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  DENEE ANAYA

President Obama State Of The Union 2013 Reaffirms Economy Is Priority

2/12/2013

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On February 12, 2013, at the House Chamber, to a joint session of the 114th Congress, President Obama gave his Annual State of The Union Address.  

The president said that America is rebounding from the Recession and that the State of Union is stronger.   After a decade of war, our brave troops our returning home. The economy is growing with private corporations adding 6 million new jobs. American car Manufacturer Ford is selling more cars than they have in 5 years,  housing is improving with home buyers up 50 percent, the stock market is rebounding, and America is dependent on less foreign oil than it has in over 20 years.  Though we are heading in the right direction, President Obama said that we must do more. He  laid out his focus for the fiscal year. 

Immigration Reform

Reduce the deficit by an addition 1.5 trillion dollars to total 4 trillion.  The deficit has been reduced 2.5 trillion dollars by cutting spending and raising taxes on the top 1 percent wealthiest Americans. 

We must reduce the Deficit. But Deficit reduction alone is not an economic plan. “A growing economy that creates good middle class jobs, that must be the north star that guides our efforts.  Every day we should ask ourselves three questions as a nation. How do we attract more jobs to our shores, how do we equip our people w the skills they need to get those jobs and how do we make sure that hard work leads to a decent living?”  

“It is responsibility of the Government to improve this union. Governments must work on the benefit for the many not the few. The responsibility of this union remains the task for us all.”

Invest in the Middle Class .   “It is our unfinished task to restore the basic bargain that built this county.”  You can get ahead if you work hard.  There must be opportunity for everyone child.  The President called for congress to work together and stop manufacturing crises. Americans want the nations interest put before the interest of individual parties,  and that reasonable compromise is a must .  He urged Congress to put together a bipartisan market based solution on climate change.  Last year wind energy added nearly half of all new power capacity In America. 

Generate more clean energy

Invest in research and technology for natural gas for cleaner power and energy independence

Invest in Medical Research and Development for such things like Alzheimers

Fix it First Program which will partnership with private companies  to rebuild America.  This will create jobs to repair bridges across the country , upgrade Americas ports, pipelines and schools.  

Invest in housing by helping homeowners who want to refinance their homes

Invest in schools that work with colleges and employers to create classes that focus on science, technology, engineering and math

Increase minimum wage to $9.00 an hour

The President stated that his plan for Medicaid and Medicare savings are the same as Reforms by the Bipartisan Simpson Bowls Committee.

Reduce tax payer subsidies to prescription drug companies but don’t touch social security.  “Government should not make promises we cannot keep.  But we must keep promises that we have already made.”

Tax and Entitlement Reform.  Get rid of tax loopholes and deductions for the wealthy. Penalize businesses who take jobs overseas. Reward businesses that keep jobs in America.  

“American Jobs Act. Congress passed half of the President’s Proposal in 2011 but urged them to pass  it in it’s entirety.  Independent Economist have agreed that this proposal will create 1 million new jobs.  The American Jobs Act will not increase deficit. It does not require any additional funding.

Make America a magnet for new jobs in manufacturing.  America has added 500,000 new jobs in  manufacturing  jobs in the last 3 years.

Caterpillar the world's leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel-electric locomotives is bringing jobs back from Japan

Ford is bringing back jobs from Mexico

Apple will start making Mac Products in America again.  

America produces more Natural Gas than ever before.  

Dangerous Carbon Pollution has fallen in 4 years.

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Marco Rubio Gives Republican Response To The State Of The Union

2/12/2013

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41-year-old Cuban-American Florida Senator Marco Rubio said that was he honored to respond to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union Address on behalf of fellow republicans. 

Rubio congratulated the president on his second term and said that he was  especially honored to be addressing  the brave men and women serving in the armed forces and diplomatic posts around the world. “You may be thousands of miles away, but you are always in our prayers.”  The Senator talked about his parents.  His mom was a maid and cashier, and his dad a bartender. 

He spoke about being a child of immigrant parents who he said achieved their dream of becoming middle-class by hard work and perseverance. His accomplishments are a testament to that.  “I didn’t inherit any money from them. But I inherited something far better: the real opportunity to accomplish my dreams. This opportunity -- to make it to the middle class or beyond no matter where you start out in life -- it isn’t bestowed on us from Washington. It comes from a vibrant free economy where people can risk their own money to open a business, and when they succeed, they hire more people, who in turn invest or spend the money they make, helping others start a business and create jobs.”

Rubio accused the president of attacking anyone who doesn’t agree with him. “So, Mr. President, I don’t oppose your plans because I want to protect the rich. I oppose your plans because I want to protect my neighbors, hard-working middle-class Americans who don’t need us to come up with a plan to grow the government. They need a plan to grow the middle class.”

He stated that more government is not the answer to help Americans get ahead.  More Government will not inspire new ideas, opportunities, businesses  or private sector jobs. But rather create uncertainty which will ultimately hold you back.

He believes that bigger Government hurts the middle class.  More Government breeds complicated rules that negatively impacts small businesses. Rubio stated when employer’s taxes are increases they pass that cost onto their employees.  They cut hours, lower wages, eliminate benefits, and sometimes even downsizing.  

Senator Rubio stated that all government is not bad and does have a place. “It plays a crucial part in keeping us safe, enforcing rules, and providing some security against the risks of modern life.”

Rubio said that the republican plan to help the economy is a far better one than that of the President.  Republican plan: Invest in solar and wind energy stating that “God also blessed us with -- America with abundant coal, oil, and natural gas,” and that lowering the corporate tax rate will encourage companies to bring jobs back to America from overseas. Encourage local school districts to offer more vocational and career training, and advanced placement courses, and Give parents the opportunity to send their children to the school of their choice.

Overall Senator Rubio got high marks from fellow republicans regarding his rebuttal to the President’s State of the Union address.  And Twitter and the Internet was on fire with jokes about the Senator being so thirsty during his remarks, that he reached for a bottle of spring water.  Taking a sip all while keeping eye contact with the camera.

Rubio obviously has a sense of humor, he commented via twitter 

"Picked up over 13,000 new followers on #twitter since last night!," his official Twitter account tweeted Wednesday afternoon. "I’m going to start drinking #water in the middle of all of my speeches!"

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American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012

2/1/2013

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On January 1, 2013, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 was passed. During his campaign, President Obama repeatedly said that if elected to a second term, his first order of business would be to return fairness to the middle class by permanently lowering taxes.  He believes this will help to grow the economy.  He achieved his goal. The Senate passed the bill by a bipartisan majority .  
 
The agreement will benefit 114 million American families. It expands the Child Tax Credit, the Earned Income Tax Credit, the new American Opportunity Tax Credit, and the Marriage Penalty Relief. These credits will remain in effect for five years. If this was not passed a family of four would have seen a $2,000 plus tax increase. It also extends for one year emergency unemployment benefits to 2 million american people.  It also ensures that Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security will be preserved.

The deal also ensures that America will continue to invest in education, clean energy and manufacturing by giving businesses an immediate write off of 50 percent of capital investments, extending the Production Tax Credit and the Research Experimentation Tax Credit.  It postpones the Sequester for two months, which will give Congress more time to work on a plan to prevent automatic spending cuts.

The wealthy have not had a tax increase in 20 years. People making  more than $250,000 tax rate will increase.  This new agreement cuts the deficit by $737 billion 

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President Obama Signs Presidential Memorandum to Promote Gender Equality

1/30/2013

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Jan 30 2013 - President Obama along with Secretary Clinton, established the White House Council on Women and Girls. This multilateral iniative will expand women’s politician and economic participation on developing ways to combat violence against women and identify a process to implement a national action plan to include women women in conflict resolution and peace process, global health and food security iniatives President Obama has appointed Melanne Verveer, the first ever Ambassador at Large for Global Women’s Issues. 

Today, President  signed a Presidential Memorandum to expand and promote gender equality across all U.S. Government  agencies. In the Memorandum, President Obama states that “promoting gender equality and advancing the status of all women and girls around the world  remains one of the greatest unmet challenges of our time, and one that is vital  to achieving our overall foreign policy objectives.”

Secretary-designate Kerry is on board and committed to these issues stating “In the Senate I've made promoting the rights of women and girls a priority, not just because it's the right thing to do, but because societies that empower the talents of their entire populations are more stable and more prosperous. It's why we created a sub-committee in the Foreign Relations Committee to specialize on these issues and give it the attention it deserves. Last week at my confirmation hearing, I spoke with Sen. Boxer about the importance of maintaining the momentum Secretary Clinton and Ambassador Melanne Verveer have built through their innovative office and laser-like focus. 


I applaud the President for institutionalizing these efforts and ensuring these issues continue to receive the high-level attention they deserve at the State Department, at US AID, and across the U.S. government.” 

President Obama’s Memo ensures that the Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will continue to assist in advising the USAID Administrator on key priorities for U.S. development assistance. Finally, the Memorandum establishes an interagency working group on international gender issues, chaired by the National Security Advisor. 


This will provide strategy, government coordination, and implement new ideas across agencies from the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) to Peace Corps to the Department of Health and Human Services.

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John Kerry Next Secretary Of State

1/29/2013

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Senator was confirmed at the new Secretary of State. President Barack Obama nominated Massachusetts Democratic Senator John Kerry to replace Hillary Clinton as the next Secretary of State.  John Kerry who is the chairman of the  Foreign Relations Committee and the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee is a decorated war veteran who served two tours of duty in Vietnam in the Unites States Navy.  On his second tour, Kerry  served on a Swift boat in the river deltas, one of the most dangerous assignments of the war.  He received Silver Star,  a Bronze Star with Combat V and three purple hearts.

After returning from Vietnam in 1969,  deeply affected by his time in the war, Kerry worked to support other veterans.  
He cofounded the Vietnam Veterans of America to fight for veterans’ benefits. Including the extension of the G.I. Bill for Higher Education and for treatment of Post 
Traumatic Stress Syndrome. 

President Obama stated “In a sense, John’s entire life has prepared him for this role. As the son of a Foreign Service officer, he has a deep respect for the men and women of the State Department --the role they play in advancing our interests and values, the risks that they undertake and the sacrifices that they make along with their families. 


Having served with valor in Vietnam, he understands that we have a responsibility to use American power wisely, especially our military power. And he knows, from personal experience, that when we send our troops into harm’s way, we must give them the sound strategy, a clear mission, and the resources that they need to get the job done.”

 John Kerry has worked on the Iran-Contra scandal, global AIDS, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, he worked to learn the truth about American soldiers missing in Vietnam and to normalize relations with that country. He is the ranking Democrat on the East Asian and Pacific Affairs Subcommittee, and the leading expert on that region, including North Korea. 

He has been a leading voice on American policy in Iraq and Afghanistan, the war on terrorism, the Middle East peace process and Israel's security.

Today, Senator Kerry is the tenth most senior Senator and the second longest serving Senator in his seat. He also holds senior positions on the Finance, Commerce, and Small Business Committees .During his service in the Senate for almost 30 years, John Kerry has earned the respect and confidence from his senate colleagues both Democrat and Republican as well as world leaders.  

John has been instrumental in advancing many of the President’s foreign policies. Including the “ratification of the New START Treaty, the challenges of Sudan and South Sudan and Afghanistan.”

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President Obama Immigration Reform

1/29/2013

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President Obama’s Proposal For a Pathway To Citizenship For The 11 Million Undocumented Immigrants Living In The U.S.

Obama four part immigration plan:   

Continue to strengthen border security, if needed more border patrol agents, more technology to help identify criminals and security threats. 

Penalize employers who hire undocumented workers. Enhance employee verifications system. Create path to citizenship. Give undocumented workers a legal way to earn citenzship, so they can pay taxes. 

Undocumented immigrants must pass a national criminal and security background check, pay taxes, learn English, pay a fine,  and get in line behind those who came before them. Streamline immigration system. Establish a effecient system for immigrants who work hard and obey the laws.

A bipartisan group of eight senators four Democrats and four Republicans also developed a plan to address immigration reform. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.)

Their plan named the “Gang of Eight” plan stated that first and foremost border security would have to be enhanced.  Next identify and penalize businesses that hire undocumented workers. The outline does not however take into account the timeframe of the pathway to citizenship. The plan however states that we must create tough but fair pathway to citizenship.

Identify visa overstays, create employment verification system.  

Prevent theft of identity and hiring undocumented workers 

Improve process for people who want to legally work, beef up border patrol, with new technology, agents, security, surveillance, stop racial profiling , involve community, politicians, agents for input, illegals 

Immigrants must register, pass background check, pay a fine and back taxes to earn probation legal status, they then can live and work in the U.S. 

Those who don’t pass will have to be sent back, criminals will have to leave right away, borders must be secured before any thing begins, they have to get in line, learn English, civics, show work history , then they will earn a green card.  

Minor children and agricultural workers will have a slight different path, those who earn a Ph.d or masters degrees in math, science technology or engineering from an American university with earn a green card. 

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President Obama Approves $365 Million For Syria Humanitarian Assistance

1/29/2013

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January 29th President Obama approved an additional $155 million dollars totaling $365 million for humanitarian assistance for Syria.  As of today over 2.5 million men, women and children have been forced from their homes. Over 6,000 have fled to neighboring countries to escape the violence of the Assad regime.  The assistance will provide food, clean water, medicine, medical treatment, clothing and much needed winter supplies. This support will benefit refugees in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.

The United States and international partners “the Syrian Opposition Coalition,” along with other humanitarian organizations including Syrian-American individuals, will identify and respond with the help needed, including providing any assistance needed to arrive at a peaceful resolution. 

President Obama stated that this will be no easy task. But the Assad regime continues to weaken and lose control of territory, and the opposition contimues to grow stronger. “The Syrian people will continue to find a partner in the United States of America.” 

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Ban Lifted on Women in Combat

1/24/2013

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On Monday, January 21, 2013,  the United States 44th and first African American President Barack Obama, took the oath of Office from Chief Justice John Roberts. This historical moment marked President Obama’s second term as America’s Commander and Chief.  

The president used two  bibles to take the oath.  One of which belonged to President Abraham Lincoln and the other which belonged to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  President Obama addressed a number of issues that are priority for him during his second term.  Climate Change, Gun Reform, Gay Rights, Immigration Reform and preserving Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.  The President stated that, “the commitments we make to each other through Medicare, and Medicaid, and Social Security, these things do not sap our initiative, they strengthen us. They do not make us a nation of takers, they free us to take the risks that make this country great.”

President Obama himself is much like a rock star so it was no surprise that the inauguration was a star studded event.  The Legendary James Taylor sang “American the Beautiful.”  The very first American Idol Winner Kelly Clarkson who was accompanied by the United States Marine Band, rocked “My Country Tis of The”.  And superstar herself, Beyoncé sang the National Anthem.

Myrlie Evers-Williams, Civil Rights Activist and the wife of Slain Civil Rights Leader Medgar Evers, was the first women to deliver the invocation at an inauguration. Cuban American Poet Richard Blanco was the first immigrant, first Latino and first gay person to deliver a poem at an inauguration.

At the end of the ceremony, and as he entered the Capitol Building, President Obama turned back to look out over the National Mall filled with more than 800,000 people clapping and waving the American flag.  As he gazed out over the cheering crowd, the president could be overheard softly saying “I’m going to take a look one more time, I’ll never see this again.”

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President Obama Inauguration

1/21/2013

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On Monday, January 21, 2013,  the United States 44th and first African American President Barack Obama, took the oath of Office from Chief Justice John Roberts. This historical moment marked President Obama’s second term as America’s Commander and Chief.  

The president used two  bibles to take the oath.  One of which belonged to President Abraham Lincoln and the other which belonged to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  President Obama addressed a number of issues that are priority for him during his second term.  Climate Change, Gun Reform, Gay Rights, Immigration Reform and preserving Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.  The President stated that, “the commitments we make to each other through Medicare, and Medicaid, and Social Security, these things do not sap our initiative, they strengthen us. They do not make us a nation of takers, they free us to take the risks that make this country great.”

President Obama himself is much like a rock star so it was no surprise that the inauguration was a star studded event.  The Legendary James Taylor sang “American the Beautiful.”  The very first American Idol Winner Kelly Clarkson who was accompanied by the United States Marine Band, rocked “My Country Tis of The”.  And superstar herself, Beyoncé sang the National Anthem.

Myrlie Evers-Williams, Civil Rights Activist and the wife of Slain Civil Rights Leader Medgar Evers, was the first women to deliver the invocation at an inauguration. Cuban American Poet Richard Blanco was the first immigrant, first Latino and first gay person to deliver a poem at an inauguration.

At the end of the ceremony, and as he entered the Capitol Building, President Obama turned back to look out over the National Mall filled with more than 800,000 people clapping and waving the American flag.  As he gazed out over the cheering crowd, the president could be overheard softly saying “I’m going to take a look one more time, I’ll never see this again.”

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President Signs 23 Actions On Gun Violence

1/16/2013

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January 16th, In front of an audience  that included elected officials, victims of gun violence and 4 school children that had written letters to the president requesting him to help prevent more tragedies like the one in Sandy Hook, Elementary, President Obama announced that he will be putting forth a series of reforms to help stop gun violence.  

The President stated “like most Americans, I believe the Second Amendment guarantees an individual the right to bear arms. I respect our strong tradition of gun ownership and the rights of hunters and sportsmen. There are millions of responsible, law-abiding gun owners in America who cherish their right to bear arms for hunting, or sport, or protection, or collection.  But we all have a responsibility to take reasonable steps to ensure gun safety.”  

President Obama signed 23 Executive Actions for legislation on gun reform.  Based on recommendations from Vice President Joe Biden and the Task force which included members of the white house cabinet and some 229 groups including law enforcement, gun advocacy groups, mental health officials, sports huntsman and religious leaders.  

The Actions include mandatory universal background checks on all potential gun buyers, restoring the ban on military style assault weapons, a 10 round limit for magazines urged by Ronald Regan in a 1994 letter written to Congress, and stiffer penalties for people who break existing laws such as buying guns with the intent to resell to those that break the law.  

The President requested that Congress confirm Todd Jones who has been acting as Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, a post that has not been confirmed in six years.  
He urged that policeman be hired to replace the cuts that have been made to police agencies around the country.   

President Obama said that these are “common-sense 
measures. They have the support of the majority of the American people.” He acknowledged that he cannot do it 
alone.  He needs the help of Congress to pass specific proposals 
immediately.  He urged the Ameripeople to get involved by going to their Congressman.

Soon after President Obama spoke, the NRA released an add calling the President an“elitist hypocrite”  in essence because the President’s daughters have secret service protection during school, but that the President has not agreed with the NRA’s proposal to put armed guards in all schools.  

This add angered some lawmakers who state the United States Presidents and their families are provided with armed security for obvious reasons, and that bringing their children into the fight should be off limits.  

The NRA did release a later statement that partly read “We look forward to working with Congress on a bi-partisan basis to find real solutions to protecting America’s most valuable asset-our children.”   

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