A 21st Century Government
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/07/12/weekly-wrap-21st-century-government
A More Efficient Government: On Monday, the President laid
out his plan his vision for building a better, smarter, and faster government
during his second term.
Over the last four years, the Administration has already
made great progress on one of President Obama’s first priorities after taking
office: bringing a government built for the 20th century into the 21st century.
And on Monday, the President highlighted some of the new technologies and
innovations that are already making a positive impact on Americans across the
country – including data analytics and internet and mobile apps used by FEMA to
help survivors of natural disasters locate recovery centers and apply for
financial assistance. The President also discussed Data.gov, a project from the
Open Data Initiative, which gives Americans access to government data for the
first time ever.
Kids’ State Dinner: Winners of Epicurious’ second annual
Healthy Lunchtime Challenge spent their Tuesday at the White House for the
Kids’ State Dinner, hosted by First Lady Michelle Obama.
While at the White House, the 54 children ate lunch with the
First Lady – and the President even stopped by for a surprise visit!
Honoring Fallen Firefighters: Last week nineteen
firefighters were killed battling the Yarnell Hill fire, and on Tuesday, Vice
President Biden traveled to Prescott
Valley, Arizona to
honor the heroes. Joined by Cabinet secretaries, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer,
members of Congress, and family members of the fallen firefighters in Prescott
Valley, Arizona, the Vice President spoke of the sacrifices the firefighters
and their families made, saying,
“These men were some of the strongest, most disciplined,
tenacious, physically fit men in the world – an elite unit in every sense of that
phrase. Their motto to me sums them up better than anything I can think of:
Duty, Integrity, Respect. They saw their jobs not as jobs but as a duty – a
duty to their fellow citizens. They understood what few do: that integrity is
measured by whether you respond to the needs of your neighbors when you know
you are one of the few… who has the capacity to respond.”
Talking Immigration Reform: Members of the Congressional
Hispanic Caucus traveled across town on Wednesday to discuss immigration reform
with President Obama and Vice President Biden at the White House. During the
meeting, the President released a White House report—The Economic Benefits of
Fixing Our Broken Immigration System. The report explains the how significant
it is for our country and our economy to act now and pass comprehensive
immigration reform.
National Medals of Arts and Humanities: The White House was
flooded with talented recipients of the 2012 National Medals of Arts and
Humanities on Wednesday. The honorees, which included people like George Lucas,
the director of Star Wars, and Kay Ryan, the sixteenth U.S. Poet Laureate,
joined President Obama in the East Room of the White House where he spoke of
their accomplishments.
“The work that we honor today, the lifetime achievement of
these artists and these scholars, reminds us that the human imagination is
still the most powerful tool that we have as a people. That’s why we celebrate
their creativity and the fundamental optimism, the notion that if they work
that hard somebody will actually pay attention. That’s why we have to remain
committed to the dreamers and the creators and innovators who fuel that
progress and help us light the way ahead, because our children, our
grandchildren deserve to grow up in a country where their dreams know no bounds
and their ambitions extend as far as their talents and hard work can take
them."
Loyola Ramblers: The 1963 champion Loyola University Chicago
Ramblers men’s basketball team spent their Thursday visiting President Obama at
the White House to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their Division I title and
the historic steps they took to advance the civil rights movement.
During the regional semifinals that year, the Ramblers
played Mississippi
State in what became
known as the Game of Change. Ramblers coach George Ireland started four African
American players, despite unwritten rules preventing more than two
African-Americans to start the game. And, although the rules also banned the
opposing team, Mississippi State, from playing in games with integrated teams, Mississippi State players ignored their governor’s
order to forfeit the game. The Ramblers’ 61-51 victory was significant in
helping end segregated basketball in America.
President Obama Presents the 2012 National Medals of Arts
and Humanities
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/07/10/president-obama-presents-2012-national-medals-arts-and-humanities
What do an acclaimed Opera singer, the director of Star
Wars, and a Harvard scholar have in common? Today at the White House, they were
all honored by President Obama as recipients of the National Medals of Arts and
Humanities.
In a ceremony in the East Room, President Obama presented 24
medals, equally divided between the National Medal of Arts and the National
Humanities Medal, to extraordinary individuals who impacted American life. As
the President said, the medal recipients "used their talents in the arts
and the humanities to open up minds and nourish souls, and help us understand
what it means to be human, and what it means to be an American."
And that's no small feat. Today's awardees included
screenwriters, dancers, poets, and professors. They made phrases like
"Luke, I am your father" familiar, and they challenged our
fundamental beliefs about American civic society. Some won a Grammy, Pulitzer
or MacArthur Genius Award, but all awardees gave more to the country than their
physical prizes can ever represent.
In today's ceremony, President Obama said that "we
celebrate people like our honorees here today not just because of their talent,
but because they create something new. They create a new space and that becomes
a lasting contribution to American life. And that’s true for all of these
honorees."
President Obama told the medalists:
"The work that we honor today, the lifetime achievement
of these artists and these scholars, reminds us that the human imagination is
still the most powerful tool that we have as a people. That’s why we celebrate
their creativity and the fundamental optimism, the notion that if they work
that hard somebody will actually pay attention. That’s why we have to remain
committed to the dreamers and the creators and innovators who fuel that
progress and help us light the way ahead, because our children, our
grandchildren deserve to grow up in a country where their dreams know no bounds
and their ambitions extend as far as their talents and hard work can take
them."
Watch this video on YouTube
Here's a full list of the impressive recipients of the
National Medals of Arts and the National Humanities Medals:
2012 National Medal of Arts
Herb Alpert
Lin Arison
Joan Myers Brown
Renée Fleming
Ernest J. Gaines
Ellsworth Kelly
Tony Kushner
George Lucas
Elaine May
Laurie Olin
Allen Toussaint
Washington
Performing Arts Society, Washington,
DC
2012 National Humanities Medal
Edward L. Ayers
William G. Bowen
Jill Ker Conway
Natalie Zemon Davis
Frank Deford
Joan Didion
Robert Putnam
Marilynne Robinson
Kay Ryan
Robert B. Silvers
Anna Deavere Smith
Camilo José Vergara
You can learn more about the National Medal of Arts from the
National Endowment for the Arts and the National Humanities Medal from the National
Endowment for the Humanities.