WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama’s drive to fight global warming got a boost on Wednesday as Democrats in the U.S. Senate unveiled a bill aimed at slashing greenhouse gas emissions in the next four decades.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama heard opinions from top advisers on how to reverse the deteriorating Afghanistan war on Wednesday as part of a sweeping strategy review that could lead to more U.S. troops.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Senate on Wednesday kept alive funding for 10 Boeing-made C-17 cargo planes that the Pentagon has said it does not want.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki made a rare visit to Washington to inspect Iran’s unofficial diplomatic office but there were no plans for him to meet U.S. officials, the State Department said on Wednesday.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate averted a looming government shutdown on Wednesday by passing a stopgap bill that temporarily funds federal operations for another month while lawmakers finish work on spending legislation.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Senate panel rejected a Republican effort on Wednesday to further restrict abortions in a sweeping healthcare overhaul as it inched closer to finishing work on the bill.
(First Lady Michelle Obama greets gymnast Nadia Comaneci, her husband gymnast Bart Connor, left,
and other former Olympians before the Chicago 2016 Dinner in Copenhagen, Denmark, Wednesday,
September 30, 2009. From left in the background, athletes Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Bob Berland,
David Robinson, and Paralympic athlete Linda Mastandrea.
Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
First Lady Michelle Obama brought American pride to the Danish capital today, her visit only adding to the Olympic-sized fervor reverberating throughout Copenhagen—also in attendance was Chicago’s other first lady, talk show host Oprah Winfrey. The First Lady, eager for the torch to shine brightly stateside, shared some favorite childhood Olympic moments and reflected on how the importance of Olympic ideals in every child’s life:
We need all of our children to be exposed to the Olympic ideals that athletes from around the world represent, particularly this time in our nation’s history, where athletics is becoming more of a fleeting opportunity. Funds dry up so it becomes harder for kids to engage in sports, to learn how to swim, to even ride a bike. When we’re seeing rates of childhood obesity increase, it is so important for us to raise up the platform of fitness and competition and fair play; to teach kids to cheer on the victors and empathize with those in defeat, but most importantly, to recognize that all the hard work that is required to do something special.
I remember watching the Olympics when I was little. I remember it to the T, some of those memories. And Nadia Comaneci is here, who – (applause) – and so many incredible Olympic athletes. But I remember, I told this story, when you scored that perfect 10, you bounced off the balance beam, off the parallel bars. I thought I could do that. (Laughter.) I didn’t know then that I would be 5'11". (Laughter.)
But it was – it was an activity in our household when it was time for the Olympic Games, all of us gathered around the TV cheering on and being inspired by people who were doing things that were beyond belief. And I just think, wouldn’t it be great if that kind of spirit was happening right down the street in our community? Just think of that. Kids and communities across the city, in Austin, kids who grew up in Cabrini, kids who live so far from the city. Now just imagine if all of that was happening right in their own backyard. That’s what I think about. (Applause.)
It does something to a kid when they can feel that energy and power up close and personal. And for some kids in our communities and our city, around the nation, around the world, they can never dream of being that close to such power and opportunity.
(First Lady Michelle Obama during a break in her one-on-one meetings with International Olympic
Committee members in Copenhagen, Denmark, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2009
Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
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Amidst some of the brightest and most innovative minds in the medical field, the
President spoke this morning about his commitment to making a "lasting difference" in the health of the American people—and how the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will play a role in creating those differences:
Now, today I'm here to talk about our nation's commitment to research. I want to thank Dr. Collins and his team for showing me and Kathleen some of the extraordinary groundbreaking research being done at the National Institutes of Health.
The work you do is not easy. It takes a great deal of patience and persistence. But it holds incredible promise for the health of our people and the future of our nation and our world. That’s why I’m here today. For decades, the NIH has been at the forefront of medical invention and innovation, helping to save countless lives and relieve untold suffering. And yet, if we’re honest, in recent years we’ve seen our leadership slipping as scientific integrity was at times undermined and research funding failed to keep pace.
We know that the work you do would not get done if left solely to the private sector. Some research does not lend itself to quick profit. And that’s why places like the NIH were founded. And that’s why my administration is making a historic commitment to research and the pursuit of discovery. And that’s why today we’re announcing that we've awarded $5 billion — that's with a "b" — in grants through the Recovery Act to conduct cutting-edge research all across America, to unlock treatments to diseases that have long plagued humanity, to save and enrich the lives of people all over the world. This represents the single largest boost to biomedical research in history. (Applause.)
Now, one of the most exciting areas of research to move forward as a result of this investment will be in applying what scientists have learned through the Human Genome Project to help us understand, prevent, and treat various forms of cancer, heart disease, and autism. And having been a leader of the Human Genome Project, Dr. Collins knows this promise all too well. And it's a promise that we've only just begun to realize.
In cancer, we're beginning to see treatments based on our knowledge of genetic changes that cause the disease and the genetic predispositions that many of us carry that make us more susceptible to the disease. But we've only scratched the surface of these kinds of treatments, because we've only begun to understand the relationship between our environment and genetics in causing and promoting cancer.
So through the Recovery Act, the NIH is expanding the Cancer Genome Atlas, collecting more than 20,000 tissue samples to sequence the DNA of more than 20 types of cancer. And this has extraordinary potential to help us better understand and treat this disease. Cancer has touched the lives of all Americans, including my own family's; 1.5 million people will be diagnosed in the next year. Half a million people will lose their lives. We all know the terrible toll on families and the promise of treatments that will allow a mother to be there for her children as they grow up; that will make it possible for a child to reach adulthood; that will allow countless people to survive a disease that's claimed far too many lives.
(President Barack Obama talks with Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director, National Institute of Allergy and
Infectious Diseases, during a tour of the National Institute of Health in Bethesda, Md., Wednesday,
Sept. 30, 2009. Listening are Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, left, and Dr.
Francis Collins, left, Director of NIH, third from left. Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)A critical part of the President's desire to make strides in medicine is the Recovery Act—under the President’s plan, tens of thousands of jobs will be created in the medical sector:
Now, we know that these investments in research will improve and save countless lives for generations to come. And as I was taking a tour with Dr. Collins and Dr. Fauci and others, just listening to the possibility of a HIV/AIDS vaccine, or hearing the latest treatments of cancer that allow people who previously only had resort to the most violent types of radiation or chemotherapy, now being able to take pills and seeing extraordinary progress, it is something that is entirely inspiring. But we also know that these investments will save jobs, they'll create new jobs — tens of thousands of jobs — conducting research, and manufacturing and supplying medical equipment, and building and modernizing laboratories and research facilities all across America.
Democratic party identification is at its lowest mark since the second quarter of 2005, while GOP ID is at its highest point since the first quarter of 2006, according to Gallup’s quarterly party identification report.
At 48% Democrat or lean-Democrat and 42% Republican or lean-Republican, the six-point gap is the smallest since 2005. Although the number [...]
From an AP story earlier today:
WASHINGTON – Too many agencies are still holding their secrets close nine months after President Barack Obama ordered the federal government to open the flow of information to the public, advocates of access said Wednesday.
Some are trying to circumvent the 42-year-old Freedom of Information Act through special provisions slipped into [...]
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