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November 04, 2009
03:46 PM ESTEd Note: Watch an Evening of Classical Music live at 7:00 PM EST on WhiteHouse.gov/live or watch and discuss it with other classical music fans on Facebook.
The greatest joy that this job affords – and there are many – is the chance to throw open the doors and invite Americans into the White House and expose them to the talents of their fellow Americans. One of the ways that the First Lady has been doing is this is through the White House Music Series. This series was conceived as a way to celebrate the arts, demonstrate the importance of arts education and encourage young people who believe in their talent to create a future for themselves in the arts community be it as a hobby or as a profession.
We kicked off the series by celebrating the uniquely American art form of jazz. Our next event in the series was the day-long celebration of country music, followed by our Fiesta Latina, which showcased Hispanic musical heritage. Through student workshops and evening concerts, each event enlivens the White House with the sounds of music from dawn till dusk.
Music’s ability to inspire has never been more visible to me than during these events. When I see young students play with the masters of their craft, when two musicians jam together for the first time and manage to perfectly complement each other, when young and old learn from each other – that’s when true harmony happens.
So I hope you’ll join us today for the Classical Music Concert and watch our latest installment of the White House Music Series. The performance will feature the best and brightest of their fields: violinist Joshua Bell, classical guitarist Sharon Isbin, pianist Awadagin Pratt and Alisa Weilerstein on the cello. These acclaimed artists will be performing solo and together playing music by Bach, Ravel, Paganini, and Mendelssohn among others. It’s a performance not to be missed and I do hope you’ll join us at www.WhiteHouse.gov/live.
Desirée Rogers is the White House Social Secretary.
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November 04, 2009
03:29 PM ESTThis past Saturday, the GreenGov Challenge came to a close – with over 14,000 federal and military personnel submitting over 5,300 ideas and casting more than 165,000 votes. When we first launched this program, we weren’t sure what kind of response we’d receive. But it’s safe to say that this outpouring of participation by the federal community has shattered our expectations.
We’d like to give a shout out to all those across government who helped promote this initiative – from EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to the U.S. Coast Guard -- and of course, a special thanks to the thousands who shared their brightest ideas and voted for the best ones.
Even though voting has ended, the GreenGov Challenge isn’t over. Tomorrow, some of the top ideas will be presented to the Steering Committee on Federal Sustainability, a group comprised of a senior official from each agency who is responsible for delivering each agency’s sustainability plan. The meeting will be streamed live on Whitehouse.gov/GreenGov starting at 3:30pm EST.
Be sure to tune-in to learn how we’re taking this bottom-up approach to greening government to the next level.
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It's no secret that institutions of all stripes focus their communications on certain messages day to day. We thought it would all be a little more open and transparent if we went ahead and published what our focus will be for the day, along with any related articles, documents, or reports. Today we publish our second batch.
Supporting article: "Republicans want to make the insurance industry more like the credit card industry," Ezra Klein, Washington Post, 11/3/09
Supporting article: "Boehner's Health Care Bill At Odds With Pre-Existing GOP Positions," Huffington Post, 11/3/09
Talking Points: House Republican Health Care "Plan": Putting Families at Risk
- After months of offering nothing but obstruction and roadblocks, House Republicans have now put together a hastily-constructed, last-minute "plan" for health reform. But the reality is that their plan would put families at risk by giving insurance companies more power to discriminate against patients while accumulating record profits.
- The bottom line is that under the House Republican plan, millions of Americans would lose the coverage and security they currently have.
- There is a lot of empty GOP rhetoric out there about this plan, so let's look at the reality of what they’re offering American families:
RHETORIC: The House Republican health care plan expands coverage to those who cannot get insurance now.
REALITY: The Republicans' bill leaves affordable health insurance out of reach for millions of Americans.
No Elimination of Discrimination Based on Pre-existing Conditions: Nowhere does the bill make it illegal for insurance companies to deny coverage based on pre-existing conditions. As a result, consumers will never be fully protected and guaranteed coverage options.
High-Risk Pools Will Not Provide Americans with Access to Affordable Coverage: The Republican bill states that it improves access through high-risk pools, but according to the bill, those states that currently do not have high-risk pools never need to develop them, and those states that have high-risk pools could close them.
Democrats Ensure No American Remains Uninsured Due to A Pre-existing Condition As a Bridge to REAL Health Insurance Reform. The President and House Democrats support affordable access to a high-risk pool nationwide for individuals with pre-existing conditions as a bridge to real insurance reform in 2013.
RHETORIC: The House Republican health care "plan" lets families and businesses buy health insurance across state lines.
REALITY: Unlike the House Leadership bill, the Republicans' bill takes us backwards rather than forwards.
In the Absence of Insurance Reform, This Policy will Undermine Patients' Protections: This proposal, which would allow insurance to be sold across state lines in the absence of any broader reforms to prevent discrimination in the individual marketplace, would undermine patients’ protections and drive up premiums. Under this policy, states would have a further incentive to gut consumer protections, which would create a devastating race to the bottom.
Insurers Can "Cherry Pick" Healthy Individuals: Without any additional protections, insurers would be allowed to cherry pick healthy enrollees by marketing strategies, benefit design, and targeting those states with the least consumer protections. That would drive up premiums for everyone else trying to buy insurance in the state.
RHETORIC: The House Republicans' bill allows individuals, small businesses, and trade associations to pool together to acquire health insurance at lower prices, the same way large corporations and labor unions do today.
REALITY: So-called "Association Health Plans" will reduce choices for small businesses and leave consumers vulnerable to fraud and abuse.
Association Health Plans are Exempt from State Consumer Protections: Association Health Plans (AHPs) allow small businesses from different states to pool together to buy health insurance that is exempt from consumer protections secured by many state laws. They undermine states’ comprehensive tools to prevent, identify and shut down fraudulent plans.
AHPs Allow Insurers to Cherry Pick Healthy Workers: By avoiding state consumer protections, AHPs make it easier for insurance companies to "cherry pick" healthy individuals and firms, leaving out those who are older or sicker, raising premiums for everyone else.
RHETORIC: The House Republican bill gives states the incentives through bonus payments to create their own reforms that lower health care costs and increase coverage.
REALITY: The Republican bill provides neither the means for cost containment nor the support that states need to get at cost drivers and increase the affordability of health care. It includes:
NO policies to promote quality health care and efficiency of health care in private or public health insurance.
NO premium assistance for middle-income families that struggle to pay for health insurance.
NO increased support or options for states to build the platforms to improve the delivery system.RHETORIC: The House Republican bill ends junk lawsuits that contribute to higher health care costs.
REALITY: The Republican bill offers new no ideas. The bill caps the amount of damages a person injured can receive and will preempt state consumer protection laws.
President Obama and House Democrats support a range of ideas on how to put patient safety first and let doctors focus on practicing medicine. That’s why President Obama issued a Presidential Memorandum on September 17th directing the HHS Secretary to move forward with an initiative to give states and health systems the opportunity to apply for medical liability demonstration projects. House Democrats have also included a voluntary state incentive grants program in their bill to encourage states to develop alternatives to traditional malpractice litigation.
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On October 2, The President proclaimed October “National Energy Awareness Month,” a month to recognize the contributions of individuals, organizations, and companies committed to taking charge and creating an American clean energy future.
So what was the Obama Administration up to during Energy Awareness Month?
October 5: The President Signs an Executive Order on Federal Sustainability which directs the Federal government to lead by example, practice what we preach and help build a clean energy economy through how we operate—a personnel of more than 1.8 million in the Federal government and military. The Order asks each agency to create a 2020 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target. The full text on the order can be found here.
October 19: Vice President Biden Unveils Report Focused on Expanding Green Jobs And Energy Savings For Middle Class. Along with Secretaries Chu, Donovan, and Solis, Chair Sutley, and Administrators Mills and Jackson, Vice President Biden unveiled a report on the Recovery Through Retrofit program—a program that builds on the foundation laid in the Recovery Act to expand green job opportunities and boost energy savings by making homes more energy efficient. Since May 2009, eleven Departments and Agencies and six White House Offices have worked together and in mid-November, the group will submit an implementation plan to the Vice President. See video of the report’s release here.
October 19: White House Launches GreenGov Challenge—A Bottom-Up Approach to Greening Government, running from Oct. 19 — 31, challenges federal and military personnel to take part in implementing the President’s Executive Order on Federal Sustainability by suggesting clean energy ideas and voting on others. This program can be found here and the video of the President’s announcement can be found here.
October 23: The President Challenges Americans to Lead the Global Economy in Clean Energy in Boston, MA. The President traveled to Boston, where workers will soon be breaking ground on a new Wind Technology Testing Center to test the world's newest and largest wind turbine blades. He also visited research laboratories at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology working on the frontiers of solar, battery, and wind technologies. Read the President's full remarks here.
October 27: President Obama Announces $3.4 Billion Investment to Spur Transition to Smart Energy Grid in 49 States. While in Arcadia, Florida the President, along with Carol Browner, the Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change, traveled to announce a $3.4 billion investment of Recovery Act funds to modernize the electric grid. The President spoke at Florida Power and Light’s DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center and announced that the $3.4 billion will go towards projects that will create tens of thousands of jobs, benefit consumers in 49 states, and be matched by industry funding for a total public-private investment worth over $8 billion.To read more about the President’s travel see here.
From October 28 to 30, Cabinet Members and Administration officials fanned out across the country to discuss how the Smart Grid investment will create jobs, improve the reliability and efficiency of the electrical grid, and help bring clean energy sources from high-production states to those with less renewable generating capacity.
- Secretary Chu; PECO in Philadelphia, PA
- Secretary Salazar; CenterPoint in Houston, TX
- Secretary Solis; Nevada Energy in Las Vegas, NV
- Secretary Donovan; Baltimore Gas and Electric in Baltimore, MD
- Administrator Jackson; Progress Energy in Raleigh, NC
- Dr. Ed Montgomery; Detroit Edison Company in Detroit, MI
October 27: Vice President Announces the Reopening of a Once-Shuttered GM Factory that will soon put people back to work building plug-in, electric hybrid vehicles. The Vice President announced that auto production will be returning to an old GM assembly line in Wilmington, Deleware—an example of the partnership between states and workers through the White House Council on Automotive Communities and Workers. Read more about the Vice President’s trip here.
October 28: Federal Agencies Enter an Agreement Regarding Transmission Siting on Federal Lands, releasing a Memorandum of Understanding signed by nine Federal Departments and Agencies to make it faster and simpler to build transmission lines on Federal lands. See more on the agreement here.
October 30: Secretary Chu and Chair Sutley honor National Weatherization Day, highlighting the numerous funds already provided to homes and businesses across the nation, to protect American families from weather damages, save consumers in their utility costs, and prevent the waste of excess energy.
Three Clean Energy Economy Forums Hosted at the White House. Since late August, the White House has hosted several clean energy briefings with energy stakeholder groups on the clean energy message. The first of such forums occurred on August 24 and brought in industry leaders and manufacturers from the Midwest. Just this month, three more forums brought hundreds of business and industry leaders to the White House to engage in discussion with senior Administration Officials on building the clean energy economy that will position us to prosper for generations to come. Videos of the forums can be found online here.
Heather Zichal is Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change
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November 04, 2009
12:13 PM ESTThe Department of Health and Human Services’ Know What to Do About the Flu Webcast series continues today with a live discussion at 1 pm on flu vaccination clinics and vaccine availability. Watch as experts panelists discuss what to expect at H1N1 vaccination clinics and hear personal stories from Americans on why they chose to be vaccinated. Participating in today’s webinar:
- Dr. Anne Schuchat, Director, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- Dr. Gloria Addo Ayensu, MD, MPH, Director of the Fairfax County Department of Health, Fairfax, Virginia
- Dr. Pierre Vigilance, Director, District of Columbia Department of Health, Washington, DC
Viewers can also join the discussion by sending questions via email to hhsstudio@hhs.gov, a selection of which will be read live during the event. For more information about H1N1 and seasonal flu, visit Flu.gov, the one-stop resource for flu information.
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November 04, 2009
11:55 AM ESTOver 40 different trees on the White House grounds have been planted by various presidents and first ladies over the years. For your arboreal delight, see the most recent addition of a littleleaf linden to the north grounds, in a spot that was originally designated by the Olmsted brothers in their landscape plan of 1935.
Photos courtesy of the White House Historical Association.
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It's no secret that institutions of all stripes focus their communications on certain messages day to day. We thought it would all be a little more open and transparent if we went ahead and published what our focus will be for the day, along with any related articles, documents, or reports.
Supporting article: "Massachusetts provides evidence that health-care reform lowers insurance premiums," Washington Post, 11/2/09
Supporting testimony: "Testimony Before the Senate HELP Committee on Health Reform and Small Businesses," Jonathan Gruber, 11/2/09 (pdf)
Supporting report: "The Economic Effects of Health Care Reform on Small Businesses and Their Employees," Council of Economic Advisers, 7/25/09
Talking Points: Objective Analysis Shows Reform will Help Small Businesses, Lower Premiums for American Families
Lowering Premiums For American Individuals and Families
- MIT economist Jonathan Gruber has a new report out showing that reform will lower premiums for Americans purchasing insurance on their own.
- Analyzing the non-partisan information from the CBO, Gruber reports that under the House version of health insurance reform legislation, a typical individual could save anywhere from nearly $500 to more than $3,000 and a typical family could save between $1,260 and more than $9,000.
- Those savings, he notes, come in addition to the more generous benefits consumers would receive by purchasing insurance through the newly created exchange.
- And it’s also in addition to increased protections – like banning insurance companies from discriminating based on pre-existing conditions or dropping or watering down coverage when you get sick and need it most.
- "Not only does the House proposal lower premiums, it does so while also improving coverage," Gruber writes.
Helping Small Businesses
- Yesterday, Gruber also testified before the Senate HELP Committee that small businesses are disproportionately hurt by the health care status quo and that health insurance reform will lower premiums and save jobs in the small business sector.
- “Small business has little to fear, and much to gain, from health reform,” Gruber concluded.
- “Small business has little to fear, and much to gain, from health reform,” Gruber concluded.
- Gruber testified that health insurance reform would break down many of the barriers currently facing small businesses – like unpredictable premiums jumps, fear of starting new businesses for lack of affordable insurance options, and higher costs and limited choices due to administrative expenses and lack of bargaining power.
- He also cited the tax credits that would help small businesses who need it most pay for insurance.
- He also cited the tax credits that would help small businesses who need it most pay for insurance.
- Based on those factors, he unveiled a new analysis showing that health insurance reform will save small businesses 25% – or $65 billion per year – over the next decade.
- The consequences of those savings, he says, would be enormous.
- Workers in small businesses will see an increase in their take-home pay of almost $30 billion/year.
- And that reform would save about 80,000 jobs in the small business sector by 2019.
- Gruber also knocked down the myth that health insurance reform will raise costs for small businesses. "Objective CBO analysis,” he pointed out, “shows that these claims are clearly wrong – reform will lower, not increase, non-group insurance costs."
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The White House releases the following statement from President Obama:
Thirty years ago today, the American Embassy in Tehran was seized. The 444 days that began on November 4, 1979 deeply affected the lives of courageous Americans who were unjustly held hostage, and we owe these Americans and their families our gratitude for their extraordinary service and sacrifice.
This event helped set the United States and Iran on a path of sustained suspicion, mistrust, and confrontation. I have made it clear that the United States of America wants to move beyond this past, and seeks a relationship with the Islamic Republic of Iran based upon mutual interests and mutual respect. We do not interfere in Iran’s internal affairs. We have condemned terrorist attacks against Iran. We have recognized Iran’s international right to peaceful nuclear power. We have demonstrated our willingness to take confidence-building steps along with others in the international community. We have accepted a proposal by the International Atomic Energy Agency to meet Iran’s request for assistance in meeting the medical needs of its people. We have made clear that if Iran lives up to the obligations that every nation has, it will have a path to a more prosperous and productive relationship with the international community.
Iran must choose. We have heard for thirty years what the Iranian government is against; the question, now, is what kind of future it is for. The American people have great respect for the people of Iran and their rich history. The world continues to bear witness to their powerful calls for justice, and their courageous pursuit of universal rights. It is time for the Iranian government to decide whether it wants to focus on the past, or whether it will make the choices that will open the door to greater opportunity, prosperity, and justice for its people.
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The White House Music Series continues tomorrow with a celebration of classical music featuring Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell, Grammy Award-winning guitarist Sharon Isbin, renowned cellist Alisa Weilerstein, and acclaimed pianist Awadagin Pratt.
We caught up with Joshua and Sharon in the East Room tonight during rehearsal:
Watch the Classical Music Student Workshop Concert, including child protégés Sujari Britt and Jason Yoder at 2:15 PM EST. Then at 7:15 PM EST join the President and First Lady to watch the evening Classical Music Concert live from the East Room.
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Vice President Joe Biden and the Middle Class Task Force have traveled all across the country to highlight and seek input on key initiatives aimed at restoring middle class prosperity. We’ve been to in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Denver, Colorado, talking about jobs in the green economy; Perrysburg, Ohio, discussing the future of manufacturing; and St. Louis, Missouri and Syracuse, New York, meeting with students and educators about college access and affordability. Now, the Vice President is bringing the conversation back to our nation’s capital.
On Thursday, November 5th, Vice President Biden will bring together a panel of experts to talk about the unique challenges facing middle class Americans in the 21st century economy. The panel will discuss how those challenges relate to changes to the overall labor market in recent decades; shifting gender roles and the need for work-life balance in today’s economy; economic inequality and mobility; the increased gap between productivity and wages; and much more.
Check back later this week to see how the discussion goes and for more information on the White House’s Middle Class Task Force, visit www.whitehouse.gov/StrongMiddleClass.
Elizabeth Alexander is Press Secretary to the Vice President
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November 03, 2009
06:27 PM ESTWith last Friday’s unprecedented release of information on Recovery.gov, we’ve begun to see lots of interest in the specific types of projects that have been funded by the Recovery Act. Even more specifically, we’re seeing reports that Recovery Act funds have been spent on questionable or wasteful funds.
We are always on the lookout for wasteful or unwise projects under the Recovery Act, and one reason why we wanted all the projects information posted online with unprecedented speed and transparency was so that if something slipped through, the press and public would find it and we could take action. More than 170 proposed Recovery Act projects have been halted or altered due to our review process.
That said, some of what’s been written or said about Recovery Act projects is just plain wrong. Transparency requires calling out bad projects when we find them – but it also equally means responding to false criticisms when those are leveled, too. Here are 10 myths about Recovery Act projects that have cropped up lately.
- Recovery Act funds are being used to renovate a Lancaster County train station that hasn’t been used in 30 years. Actually, more than 80,000 passengers use the Elizabethtown station every year, a number which has increased approximately 90 percent in just five years. This station sits along an important transit line in Eastern Pennsylvania between Harrisburg and Philadelphia, and renovations will help the continued growth in business development and improving the quality of life for residents of this rapidly growing area.
- Recovery Act funds are being used for a snow-making facility in Duluth, Minnesota. Proposed as a potential project before the Recovery Act was even signed into law, this Duluth project was never approved, and no Recovery Act funds were directed to this proposed project.
- Recovery Act funds are being used to install a guardrail for a dry lake bed in Oklahoma. This project was halted months ago as the Army Corps looks into other ways to address safety issues in this area – but assertions that funds are being used for this project continue.
- Recovery Act funds are being used by the U.S. Forest Service to breed and do research on bugs in Connecticut. Yes, these funds are being used by the USFS – but to renovate and improve Connecticut research facilities to allow them to better respond to the need for more research into invasive species that are devastating our forests. These invasive species, such as gypsy moths and wooly adelgids, are causing damage to both our parks and our natural resources, and research into potential methods of control is definitely not a wasteful use of resources.
- Recovery Act funds are being used to purchase a freezer for fish sperm at the Gavins Point National Fish Hatchery, in South Dakota. Actually, no Recovery Act funds are being used for this project.
- Recovery Act funds are being used to weatherize eight pickup trucks in Illinois. No – once again, there are no Recovery Act funds being used for this purpose.
- Recovery Act funds are being used to purchase 22 toilets for use in the Mark Twain National Forest. Actually, the funds are being used to purchase 22 complete, prefabricated restroom buildings for the National Forest – and include site preparation and installation. At $21,000 per building installed, this is a reasonable cost and provides construction jobs in this area.
- Recovery Act funds are being used to study how children perceive foreign accents. Recovery Act funds are being used to support this and other National Institutes of Health (NIH) projects. In this case, this basic research project will be particularly beneficial to children with hearing problems.
- Recovery Act funds are being used to build a bridge connecting two Microsoft campuses. Reports have said that $11 million in Recovery Act funds are being used to connect two Microsoft campuses in Redmond, Washington. Actually, only about half of that amount is being used for this project, which is a vital transportation project strongly supported by both state and local officials in an area that supports over 44,000 jobs and was the region’s top priority after a rigorous, competitive review.
- Recovery Act funds are being to provide a tax credit for golf carts. Some reports have highlighted an IRS tax credit for plug-in vehicles as a frivolous use of recovery resources. In fact, the legislation that provides this tax break was signed into law by the former President, and the Recovery Act terminates this credit at the end of 2009 – rather than at the end of 2014 as the law was originally designed.
There are many projects supported by Recovery Act funds, and just as many opinions about whether the funds that support them are being used prudently. We’ve highlighted ten projects here that have been held up as wasteful – and in all cases here, there is another story. As directed by President Obama and Vice President Biden, we are always on the lookout for examples of waste and fraud, and will deal with it wherever we see it. In the majority of cases, however, we are, and continue to be, good stewards of America’s Recovery Act funds.
G. Edward DeSeve is Special Advisor to the President, Assistant to the Vice President and Special Advisor to the OMB Director for Implementation of the Recovery Act
- Recovery Act funds are being used to renovate a Lancaster County train station that hasn’t been used in 30 years. Actually, more than 80,000 passengers use the Elizabethtown station every year, a number which has increased approximately 90 percent in just five years. This station sits along an important transit line in Eastern Pennsylvania between Harrisburg and Philadelphia, and renovations will help the continued growth in business development and improving the quality of life for residents of this rapidly growing area.
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November 03, 2009
05:30 PM ESTTwo weeks ago, the National Conversation on the Future of America’s Cities and Metropolitan Areas took us to Seattle, Washington to see the city’s marriage of economic development and livability. Joined by Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ron Sims, Assistant Secretary of Economic Development for the U.S. Department of Commerce John Fernandez, and NIH Director for the Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences Dr. Robert Croyle, we toured the South Lake Union neighborhood.
In the past five years, over 2.7 million square feet of space has been constructed at South Lake Union for the biotech and life science industry, placing Seattle at the forefront of medical innovation. This neighborhood, combined with mixed-use and affordable-housing development and public transportation solutions, showed us how regional economic development initiatives can include and foster smart growth.
Our day began with an overview of the South Lake Union neighborhood at the Vulcan, Inc. Discovery Center. There we learned of Mayor Greg Nickels’ successful efforts since 2002 to recruit biotech and life science organizations. Why? Good jobs. These businesses provide high-wage jobs and like to locate close to one another to foster collaboration. In short, biotech businesses make good “regional innovation clusters.” In Seattle’s case, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington (UW) were early biotech anchors that helped to attract other biotech businesses.
I especially enjoyed our stop at the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute (SBRI), a leader in infectious disease research. There we received presentations on the work of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, UW Medicine and the Washington Global Health Alliance. All of these “heavyweight” research and global health institutions are housed in a 60-block radius, sharing ideas, students, facilities and often clientele.
The reason the visit to SBRI was special is because we got to talk to high school students who are taking advantage of SBRI’s Bioquest education program. The aim of Bioquest is to inspire the next generation of scientists by allowing teenagers to get hands-on experience in a lab and meet working scientists and researchers. Dr. Robert Croyle found it particularly rewarding to see kids benefiting from the over $86,000 in Recovery Funding that was awarded to SBRI to expand the Bioquest program, offering college credit to high school seniors.
But South Lake Union is not just about science, collaboration and commercialization. It is about community. During our walking tour of the neighborhood, we visited the Bart Harvey residence for low-income seniors. The six-story building has an enviable array of amenities—a library room with a computer lab, community meeting space, offices for case management and support services, and a green roof that provides a panoramic view of the Seattle skyline – my favorite though, a rooftop herb garden. We spoke to one resident who expressed her love for her new home. She said, “I am comfortable here. We have everything at our fingertips. Maybe it’s just me, but I love to go up to the garden on the roof and watch the planes touch down.”
Sharon Lee, Executive Director of the Low Income Housing Institute explained, “We need to make sure low-income people can live in middle-class neighborhoods not only in distressed communities.We have changed the look of low-income housing. Not only is it well designed, it’s green.”
We topped off the day with an important policy discussion about the qualities that define a successful regional innovation cluster, the role of the federal government in supporting that type of development, and lessons learned from the South Lake Union experience. Ada Healy, Vice President of Real Estate for Vulcan, Inc., the key local private sector partner noted, “This group came together because of extraordinary leadership, coordination, and cooperation from the Mayor’s Office, the Gates Foundation, the non-profit community, government, and business. There was an atmosphere of trust and a commitment to not just create offices where people work from 9-to-5, but real communities.”
Assistant Secretary John Fernandez explained that the Economic Development Administration is looking to “create a bridge” to encourage innovations that reach beyond the center and positively affect the whole region.”
Our trip to Seattle showed us that smart, coordinated planning can attract a cluster of businesses to a neighborhood and spur regional economic development, and train the next generation of scientists, provide housing for seniors, and create a more livable community. Thanks, Seattle!!
Adolfo Carrión, Jr. is Director of the White House Office of Urban Affairs and Deputy Assistant to the President
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With National Cybersecurity Awareness Month now finished, I would like to remind everyone that cybersecurity is not an issue that requires our attention only one month a year. Instead, we need to be thinking about cybersecurity every time we turn on a computer. Further, as the threat of cyber attacks continues to increase, the U.S. Government and the nation as a whole need to continue to develop and identify the young cybersecurity experts who will keep our computers and digital networks secure and resilient.
One of the ways the U.S. Government cultivates future cyber defenders is through competitions such as the U.S. Cyber Challenge. This program, which is comprised of three separate cybersecurity challenges, has the goal of identifying 10,000 young Americans with the skills to fill the ranks of cybersecurity practitioners, researchers, and leaders. The program nurtures and develops their skills, gives them access to advanced education and exercises, and where appropriate, enables them to be recognized by colleges, companies, and government departments and agencies where their skills can be of the greatest value to the nation.
One of the amazing stories from this year’s U.S. Cyber Challenge is Michael Coppola. Michael is a high school senior and is the leading point scorer through two rounds of the Netwars challenge. Despite not having much formal cybersecurity training, Michael is beating teams of adults and cybersecurity professionals, and, as you can see in the interview excerpt below, remains humble and grounded. Keep up the good work, Michael!
Q. So, Michael, what we'd really like to hear about is what it was like to participate in the NetWars competition. But for starters, how did you even find out about it?
A. In May, a news collective, Digg, pointed me to an article on Forbes.com that described the NetWars contest but didn't provide any information on how to actually participate. About a month later, a link to the contest surfaced on the 2600 news feed, and the rest is history
Q. And just out of curiosity, you're in your senior year in high school - had you already taken computer science courses at school?
A. Yes, I've taken a few, but they don't offer computer security classes. I've taken Graphic Design, Web Design and Animation, and Computer Networking and Repair. I enrolled to take Introduction to Programming this year, but they cancelled it, because they couldn't find a suitable teacher.
Q. Did you ever wonder about what you might "win" or get out of it?
A. The original flyer said something about "cyber camps," but I didn't really know what that meant. I played just to play, and if I won anything from it, then all the better.
Q. Were you surprised when you won? Did you know that the second highest score came from a TEAM of five (?) players working together?
A. I was actually very surprised to be honest. I didn't expect to win, because I assumed that the people I was competing against would be in college with formal educations. Also, I had no idea the second place contestant was in fact a team of five until you asked me!
John Brennan is Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
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Yesterday, my staff and I hosted a Clean Energy Economy Forum with 164 stakeholders from 39 states across the country. Participants represented a broad-based network of organizations and institutions – including sportsmen and women, business leaders, conservationists, and Indian country. Thank you to all who attended in person and who participated online.
The discussions centered around the need for a comprehensive energy plan that reduces our dependence on foreign oil, creates jobs, and reduces the pollution that causes climate change. The Department of the Interior has a unique role to play in each of these challenges.
As the managers of twenty percent of our nation's landmass and 1.7 billion acres of the outer continental shelf, Interior lands supply much of the nation's traditional and renewable energy resources. Since January, we have invested $41 million in recovery funds to facilitate a rapid and responsible move to large-scale production of renewable energy on public lands and tribal lands. These investments are bringing about new clean energy jobs at a time when our country needs them most.
Interior is also leading the way when it comes to addressing the impacts of climate change. Recently, we established the first-ever coordinated departmental strategy to address climate change and are providing sound science, delivering land management strategies and innovative carbon sequestration strategies for the country.
But we can't do this alone. We need combined efforts of the groups represented at today’s forum and the American people to bring about such a massive change for our country and our world. Together we can create jobs, protect our treasured landscapes, and ensure a clean energy future for generations to come.
I look forward to more productive conversations and discussions in the days and months ahead. Check out Part 1 of the Clean Energy Economy Forum above, and the rest at the links below:
Ken Salazar is the Secretary of the Interior
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As we've documented again and again, perhaps most powerfully by the Council of Economic Advisers’ report in July, health insurance reform is as important for America's small businesses as it is for anybody. But as actual legislation makes its way towards the floors of the House and Senate, it's good to look again at all of the issues surrounding reform, which is why HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and SBA Administrator Karen Mills will hold a briefing today to give a legislative update and discuss the impact of health reform on small businesses before taking questions from the group of business owners.
And as we so often do, we want to give you an opportunity to engage as well. Rebecca Adelman of HHS will be live-blogging the event, and you can also either watch it live here at WhiteHouse.gov, or watch, discuss it and ask questions through Facebook.
UPDATE 12:40: Administrator Karen Mills focuses her remarks on the real trouble many small business owners are in as they struggle to provide insurance to their employees. "We have extraordinary entrepreneurs in our country," she says. "But maybe you can't leave your employer, because how will you afford an individual policy?" She said she recently spoke to one small business owner who told her that she had been in business three years before she could provide health insurance to her employees. Only then, did she consider her business a success. Last week in this room, Administrator Mills said, the President addressed what was at stake in the health reform debate. His answer? That this country is a place where the only limits are your dreams.
UPDATE 12:34: Secretary Sebelius says we are closer to achieving reform than ever before. She closes with this key point: These problems are not getting better. They are getting worse. And they are going to keep getting worse until we do something about it. The Secretary receives loud applause from the group of small business owners. Next up to address the group is Rick Poore, a small business owner from Nebraska.
UPDATE 12:25: Rebecca Adelman - Dr. Brantley introduces Secretary Sebelius, who opens her remarks by saying that when we pass health insurance reform, it will become illegal to deny Americans coverage because of a pre-existing condition. Secretary Sebelius says as much as she enjoys talking with small business owners, her goal is that next time the group here today comes to Washington, they don't need to talk to her, because health care would no longer be on their list of biggest concerns. Small business owners, the Secretary said, should be focused on delivering a great product and meeting the needs of their customers - not worrying about health care.
UPDATE 12:12: Rebecca Adelman - "Running a business is not an easy task," Dr. Brantley says. "When there are changes in the economy, we feel them." He explains that his wife left her job to help him with his business, but soon afterward, his family lost their private insurance because of his wife's pre-existing condition: pregnancy. Many in the crowd nod in agreement when Mr. Brantley says. "I am living the American dream, but my dream has become a nightmare."
UPDATE 12:07: Rebecca Adelman - Over 100 small business owners are gathered in the South Court Auditorium for a briefing with the Director of the Office of Public Engagement Tina Tchen, Secretary of HHS Kathleen Sebelius and Small Business Administrator Karen Mills on health insurance reform. Tina Tchen welcomes the group of small business owners to the White House. She says we are all here today to discuss the urgent need for health reform. She introduces Dr. Ken Brantley, who runs an Optometry practice in Richmond, Virginia, to address the group.
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November 03, 2009
09:38 AM ESTToday we are beginning to accept nominations for the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship, which will take place in Washington, D.C. next spring. This event is the direct result of President Obama’s speech in Cairo last June. In that speech, the President sought to establish a new beginning built on the basis of mutual respect, the pursuit of partnerships in areas of mutual interest, and the shared principles and aspirations that bring us together as human beings.
It is my belief that the spirit of entrepreneurship is shared by all people regardless of culture, or national borders, and that entrepreneurial activity can serve as a catalyst to promote economic growth, create jobs, and benefit people around the world.
That is why I’m encouraging entrepreneurs, investors, academics, leaders of entrepreneurship networks, foundations, and businesses and all those focused on advancing entrepreneurship in Muslim-majority countries, and Muslim communities to nominate delegates to the Summit. If you’d like to help shape the agenda for the Summit, you can share your ideas. Furthermore, you can stay up-to-date on the Summit using Twitter.
Gary Locke is Secretary of Commerce
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November 02, 2009
05:55 PM ESTFirst Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden traveled to Yankee Stadium to honor America's veterans at Game 1 of the 2009 World Series. During the visit, they took the field with baseball legend Yogi Berra to watch Lieutenant Anthony Odierno (U.S. Army) throw out the game's first pitch. See exclusive video of the night here:
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November 02, 2009
03:00 PM ESTWhen you were a kid, you knew which homes on your block had the reputation for the good loot and which gave the bags of pennies. Well, if you were one of the lucky local school and military kids able to do their tricking and treating at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, you would have gone home with some Presidential M&Ms fit for bragging rights and, perhaps, some face time with the First Neighbors themselves.
Here are some sights and sounds from Halloween at the White House this Saturday.
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I hope you take a moment to watch this powerful video about the dedicated men and women who are working to improve the environment at the Savannah River Site thanks to support from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
At the Savannah River Site, located along the border of Georgia and South Carolina, workers are cleaning up the environmental legacy of the nation's nuclear weapons program. These workers have an important mission: to protect the health of our citizens and our environment.
With funding from the Recovery Act, we have been able to accelerate the clean-up at the Savannah River Site and put Americans back to work. As of October 30th, 2009, 2,295 jobs have been created or saved at this Site.
Behind this number lies the stories of thousands of hard-working Americans who have good jobs and new opportunities today because of the Recovery Act. I encourage you to watch the video and hear some of these workers tell their stories.
Steven Chu is Secretary of Energy
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As riddled with problems as our health insurance system is for all Americans, a devastating report at HealthReform.gov also documented how low-income Americans and racial and ethnic minorities experience disproportionately higher rates of disease, fewer treatment options, and reduced access to care.
Today Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett will address those issues and many others in a live video chat today at 3:30 EST. We’ve been taking questions since last week, and will take more live during the chat.
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