persevere. We’re sure in our cause. And we know that, like generations of Americans before us, we will appear stronger than before.
Osama bin Laden not armed, White House says
The White House retreated Tuesday from its most challenging assertions about the operation to kill Osama bin Laden, acknowledging that the al Qaeda leader was neither equipped nor hiding behind a female human shield when U.S. commandos lethally shot him during a predawn raid.
The disclosures put the Obama administration on the defensive about whether it had overstated elements of earlier accounts for propaganda gain. At the same time, additional details surfaced Tuesday that portray a mission begun amid far greater political and operational uncertainty than had been revealed.CIA Director Leon Panetta, who supervised the operation, said in interviews that U.S. intelligence agencies never had photographs or other evidence that bin Laden was living at the compound in Pakistan that was attacked. Panetta told Time magazine that analysts were only 60 to 80 percent certain bin Laden would be found.
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President Obama Presents Medal of Honor: "We're Reminded That We Are lucky to Have Americans Who Dedicate Their Lives to Protecting Ours"
The event to award the Medal of Honor to Anthony T. Kaho’ohanohano and Henry Svehla, two heroes who made the ultimate give up during the Korean War, was long scheduled, but the timing made for a meaningful accident on a day when America is happy with pride over those who serve today.
The President began his remarks on that note:
I think we can all have the same opinion this is a good day for America. Our country has kept its commitment to see that honesty is done. The world is safer; it is a better place as of the death of Osama bin Laden.
Today, we are reminded that, as a nation, there’s not anything we can’t do —- when we put our shoulders to the wheel, when we work jointly, when we remember the sense of unity that defines us as Americans. And we’ve seen that spirit -— that patriotism -— in the crowds that have gathered, here outside the White House, at Ground Zero in New York, and across the country -- people holding candles, waving the flag, singing the National Anthem -- people proud to live in the United States of America.
And we’re reminded that we are happy to have Americans who dedicate their lives to protecting ours. They volunteer. They train. They tolerate separation from their families. They take surprising risks so that we can be safe. They get the job done. We may not always know their names. We may not always know their stories. But they are there, every day, on the front lines of freedom, and we are truly blessed.