Mostrando las entradas con la etiqueta President Obama. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando las entradas con la etiqueta President Obama. Mostrar todas las entradas

jueves, 12 de enero de 2017


"Yes, we can."
President Obama spoke these three words for the first time in January 2008 in New Hampshire. And for the past eight years, these words have served as the backbone of his Presidency: the belief that, through hard work and a commitment to hope, we can make progress possible for the American people.
As we look back at the last eight years, people from across the country (and the globe) are taking some time to reflect on a moment that inspired them to share in this belief, and even to take action in their own communities.
And don't forget to tune in to hear the President’s grateful farewell to you on Tuesday, January 10.

What #YesWeCan means to you:

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sábado, 31 de diciembre de 2016


I am very proud to be both Navajo and American. As the President of the Navajo Nation, I’ve dedicated my life to ensuring that, as a Navajo, my story -- and our stories -- are part of our collective American history. Today, I want to share one of those stories with you.
There was a time when our nations, American and Navajo, were at war with each other -- when the U.S. Cavalry forcibly rounded up Navajo men, women, and children, and marched them at gunpoint to a foreign land hundreds of miles away. During this time, some of my Navajo ancestors successfully hid at a sacred place of prayer, shelter, and fortitude: the Bears Ears area of Utah.

Bears Ears National Monument
Bears Ears National Monument

This beautiful piece of land stretches for over a million acres across the southern edge of the state. Its ancient cliff dwellings, ceremonial sites, abundant rock art, countless cultural artifacts, winding creek beds, and expanses of desert land, contain the great history of my nation.
This place served to protect my family then, just as it has protected many Native American people throughout the years.
This action reflects the President’s profound record on conservation: He has done more than any other president in history to set aside more land and water for the future.
But it is also in accordance with his actions to elevate the voices of Native people. Five sovereign tribal nations petitioned to have this irreplaceable land conserved.
Bears Ears National Monument

Bears Ears National Monument is sacred not only to the Diné people, but also our Hopi, Ute, and Zuni neighbors. These tribes came together in an unprecedented show of unity to conserve these lands for future generations of all Americans. This intertribal coalition also pushed for a new standard for national monuments and tribal involvement.
With this step to protect and conserve these irreplaceable lands, he has set a new precedent for national monument tribal collaborative management. And he has strengthened the relationship between our Navajo and American nations.
As both Navajo and American, I am proud our President listened to a sovereign appeal and acted to preserve our sacred land for future generations.
Thank you for listening,
Russell Begaye
President, Navajo Nation

How President Obama has protected our sacred land for future generations:

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jueves, 29 de septiembre de 2016

Here's what -- and who -- you'll see at South by South Lawn:
Earlier this year, President Obama stopped by South by Southwest ® to issue a challenge to creative thinkers, innovators, and entrepreneurs across the country:
"We are at a moment in history where technology, globalization, our economy are changing so fast," he said. "How can we start coming up with new platforms, new ideas, new approaches across disciplines and across skill sets to solve some of the big problems that we're facing today?"
On Monday, October 3, President Obama is bringing the creative thinkers and innovators who work at the cutting-edge of the changing world we live in to help answer that question. From filmmakers and artists to entrepreneurs and public leaders, the White House will host inspiring and effective people who are dedicated to change to discuss how we can leverage our newest technologies to tackle our toughest challenges.

President Obama in Conversation with Leonardo DiCaprio and Dr. Katharine Hayhoe
President Obama will join a conversation with Academy Award-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio and climate scientist Dr. Katharine Hayhoe about the importance of protecting the one planet we’ve got for future generations.
Following the conversation, attendees will watch the domestic premiere of DiCaprio’s new climate documentary film Before the Flood presented by National Geographic in a first-of-its-kind film screening on the South Lawn of the White House.
SXSL presents The White House Student Film Festival

On Sunday, October 2, the American Film Institute (AFI) will welcome the young artists of the 3rd Annual White House Student Film Festival with a day to premiere some of their work. Students in grades K-12 submitted more than 700 short films on this year's theme: The World I Want to Live In. Some of these aspiring filmmakers from around the nation will be joined by professional artists who work behind and in front of the camera. Special guests will include Stranger Things creators Matt and Ross Duffer, Executive Producers Dan Cohen and Shawn Levy, and President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities member Alfre Woodard.
6'x9
Learn firsthand what it’s like to be locked up in solitary confinement. This virtual reality experience places the viewer inside a 6-foot by 9-foot cell with little more than a bed and toilet. People can experience the psychological impacts of confinement, like blurred vision, hallucinations, and a sense of floating that may occur after long-term sensory deprivation. The Guardian used game engine technology and The Mill worked from first-person accounts of cell design and spatial audio capture to create this groundbreaking and innovative documentary.
And don't miss special musical performances by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, the Lumineers, DJ Beverly Bond, and more!
Get all the details here to learn how you can tune in and participate in this one-of-a-kind event at the White House: www.whitehouse.gov/SXSL

Here's what -- and who -- you'll see at South by South Lawn

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sábado, 17 de septiembre de 2016

Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! This is my seventh year celebrating it as a staffer at the White House, and it’s hard to believe it will be the final one.
Growing up in a Mexican-American family in San Antonio, Texas, I was raised to be proud of both my Mexican and American heritage. I was taught the values of this country by my parents, grandparents, and very large network of extended family and friends. I was taught that anyone can achieve their dreams, if they work hard. But I never thought I’d end up in the White House. And as someone who’s worked on public policy and social justice issues all her life, I never thought I’d get the opportunity to be part of the progress we’ve made under this remarkable president.


Under President Obama, we’ve brought back the economy from the brink and helped make sure more families have access to the same basic opportunities: a good-paying job, affordable health care, and a good education. Since the President took office, about 4 million more Hispanic Americans have health care than before, and more Hispanic students are graduating high school than ever before.
And last year, across every race and age group in America, incomes grew at the fastest rate on record -- and Hispanic American families had some of the fastest income growth.
I started my career fighting for DREAMers, and am personally proud of our work to bring these inspiring young people out of the shadows and to keep families together. Through the President’s executive actions to modernize our immigration system, more than 740,000 DREAMers have been able to contribute to the only country they’ve ever known.
But we all know there is more work to do. And while we have not achieved our ultimate goal of passing commonsense immigration reform, we have broadened and deepened the coalition of support, and I am confident we will get there because you will continue to fight for it.
When I reflect on the work we have left to do, I think of the values my family taught me in San Antonio, and of their boundless faith in this country: the idea that if we stay optimistic and stick together, progress is possible.
Mil gracias,
Felicia
Felicia Escobar
Special Assistant to the President for Immigration Policy
The White House

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: "Immigrants Are the American Character"

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jueves, 15 de septiembre de 2016


In 1974, I led an expedition to explore the great New England Seamount Chain. Thousands of feet underwater, the chain includes four underwater volcanic mountains that formed over 100 million years ago when the North American plate migrated over a "hot spot" -- an area where heat rising through the earth melts rock into magma, creating massive undersea volcanoes like in the Hawaiian Islands.
Standing high above the surrounding ocean floor, these massive undersea mountains are visible oases of life in an otherwise vast, undersea desert. On their rocky slopes, fragile deep sea corals feed in the nutrient rich waters that flow past.
Protecting these unique habitats is critical to the survival of not only these beautiful coral gardens, but also the small fish and other marine creatures that call these magical gardens home. They need these nurseries of the very deep in order to survive. And we need them -- as a foundational element of our food chain.


As the first-ever national marine monument established in the Atlantic Ocean, this designation is vital to both the ongoing protection of some of our most important underwater ecosystems and the future climate resiliency of our oceans, which are essential guardians of our future.
The monument will provide refuge for protected animals, like sea turtles and whales, as well as species of coral found nowhere else on Earth. It also encompasses three underwater canyons that are even deeper than the Grand Canyon.
Protecting this area bolsters the sea’s ability to sustain itself, but it is also critical to protecting ourselves -- and our future. It’s also an ongoing reflection of President Obama’s commitment to conservation. To date, he has protected more land and water than any other president in history.
That’s pretty incredible.
Sincerely,
Dr. Bob Ballard
Department of Ocean Engineering
The University of Rhode Island

Our oceans are our future

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viernes, 12 de agosto de 2016

President Obama's summer picks:
Yesterday, President Obama shared his playlist of songs for the summer -- two sets of hand-picked tracks including songs from Prince, Aretha Franklin, Common, Chance the Rapper, Manu Chao, and Caetano Veloso.
And today, the President is sharing his official summer reading list -- a mix of fiction and nonfiction, including a science fiction epic and a Pulitzer Prize-winning surf memoir.
Check out the President's summer picks:
President Obama's 2016 Summer Playlist: Day
President Obama's daytime summer playlist
  1. LoveHate Thing - Wale
  2. Smooth Sailin' - Leon Bridges
  3. Elevator Operator - Courtney Barnett
  4. Home - Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
  5. …
President Obama's 2016 Summer Playlist: Night
President Obama's nighttime summer playlist
  1. If I Have My Way - Chrisette Michele
  2. Espera - Esperanza Spalding
  3. Tell It Like It Is - Aaron Neville
  4. Alright - Ledisi
  5. …
President Obama's 2016 Summer Reading List
President Obama's reading list
"Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life" by William Finnegan
"The Underground Railroad" by Colson Whitehead
"H Is for Hawk" by Helen Macdonald
"The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins
"Seveneves" by Neal Stephenson

President Obama's summer picks

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viernes, 22 de julio de 2016




 A day after Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump reiterated his support for building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border to restrict immigration, President Obama welcomed Mexican president Peña Nieto to the Oval Office. The two leaders stressed their countries' long-standing friendship.

President Obama : “The United States values tremendously our enduring partnership with Mexico" .

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martes, 12 de julio de 2016


Today, President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and Dr. Jill Biden are headed to Texas to join the city of Dallas in honoring the memory of the five police officers who lost their lives last Thursday.
Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Michael Smith, Brent Thompson, and Patrick Zamarripa served their city and every one of its citizens with incredible courage and dedication. Their deaths, and the senseless deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, have left Americans across the country with more questions than answers.
But as President Obama said:
"I reject the idea that these issues are somehow too big for us -- that America is too divided to find common ground. As I've said, I know that we can honor the incredible courage and service of our police officers -- and also recognize the racial disparities that exist in our criminal justice system. There's no contradiction there. And if we are going to come together to solve these problems, we have to understand that. So we'll have to talk to each other. We'll have to listen to each other. And we'll have to see each other as equal parts of the American family."

Watch live: President Obama speaks in Dallas

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lunes, 20 de junio de 2016

The White House, Washington

Four years ago today, I stood with my colleagues in the White House Rose Garden watching President Obama announce a new action to make our immigration policies smarter and more representative of our values as a nation.

This action, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy, establishes an avenue for young people who were brought to the United States as children to request temporary relief from deportation on a case-by-case basis if they can demonstrate that they meet several criteria.
As the President said that day, the young people impacted by his announcement "are Americans in their hearts, in their minds, in every single way but one: on paper."
We knew standing there that DACA would be impactful, both for the people who would come forward, and for the rest of us who are their families, friends and neighbors.
Even so, the impact DACA recipients have had on their families, communities, and our nation can only be described as extraordinary.
They are students, educators, doctors, and lawyers; close to 730,000 DACA recipients are aspiring Americans, each with a unique story.
They know, perhaps better than anyone, that for all of its impact, DACA is not a permanent solution to our nation’s immigration problems. Far from it. We still need Congress to do its job and fix our immigration system.
But the promise I see in the eyes of DACA recipients I meet renews my hope in what’s possible, and offers a glimpse of what we might achieve for the country when we finally achieve legislative reform.
I think of David Uriona, who graduated from Cornell University in 2014 with a degree in Biology and Society and joined Teach for America. As David said, "It was important for me to give back to my community and to connect with kids who needed to see someone like them; to make sure that these kids who were in similar situations knew that they could achieve their dreams."
There are so many stories of the positive impact these individuals are having in their communities and in their country.
Thanks,

Celebrating 4 years of DACA

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jueves, 19 de mayo de 2016


 THE WHITE HOUSE 
 


Every week, millions of Americans work more than 40 hours but do not receive the overtime pay they have earned.
President Obama is taking action to fix that: In a note to signers of a We the People petition, the President announced that tomorrow the Department of Labor will finalize a rule to extend overtime protections to 4.2 million more Americans.
Check out the President's note:
I wanted you to be the first to know about some important news on an issue I know you care deeply about: making sure you're paid fairly.
If you work more than 40 hours a week, you should get paid for it or get extra time off to spend with your family and loved ones. It's one of most important steps we're taking to help grow middle-class wages and put $12 billion more dollars in the pockets of hardworking Americans over the next 10 years.
For generations, overtime protections have meant that an honest day's work should get a fair day's pay, and that's helped American workers climb the ladder of success. That's what middle-class economics are all about.
But after years of inflation and lobbyists' efforts to weaken overtime protections, that security has eroded for too many families.
One of the many Americans who has been working hard but struggling to keep up is a single mom from Tucson, Arizona, Elizabeth Paredes. As an assistant manager at a sandwich shop, Elizabeth sometimes worked as many as 70 hours a week, without a dime of overtime pay. So Elizabeth wrote to me to say how hard it is to build a bright future for her son.
And she's not alone: Today just 7 percent of workers qualify for overtime pay based on their salaries. Compare that with 1975, when more than 60 percent of workers qualified for overtime pay based on their salaries.
This policy just hasn't kept up with the times.
The fundamental principle behind overtime pay comes from a Depression-era law called the Fair Labor Standards Act, which helps ensure that workers who put in more than 40 hours per week should generally get paid more for that extra time. I directed Secretary of Labor Tom Perez and the Department of Labor to update and modernize the overtime rules and uphold that principle.
It doubles the salary threshold and automatically updates it every three years. The rule takes effect December 1.
This is a step in the right direction to strengthen and secure the middle class by raising Americans' wages. When workers have more income, they spend it -- often at businesses in their local community -- and that helps grow the economy for everyone.
Americans have spent too long working long hours and getting less in return. So wherever and whenever I can make sure that our economy rewards hard work and responsibility, that's what I'm going to do. Every hardworking American deserves a paycheck that lets them support their families, gain a little economic security, and pass down some opportunity to their kids. That's always worth fighting for.
Thanks for raising your voice on this critical issue -- we couldn't have done it without you.
President Barack Obama
Learn more about the update to overtime pay.

Just announced: President Obama is extending overtime pay to millions more Americans

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A wise woman once said that one is not born a woman, but rather becomes one. What makes a woman? Strength. Resilience. Compassion. Beauty from within. When I think of what it means to be a woman, I stand a little taller because I know I stand on the shoulders of women who came before me and paved the way.
My mom, Diana Ross, is one of those women. She's both nurturing and fierce, graceful and courageous. She set an example for me to be empowered, to have a voice, and to build a full life for myself. And there are countless other women who inspire and remind me of the individual and collective power of women.
Women are always breaking new records and forging new paths. We build on the accomplishments of those who came before us.
On June 14, the White House will host women from all over the country at the United State of Women Summit. We will celebrate extraordinary women who are creating change and growth in our world -- women who are doing great things.
If there's a woman in your life who inspires you like my mom has always inspired me, somebody who strives to help everybody around her achieve their greatest, we want her to be there. We want her to stand with President Obama and the First Lady.
I know there are so many women out there who are lifting up their friends, their neighbors, and their communities. We want to meet these incredible women.
Every woman who carves out a space for other women in her community or profession and every woman who raises her voice to fight for an issue she cares about is changing what it means to be a woman in America.
Together, we are so powerful.
Thanks!
Tracee Ellis Ross

Know a woman who's lifting up her community?

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domingo, 15 de mayo de 2016


Today, President Obama and Grammy Award-winning artist Macklemore teamed up to discuss a disease that affects far too many Americans: addiction.
President Obama and Macklemore

Here are the highlights:
Macklemore opened up about his own experience with addiction:
"I’m here with President Obama because I take this personally. I abused prescription drugs and battled addiction. If I hadn’t gotten the help I needed when I needed it, I might not be here today. And I want to help others facing the same challenges I did."
President Obama laid out why opioid abuse is a problem that affects all of us:
"Drug overdoses now take more lives every year than traffic accidents. Deaths from opioid overdoses have tripled since 2000. A lot of the time, they’re from legal drugs prescribed by a doctor. So addiction doesn’t always start in some dark alley -- it often starts in a medicine cabinet."
Drug overdoses vs traffic accidents over time
And the President talked about what we all can do to help:
"I’ve asked Congress to expand access to recovery services, and to give first responders the tools they need to treat overdoses before it’s too late. This week, the House passed several bills about opioids -- but unless they also make actual investments in more treatment, it won’t get Americans the help they need. On top of funding, doctors also need more training about the power of the pain medication they prescribe, and the risks they carry. Another way our country can help those suffering in private is to make this conversation public."
"The good news is, there’s hope. When we talk about opioid abuse as the public health problem it is, more people will seek the help they need. More people will find the strength to recover, just like Macklemore and millions of Americans have. We’ll see fewer preventable deaths and fewer broken families."

President Obama and Macklemore: A conversation about addiction

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viernes, 6 de mayo de 2016

The White House, Washington
It’s a scene you never forget. The intensity. The focus. The stillness of a room. The weight of one mission.
An inside look on the raid on Usama bin Laden
Five years ago, I watched in the Situation Room along with President Obama, Vice President Biden, and members of the President’s national security team to see if U.S. Special Operations Forces could deliver the justice that every American had been waiting to see for a decade.
Thank you,
Nick
Nick Rasmussen
Director
National Counterterrorism Center
Visit WhiteHouse.gov

The weight of one mission:

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lunes, 4 de abril de 2016

The White House, Washington
Today is Opening Day -- a day that brings back a lot of memories of my father Jackie Robinson.
They are memories that my mother and I carried with us when, last week, President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama invited us to join them on a trip to Havana, Cuba. It was an experience of a lifetime. We were thrilled and honored to be in their company and to witness our President extend the hand of friendship to the Cuban people.
Our 48-hour itinerary took us through Old Havana, to a State dinner at the Palace of the Revolution, and to the El Gran Teatro de Havana for President Obama's speech to the Cuban people. Everywhere we traveled, I was touched by the response of our Cuban hosts, who lined the travel routes and enthusiastically greeted the President and his delegation. We waved back, squarely meeting their sense of hope with our own. The scene struck me as a sign of the beginning of a changing Cuba.
One of the highlights of our trip was the exhibition baseball game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Cuban National team at Havana’s festive Estadio Latinamericano.


It brought back very personal memories of my father, Jackie Robinson, talking about his trip to Cuba in 1947, when the Brooklyn Dodgers trained in Havana.
At the time, Dad was a member of the Dodgers' farm team, the Montreal Royals. Branch Rickey arranged for him to fly to Cuba for an exhibition game, just a couple of months before he broke down baseball's color barrier in the United States. To me, this connection to my father almost brought me to tears. I was watching a baseball game in the same stadium nearly seventy years later -- and during another historic era.

Our parents raised my brothers and me with the understanding that the struggle for equality and social change was ongoing. As kids, we integrated our schools, marched alongside our parents in the 1963 March on Washington, and helped raise money for the Civil Rights Movement through a series of jazz concerts on our lawn in Stamford, Connecticut.
I wasn't in Havana in 1947, but it was my great fortune to be there in 2016 -- witnessing the early steps toward normalizing relations between the United States and Cuba. As I watched President Obama and my mother embrace, I was overcome with gratitude and pride for the President, the people of Cuba, Major League Baseball, and the unifying game of baseball.
My dad once said, "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." I am certain that the goodwill extended by this trip ultimately will impact the lives of millions. My father would be so happy that Mom and I were part of the story.
Sharon Robinson

Baseball in Cuba

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martes, 19 de mayo de 2015
Camden has faced one of the highest violent crime rates in America. But recently, they've taken concrete, innovative steps to change that: creating more economic opportunity, improving trust between residents and their police department, making police officers' jobs safer, and reducing crime in the process.
Today, the President will highlight some of those efforts, and show how other cities can make progress on building safer, stronger communities.
As a country, we're at our best when everyone has the opportunity to get ahead. That's why the President is focused on restoring economic security to more American families, strengthening our neighborhoods, and making sure our young people have the chance to reach their full potential.
And over the next few weeks, members of the President’s Cabinet will be traveling across America to spotlight other cities that are working to make their communities better.
From Secretary Arne Duncan's upcoming trip to Philadelphia, to Attorney General Loretta Lynch's travel to Cincinnati as part of her national Community Policing tour, Cabinet members are highlighting regions where local leaders are improving the quality of life in their communities -- on issues from health care to education to transparency in policing.
Our Administration is deeply engaged with these communities and others across the country -- communities that are showing what can be achieved when people from all walks of life come together to expand opportunity for all Americans.

The President is going to Camden, New Jersey today. Here's why:

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jueves, 23 de abril de 2015

President Obama celebrated the 45th-annual Earth Day by spending the afternoon exploring the Everglades in southern Florida. As a 1.5-million-acre wetland ecosystem, the Everglades is home to more than 350 species of birds, both alligators and crocodiles, and a wide diversity of plant life that gives shelter and beauty to the region.

See the highlights from the President's trip here.

Unfortunately, the Everglades is currently threatened. Each day, climate change is negatively affecting the nature, species, and beauty of the region. But climate change isn't just hurting the Everglades -- it's hurting our parks, ecosystems, and outdoor spaces in every state and every region of America.

That's why on Monday, we asked you to join us in taking a stand. We called on you to help make this real for your friends, family, and followers on social media by sharing a photo of your favorite outdoors spot that you'd fight to protect. And we were overwhelmed by your responses.

Here are a few of the places that people said they're fighting for:

Deer at Berryessa Snow Mountain

"I will fight to protect the Berryessa Snow Mountain region in California. It's home to hundreds of animal species, including one of my favorites, the Black Tailed Mule Deer." -- Mary H.

Exploring eucalyptus forests

"Every eucalyptus forest in the United States. This, for example, is Mount Sutro Open Reserve in San Francisco. It is one of the most fragrant places a city can ever have, and I think the most divine places in Northern California." -- Jarrod B.

Sea turtles hatching on Florida beach

"Protecting our Florida Gulf Coast beaches, to save endangered Sea Turtles and their Nesting habitat. With the threat of rising sea levels along with ocean garbage and litter, sensitive sea turtle nesting areas are under threat." -- Shari L.

The President is taking steps to reduce the causes of climate change and prepare our communities for its impacts, and it's not too late for you to join in.

Share a photo of your favorite outdoors spot that you'd fight to protect -- then share it with your followers on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram with the hashtag #ActOnClimate.


Happy Earth Day

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