Our Top Stories
Read all posts from June 2013
-
Today, The White House released the Great Gatsby Curve on its Tumblr.
"The Great Gatsby." You’ve probably heard of it -- a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald and now a movie (again) that highlights the inequality and class distinctions in America during the Roaring 20s.
But, unless you’re an economist, you’ve likely never heard of The Great Gatsby Curve, introduced in a speech last year by Alan Krueger, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors.
So what is it, then? As Chairman Krueger explained in his speech, The Great Gatsby Curve illustrates the connection between concentration of wealth in one generation and the ability of those in the next generation to move up the economic ladder compared to their parents.
The curve shows that children from poor families are less likely to improve their economic status as adults in countries where income inequality was higher – meaning wealth was concentrated in fewer hands – around the time those children were growing up.
So why does this matter for the United States? The U.S. has had a sharp rise in inequality since the 1980s. In fact, on the eve of the Great Recession, income inequality in the U.S. was as sharp as it had been at any period since the time of "The Great Gatsby."
“While we will not know for sure whether, and how much, income mobility across generations has been exacerbated by the rise in inequality in the U.S. until today’s children have grown up and completed their careers,” he said, “we can use the Great Gatsby Curve to make a rough forecast.”
-
President Barack Obama delivers remarks commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Equal Pay Act, in the East Room of the White House, June 10, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Today, we marked the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Equal Pay Act with an event at the White House hosted by President Obama, the release of an important report from the National Equal Pay Task Force on the last fifty years since the Act was signed, a new web page with resources and information for women to make sure they’re paid equally, and a new video that gives an overview of our progress in equal pay.
On June 10, 1963, President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act, a milestone piece of legislation that requires men and women receive equal pay for equal work. However, fifty years later, women are still only earning approximately 77 cents on the dollar compared to men, and even less for women of color, so we are far from ready to declare victory.
To mark today’s anniversary, President Obama spoke at the event attended by leaders in the government, private sector and civil society who are all committed to building a 21st century workplace.
-
June 10, 2013
04:15 PM EDT
President Barack Obama announces his intent to nominate Jason Furman, Principal Deputy Director of the National Economic Council, left, as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers to succeed current CEA Chairman Alan Krueger, right, in the State Dining Room of the White House, June 10, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
This afternoon, President Obama nominated Jason Furman to replace Alan Krueger as the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers.
Furman, 42, will bring a vast amount of economic experience to the role. In 2009, he joined the Obama administration as an Assistant to the President for Economic Policy and the Principal Deputy Director of the National Economic Council.
Furman previously worked at the Brookings Institute as a Senior Fellow in Economic Studies and Director of the Hamilton Project, the Council of Economic Advisers as a Staff Economist, and the World Bank as a Senior Adviser to the Chief Economist and Senior Vice President.
This is his second stint in the White House. Under President Clinton, Furman was a Special Assistant to the President for Economic Policy at the National Economic Council.
The President praised Furman’s work for the middle class, and urged Congress to confirm him quickly.
“When the stakes are highest, there’s no one I’d rather turn to for straightforward, unvarnished advice that helps me to do my job,” President Obama said. “[Furman] understands all the sides of an argument, not just one side of it. He’s worked tirelessly on just about every major economic challenge of the past four and a half years, from averting a second depression, to fighting for tax cuts that help millions of working families make ends meet, to creating new incentives for businesses to hire, to reducing our deficits in a balanced way that benefits the middle class.”
-
President Barack Obama delivers remarks commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Equal Pay Act, in the East Room of the White House, June 10, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
It's been 50 years since President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act, but its goals today stand unrealized. In 2013, full-time working women still make less than men on average.
This morning, President Obama spoke at an event to mark the anniversary.
"The day that the bill was signed into law, women earned 59 cents for every dollar a man earned on average, he said. "Today, it’s about 77 cents. So it was 59 and now it’s 77 cents. It’s even less, by the way, if you’re an African American or a Latina. So I guess that’s progress, but does anybody here think that’s good enough?"
The President has made tackling this issue a priority since his first day in the White House. The first bill that President Obama ever signed was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. His administration was the first to create a White House Council on Women and Girls. He launched a National Equal Pay Task Force to help crack down on violations of equal pay laws, and earlier this year, he signed a presidential memorandum directing the federal government to close the gender gap for its employees.
But there's more work to do -- like passing the Paycheck Fairness Act, training more women for careers in science, technology, and math, and making sure that businesses offer parents the flexibility they need to excel in their jobs and care for their children.
"This will be part of our broader agenda to create good jobs and to strengthen middle-class security, to keep rebuilding an economy that works for everybody, that gives every American the chance to get ahead, no matter who you are or what you look like, or what your last name is and who you love," the President said.
For more perspective on the anniversary of the Equal Pay Act, check out the video below:
Learn More:
-
In this week’s address, President Obama says that the United States Senate will soon take action to fix our broken immigration system with a commonsense bill, and urges lawmakers to act quickly to pass this bill so that we can continue to live up to our traditions as a nation of laws, and also a nation of immigrants.
-
President Barack Obama delivers a statement on the Affordable Care Act, at the Fairmont San Jose in San Jose, Calif., June 7, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Today President Obama was in California to talk about how the Affordable Care Act benefits people in the state, and across the country.
First, for those who already have health insurance, President Obama explained that the law has already provided a wide array of new benefits, better protections and stronger cost controls they didn’t have before.
“Protections, like allowing people up to the age of 26 to stay on their parent's health care plans, which has already helped 6 million Americans,” President Obama said. “Cost controls, like requiring insurance companies to spend at least 80 percent of the money that you pay in premiums in your actual health care costs, as opposed to administrative costs or CEO pay.”
Second, for the tens of millions of Americans – including 6 million Californians - who don’t currently have health insurance, “you’ll soon be able to buy quality, affordable care just like everybody else,” President Obama said today. “And here’s how.”
-
June 07, 2013
02:56 PM EDTWatch the West Wing Week here.
Brazil: Last Friday, the Vice President and Dr. Biden made the final stop in their three-country trip in Brazil. While in Rio de Janeiro, Vice President Biden delivered a speech about the strong ties between the United States and Brazil.
“The United States and Brazil represent two of the largest, most innovative, dynamic economies in the world today. It is true both of us can continue to prosper whether or not we deepen our economic relations. But imagine, just imagine what these two dynamic economies could do with greater trade and investment for our people, for the hemisphere, for the world.”
#DontDoubleMyRate: Students gathered in the Rose Garden last Friday to hear President Obama echo his sentiment from last year and call on Congress to prevent federal student loan rates from doubling on July 1. President Obama asked the young people to speak out in favor of action on college affordability, as they did last summer.
"You made something bipartisan happen in this town that is -- that's a powerful thing. You guys were able to get Democrats and Republicans to vote for something that was important. So this year, if it looks like your representatives have changed their minds, you're going to have to call them up again or email them again or Tweet them again and ask them what happened, what changed?"
Hackathon: Developers and designers were invited to the White House on Saturday to participate in the second Hackathon to celebrate the National Day of Civic Hacking. Experts worked with White House staff to create new API for We the People, the White House petitions platform, and at the end of the day, projects were presented to the group and added to the We the People API gallery.
-
There are no stories that bring home the hope and optimism of immigration reform more than the stories of “DREAMers.”
They are productive members of society, brought here as young children, who grew up in our communities and became American in every way but on paper. And yet, for most of their lives, they’ve had to live in the shadows, barred from giving the full benefit of their talents to the country they love and our economy.
For the first time last year, they found some relief through the Obama Administration’s deferred action process, but the only way to give DREAMers the peace of mind they need to live productive lives is to fix our broken immigration system through common sense reform.
Unfortunately, a Republican amendment to a spending bill passed by the House yesterday moved in the opposite direction, seeking to strip DREAMers of the protections of the deferred action process. As Press Secretary Jay Carney said afterwards, “It asks law enforcement to treat these DREAMers the same way as they would violent criminals. It’s wrong. It’s not who we are. And it will not become law.”
The President remains optimistic about getting reform done, but for those in Congress who need a reminder of why we should encourage DREAMers, and why we should fix our broken immigration system, they should listen to Diana Colon, who met with the President and Vice President in the Oval Office last month along with several other young people:
“All we want to have is that opportunity to fully give back to this country” –that was Diana’s message to the President, and to the rest of America. Unfortunately, House Republicans sent a very different message back to Dreamers across this country:
-
June 07, 2013
01:21 PM EDTAs part of President Obama’s initiative to make America a magnet for jobs by building a 21st century infrastructure, today he signed a Presidential Memorandum that will speed the modernization of the nation’s electric grid. This will help make electricity more reliable, save consumers money on their energy bills, and support homegrown American clean energy jobs and industries by making renewable energy easier to access across the country.
Transmission projects often cover hundreds of miles and involve multiple federal, tribal, state and local jurisdictions with diverse interests and responsibilities. Collaborating early to minimize duplication and delays is vital to getting critical projects to construction to better serve American homes and businesses. Today’s Presidential Memorandum directs federal agencies to create an integrated pre-application process across the Federal government to help identify and address issues before the formal permit application process begins, and streamline the coordination of permitting processes across the federal, state, and tribal governments.
-
June 07, 2013
12:00 PM EDTPrev Next-
Herbert Hoover, walking with Howard University President Mordecai W. Johnson, on his way to address the graduating class. 6/10/1932.
1 of 14 -
Future President Franklin D. Roosevelt (back row, sixth from left) sits with his class committee at Harvard in 1904.
2 of 14 -
Harry S. Truman speaking at the commencement exercises at Howard University. 6/13/1952.
3 of 14 -
Dwight D. Eisenhower addressing the Pennsylvania State University graduates. 6/11/1955.
4 of 14 -
John F. Kennedy at Yale University for commencement exercises. 6/11/1962.
5 of 14 -
Lyndon B. Johnson (class of 1930) speaks to the graduating class at Southwest Texas State College. 8/24/1968
6 of 14 -
Richard Nixon and family watching a flyover by the Air Force's Thunderbirds team. The President gave the commencement address at the Air Force Academy
7 of 14 -
Gerald Ford speaking at daughter Susan’s graduation from Holton-Arms School. 6/5/1975.
8 of 14 -
Jimmy Carter receives his Ensign bars from his mother and soon-to-be wife Rosalynn, as he prepares to graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy
9 of 14 -
Ronald Reagan at the United States Air Force Academy. 5/30/1984.
10 of 14 -
George Bush (class of 1948) delivers remarks to the graduates of Yale University. 5/27/1991.
11 of 14 -
William J. Clinton with Hillary Rodham Clinton and daughter Chelsea at her graduation from Sidwell Friends School. 6/6/1997.
12 of 14 -
George W. Bush (class of 1968) waves to the crowd after delivering his address to the graduates of Yale University. 5/21/2001.
13 of 14 -
Barack Obama delivers remarks during the commencement ceremony at Morehouse College. 5/19/2013.
14 of 14
Graduation season is here once again and many of us have enjoyed watching our sons, daughters, sisters, brothers, and friends accept their hard-earned diplomas. Occasionally a university is able to celebrate the accomplishments of their students with a commencement address delivered by the President of the United States. The holdings of the Presidential Libraries include many photographs and other records that commemorate these special events.
So what sort of wisdom does a President pass along to a graduating class as they prepare to enter the next chapter in their lives? When Dwight D. Eisenhower addressed the Pennsylvania State University class of 1955, he focused on the important role education plays in our society: “The peoples of this earth share today a great aspiration. They all have a common dream of lasting peace with freedom and justice. But the realization of the dream calls for many types of cooperation based upon sympathetic and thorough mutual understanding. In turn, such understanding is dependent on education that produces disciplined thinking.”
Richard Nixon’s commencement address to the Air Force Academy on June 4, 1969 focused on upcoming events that would take us well beyond planet Earth: “Our current exploration of space makes the point vividly; here is testimony to man's vision and to man's courage. The journey of the astronauts is more than a technical achievement; it is a reaching out of the human spirit. It lifts our sights; it demonstrates that magnificent conceptions can be made real…when the first man stands on the moon next month every American will stand taller because of what he has done, and we should be proud of this magnificent achievement.”
-
-
June 07, 2013
11:00 AM EDTYesterday, at the UK’s G8 Social Impact Investing Forum in London, the Administration launched the National Impact Initiative (NII) to expand the use of impact investing as an element of the Administration’s strategies for economic growth and global development. In London, 150 top government officials, business executives, social entrepreneurs, philanthropists and academics who have been leaders in the burgeoning field of impact investing will discuss how to increase impact investing in order to both accelerate economic growth and job creation in G8 nations as well as leverage new capital flows toward the Millennium Development Goals. The U.S. has been at the forefront of this field.
Impact Investing is the practice of channeling capital toward businesses that intentionally generate economic return and public benefit. Such businesses openly track and measure social, environmental, and governance (ESG) considerations alongside their financial returns. These firms often are described as creating models of shared value or sometimes referred to as social enterprises. Impact investing often encompasses support for firms operating in target geographies, specific sectors, or employing specific populations.
-
While more work remains to be done, today’s employment report provides further confirmation that the U.S. economy is continuing to recover from the worst downturn since the Great Depression. It is critical that we remain focused on pursuing policies to speed job creation and expand the middle class, as we continue to dig our way out of the deep hole that was caused by the severe recession that began in December 2007.
Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates that private sector businesses added 178,000 jobs last month. Total non-farm payroll employment rose by 175,000 jobs in May. The economy has now added private sector jobs every month for 39 straight months, and a total of 6.9 million jobs has been added over that period. So far this year, 972,000 private sector jobs have been added.
The household survey showed that the unemployment rate ticked up to 7.6 percent in May from 7.5 percent in April. However, the labor force participation rate also rose by 0.1 percentage point to 63.4 percent in May, as 182,000 more unemployed workers reentered the labor force in May than in April, a sign that more workers felt encouraged to search for a job.
-
This week, the President urged Congress not to let student loan rates double and to confirm three judges for the federal appeals court in Washington, held bilateral meetings with the NATO Secretary-General and the President of Chile, kicked off a National Conference on Mental Health, honored the Super Bowl champions, and announced a major new initiative called ConnectED, while the Vice President wrapped up a weeklong trip to South America. That's May 31st to June 6th or, "Cooler at Night."
-
Today, President Obama travelled to Mooresville, NC to announce ConnectEd, an exciting new initiative designed to help bring America's students into the digital age. The goal of the ConnectED initiative is to bring high-speed internet connections to 99% of America's students within five years.
Immediately following the event, James Kvaal, Deputy Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council joined high tech schools from across the country for a national virtual "show and tell" via Google+ Hangout. During the conversation, moderated by Betsy Corcoran of EdSurge, students and teachers from the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, PA, Loris Elementary in Horry County, SC and Chappell Elementary in Green Bay, WI demonstrated how they are using the internet and technology in their classrooms.
The students at Loris elementary talked about how they are using iPads to take photos for a virtual book, then bringing their projects into the digital age by doing presentations via blog post. The high school students at the Science Leadership Academy discussed using technology for everything from building websites and doing graphic design to leveraging their computer science skills to develop a custom video game. The 5th graders at Chappell Elementary school are using their laptops and the power of the internet to raise their awareness of the world around them to raising money online to build a well in Sudan.
-
June 06, 2013
02:52 PM EDT
President Barack Obama views student projects created on laptops during a tour at Mooresville Middle School in Mooresville, N.C., June 6, 2013 (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Update: Read President Obama's remarks in Mooresville here.
Today, in Mooresville, North Carolina the President is announcing a bold and transformative education initiative to breathe life into the classroom of the 21st century. The goal of the President’s ConnectED initiative is to bring high-speed Internet connections to 99 percent of America’s students – which he is calling on the FCC to do within five years.
This is not connectivity for connectivity’s sake. It is laying the foundation for a vision of classrooms where students are engaged in individualized digital learning and where teachers can assess progress lesson by lesson and day by day. It’s about creating learning environments where students can both succeed and struggle without embarrassment, where barriers for children with disabilities are removed, and where we can bring the most modern, innovative, and up-to-date content into the classroom.
Yet this national vision of the 21st Century classroom is impossible with the level of connectivity that most schools have today. Only 20 percent of educators feel their classrooms have the connectivity to meet their teaching needs today. In fact, the average school has about the same level of connectivity as the average home, even though the average school has 200 times more people. Thousands of schools don’t even have the bandwidth to stream two videos into their school at the same time - let alone provide the kind of opportunities that can be seen in Mooresville, where students in classroom after classroom are learning on their own individual digital devices.
The President understands that we have to take bold action if we are to offer our young people the best education in the world so they can compete for jobs in the global economy. South Korea, which tops global rankings in reading and math, already has 100 percent of schools with high-speed connectivity – and by 2016, its schools are planning on eliminating textbooks from the classroom altogether. We have to move with force and speed if we are to lead – not follow – on developing the best learning opportunities for our young people.
-
June 06, 2013
01:12 PM EDTAccording to a new report, Americans buying individual market health insurance saved $1.2 billion in 2011 and $2.1 billion in 2012 because law has begun to hold insurance companies accountable.
Under the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies are required to spend 80 to 85 percent of premium dollars on medical care and health care quality improvement, rather than on administrative costs. If they don’t, the insurance companies must provide a rebate to their customers. Last year, over 13 million consumers received $1.1 billion in rebates – the average consumer rebate was around $151.
Today a new analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation provides the most complete look yet at the benefits of the policy. In addition to rebates from insurers who are charging more for overhead than care (those with medical loss ratios below 80 percent), the report estimates the savings that resulted from insurers exceeding 80 percent, who provided more value for each consumer dollar than history shows they otherwise would have.
The study found that the average medical loss ratio went from 78 percent in the individual market in 2010 to 83 percent in 2012 in the individual market. Had medical loss ratios remained at 2010 levels, premiums would have been much higher than they actually were. Combining these savings from better medical loss ratios with rebates, the Kaiser analysis estimates that the 80 / 20 rule yielded $3.2 billion in lower health care costs to consumers – not counting savings to employers’ health plans.
-
Ed. note: Today at 3:30 PM ET, we're holding a virtual "show and tell" with three schools that are embracing technology and digital learning. Tune in to wh.gov/show-and-tell to watch live, or join the discussion on Google+ or Twitter using the hashtag #WHhangout.
President Barack Obama and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, right, talk with students while visiting a classroom at the Yeadon Regional Head Start Center in Yeadon, Pa., Nov. 8, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Preparing America’s students with the skills they need to get good jobs and compete with countries around the world relies increasingly on interactive, individualized learning experiences driven by new technology.
From digital textbooks that help students visualize and interact with complex concepts, to apps and platforms that adapt to the level of individual student knowledge and help teachers know precisely which lessons or activities are working, many schools are already seeing the benefits of digital learning and connectivity. This technology is real, it is available, and its capacity to improve education is profound.
But today, millions of students lack access to the high-speed broadband internet that supports this sort of learning technology. Fewer than 20 percent of educators across the country say their school’s Internet connection meets their teaching needs.
Although the United States was once a pioneer in connecting schools to the internet, we’re now falling behind while other nations move forward with aggressive investment in digital learning and technology education. In South Korea, for example, all schools have high-speed internet connections, and all teachers are trained in digital learning. Printed textbooks will be phased out by 2016.
The fact is, schools without internet access put our students at a disadvantage.
That’s why President Obama is unveiling a bold, new initiative called ConnectED, which will connect 99 percent of America’s students to the internet through high-speed broadband and high-speed wireless within 5 years.
The President also directed the federal government to make better use of existing funds to get Internet connectivity and educational technology into classrooms, and into the hands of teachers trained on its advantages. And he called on businesses, states, districts, schools and communities to support this vision, which requires no congressional action.
Here’s how ConnectED works:
-
On Thursday, President Obama is headed Mooresville, North Carolina to see firsthand how one middle school is developing a cutting edge curriculum that embraces technology and digital learning.
As soon as that event concludes, we're hosting a national virtual "show and tell" with high tech schools from the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, PA to Loris Elementary in Horry County, SC and Chappell Elementary in Green Bay, WI. Joined by James Kvaal, Deputy Director of the White House Domestic Poilcy Council, students and teachers will participate in a Google+ Hangout moderated by Betsy Corcoran of EdSurge to demonstrate how they're using connected classrooms to improve the quality of the educations system. And we want you to be part of that discussion.
What: National Show and Tell on connected classrooms
When: Thursday, June 6th at 3:30 PM ET
Where: Whitehouse.gov/show-and-tell
If you have questions or comments about digital learning, you can ask now and during the event using the hashtag #WHHangout on Twitter and Google+.
-
Amb. Susan Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations delivers remarks in the Rose Garden of the White House, June 5, 2013. President Barack Obama announced that Amb. Rice will succeed National Security Advisor Tom Donilon, and Samantha Power, former Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs and Human Rights, as the nominee to succeed Rice. (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)
Speaking this afternoon from the Rose Garden, President Obama announced several changes to his national security team.
Of all the jobs in government, leading my national security team is certainly one of the most demanding, if not the most demanding. And since the moment I took office, I've counted on the exceptional experience and insights of Tom Donilon. Nearly every day for the past several years I've started each morning with Tom leading the presidential daily brief, hundreds of times, a sweeping assessment of global developments and the most pressing challenges. As my National Security Advisor his portfolio is literally the entire world.
He has definitely advanced our strategic foreign policy initiatives while at the same time having to respond to unexpected crises, and that happens just about every day. He's overseen and coordinated our entire national security team across the government, a Herculean task. And it's non-stop -- 24/7, 365 days a year.
Today, I am wistful to announce that after more than four years of extraordinary service, Tom has decided to step aside at the beginning of July. And I am extraordinarily proud to announce my new National Security Advisor, our outstanding Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice as well as my nominee to replace Susan in New York, Samantha Power.
-
Today, President Obama welcomed the Baltimore Ravens to the White House to congratulate the team on its Super Bowl win earlier this year.
“I imagine there were times last year when these players were the only ones who knew that they’d make it here to show off this trophy,” President Obama said. Because, during the year, they lost player after player to injury; they dropped four of their last five regular season games. In the playoffs, they trailed Denver by a touchdown with 70 yards and less than a minute to go.”
And during the Super Bowl, he said, “just when it looked like they had the momentum, the lights went out for a half hour. But these Ravens always pulled through.”
- &lsaquo previous
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- …
- next &rsaquo
