A Life Changed For The Better. Thanks, President Obama

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Ali Meyer: Former Drug Dealer Released From Prison: “President Obama Saved My Life”

According to the White House, America spends about $80 billion each year on incarceration. They say that’s the same amount of money it would take to double every teacher salary in America or pay for every high school graduate to go to college. President Obama is focusing on criminal justice reform in his second term in office. This week, he commuted the sentences of more than 40 inmates convicted of low-level, non-violent drug offenses. Justice reformers say federal crack cocaine sentences unfairly put thousands of minority inmates behind bars for life prior to a change in federal law in 2010. The sentencing regime is costing taxpayers billions. Jason Hernandez was convicted in 1998 as a drug dealer in Texas.

Because the drug was crack, Hernandez got life in prison without the possibility of parole. Hernandez filed the clemency paperwork himself; an eight-page application with the potential to save his life. He works as a mentor for juvenile offenders in the kitchen at Cafe Momentum, a restaurant for youthful offenders. He’s using his circumstance to help kids change the course of their own lives in a way he couldn’t almost two decades ago. Jason Hernandez has two jobs; mentoring youth, and working as a welder at a muffler shop… a trade he picked up at federal prison in El Reno. “I was practically a dead man walking and President Obama gave me my life back. I see him like a father now. Like any son, you want to make your father proud, and that’s what my aim is,” Hernandez said.

More here

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"I feel that after twenty years in these prisons, the good Lord brought us Barack Obama to set things right." bit.ly/1I6ghMB

—
Valerie Jarrett (@vj44) July 16, 2015

In prison for life w/o parole “For two days, I just held the commutation letter in my hand" kfor.com/2015/07/16/dru… http://t.co/L2dzhF2MYT

—
meta (@metaquest) July 17, 2015

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Obama went where no president has gone before. nyti.ms/1OiBC4p http://t.co/kamo0xGNex

—
The New York Times (@nytimes) July 17, 2015

Quotation of the day nyti.ms/1KcjGKc http://t.co/6uqhA7fFg6

—
The New York Times (@nytimes) July 17, 2015

The President and First Lady’s Day

President Obama shakes hands with military service members prior to a meeting with military senior leadership at the Pentagon on October 8

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President Barack Obama meets with senior military leadership at the Pentagon in Arlington (Photo by Pete Souza)

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President Obama participates in a conference call with state and local officials to discuss the Administration’s domestic preparedness response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa, at the White House on October 8

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Text of Remarks by the President in Conference Call here

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Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, President Obama and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey sit in a meeting with Military Senior Leadership at the Pentagon on October 8, 2014 in Arlington, Virginia. The President met with the military leaders for an update on the battle against ISIS.

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Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and President Obama greet members of the military after attending meetings with military leadership at the Pentagon

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Thanks to @FLOTUS Michelle Obama for being on #TeamWendy! http://t.co/HqG2kDBbdb

— Wendy Davis (@WendyDavisTexas) October 8, 2014

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First Lady Michelle Obama hosts a Fashion Education Workshop at the White House. The workshop was to connect students with leading fashion professionals to show what to take to succeed in the fashion industry

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Text of remarks here

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First Lady Michelle Obama hugs Anna Wintour, Editor-in-Chief of Vogue magazine, after she was introduced by Wintour during a session of a Fashion Education Workshop

Fashion stylist Mary Alice Stephenson attends a session of a Fashion Education Workshop

First Lady Michelle Obama introduces Chelsea Chen, who won a design competition

 

Fashion designer Jason Wu applauds First Lady Michelle Obama as she hosts a luncheon and panel discussion

Fashion designer Phillip Lim takes a picture of First Lady Michelle Obama

Fashion designers Edward Wilkerson (L) and Thom Browne (R) applaud First Lady Michelle Obama

First Lady Michelle Obama hugs fashion designer Naeem Khan during a fashion construction workshop session at the first ever Fashion Education Workshop in the State Dining Room at the White House

First Lady Michelle Obama talks with young fashion design students

First Lady Michelle Obama visits the “Wearable Technology” workshop. Wearable technology is the integration of technology with fashion, like boots that charges cellphone, bras that detect cancer, compression shirts that monitor and record your heart rate, breathing rate and body temperature

A Meeting Of Education And Business

President Barack Obama introduces Maria Contreras-Sweet as his choice to be the new administrator of the Small Business Administration during an announcement ceremony in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building of the White House.

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Jim Kuhnhenn: Obama to nominate Calif. businesswoman to lead SBA

Maria Contreras-Sweet, the founder of a Latino-owned community bank in Los Angeles who was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, has a history of working with small businesses and has been an advocate for Hispanics. As California’s secretary of the state’s Business, Transportation and Housing Agency from 1999 to 2003, she was the first Latina to serve as a cabinet secretary in the state and oversaw 40,000 state employees and a $12 billion budget.

In 2006, she founded ProAmérica Bank, a financial institution that aimed to assist small and mid-size businesses. Before that, she was president and co-founder of a private equity firm that provided capital to small California businesses. Contreras-Sweet would become the second Hispanic in Obama’s second term Cabinet. The other is Labor Secretary Thomas Perez. She would also become the eighth woman in Obama’s current Cabinet.

More here

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First Lady Michelle Obama gestures while speaking in the State Dining Room of the White House where she hosted a screening of “The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete,” a coming of age story about two inner-city youth who are left to fend for themselves in the Bronx.

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Lesley Clark: First Lady Joins With Alicia Keys To Talk Education

First Lady Michelle Obama has earned accolades — and few brickbats — for her campaigns to improve the American diet and get people off the couch. She’s also championed hiring opportunities for returning veterans. And now, the first lady says, she’s adding another initiative to her roster: helping achieve President Obama’s goal that the U.S. by 2020 will have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. (It once was No. 1 but has fallen to 12th, she said.) Still, Obama, who turns 50 on Friday, says she’s not giving up her “Let’s Move,” food and exercise program or her “Joining Forces” campaign to help military veterans and their families.

“Nothing is going away, we’re just adding more on,” Obama said Wednesday, talking to a room full of educators at the White House. “I’m going to be doing my very best to promote these efforts by talking directly with young people. That’s my focus. Everybody else is going to be talking about resources, but the one thing I can bring to this is the message that we can give directly to young people.” Obama’s remarks came after a White House screening of “The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete,” produced by the singer, Alicia Keys, who preceded Obama at the lectern in the State Dining Room.

More here

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In other news:

Smithsonian political history curator Lisa Kathleen Graddy, left, and museum specialist Bethanee Bemis, show off First Lady Michelle Obama’s second inaugural gown in a storage area at the Smithsonian Museum of American History. The White House is lending Obama’s ruby-colored chiffon gown made by designer Jason Wu to the National Museum of American History for a year to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Smithsonian’s first ladies exhibition. It will be paired with Obama’s shoes designed by Jimmy Choo.

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Smithsonian political history curator Lisa Kathleen Graddy shows off First Lady Michelle Obama’s second inaugural gown in a storage area at the Smithsonian Museum of American History

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This and That (short-ish version)

Text of remarks here

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It was pretty flippin’ delicious watching the Twitter meltdown after this:

Jeffrey Toobin: Edward Snowden Is No Hero

Edward Snowden, a twenty-nine-year-old former C.I.A. employee and current government contractor, has leaked news of National Security Agency programs that collect vast amounts of information about the telephone calls made by millions of Americans, as well as e-mails and other files of foreign targets and their American connections. For this, some, including my colleague John Cassidy, are hailing him as a hero and a whistle-blower. He is neither. He is, rather, a grandiose narcissist who deserves to be in prison.

…. he describes himself as appalled by the government he served … what, one wonders, did Snowden think the N.S.A. did? ….

…. he wasn’t blowing the whistle on anything illegal; he was exposing something that failed to meet his own standards of propriety. The question, of course, is whether the government can function when all of its employees (and contractors) can take it upon themselves to sabotage the programs they don’t like. That’s what Snowden has done.

More here

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Text of remarks here

@PeteSouza: Photo of Pres Obama w Alan Krueger, chair of CEA, trailed by just-nominated chair Jason Furman and his family

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@VP: VP ceremonially swears in @ErnestMoniz as Sec. of @ENERGY in the Roosevelt Room of the @whitehouse

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Newsie stuff in the morning – chat away.

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PS Happy birthday Sasha …..

Rise and Shine

President Obama waves to his family, standing on the Truman balcony of the White House, as he walks from Marine One on the South Lawn after returning to Washington from California, June 9

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Today:

11:30: The President delivers remarks on the Equal Pay Act

1:0: Press Briefing by Jay Carney

2:10 The President makes a personnel announcement (see below)

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News that actually, you know, impacts people’s lives:

USA Today: The auto industry is about to go on a hiring spree as car makers and parts suppliers race to find engineers, technicians and factory workers to build the next generation of vehicles.

The new employees will be part of a larger, busier workforce. From coast to coast, the industry is in top gear. Factories are operating at about 95% of capacity, and many are already running three shifts. As a result, some auto and parts companies are doing something they’ve been reluctant to consider since the recession: Adding floor space and spending millions of dollars on new equipment.

…. The auto industry’s stepped-up hiring will help sustain the nation’s job growth and help fuel consumer spending. On Friday, the government said U.S. employers added 175,000 jobs in May, roughly the monthly average for the past year and a sign of the economy’s resilience.

More here

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Steve Benen: Proponents of comprehensive immigration reform were in need of some good news. Whereas it looked like the “Gang of Eight” bill was on track for 70 votes in the Senate two weeks ago, the prospects deteriorated quickly last week — Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) threatened to oppose his own legislation; bipartisan House talks crumbled; senators questioned whether the bill could overcome a GOP filibuster; and a House Republican vote on Dreamers offered a reminder of just how right-wing the caucus is on the issue.

So, are reform hopes slipping away? Not just yet. In fact, the effort got a bit of a boost over the weekend….

Full post here

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TPM: President Barack Obama will announce Monday that he intends to nominate Jason Furman as the new Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, a White House official said.

Obama will make the personnel announcement at 2:10 p.m. ET at the White House. Furman will succeed Alan Krueger, who is stepping down from the post to return to Princeton University in the fall.

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ThinkProgress: Rep. Elijah Cummings pledged to release transcripts of interviews with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) officials that Republicans insist demonstrate that the agency’s targeting of conservative groups applying for 501(c)(4) status was directed by the Obama administration.

Cummings made the remarks on CNN’s State of the Union, a week after Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) appeared on the program and insinuated that the White House directed IRS agents to single out tea party and patriot groups for additional scrutiny. Issa has refused to provide evidence that substantiate that claim.

“I wrote Chairman Issa on Thursday and I wrote to him this morning. I want those transcripts to be released,” Cummings said. “I’m willing to come on your show next week with the chairman with the transcripts if he agrees to do that. If he doesn’t, I’ll release them by the end of the week.”

Cummings insisted that the interviews will prove that “the White House was not involved in this,” pointing out that the Cincinnati IRS manager of the screening group, a career veteran at the agency who identified himself as Republican, told investigators that Washington did not direct the targeting….

More here

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Kinda reckon this is all we need to know about Edward Snowden….

…. but soooo many questions, like the ones Goldie Taylor was asking this morning:

night owl chat – jason collins toon time

We have a long way to go, but Jason Collins’ bravery is to be commended. So, a few toons to carry you through the night.

Rise and Shine

POTUS brought down the house on Sat night at #WHCD – but he didn’t take questions. So, today he will. 10:15am in Brady Briefing Room.

— Jay Carney (EOP) (@PressSec) April 30, 2013

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Today:

10:15: President Obama holds a press conference

11:45: The President, the Vice President, the First Lady and Dr Jill Biden make a significant employment announcement for veterans and military spouses

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U.S. Sees First Debt Reduction Since 2007 as Revenue Rises bloom.bg/Zgutr7 via @bloombergnews @msnbc

— John (@johnd1967) April 29, 2013

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MarketWatch: In another sign of an improving deficit picture, the Treasury on Monday said it expects to pay off debt in the current quarter for the first time in six years.

In a statement, Treasury said it now expects to pay off $35 billion of debt in the April-to-June quarter, compared to an earlier projection, given in February, that it would have to borrow $103 billion.

This will be the first quarter that Treasury has paid off debt since April-to-June period 2007.

More here

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US home prices jump in February from a year ago by largest amount since May 2006: apne.ws/YjnLFr -RAS

— The Associated Press (@AP) April 30, 2013

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ThinkProgress: Over the last several days, the Syrian crisis has exploded back into the news. As the U.S. debates how to respond to the now two-year long struggle, here’s the what you need to know….

See here

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Don’t know where to go to vote? Find your polling location at wheredoivotema.com. Polls are open from 7a-8p! #markeygotv #masen #mapoli

— Ed Markey (@EdMarkey) April 30, 2013

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A seminal moment in the fight for equality….

“I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay”

Imagine you’re in the oven, baking. Some of us know and accept our sexuality right away and some need more time to cook. I should know — I baked for 33 years.

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So proud of you, Jason Collins! This is a huge step forward for our country. We’ve got your back! -mo

— FLOTUS (@FLOTUS) April 29, 2013

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President Obama spoke by phone to Jason Collins @jasoncollins34 after his announcement. Obama offered support/congratulations on courage.

— Major Garrett(@MajorCBS) April 29, 2013

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Thanks, @jasoncollins34, for your bravery and honesty. OFA supporters everywhere stand with you today.

— OFA (@OFA) April 29, 2013

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“Openness may not completely disarm prejudice, but it’s a good place to start.” sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/news/… J.Collins b/c 1rst openly gay athlete

— The lovely Plains (@DaRiverZkind) April 29, 2013

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Rise and Shine

Two years ago: President Obama shakes hands with a young girl after arriving at Miami International Airport, April 29, 2011 (Photo by Pete Souza)

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Today:

10:30: The First Lady speaks at a White House Forum on Military Credentialing and Licensing (White House live)

10:50: The President delivers remarks at the National Academy of Sciences 150th Anniversary (White House live)

12:30: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney

2:10: The President makes a personnel announcement

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Tuesday: As part of the Joining Forces initiative, President Obama, Vice President Biden, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden will make a significant employment announcement for veterans and military spouses. This event will take place at the White House

Wednesday: The President will attend meetings at the White House

Thursday: In the morning, the President will depart Washington, DC for his visit to Mexico and Costa Rica

Friday: In the afternoon, the President will depart Mexico for Costa Rica

Saturday: In the afternoon, the President will depart Costa Rica and return to Washington, DC

Sunday: The President will deliver the commencement address at Ohio State University. He will return to Washington, DC, later that day

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ABC: President Obama will nominate Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx as the new Transportation secretary on Monday, a White House official said.

Foxx, who has served as mayor of Charlotte since 2009, has overseen several major infrastructure initiatives in the city and rose to prominence after bringing the Democratic National Convention to Charlotte last year.

More here

Anthony Foxx holds up his son Zachary to the microphone after being sworn in as Charlotte’s new mayor

…. with his grandmother Mary Foxx after mid-morning services at Friendship Missionary Baptist Church on August 5, 2012. Anthony was raised by his grandparents, Mary and James Foxx, Sr., who led him into politics, and his mother Laura

Mayor Foxx at the 2012 Democratic National Convention:

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Our new polls find backlash against Flake, Begich, Murkowski, Portman, and Heller on their gun votes: publicpolicypolling.com/main/2013/04/m…

— PublicPolicyPolling (@ppppolls) April 29, 2013

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AP: One of the architects of failed gun control legislation says he’s bringing it back.

Sen. Joe Manchin on Sunday said he would re-introduce a measure that would require criminal and mental health background checks for gun buyers at shows and online. The West Virginia Democrat says that if lawmakers read the bill, they will support it.

More here

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Congress To-Do List: ✔ Create worst-case scenario ✔ Let it happen ✔ Fix it piecemeal for those who least need help.

— pourmecoffee (@pourmecoffee) April 26, 2013

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Inauguration Day, Part 14

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9:10: The Inaugural Ball

Live streaming: C-Span * CBS * CNN

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Link to all 2013 Inauguration posts here