Tag Archives: Biden

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Taking Control of America’s Energy Future


In his weekly address, President Obama discusses progress in American energy and highlights that we are now producing more oil at home than we buy from other countries for the first time in nearly two decades. We reached this milestone in part not only because we’re producing more energy, but because we’re wasting less energy, and as a result, we are also reducing our carbon emissions while growing the economy.

Click here to watch this week’s Weekly Address.

Watch: President Obama's Weekly Address

Honoring our Military: On Veterans Day, the President honored those who have served, or are currently serving, our country. The President hosted a breakfast that morning for veterans and their families before heading off to Arlington Cemetery with the Vice President, the First Lady, and Dr. Biden. The President participated in a wreath-laying ceremony and spoke to the crowd about the devotion and commitment of those who don our nation’s uniform.

In the life of our nation, across every generation, there are those who stand apart. They step up, they raise their hands, they take that oath. They put on the uniform and they put their lives on the line. They do this so that the rest of us might live in a country and a world that is safer, freer, and more just.

The President also reminded Americans that we need to support troops after they have come home. “This is how we’ll be judged.  Not just by how well we care for our troops in battle, but how we treat them when they come home,” the President said. Check out the President’s remarks here.

In honor of Veteran’s Day, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden wrote an op-ed about Joining Forces that appeared in military news websites, highlighting their commitment to employment, wellness, and education for veterans, service members, and their families.

Continuing his work with members of the military later that week, the President welcomed senior civilian defense and military leaders to an annual meeting and dinner, where those present discussed a wide range of issues.

Affordable Care Act: President Obama made a statement in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room on Thursday, announcing new steps to help those Americans that are receiving insurance cancellation notices. The President stated that insurers can offer customers who have been notified about canceled plans the option to renew their 2013 plan in 2014.

“It took 100 years for us to even get to the point where we could start talking about and implementing a law to make sure everybody has got health insurance,” the President said. “And my pledge to the American people is, is that we’re going to solve the problems that are there, we’re going to get it right, and the Affordable Care Act is going to work for the American people.”

Manufacturing in Ohio: The President spoke at a steel factory in Cleveland, Ohio on Thursday, highlighting the plant’s comeback after nearly 1,200 steelworkers were furloughed when the auto industry was on the brink of collapse. Today, ArcelorMittal, is the largest supplier of steel in the auto industry and is a global leader in producing advanced high-strength steel for fuel efficient cars. “The story of this plant is the story of America over the last five years,” President Obama said. “We haven’t just been recovering from a crisis. What we’ve been trying to do is rebuild a new foundation for growth and prosperity to protect ourselves from future crises.”

Tribal Nations Conference: On Thursday, the White House hosted the fifth White House Tribal Nationals Conference, which welcomed leaders from all 566 federally recognized tribes. The President spoke to conference attendees, highlighting the need for strengthening justice and tribal sovereignty, expanding opportunities for Native Americans, and protecting tribal lands. Read the President’s full remarks here.

Protecting kids with asthma and allergies: President Obama signed into law the School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act on Wednesday, which encourages schools to plan for severe asthma attacks and allergic reactions. Approximately 9.5 percent of American children suffer from asthma, and between 4 and 6 percent of children have food allergies. By updating and upgrading school’s response capacity for asthma and food allergies, this law will help relieve the anxiety of millions of parents.

First Lady Talks Education: First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan visited Bell Multicultural High School in Washington, D.C. to discuss the importance of youth empowerment and education. The First Lady shared her personal academic experiences to a group of sophomores, telling them that she pushed herself to have a strong academic and extracurricular record. “And when I encountered doubters…when people told me that I wasn’t going to cut it… I didn’t let that stop me,” she said.

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Standing Up for Women and Girls at Home and Abroad


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Friends,

Here in the United States and across the globe, President Obama and his Administration have been working to empower women and girls.

On Wednesday, President Obama visited Knox College in Illinois to kick off a series of speeches about his vision for rebuilding an economy that puts the middle class – and those fighting to join it – front and center.

That same day , five past winners and current finalists of the annual Google Science Fair met with Todd Park, U.S. Chief Technology Officer, at the White House to discuss career paths for women in science, technology, engineering and math.

Dr. Jill Biden is traveling in India this week and focusing on issues affecting women and children. On Tuesday, Dr. Biden participated in a roundtable discussion with officials from the government of Maharashtra, USAID, UNICEF, Indian civil society and the private sector to learn about their efforts to improve nutrition across the country. Please read on for more about Dr. Biden’s important visit.

That same day, First Lady Michelle Obama addressed 1,800 people at the National Council of La Raza’s Annual Conference in New Orleans, including many mothers and grandmothers, to talk about the importance of healthy lifestyles for families – including nutrition, exercise, and regular check-ups and screenings.

In case you missed it, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Caroline Kennedy to be the next Ambassador to Japan and Carrie Hessler Radelet to be the new Director of the Peace Corps. The Senate confirmed Gina McCarthy as the next Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the President commended her as a “proven leader.”

Please read below for more, and thank you for all that you do!

White House Council on Women & Girls

President Obama Lays out a Better Bargain for the Middle Class

In his remarks on Wednesday, President Obama highlighted the progress our country has made together in the five years since the start of the recession saying,

“Thanks to the grit and resilience and determination of the American people – of folks like you – we’ve been able to clear away the rubble from the financial crisis. We started to lay a new foundation for stronger, more durable economic growth. As a country, we’ve recovered faster and gone further than most other advanced nations in the world. With new American revolutions in energy and technology and manufacturing and health care, we’re actually poised to reverse the forces that battered the middle class for so long, and start building an economy where everyone who works hard can get ahead.”

Learn more about President Obama’s plan here.

President Obama 7.24 Knox College

President Barack Obama delivers a speech on the economy at Knox College in Galesburg, Ill., July 24, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

All-Star Female Students Come to the White House to Discuss Women in STEM

On Wednesday, at a meeting in the West Wing of the White House, U.S. Chief Technology Officer Todd Park, Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer Jen Pahlka, and other senior Obama Administration officials specializing in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), met with five inspiring young women to discuss academic and career pathways in STEM fields. The students were past winners and current finalists of the annual Google Science Fair—an online science competition open to high-school-aged students that solicits “ideas that will change the world.”

Read more about the impressive accomplishments of nominees and finalists Brittany Wenger, Valerie Ding, Naomi Shah, Lizzie Zhao and Lauren Hodge.

Dr. Biden’s Trip to India

This week, Dr. Biden has been traveling in India visiting with non-profits and members of the private sector to discuss issues affecting women and children, including life-threatening malnutrition. On Tuesday, Dr. Biden attended a roundtable discussion with Government of Maharashtra Officials, USAID, UNICEF, Indian civil society and private sector representatives to learn about their efforts to improve nutrition across the country and to make available other proven health interventions to prevent child deaths, such as immunizations, clean water, and treatment of pneumonia and diarrhea.

After the roundtable discussion Dr. Biden continued on to The Dilaasa Crisis Intervention Department for Women in Bandra, an area in Mumbai. The center is the first hospital-based crisis center in India for female survivors of domestic violence and came out of a partnership between the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, a public entity, and the Center for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes, a private trust. This relationship illustrates how dedicated both the people and the government are to creating a safe space for the victims of gender based violence and to ensuring that this nightmare ends for so many women.

Read more about Dr. Biden’s visit to India here.

Dr. Biden Meets with Community Leaders NGOs

Dr. Biden meets with community leaders, US and India agency officials, and NGOS to discuss joint efforts to end childhood malnutrition. (Photo Credit: Carrie Levay)

Michelle Obama Empowers Latino Community at Nation Council of La Raza Conference

Speaking to over 1,800 attendees at the Annual Conference of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR) on Tuesday, First Lady Michelle Obama celebrated the NCLR’s accomplishments in reducing obesity through its Comer Bien (Eat Well) program. She emphasized, however, that there is still much more work to be done since nearly 40 percent of Hispanic children in the U.S. are overweight or obese and Hispanic kids ages nine to 13 are only half as likely to participate in organized physical activity outside school.

The First Lady urged the audience to use their purchasing decisions to make change. She said, “Today, the Latino community’s buying power is more than one trillion dollars…and it’s expected to increase to $1.5 trillion by 2015. So make no mistake about it, with the choices that you make, you all could completely transform the marketplace… So when companies step up and provide healthy choices…we all need to step up and actually take advantage of those choices.”

Read the First Lady’s full remarks here and learn more about the First Lady’s efforts to fight childhood obesity with her Let’s Move initiative.

In Case You Missed It: Confirmations & Nominations

On Tuesday, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Caroline Kennedy as Ambassador to Japan. Caroline Kennedy is President of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation and Chair of the Senior Advisory Committee of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University. She is the editor of several New York Times best-selling books on topics including constitutional law, American history, politics, and poetry. She received a B.A. from Harvard University and a J.D. from Columbia Law School.

Last week, the U.S. Senate confirmed Gina McCarthy as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. As President Obama noted: “With years of experience at the state and local level, Gina is a proven leader who knows how to build bipartisan support for commonsense environmental solutions that protect the health and safety of our kids while promoting economic growth.”

The President also announced his intent to nominate Carolyn “Carrie” Hessler Radelet as Director of the Peace Corps saying, “As Deputy Director of the Peace Corps, Carrie has been instrumental in recruiting and training thousands of Peace Corps volunteers who work to promote social and economic development around the world. I’m delighted to nominate her as Director, so this program can continue to benefit from her vision and commitment.” Currently Ms. Hessler Radelet is Deputy Director of the Peace Corps, a position she has held since 2010. Read her biography here.

President Obama Moniz McCarthy Burwell East Room Nomination 3.4.13

President Barack Obama announces the nominations of, from left, Ernest Moniz as Energy Secretary, Gina McCarthy as Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, and Sylvia Mathews Burwell as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in the East Room of the White House, March 4, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
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Now’s The Time … thinkprogress


By ThinkProgress War Room

Let’s Get Immigration Reform Done

We are now closer than we have been in years to achieving common sense immigration reform that will put the 11 MILLION undocumented immigrants on a path to citizenship.

Momentum for reform has been building since the election, when American voters strongly rejected Mitt Romney’s harsh “self-deportation” prescription in favor of President Obama’s forward-thinking call for immigration reform. Not surprisingly, a number of conservative pundits like Sean Hannity “evolved” on immigration just a few days after the election. Since then, a chorus of Republicans including House Speaker John Boehner, Rep. Paul Ryan, and Bill O’Reilly have come out in support of reforms for our broken immigration system.

The president addressed the issue in his Second Inaugural Address last week:

“Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity — (applause) — until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country.” (Applause.)

Yesterday, a bipartisan group of senators — Sens. Michael Bennet (D-CO), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Jeff Flake (R-AZ), John McCain (R-AZ), Bob Menendez (R-NJ), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) — issued a set of principles for immigration reform including a broad agreement on the need to create a path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in our nation. The four basic principles are:

  • A pathway to citizenship, contingent on continued enforcement and border security
  • An overhaul of the legal immigration system
  • Enhanced employment verification
  • Improved process for admitting future workers

The Senate’s principles provide a strong foundation on which to build common-sense immigration policy, but ultimately we would like to see legislation that, for example, ensures that all families, regardless of sexual orientation, have the right to remain together.

Today, President Obama traveled to Las Vegas, NV to issue his call to action on immigration reform:

“I’m here because most Americans agree that it’s time to fix a system that’s been broken for way too long. I’m here because business leaders, faith leaders, labor leaders, law enforcement, and leaders from both parties are coming together to say now is the time to find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as the land of opportunity. Now is the time to do this so we can strengthen our economy and strengthen our country’s future.”

As the president also noted, there is no need for Congress to dawdle. A bipartisan group in the Senate is already at work (as is one in the House). And just today, the Senate Judiciary Committee announced their first hearing on the issue. Everyone knows what we need to do and how we can accomplish it. Sí se puede, as the president’s audience chanted today.

Our Center for American Progress colleagues outlined ten reasons why the time for comprehensive immigration reform is now:

The momentum for reform

1. Congressional leaders from both parties agree on the principles for reform.

2. President Obama has made immigration reform one of his top priorities in his second term.

3. The American people strongly support reform. Polls have shown that the American people want Congress to provide a sensible solution to our nation’s broken immigration system, including a path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants. In particular, a new Hart Research Associates/Public Opinion Strategies poll found that close to three-quarters of all Americans—an overwhelming majority—support a pathway to citizenship.

The politics of reform

4. The November 6 election was a game-changer. President Obama won re-election with a stunning 71 percent of Latino voters and 73 percent of Asian American voters. As the polling firm Latino Decisions pointed out, Latino votes more than made up the margin of victory for the president, and the final tally may indicate even wider margins of support. These voters rejected the harsh immigration platform and rhetoric of 2012 Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, and vastly supported the policies of President Obama, including his opposition to state anti-immigration measures such as Arizona’s S.B. 1070 and his deferred action program, which allows young aspiring Americans to apply for a two-year reprieve from deportation and a work permit.

5. Demographics are changing in the United States. The November election was also critical in signaling the new demographic reality in the United States: Latino and other voters of color are growing as a proportion of the overall population, making their votes all the more critical in future elections. Latino voters comprised 9.5 percent of the electorate in 2008 and a full 11 percent in 2012. These shifting demographics—especially in key swing states such as Nevada, Colorado, Florida, and Virginia—mean that how each party talks about immigration will only be more important in the future.

6. An ever-growing chorus of Republicans has come out in favor of reform. In the past few days alone, Republican heavyweights such as Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush have written op-eds on the need for immigration reform, while Fox News anchor Bill O’Reilly praised Sen. Rubio’s plan.

The policy of reform

7. Our border is more secure than ever, and we’ve met our border benchmarks.Much of the debate in 2007—the previous time that comprehensive immigration reform was on the table in Congress—revolved around securing the U.S.-Mexico border. But in the past six years, the United States has made great strides in border security, meeting or surpassing all of the security benchmarks written into the 2007 legislation: Our southern border is now safer than ever; more boots are on the ground; and there are greater resources to track, detain, and punish unauthorized border crossers. Indeed, net migrationfrom Mexico—the number of people entering minus the number of people leaving—which is one of the main sending countries for undocumented immigrants, is now at or below zero.

8. Lack of reform is hindering a range of other policy priorities. The fact that 11 million undocumented immigrants currently live in the shadows has become a political and policy obstacle to addressing other issues such as fixing our nation’s health care system, educating the future workforce, and identifying who among us are hard-working family members versus those who are here to do us harm.

9. Immigration reform is an economic imperative. Passing a comprehensive immigration reform plan would add $1.5 trillion to the U.S. cumulative gross domestic product over 10 years and would add between $4.5 billion and $5.4 billion in tax revenue over the first three years. Simply put, allowing all people to work on a level playing field would improve wages for natives and newcomers alike. And higher wages means better jobs and increased spending, helping the economy as a whole.

10. We must provide a direct path to citizenship. Naturalized citizens earn higher wages than legal permanent residents (green card holders), so providing a direct pathway to citizenship would boost our economy, adding at least $21 billion to $45 billion over 10 years.

BOTTOM LINE: The question is no longer whether immigration is the right thing to do economically, morally, or for the country as a whole, nor is it a question of whether the American people support it. The question now is whether Congress can put aside its partisan differences and act on the will of the people.

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Stephanie Cutter, BarackObama.com


Truth Team

If you watched Thursday night’s debate, I don’t need to tell you that Vice President Biden scored a decisive victory.
The Vice President brought facts and conviction to Danville, Kentucky, and Paul Ryan brought canned lines and empty promises. It turns out, facts and details matter — and it’s clear that with their total disregard for both, Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan know their plans for this country are indefensible.
In case you know people who missed the debate, share some of the highlights with them:
The difference on taxes :  Ryan couldn’t explain how the Romney-Ryan tax plan wouldn’t hurt the middle class. That’s because it’s mathematically impossible to pay for their $5 trillion tax plan favoring the wealthiest without raising taxes on middle-class families. Watch the clip of Vice President Biden pointing this out, then watch the Vice President explaining the Obama-Biden tax plan— and be sure to share with others:

                                      

Medicare : Joe Biden :  laid out all the facts about the Obama-Biden plan to strengthen Medicare, and explained how the Romney-Ryan Medicare voucher plan would raise costs for seniors. Take a look, and let others know, too:

                                      

The middle class :  After the debate, one reporter called Vice President Biden “a passionate warrior for the middle class.” I think this clip shows exactly why.Check it out, and pass it along:

                                      

Afghanistan Ryan :  couldn’t explain their plan for our troops in Afghanistan because they don’t have one. The President has a clear plan to end the war in Afghanistan in 2014, while Romney has been all over the map. Listen to the Vice President explain, and pass it along:

                                      

Women’s health :  When Ryan was asked to ensure women that their right to choose would be protected, he refused to answer because they wouldn’t. Vice President Biden, on the other hand, gave a heartfelt explanation of his views on women’s health. Take a look, and share with others:

                                      

Vice President Biden : has spent a lifetime fighting for the middle class, and he and President Obama will continue doing so in their second term.
Thanks for doing everything you can to make sure that happens.
Thanks,
Stephanie
P.S. — This morning, we released a new campaign ad narrated by Morgan Freeman that highlights what President Obama has done to move America forward, get folks back to work, and strengthen the middle class. Take a look, and share it with everyone you know.