They saw something in the young Obama.
On February 6, 1990, it announced (in a headline that’s now pretty dated), “First Black Elected to Head Harvard’s Law Review,” and explained that the 28-year-old’s new role was considered the “highest student position” at the school.
He is the last man standing from the President’s 2008 presidential campaign and today, with the president’s statement, we can now say for sure that Senior Advisor Dan Pheiffer is leaving his job at the White House.
“Dan has been beside me on every step of this incredible journey, starting with those earliest days of the campaign in 2007,” the President said in a statement. “And through it all, he’s been smart, steady, tireless and true to the values we started with. Like everyone else in the White House, I’ve benefited from his political savvy and his advocacy for working people. He’s a good man and a good friend, and I’m going to miss having him just down the hall from me.”
The president continued: “Like everyone else in the White House, I’ve benefited from his political savvy and his advocacy for working people. He’s a good man and a good friend, and I’m going to miss having him just down the hall from me.”
In a country where women are sometimes treated worse than second class citizens, The First Lady of the United States sent a powerful message when she visited Saudi Arabia with her husband on Tuesday. The pictures say it all!
There she was, standing side-by-side with her husband as he stepped off Air Force One in Riyadh today, where, during a brief visit, the president offered condolences for the recent death of King Abdullah and met with his successor, King Salman.
The first lady accompanied the president throughout the stay, embodying some of the reforms that her husband is pushing the country to adopt.
Wearing pants and her head uncovered, Mrs. Obama stood dutifully beside her husband as he shook hands with the Saudi delegation on the airport tarmac this morning and again at Erga Palace on the outskirts of Riyadh.
At times she reached out to shake an occasional hand, but mostly she stood back and offered just a smile.
According to reporters traveling with the president, due to the cultural constraints, the first lady purposely stood slightly behind her husband and waited for a gesture to be made to her by the men in the receiving line. If one of the men initiated a handshake she returned, if not then she simply smiled or nodded politely.
She meant to say, take these green lipstick for the “First Lady,” but instead, the YouTube star known as, Glozell Green, told the president to take the lipstick for his “first wife,” causing the President to ask, “do you know something I don’t know?”
In all, the three YouTube stars selected to interview President Obama did a pretty decent job. The complete interview is shown below.
Republicans in charge of Congress have managed to further divide the country and its allies by planning a Congressional meeting with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu without following protocol and coordinating the event with the White House. The meeting, set for March, has outraged the White House, causing one official saying the Israeli leader had “spat” in the face of Barack Obama.
“We thought we’ve seen everything,” the newspaper quoted an unnamed senior US official as saying. “But Bibi managed to surprise even us.
“There are things you simply don’t do. He spat in our face publicly and that’s no way to behave. Netanyahu ought to remember that President Obama has a year and a half left to his presidency, and that there will be a price,” he said.
Officials in Washington said that the “chickenshit” epithet — with which an anonymous administration official branded Netanyahu several months ago — was mild compared to the language used in the White House when news of Netanyahu’s planned speech came in.
In his address the Israeli leader is expected to speak about stalled US-led nuclear negotiations with Iran, and to urge lawmakers to slap Tehran with a new round of tougher sanctions in order to force it to comply with international demands. The Mossad intelligence service on Thursday went to the rare length of issuing a press statement to deny claims, cited by Kerry, that its chief Tamir Pardo had told visiting US politicians that he opposed further sanctions.
Haaretz reported that Obama had personally demanded that Netanyahu tone down his pro-sanctions rhetoric in a phone call between the two last week. The president has said a sanctions bill would cripple negotiations with Iranian leaders at a critical stage, and has threatened to veto such a bill should it come through.
Someone please remind me, why is this dude called a “Democrat” again? He fights with Obama more than McConnell does! His latest battle with the administration came after Obama said in the State of the Union address, that if any bill comes before his desk recommending sanctions for Iran, he would veto them.
The administration’s goal of course, is to turn back the clock on Iran’s nuclear weapon development, and since lifting some sanctions on the Iran’s government, noted progress is seen as Iran slows down their nuclear ambitions. Menendez has always been against lifting certain sanctions and wants to impose more. So hearing about Obama’s veto threat made Menendez fume.
“The more I hear from the administration and its quotes, the more it sounds like talking points that come straight out of Tehran,” Menendez said. “And it feeds to the Iranian narrative of victimization, when they are the ones with original sin — an illicit nuclear weapons program going back over the course of 20 years that they are unwilling to come clean on.”
Menendez and Obama reportedly got into a tense exchange over the nuclear talks last week at the Senate Democratic Issues conference, according to the New York Times.
Two anonymous sources who witnessed the exchange told the newspaper that Menendez said he took “personal offense” at the President’s urging lawmakers not to pursue sanctions against Iran for short-term political gain.
Watch below:
Another common lie Republicans tell is that Barack Obama is engaged in a war on religion. That line of course, is meant to keep the Christian conservatives in line and to foster their continued hate for the president Yet, in spite of that lie, the president just cintinued a long tradition and proclaimed January 16th as Religious Freedom Day.
Below is the full text of the president’s proclamation.
From many faiths and diverse beliefs, Americans are united by the ideals we cherish. Our shared values define who we are as a people and what we stand for as a Nation. With abiding resolve, generations of patriots have fought — through great conflict and fierce debate — to secure and defend these freedoms, irrevocably weaving them deep into the fabric of our society. Today, we celebrate an early milestone in the long history of one of our country’s fundamental liberties.
On January 16, 1786, the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was adopted. It was one of the first laws in our Nation to codify the right of every person to profess their opinions in matters of faith, and it declares that “no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any” religion. Drafted by Thomas Jefferson and guided through the Virginia legislature by James Madison, this historic legislation served as a model for the religious liberty protections enshrined in our Constitution.The First Amendment prohibits the Government from establishing religion. It protects the right of every person to practice their faith how they choose, to change their faith, or to practice no faith at all, and to do so free from persecution and fear. This religious freedom allows faith to flourish, and our Union is stronger because a vast array of religious communities coexist peacefully with mutual respect for one another. Since the age of Jefferson and Madison, brave women and men of faith have challenged our conscience; today, our Nation continues to be shaped by people of every religion and of no religion, bringing us closer to our founding ideals. As heirs to this proud legacy of liberty, we must remain vigilant in our efforts to safeguard these freedoms.
We must also continue our work to protect religious freedom around the globe. Throughout the world, millions of individuals are subjected to discrimination, abuse, and sanctioned violence simply for exercising their religion or choosing not to claim a faith. Communities are being driven from their ancient homelands because of who they are or how they pray, and in conflict zones, mass displacement has become all too common.
In the face of these challenges, I am proud the United States continues to stand up for the rights of all people to practice their faiths in peace. Promoting religious freedom has always been a key objective of my Administration’s foreign policy because history shows that nations that uphold the rights of their people — including the freedom of religion — are ultimately more just, more peaceful, and more successful. In every country, individuals should be free to choose and live their faith based upon the persuasion of the mind — and of the heart and soul. Today, let us continue our work to protect this tradition and advance the cause of religious freedom worldwide.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 2015, as Religious Freedom Day. I call on all Americans to commemorate this day with events and activities that teach us about this critical foundation of our Nation’s liberty, and that show us how we can protect it for future generations at home and around the world.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fifteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand fifteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-ninth.
Here is something else Republicans will obviously fight the president on, because it benefits working America directly, and we all know Republicans don’t like much of anything that benefit the American workers.
Obama will take steps to provide federal employees with up to six weeks of paid sick leave to care for a new child. And he’ll propose that Congress pass legislation to give federal workers an additional six weeks of paid parental leave.
Details on how Obama would raise the $2 billion to help states will be released in the president’s budget proposal next month, senior adviser Valerie Jarrett said Wednesday.
Obama wants Congress to pass legislation that has been sponsored since 2005 by Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., to allow workers to earn up to seven days, or 56 hours, of paid sick leave to care for themselves or a sick family member, obtain preventive care or deal with domestic violence. Under the Healthy Families Act, workers would earn an hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours they work. Employers that already provide paid sick time would not have to change their policies as long as the time earned can be used for the same purposes.
Obama will also call on states and cities to adopt similar legislation; some already have, as the White House noted in a fact sheet.
I share this news with joy, not because President Obama is the most admired man in America or Hillary Clinton is the most admired woman, I share this news because it is sure to make some Republicans’ head explode!
My job here is done.
Despite a rocky year for Democrats, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama and have both held on to their reign as the most admired man and woman in America, coming in with strong leads ahead of of Oprah Winfrey, First Lady Michelle Obama, Sarah Palin, Pope Francis and former President Bill Clinton, according to Gallup’s annual poll.
This is the president’s seventh consecutive year topping the “most admired” list – a not-so surprising feat as sitting president’s have typically held this spot.
Clinton, who is widely expected to announce a bid for president next year, has held the “most admired woman” title 17 times in the past 18 years – breaking the streak only once, in 2001, when then-First Lady Laura Bush snatched the top spot following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
I don’t know what they would say about this one but trust me, after seeing this picture, Republicans will blow their lids in 3,2,1…
The Obamacare love grows. And I’m absolutely positive that a lot of Republicans are covered and enjoying their Obamacare!
Nearly 2 million people have signed up for health insurance for the first time through HealthCare.gov and close to 6.4 million people were enrolled in the federal marketplace one month into the 2015 enrollment season, HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell said Tuesday.
“People are shopping for coverage and people are signing up,” Burwell said in a rare press conference, adding that she was encouraged by strong start.
Story Continued Below
The pace means HHS is well on its way to having more than 9 million people covered in state and federal exchanges in 2015. The sign-up season ends Feb. 15.
The enrollment update included both new customers as well as people who got covered for 2014 and are renewing. About 1.8 million people actively renewed their health coverage as of Dec. 15, the cut-off for Jan. 1. coverage. Others who were covered in the first year were automatically re-enrolled for a second year.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2014/12/obamacare-enrollment-numbers-113765.html#ixzz3MkEUDrer
This guy is making so much history, I’m almost having whiplash trying to keep up! Today’s moment in history-making may seem like small potatoes to some, but below the surface, Mr. Obama’s decision to call on women reporters only during his last press conference of the year is, in essence, a civil rights moment.
Women, although they do the same jobs as men, still make about 25% less than men do for the same work, and in the White House press corps the male domination remains true. In countless presidential press conferences the big boys pull up their pants, sit back with their legs crossed looking down their nose with a smug look waiting for their inevitable turn to match wits with presidents. And previous presidents knew that calling on these smug lugs was the way to get their messages out.
But here comes Barack Obama. Already sporting a brand new historic moment with his Cuba decision, the president wasn’t done yet. He willfully chose to release his internal civil rights activist and recognized the many contributions of the women of the White House press corps.
Former ABC News correspondent Ann Compton, the first woman to report on the White House full-time for a network and who covered the beat for 40 years, said that never before has a president only taken questions from women during a solo press conference.
Do your thing Mr. Obama, do your thing! Keep the history moments coming!
