West Wing Week: 01/11/13 or “The Interests of Our Country”

 

                          By  Adam Garber   January 11, 2013  The White House Blog

 

 

 

 

Welcome to the West Wing Week, your guide to everything that’s happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. This week, the President nominated a bipartisan slate of leaders to key administration jobs and the Vice President met with a wide array of organizations to talk about efforts to reduce gun violence.

Friday, January 4th:

• West Wing Week caught up with special assistant to the President for economic policy, Brian Deese, who gave us some further explanation on the Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. 

 

 

Monday, January 7th: 

• The President announced two key nominations for his national security team, former republican Senator Chuck Hagel who would be the first enlisted combat veteran to lead the Department of Defense, and the President’s Chief Counterterrorism Advisor John Brennan to lead the CIA.

 

 

Wednesday, January 9th:

•  The Vice President held a series of meetings with representatives of victims’ groups, gun rights organizations and gun safety organizations as part of the Administration’s effort to develop new policy proposals to reduce gun violence.

 

 

Thursday, January 10th:

• The President called Alabama’s Head Football Coach Nick Saban to congratulate his team on their victory in the BCS National Championship Game.  The Crimson Tide has now won the title 3 times in the last 4 years.

 

• That afternoon, the President held an event in the East Room of the White House to announce his intention tonominate Chief of Staff Jack Lew to be the new Treasury Secretary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

President Obama Nominates Jacob Lew as Treasury Secretary

 

                       By   Matt Compton   January 10, 2013   The White House Blog

 

 

President Barack Obama announces Chief of Staff Jack Lew is his nominee for Treasury Secretary to replace Timothy Geithner, right, in the East Room of the White House, Jan. 10, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

 

 

 

Today, in an event President Obama nominated Jacob Lew — the current White House chief of staff — to serve as the next Treasury Secretary.

 

“Over the past year, I’ve sought Jack’s advice on virtually every decision that I’ve made, from economic policy to foreign policy,” the President said.

 

Jack Lew has decades of experience tackling some of the nation’s toughest economic challenges. As director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Clinton, Lew helped to negotiate the deal that balanced the federal budget — and led to a budget surplus. In the Obama Administration, even before becoming chief of staff, he has helped to manage the day-to-day operations at the State Department and shepherd through the Budget Control Act to reduce federal spending in a second stint at OMB.

 

“One reason Jack has been so effective in this town is because he is a low-key guy who prefers to surround himself with policy experts rather than television cameras,” said President Obama. “And over the years, he’s built a reputation as a master of policy who can work with members of both parties and forge principled compromises.”

 

The President also offered his gratitude to his current Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner — who helped to guide the country through the financial crisis and get the economy growing again.

 

“When the history books are written,” he said, “Tim Geithner is going to go down as one of our finest Secretaries of the Treasury.” 

 

Read the full remarks here, or watch the video of the event: 

 

 

President Obama Nominates Jack Lew for Secretary of the Treasury

 

 

 

 

 

Hmmmmm……not any diversity in the Obama White House Administration you say……

President Barack Obama talks with Felicia Escobar, Senior Policy Director for Immigration, left, and Cecilia Muñoz, Director of the Domestic Policy Council, at the end of a meeting with advisors in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Jan. 10, 2013. Pictured in the background are: Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Nancy-Ann DeParle; Acting Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Jeffrey Zients; National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling; Rob Nabors, Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs; and Rob Nabors, Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

 

 

I beg to differ…….Diversity In Barack’s House

 

• Deputy Chief of Staff Nancy-Ann DeParle

 

• Deputy Chief of Staff Alyssa Mastromonaco

 

 

 

 

Statements and Releases

 

Statement by the Press Secretary on Bills Signed on January 10, 2013

 

 

Statement by the Press Secretary on the visit of President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan to the White House

 

 

 

Joseph Robinette “Joe” Biden, Jr. And GUNS!!

 

Vice President Biden Meets with Sportsmen and Wildlife Interest Groups

 

 

 

Requiring all gun buyers to pass a federal background check could be a key part of a White House plan to combat mass shootings, Vice President Joe Biden indicated as he prepared to present recommendations to the president on Tuesday.

 

Speaking to reporters Thursday, Biden said he had found a “surprising recurrence of suggestions” for “universal background checks” in meetings with interest groups. Background checks are not required in private sales by unlicensed dealers, including transactions at gun shows.

 

Biden is expected to propose measures that President Obama could institute by executive action, as well as proposed laws, such as bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

 

The quick movement to roll out potential remedies to mitigate gun violence — ahead of schedule and just days before Obama and Biden are sworn into a second term — is a signal of the urgency the White House aims to project in developing a response to the Newtown, Conn., elementary school shooting.

 

Full report by The LA Times can be read here…

 

 

 

The NRA’s Worst Nightmare: Joe Biden

 

 

 

Vice President Biden Meets with Groups to Discuss Violence Prevention

 

 

 

 

 

White House Schedule for Friday, the 11th of January:

 

All Times Eastern Standard Time

 

10:30 PM: President Barack Obama holds a bilateral meeting with President Karzai of Afghanistan.

 

12:00 PM: President Barack Obama meets for lunch with President Karzai; Vice President Joseph Biden attends.

 

1:15 PM: President Barack Obama and President Karzai hold a joint press conference.

 

 

Presidential Inaugural Committee Updates:

 

From Jonathan Capehart:

Controversy over an anti-gay sermon by Louie Giglio of Passion City Church in Atlanta forced him to withdraw his acceptance of the invitation to deliver the benediction at the presidential inaugural. Good. President Obama should not have to share the stage with him.

 

Obama is the most pro-gay person to occupy the Oval Office. He ended the ban on gay men and lesbians serving openly in the military. His administration has stopped defending the so-called Defense of Marriage Act in court. He has expressed his personal support for marriage equality. And in pronouncement and policy, the president and his administration have made bringing dignity, equity and fairness to gay people and their families a priority.

 

That’s why it boggled the mind that the Presidential Inaugural Committee would force Obama to share the stage with Giglio.

 

Get the rest of the story….Here: Louie Giglio out from Inaugural: Good

 

 

Rev. Louie Giglio Knocked Out of Obama Inaugural Ceremony For Anti-Gay Sermon

 

 

 

 

US Magazine reports:

 

President Barack Obama’s second inauguration is shaping up to be one of the hottest tickets of the year.

 

Two days after the Presidential Inaugural Committee announced that Beyonce, Kelly Clarkson, and James Taylor would perform at the official ceremony …. several other celebs have been added to the weekend’s star-studded lineup.

 

The committee announced Friday, Jan. 11, that Alicia Keys, Brad Paisley, Katy Perry, John Legend, fun, Stevie Wonder, and Usher would be among those on hand at the Kids’ Inaugural Concert on Saturday, Jan. 19, and at the official Inaugural balls on Monday, Jan. 21. Marc Anthony, Nick Cannon, Smokey Robinson, and members of the cast of Glee are also expected to make appearances.

 

Read all about these update at US Magazine.

 

 

And finally from The Rev Al:

 

Obama To Be Sworn in With Lincoln’s and Martin Luther King Jr.’s Bibles