In this week’s address, the President discussed the significant progress we have made in our economy since the financial crisis seven years ago this week, and the steps we can take to build on that momentum and strengthen the economy for the long term. Thanks to the hard work and resilience of folks around the country, our businesses have created over 13 million jobs over the past 66 straight months, housing is bouncing back, manufacturing is growing again, and the unemployment rate is the lowest it’s been in over seven years. We’ve come a long way from the darkest days of the financial crisis, but there is still more to be done. To keep our economy growing, we must avoid self-inflicted wounds and damaging brinksmanship: that starts with Congress passing a responsible budget before the end of the month. The President has called on Republicans in Congress to stop playing games with our economic progress and instead do its job and pass a budget that reverses the harmful cuts known as the sequester and avoids shutting down the federal government.
In this week’s address, the President announced the launch of a new College Scorecard, meant to help students and parents identify which schools provide the biggest bang for your buck. Designed with input from those who will use it most, the Scorecard offers reliable data on factors important to prospective students, such as how much graduates earn, and how much debt they have when they graduate.
In an economy where some higher education is still the surest ticket to the middle class, the choices that Americans make when searching for and selecting a college have never been more important. That’s why the President is committed to making sure there exists reliable information that helps students find the college that best fits their needs so that they can succeed.
As we reflect on the lives we lost and pay tribute to the families who still live with extraordinary pain, let us resolve to continue embodying the American spirit that no act of terror can ever extinguish.
The President, the First Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, and Secretary Arne Duncan are traveling across the country this week to highlight the need for affordable, quality career and education choices for students, and discussing how we can provide all Americans with the skills and knowledge they need to get ahead. Learn more about this week’s announcements here.
Today, at Macomb Community College in Warren, Michigan, the President will announce new steps to expand apprenticeships and to continue to build momentum nationwide to make community college free for responsible students.
The President is also announcing a campaign called “Heads Up,” and the idea is simple: Let’s make two years of community college free for anyone willing to work for it.
In this week’s address, the President recognized Labor Day by highlighting the economic progress our country has made, and underlining what needs to be done to continue that growth. Our businesses have created 13.1 million new jobs over the past five and a half years, the unemployment rate is the lowest it’s been in seven years, and seventeen states across the country have raised the minimum wage.
The President stressed that to continue this progress, Congress needs to avoid a government shutdown that would hurt middle-class Americans and pass a responsible budget before the end of September. The President emphasized that Congress should not play games with our economy, and instead pass a budget that invests in our middle-class and helps those who work hard and play by the rules to get ahead.
Today, the President is traveling to Alaska to meet with some of the Alaskans who are on the frontlines of climate change, one of the greatest challenges facing our nation. Follow along with the President’s trip at WhiteHouse.gov/Alaska.
“The state’s God-given natural treasures are all at risk.”
President Obama
But just how did this treasure trove of national resources and beauty become a part of our union? While the President is en route, let’s do a quick historical recap.
March 30, 1867
Secretary of State William H. Seward signed a treaty with Russia for the purchase of Alaska for $7.2 million. Despite the bargain deal (roughly two cents an acre), the purchase was ridiculed in Congress and in the press as “Seward’s folly,” and President Andrew Johnson’s “polar bear garden.” Nevertheless, the Senate ratified the purchase, adding a tremendous landmass (one-fifth the size of the rest of the U.S.) to America.
Despite a slow start in settlement, the discovery of gold in the late 19th century prompted thousands of Americans to migrate to the territory hoping to strike it rich. Alaska, rich in natural resources and beauty, has been contributing to American prosperity ever since.
September 14, 1901
From the day of his inauguration, 26th President Theodore Roosevelt was brought into discussions on then-territory Alaska, as disputes over boundary lines ensued through 1902.
Protecting our lands and wildlife was one of the chief concerns of President “Teddy” Roosevelt. Known as our “Conservationist President,” Roosevelt used his authority to protect wildlife and public lands by creating the U.S. Forest Service and establishing 51 Federal Bird Reservations, 4 National Game Preserves, and 150 National Forests, including the Tongass and the Chugach in Alaska.
Working with longtime friend and famous preservationist John Muir, he also created five National Parks – and added land to Yosemite National Park.
He eventually enabled the 1906 American Antiquities Act, which gave the President authority to restrict the use of particular public lands in America. It gave the President the power to protect “historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures, and other objects of historic or scientific interest” on federal land by designations. President Roosevelt declared Grand Canyon, Devil’s Tower, and many more national monuments during his time in office.
With this conservation mindset, President Roosevelt knew that Alaska – a land filled with a wealth of natural resources, particularly those being discovered by gold rush enthusiasts – needed to be protected and well-managed. In a speech to the 57th Congress in 1902, President Roosevelt stated the following:
No country has a more valuable possession – in mineral wealth, in fisheries, furs, forests, and also in land available for certain kinds of farming and stock growing. The forests of Alaska should be protected and as a secondary but still important matter, the game also….Laws should be enacted to protect the Alaskan salmon fisheries against the greed which would destroy them.
President Theodore Roosevelt
At his persuasion, Congress passed a series of acts designed to regulate the harvesting of Alaskan wildlife, including the Alaska Game Act, which was strengthened by an act amending the Alaska Game Act in 1908. In 1909, President Roosevelt also first protected the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge.
August 3, 1944
In early August 1944, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) journeyed to Alaska for a six-day inspection and fishing trip, the second President to make the trip north. While in Alaska, FDR made stops at Adak, Kodiak, and Auke Bay, visiting with soldiers as part of a trip across the Pacific during World War II.
January 3, 1959
On this day, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a special proclamation admitting the territory of Alaska into the Union as the 49th and largest state.
Today, President Obama becomes the first President to visit America’s Arctic, witnessing firsthand the impacts of climate change on this region on the frontlines. The President, along with Secretary of State John Kerry and foreign ministers, will discuss the challenges of how to best manage the future of this region, and the people and natural resources that reside there.
In this week’s address, the President spoke about his upcoming trip to Alaska, during which he will view the effects of climate change firsthand. Alaskans are already living with the impact of climate change, with glaciers melting faster, and temperatures projected to rise between six and twelve degrees by the end of the century. In his address, the President spoke to ways in which we can address these challenges, including the transition away from fossil fuels to more renewable energy sources like wind and solar, an effort in which America is already leading.
And he stressed that while our economy still has to rely on oil and gas during that transition, we should rely more on domestic production than importing from foreign counties who do not have the same environmental or safety standards as the United States. The President looked forward to his upcoming trip, and promised that while he is in office, America will lead the world to meet the threat of climate change before it’s too late.
In this week’s address, the President spoke to the economic progress that our country has made, from 13 million new jobs created over the past five and a half years, to 17 states raising the minimum wage. Congress needs to do its part to continue to help grow the economy, but instead left town last month with a great deal undone.
Congress failed to reauthorize the Ex-Im Bank, which enjoys bipartisan support and is tasked solely with creating American jobs by growing exports. And most pressingly, the Republican Congress failed to uphold their most basic responsibility to fund the government, leaving them only a few weeks once they return to pass a budget, or shut down the government for the second time in two years.
The President made clear that Congress needs to get to work on behalf of the American people and reach a budget agreement that relieves the harmful sequester cuts and keeps our economy growing.
On Monday, August 3, President Obama is announcing the finalization of America’s Clean Power Plan, the biggest step we’ve ever taken to combat climate change. This plan sets the first-ever carbon pollution standards for power plants, while providing states and utilities with the flexibility they need to meet those standards.
Watch the President deliver remarks on this announcement:
Find out how the Clean Power Plan will impact your state:
What has health reform meant to this country? That’s a question that millions of Americans answer every day. Carol is one of them. Read more of their stories here.
“Last December I was diagnosed with leukemia. Thank G-d, I am in remission now.”
A lifelong musician, Carol lost her insurance upon retirement. But she was able to sign up for Medicare at age 65.
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