Hi, all. Today's report features:
• West Wing Week: A look back at the week.
• The President at Penn State: Innovation and better buildings: Job creation and energy savings with green buildings.
• White House White Board: How Startup America will help entrepreneurs overcome the "valley of death" on the way to success.
• Introducing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: CFPB’s mission is to make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans. Elizabeth Warren presents ConsumerFinance.gov.
• Egypt: The Vice President’s call with Egyptian VP Soliman; Press Secretary Gibbs on violence against journalists.
• EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson: As part of celebrating Black History Month, Administrator Jackson talks about her life and work at EPA.
• President at National Prayer Breakfast: President Obama speaks about the role of faith in his life and in society during the National Prayer Breakfast.
And that's the Report. See you again on Monday, Feb. 7.
• WEST WING WEEK •
White House, Feb. 4, 2011:
West Wing Week: 2/4/11 or "Enter the Hub"
Welcome to the West Wing Week, your guide to everything that's happening at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. This week, President Obama focused on the innovation part of his plan for winning the future by out-innovating, out-educating, and out-building the rest of the world, with events at Penn State and around Washington, D.C.
• THE PRESIDENT AT PENN STATE: INNOVATION AND BETTER BUILDINGS •
White House, Feb. 3, 2011:
Winning the Future with Clean Energy
President Obama travels to Penn State University and speaks about encouraging and investing in innovation and clean energy technologies to create new jobs, grow the economy, and win the future.
Office of the Press Secretary, Feb. 3, 2011:
Remarks by the President on Innovation at Penn State University
THE PRESIDENT: .... And one last introduction I want to make. Some of you know I have these military aides. They go with me everywhere. They’re from each branch of our Armed Services. They’re the ones who carry the football -- you’ve heard of that? So they’re really important guys. Well, it just so happens that the military aide with me today is Mr. Sam Price, lieutenant colonel in the Air Force -- happens to be Penn State class of ’95. (Applause.) Sam Price right here. (Applause.) So we've got some Lions who are taking care of business on Air Force One as well as here on campus.
Now, last week I visited a small town in Wisconsin that was right next to Green Bay.
AUDIENCE: Ooooh --
THE PRESIDENT: So in the spirit of fairness, I've come to Pennslyvania -- (laughter) -- not too far from the center of Steeler Nation -- (applause) -- to wish Steelers’ fans good luck in the Super Bowl, too. (Applause.)
Two years ago I stole one of the team’s owners, Dan Rooney, to be our ambassador to Ireland. So I've got some love for the Steelers. I also am aware, though, that this state splits up a little bit, so I suspect there may be a few Eagles fans. (Applause.) You're with us Bears fans. (Laughter.) Sitting at home, watching. (Laughter.)
But that small town in Wisconsin and the borough of State College have something else in common besides championship football teams. These are places where the future will be won. These are the places where the new jobs and the world’s best businesses will take root -- right here in State College; right here in Pennsylvania.
In the short term, obviously we've got to focus on the devastation that occurred because of this recession over the last two years. And the best thing we can do to speed up economic growth is to make sure that people and businesses have more money to spend. And that's exactly what the tax cut that we passed in December is doing. Because Democrats and Republicans came together, Americans’ paychecks will be a little bit bigger this year. And businesses will be able to write off their investments, and companies will grow and jobs will be created. That's all good in the short term.
But the reason I wanted to come here to Penn State is to talk about the long term. The reason I wanted to talk to young people is to talk about the future and how we're going to win it.
If we want to make up for the millions of jobs that were lost in this recession, but more importantly, if we want to make sure that America is still a place where you can make it if you try, where you can go as far as hard work and big dreams will take you, then we're going to have to make some serious decisions about our long-term economic health -- at a time when we're facing stiff competition from other nations for jobs and industries of our time.
And I know every young person here feels that pressure. You understand that it’s not going to be a cakewalk, this competition for the future, which means all of us are going to have to up our game. We are going to have to win the future by being smarter and working harder and working together. If we want those jobs and businesses to thrive in the United States of America, we’re going to have to out-innovate and out-educate and out-build the rest of the world. That's that we’re going to have to do. (Applause.)
That means investing in cutting-edge research and technology. It means investing in the skills and training of our people. It means investing in transportation and communication networks that can move goods and information as fast as possible. And to make room for these investments, it means cutting whatever spending we just can’t afford.
So I’ve proposed that we freeze annual domestic spending for the next five years, which will reduce the deficit by more than $400 billion over the next decade and will bring annual domestic spending to the lowest share of our economy since Eisenhower was President, meaning since way before most of you were born. (Laughter.) He said, not me. (Laughter.)
Now, just like Americans do every day, government has a responsibility to live within its means. But we also have a responsibility to invest in those areas that are going to have the biggest impact. And in this century those areas are education and infrastructure and innovation. (Applause.) And that last area, innovation is why I’ve come to Penn State today.
Innovation is what this country is all about. Sparking the imagination and creativity of our people, unleashing new discoveries -- that's what America does better than any other country on Earth. That's what we do. (Applause.) And this innovation has always been driven by individual scientists and entrepreneurs. I was up in Schenectady, New York the other day at the G.E. plant that was Thomas Edison’s original plant. And anywhere you go in the country you will find inventors and businesses that created products that are now sent all around the world. But innovation has also flourished because we as a nation have invested in the success of these individual entrepreneurs, these inventors, these scientists.
In this country, from the moment you have a new idea, you can explore it in the world’s best labs and universities; you can develop it with a research grant; you can protect it with a patent; you can market it with a loan to start a new business. You’ve got a chain that takes a great idea all the way through, and that’s something that we as a nation have always invested in. It’s how we as a people have advanced ideas from the earliest stages of research to the point where you can hand it off and let the private sector run with the ball. It’s how investments and basic research led to things like the computer chip and GPS, and millions of good jobs.
In America, innovation isn’t just how we change our lives; it’s how we make a living. And to support American innovation, what my administration is trying to do is not just hand out money. What we’re doing is we’re issuing a challenge. Because right now, some of the most promising innovation is happening in the area of clean energy technology -- technology that is creating jobs, reducing our dependence on foreign oil, and -- something that every young person here cares about -- making sure our planet is a healthier place to live that we can pass on to future generations. (Applause.)
So we’re telling scientists and we’re telling engineers all across the country that if they assemble teams of the best minds in their fields, and focus on tackling the biggest obstacles to clean, abundant, and affordable energy, then we’re going to get behind their work. We as a country will invest in them. We’ll get them all in one place and we’ll support their research. And we call these places, energy innovation hubs.
At CalTech, they’re developing a way to turn sunlight and water into fuel for cars. You like that. (Applause.) At Oakridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, they’re using supercomputers to find ways of getting much more power out of nuclear facilities. (Applause.)
And right here, right here at Penn State, a university whose motto is "making life better," you’ve answered the call. (Applause.) So today you’re preparing to lead the way on a hub that will make America home to the most energy-efficient buildings in the world.
Now, that may not sound too sexy until -- (laughter) -- energy-efficient buildings. (Laughter.) But listen, our homes and our businesses consume 40 percent of the energy we use. Think about that. Everybody focuses on cars and gas prices, and that’s understandable. But our homes and our businesses use 40 percent of the energy. They contribute to 40 percent of the carbon pollution that we produce and that is contributing to climate change. It costs us billions of dollars in energy bills. They waste huge amounts of energy.
So the good news is we can change all that. Making our buildings more energy-efficient is one of the fastest, easiest and cheapest ways to save money, combat pollution and create jobs right here in the United States of America. And that's what we’re going to do. (Applause.)
So that's what this energy innovation hub based in Philadelphia is going to be all about. You will help make America a world leader in innovative designs for cost-effective, energy-efficient buildings, from lighting to windows, from heating to cooling. All of it.
This is where we need you to push the envelope and ask just how efficient can our buildings be. Can they be self-sufficient, producing just as much energy as they consume? What new discoveries can we make? And soon you’ll have a new place to answer these questions, a clean energy campus in the Philadelphia Navy Yard.
Now, this campus will be the product of a true collaboration. What, Penn State, you have done is develop an innovative model for how to do research. Government pulled resources from across different agencies to support your effort, from programs that train new workers and skills to loans for small businesses that will grow and programs that train new workers and skills to loans for small businesses that will grow from your breakthroughs.
Private sectors are already pitching in to help. So IBM is providing supercomputers. Bayer MaterialScience is providing materials for insulation and facades that save energy. PPG Industries is providing walls that reflect sunlight and windows that reflect infrared. Building this campus will support jobs in all of these businesses, and the discoveries made on this campus will lead to even more jobs -- jobs in engineering; jobs in manufacturing; jobs in construction; jobs in installation; jobs in retail.
And they’ll be more than jobs that help support families; they’ll be jobs with a national purpose. Jobs that make our economy smarter, jobs that make our planet safer, jobs that maintain America’s competitive edge in the 21st century. (Applause.)
Now, as any scientist will tell you, it’s often a challenge to commercialize research. You come up with a great idea, but moving that new discovery from theory to practice or from the lab to the marketplace, that's a challenge. So that's why today, here at Penn State, I’m announcing what we’re calling the Better Buildings Initiative, and it’s a plan to dramatically improve the energy efficiency of America’s businesses over the next decade. (Applause.)
So by reaching this goal, we could save America’s businesses nearly $40 billion a year in their utility bills. Think about that -- $40 billion. That's money that could be spent growing those businesses and hiring new workers.
I’ll just take one extreme example -- the Empire State Building. Right now its owners are investing in renovations that will reduce their energy consumption, and this investment will soon pay for itself and save them $4.4 million a year in energy costs. That one building.
Now, granted, it’s a big building. (Laughter.) So most buildings aren’t as big. They're not going to use as much energy as the Empire State Building. But what we’re saying to people is if you’re willing to make your buildings more energy-efficient, we’ll provide new tax credits and financing opportunities for you to do so. (Applause.)
And this plan would build on the HOMESTAR program we proposed last year, which would have provided rebates of up to $3,000 for homeowners to make their own homes more energy-efficient. And these are upgrades that could save families hundreds of dollars each year in energy costs.
See, the problem for both homeowners and businesses is they’ll recover the money that they make by lowering their utility bills, but they may not have the cash upfront. And if we can provide you -- if we can provide the American people an incentive, you’ll recover that money. You’ll get it back. And in the meantime, we’re making our entire economy more efficient. So steps like these also can boost manufacturing and private sector jobs.
So over the last two years we’ve offered similar incentives for cities and companies and clean energy manufacturers that wanted to help America become more energy-efficient. I'll give you a couple of examples. In Maryland, our program helped an energy-saving window manufacturer boost business by 55 percent. In North Carolina, there's a company that makes energy-efficient lighting -- hired hundreds of new workers. A company that manufacturers LEDs just down the road from here in Altoona saw their business increase by a million bucks.
We’re also going to support state and local governments who come up with the best ideas to make energy-efficient buildings the norm. So you show us the best ideas to change your game on the ground; we’ll show you the money. (Applause.) We will show you the money, states and local government. (Applause.)
To get the private sector to lead by example I’m also issuing a challenge to CEOs, to labor, to building owners, to hospitals, universities and others to join us.
Now, tax credits mean lost revenue for Treasury. It costs money. Since we’ve got big deficits, we’ve got to pay for it. So to pay for it, I’ve asked Congress to eliminate the billions in taxpayer dollars that we currently give to oil companies. (Applause.) They are doing just fine on their own. (Laughter.) So it’s time to stop subsidizing yesterday’s energy; it’s time to invest in tomorrow’s. It’s time to win the future. That's what our project is. (Applause.)
Now, Penn State is a place that knows a little bit about playing to win. Last I counted, Coach Paterno has got more than 400 wins under his belt. (Applause.) But your nation needs to win, too. We need you to be as proud of what you do in the lab as you are of what your football team does on the field. (Applause.) We need you to seek breakthroughs and new technologies that we can’t even imagine yet. And especially the young people who are here, we need you to act with a sense of urgency -- to study and work and create as if the fate of the country depends on you -- because it does. It depends on you. (Applause.)
And if we’re harnessing all the energy in this room, all the young people in this audience, then I’m confident we’ll do it. We can do this because what this university is going to lead will be more than a pioneering research center or an economic engine for Pennsylvania and America for years to come. What you’re going to do is lead a modern-day incubator for what sets us apart -- the greatest force that the world has ever known -- and that is the American ideal. (Applause.)
If you remember that and keep breaking new ground, if we as a country keep investing in you, I’m absolutely confident that America will win the future in this century, just like we did in the last.
Thank you. God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
The White House Blog, Feb. 3, 2011:
Winning the Future Through Innovation and Better Buildings
Posted by Jesse Lee
The President's vision to "Win the Future" spelled out in his State of the Union Address was not one founded on vague dreams of a brighter day ahead -- it was founded on ideas, advancements, and principles already cropping up across the country that can help keep America on top if we only stand by them. That's what his visit to Penn State today was about:
THE PRESIDENT: And right here, right here at Penn State, a university whose motto is "making life better," you’ve answered the call. (Applause.) So today you’re preparing to lead the way on a hub that will make America home to the most energy-efficient buildings in the world.
Now, that may not sound too sexy until -- (laughter) -- energy-efficient buildings. (Laughter.) But listen, our homes and our businesses consume 40 percent of the energy we use. Think about that. Everybody focuses on cars and gas prices, and that’s understandable. But our homes and our businesses use 40 percent of the energy. They contribute to 40 percent of the carbon pollution that we produce and that is contributing to climate change. It costs us billions of dollars in energy bills. They waste huge amounts of energy.
So the good news is we can change all that. Making our buildings more energy-efficient is one of the fastest, easiest and cheapest ways to save money, combat pollution and create jobs right here in the United States of America. And that's what we’re going to do. (Applause.)
Specifically, the President was announcing the "Better Buildings Initiative," which aims to achieve a 20 percent improvement in energy efficiency by 2020, reduce companies’ and business owners’ energy bills by about $40 billion per year, and save energy by reforming outdated incentives and challenging the private sector to act. The White House fact sheet fleshes out those goals, talks about the successes to be built upon from the last two years, and lays out these steps which will be included in the President's coming budget:
• New tax incentives for building efficiency: The President is calling on Congress to redesign the current tax deduction for commercial building upgrades, transforming the current deduction to a credit that is more generous and that will encourage building owners and real estate investment trusts (REITs) to retrofit their properties. These changes could result in a ten-fold increase in commercial retrofit take up, leveraging job-creating investments.
• More financing opportunities for commercial retrofits: Access to financing is an important barrier to increased retrofit investment in some market segments. To address these gaps, the Small Business Administration is working to encourage existing lenders to take advantage of recently increased loan size limits to promote new energy efficiency retrofit loans for small businesses. The President’s Budget will also propose a new pilot program through the Department of Energy to guarantee loans for energy efficiency upgrades at hospitals, schools, and other commercial buildings.
• "Race to Green" for state and municipal governments that streamline regulations and attract private investment for retrofit projects: Much of the authority to alter codes, regulations, and performance standards relating to commercial energy efficiency lies in the jurisdiction of states and localities. The President’s Budget will propose new competitive grants to states and/or local governments that streamline standards, encouraging upgrades and attracting private sector investment.
• The Better Buildings Challenge: The President is challenging CEOs and university presidents to make their organizations leaders in saving energy, which will save them money and improve productivity. Partners will commit to a series of actions to make their facilities more efficient. They will in turn become eligible for benefits including public recognition, technical assistance, and best-practices sharing through a network of peers.
• Training the next generation of commercial building technology workers: Using existing authorities, the Administration is currently working to implement a number of reforms, including improving transparency around energy efficiency performance, launching a Building Construction Technology Extension Partnership modeled on the successful Manufacturing Extension Partnership at Commerce, and providing more workforce training in areas such as energy auditing and building operations.
The White House Blog, Feb. 3, 2011:
Early Momentum for the President's Better Buildings Initiative
Posted by Greg Nelson, Deputy Director of the Office of Public Engagement
.... The "Better Buildings Initiative," outlined today at Penn State University, will achieve a 20 percent improvement over the next decade, saving companies and business owners tens of billions of dollars a year.
The plan will spur innovation by reforming tax and other incentives to retrofit, creating a new competitive grant program for states and localities that streamline their regulations to attract retrofit investment, and challenging the private sector to invest in building upgrades through a new "Better Buildings Challenge."
The President has asked President Clinton, who has been a champion for this kind of energy innovation, to co-lead the private sector engagement along with the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, headed by Jeff Immelt, the CEO of General Electric.
The response has already been overwhelmingly positive. See some statements of support below from various business leaders and advocacy groups:
Jeffrey D. DeBoer, President and CEO of The Real Estate Roundtable
"President Obama’s 'Better Buildings Initiative' sets forth an excellent blueprint to re-employ the construction workforce, modernize our built environment, and help ensure our Nations’ energy security...."
Rick Fedrizzi, CEO and Founding Chair, U.S. Green Building Council
"For all of those committed to the idea that green buildings can create jobs, save energy and save money, this is a great day, and the entire green building movement is incredibly grateful for President Obama's leadership in this critical step forward for America. It is major steps like these that are necessary to address the challenges facing our environment...."
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, New York City, NY
"President Obama’s energy efficiency agenda is ambitious, his plan will spur improvements that pay for themselves through lower utility bills and help clean the environment, and I look forward to working with him on it....
"New York City has already launched many of the initiatives proposed ...."
Ray H. Mackey, Jr., Chair, Building Owners and Managers Association International
"We applaud President Obama’s new energy policy to improve energy efficiency in commercial, multi-family and institutional buildings...."
Michael Sullivan, General President of the Sheet Metal Workers’ International Association
"The need to put this country back to work and the need to retrofit our country’s industrial, commercial, institutional and residential buildings are two problems that, when combined, present an obvious solution. We support the President’s initiatives in this regard."
Michael O'Brien, President of the Window and Door Manufacturers Association
".... We look forward to working with the Administration and Congress to craft a program that will create meaningful incentives for building owners to improve their properties' energy performance...."
Eileen Lee, Vice President of Energy and Environment, National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) and the National Apartment Association (NAA)
"We commend the Obama Administration for its focus on energy efficiency in commercial properties, including apartments, and for taking an incentive-based approach to achieving meaningful reductions in our building energy usage...."
Clark Manus, President, American Institute of Architects
".... As a profession, architects are already helping make the President’s goals a reality.... As the President said today, the United States can ‘out-build’ the rest of the world. And architects are the catalysts for winning that contest."
Lauralee Martin, CFO and COO, Jones Lang LaSalle and Dan Probst, Chairman for Energy and Sustainability Services, Jones Lang LaSalle
"This proposal is exactly what’s needed to jump-start major energy and carbon reduction initiatives and to create jobs and efficiencies that enhance our global competitiveness...."
Bracken Hendricks, Senior Fellow, The Center for American Progress
".... This new administration program ... will result in thousands of new jobs for construction workers hard hit by the Great Recession and housing market travails, $40 billion a year in energy savings for U.S. commercial-building owners, and substantially less greenhouse gases escaping into the atmosphere to warm our planet."
Bjorn Stigson, President, World Business Council for Sustainable Development
"This initiative by the White House shows serious action on President Obama's commitment to clean energy, a central part of his recent State of the Union address. Energy efficiency has long been called the 'low-hanging fruit' of clean energy, and this new program demonstrates that the United States is serious about continuing to be a major player in the global green race."
Reid Detchon, Executive Director, The Energy Future Coalition
"These steps are precisely targeted to unlock the tremendous energy savings available in commercial buildings throughout the country ...."
Jason Hartke, Vice President of National Policy, U.S. Green Building Council
".... With policies like the one introduced by the President today, our homes, hospitals, schools and offices can be turned into structures that will lessen our dependence on fossil fuel, increasing national security...."
• WHITE HOUSE WHITE BOARD •
White House, Feb. 3, 2011:
White House White Board: Austan Goolsbee on Startup America
In this edition, Austan Goolsbee, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, explains how the new Startup America program will help entrepreneurs overcome what's often called the "valley of death" on the way to success.
• INTRODUCING THE CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU •
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Feb. 3, 2011:
Welcome to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) - featuring narration by Ron Howard
A quick video introduction to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
The central mission of the CFPB is to make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans—whether they are applying for a mortgage, choosing among credit cards, or using any number of other consumer financial products.
The White House Blog, Feb. 3, 2011:
Announcing ConsumerFinance.gov
Posted by Elizabeth Warren, Assistant to the President and Special Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Last summer, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. On July 21, the President signed it into law. One part of that law created the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The idea was to put a cop on the beat to enforce the laws on credit cards, mortgages, student loans, prepaid cards, and other kinds of consumer financial products and services. We’re also here to be a voice in Washington for consumers.
Now, everyone is hard at work setting up the new agency. We’re in the early stages of hiring a fantastic team, and we’ve moved into some temporary office space. There are still a lot of boxes lying around, but, from early morning until late at night, the lights are on with people working to get this new consumer bureau ready to go.
Today, I’d like to announce the launch of our new website: ConsumerFinance.gov.
With so much going on, some people suggested that we hold off on our website until July 21 of this year, when many of the consumer bureau’s legal powers become active. Besides, by then we would have a chance to hire more staff, get more settled in, and so on. But we wanted to launch the website now for one very important reason: it’s our first step in a conversation with you. We’ve even created this video, with the help of our friend, Ron Howard, to introduce ourselves.
For the first time in many years, we have the opportunity to create a brand new consumer agency from the ground up. We want to make sure that American families are with us all the way while we build it.
I hope that you’ll take a moment to visit our website, and that you’ll come back often to stay in touch.
• EGYPT •
Office of the Vice President, Feb. 3, 2011:
Readout of the Vice President's Call with Egyptian Vice President Omar Soliman
The Vice President today spoke by phone with Egyptian Vice President Omar Soliman, reiterating President Obama’s condemnation of the recent violence in Egypt and calling for restraint by all sides. He also restated the President’s support for universal rights, including the right to peaceful assembly, association, and speech. Vice President Biden urged that credible, inclusive negotiations begin immediately in order for Egypt to transition to a democratic government that addresses the aspirations of the Egyptian people. He stressed that the Egyptian government is responsible for ensuring that peaceful demonstrations don’t lead to violence and intimidation and for allowing journalists and human rights advocates to conduct their important work, including immediately releasing those who have been detained.
The White House Blog, Feb. 3, 2011:
Press Secretary Gibbs on Egypt, Violence & Journalists
Posted by Jesse Lee
During his gaggle with the press this morning aboard Air Force One, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs opened the session with pointed remarks about recent developments in Egypt:
MR. GIBBS: Let me -- if I can, let me just start with a few thoughts. I want to reiterate our administration and our country’s strong condemnation of the violence and the images that we’ve seen over the past many hours.
The government of Egypt has to ensure that peaceful protests can take place. We have obviously seen the remarks of the Prime Minister today and hope that his acknowledgment that anybody that is involved in this will be held accountable is something that the government is serious about.
I want to say a word for a second on the systematic targeting of journalists in Egypt. This also is completely and totally unacceptable. Any journalist that has been detained should be released immediately. I think we need to be clear that the world is watching the actions that are taking place right now in Egypt. And I’ll reiterate again that the actions of targeting journalists, that is unacceptable, and that those journalists should be, if they are detained, released immediately. I know the President has been briefed on this as part of the daily briefing this morning.
Next, I would like to again reiterate that the -- as we have said all along -- that the time for the transition in Egypt is now, and it is important that we all begin to see meaningful steps toward that transition and that negotiations take place between the government and a broadly based group of members of the opposition as we work through, as I said, the transition toward free and fair elections.
• EPA ADMINISTRATOR LISA JACKSON •
The White House Blog, Feb. 3, 2011:
Lisa Jackson's Story: Protecting the Health and the Environment of the American People
Posted by Lisa P. Jackson, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
Ed. note: This post is part of the Celebrating Black History Month series that highlights the contributions of African-Americans who are helping the President achieve his goal of winning the future.
I'm a proud native of New Orleans – I was raised in Pontchartrain Park in New Orleans’ Upper Ninth Ward. My family's home was flooded during Hurricane Katrina and, like many of our neighbors, it was uninhabitable and had to be gutted. Still, on one of my recent trips back I talked to folks about plans to rebuild the house and others as part of a green, sustainable neighborhood. I’m proud to have grown up in and been shaped by such a resilient community.
After high school at Saint Mary's Dominican in New Orleans, I stayed to go to Tulane University (Roll Wave!) and then got my master’s degree in chemical engineering from Princeton. My dream as a child and throughout school was to become a doctor because I had always wanted to help people when they got sick. But I came to realize that by protecting our environment I was approaching the same problem from a different angle - by making sure people didn’t get sick in the first place.
As the Administrator of the EPA, I oversee a staff of more than 18,000 employees working across the country with a single mission: to protect human health and the environment. I touch on everything from making sure the air we breathe and the water we drink is free from harmful toxins to assisting with response to environmental disasters.
During the State of the Union address, the President focused on winning the future through innovation and job creation. EPA’s everyday work encompasses these vital objectives. The rules and standards EPA enforces not only protect human health, but inspire innovation in industries seeking to be cleaner and more efficient. These new ideas and processes open doors for new jobs and spur our economy. Our ongoing work with the Department of Transportation and automakers to help encourage development of the clean, fuel efficient cars of the future is a good example. These cars will save drivers money at the pump, create good-paying jobs and help put America at the forefront of clean energy technology - all while reducing carbon pollution and emissions of other harmful pollutants into the air we breathe.
Serving as EPA Administrator holds a special significance for me. I didn’t see African-Americans in positions of leadership in government when I was a child. Being able to serve in this role is a tremendous credit to the bold individuals before me who fought for equality for over a hundred years. While February is Black History Month, I appreciate and try to honor those who fought for equal rights every day. That's why one of my heroes is Dorothy Height. I had the opportunity to sit down with her just weeks before her death, and she was just as strong and determined as she had always been. She accomplished so much by refusing to back down from what she knew was right, something anyone in public service should try to emulate.
That's also why as Administrator I have worked broaden the conversation on environmentalism. I want to show individuals and communities – though they may not think of themselves as environmentalists – that environmental issues play a role in their health and welfare. Clean air and clean water is important to everyone. And EPA has worked to shed light on the disproportionate environmental burden that too many poor and minority communities face today.
At the EPA, we take direct inspiration from those who dedicated their lives to fighting for equality as we fight for environmental justice. That’s because environmental challenges have the power to deny equality of opportunity and hold back the progress of communities. These are the very same battles that so many others fought, and the ones many would still be fighting if they were with us today. And we hope the next generation of Americans will join the effort. A lot of people think that you have to be a scientist or an engineer to work for EPA. While we do have some of the country’s brightest scientists working here, we also have accountants, writers, analysts, graphic designers and many other fields you may not expect. So educate yourself on what EPA does and find out how you can use your skills and career interests to further our mission: protecting the health and the environment of the American people.
• PRESIDENT AT NATIONAL PRAYER BREAKFAST •
White House, Feb. 3, 2011:
National Prayer Breakfast
President Obama speaks about the role of faith in his life and in society during the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C.
Office of the Press Secretary, Feb. 3, 2011:
Remarks by the President at National Prayer Breakfast
THE PRESIDENT: .... I want to begin by just saying a word to Mark Kelly, who’s here. We have been praying for Mark’s wife, Gabby Giffords, for many days now. But I want Gabby and Mark and their entire family to know that we are with them for the long haul, and God is with them for the long haul. (Applause.)
And even as we pray for Gabby in the aftermath of a tragedy here at home, we're also mindful of the violence that we're now seeing in the Middle East, and we pray that the violence in Egypt will end and that the rights and aspirations of the Egyptian people will be realized and that a better day will dawn over Egypt and throughout the world.
For almost 60 years, going back to President Eisenhower, this gathering has been attended by our President. It’s a tradition that I'm proud to uphold not only as a fellow believer but as an elected leader whose entry into public service was actually through the church. This may come as a surprise, for as some of you know, I did not come from a particularly religious family. My father, who I barely knew -- I only met once for a month in my entire life -- was said to be a non-believer throughout his life.
My mother, whose parents were Baptist and Methodist, grew up with a certain skepticism about organized religion, and she usually only took me to church on Easter and Christmas -- sometimes. And yet my mother was also one of the most spiritual people that I ever knew. She was somebody who was instinctively guided by the Golden Rule and who nagged me constantly about the homespun values of her Kansas upbringing, values like honesty and hard work and kindness and fair play.
And it’s because of her that I came to understand the equal worth of all men and all women, and the imperatives of an ethical life and the necessity to act on your beliefs. And it’s because of her example and guidance that despite the absence of a formal religious upbringing my earliest inspirations for a life of service ended up being the faith leaders of the civil rights movement.
There was, of course, Martin Luther King and the Baptist leaders, the ways in which they helped those who had been subjugated to make a way out of no way, and transform a nation through the force of love. But there were also Catholic leaders like Father Theodore Heshburg, and Jewish leaders like Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, Muslim leaders and Hindu leaders. Their call to fix what was broken in our world, a call rooted in faith, is what led me just a few years out of college to sign up as a community organizer for a group of churches on the Southside of Chicago. And it was through that experience working with pastors and laypeople trying to heal the wounds of hurting neighborhoods that I came to know Jesus Christ for myself and embrace Him as my lord and savior. (Applause.)
Now, that was over 20 years ago. And like all of us, my faith journey has had its twists and turns. It hasn’t always been a straight line. I have thanked God for the joys of parenthood and Michelle’s willingness to put up with me. (Laughter.) In the wake of failures and disappointments I've questioned what God had in store for me and been reminded that God’s plans for us may not always match our own short-sighted desires.
And let me tell you, these past two years, they have deepened my faith. (Laughter and applause.) The presidency has a funny way of making a person feel the need to pray. (Laughter.) Abe Lincoln said, as many of you know, "I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go." (Laughter.)
Fortunately, I'm not alone in my prayers. Pastor friends like Joel Hunter and T.D. Jakes come over to the Oval Office every once in a while to pray with me and pray for the nation. The chapel at Camp David has provided consistent respite and fellowship. The director of our Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnership’s office, Joshua DuBois -- young minister himself -- he starts my morning off with meditations from Scripture.
Most of all, I've got friends around the country -- some who I know, some who I don’t know, but I know their friends who are out there praying for me. One of them is an old friend named Kaye Wilson. In our family we call her Momma Kaye. And she happens to be Malia and Sasha’s godmother. And she has organized prayer circles for me all around the country. She started small with her own Bible study group, but once I started running for President and she heard what they were saying about me on cable, she felt the need to pray harder. (Laughter.) By the time I was elected President, she says, "I just couldn’t keep up on my own." (Laughter.) "I was having to pray eight, nine times a day just for you." (Laughter.) So she enlisted help from around the country.
It’s also comforting to know that people are praying for you who don’t always agree with you. Tom Coburn, for example, is here. He is not only a dear friend but also a brother in Christ. We came into the Senate at the same time. Even though we are on opposite sides of a whole bunch of issues, part of what has bound us together is a shared faith, a recognition that we pray to and serve the same God. And I keep praying that God will show him the light and he will vote with me once in a while. (Laughter.) It’s going to happen, Tom. (Laughter.) A ray of light is going to beam down. (Laughter.)
My Christian faith then has been a sustaining force for me over these last few years. All the more so, when Michelle and I hear our faith questioned from time to time, we are reminded that ultimately what matters is not what other people say about us but whether we're being true to our conscience and true to our God. "Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well."
As I travel across the country folks often ask me what is it that I pray for. And like most of you, my prayers sometimes are general: Lord, give me the strength to meet the challenges of my office. Sometimes they’re specific: Lord, give me patience as I watch Malia go to her first dance -- (laughter) -- where there will be boys. (Laughter.) Lord, have that skirt get longer as she travels to that dance. (Laughter.)
But while I petition God for a whole range of things, there are a few common themes that do recur. The first category of prayer comes out of the urgency of the Old Testament prophets and the Gospel itself. I pray for my ability to help those who are struggling. Christian tradition teaches that one day the world will be turned right side up and everything will return as it should be. But until that day, we're called to work on behalf of a God that chose justice and mercy and compassion to the most vulnerable.
We've seen a lot of hardship these past two years. Not a day passes when I don't get a letter from somebody or meet someone who’s out of work or lost their home or without health care. The story Randall told about his father -- that's a story that a whole lot of Americans have gone through over these past couple of years.
Sometimes I can't help right away. Sometimes what I can do to try to improve the economy or to curb foreclosures or to help deal with the health care system -- sometimes it seems so distant and so remote, so profoundly inadequate to the enormity of the need. And it is my faith, then, that biblical injunction to serve the least of these, that keeps me going and that keeps me from being overwhelmed. It’s faith that reminds me that despite being just one very imperfect man, I can still help whoever I can, however I can, wherever I can, for as long as I can, and that somehow God will buttress these efforts.
It also helps to know that none of us are alone in answering this call. It’s being taken up each and every day by so many of you -- back home, your churches, your temples and synagogues, your fellow congregants -- so many faith groups across this great country of ours.
I came upon a group recently called "charity: water," a group that supports clean water projects overseas. This is a project that was started by a former nightclub promoter named Scott Harrison who grew weary of living only for himself and feeling like he wasn’t following Christ as well as he should.
And because of Scott’s good work, "charity: water" has helped 1.7 million people get access to clean water. And in the next 10 years, he plans to make clean water accessible to a hundred million more. That’s the kind of promoting we need more of, and that’s the kind of faith that moves mountains. And there’s stories like that scattered across this room of people who’ve taken it upon themselves to make a difference.
Now, sometimes faith groups can do the work of caring for the least of these on their own; sometimes they need a partner, whether it’s in business or government. And that’s why my administration has taken a fresh look at the way we organize with faith groups, the way we work with faith groups through our Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.
And through that office, we’re expanding the way faith groups can partner with our government. We’re helping them feed more kids who otherwise would go hungry. We’re helping fatherhood groups get dads the support they need to be there for their children. We’re working with non-profits to improve the lives of people around the world. And we’re doing it in ways that are aligned with our constitutional principles. And in this work, we intend to expand it in the days ahead, rooted in the notions of partnership and justice and the imperatives to help the poor.
Of course there are some needs that require more resources than faith groups have at their disposal. There’s only so much a church can do to help all the families in need -- all those who need help making a mortgage payment, or avoiding foreclosure, or making sure their child can go to college. There’s only so much that a nonprofit can do to help a community rebuild in the wake of disaster. There’s only so much the private sector will do to help folks who are desperately sick get the care that they need.
And that's why I continue to believe that in a caring and in a just society, government must have a role to play; that our values, our love and our charity must find expression not just in our families, not just in our places of work and our places of worship, but also in our government and in our politics.
Over the past two years, the nature of these obligations, the proper role of government has obviously been the subject of enormous controversy. And the debates have been fierce as one side’s version of compassion and community may be interpreted by the other side as an oppressive and irresponsible expansion of the state or an unacceptable restriction on individual freedom.
That's why a second recurring theme in my prayers is a prayer for humility. Now, God answered this prayer for me early on by having me marry Michelle. (Laughter and applause.) Because whether it’s reminding me of a chore undone, or questioning the wisdom of watching my third football game in a row on Sunday, she keeps me humble. (Laughter.)
But in this life of politics when debates have become so bitterly polarized, and changes in the media lead so many of us just to listen to those who reinforce our existing biases, it’s useful to go back to Scripture to remind ourselves that none of has all the answers -- none of us, no matter what our political party or our station in life.
The full breadth of human knowledge is like a grain of sand in God’s hands. And there are some mysteries in this world we cannot fully comprehend. As it’s written in Job, "God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways. He does great things beyond our understandings."
The challenge I find then is to balance this uncertainty, this humility, with the need to fight for deeply held convictions, to be open to other points of view but firm in our core principles. And I pray for this wisdom every day.
I pray that God will show me and all of us the limits of our understanding, and open our ears and our hearts to our brothers and sisters with different points of view; that such reminders of our shared hopes and our shared dreams and our shared limitations as children of God will reveal the way forward that we can travel together.
And the last recurring theme, one that binds all prayers together, is that I might walk closer with God and make that walk my first and most important task.
In our own lives it’s easy to be consumed by our daily worries and our daily concerns. And it is even easier at a time when everybody is busy, everybody is stressed, and everybody -- our culture is obsessed with wealth and power and celebrity. And often it takes a brush with hardship or tragedy to shake us out of that, to remind us of what matters most.
We see an aging parent wither under a long illness, or we lose a daughter or a husband in Afghanistan, we watch a gunman open fire in a supermarket -- and we remember how fleeting life can be. And we ask ourselves how have we treated others, whether we’ve told our family and friends how much we love them. And it’s in these moments, when we feel most intensely our mortality and our own flaws and the sins of the world, that we most desperately seek to touch the face of God.
So my prayer this morning is that we might seek His face not only in those moments, but each and every day; that every day as we go through the hustle and bustle of our lives, whether it’s in Washington or Hollywood or anywhere in between, that we might every so often rise above the here and now, and kneel before the Eternal; that we might remember, Kaye, the fact that those who wait on the Lord will soar on wings like eagles, and they will run and not be weary, and they will walk and not faint.
When I wake in the morning, I wait on the Lord, and I ask Him to give me the strength to do right by our country and its people. And when I go to bed at night I wait on the Lord, and I ask Him to forgive me my sins, and look after my family and the American people, and make me an instrument of His will.
I say these prayers hoping they will be answered, and I say these prayers knowing that I must work and must sacrifice and must serve to see them answered. But I also say these prayers knowing that the act of prayer itself is a source of strength. It’s a reminder that our time on Earth is not just about us; that when we open ourselves to the possibility that God might have a larger purpose for our lives, there’s a chance that somehow, in ways that we may never fully know, God will use us well.
May the Lord bless you and keep you, and may He bless this country that we love. (Applause.)