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TRANSCRIPT: President Obama on the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill – May 27, 2010

An excellent conference with the President taking full responsibility for the response to, and clean up of, the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.

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THE WHITE HOUSE, WASHINGTON, D.C.

12:50 P.M. EDT, THURSDAY, MAY 27, 2010

PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good afternoon, everybody.

Before I take your questions, I want to update the American people on the status of the BP oil spill, a catastrophe that is causing tremendous hardship in the Gulf Coast, damaging a precious ecosystem, and one that led to the death of 11 workers who lost their lives in the initial explosion.

Yesterday the federal government gave BP approval to move forward with a procedure known as a top kill, to try to stop the leak. This involves plugging the well with densely packed mud to prevent any more oil from escaping. And given the complexity of this procedure and the depth of the leak, this procedure offers no guarantee of success; but we're exploring any reasonable strategies to try and save the Gulf from a spill that may otherwise last until the relief wells are finished, and that's a process that could take months.

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Transcript: President Obama Press Conference on the Economy - February 9, 2009

Image courtesy of: Ruth Fremson/The New York Times

Looking for the video of the press conference? You may find the full video here.

THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release February 9, 2009
PRESS CONFERENCE BY THE PRESIDENT
East Room
8:01 P.M. EST
PRESIDENT OBAMA: Good evening, everybody. Please be seated.
Before I take your questions tonight, I'd like to speak briefly about the state of our economy and why I believe we need to put this recovery plan in motion as soon as possible.
I took a trip to Elkhart, Indiana today. Elkhart is a place that has lost jobs faster than anywhere else in America. In one year, the unemployment rate went from 4.7 percent to 15.3 percent. Companies that have sustained this community for

FULL VIDEO: President Obama's First Press Conference - February 9, 2009

To read the complete transcript, click here.

Transcript: President-elect Obama Announces His Final Picks for His Cabinet

Labor, Transportation, USTR, SBA Announcements | Chicago, Illinois

Good afternoon. 

Before we begin, I’d like to say a few words about the necessary step taken today to help avoid a collapse in our auto industry that would have devastating consequences for our economy and our workers.  With the short-term assistance provided by this package, the auto companies must bring all their stakeholders together – including labor, dealers, creditors and suppliers – to make the hard choices necessary to achieve long-term viability.  The auto companies must not squander this chance to reform bad management practices and begin the long-term restructuring that is absolutely necessary to save this critical industry and the millions of American jobs that depend on it, while also creating the fuel-efficient cars of the future.

Whenever I have been asked how I measure the strength of the American economy, my answer is simple: jobs and wages. I know we will be headed in the right direction again when we are creating jobs, instead of losing them, and when Americans are gaining ground in terms of their incomes, instead of treading water or falling behind.  In recent weeks, I’ve announced members of my economic team who will help us make progress in these areas.

Political News Summary - Tuesday, December 16, 2008

:: IPD Daily Cartoon Find.

 
Bob Lang/It's only money

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President-elect Obama Announces His Green Team

Stating that his goal is breaking US dependence on foreign oil , while also boosting economic growth, President-elect Obama announced the five-person team who will be responsible for achieving his energy goals. Video below.

The Energy Appointees:

Secretary of Energy: Steven Chu,the director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, and a Nobel prize winning physicist. Re Chu's appointment, Obama said, “His appointment should send a signal to all that this administration will value science. We will make decisions based on facts, and we understand that those facts demand bold action."

In other words, real science, not ideology, as we move in to the light and out of our caves regarding climate change and fossil fuels. ;)

EPA director: Lisa Jackson, the former commissioner of Environmental Protection for the state of New Jersey.

“Would bring to the job: Twenty years of experience as an environmental regulator and a reputation as a consensus builder. Ms. Jackson, who is a chemical engineer, brought a more policy-driven approach to New Jersey’s historically politicized Department of Environmental Protection as its commissioner. During her 33 months in that job, the state began conducting compliance sweeps to crack down on polluters in environmentally ravaged sections of Camden and Paterson, ended its controversial bear hunt and unveiled a plan to reduce carbon emissions 20 percent by 2020 and 80 percent by 2050.” - NYT

Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change ( a new White House position): Carol Browner, the former head of the EPA during the eight years of the Clinton administration. She is known to be a strong advocate of legislation to slow climate change.

 

Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change: Heather Zichal, currently the co-chair of the energy policy team for Obama’s transition.

White House Council on Environmental Quality: Nancy Sutley, Los Angeles Deputy Mayor for Energy and Environment.

 

 

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Obama Press Conference December 11, 2008 - Transcript and Video

Watch the video of PEBO's remarks or read the transcript after the jump.

:: CHICAGO - Full Transcript of President-Elect Obama's Press Conference on Dec.11, 2008, including the press corps questions, and Obama's responses.

President-elect Obama Announces His National Security Team [of rivals] - Video and Complete Transcript

President-elect Obama announces his "team of rivals" as with a statement deriding "group think", he turns a page in history. You may now (well almost - she still has to undergo confirmation hearings) call Hillary Clinton "Madame Secretary". As I type, President-elect Obama is formally announcing his national security team, which will include Hillary Clinton as the secretary of state, Susan Rice as the US ambassador to the UN, General James L. Jones as national security advisor, Eric Holder as the attorney general, Janet Napolitano as the secretary of homeland security, and Robert Gates as the secretary of defense. Video and transcript after the jump.

Obama Press Conference Nov 25, 2008 - Video and Transcript

Complete Transcript of Press Conference, November 25, 2008

PRES.-ELECT OBAMA: Please be seated. Good morning, everybody.

Yesterday, we talked about the need to jumpstart our economy. I speak to you today mindful that we meet at a moment of great challenge for America, as our credit markets are stressed and our families are struggling.

But as difficult as these times are, I'm confident that we're going to rise to meet this challenge, if we're willing to band together and recognize that Wall Street cannot thrive so long as Main Street is struggling, if we're willing to summon a new spirit of ingenuity and determination and if Americans of great intellect, broad experience and good character are willing to serve in our government at its hour of need.