President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama at the memorial for victims of the Washington Navy Yard shooting at the Marine Barracks, September 22
Archive for September 22nd, 2013
22
Sep
13
‘I’ll be there’
22
Sep
13
How Many More Times?
President Obama comforts a relative of one of the victims of the Washington Navy Yard shootings at a memorial service at Marine Barracks, Washington
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President Obama:
Secretary Hagel, Secretary Mabus, Admirals Greenert and Hilarides, Mayor Gray, leaders from across this city and our Armed Forces, to all the outstanding first responders, and, most of all, the families whose hearts have been broken — we cannot begin to comprehend your loss. We know that no words we offer today are equal to the magnitude, to the depths of that loss. But we come together as a grateful nation to honor your loved ones, to grieve with you, and to offer, as best we can, some solace and comfort.
On the night that we lost Martin Luther King Jr. to a gunman’s bullet, Robert Kennedy stood before a stunned and angry crowd in Indianapolis and he broke the terrible news. And in the anguish of that moment, he turned to the words of an ancient Greek poet, Aeschylus: “Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.” Pain which cannot forget — drop by drop upon the heart.
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The tragedy and the pain that brings us here today is extraordinary. It is unique. The lives that were taken from us were unique. The memories their loved ones carry are unique, and they will carry them and endure long after the news cameras are gone. But part of what wears on as well is the sense that this has happened before. Part of what wears on us, what troubles us so deeply as we gather here today, is how this senseless violence that took place in the Navy Yard echoes other recent tragedies.
As President, I have now grieved with five American communities ripped apart by mass violence. Fort Hood. Tucson. Aurora. Sandy Hook. And now, the Washington Navy Yard. And these mass shootings occur against a backdrop of daily tragedies, as an epidemic of gun violence tears apart communities across America — from the streets of Chicago to neighborhoods not far from here.
And so, once again, we remember our fellow Americans who were just going about their day doing their jobs, doing what they loved — in this case, the unheralded work that keeps our country strong and our Navy the finest fleet in the world. These patriots doing their work that they were so proud of, and who have now been taken away from us by unspeakable violence.
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5:0 PM EDT: President Obama Speaks at the Memorial for Victims of the Navy Yard Shooting
22
Sep
13
ObamaCare In Action
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If it weren’t for Obamacare, I’d be forty pounds heavier, and forty-eleven thousand percent crazier.
Because of Obamacare, I was able to enroll in the California Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan back in January so I could resume taking the medication I need to keep this goddamn tumor in my head from excreting all the crayzo hormones which made me depressed, anxious, agoraphobic, and overweight — medication I had to stop taking after my COBRA ran out 6 months prior. Now I’m fortunate enough to have healthcare through my employer. But so many don’t. And so many who don’t are sick, whether physically, mentally, or some combination of the two.
More of this fantastic commentary here
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22
Sep
13
Chat Away
Sept. 22, 2011: President Obama holds a child after delivering remarks on the American Jobs Act beneath the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge in Cincinnati, Ohio (Photo by Pete Souza)
@petesouza: President Obama inside a Ford truck following his speech in KC
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Today:
5:0 EDT: President Obama delivers remarks at a memorial for victims of the Navy Yard shooting; First Lady Michelle Obama also attends
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Monday * Tuesday * Wednesday * Thursday * Friday * Saturday
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Monday
@PeteSouza: Lisa Monaco briefs Pres Obama on the shootings today at the Wash Navy Yard
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When will it be enough? – by Liberal Librarian
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President Obama receives an update on the Washington Navy Yard shootings investigation from FBI Director James Comey, left, and Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. in the Oval Office (Pete Souza)
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Tuesday
by Jacqueline OBoomer
There sits a building, painted white
It glimmers in the bright sunlight
Built by strong, dark hands, without a choice
Built to house a leader, so we’d all have a voice
There sits a building, painted white
It shimmers in the soft twilight
Shadowing strong, dark hands taking their rest
Ghosts of our democracy, who gave it their best
There sits a building, painted white
It dims its lights, overnight
Built by slaves, who also served inside
Where none thought they should ever reside
There sits a building, painted white
We tip our hats to it, day and night
Built by slaves, who’d hang their heads to pray
A man with strong, dark hands would live there someday
There sits a building, painted white
I dare to say it is still quite the sight
For a still young country, yet to fully repent
But now shining light on why their knees were bent
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Today POTUS called Pauline Beck to tell her the home care rule has been finalized—in 07’ he took a walk in her shoes http://t.co/Jq0tuYSXiX
— Valerie Jarrett (@vj44) September 17, 2013
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Wednesday
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Inside the Oval Office: President Obama meets with the @BGCA_Clubs 2013 Youth of the Year finalists —> pic.twitter.com/yw4EqDrCj0
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 18, 2013
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More adventures in our failed media experiment: Part 1,382 – by Liberal Librarian
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Continue reading ‘Rise and Shine: The Week in Images (And a Word or Two)’
The Obama Diary 
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