Pete Souza: President Obama waits to be introduced before speaking at a Veterans Day ceremony today
White House: “On Veterans Day, we acknowledge, humbly, that we can never serve our veterans in quite the same that they served us. But we can try. We can practice kindness. We can pay it forward. We can volunteer. We can serve. We can respect one another. We can always get each other’s backs.” —President Obama honoring America’s veterans #HonorAVet 🇺🇸
President Barack Obama and Major General Bradley A. Becker, Commander of the Military District of Washington, listen to the US national anthem before placing a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns to honor Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery
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President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the Amphitheater after laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
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President Barack Obama lays a coin on a grave in Section 60 at Arlington National Cemetery
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President Barack Obama participates in a full honor wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery to commemorate Veterans Day in Arlington, Virginia. The tomb contains the remains of an unidentified soldier from World War I and crypts of unknowns from World War II, Korea and Vietnam are set next to the tomb
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President Barack Obama is saluted by retired Navy Vice Adm. Norbert Ryan Jr. as he arrives to speak at the Memorial Amphitheater of Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington
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First Lady Michelle Obama applauds Capt. Capt. Rolana Brown of High Point, N.C., during a luncheon for military women, active-duty service members and veterans, spouses and caregivers, at the Vice President’s official residence at the Naval Observatory. Capt. Brown is commander of Echo Company, 266th Quartermaster Battalion at Fort Eustis
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President Barack Obama places a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington National Cemetery
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President Barack Obama speaks during a Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery May 25, 2015 in Arlington, Virginia
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Text of the President’s remarks here
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President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Ash Carter, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff U.S. Army General Martin Dempsey honor fallen soldiers at Arlington
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Text of the First Lady’s remarks here
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First Lady Michelle Obama smiles as she is introduced by Oberlin College President Marvin Krislov before receiving an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humanities from Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio
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First Lady Michelle Obama told nearly 700 Oberlin College graduates Monday to wake up and “play your part in our great American story.” Obama urged the class of 2015 to volunteer for campaigns or “better yet, run for office yourselves.” She encouraged the graduates to not shy away from the clamor and polarization of the real world and told them to face the revolutions of their time: climate change, economic inequality, human rights and criminal justice reform. “Today, I want to urge you to actively seek out the most contentious, polarized, gridlocked places you can find,” she said in her 25-minute remarks to graduates, family members and spectators in Tappan Square.
“Because so often, throughout our history, those have been the places where progress really happens –- the places where minds are changed, lives transformed, where our great American story unfolds.” Zoe Madonna, an East Asian studies graduate, called the first lady brilliant. “This is going to be a story that I can tell 50 years from now about the time the first lady spoke at my graduation, and I really enjoyed that it wasn’t a pat-yourself-on-the-back speech,” Madonna said. “Usually when dignitaries come, they keep their real selves, real opinions quiet, but you could hear what she really thought, what she really wants for us shining through in her speech.”
More here
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President Obama meets with Afghan President Ghani in the Oval Office. This marks the first meeting between the two presidents at the White House following the 2014 presidential election, which produced the first democratic transfer of power in Afghanistan’s history
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President Barack Obama announced Tuesday that the U.S. will slow its military withdrawal from Afghanistan, maintaining 9,800 troops in the country through the end of 2015 instead of cutting the number by about half as originally planned. ‘‘Afghanistan remains a very dangerous place,’’ Obama said in explaining his decision at a press conference after Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s first visit to the White House since his election six months ago.
Obama added that the size of the U.S. troop presence for 2016 will be decided later this year. Ghani had asked Obama to slow the withdrawal because Afghan security forces are bracing for a tough spring fighting season and are also contending with Islamic State fighters looking to recruit on their soil. The original plan was to cut the U.S. force to 5,500 by the end of this year. ‘‘This visit is an opportunity to begin a new chapter between our two nations,’’ Obama said after meeting with Ghani in the Oval Office.
More here
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Secretary of State John Kerry and National Security Advisor Susan Rice listen during the press conference
Secretary of State John Kerry greets Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah
President Barack Obama places a wreath at the Tomb of the Unkowns at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day
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President Barack Obama speaks during Memorial Day ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia
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Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, and President Barack Obama, stand as the National Anthem is played during a Memorial Day Observance at Arlington National Cemetery
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President Obama on Monday honored all the Americans who have given their lives for their country, from the Civil War of a century-and-a-half ago to the Afghanistan war that is wrapping up this year. In Memorial Day remarks delivered a day after a surprise visit to Afghanistan, Obama said the U.S. troops there “are coming home” from the conflict that began a month after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. “By the end of this year, our war in Afghanistan will finally come to an end,” Obama said during the annual Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. During his speech, Obama praised veterans from all the nation’s wars. “Everything that we hold precious in this country was made possible by Americans who gave their all,” Obama said.
The president delivered his Memorial Day speech just four hours after his return to the White House. During his Sunday trip to Afghanistan, Obama received a briefing from commanders at Bagram Air Force, spoke at a rally for the troops, and visited wounded warriors at the base hospital. Shortly after arriving back at the White House early Monday morning, Obama hosted a Memorial Day breakfast. Guests included senior members of the military leadership, as well as veterans’ and military families’ organizations. Obama then traveled to the Arlington cemetery, where he placed the traditional wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
More here
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President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel bow their head in prayer during a ceremony on Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia
President Barack Obama lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. President Obama is leading the nation in remembering its war heroes, the fallen and those still defending the flag, in a Memorial Day tribute
President Obama, Belgium’s King Philippe (C) and Belgium’s Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo attend a ceremony at The Flanders Field American World War I Cemetery and Memorial in Waregem, March 26
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9:10 AM: President Obama holds a press conference, Council of the European Union
11:35 AM: Meets with NATO Secretary General Rasmussen
12:45 PM: Delivers remarks, Palais Des Beaux Arts, Brussels
1:45 PM: Departs Brussels
3:40 PM: Arrives Rome
6:30: Vice President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden Hosts a Reception in Honor of Women’s History Month, United States Naval Observatory
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First Lady Michelle Obama and her mother Marian Robinson feed apple to giant pandas during their visit at Giant Panda Research Base in Chengdu, Sichuan province, March 26
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First Lady Michelle Obama is greeted by Tibetan students as they arrive to a Tibetan restaurant for lunch in Chengdu in southwest China’s Sichuan province
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March 26, 2011: “More often than not, the President is in the office on most Saturdays to convene a national security or economic meeting. Here, on a Saturday in March, the President listens during a conference call on Libya in the Situation Room of the White House.” (Photo by Pete Souza)
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President Obama prays with faith leaders in the Oval Office following a meeting to discuss the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Aug. 26, 2013 (Photo by Pete Souza)
President Obama bounces a soccer ball on his head while hosting a ceremony honoring players and coaches from the National Hockey League Stanley Cup-winning Los Angeles Kings and the Major League Soccer champions Los Angeles Galaxy in the East Room of the White House, March 26, 2013
Vogue, March 26, 2013
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MooOOOoorning again everyone – got completely caught up with worky stuff so ran out of time, so apologies for the teeny R&S. Will catch up later in the day.
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The Obama Diary 
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