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Over the last week, Yahoo!, MSN Latino, AOL Latino and HuffPost LatinoVoices have been collecting your questions for President Obama on issues like the economy, job creation, education and fixing our immigration system to meet our 21st century economic and security needs.
Today, President Obama will hear from you in a special Open for Question roundtable addressing questions that you submitted to Yahoo!, MSN Latino, AOL Latino and HuffPost LatinoVoices. The roundtable will be available in both English and Spanish.
Tune in to the discussion live at 11:25 a.m. EDT at WhiteHouse.gov/live and learn more about President Obama’s commitment to increasing opportunity for the Hispanic community and all Americans.
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Recently, a somewhat misleading estimate of the cost of the nearly 2 million jobs that independent economists estimate will be created by American Jobs Act has been making headlines, so we’d like to set the record straight. These calculations purport to show the “cost per job” created by the bill, by simply dividing the cost of the bill by the estimated jobs created next year. While this calculation might seem intuitive, it provides a misleading picture of the American Jobs Act and its economic impact.
First, as Secretary Geithner highlighted in a visit to a UPS facility in Louisville, Kentucky on Monday, in addition to supporting good middle-class jobs, the investments in the American Jobs Act also create real economic value. It helps pay for the cost of materials for rebuilding roads and bridges or modernizing schools. It provides tax cuts that go towards new investment by small businesses or new purchases by families. We can all agree that improving the quality of our schools and our infrastructure or providing small businesses with the incentives and resources to expand strengthens our economy and its competitiveness. Simply dividing the cost of the bill by an estimate of the number of jobs created ignores these economic benefits. In addition, these calculations focus on the jobs impact in one year alone, and evaluate it against the cost of the entire bill. While the package is designed so that there is the strongest boost in 2012, there is a job creation impact beyond then, which these calculations don't take into account.
What’s more, these calculations fail to take into account the impact of getting people back to work now. Helping Americans get back to work not only reduces the costs of publicly funded programs like Medicaid and food stamps, it also reduces the potentially significant long-term costs to the economy of having people out of work for extended periods.
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President Barack Obama waves to the crowd after addressing Abraham Lincoln High School, Denver, Colorado, Sept. 27, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Today, President Obama visited the Abraham Lincoln High School in Denver, Colorado to talk about how the American Jobs Act will help modernize schools like Lincoln High all across the country. The President is proposing a $25 billion investment in school infrastructure to repair and upgrade at least 35,000 public schools because, as he said today, “Every child deserves a great school – and we can give it to them. We can rebuild our schools for the 21st century, with faster internet, smarter labs and cutting-edge technology.”
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) awarded the United States a ‘D’ for the condition of our public school infrastructure and the statistics are grim. The average public school building in the United States is over 40 years old, and many are much older. Schools spend over $6 billion annually on their energy bills, more than they spend on computers and textbooks combined. Forty three states reported that one-third or more of their schools do not meet all of the functional requirements necessary to effectively teach laboratory science, knowledge that is critical if we are to prepare our children for the jobs of the future. The Job Act’s school infrastructure funds can be used for a range of much needed emergency projects, including greening and energy efficiency upgrades, asbestos removal and modernization efforts to build new science and computer labs and upgrade the technology infrastructure in our schools. The President’s goal is to create a better, safer learning environment for all students:
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At sundown tomorrow night, the Jewish community here in the United States and all over the world will gather to celebrate the start of the new year. Rosh Hashanah offers us an extraordinary sense of possibility because it provides us an opportunity to shape our world for the better.
In his video greeting for the High Holy Days, President Obama says:
As the High Holidays begin, we look back on all the moments during the past year that gave us reason to hope. Around the world, a new generation is reaching for their universal rights. Here in the United States, we’ve responded to our challenges by focusing on the things that really matter – friendship, family, and community.
But this last year was also one of hardship for people around the world. Too many of our friends and neighbors continue to struggle in the wake of a terrible economic recession. And beyond our borders, many of our closest allies – including the State of Israel – face the uncertainties of an unpredictable age.
That is why my Administration is doing everything we can to promote prosperity here at home and security and peace throughout the world – and that includes reaffirming our commitment to the State of Israel. While we cannot know all that the New Year will bring, we do know this: the United States will continue to stand with Israel, because the bond between our two nations is unshakable.
As Jewish tradition teaches us, we may not complete the work, but that must never keep us from trying. In that spirit, Michelle and I wish you, your families, and all who celebrate Rosh Hashanah a sweet year full of health, happiness, and peace.
From the White House, we wish everyone a happy and sweet New Year. -
Today, we received two updates on health insurance premiums. The Kaiser Family Foundation’s annual survey on health insurance looked back at the premiums insurers charged businesses and families in 2011, while the Office of Personnel Management looked ahead to 2012 and provided some important insight into the premiums large employers are negotiating with insurers for the coming year.
First, the Office of Personnel Management announced that the average premium for the 8 million people enrolled in the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program will increase by 3.8 percent in 2012, nearly half of the 7.3 percent increase in premiums for 2011. The premium increase for the popular Blue Cross Blue Shield Standard Plan will be only 1.6 percent for 2012.
Second, the Kaiser Family Foundation released its annual survey on health insurance premiums, which found that that premiums increased by 9 percent in 2011.When evaluating the Kaiser study, it’s important to remember a few important facts:
- High Insurance Company Profits. The Kaiser report shows that premiums increased 9 percent in 2011. These premiums were generally set in 2010, when insurance companies thought medical costs would be significantly higher than they turned out to be. The Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the health insurance employer cost index (a measure of the price of health care services) was the lowest it has been in over 10 years in the first half of 2011. Additionally, some insurers assumed that the Affordable Care Act would dramatically raise their costs. In the end, both assumptions were wrong – but insurance companies still charged high premiums and earned impressive profits. Wall Street analysts’ review of results from the first quarter of 2011 found that 13 of the top 14 health insurers exceeded their earnings expectations, with profits that were over 45 percent higher than estimated.
- Policies to Hold Insurance Companies Accountable Kicking In. Key Affordable Care Act policies are starting to take effect that make insurance more affordable. For example, insurance companies that want to raise premiums for 2012 by more than 10 percent will have to publicly justify their rate hikes. And a growing number of States have the power to reject unjustified premium hikes. Additionally, insurers are required to spend at least 80 percent of your premium dollars on medical care, rather than advertising, overhead and bonuses for executives. If they fail to meet that standard, they will be required to provide a rebate to their customers.
- Premium Growth is Slowing. The data released by Kaiser cover 2011, but signs indicate that premium growth will slow significantly in 2012. On September 20th, Mercer, a well-known independent benefits consulting firm released a survey of employers showing that their health insurance cost increases will average 5.4 percent for 2012, the smallest increase it has measured since 1997. Goldman Sachs reported “Widespread anecdotal observations suggest health reform may be a factor contributing to slower growth in per capita health spending.”
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Exchanges Work. The Affordable Care Act established Affordable Insurance Exchanges – State-based marketplaces where consumers will be able to purchase affordable, private health insurance. Examples of these kinds of marketplaces already exist and in two important cases, premium growth is falling.
- As noted earlier, the average premium for 8 million Americans who get their insurance through the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program will increase by 3.8 percent in 2012. The FEHBP was a model for the Affordable Insurance Exchanges included in the Affordable Care Act.
- CalPERS which insures 1.3 million California workers and retirees through a marketplace that is similar to the Exchanges reported that premium growth in 2012 would be 4.1 percent, down from 9 percent in 2011.
These examples only underscore what independent experts have already told us: Exchanges and other tools in the law will help save money for middle-class families.
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Other Key Statistics: Millions Already Helped by Reform. Other key statistics from the Kaiser report include:
- 2.3 million young adults were added to their parents’ plan as a result of health reform. This number is larger than the 1 million uninsured young adults who gained insurance since it includes those switching from an individual market plan.
- 47 million Americans who get insurance at work were helped by the Affordable Care Act rule that ensures preventive care is covered without a co-pay or deductible. 31 percent of workers were in plans that added preventive services and 23 percent were in plans that lowered their cost sharing due to the Affordable Care Act.
- Contrary to what opponents of the Affordable Care Act claimed would happen, 60 percent of employers continue to offer health insurance to their employees – compared to 59 percent in 2009. And when the law is fully implemented, employers will have new tools that will make it easier for them to provide benefits to their workers.
The Kaiser report is informative, but it’s a look backwards. When we look to the future, we know that the Affordable Care Act will help make insurance more affordable for families and businesses across the country.
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Mayor Michael Hancock of Denver, Colorado says there is no more important initiative that any elected official can be focused on than "trying to get America back to work, right now."
Hancock believes that "this Job Act is an opportunity for all elected officials at every level but particularly here in Washington, in Congress and the White House, to finally put aside our differences and stand again for the people of America and begin to put them to work."
President Obama will be in Denver today to speak about the American Jobs Act, his plan that will immediately put workers back on the job and put more money in the pockets of working Americans, and Hancock says that what benefits Denver in the package is "going to be the same thing that benefits all cities across this country large and small, you give employers the incentive to bring people on the payroll."
See how other mayors say the American Jobs Act will impact their cities:
Mayor Dayne Walling of Flint, Michigan
Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa of Los Angeles, California
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake of Baltimore, Maryland
Mayor Mark Mallory of Cincinnati, Ohio
Mayor Greg Fischer of Louisville, Kentucky
Mayor Sly James of Kansas City
Mayor Phil Gordon of Phoenix, Arizona -
First Lady Michelle Obama today spoke about the importance of supporting and retaining women and girls who choose careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering and science, the so-called STEM disciplines.
“If we’re going to out-innovate and out-educate the rest of the world, then we have to open doors to everyone,” said Mrs. Obama during an event at the White House held to announce the NSF Career-Life Balance Initiative. “We need all hands on deck. And that means clearing hurdles for women and girls as they navigate careers in science, technology, engineering and math.”
First Lady Michelle Obama addresses the National Science Foundation's Career-Life Balance initiative event in the East Room of the White House Sept. 26, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson) September 26, 2011.
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President Barack Obama answers an audience member's question during a Town Hall meeting sponsored by LinkedIn at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, Sept. 26, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)
Today, President Obama was at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California for a discussion on putting America back to work with members of LinkedIn, the world's largest professional network with more than 120 million users worldwide. LinkedIn members from Gainesville, Florida to Phoenix, Arizona submitted their questions on the economy and jobs for the President to answer during the live Town Hall.
LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner kicked off the Town Hall, noting the role of passing the American Jobs Act in putting the country back to work:
There's one number you may be less familiar with, and that's 3.2 million, the number of available jobs in this country -- 3.2 million. We have everything we need to begin to put this country back to work -- the raw materials, the basic building blocks and, perhaps most importantly, the will of a nation. What we need is the way. With the American Jobs Act, our President is leading the way.
Then he turned it over to President Obama to say a few words before diving into questions:
As you mentioned, I put forward a proposal, the American Jobs Act, that would put thousands of teachers back into the classrooms who have been laid off due to downturns in state and local budgets; that would make sure that we are rebuilding our infrastructure -- taking extraordinary numbers of construction workers who have been laid off when the housing bubbles went bust and putting them to work rebuilding our roads and our airports and our schools, and laying broadband lines -- all the things that help us make a success; and also make sure that we’re providing small businesses the kinds of tax incentives that will allow them to hire and allow them to succeed.
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September 26, 2011
05:33 PM EDT
Dr. Biden and David Letterman refer to a map of Africa while discussing the Somalia famine relief efforts. (Photo from the Late Show with David Letterman)
Last Monday, the U.S. Agency for International Development, in partnership with the Ad Council, launched a public awareness campaign called “FWD” – standing for Famine, War, Drought - to draw the attention to the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa.
The campaign is calling on Americans to FWD the Facts. FWD them to your friends, FWD them to your neighbors, FWD them to everyone you know.
A few of the facts:
- More than 13 million people are in crisis – making this the largest humanitarian crisis in the world.
- More than 700,000 people have fled from their homes in Somalia to Ethiopia and Kenya – creating the world’s largest refugee camps.
- 1 child is dying every 6 minutes in Somalia.
- More than 750,000 people are projected to perish from starvation in Somalia within the next four months if humanitarians are not allowed access in to southern Somalia.
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Since the Peace Corps was established in 1961, more than 200,000 Peace Corps volunteers have promoted world peace and friendship in 139 countries around the world. The stories of these Americans who have served are powerful, moving, and inspiring.
Civic Enterprises, the National Peace Corps Association and Peter D. Hart Research Associates recently collaborated to hear directly from Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs). Surveying over 11,000 RPCVs and leaders, "A Call to Peace: Perspectives of Volunteers on the Peace Corps at 50" (pdf) is the story of the individuals who shaped and defined the organization since its inception.
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September 26, 2011
02:31 PM EDTEd note: This has been cross-posted from the Office of Science and Technology's blog
Today is a good day for science and technology, a good day for scientists and engineers, and a good day for the nation.
As highlighted in a Washington Post op-ed this morning, the National Science Foundation (NSF) is announcing a major, 10-year initiative to provide greater work-related flexibility to women and men in research careers.
Among other advances, the NSF—the Nation’s major funder of research in engineering, computer science, mathematics, and other high-tech fields that will be central to U.S. economic growth in the years ahead—will allow researchers to delay or suspend their grants for up to one year in order to care for a newborn or newly adopted child or fulfill other family obligations.
That change and others being launched today at a White House event featuring First Lady Michelle Obama and NSF Director Subra Suresh aim to facilitate scientists’ reentry into their professions with minimal loss of momentum—especially women scientists, who, more often than not, are the ones who end up delaying or dropping their promising science careers because of competing family demands.
Today the White House also announced the winners of the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)—the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their research careers.
There’s a great synergy between these two announcements because these up-and-coming researchers are tomorrow’s all-stars in the making, and about 40 percent of them are women. The Nation needs all of these high-achievers, including all those women, to stick with their innovative work—to make the discoveries and design the technologies that will keep America the international science and technology powerhouse it is today.
Finally, special kudos to NSF and others in the Administration, including staff here at OSTP, for using the convening power of the White House and the Obama Administration to encourage businesses and academic and professional organizations to adopt policies similar to those that NSF is putting into place. Several are today announcing ambitious efforts in coordination with NSF’s announcement. A list of them is available here.
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Last week, the President put forward a detailed plan for jobs, controlling our deficit, and comprehensive tax reform. The President’s tax reform plan will abide by the principles of cutting rates, getting rid of inefficient and unfair tax breaks, and observing the Buffett rule – a simple rule of simple fairness that no household making over $1 million annually should pay less in federal taxes than middle-class families pay.
Yesterday in an interview with Senior Adviser David Plouffe on Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace used misleading statistics to argue against the President’s efforts to level the playing field for middle class Americans by requiring that the wealthiest pay their fair share. In an effort to falsely assert that the President’s plan would place an unfair tax burden on the wealthiest Americans, Wallace said that, “1 percent of households with the highest incomes pay 38 percent of federal income taxes. The top 10 percent pay 70 percent of federal income taxes. Meanwhile, 46 percent of households pay no federal income tax at all.”
These statistics are misleading and don’t tell the whole story. They leave out payroll taxes that every worker pays to make sure they will have Social Security and Medicare when they retire, which fall disproportionately on the middle class. And they don’t mention that the share of the nation’s income going to the highest earners grew rapidly in the past two decades – at the same time tax rates fell for the highest earners.
In fact, because of growing income inequality, the top 10 percent of American earners now earns 42 percent of the nation’s income, and when correctly calculated, pay about 50 percent of the federal income and payroll tax burden - not much larger than their share of earnings.
As we continue to have a robust discussion about the President’s plans across our country, it’s important to understand exactly how they will affect Americans – from the middle class to the highest earners.
We already took on several tax myths here (see “Buffett Rule Facts and Fictions,” by NEC Director Gene Sperling) but given that more misleading information continues to make the rounds, it is important to set the record straight.
Here are facts:
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Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa of Los Angeles, California says that the residents of his city are united in their message to him, and to elected officials in Washington: "Job #1 is to create the jobs they need going into the future."
And the American Jobs Act is a step in that direction. "America’s mayors are in sync with the President and his call to work on a bipartisan basis to put America back on track," according to Villaraigosa, who is President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
See how other mayors say the American Jobs Act will impact their cities:
Mayor Dayne Walling of Flint, Michigan
Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake of Baltimore, Maryland
Mayor Michael Hancock of Denver, Colorado
Mayor Mark Mallory of Cincinnati, Ohio
Mayor Greg Fischer of Louisville, Kentucky
Mayor Sly James of Kansas City
Mayor Phil Gordon of Phoenix, Arizona -
September 26, 2011
10:15 AM EDTLast Thursday, the 2nd Annual Bullying Summit closed with demonstrable progress on a range of important topics surfaced during President Obama’s Bullying Prevention Summit last March. Our focus last March was on the challenges and opportunities in preventing cyberbullying. In the months that followed our roundtable, we are pleased to report on two commitments in response to the White House’s “Call to Action”:
- Facebook pledged to invest in research grants on the most innovative approaches to bullying prevention found across our Nation’s universities and non-profits. Last month, Facebook delivered on this promise by launching the $200,000 “Digital Citizenship Research Grant”. We look forward to celebrating the inaugural awardees when they are announced later this fall.
- MTV offered to collaborate with the MIT Media Lab to encourage innovative approaches to detect and deter cyberbullying. MTV and MIT delivered on this promise by formalizing a partnership centered around “Over the Line?”, a Web and iPhone app where young people share and rate personal stories of how technology is complicating social interactions. The app has elicited a strong and empathetic response – with more than 9,000 user-submitted stories generating over 325,000 ratings – and it represents one of the largest bodies of knowledge on youth digital ethics.
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On September 8, President Obama called on Congress to pass the American Jobs Act, his plan to put more people back to work and more money in the pockets of those who are working. And a week ago today, he explained how he would ensure the American Jobs Act does not add a dime to our deficit and proposed a balanced approach to getting our financial house in order.
Here in the White House we have been getting lots of feedback on the President’s plans from citizens across the country who have called, e-mailed, tweeted and posted to express their opinions and ask questions. So below are responses to some of the questions, criticisms and misconceptions that we have heard so far.
The President Knows Congress Will Not Pass His Plan So He Is Just Wasting Our Time.
While it is up to Congress to decide if it will pass the President’s American Jobs Act so he can sign it into law, there is no reason that Congress shouldn’t. As the President explained in his address, every proposal in the American Jobs Act “is the kind of proposal that's been supported by both Democrats and Republicans.” The President’s plan will cut taxes for working Americans and small businesses and put construction workers, teachers, police officers and firefighters, veterans and the long-term unemployed back to work. And President Obama laid out a plan to pay for it, by closing tax loopholes for millionaires and billionaires as well as hedge fund managers, private jet owners and oil companies – although he has called on the Joint Committee to make the final decision on how to make sure that it will not add to our deficit. So there’s no reason the Congress should not pass this bill.
Americans Already Pay Too Much To The Government – The Last Thing We Should Do Is Raise Taxes.
The President’s proposal to repeal the tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans and close loopholes and subsidies for big corporations, oil companies, hedge fund managers and corporate jet owners is part of a balanced approach to getting our financial house in order. It’s an approach that asks everyone to pay their fair share and makes sure everyone gets a fair shake. Recognizing that the economy remains fragile, the plan includes no tax increases for anyone in 2011 or 2012—and, in fact, includes $245 billion in tax cuts for workers and small businesses in these years. And the President’s plan lives up to the simple idea that we can live within our means while still making the investments we need to grow our economy, compete globally and create jobs that will ensure our future prosperity in areas including education, innovation, clean energy and infrastructure.
As the President said in his speech last week, this is about choices: “Either we ask the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share in taxes, or we’re going to have to ask seniors to pay more for Medicare. We can’t afford to do both. Either we gut education and medical research, or we’ve got to reform the tax code so that the most profitable corporations have to give up tax loopholes that other companies don’t get. We can’t afford to do both. This is not class warfare. It’s math.”
The Last Stimulus Did Not Create Jobs And This One Will Not Create Jobs Either.
Despite what critics of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act say, independent economists have determined that it did create jobs. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office found that the Recovery Act created or saved as many as 3.5 million jobs as of the end of last year. And Macroeconomic Advisors, Moody’s Economy.com and IHS/Global Insight all similarly found that it created or saved well over 2 million jobs as of that point.
As the President said in his Address to a Joint Session of Congress, “The purpose of the American Jobs Act is simple: to put more people back to work and more money in the pockets of those who are working.” And outside experts agree. Moody’s Analytics’ Mark Zandi estimates that if Congress passed the American Jobs Act, it would add 1.9 million jobs and 2 percentage points to GDP growth in 2012. And Macroeconomic Advisors estimates that it would add 1.3 million by the end of 2012. So you don’t have to take it from us – outside experts say the American Jobs Act will put Americans back to work and grow the economy.
How Does the American Jobs Act Help Students Gain Employment?
Students, like other workers, will benefit from the payroll tax cuts that the President has proposed to spur businesses to hire. The President’s plan would completely refund payroll taxes paid on added workers or wage increases for current workers above the level of last year’s payroll, encouraging firms to hire additional employees or raise wages for their current employees. The Act also includes $1.5 billion for summer jobs and year-round employment for low-income youth ages 16-24. Such programs can not only provide young people with their first paycheck, but also teach them life-long employment skills.
What Will the Jobs Act Do to Help People Who Are Self-Employed?
All small business owners, including those who are self-employed, would benefit from the President’s proposed tax cuts for small businesses. These tax cuts will cut employer and self-employment payroll taxes in half, and extend 100% expensing provisions that provide an incentive for investment. And if self-employed or home-based businesses want to expand, they will receive a tax break for hiring new workers.
The President’s plan also makes it easier for states to allow unemployed workers to create their own jobs by starting their own businesses, by allowing states across the nation to use federal funds to support self-employment assistance programs. The President’s plan will also enable states to connect entrepreneurs with mentoring and access to capital through SBA and other public and private resources.
How Will You Ensure Job Creation and "Stimulus" Opportunities and Dollars Actually Reach Minority Small Businesses?
The President is proposing tax cuts that will go to every small business nationwide – including over 100,000 African-American-owned small businesses and 250,000 Hispanic-owned small businesses. These tax cuts will cut employer payroll taxes in half for these businesses, provide them with an added bonus for increasing their payroll, and extend 100% expensing provisions that provide an incentive for investment.
Additionally, the President’s plan includes administrative, regulatory and legislative measures to help small firms, including those owned by minorities start and expand. These measures include speeding up government payments to small businesses, reducing their regulatory burdens and removing some withholding requirements that keep capital out of the hands of job creators.
How Will the American Jobs Act Address Technology Gaps between Rural and Urban Areas, and what Incentives Will It Offer to Technology Entrepreneurs?
The American Jobs Act will invest in developing and deploying a nationwide wireless network for use by first responders and free up public and private spectrum to enable the private sector to deploy high-speed wireless services to at least 98 percent of Americans, even those living in remote rural and farming communities.
The President’s plan will also support technology entrepreneurs by investing $30 billion to renovate and modernize our nation’s schools and community colleges. Part of this funding will be used to build new science and computer labs and to upgrade technology in our schools.
Finally, technology entrepreneurs, like all small businesses would benefit from the President’s proposed tax cuts for small businesses. These tax cuts will cut employer payroll taxes in half for these businesses, provide them with an added bonus for increasing their payroll, and extend 100% expensing provisions that provide an incentive for investment.
Click here to learn more about the American Jobs Act. We’ll keep responding to the feedback we hear from you, so keep asking questions, raising concerns and letting us know what you think about the President’s plans.
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President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Annual Phoenix Awards in Washington, D.C., Saturday, Sept. 24, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
Yesterday evening, the President delivered remarks at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Annual Phoenix Awards at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. In his speech, the President stressed the importance of passing the American Jobs Act, to put more people back to work, and more money back in the pockets of people who are working:
Right now we’ve got millions of construction workers out of a job. So this bill says, let’s put those men and women back to work in their own communities rebuilding our roads and our bridges. Let’s give these folks a job rebuilding our schools. Let’s put these folks to work rehabilitating foreclosed homes in the hardest-hit neighborhoods of Detroit and Atlanta and Washington. This is a no-brainer.
Why should we let China build the newest airports, the fastest railroads? Tell me why our children should be allowed to study in a school that’s falling apart? I don’t want that for my kids or your kids. I don’t want that for any kid. You tell me how it makes sense when we know that education is the most important thing for success in the 21st century. Let’s put our people back to work doing the work America needs done. Let’s pass this jobs bill.
We’ve got millions of unemployed Americans and young people looking for work but running out of options. So this jobs bill says, let’s give them a pathway, a new pathway back to work. Let’s extend unemployment insurance so that more than six million Americans don’t lose that lifeline. But let’s also encourage reforms that help the long-term unemployed keep their skills sharp and get a foot in the door. Let’s give summer jobs for low-income youth that don’t just give them their first paycheck but arm them with the skills they need for life.
Tell me why we don’t want the unemployed back in the workforce as soon as possible. Let’s pass this jobs bill, put these folks back to work.
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First Lady Michelle Obama congratulates kids on the Obstacle Course at Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play on the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., Saturday, Sept. 24, 2011. The First Lady joined children and families at the event to celebrate the success of the Million PALA Challenge, a joint initiative of Let’s Move! and the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
Yesterday, First Lady Michelle Obama joined children and families at Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play to celebrate the success of the Million PALA Challenge, a joint initiative of Let’s Move! and the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition (PCFSN).
Launched in September 2010, the Million PALA Challenge was created to motivate one million Americans to get active and earn the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award (PALA) in a year. Since the start of the challenge, more than 1.7 million Americans have gotten active and earned their PALA, far exceeding the initiative’s goal.
To celebrate this success, Mrs. Obama “turned off” Nickelodeon for three hours during Worldwide Day of Play to encourage kids to go outside and play. The First Lady made a surprise visit at the event, where she cheered kids on at the obstacle course and congratulated the 1.7 million Americans who achieved their PALA.
“I’m so proud of all the kids and families who rose to the challenge and got active this year,” said First Lady Michelle Obama, who earned her PALA last fall. “The Million PALA Challenge helped shine a spotlight on the childhood obesity epidemic and I know we can all keep up the momentum and keep moving to help our kids lead healthy, active lives.”
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September 25, 2011
08:30 PM EDTThe White House hosted a live video chat to answer your questions on the President's trip to the United Nations General Assembly. The conversation ranged from topics such as the United States' involvement in Libya to international trade agreements and the US economy. Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications and Speechwriting sat down to answer your questions submitted through Facebook and Twitter.
Watch the whole video of the Open for Questions event, or use the links below to jump directly to the questions that you're interested in. Follow @WhiteHouse on Twitter for more opportunities to engage with us.
- Why should the US engage with the United Nations?
- What actions can the US take to help resolve the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians?
- What is the United States' position on the events in Yemen?
- What is the timeline and next steps for the Security Council resolution on Syria?
- How is genocide prevention and conflict intervention advancing the US national interests?
- What specifically can be done to increase the role of women and peace in the Middle East and how receptive are the countries to that goal?
- How is the US relationship with Turkey?
- How will the administration ensure that genocide prevention remains a priority for the US government going forward?
- Does the Obama administration forsee any further diplomatic communication between the US and Iran?
- What does a real win look like in the middle east and how do we accomplish it?
- Why are we involved in Libya, can we really afford more debt?
- Will the administration help facilitate aid to Africa from organizations that do not recieve funding from the US?
- When will our involvement in Libya end?
- How is the US preparing to care for troops coming back from war?
- What was the most significant moment of the UNGA for the President?
- What is the administration doing with international trade agreements to help our domestic economy?
- What is the President's view on NAFTA and jobs being sent overseas?
Open for Questions with Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications and Speechwriting
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Last week, we announced President Obama's Town Hall with the world's largest professional network, LinkedIn. Since the announcement, LinkedIn members from across the country have been submitting their questions on the economy and jobs for President Obama to answer during the live Town Hall.
On Monday, September 26th, the President will answer questions and hear directly from LinkedIn members that range from small business owners to veterans during a live Town Hall event from the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California.
Don't miss "Putting America Back to Work: LinkedIn Presents a Town Hall with President Obama" live on Monday, September 26th at 2:00 p.m. EDT/ 11:00 a.m. PDT. You can watch the event live on WhiteHouse.gov/live or through LinkedIn.com.
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First Lady Michelle Obama, along with Ty Pennington and the "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" team, watch as Barbara Summey Marshall, center, a 15-year Navy veteran,and her family get the first look at their new house in Fayetteville, N.C., July 21, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)
This op-ed from First Lady Michelle Obama was first published in the Fayetteville Observer
A few years ago, as I began to travel around the country and talk to all sorts of people, one set of stories always tugged at my heart. They took my breath away. They inspired me. And they motivated me to learn more. They were stories of strength, courage, and patriotism that define our nation’s military families. And I know that Fayetteville is filled with them.
They’re your neighbors who raise children and manage households by themselves while their loved ones are deployed. They’re military kids who have lived most of their young lives with our nation at war and Mom or Dad overseas. They’re our wounded warriors or survivors of our fallen who continue to serve their community every day. And they’re women like Barbara Marshall.
Like so many of our veterans, Barbara’s service to this country didn’t stop when her 15-year Navy career ended. Through Steps N Stages Jubilee House, she is working to combat homelessness among female veterans in the Fayetteville area. She’s doing it in an unconventional way: by welcoming these struggling women and their families into her own home.
The Marshalls – Barbara; her son, Bert; and her daughter, Maya – are perfect examples of how much our military families give to our country each and every day. And this summer, a whole busload of people stepped up to give the Marshalls something back.
For one week in the sweltering heat, local volunteers and the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition cast and crew worked around the clock to transform Barbara’s home into a beautiful, state-of-the-art dream house and resource center. I was thrilled to help out with some of the finishing touches, and I’ll never forget the look on Barbara’s face when the bus pulled away to reveal her new home.
But what I remember most was the Fayetteville community’s warm embrace of this family and our homeless veterans. I saw neighbors grabbing shovels and picking up scraps around the worksite. I saw business owners and local organizations pitching in. Even folks around the country got involved, donating logs online to help build the beautiful cabin.
Now, I know that not every community can build a home in a week, and not every veteran will end up in Disneyland or on national T.V. But I also know that the compassion I felt in Fayetteville is alive and well in every community across this country.
That’s what compelled Dr. Jill Biden and me to launch our Joining Forces initiative this spring. This is a national initiative to address the unique needs of, and expand opportunities for, our remarkable military families.
It’s about businesses, nonprofit organizations, schools, churches, and ordinary citizens doing what they can for these incredible men, women and children. It’s about Americans uniting in service around these families. And it’s about everyone – no matter where they come from or their station in life – stepping up to give something meaningful back.
With one of our nation’s biggest media companies, local organizations, and folks from all over Fayetteville pitching in, this summer’s wild week was a perfect example of what we can accomplish when we work together for these families.
So Fayetteville, I hope you sit back and enjoy the spotlight tonight on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. You deserve it. And I hope that after the show, you’ll visit us at JoiningForces.gov to find out how you can keep showing your appreciation for our military families. Together, we can serve our military families as well as they have served us.
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