Open Government Initiative: Phase II

        

3:56 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Please be seated. Thank you. Well, what an extraordinary day. It is good to be here with all of you.

I want to, first of all, thank President Bill Clinton for joining us here today -- where’s President Clinton? -- (applause) -- for his lifetime of service to our country, but also the fact that he created AmeriCorps, and that not only made this day possible, it has directly enlisted more than half a million Americans in service to their country; service that has touched the lives of millions more.

Now, it just so happens that one of those people who have been touched by AmeriCorps was FLOTUS, otherwise known as First Lady of the United States -- (laughter) -- Michelle Obama, who ran a AmeriCorps-sponsored program, Public Allies, in Chicago. (Applause.)

I also want to thank former First Lady Rosalynn Carter for being here -- (applause) -- for her advocacy on behalf of those with mental illness, and for her husband’s continued good works that inspire us all. I am thrilled to have Caroline Kennedy here -- (applause) -- for carrying on her family’s long legacy of service.

To my congressional colleagues who did such a fantastic job on a bipartisan basis ushering this through, starting with the two leaders of the House and the Senate, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, I’m grateful to them, and obviously to Barbara Mikulski and Orrin Hatch, George Miller, the entire delegation who helped to shepherd this through -- please give them a huge round of applause. (Applause.)

To my outstanding Vice President, Joe Biden. (Applause.) To Dr. Jill Biden. (Applause.) A couple of outstanding public servants in their own right, please, a warm welcome for General Colin Powell and his wonderful wife, Alma. (Applause.) For the outstanding Mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg. (Applause.) And I’ve got to give some special props to my fellow Illinoisan, a great friend, Dick Durbin. (Applause.)

Finally -- and I know that I’ve got some prepared remarks -- but I just want to go ahead and say it now. There are very few people who have touched the life of this nation in the same breadth and the same order of magnitude than the person who is seated right behind me. And so this is just an extraordinary day for him. And I am truly grateful and honored to call him a friend, a colleague, and one of the finest leaders we’ve ever had -- Ted Kennedy. (Applause.)

All right. I want to thank the students and the faculty of the SEED School -- (applause) -- our hosts for today -- and their headmaster, Charles Adams. Where’s Mr. Adams? Is he here? (Applause.) A shining example of how AmeriCorps alums go on to do great things. This school is a true success story -- a place where for four of the last five years, every graduate from the SEED School was admitted to college -- every graduate. (Applause.)

It’s a place where service is a core component of the curriculum. And just as the SEED School teaches reading and writing, arithmetic and athletics, it also prepares our young Americans to grow into active and engaged citizens. And what these students come to discover through service is that by befriending a senior citizen, or helping the homeless, or easing the suffering of others, they can find a sense of purpose and renew their commitment to this country that we love.

And that is the spirit in which we gather today, as I sign into law a bill that represents the boldest expansion of opportunities to serve our communities and our country since the creation of AmeriCorps -- (applause) -- a piece of legislation named for a man who has not only touched countless lives, but who still sails against the wind, a man who’s never stopped asking what he can do for his country, and that’s Senator Edward M. Kennedy. (Applause.)

In my address to a joint session of Congress in February, I asked for swift passage of this legislation, and these folks on the stage came through. So, again, I want to thank wide bipartisan majorities in the House and the Senate who came together to pass this bill -- especially Barbara Mikulski, Mike Enzi, Chris Dodd, John McCain, who’s not here, Thad Cochran, as well as, on the House side, Representatives Miller and Carolyn McCarthy, Buck McKeon and Howard Berman.

More than anyone else, the new era of service we enter in today has been made possible by the unlikely friendship between these two men, Orrin Hatch and Ted Kennedy. They may be the odd couple of the Senate. (Laughter.) One is a conservative Republican from Utah; the other is, well, Ted Kennedy. (Laughter.) But time and again, they placed partnership over partisanship to advance this nation even in times when we were told that wasn’t possible. (Applause.)

Senator Hatch was shaped by his experience as a young missionary serving others, a period he has called the greatest of his life. And last year he approached Senator Kennedy to share his ideas about service. Out of that conversation came this legislation. And last month, at Senator Hatch’s selfless request, the Senate unanimously chose to name this bill after his dear friend, Ted. (Applause.) That’s the kind of class act that Orrin Hatch is.

Now, Ted’s story and the story of his family is known to all. It’s a story of service. And it’s also the story of America -- of hard work and sacrifice of generation after generation, some called upon to give more than others, but each committed to the idea that we can make tomorrow better than today. I wouldn’t be standing here today if not for the service of others, or for the purpose that service gave my own life.

I’ve told this story before. When I moved to Chicago more than two decades ago to become a community organizer, I wasn’t sure what was waiting for me there, but I had always been inspired by the stories of the civil rights movement, and President Kennedy’s call to service, and I knew I wanted to do my part to advance the cause of justice and equality.

And it wasn’t easy, but eventually, over time, working with leaders from all across these communities, we began to make a difference -- in neighborhoods that had been devastated by steel plants that had closed down and jobs that had dried up. We began to see a real impact in people’s lives. And I came to realize I wasn’t just helping people, I was receiving something in return, because through service I found a community that embraced me, citizenship that was meaningful, the direction that I had been seeking. I discovered how my own improbable story fit into the larger story of America.

It’s the same spirit of service I’ve seen across this country. I’ve met countless people of all ages and walks of life who want nothing more than to do their part. I’ve seen a rising generation of young people work and volunteer and turn out in record numbers. They’re a generation that came of age amidst the horrors of 9/11 and Katrina, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, an economic crisis without precedent. And yet, despite all this -- or more likely because of it -- they’ve become a generation of activists possessed with that most American of ideas, that people who love their country can change it.

They’re why the Peace Corps had three applications for every position available last year; why 35,000 young people applied for only 4,000 slots in Teach for America; why AmeriCorps has seen a 400-percent increase in applications in just the past four months. And yet, even as so many want to serve, even as so many are struggling, our economic crisis has forced our charities and non-for-profits to cut back.

What this legislation does, then, is to help harness this patriotism and connect deeds to needs. It creates opportunities to serve for students, seniors, and everyone in between. It supports innovation and strengthens the nonprofit sector. And it is just the beginning of a sustained, collaborative and focused effort to involve our greatest resource -- our citizens -- in the work of remaking this nation.

We’re doing this because I’ve always believed that the answers to our challenges cannot come from government alone. Our government can help to rebuild our economy and lift up our schools and reform health care systems and make sure our soldiers and veterans have everything they need -- but we need Americans willing to mentor our eager young children, or care for the sick, or ease the strains of deployment on our military families.

That’s why this bill will expand AmeriCorps from 75,000 slots today to 250,000 in less than a decade. (Applause.) And it’s not just for freshly minted college grads. As I said, my wife Michelle left her job at a law firm to be the founding director of an AmeriCorps program in Chicago that trains young people for careers in public service. And Michelle can tell you the transformation that occurred in her life as a consequence of being able to follow her passions, follow her dreams.

Programs like these are a force multiplier; they leverage small numbers of members into thousands of volunteers. And we will focus their service toward solving today’s most pressing challenges: clean energy, energy efficiency, health care, education, economic opportunity, veterans and military families.

We’ll invest in ideas that help us meet our common challenges, no matter where those ideas come from. All across America, there are ideas that could benefit millions of Americans if only they were given a chance to take root and to grow -- ideas like the one that Eric Adler and Raj Vinnakota had that led to this school and expanded its model to others.

That’s why this bill includes a new Social Innovation Fund that will bring nonprofits and foundations and faith-based organizations and the private sector to the table with government so that we can learn from one another’s success stories. We’ll invest in ideas that work, leverage private-sector dollars to encourage innovation, expand successful programs to scale and make them work in cities across America.

Because we must prepare our young Americans to grow into active citizens, this bill makes new investments in service learning. And we’ve increased the AmeriCorps education award and linked it to Pell Grant award levels, another step toward our goal of ensuring that every American receives an affordable college education. (Applause.)

Because millions of Americans are out of school and out of work, it creates an Energy Corps that will help people find useful work and gain skills in a growing industry of the future.

Because our boomers are the most highly educated generation in history, and our seniors live longer and more active lives than ever before, this bill offers new pathways to harness their talent and experience to serve others.

And because this historic expansion of the Corporation for National and Community Service requires someone with both bold vision and responsible management experience, I have chosen Mary* Eitel -- where’s Mary*? There she is, stand up, Mary -- as its new CEO. (Applause.) The founder and first president of the Nike Foundation, Maria is a smart and innovative thinker, and a leader who shares my belief in the power of service. And I also wanted to thank the acting CEO, Nicky Goren -- where’s Nicky? -- (applause) -- for guiding the corporation through this transition.

A week from tomorrow marks the 100th day of my administration. In those next eight days, I ask every American to make an enduring commitment to serving your community and your country in whatever way you can. Visit whitehouse.gov to share your stories of service and success. And together, we will measure our progress not just in the number of hours served or volunteers mobilized, but in the impact our efforts have on the life of this nation.

We’re getting started right away -- this afternoon, I’ll be joined by President Clinton and Michelle and Joe Biden and Dr. Biden to plant trees in a park not far from here. It’s as simple as that. All that’s required on your part is a willingness to make a difference. And that is, after all, the beauty of service. Anybody can do it. You don’t need to be a community organizer, or a senator, or a Kennedy -- (laughter) -- or even a President to bring change to people’s lives.

When Ted Kennedy makes this point, he also tells a story as elegantly simple as it is profound. An old man walking along a beach at dawn saw a young man pick up a starfish and throwing them out to sea. "Why are you doing that?" the old man inquired.

The young man explained that the starfish had been stranded on the beach by a receding tide, and would soon die in the daytime sun. "But the beach goes on for miles," the old man said. "And there are so many. How can your effort make any difference?" The young man looked at the starfish in his hand, and without hesitating, threw it to safety in the sea. He looked up at the old man, smiled, and said: "It will make a difference to that one." (Laughter.)

To Ted, that’s more than just a story. For even in the midst of his epic fights on the floor of the Senate to enact sweeping change, he’s made a quiet trek to a school not far from the Capitol, week after week, year after year, without cameras or fanfare, to sit down and read with one solitary child.

Ted Kennedy is that young man who will not rest until we’ve made a difference in the life of every American. He walks down that beach and he keeps on picking up starfish, tossing them into the sea. And as I sign this legislation, I want all Americans to take up that spirit of the man for whom this bill is named; of a President who sent us to the moon; of a dreamer who always asked "Why not?" -- of a younger generation that carries the torch of a single family that has made an immeasurable difference in the lives of countless families.

We need your service right now, at this moment in history. I’m not going to tell you what your role should be; that’s for you to discover. But I’m asking you to stand up and play your part. I’m asking you to help change history’s course, put your shoulder up against the wheel. And if I -- if you do, I promise you your life will be richer, our country will be stronger, and someday, years from now, you may remember it as the moment when your own story and the American story converged, when they came together, and we met the challenges of our new century.

Thank you very much, everybody. I’m going to sign this bill. (Applause.)

(The bill is signed.) (Applause.)

        

Freedom of Information Act

        

REMARKS BY PRESIDENT OBAMA
AND PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU OF ISRAEL
IN PRESS AVAILABILITY

Oval Office

1:21 P.M. EDT

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, listen, I first of all want to thank Prime Minister Netanyahu for making this visit.  I think we had a extraordinarily productive series of conversations, not only between the two of us but also at the staff and agency levels.

Obviously this reflects the extraordinary relationship, the special relationship between the United States and Israel.  It is a stalwart ally of the United States.  We have historical ties, emotional ties.  As the only true democracy of the Middle East it is a source of admiration and inspiration for the American people.

I have said from the outset that when it comes to my policies towards Israel and the Middle East that Israel’s security is paramount, and I repeated that to Prime Minister Netanyahu.  It is in U.S. national security interests to assure that Israel’s security as an independent Jewish state is maintained.

One of the areas that we discussed is the deepening concern

around the potential pursuit of a nuclear weapon by Iran.  It’s something the Prime Minister has been very vocal in his concerns about, but is a concern that is shared by his countrymen and women across the political spectrum.

I indicated to him the view of our administration, that Iran is a country of extraordinary history and extraordinary potential, that we want them to be a full-fledged member of the international community and be in a position to provide opportunities and prosperity for their people, but that the way to achieve those goals is not through the pursuit of a nuclear weapon.  And I indicated to Prime Minister Netanyahu in private what I have said publicly, which is that Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon would not only be a threat to Israel and a threat to the United States, but would be profoundly destabilizing in the international community as a whole and could set off a nuclear arms race in the Middle East that would be extraordinarily dangerous for all concerned, including for Iran.

We are engaged in a process to reach out to Iran and persuade them that it is not in their interest to pursue a nuclear weapon and that they should change course.  But I assured the Prime Minister that we are not foreclosing a range of steps, including much stronger international sanctions, in assuring that Iran understands that we are serious.  And obviously the Prime Minister emphasized his seriousness around this issue as well -- I’ll allow him to speak for himself on that subject.

We also had an extensive discussion about the possibilities of restarting serious negotiations on the issue of Israel and the Palestinians.  I have said before and I will repeat again that it is I believe in the interest not only of the Palestinians, but also the Israelis and the United States and the international community to achieve a two-state solution in which Israelis and Palestinians are living side by side in peace and security.

We have seen progress stalled on this front, and I suggested to the Prime Minister that he has an historic opportunity to get a serious movement on this issue during his tenure.  That means that all the parties involved have to take seriously obligations that they’ve previously agreed to.  Those obligations were outlined in the road map; they were discussed extensively in Annapolis.  And I think that we can -- there is no reason why we should not seize this opportunity and this moment for all the parties concerned to take seriously those obligations and to move forward in a way that assures Israel’s security, that stops the terrorist attacks that have been such a source of pain and hardship, that we can stop rocket attacks on Israel; but that also allow Palestinians to govern themselves as an independent state, that allows economic development to take place, that allows them to make serious progress in meeting the aspirations of their people.

And I am confident that in the days, weeks and months to come we are going to be able to make progress on that issue.

So let me just summarize by saying that I think Prime Minister Netanyahu has the benefit of having served as Prime Minister previously.  He has both youth and wisdom --

PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU:  I’ll dispute youth, but -- (laughter.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  -- and I think is in a position to achieve the security objectives of Israel, but also bring about historic peace.  And I’m confident that he’s going to seize this moment.  And the United States is going to do everything we can to be constructive, effective partners in this process.

PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU:  President Obama, thank you.  Thank you for your friendship to Israel and your friendship to me.  You’re a great leader -- a great leader of the United States, a great leader of the world, a great friend of Israel, and someone who is acutely cognizant of our security concerns.  And the entire people of Israel appreciate it, and I speak on their behalf.

We met before, but this is the first time that we’re meeting as President and Prime Minister.  So I was particularly pleased at your reaffirmation of the special relationship between Israel and the United States.  We share the same goals and we face the same threats.  The common goal is peace.  Everybody in Israel, as in the United States, wants peace.  The common threat we face are terrorist regimes and organizations that seek to undermine the peace and endanger both our peoples.

In this context, the worst danger we face is that Iran would develop nuclear military capabilities.  Iran openly calls for our destruction, which is unacceptable by any standard.  It threatens the moderate Arab regimes in the Middle East.  It threatens U.S. interests worldwide.  But if Iran were to acquire nuclear weapons, it could give a nuclear umbrella to terrorists, or worse, it could actually give terrorists nuclear weapons.  And that would put us all in great peril.

So in that context, I very much appreciate, Mr. President, your firm commitment to ensure that Iran does not develop nuclear military capability, and also your statement that you’re leaving all options on the table.

I share with you very much the desire to move the peace process forward.  And I want to start peace negotiations with the Palestinians immediately.  I would like to broaden the circle of peace to include others in the Arab world, if we could, Mr. President, so -- this (inaudible) that one shouldn’t let go, maybe peace with the entire Arab world.

I want to make it clear that we don’t want to govern the Palestinians.  We want to live in peace with them.  We want them to govern themselves, absent a handful of powers that could endanger the state of Israel.  And for this there has to be a clear goal.  The goal has to be an end to conflict.  There will have to be compromises by Israelis and Palestinians alike.  We’re ready to do our share.  We hope the Palestinians will do their share, as well.  If we resume negotiations, as we plan to do, then I think that the Palestinians will have to recognize Israel as a Jewish state; will have to also enable Israel to have the means to defend itself.  And if those conditions are met, Israel’s security conditions are met, and there’s recognition of Israel’s legitimacy, its permanent legitimacy, then I think we can envision an arrangement where Palestinians and Israelis live side by side in dignity, in security, and in peace.

And I look forward, Mr. President, to working with you, a true friend of Israel, to the achievement of our common goals, which are security, prosperity, and above all, peace.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you.  We’re going to take a couple of questions.  We’re going to start with Steve.

Q    Mr. President, you spoke at length, as did the Prime Minister, about Iran’s nuclear program.  Your program of engagement, policy of engagement, how long is that going to last?  Is there a deadline?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  You know, I don’t want to set an artificial deadline.  I think it’s important to recognize that Iran is in the midst of its own elections.  As I think all of you, since you’re all political reporters, are familiar with, election time is not always the best time to get business done.

Their elections will be completed in June, and we are hopeful that, at that point, there is going to be a serious process of engagement, first through the P5-plus-one process that’s already in place, potentially through additional direct talks between the United States and Iran.

I want to reemphasize what I said earlier, that I believe it is not only in the interest of the international community that Iran not develop nuclear weapons, I firmly believe it is in Iran’s interest not to develop nuclear weapons, because it would trigger a nuclear arms race in the Middle East and be profoundly destabilizing in all sorts of ways.  Iran can achieve its interests of security and international respect and prosperity for its people through other means, and I am prepared to make what I believe will be a persuasive argument, that there should be a different course to be taken.

The one thing we’re also aware of is the fact that the history, of least, of negotiation with Iran is that there is a lot of talk but not always action and follow-through.  And that’s why it is important for us, I think, without having set an artificial deadline, to be mindful of the fact that we’re not going to have talks forever.  We’re not going to create a situation in which talks become an excuse for inaction while Iran proceeds with developing a nuclear -- and deploying a nuclear weapon.  That’s something, obviously, Israel is concerned about, but it’s also an issue of concern for the United States and for the international community as a whole.

My expectation would be that if we can begin discussions soon, shortly after the Iranian elections, we should have a fairly good sense by the end of the year as to whether they are moving in the right direction and whether the parties involved are making progress and that there’s a good faith effort to resolve differences.  That doesn’t mean every issue would be resolved by that point, but it does mean that we’ll probably be able to gauge and do a reassessment by the end of the year of this approach.

Q    Thank you, Mr. President.  Aren’t you concerned that your outstretched hand has been interpreted by extremists, especially Ahmadinejad, Nasrallah, Meshal, as weakness?  And since my colleague already asked about the deadline, if engagement fails, what then, Mr. President?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, it’s not clear to me why my outstretched hand would be interpreted as weakness.

Q    Qatar, an example.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I’m sorry?

Q    The example of Qatar.  They would have preferred to be on your side and then moved to the extremists, to Iran.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Oh, I think -- yes, I’m not sure about that interpretation.  Look, we’ve been in office a little over a hundred days now -- close to four months.  We have put forward a clear principle that where we can resolve issues through negotiations and diplomacy, we should.  We didn’t expect -- and I don’t think anybody in the international community or anybody in the Middle East, for that matter -- would expect that 30 years of antagonism and suspicion between Iran and the United States would be resolved in four months.  So we think it’s very important for us to give this a chance.

Now, understand that part of the reason that it’s so important for us to take a diplomatic approach is that the approach that we’ve been taking, which is no diplomacy, obviously has not worked.  Nobody disagrees with that.  Hamas and Hezbollah have gotten stronger.  Iran has been pursuing its nuclear capabilities undiminished.  And so not talking -- that clearly hasn’t worked.  That’s what’s been tried.  And so what we’re going to do is try something new, which is actually engaging and reaching out to the Iranians.

The important thing is to make sure that there is a clear timetable of -- at which point we say these talks don’t seem to be making any serious progress.  It hasn’t been tried before so we don’t want to prejudge that, but as I said, by the end of the year I think we should have some sense as to whether or not these discussions are starting to yield significant benefits, whether we’re starting to see serious movement on the part of the Iranians.

If that hasn’t taken place, then I think the international community will see that it’s not the United States or Israel or other countries that are seeking to isolate or victimize Iran; rather, it is Iran itself which is isolating itself by willing to -- being unwilling to engage in serious discussions about how they can preserve their security without threatening other people’s security -- which ultimately is what we want to achieve.

We want to achieve a situation where all countries in the region can pursue economic development and commercial ties and trade and do so without the threat that their populations are going to be subject to bombs and destruction.

That’s what I think the Prime Minister is interested in, that’s what I’m interested in, and I hope that ends up being what the ruling officials in Iran are interested in, as well.

Don Gonyea.  Where’s Gonyea?

Q    Right here.  Thank you.  Mr. President and Mr. Prime Minister, can you each react to King Abdullah’s statement of a week ago that we really are at a critical place in the conflict and that if this moment isn’t seized and if a peace isn’t achieved now, soon, that in a year, year and a half, we could see renewed major conflict, perhaps war?  And do you agree with that assessment?

PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU:  I think we have to seize the moment and I think we’re fortunate in having a leader like President Obama and a new government in Israel and perhaps a new understanding in the Arab world that I haven’t seen in my lifetime.  And you’re very kind to be calling me young, but I’m more than half a century old and in my 59 years in the life of the Jewish state, there’s never been a time when Arabs and Israelis see a common threat the way we see it today and also see the need to join together in working towards peace while simultaneously defending ourselves against this common threat.

I think we have -- we have ways to capitalize on this sense of urgency and we’re prepared to move with the President and with others in the Arab world if they’re prepared to move, as well.  And I think the important thing that we discussed, among other things, is how to buttress the Israeli-Palestinian peace tracks, which we want to resume right away, with participation from others in the Arab world; how we give confidence to each other that would -- changes the reality, it changes the reality on the ground, changing political realities top-down, as well, while we work to broaden the circle of peace.

And I think that the sense of urgency that King Abdullah expressed is shared by me and shared by many others and I definitely know it’s shared by President Obama.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Look, I think there’s an extraordinary opportunity and the Prime Minister said it well.  You have Arab states in the region -- the Jordanians, the Egyptians, the Saudis -- who I think are looking for an opportunity to break this long-standing impasse but aren’t sure how to do it, and share concerns about Iran’s potential development of a nuclear weapon.  In order for us to potentially realign interests in the region in a constructive way, bolstering, to use the Prime Minister’s word, the Palestinian-Israeli peace track is critical.

It will not be easy.  It never has been easy.  In discussions, I don’t think the Prime Minister would mind me saying to him -- or saying publically what I said privately, which is that there is a recognition that the Palestinians are going to have to do a better job providing the kinds of security assurances that Israelis would need to achieve a two-state solution; that, you know, the leadership of the Palestinians will have to gain additional legitimacy and credibility with their own people, and delivering services.  And that’s something that the United States and Israel can be helpful in seeing them accomplish.

The other Arab states have to be more supportive and be bolder in seeking potential normalization with Israel.  And next week I will have the Palestinian Authority President Abbas as well as President Mubarak here and I will deliver that message to them.

Now, Israel is going to have to take some difficult steps as well, and I shared with the Prime Minister the fact that under the roadmap and under Annapolis that there’s a clear understanding that we have to make progress on settlements.  Settlements have to be stopped in order for us to move forward.  That’s a difficult issue.  I recognize that, but it’s an important one and it has to be addressed.

I think the humanitarian situation in Gaza has to be addressed.  Now, I was along the border in Sderot and saw the evidence of weapons that had been raining down on the heads of innocents in those Israeli cities, and that’s unacceptable.  So we’ve got to work with the Egyptians to deal with the smuggling of weapons and it has to be meaningful because no Prime Minister of any country is going to tolerate missiles raining down on their citizens’ heads.

On the other hand, the fact is, is that if the people of Gaza have no hope, if they can’t even get clean water at this point, if the border closures are so tight that it is impossible for reconstruction and humanitarian efforts to take place, then that is not going to be a recipe for Israel’s long-term security or a constructive peace track to move forward.

So all these things are going to have to come together and it’s going to be difficult, but the one thing that I’ve committed to the Prime Minister is we are going to be engaged, the United States is going to roll up our sleeves.  We want to be a strong partner in this process.

I have great confidence in Prime Minister Netanyahu’s political skills, but also his historical vision and his recognition that during the years that he is Prime Minister this second go-around, he is probably going to be confronted with as many important decisions about the long-term strategic interests of Israel as any Prime Minister that we’ve seen in a very long time.  And I have great confidence that he’s going to rise to the occasion and I actually think that you’re going to see movement in -- among Arab states that we have not seen before.

But the trick is to try to coordinate all this in a very delicate political environment.  And that’s why I’m so pleased to have George Mitchell, who is standing behind the scrum there, as our special envoy, because I’m very confident that as somebody who was involved in equally delicate negotiations in Northern Ireland, he is somebody who recognizes that if you apply patience and determination, and you keep your eye on the long-term goal, as the Prime Minister articulated -- which is a wide-ranging peace, not a grudging peace, not a transitory peace, but a wide-ranging, regional peace -- that we can make great progress.

Q    Mr. President, the Israeli Prime Minister and the Israeli administration have said on many occasions -- on some occasions that only if the Iranian threat will be solved, they can achieve real progress on the Palestinian threat.  Do you agree with that kind of linkage?

And to the Israeli Prime Minister, you were speaking about the political track.  Are you willing to get into final status issues/negotiations like borders, like Jerusalem in the near future, based on the two-state solution?  And do you still hold this opinion about the linkage between the Iranian threat and your ability to achieve any progress on the Palestinian threat?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, let me say this.  There’s no doubt that it is difficult for any Israeli government to negotiate in a situation in which they feel under immediate threat.  That’s not conducive to negotiations.  And as I’ve said before, I recognize Israel’s legitimate concerns about the possibility of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon when they have a president who has in the past said that Israel should not exist.  That would give any leader of any country pause.

Having said that, if there is a linkage between Iran and the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, I personally believe it actually runs the other way.  To the extent that we can make peace with the Palestinians -- between the Palestinians and the Israelis, then I actually think it strengthens our hand in the international community in dealing with a potential Iranian threat.

Having said that, I think that dealing with Iran’s potential nuclear capacity is something that we should be doing even if there already was peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.  And I think that pursuing Israeli-Palestinian peace is something that is in Israeli’s security interests and the United States’ national security interests, even if Iran was not pursuing a nuclear weapon.  They’re both important.

And we have to move aggressively on both fronts.  And I think that based on my conversations with Prime Minister Netanyahu, he agrees with me that they’re both important.  That’s not to say that he’s not making a calculation, as he should, about what are some of the most immediate threats to Israeli’s security, and I understand that.

But, look, imagine how much less mischief a Hezbollah or a Hamas could do if in fact we had moved a Palestinian-Israeli track in a direction that gave the Palestinian people hope.  And if Hezbollah and Hamas is weakened, imagine how that impacts Iran’s ability to make mischief, and vice versa.

I mean, so obviously these things are related, but they are important separately.  And I’m confident that the United States, working with Israel, can make progress on both fronts.

Q    Thank you.

PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU:  We’ve had extraordinarily friendly and constructive talks here today, and I’m very grateful to the President for that.  We want to move peace forward, and we want to ward off the great threats.

There isn’t a policy linkage, and that’s what I hear the President saying, and that’s what I’m saying too.  And I’ve always said there’s not a policy linkage between pursuing simultaneously peace between Israel and the Palestinians and the rest of the Arab world, and to trying to deal with removing the threat of a nuclear bomb.

There are causal links.  The President talked about one of them.  It would help, obviously, unite a broad front against Iran if we had peace between Israel and the Palestinians.  And conversely, if Iran went nuclear, it would threaten the progress towards peace and destabilize the entire area, and threaten existing peace agreement.

So it’s very clear to us.  I think we actually -- we don’t see closely on it, we see exactly eye to eye on this -- that we want to move simultaneously and then parallel on two fronts:  the front of peace, and the front of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear capability.

On the front of peace, the important thing for me is to resume negotiations as rapidly as possible, and to -- and my view is less one of terminology, but one of substance.  And I ask myself, what do we end up with?  If we end up with another Gaza -- the President has described to you there’s rockets falling out of Gaza -- that is something we don’t want to happen, because a terror base next to our cities that doesn’t call -- recognize Israel’s existence and calls for our destruction and asks for our destruction is not arguing peace.

If, however, the Palestinians recognize Israel as the Jewish state, if they -- if they fight terror, if they educate their children for peace and to a better future, then I think we can come at a substantive solution that allows the two people to live side by side in security and peace and I add prosperity, because I’m a great believer in this.

So I think the terminology will take care of itself if we have the substantive understanding.  And I think we can move forward on this.  I have great confidence in your leadership, Mr. President, and in your friendship to my country, and in your championing of peace and security.  And the answer is, both come together -- peace and security are intertwined.  They’re inseparable.

And I look forward, Mr. President, to working with you to achieve both.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you, everybody.

        

Office of Federal Financial Management

Mission:

To promote and support first class financial management in the executive branch of the Federal Government.

History:

The Office of Federal Financial Management (OFFM) was created within the Office of Management and Budget (OM by theChief Financial Officers (CFO) Act of 1990. OFFM, led by the OMB Controller under the direction of the Deputy Director for Management, is responsible for the financial management policy of the Federal Government. OFFM responsibilities include implementing the financial management improvement priorities of the President, establishing government-wide financial management policies of executive agencies, and carrying out the financial management functions of the CFO Act.

What's New:	Summary Report of the 2008 Financial Report of the United States Government (February 2009) (12 pages, 771 kb) M-09-06, Implementation Guidance for the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act (January 9, 2009) (12 pages, 113 kb) Improving the Accuracy and Integrity of Federal Payments, 2008 Final Report  (January 8, 2009) (39 pages, 247 kb) 2009 Federal Financial Management Report  (January 7, 2009) (46 pages, 1.7 mb)
Branches:	Financial Standards and Grants Financial Analysis and Systems
Key Issues:	Agency and Government-wide Financial Reporting Federal Asset Management Financial Management Systems Grants Management Improper Payments Performance Measurement President’s Management Agenda Single Audit Travel and Purchase Cards
Organization Chart:	OFFM Organization Chart (1 page, 18 kb)

        

Women in the White House

Posted by Jenny Yeager, Special Assistant to the Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement

My name is Jenny Yeager and I am the Special Assistant to the Director of Public Liaison, Tina Tchen. That means that I help her and our whole team with a wide variety of events.  Whether it’s organizing one of our complex Summits, directly reaching out to constituents, meeting with our legal team, or organizing special events in the White House, one thing’s for sure, being a part of the Public Engagement team is never dull! 

        

Ending Bad Habits

Today the President released his full budget providing all the details for the blueprint that Congress recently approved in the Budget Resolution.  Having spoken about his vision to create a new foundation for the country a few weeks ago, today he returned to that theme:

        

Shooting Around With the Huskies

We will have more on their visit later, but in the meantime watch a quick shoot-around from earlier this week when the undefeated women's basketball national champions, the UCONN Huskies, came to the White House. 

Viewing this video requires Adobe Flash Player 8 or higher. Download the free player.

download .mp4 (212 M | also available here

UPDATE: Maya Moore, this year’s winner of the John R. Wooden Award as the women's college basketball player of the year, dropped us a note after her visit:

        

TAXES

President Obama and Vice President Biden’s tax plan delivers broad-based tax relief to middle class families and cuts taxes for small businesses and companies that create jobs in America, while restoring fairness to our tax code and returning to fiscal responsibility. Coupled with President Obama and Vice President Biden's commitment to invest in key areas like health, clean energy, innovation, and education, their tax plan will help restore bottom-up economic growth that creates good jobs in America and empowers all families to achieve the American dream.

Obama’s Comprehensive Tax Policy Plan for America will:

• Cut taxes for 95 percent of workers and their families with a tax cut of $500 for workers or $1,000 for working couples.
• Provide generous tax cuts for low- and middle-income seniors, homeowners, the uninsured, and families sending a child to college or looking to save and accumulate wealth.
• Eliminate capital gains taxes for small businesses, cut corporate taxes for firms that invest and create jobs in the United States, and provide tax credits to reduce the cost of healthcare and to reward investments in innovation.
• Dramatically simplify taxes by consolidating existing tax credits, eliminating the need for millions of senior citizens to file tax forms, and enabling as many as 40 million middle-class Americans to do their own taxes in less than five minutes without an accountant.

Under the Obama-Biden Plan:

• Middle class families will see their taxes cut -- and no family making less than $250,000 will see their taxes increase. The typical middle class family will receive well over $1,000 in tax relief under the Obama-Biden plan, and will pay tax rates that are 20 percent lower than they faced under President Reagan.
• Families making more than $250,000 will pay either the same or lower tax rates than they paid in the 1990s. Obama will ask the wealthiest two percent of families to give back a portion of the tax cuts they have received over the past eight years to ensure we are restoring fairness and returning to fiscal responsibility. But no family will pay higher tax rates than they would have paid in the 1990s.
• The Obama-Biden plan will cut taxes overall, reducing revenues to below the levels that prevailed under Ronald Reagan (less than 18.2 percent of GDP). The plan is a net tax cut -- his tax relief for middle class families is larger than the revenue raised by his tax changes for families over $250,000. Coupled with his commitment to cut unnecessary spending, Obama will pay for this tax relief while bringing down the budget deficit.

Impact of the Obama Tax Plan

Source: Calculations based on IRS Statistics of Income. Tax savings is conservative; does not account for up to $500 in savings from expanded Savers Credit and the $2,500 in savings per family from the Obama healthcare plan

        

TECHNOLOGY

"Let us be the generation that reshapes our economy to compete in the digital age. Let's set high standards for our schools and give them the resources they need to succeed. Let's recruit a new army of teachers, and give them better pay and more support in exchange for more accountability. Let's make college more affordable, and let's invest in scientific research, and let's lay down broadband lines through the heart of inner cities and rural towns all across America."

-- Barack Obama, Springfield, IL
February 10 ,2007

President Obama and Vice President Biden understand the immense transformative power of technology and innovation and how they can improve the lives of Americans. They will work to ensure the full and free exchange of information through an open Internet and use technology to create a more transparent and connected democracy. They will encourage the deployment of modern communications infrastructure to improve America's competitiveness and employ technology to solve our nation's most pressing problems -- including improving clean energy, healthcare costs, and public safety.

Ensure the Full and Free Exchange of Ideas through an Open Internet and Diverse Media Outlets

• Protect the Openness of the Internet: Support the principle of network neutrality to preserve the benefits of open competition on the Internet.
• Encourage Diversity in Media Ownership: Encourage diversity in the ownership of broadcast media, promote the development of new media outlets for expression of diverse viewpoints, and clarify the public interest obligations of broadcasters who occupy the nation's spectrum.
• Protect Our Children While Preserving the First Amendment: Give parents the tools and information they need to control what their children see on television and the Internet in ways fully consistent with the First Amendment. Support tough penalties, increase enforcement resources and forensic tools for law enforcement, and encourage collaboration between law enforcement and the private sector to identify and prosecute people who try to exploit children online.
• Safeguard our Right to Privacy: Strengthen privacy protections for the digital age and harness the power of technology to hold government and business accountable for violations of personal privacy.

Create a Transparent and Connected Democracy

• Open Up Government to its Citizens: Use cutting-edge technologies to create a new level of transparency, accountability, and participation for America's citizens.
• Bring Government into the 21st Century: Use technology to reform government and improve the exchange of information between the federal government and citizens while ensuring the security of our networks. Appoint the nation's first Chief Technology Officer (CTO) to ensure the safety of our networks and lead an interagency effort, working with chief technology and chief information officers of each of the federal agencies, to ensure that they use best-in-class technologies and share best practices.

Deploy a Modern Communications Infrastructure

• Deploy Next-Generation Broadband: Work towards true broadband in every community in America through a combination of reform of the Universal Service Fund, better use of the nation's wireless spectrum, promotion of next-generation facilities, technologies and applications, and new tax and loan incentives. America should lead the world in broadband penetration and Internet access.

Improve America's Competitiveness

• Promote American Businesses Abroad: Support a trade policy that ensures our goods and services are treated fairly in foreign markets. Fight for fair treatment of our companies abroad.
• Invest in the Sciences: Double federal funding for basic research over ten years, changing the posture of our federal government to one that embraces science and technology.
• Invest in University-Based Research: Expand research initiatives at American colleges and universities. Provide new research grants to the most outstanding early-career researchers in the country.
• Make the R&D Tax Credit Permanent: Invest in a skilled research and development workforce and technology infrastructure. Make the Research and Development tax credit permanent so that firms can rely on it when making decisions to invest in domestic R&D over multi-year timeframes.
• Ensure Competitive Markets: Foster a business and regulatory landscape in which entrepreneurs and small businesses can thrive, start-ups can launch, and all enterprises can compete effectively while investors and consumers are protected against bad actors that cross the line. Reinvigorate antitrust enforcement to ensure that capitalism works for consumers.
• Protect American Intellectual Property Abroad: Work to ensure intellectual property is protected in foreign markets, and promote greater cooperation on international standards that allow our technologies to compete everywhere.
• Protect American Intellectual Property at Home: Update and reform our copyright and patent systems to promote civic discourse, innovation, and investment while ensuring that intellectual property owners are fairly treated.
• Reform the Patent System: Ensure that our patent laws protect legitimate rights while not stifling innovation and collaboration. Give the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) the resources to improve patent quality and open up the patent process to citizen review to help foster an environment that encourages innovation. Reduce uncertainty and wasteful litigation that is currently a significant drag on innovation.
• Restore Scientific Integrity to the White House: Restore the basic principle that government decisions should be based on the best-available, scientifically-valid evidence and not on ideological predispositions.

Prepare All our Children for the 21st Century Economy

• Make Math and Science Education a National Priority: Recruit math and science degree graduates to the teaching profession and support efforts to help these teachers learn from professionals in the field. Work to ensure that all children have access to a strong science curriculum at all grade levels.
• Improve and Prioritize Science Assessments: Work with governors and educators to ensure that state assessments measure higher order thinking skills including inference, logic and data analysis, not just rote memorization of facts.
• Address the Dropout Crisis: Provide funding to school districts to invest in intervention strategies in middle school -- strategies such as personal academic plans, teaching teams, parent involvement, mentoring, intensive reading and math instruction, and extended learning time.
• Pinpoint College Aid for Math and Science Students: Launch an online database to give potential future scientists access to information about financial aid opportunities available in science and technology fields through the federal government and public or private resources.
• Increase Science and Math Graduates: Improve science and math education in K through 12 to prepare more students for these studies in college. Work to increase our number of science and engineering graduates and encourage undergraduates studying math and science to pursue graduate studies. Increase the representation of minorities and women in the science and technology pipeline, tapping the diversity of America to meet the increasing demand for a skilled workforce.

Prepare Adults for a Changing Economy

• Lifelong Retraining: Reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act, and increase resources for community colleges and lifelong learning initiatives to ensure our citizens can continue to gain new skills throughout their lifetimes. Modernize and expand the existing system of trade adjustment assistance to include service sector workers hurt by changing trade patterns. Create flexible education accounts that workers can use to retrain.
• Build a Reliable Safety Net: Through their proposals on portable health care and retirement savings accounts and expanding unemployment insurance, Obama and Biden will work for programs that will help Americans facing job transitions in a fierce global economy.

Employ Science, Technology and Innovation to Solve Our Nation's Most Pressing Problems

21st-century technology and telecommunications have flattened communications and labor markets and have contributed to a period of unprecedented innovation, making us more productive, connected global citizens. By maximizing the power of technology, we can strengthen the quality and affordability of our health care, advance climate-friendly energy development and deployment, improve education throughout the country, and ensure that America remains the world's leader in technology. Barack Obama and Joe Biden will:

• Lower Health Care Costs by Investing in Electronic Information Technology Systems: Use health information technology to lower the cost of health care. Invest $10 billion a year over the next five years to move the U.S. health care system to broad adoption of standards-based electronic health information systems, including electronic health records.
• Invest in Climate-Friendly Energy Development and Deployment: Invest $150 billion over the next ten years to enable American engineers, scientists and entrepreneurs to advance the next generation of biofuels and fuel infrastructure, accelerate the commercialization of plug-in hybrids, promote development of commercial-scale renewable energy, and begin the transition to a new digital electricity grid. This investment will transform the economy and create 5 million new jobs.
• Modernize Public Safety Networks: Spur the development and deployment of new technologies to promote interoperability, broadband access, and more effective communications among first responders and emergency response systems.
• Advance the Biomedical Research Field: Support investments in biomedical research, as well as medical education and training in health-related fields. Fund biomedical research, and make it more efficient by improving coordination both within government and across government/private/non-profit partnerships.
• Advance Stem Cell Research: Support increased stem cell research. Allow greater federal government funding on a wider array of stem cell lines.