What Government Did Today » office

Remarks by President Obama and His Majesty King Abdullah of Jordan

White House — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:44:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release Oval Office 3:07 P.M. EST PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good afternoon, everybody. It is a great pleasure for me to once again welcome His Majesty King Abdullah of Jordan, as well as his delegation. We have very few countries around the world that are better friends and better partners than the Jordanians. The fact that they are in such a difficult neighborhood makes the relationship between our two countries that much more important. And so I want to publicly express my appreciation for His Majesty’s leadership not only in forging a strong bilateral relationship, but also all the multilateral efforts that he is engaged in to encourage peace and prosperity during what has been an extraordinary time. The last time we met, the face of the region was very different. Since that time, you’ve seen new governments emerging in Egypt, in Libya; transitions taking place and a new government in Tunisia; transitions taking place in Yemen; and now obviously great volatility in Syria. Throughout this period we consulted closely with the Jordanians, and we value the advice and the thoughtful leadership that His Majesty provides.

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Remarks by President Obama and His Majesty King Abdullah of Jordan

Statement by the Press Secretary on the Visit of President Saakashvili of Georgia

White House — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 00:06:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release President Obama will host President Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia for a meeting in the Oval Office on Monday, January 30th. This year marks the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the United States and the Republic of Georgia and the two presidents will discuss further strengthening the U.S. – Georgia Charter on Strategic Partnership by enhancing cooperation in the fields of trade, tourism, energy, science, education, culture, and security. President Obama will underscore the importance of our defense cooperation with Georgia, including Georgia’s substantial contributions to international security operations in Afghanistan. The President will reconfirm U.S. support for the integrity of Georgia’s territory within its internationally recognized borders. The President also looks forward to discussing upcoming elections in Georgia and the reforms that will ensure Georgia’s continuing transformation into a vibrant and stable democratic state

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Statement by the Press Secretary on the Visit of President Saakashvili of Georgia

Opening and Closing Remarks by the President to the Council on Jobs and Competitiveness

White House — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 23:55:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release State Dining Room 11:13 A.M. EST THE PRESIDENT: Please, have a seat, everybody. For those of you who I have not seen since before the break, Happy New Year. I am extraordinarily grateful for all the work that you have done. I want to start off by thanking Jeff for his continued outstanding leadership of this Jobs Council. I think that the plan is for me to maybe just open up with a few remarks and then we’ve got a whole bunch of presentations, so I don’t want to take too much time. Is that all right with you, Mr

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Opening and Closing Remarks by the President to the Council on Jobs and Competitiveness

President Obama Announces Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget Jeffrey Zients

White House — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:20:26 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release WASHINGTON, DC – Today the White House announced that current Deputy Director for Management and Chief Performance Officer Jeffrey Zients will serve as the Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget. “I’m pleased to designate Jeff Zients to lead the Office of Management and Budget. Since day one, Jeff has demonstrated superb judgment and has provided sound advice on a whole host of issues,” said President Obama. “With decades of experience, Jeff has been a tremendous asset to our team and I’m confident in his ability to help us rebuild an economy where hard work and responsibility pay off and the middle class has a chance to get ahead.” Jeff Zients was confirmed by the Senate on June 19, 2009 as the Deputy Director for Management of the Office of Management and Budget and the nation’s first Federal Chief Performance Officer, and served as OMB’s Acting Director from July-November 2010. Mr. Zients has twenty years of business experience as a CEO, management consultant and entrepreneur with a deep understanding of business strategy, operations and process improvement, and financial management.

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President Obama Announces Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget Jeffrey Zients

President Obama Announces proposal to reform, reorganize and consolidate Government

White House — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 22:14:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release PLAN WILL MAKE GOVERNMENT LEANER, SMARTER AND MORE CONSUMER-FRIENDLY WASHINGTON, DC – As a follow up to last year’s State of the Union, today, President Obama called on Congress to reinstate Presidential authority to reorganize and consolidate the federal government, which will ensure swift action on his proposals to streamline government to make it work better for the American people while eliminating duplication, waste and inefficiencies.

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President Obama Announces proposal to reform, reorganize and consolidate Government

Government Reorganization Fact Sheet

White House — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 21:54:36 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release Looking to make our government leaner, smarter and more consumer-friendly, the President will call on Congress to reinstate the authority that past Presidents had, over decades, to reorganize the government. With the exception of President Ford, every President from Herbert Hoover to Ronald Reagan had reorganization authority. Presidents had this sort of authority for almost the entire period from 1932 through 1984.Unlike the authority granted in the past, the President’s proposal would initiate new accountability by mandating that any plan must consolidate government – reducing the number of agencies or saving taxpayer dollars. The President will also lay out his first proposed use of that authority: consolidating six agencies into one more efficient department to promote competitiveness, exports and American business. The President knows this is a make or break moment for the middle class and those trying to reach it. The President’s proposed reorganization would help small businesses grow and, in doing so, would help get more Americans back to work. For too long, overlapping responsibilities among agencies have made it harder, rather than easier, for our small businesses to interact with their government. Those redundancies have also led to unnecessary waste and duplication.

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Government Reorganization Fact Sheet

Statement by the President on the Release of Burmese Political Prisoners

White House — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:59:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release President Thein Sein’s decision to release hundreds of prisoners of conscience is a substantial step forward for democratic reform. Two months ago, I spoke with Aung San Suu Kyi and President Thein Sein about how America’s engagement can help empower democratic reform, and improve relations between our countries. Shortly afterwards, Hillary Clinton became the first Secretary of State to travel to Burma in over half a century. In her meetings in Nay Pyi Taw and Rangoon, she discussed with President Thein Sein and other leaders the steps that would advance a new beginning between our countries. A key part of that discussion was the need to unconditionally release prisoners of conscience and allow them to participate fully in public and political life. Since that visit, there have been a number of positive developments, including the announcement of elections to be held on April 1, and the decision to allow Aung San Suu Kyi and her party to participate. There has also been an important ceasefire agreement reached with the Karen National Union, which the United States welcomes. Today, I applaud President Thein Seins’s decision to release hundreds of prisoners of conscience, which is a crucial step in Burma’s democratic transformation and national reconciliation process

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Statement by the President on the Release of Burmese Political Prisoners

Executive Order — Amendments to Executive Orders 12131 and 13539

White House — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 03:33:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release AMENDMENTS TO EXECUTIVE ORDERS 12131 AND 13539 By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America it is hereby ordered as follows: Section 1. Section 1 102 of Executive Order 12131 of May 4, 1979, as amended (President's Export Council), is further amended to read as follows: "The membership of the Council shall be as follows: (a) The heads of the following executive departments, agencies, or offices, or their representatives: (1) Department of State. (2) Department of the Treasury. (3) Department of Agriculture.

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Executive Order — Amendments to Executive Orders 12131 and 13539

President Obama Nominates Two to Serve on the US District Court

White House — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 04:28:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Obama nominated Judge John Thomas Fowlkes, Jr. and Mr.

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President Obama Nominates Two to Serve on the US District Court

Remarks by the President at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism

White House — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 02:11:00 +0000

Release Time: For Immediate Release Gaylord Hotel National Harbor, Maryland 2:37 P.M. EST THE PRESIDENT: Thank you so much. Thank you, everybody. Thank you. Please, please have a seat. You’re making me blush. (Laughter.) Thank you, Eric, for that extraordinary introduction and for your many years of leadership in the Reform movement. And even though it is a few hours early, I’d like to wish all of you Shabbat shalom. (Applause.) Now, there are a lot of familiar faces in the house: David Saperstein. (Applause.) Alan Solow, Rick Jacobs. (Applause.) Howard Kohr.

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Remarks by the President at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism