The White House Blog

President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, daughters Sasha and Malia, and Marian Robinson listen as Megan Hilty performs at the "Christmas in Washington" concert taping in Washington, D.C., Dec. 9, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Last night, President Obama spoke at Christmas in Washington. The concert, hosted by Conan O’Brien, featured performances including Diana Ross, Demi Lovato, Megan Hilty and others, was held to support the Children’s National Medical Center.

“Tonight is a chance to get in the Christmas spirit, to spread some joy and sing along with artists who have much better voices than we do,” President Obama said. “But it’s also a chance to make a real difference in the lives of some very brave young people being treated at Children’s National Medical Center.  Many of these kids and their parents are going through tough times right now, and your support helps give them a reason to hope –- not just during the holidays, but all year round.”

Diana Ross performs at the "Christmas in Washington" concert taping in Washington, D.C., Dec. 9, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

President Obama said that Christmas is a time to share the blessings we have have with those who have less, especially those who are “spending this holiday in a hospital bed, or a shelter, or protecting our freedom on a battlefield far from home.”

Learn more about holidays at the White House

Today, the White House joins millions of pinners around the country with an official presence on Pinterest, a virtual pinboard sharing site. On Pinterest, the White House will share pins and boards that range from inspiring images and quotes to infographics that help explain key issues to details about the life inside the White House.

From the very beginning, President Obama and the First Lady have taken steps to make this the most open White House in history. “It’s the “People’s House,” said First Lady Michelle Obama, “It’s a place that is steeped in history, but it’s also a place where everyone should feel welcome. And that's why my husband and I have made it our mission to open up the house to as many people as we can."

That’s why the White House is open for virtual tours 24/7 through the Google Art Project and why you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and other places around the web. And, it’s why we're now thrilled to add Pinterest to the list.

The holidays are an especially exciting time for the White House to start pinning. During the 2012 holiday season alone, more than 90,000 visitors will have the chance to tour the White House holiday decorations, all hung with care by a team of crafty staff and volunteers. To kick off our presence on Pinterest, we're inviting some of our newest followers to join us for a Holiday Social at the White House. Pinners will be invited to check out the décor, meet with the people that helped transform the White House for the holidays, join us for a craft project — and share it all with the Pinterest community.

Would you like to join the White House Holiday Social on Monday, December 17th, 2012? Follow us on Pinterest, and then apply: http://whitehouse.gov/social

We’ll roll out our first pinboards on December 17th, the day of our Holiday Social. Before we do, we’d like to hear from you. Let us know the kinds of things you’d like to see on the White House Pinterest account by leaving us comment on our first pin. We look forward to hearing from you (and meeting some of you) soon!

For many more ways to engage with the White House, check out WhiteHouse.gov/engage.

Watch the West Wing Week here.

Here’s a quick glimpse at what happened this week on WhiteHouse.gov:

#My2k: On Monday, President Obama connected directly with Americans on Twitter, where he answered questions about extending middle class tax cuts, using the hashtag #My2k.  During the conversation, the hashtag #My2k was used more than 31,000 times and trended nationally on Twitter throughout the chat.

Right now, America faces a series of critical fiscal choices that will affect the economy for years to come. One of the most critical steps we can take is to reduce the deficit in a balanced way in order to lay the foundation for long-term middle-class job growth. But we need to do that in a way that’s consistent with our values. 

As part of his balanced approach to reduce the deficit by $4 trillion, President Obama proposes to raise $1.6 trillion in new revenue over 10 years for deficit reduction, including $1 trillion from the expiration of the Bush high-income and estate tax cuts. The President’s plan asks the wealthy to pay their fair share by raising tax rates for the wealthiest 2% to the level they were at under President Clinton—39.6%—which was a time when we created 23 million new jobs.  It also prevents an income tax increase for 98% of Americans and 97% of small businesses. 

Some have suggested that, rather than raising tax rates for the most fortunate, policymakers should make up the revenue by cutting high-income tax benefits – in particular, by imposing a dollar cap on itemized deductions, including charitable contributions.

But what is clear is that proposals that take tax rates off the table would threaten donations to universities, non-profit hospitals, social services providers, arts and cultural institutions and other nonprofit organizations.  This is because – to make the math work – these proposals rely on hundreds of billions of dollars of revenue that would result from drastically cutting or eliminating the charitable deduction as we now know it.

Currently, the tax code encourages gifts to charity by allowing taxpayers to claim itemized deductions for charitable giving. But – as a new report by the National Economic Council (NEC) shows, the most prominent dollar cap proposals would effectively eliminate the charitable deduction for up to 13 million households and for as much as 60 percent of currently deductible giving.

President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, daughters Sasha and Malia, and Marian Robinson participate in the lighting of the National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., Dec. 6, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

Last night, President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and their daughters, Malia and Sasha, made their way to the Ellipse, just south of the White House, where they helped to light the National Christmas Tree.

"We’ve been lighting the National Christmas Tree for 90 years now," the President said. "In times of war and peace, triumph and tragedy, we’ve always come together to rejoice in the Christmas miracle."

The President used the occasion to describe another Christmas tree -- one he saw in a Staten Island neighborhood, devastated by Hurricane Sandy.

"This evening, in Midland Beach, New York, on a street lined with houses and businesses devastated by the storm, a great big Christmas tree shines out of the darkness," he said. "Just a couple of weeks ago, as impacted families were still seeking some sense of getting back to normal, one local nursery donated the tree, another chipped in for the lights and a star, and 70-year-old Tom Killeen and his longtime buddies from the area planted it at the end of the street, overlooking the town beach. As Tom says, the tree has one message: 'It’s Christmas time, not disaster time.' "

While more work remains to be done, today’s employment report provides further evidence that the U.S. economy is continuing to heal from the wounds inflicted by the worst downturn since the Great Depression. It is critical that we continue the policies that are building an economy that works for the middle class as we dig our way out of the deep hole that was caused by the severe recession that began in December 2007. 

Most pressing, President Obama has proposed, and the Senate has passed, an extension of middle class income tax cuts that would prevent the typical middle class family from facing a $2,200 tax increase at the beginning of next year. In addition, the President has proposed a plan that will enable responsible homeowners to refinance their mortgage and take advantage of today’s historically low interest rates. To create more jobs in particularly hard-hit sectors, President Obama continues to urge Congress to pass elements of the American Jobs Act, including further investment in infrastructure to rebuild our Nation’s ports, roads and highways, and assistance to State and local governments to prevent layoffs and to enable them to rehire hundreds of thousands of teachers.

Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows that private sector businesses added 147,000 jobs last month. Total non-farm payroll employment rose by 146,000 jobs in November. The economy has now added private sector jobs for 33 straight months, and a total of 5.6 million jobs have been added during that period, taking account of the preliminary benchmark revision.

The household survey showed that the unemployment rate declined from 7.9 percent in October to 7.7 percent in November, the lowest since December 2008. The labor force participation rate declined by 0.2 percentage point last month. Over the last 12 months, the unemployment rate has decreased by 1.0 percentage point as a result of growing employment, and the labor force participation rate has been essentially unchanged.

President Barack Obama meets with Tiffany and Richard Santana and Tiffany’s parents, Velma and Jimmie Massenburg for a roundtable to discuss the importance of extending the middle class tax cuts and taking a balanced approach to tackling our fiscal challenges, at the Santana’s home in Falls Church, Virginia, Dec. 6, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)

Today President Obama visited one of the 114 million American families who would see their taxes go up next year if Congress fails to extend the middle-class tax cuts. 

Tiffany, a high school teacher who lives in Northern Virginia, is also one of the thousands of people who wrote in to the White House to share what it would mean to her family if their income taxes went up next year.

Although a typical middle-class family could pay about $2,000 more in taxes in 2013 if the tax cuts aren't extended, the President explained why Tiffany’s family would likely pay more. 

Her husband, Richard, works at a Toyota dealership. They actually live with Tiffany’s parents, both of whom are still working. And so what Tiffany pointed out was that an increase of $2,000 or so for her and her husband in this household would actually mean $4,000 that was lost. And a couple of thousand dollars means a couple months’ rent for this family.

President Barack Obama, with mother-in-law Marian Robinson, daughters Sasha and Malia, and First Lady Michelle Obama, react as they push to button to light the National Christmas Tree during a ceremony on the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., Dec. 9, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

Tonight, President Obama and the rest of the First Family will take part in a ceremony to light the National Christmas Tree, and you're invited to watch it live.

The event, which takes place on the Ellipse -- just outside the White House -- will be hosted by Neil Patrick Harris and feature performances by, James Taylor, The Fray, Jason Mraz, and other musical guests.

What: Lighting of the National Christmas Tree
When: 4:30 ET, today
Where: Streamed live online at: thenationaltree.org

The lighting of the National Christmas tree is a great way to get into the holiday spirit. Be sure to check it out!

Last week, President Obama called on Americans to speak out about what a $2,000 tax hike next year would mean for them and their families – and thousands of people from around the country are doing just that.

We’ve heard from more than 370,000 people in all 50 states, and many say that paying $2,000 more in taxes would force families to make some tough choices about their household budgets. For some, it might mean deciding whether to buy groceries or fill a prescription. For others, it would be the difference in making rent or paying tuition.

Tiffany, who lives in Northern Virginia with her husband, six-year old son, and parents, is one of the many people who wrote in. The “picture of the 21st century middle class,” her family decided on their multi-generation blended living situation to save money and spend more time together.

But with two sets of working adults – a teacher and an auto industry worker, and a child-care provider and postal worker –Tiffany said that her household would be doubly affected by a tax hike. And as a family of budding entrepreneurs, they would have less money to get their new businesses off the ground.

Today, President Obama will meet Tiffany and her family in their home, to talk more about why it’s so important for Congress to pass the middle-class tax cuts before the end of the year, both for families like hers and our economy.