Week Seventeen

National Scene    5/19 – 5/26/09

By Linnie Frank Bailey

A busy week for the President as he signed into law major bills designed to, make home refinancing easier; end mortgage fraud; reform credit card policies; and monitor defense procurement. He also met with his economic advisory board to gauge progress, and took on former Vice-President Dick Cheney on national security.  Obama created a couple of “firsts” this week by naming an African-American as his choice to lead NASA, and in a move applauded by Latino activists across the country—nominated a Hispanic woman for the Supreme Court.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

African-American Business Leaders Attend White House Briefing

Senior Obama Advisor Valerie Jarrett hosted a meeting at the White House for over 150 African-American business leaders.  The purpose of the meeting was to lay out the administration’s agenda for the year, and to encourage the leaders to implement the policies in their home areas. The meeting was well attended by MBA’s, with the Harvard Business School’s African-American Alumni Association serving as the lead organizer, and members of the National Black MBA Association in attendance. The group participated in a question-and-answer session with Ms. Jarrett and members of her staff. She stressed that the White House will “always be open” to hearing new ideas.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Obama Meets With Economic Recovery Advisory Board

The President held his first official quarterly meeting with members of his economic advisory board to discuss policy, and the status of the recovery.  Members of the board* include (in alphabetical order):

· Anna Burger, Secretary-Treasurer, SEIU

· John Doerr, Partner, Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers

· William H. Donaldson, Former Chairman, SEC

· Roger W. Ferguson, Jr., President & CEO, TIAA-CREF

· Mark T. Gallogly, Founder & Managing Partner, Centerbridge Partners L.P.

· Austan Goolsbee, Staff Director and Chief Economist

· Jeff Immelt, Chairman and CEO, GE

· Monica C. Lozano, Publisher & Chief Executive Officer, La Opinion

· James W. Owens, Chairman and CEO, Caterpillar Inc.

· Charles E. Phillips, Jr., President, Oracle Corporation

· Penny Pritzker, Chairman & Founder, Pritzker Realty Group

· David F. Swensen, Chief Investment Officer, Yale University

· Richard L. Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer, AFL-CIO

· Laura D'Andrea Tyson, Dean, Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley

· Paul Volcker, Chairman

· Robert Wolf, Chairman & CEO, UBS Group Americas
*as listed on whitehouse.gov

President Signs Laws to Help Families

The President signed two pieces of legislation to help cash-strapped families across America.  Obama described the “The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act,” as  “advancing the goals of our existing housing plan by providing assistance to responsible homeowners and preventing avoidable foreclosures….to help families who found themselves “underwater” as a result of declining home values -- families who owed more on their mortgages than their homes are worth.” 

The bill is designed to remove the bureaucratic hurdles that keep eligible families from applying for much needed assistance, including providing homeowners with FHA mortgages the opportunity to refinance to more affordable rates.  Stating, “Any plan is only as effective as the number of people who take advantage of it,” the President encouraged all concerned homeowners to visit the website: MakingHomeAffordable.gov to determine eligibility for new federal programs.

The President also signed the “Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act” into law, which gives the government the tools to crack down on consumer scams, mortgage fraud, and questionable lender policies at all levels. Addressing communities hard hit by consumer and mortgage fraud, the President stressed, “This bill nearly doubles the FBI's mortgage and financial fraud program, allowing it to better target fraud in hard-hit areas.”

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Obama versus Cheney

After being rebuffed by the Senate, which voted against funding to close the controversial base—Guantanamo, the President gave a major foreign policy speech while standing alongside the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. While stating that the protection of the American people will always come first, Obama went on to describe the post 9-11 “season of fear” that caused the country to sway from the values it was founded on. He addressed past policies by saying, “Too many of us -- Democrats and Republicans, politicians, journalists, and citizens -- fell silent. In other words, we went off course.  And this is not my assessment alone.  It was an assessment that was shared by the American people who nominated candidates for President from both major parties who, despite our many differences, called for a new approach -- one that rejected torture and one that recognized the imperative of closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay.”

Following Obama’s speech, former Vice-President Dick Cheney gave an address to the conservative think-tank The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research.  Cheney’s policy speech revisited much of the “neo-conservatism” which gained ground post 9-11, during the first term of the Bush administration.  Following the talk, it was noted by many pundits that although Cheney addressed his national security disagreement to the Obama administration, much of what he argued against had taken place during the second term of the Bush administration—of which he served.

Friday, May 22, 2009

Obama Signs McCain-Supported Law

The President signed the “Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act” to implement defense procurement reform. Designed to review defense project spending, the bill had bi-partisan support, and has been championed as needed legislation for years by former Presidential candidate John McCain.  The President acknowledged his former rival by saying, “Defense procurement reform was one of the issues that John McCain and I discussed in our first meeting after the election.  We pledged to work together to get it done, and today I'm extraordinarily proud to stand here and sign a bill that passed with unanimous support from both parties at every step of the way.”

Obama Greets McCain’s Son at Graduation

Following his signing of the McCain supported defense procurement law; the President joined the McCain family in Annapolis, Maryland where the President spoke at the US Naval Academy Commencement.   Senator McCain’s son—John Sidney McCain IV, commonly known as Jack, became the fourth McCain to graduate from the Naval Academy, and the fourth with the same name.

President Signs Credit-Card Legislation

Describing the need for “common-sense” reforms in the credit-card industry, the President signed a sweeping bill—the “Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act of 2009” that he says will:

• Ban unfair rate increases;
• Prevent unfair fee traps;
• Require plain language in plain sight for disclosures;
• Increase accountability all around;
• And institute protections for students and young people.

Furthermore, the President stated, “Because of this new law:

• Statements will be required to tell credit card holders how long it will take to pay off a balance and what it will cost in interest if they only make the minimum monthly payments. 
• We will put a stop to retroactive rate hikes that appear on a bill suddenly with no rhyme or reason.
• Every card company will have to post its credit card agreements online, and we'll monitor those agreements to see if new protections are needed. 
• Consumers will have more time to understand their statements as well:  Companies will have to mail them 21 days before payment is due, not 14. 
• And, this law ends the practice of shifting payment dates.” 

He continued: “Lastly, among many other provisions, there will be no more sudden charges -- changes to terms and conditions.  We require at least 45 days notice if the credit card company is going to change terms and conditions.  So we're not going to give people a free pass; we expect consumers to live within their means and pay what they owe.  But we also expect financial institutions to act with the same sense of responsibility that the American people aspire to in their own lives.”

Monday, May 25, 2009

Obama and Memorial Day

After spending family time at Camp David, the President honored all who have served our country in the military.  Obama participated in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, and spoke at the cemetery’s amphitheater, saying: “Here lies Presidents and privates; Supreme Court justices and slaves; generals familiar to history, and unknown soldiers known only to God…I laid a wreath at their tomb to pay tribute to all who have given their lives for this country.”

African-American Nominated to Lead NASA

Former Astronaut, and retired Marine Corps Major General, Charles Bolden Jr., was chosen by President Obama to head the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Bolden, has flown on four Shuttle missions and previously served as NASA’s assistant deputy administrator. Once he wins the expected approval of the Senate, Bolden will be the first African-American to lead the agency.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Obama Nominates Hispanic Woman to Supreme Court

President Obama nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court of the United States. Solamayor, of Puerto Rican ancestry, rose from a housing project in the South Bronx, to Princeton and Yale.  She has served as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit since October 1998. In describing her amazing story the President said, “Along the way she's faced down barriers, overcome the odds, lived out the American Dream that brought her parents here so long ago.  And even as she has accomplished so much in her life, she has never forgotten where she began, never lost touch with the community that supported her. What Sonia will bring to the Court, then, is not only the knowledge and experience acquired over a course of a brilliant legal career, but the wisdom accumulated from an inspiring life's journey.”

Week Sixteen

National Scene    5/13 – 5/19/09

By Linnie Frank Bailey

Barack and Michelle Obama, as President and First Lady, continue to open the doors of the White House to new cultural experiences.  Fulfilling a campaign pledge to make the White House the “People’s House,” the Obamas hosted the first ever Poetry Jam to celebrate the ‘spoken word.’  The Obamas also participated in news-making graduations this week, with the President giving the commencement address at Notre Dame University, while protestors criticized his pro-choice stance; and Michelle Obama addressing the first graduating class of UC Merced after being wooed there by student letters and cards.

In policy meetings this week, the President made strong statements regarding Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, auto emission controls, and his desire to see healthcare legislation passed this year.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Poetry Jam at the White House

In the East Room of the White House, the President and the First Lady hosted an evening celebrating poetry, music and the spoken word. With a coffeehouse, jazz-club-like, atmosphere – the East Room was transformed for the event with small, candle-laden tables and dim lights.  Speakers and musicians included, Joshua Bennett, Eric Lewis, Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio, Mayda Del Valle, Esperanza Spalding, and James Earl Jones—who gave a mesmerizing speaking performance from “Othello.”

The President and First Lady were joined by the First-Mom-In-Law—Marian Robinson.  Other guests included Spike Lee and his wife, actor Hill Harper, Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr., Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett, the President’s aide and friend Reggie Love, and students from local colleges, including American University, Gallaudet, Georgetown, and Howard.

“We're here to celebrate the power of words,” President Obama said, adding, “Words help us appreciate beauty and also understand pain. They inspire us to action.” He introduced the first lady as his own poet.  She continued by saying, “I have wanted to do this from day one. It is one thing for people to tell stories in their own space, but it’s something entirely different to tell them in this space.”

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Healthcare Reform This Year

The President met with members of Congress, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, House Education and Labor Committee Chair Rep. George Miller, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Rep. Henry Waxman, and House Ways and Means Committee Chair Rep. Charlie Rangel—to discuss his desire to pass healthcare legislation in the House by July 31, before their August recess.

Calling the meeting encouraging, the President stressed that “urgency and determination” are needed to achieve “what I believe will be historic legislation!” He reiterated his desire to see healthcare reform passed by both the House and the Senate this year, saying, “Whatever plans emerge, both from the House and the Senate, I do believe that they've got to uphold three basic principles:  first, that the rising cost of health care has to be brought down; second, that Americans have to be able to choose their own doctor and their own plan; and third, all Americans have to have quality, affordable health care.”

Friday, May 15, 2009

President and Vice-President Release Personal Financial Disclosures

As required by The Ethics in Government Act of 1978, both President Obama and Vice President Biden released their 2008 financial disclosure reports.  Neither have any conflicts of interest, and their reports have been certified by the independent Office of Government Ethics.  Copies of the reports, which detail assets and income, can be found on the web at the following sites:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/documents/president_278_form_final.pdf

http://www.whitehouse.gov/assets/documents/vicepresident_278_form_final.pdf

Protecting the Country Comes First

Stating, "This is the best way to protect our country, while upholding our deeply held values,” President Obama restarted a Bush-era military trial system for a small number of Guantanamo detainees. The military trials, established by President George W. Bush, had been criticized by Obama as ineffective and unnecessary, however in a briefing to reporters indicating a change in plans, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said, “First and foremost, the president does what is in the best security interest of the United States.”

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Obama Gives Commencement Address at Notre Dame

Acknowledging the controversy surrounding his appearance at a Catholic university because of his pro-choice stance, President Obama gave the commencement address at Notre Dame University.   He calmed the crowd, which included a few protesters that had managed to get inside the auditorium, and spoke on the importance of mutual respect for all opinions and finding common ground.

The President reminded the audience, “The question, then…. is how do we work through these conflicts?  Is it possible for us to join hands in common effort?  As citizens of a vibrant and varied democracy, how do we engage in vigorous debate?  How does each of us remain firm in our principles, and fight for what we consider right, without demonizing those with just as strongly held convictions on the other side?”

Michelle Obama Gives Commencement Address at UC Merced

Addressing the first graduating class at the University of California-Merced, the First Lady told the roughly 500 graduates she believed in them and their power to change their community.  UC Merced, the newest campus in the UC System, achieved quite a coup by getting the First Lady to appear at their small, diverse college of students from mostly working class families. 

In February, the students launched a “Dear Michelle” Campaign, which included over 1,000 letters and hand-written Valentine’s cards telling Mrs. Obama what she meant to them, and begging her to speak at their commencement. Mrs. Obama stated she was moved by their effort.

Monday, May 18, 2009

President Meets with Israeli Prime Minister

The President met for over two hours with Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel, discussing the need to get back to the negotiating table and restart Palestinian-Israeli peace talks. Netanyahu stated he is ready to resume talks with the Palestinians, but that any agreement is contingent on their acceptance of Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. Recapping their meeting, the President stated: “We have seen progress stalled on this front, and I suggested to the prime minister that he has a historic opportunity to get a serious movement on this issue during his tenure….that means that all the parties involved have to take seriously obligations that they have previously agreed to."

The leaders also discussed Iran’s nuclear program and the Administration’s diplomatic outreach to the country, with the president declaring the United States wanted to bring Iran into the world community, however: “We're not going to have talks forever.”

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Joined by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, as well as auto industry executives, President Obama announced new auto emissions and mileage rules designed to combat pollution from greenhouse gasses. The National emissions standard is patterned after policies in California sought by the Governor.  “For the first time in history, we have set in motion a national policy aimed at both increasing gas mileage and decreasing greenhouse gas pollution for all new trucks and cars sold in the United States of America,” President Obama said in remarks from the Rose Garden. 

Week Fifteen

National Scene    5/6 – 5/12/09

By Linnie Frank Bailey

It was a week of significant meetings for President Barack Obama, beginning with a trilateral conference with the leaders of Afghanistan and Pakistan to discuss stabilizing the region, and ending with a first-of-its-kind coming together of all of the major players involved in healthcare, to discuss reform.  Not to go unnoticed, was an Oval Office chit-chat between Obama, Al Sharpton, and Newt Gingrich to discuss education reform. 

This President is surely building bridges!

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Bringing Pakistan and Afghanistan to the Table

The President was joined by Vice-President Joe Biden in a meeting with President Karzai of Afghanistan and President Zardari of Pakistan.  Initially, President Obama met separately with each leader, followed by a trilateral conference.  Pakistan and Afghanistan are considered critical to America’s ‘war on terror’ and the President signaled the importance by saying, “We meet today as three sovereign nations joined by a common goal: to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda and its extremist allies in Pakistan and Afghanistan…to achieve that goal, we must deny them the space to threaten the Pakistani, Afghan, or American people.”

Obama, who has committed additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan, announced future steps there to: grow the economy, develop alternatives to the country’s drug trade, and support free and open national elections. Addressing internal strife within Pakistan, Obama offered “lasting support to democratic institutions, while helping the government confront the insurgents who are the single greatest threat to the Pakistani state.”

First Lady Attends TIME 100 Gala

First Lady Michelle Obama attended and gave remarks at the TIME 100 Annual Dinner at the Rose Jazz Center in New York City. Honorees were presented with the Time 100 Most Influential People Awards.  The First Lady spoke of the need to nurture a new generation of innovators and entrepreneurs who will lend their talents towards addressing social problems in communities across America.

Obama Creates ‘Social Innovation Fund’

Fulfilling a campaign pledge to support non-profit programs ‘that work’, the President announced that he would ask Congress in the FY2010 budget to provide $50 million in seed capital for his Social Innovation Fund. The Fund will identify the most promising, results-oriented non-profit programs and expand their reach throughout the country.   Obama has stated repeatedly that “government alone cannot solve our nation’s problems” and that the country must be “innovative” in finding new solutions to old problems.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Cutting Government Waste: Line-by-Line

The Administration continues to review existing Federal spending programs and has suggested more than one-hundred terminations or reductions that take nearly $17 billion off the federal government’s bottom line. While acknowledging that each program has supporters, the Administration has identified some that should not be funded because they either do not accomplish the goals set for them, do not do so efficiently, or do a job already done by another initiative. Some of the programs suggested for elimination include:

• Educational attaché, Paris, France -- $632,000  (The Department of Education can use e-mail, video conferencing, and modest travel to replace a full-time representative to UNESCO in Paris, France.)
• Even Start Program -- $66 million  (The most recent evaluation found no difference between families in the program and those not in it. Strengthening early childhood education is accomplished through significant investments in proven, more effective programs such as Head Start, Early Head Start, and the Early Learning Challenge Fund.)
• Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation -- $1 million  (Due to high overhead, the Foundation would spend only 20 percent of its appropriation on the fellowships it awards.)
• Advanced Earned Income Tax Credit -- $125 million – (This program benefits very few taxpayers, and has an extremely high error rate:  GAO found that 80 percent of recipients did not meet at least one of its requirements.)
• Javits Gifted and Talented Education Program -- $7 million  (Grants from this program go to only 15 school districts nationwide, and there are no empirical measures to judge their effectiveness)
• Public Broadcasting Grants -- $5 million  (USDA made these grants to support rural public broadcasting stations in their conversions to digital broadcasting.  That transition is now almost complete.)
• Rail Line Relocation Grants -- $25 million  (This program, duplicative of a merit-based program, is loaded with earmarks.)

The Administration stresses these steps are part of a larger effort to change how Washington does business and put the nation’s fiscal house in order.

Sharpton, Gingrich, and Obama – Huh?

“You're probably the only President who can make this happen,” the Reverend Al Sharpton told President Obama as he and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich met with the President in the Oval Office. The far-left civil rights activist, and the far-right former House speaker, shared a sofa as they discussed improving education.  Expressing the need for a spotlight on the nation’s educational issues, Obama joked, “these are the two guys who know more than anybody how to get attention.”

The former adversaries were joined by  New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Education Secretary Arne Duncan to discuss ways to bridge the education gap between Black and White students. “We have a crisis of inequality in this nation,” said Sharpton, noting that the problem persists despite the 55th anniversary of the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision.  “There must be a commitment in this country to equal education," he continued. "There can be no sacred cows.”

Gingrich, an advocate of Bush’s No Child Left Behind policy, (which Obama has criticized), chose instead to focus on common ground, stating “The President has stood up for charter schools and he has made it clear that he believes in teacher accountability.”

Some areas where they did come together include: Paying teachers more for improved student performance, getting rid of poorly performing teachers, and ending “social promotion,” the practice of moving underperforming students to the next grade to keep them with their peers.

The National Day of Prayer

The first Thursday in May, was deemed the National Day of Prayer in 1952, however it was not celebrated publicly in the White House until former President George W. Bush  held religious events—with prayers led by religious leaders from various faiths. Unlike his predecessor, President Obama did not hold a White House special event, opting instead to mark the day with a proclamation. His spokesperson, Robert Gibbs commented that the President decided against a public display saying, “Prayer is something that the President does every day.” 

Friday, May 8, 2009

Town Hall in Spanish

President Barack Obama held the first-ever Spanish language town hall meeting to address the Hispanic community's concerns on the impact of the H1N1 virus. The town hall featured Administration officials including Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, and an audience of health care workers, community activists, and concerned citizens. The event was moderated by Univision Anchor Edna Schmidt.  The President joking about his own limitations with speaking Spanish said, “I'm very proud of this first White House town hall meeting conducted entirely in Spanish….except for my part…..I'm kind of messing up the whole thing!”

Re-Training Workers – Visit the Website Opportunity.Gov

Addressing the need for unemployed workers to find training for new jobs, the President described a woman who lost her job as a physician's receptionist, but kept afloat with unemployment benefits and used Pell Grants to become a registered nurse through a community college. Saying, “far too many Americans are denied that opportunity,” Obama gave the following example: “Say an unemployed factory worker wants to upgrade his skills to become a mechanic or a technician.  In many states, that worker might lose temporary financial support if he enrolls in a training program.  And to make matters worse, unemployment might mean he can't afford higher education, and he likely won't qualify for federal help simply because he may have made a decent salary a year ago, before he was laid off.”  He continued, “Well, that doesn't make much sense for our economy or our country.  So we're going to change it.  First, we'll open new doors to higher education and job training programs to recently laid-off workers who are receiving unemployment benefits.  And if those displaced workers need help paying for their education, they should get it -- and that's why the next step is to make it easier for them to receive Pell Grants.”

The President also discussed the role community colleges can play in retraining unemployed workers, encouraging people to “take advantage of one of America's underappreciated assets -- our community colleges.  These schools offer practical education and technical training, and they're increasingly important centers of learning where Americans can prepare for the jobs of the future.”

The President highlighted a new website for the unemployed, created by the Department of Education and the Department of Labor called opportunity.gov.

Reopening of Statue of Liberty’s Crown.

Following the firing of an aide who authorized an ill-advised flyover to take pictures of Air Force One with the Statue of Liberty as a backdrop, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced the reopening of the exhibit’s crown on July 4^th.  (The crown has been closed since the 9-11 attacks). Access to the crown will be limited to 10 people at a time.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Sykes Socks-It-To-Them

This Sunday morning found Washington abuzz discussing comments made by comedian Wanda Sykes at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner the night before.  Some feigned shock and displeasure, while others thought Sykes’ pointed jabs, particularly those aimed at Rush Limbaugh and former Vice-President Dick Cheney, were right on target. During the routine, Sykes herself summed up the reaction to some of her jokes by saying: “You’re not laughing now, but you’ll be retelling this tomorrow!”

Showing that he too can crack a joke, the President got high marks for his humor and put to rest once and for all criticisms of his wife’s wardrobe, saying the First Lady “has a right to bare arms.”

Monday, May 11, 2009

Historic, Unprecedented Meeting to Address Healthcare

President Obama made a major step toward health care reform by bringing together all of the major players and getting them to agree to changes that can bring about savings of more than $2 trillion on health care costs. Representatives from hospitals, the insurance industry, medical device and pharmaceutical companies, labor and physicians came to the White House to discuss major steps to lower health care costs across the board.

The President, calling the first-of-its-kind meeting “remarkable,” explained the significance of having so many diverse stakeholders at the table:  “The groups who are here today represent different constituencies with different sets of interests. They've not always seen eye to eye with each other or with our government on what needs to be done to reform health care in this country. In fact, some of these groups were among the strongest critics of past plans for comprehensive reform…But what's brought us all together today is a recognition that we can't continue down the same dangerous road we've been traveling for so many years; that costs are out of control; and that reform is not a luxury that can be postponed, but a necessity that cannot wait.”

The President invoked the memory of his own mother’s challenges with the health care system—a point he made often during the campaign—by recalling:  “As I've mentioned before….my mother passed away from ovarian cancer a little over a decade ago. And in the last weeks of her life, when she was coming to grips with her own mortality and showing extraordinary courage just to get through each day, she was spending too much time worrying about whether her health insurance would cover her bills. So I know what it's like to see a loved one who is suffering, but also having to deal with a broken health care system. I know that pain is shared by millions of Americans all across this country.”

Week Fourteen

National Scene    4/29 – 5/4/09

By Linnie Frank Bailey

The Administration began the week with the confirmation of the President’s cabinet pick for the Department of Health and Human Services—former Kansas Governor, Kathleen Sebelius.  Sebelius was the last of Obama’s picks to be confirmed (by a vote of 65-31) and the new Secretary had to hit the ground running as the nation dealt with the swine flu pandemic.  The vote came after Democrats urged quick action so that Sebelius could get to work leading the federal response to the world-wide flu outbreak.  The week ended with reassurances that the flu was not as severe as first suggested. However, the Administration vowed to keep close tabs on the outbreak as it spread across the country.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

100^th Day celebrated in Missouri

President Obama marked the actual one hundredth day of his administration at a town hall meeting in Arnold, Missouri.  During a moment of retrospection, he recalled,  “Now, back in November, some folks were surprised that we showed up in Springfield at the end of our campaign.  But then again, some folks were surprised that we even started our campaign in the first place. They didn't give us much of a chance.  They didn't think we could do things differently.  They didn't know if this country was ready to move in a new direction.  But here's the thing -- my campaign wasn't born in Washington.  My campaign was rooted in neighborhoods just like this one, in towns and cities all across America; rooted in folks who work hard and look after their families and seek a brighter future for their children and for their communities and for their country.”

Obama’s Deal for Teachers

During his town hall in Missouri, Obama repeated a pledge he made during his campaign to improve the educational system.  Speaking of the challenges, Obama stated:  “The deal I've got to strike with teachers, though -- I may not get as much applause on this -- is I would like to work with teachers and the teachers unions, because I'm a union guy, but I do believe that it's important for the unions to work flexibly with school districts ….so that if you've got a really excellent teacher, after 15, 20 years, they can get paid a little bit more if they're doing a really good job.  And now the flip side -- I'm telling you, I'm getting to the point where I'm not going to get applause.  If you've got a bad teacher who can't -- after given all the support and the training that they need -- is just not performing up to snuff, we've got to find that person a new job.”

Monday, May 4, 2009

Ending Offshore Tax Havens

Addressing another campaign pledge, President Obama submitted a proposal to curb tax havens and end benefits for companies who create jobs overseas.  Instead, the Administration wants to provide incentives for businesses to create jobs in America. Describing his proposal as “restoring fairness and balance to our tax code,” Obama continued, “On the campaign, I used to talk about the outrage of a building in the Cayman Islands that had over 12,000 businesses claim this building as their headquarters. And I've said before, either this is the largest building in the world or the largest tax scam in the world,” Obama said. “And I think the American people know which it is.”

The Administration expects strong opposition from businesses that want to hold on to their tax loopholes. Their Congressional supporters may also provide opposition.  However, in announcing proposals aimed at overhauling the U.S. tax code, Obama complained that existing law makes it possible to “pay lower taxes if you create a job in Bangalore, India, than if you create one in Buffalo, N.Y.”

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Celebrating Cinco de Mayo

The Obamas each celebrated Cinco Del Mayo—the President with Mexican Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan at the White House—and the First Lady at D.C.’s Latin American Montessori Bilingual Public Charter School, a small institution serving 145 pre-school through fourth grade students. “Feliz Cuatro de Mayo!” said Michelle Obama as she greeted her audience and enjoyed student performances of folk dances from El Salvador, Colombia and Mexico. The students were dressed in colorful, native costumes. “Que fantastico!” Mrs. Obama exclaimed after the performances.