If you’re planning on being near the White House sometime soon, use your eagle eye to spy a hawk!
This week, I, along with others at and around the White House have been enjoying the company of what appears to be a young red-tailed hawk that has …
Category: Barack Obama
My Day One: September 6, 2012
September 6, 2012 was my first day as a citizen of the United States of America.
I raised my hand, took the oath of allegiance, and the United States officially became my country that day.
At the naturalization ceremony, I received the following lette…
My Day One: September 6, 2012
September 6, 2012 was my first day as a citizen of the United States of America.
I raised my hand, took the oath of allegiance, and the United States officially became my country that day.
At the naturalization ceremony, I received the following lette…
In Memory of Beau Biden: “Quite Simply, The Finest Man Any Of Us Have Ever Known”
“Beau Biden was, quite simply, the finest man any of us have ever known” –Vice President Joe Biden
On Saturday, May 30, our country lost a dedicated public servant – a fighter for justice on the frontlines of war and in the co…
Weekly Address: Pass the USA Freedom Act
President Barack Obama tapes the Weekly Address in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, May 29, 2015.
(Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)
In this week’s address, the President addressed critical pieces of national security business that remained unfinished when the Senate left town. This Sunday at midnight, key tools used to protect against terrorist threats are set to expire. The USA Freedom Act strikes a balance between security and privacy, reauthorizing important measures that give our national security professionals the authorities they use to keep us safe, while also implementing reforms that enhance the privacy and civil liberties of our citizens. But currently, a small group of senators is standing in its way.
The President asked Americans to speak with one voice to the Senate to put politics aside, put the safety of the American people first, and pass the USA Freedom Act now.
Transcript | mp4 | mp3
Weekly Wrap Up: Celebrating Memorial Day, Honoring Oberlin Grads, and a Q&A with @POTUS
This week, the President honored our troops on Memorial Day, reminded us why #CleanWaterRules, and answered your climate questions on Twitter — while the First Lady inspired graduates at Oberlin College.
Check out what you may have missed in this week’s wrap up.
Honoring Our Fallen Heroes
President Obama traveled this Memorial Day to Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia to commemorate those members of our armed forces who made the ultimate sacrifice. Keeping with tradition, President Obama laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier before making remarks to the audience gathered at the site.
“The Americans who rest beneath these beautiful hills, and in sacred ground across our country and around the world — they are why our nation endures,” the President said. “Each simple stone marker, arranged in perfect military precision, signifies the cost of our blessings. It is a debt we can never fully repay.”
More than 4.51 Million Records Released
In September 2009, the President announced that — for the first time in history — White House visitor records would be made available to the public on an ongoing basis. Today, the White House releases visitor records that were generated in …
This Day in History: John F. Kennedy Was Born
Today in 1917, John F. Kennedy — the 35th President of the United States, and the first to be born in the 20th century — was born in Brookline, Massachusetts.
Of Irish descent, President Kennedy was the youngest man to be elected President, and was also the youngest to die.
Graduating from Harvard in 1940, he entered the Navy. In 1943, when his PT boat was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer, Kennedy, despite grave injuries, led the survivors through perilous waters to safety.
Having returned from the war, he became a Democratic Congressman from the Boston area, advancing in 1953 to the Senate. He married Jacqueline Bouvier on September 12, 1953. In 1955, while recuperating from a back operation, he wrote Profiles in Courage, which won the Pulitzer Prize in history. Read more about President Kennedy’s life and legacy here.
Aaron Shikler’s iconic 1971 portrait of President Kennedy in a contemplative pose hangs in the cross hall in the central corridor of the White House’s State Floor.
Watch White House Curator Bill Allman tell the story of that portrait, and how it came to be painted:
Rescission of Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism
In December 2014, when the President announced our historic shift in Cuba policy, he opened a new era in our relationship with the Cuban people, and the entire hemisphere. The President’s new approach to Cuba moves beyond decades of unsuccessful …
West Wing Week: 05/29/15 or, “High Fives For Everybody!”
This week, the President donned a yarmulke at Adas Israel Congregation, where he also sang and danced with some preschoolers; marked the first Memorial Day since our war in Afghanistan came to an end; hosted the NATO Secretary-General in the Oval Office; and answered your questions on climate change during a Twitter Q&A in Miami. That’s May 22 to May 28th or, “High Fives for Everybody!”
Friday
- The President greeted rabbis at Adas Israel, one of Washington’s oldest synagogues, to mark Jewish American Heritage Month – and made an impromptu visit to a preschool classroom.
- The President hosted foreign diplomats for an annual reception in the East Room.
Monday
- On Memorial Day, the President joined 5,000 people at Arlington National Cemetery to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and reflect on the day with the families of those who have sacrificed so much for our freedom.
Tuesday
- Reporters from all over the world joined the President and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in the Oval Office, following their bilateral meeting.
- The President teamed up with the Vice President to surprise Vivian Bailey on her White House tour.
Wednesday
- The EPA announced its finalized Clean Water Rule, after reviewing over a million public comments. The Rule will protect safe and clean drinking water for millions of American families.
Thursday
- The President toured the National Hurricane Center, where he was briefed on the upcoming hurricane season.
- The President took questions about climate change on Twitter from engaged citizens like you.