Category: White House

Wednesday, President Obama announced his nominee for the Supreme Court: Chief Judge Merrick Garland. Read why President Obama chose him for the job, then watch the video to learn more: Learn more about his background and experience. After the announcement, Chief Judge Garland gave remarks reflecting on his career as a dedicated public servant — and they’re definitely worth a read: JUDGE GARLAND: Thank you, Mr. President. This is the greatest honor of my life — other than Lynn agreeing …

Sunday morning, speaking from the Cabinet Room, President announced that we’ve secured significant diplomatic achievements in Iran. Thanks to the Iran nuclear agreement, Iran can no longer develop a nuclear weapon. And this morning, four Americans were officially freed from wrongful imprisonment and are on their way home. This is what strong, principled American diplomacy can do. As the President said today: “Today’s progress — Americans coming home, an Iran that has rolled back its nuclear program and accepted unprecedented monitoring …

President Obama announced additional actions he’s taking to keep guns out of the wrong hands and reduce gun violence. Columbine. Blacksburg. Newtown. Aurora. Tucson. Oak Creek. Charleston. San Bernardino. Too many communities across the country are still suffering from the heartbreaking consequences of a gun in the wrong hands. In the past decade, more than 100,000 people have died as a result of gun violence. Many of these crimes were committed by people who never should have been able to …

White House photographers work to chronicle the presidency all year long, capturing everything from front-page moments like the arrival of Pope Francis, to behind-the-scenes moments of the President on his travels. As 2015 comes to a close, look back at some of the most memorable images of the year as selected by Chief Official White House Photographer Pete Souza — and read his stories behind the photos. Check out the best photos of 2015 here:

Five months after we, the European Union, and our P5+1 partners finalized the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with Iran, I remain so proud of our team in achieving what was truly one of our most important accomplishments of 2015 – ensuring that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful going forward.  As we get closer to Implementation Day, the next major milestone in the JCPOA, I am pleased to report that we have seen important indications of significant progress towards …

The President and First Lady wish Americans a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays in a special weekly address. They celebrate the values of the season, and in that spirit of gratitude honor all the brave men and women in uniform fighting to keep us safe, as well as the families that stand by them. The President and First Lady ask that everyone take time this holiday season to visit JoiningForces.gov, and find out how to give back to the troops, …

In this week’s address, the President celebrated the end of the year tradition of list-making with a year-in-review list of his own. The President offered his roundup of the top 10 things that happened in 2015, all of which should make us optimistic about the prospects for 2016. This past year has been one where we’ve seen unprecedented progress in areas ranging from the Iran deal to marriage equality to concluding a historic trade agreement. The year 2015 brought economic …

In this week’s address, the President praised our country’s resilience in the face of terrorism, and discussed how we will keep America safe.  Our military has been stepping up its campaign to destroy ISIL, and our airstrikes are hitting ISIL harder than ever before.  The President emphasized that we will continue to move forward on all fronts, which is why this week he will go to the Pentagon to review our military campaign, and to the National Counterterrorism center to …

In this week’s address, the President offered his condolences to the families and community of the victims of the San Bernardino shooting. He recognized the possibility that the two attackers may have been radicalized, a reminder to all of us that we need to work together to prevent people from falling victim to attempts by extremist organizations to encourage violence. The President called on Congress to close the loophole that allows people on the No-Fly list to purchase guns, a …

Sunday night, I addressed the nation from the Oval Office on my top priority as President: Keeping the American people safe. It weighs heavily on the hearts and minds of all of us in the wake of the terrible tragedy in San Bernardino. Fourteen Americans — dads, moms, daughters, sons — were taken from us as they came together to celebrate the holidays. Each of them a public servant. All of them a part of our American family. The FBI …

As we approach Thanksgiving and many of us prepare to share time with friends and family, we want to make sure you have the latest information from us about the Syrian Refugee Crisis and ways you can support efforts to provide support and aid to those fleeing violence. Visit aidrefugees.gov, where you can enter your zip code into a map to learn about volunteer opportunities with organizations near you that are helping refugees start anew in your community Or check …

Since the attacks in Paris, many have asked about our process for admitting Syrian refugees into this country. I understand the anxiety that many Americans are feeling right now. And as Secretary of Homeland Security, I share with President Obama the top priority of keeping the American people safe. So let me be clear about what this process of vetting and resettling refugees looks like. It’s important to remember, we’re focused on admitting the most vulnerable Syrians — this means …

The refugees that have captivated so much attention in the wake of Friday’s attack are fleeing precisely the type of senseless slaughter that happened in Paris. To slam the door in their faces — to decide not to help when we know that we can help — would be a betrayal of our deepest values as Americans. That’s why we’re going to do the right thing in the right way: protecting the American people even as we provide refuge to …

In this week’s address, President Obama honored our nation’s veterans, who have served and sacrificed in defense of our country. This past week, Americans came together on Veterans Day to pay tribute to those men and women in uniform who have risked their lives to protect our freedom.  In recent years we’ve worked to reduce the veterans’ unemployment rate to 3.9 percent and slash the disability claims backlog at the VA by nearly 90 percent from its peak.  But there is …

In this week’s address, the President discussed the importance of reducing the number of people without health insurance. Because of the Affordable Care Act, more people now have the security of health insurance than ever before. As the law’s coverage provisions have taken effect, 17.6 million Americans have gained coverage, and the nation’s uninsured rate now stands at its lowest level ever. The ACA is working, making health care more affordable, accessible, and of higher quality for millions of people. …

Great Scott! Today marks an important day in American history (or, at least, in American cinematic history): It’s the date to which Marty McFly traveled into the “future” in Back to the Future Part II. We’ve come a long way in the 30 years that have passed since the original Back to the Future came out. We’re going to spend tomorrow talking about where we’re going in the next 30. Tomorrow, we’ll host a series of conversations with scientists and innovators …

In this week’s address, the President highlighted the problems in our criminal justice system.  Our country faces a vicious cycle of poverty, criminality, and incarceration that traps too many Americans and weakens too many communities.  There are 2.2 million people behind bars in America today, compared to 500,000 just 30 years ago.  This topic isn’t new – the President has talked about the unfairness of much of the criminal justice system since his time in the Senate.  And while we’ve …

September in Review: U.S. and China Team Up on Climate, President Obama Visits Alaska, Administration Emphasizes Implementation in Lead-Up to Paris U.S.-China Joint Presidential Statement on Climate Change On September 25, President Obama and China’s President Xi Jinping released the U.S.-China Joint Presidential Statement on Climate Change, which lays out actions by both countries to implement the ambitious post-2020 climate targets they set last November in Beijing. The joint statement in November marked a new era of multilateral climate diplomacy, as …

In this week’s address, the President emphasized that we need to do everything we can to strengthen economic growth and job creation. This week, despite the fact that more than half of Republicans in Congress voted to shut down the government for the second time in two years, Congress managed to pass a last-minute bill to keep the government open for another ten weeks. That means that in December, we could face yet another Republican threat to shut down the …

In this week’s address, on “National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day,” the President spoke about the importance of preventing and treating substance use disorders. Overdoses from prescription pain medications kill thousands of Americans every year, and more often than not, those drugs come from the family medicine cabinet. In addition, many heroin users started out by misusing prescription drugs. That’s why it’s important to take advantage of the DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day and safely, conveniently, and responsibly dispose of …