Home Tags Posts tagged with "barack obama"
barack obama
New York federal prosecutor Loretta Lynch has been nominated by President Barack Obama to replace Eric Holder as US attorney general, the White House announces.
If the Senate confirms her appointment, Loretta Lynch will be the first African-American woman to head the US Justice Department.
Eric Holder, who resigned from the post six weeks ago, was the first African-American to serve as attorney general.
The White House said Loretta Lynch would be formally nominated on November 8.
Correspondents say Loretta Lynch, 55, is known for her low-key personality and has stirred little controversy during her two tenures as US attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
Loretta Lynch will be the first African-American woman to head the US Justice Department
“Ms Lynch is a strong, independent prosecutor who has twice led one of the most important US Attorney’s Offices in the country,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement.
Her nomination comes after Republicans won control of the Senate in Tuesday’s mid-term elections.
Loretta Lynch – a North Carolina native and Harvard-trained lawyer – was one of several candidates Eric Holder had recommended to succeed him.
She has experience in both civil rights and corporate fraud cases.
Eric Holder, 63, led the justice department for six years, earning praise from President Barack Obama who called him “the people’s lawyer”.
However, Eric Holder frequently clashed with Republicans in Congress over issues including gun control and same-gender marriage.
[youtube xwcGkzYHv6U 650]
[youtube _SRUeIZTP2Q 650]
A second legal challenge to President Barack Obama’s signature 2010 healthcare law (ObamaCare) will be reviewed by the Supreme Court, the court has said.
The court will determine whether the law allows health insurance subsidies to millions of Americans.
The challenge was brought by conservatives who argue that only states, not the federal government, can pay such subsidies.
Residents of 36 states rely on the federal government for the payments.
The sweeping healthcare reform law, the Affordable Care Act, established health insurance exchanges run by the federal government and by 16 states that provide subsidies to help Americans purchase insurance premiums.
In 2014, more than eight million people signed up for coverage on the exchanges.
The Supreme Court will hear a second legal challenge to President Barack Obama’s signature 2010 healthcare law
The law’s conservative opponents argue a close reading of the statute only allows subsidies to be paid by states that have their own healthcare exchanges, not by the federal government, which serves residents of states that have not established their own.
Currently, 36 states do not have exchanges of their own. Should the Supreme Court find in favor of the plaintiffs, more than five million people could find their insurance costs rise dramatically.
In July, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled in favor of the law’s opponents, but later threw the ruling out so it could rehear the case.
The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in March, with a decision in June.
On November 7, the White House dismissed the lawsuit as a partisan attempt to undermine the law.
“These lawsuits won’t stand in the way of the Affordable Care Act and the millions of Americans who can now afford health insurance because of it,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement.
“We are confident that the financial help afforded millions of Americans was the intent of the law and it is working as Congress designed.”
The ObamaCare passed with no Republican votes in 2010, and has been a focus of conservative outrage ever since.
In 2012, the Supreme Court upheld the central provision of the law requiring Americans to carry health insurance or pay a penalty, in a 5-4 decision.
[youtube 39oLIstKV7s 650]
President Barack Obama was joined by the House and Senate leaders in holding cross-party talks aimed at ending political gridlock in Washington.
The White House luncheon came after the Republicans won control of the Senate in Tuesday’s elections.
Barack Obama, a Democrat, and heads of both parties in the House of Representatives and Senate were to explore avenues of compromise after years of rancor.
Republicans have called their victory a rebuke of Barack Obama’s policies.
On November 7, the president was joined for lunch by 16 senior legislators including presumptive incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Republican House Speaker John Boehner.
“The American people just want to see work done here in Washington,” Barack Obama said, flanked at the dining table by John Boehner, outgoing Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Mitch McConnell, and Democratic House minority leader Nancy Pelosi.
“They are frustrated by the gridlock. They’d like to see some co-operation, and I think all of us have the responsibility – me in particular – to try and make that happen.”
Barack Obama said he hoped to discuss university affordability, infrastructure investment, overhaul of the tax system, and deficit reduction.
President Barack Obama was joined by the House and Senate leaders in holding cross-party talks aimed at ending political gridlock in Washington (photo Getty Images)
“Those are all going to be areas where I’m very interested in hearing and sharing ideas,” he said.
On November 6, the Republicans won control of the Senate and solidified their hold on the House of Representatives.
With the Republicans in control of both houses of Congress, the party can complicate, if not block completely, Barack Obama’s agenda in the last two years of his tenure in the White House.
Control of the Senate could also enable the Republicans to stymie his ability to name new federal judges, cabinet members and senior government officials.
The new Congress will be sworn in on January 3.
Following the election, Barack Obama and senior Republicans pledged to work together to end the political gridlock that has virtually paralyzed Congress and that reached its culmination with the shutdown of the US government in a budget stalemate last year.
The midterm election campaign was characterized by widespread frustration expressed by voters about the inability of the two parties to work together.
In the wake of the Republican gains, Mitch McConnell vowed to make the Senate function and pass bills, after sessions that were the least productive in the chamber’s history.
New reports claim that President Barack Obama wrote a secret letter to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, describing a shared interest in fighting Islamic State (ISIS).
The letter, reported by the Wall Street Journal, urges Ayatollah Ali Khamenei toward a nuclear agreement.
Barack Obama stresses any co-operation on fighting ISIS is contingent on Iran reaching such an agreement by a November 24 diplomatic deadline.
The White House has declined to comment on Barack Obama’s “private correspondence”.
The letter, sent last month, is at least the fourth time Barack Obama has written to the Iranian leader since taking office in 2009 and underscores his view that Iran is important in an emerging campaign against ISIS.
President Barack Obama is said to have written a secret letter to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Officials with the Obama administration have, in recent days, placed the chances for a deal on Iran’s nuclear program at only 50-50, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Secretary of State John Kerry is scheduled to begin negotiations on the issue with Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif this weekend in Oman.
World powers suspect Iran of trying to make a nuclear bomb, a claim it denies.
An interim deal agreed late last year gave Iran some relief from sanctions in return for curbs on nuclear activity.
However, talks later stalled on the extent of uranium enrichment Iran would be allowed and on the timetable for sanctions to be lifted.
On November 6, White House spokesman Josh Earnest declined to comment directly on the secret letter.
“I can tell you that the policy that the president and his administration have articulated about Iran remains unchanged,” he said in response to questions.
Also on November 6, Republican speaker of the House John Boehner said he did not trust Iran’s leaders and said they should not be brought into the fight against ISIS.
[youtube lr1i7kwZm_I 650]
The Republicans have won control of the Senate in the midterm elections, increasing their power in the final two years of Barack Obama’s presidency.
The party won in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Montana, North Carolina, South Dakota and West Virginia.
It is expected to post more gains as votes are counted in other states.
Republican Senator Mitch McConnell, poised to lead the chamber, said the result was a vote against “a government that people can no longer trust”.
In the midterms, so-called because they fell half way into Barack Obama’s second four-year term in office, about one-third of the Senate, the entire House of Representatives, 36 of 50 state governors, and countless state and local offices were up for election.
Throughout the campaign, Republicans focused on voter dissatisfaction with Barack Obama, a Democrat, describing the vote as a referendum on his presidency.
As the first results came in late on November 4, it became clear they had made convincing gains in the chamber.
With the votes still being counted in many states, the Republican Party easily won the six seats it needed to win control of the Senate.
The party controls 52 seats, and is tipped to win more.
The Republicans have won control of the Senate in the midterm elections, increasing their power in the final two years of Barack Obama’s presidency
When the new Congress is sworn in January, it will mark the first time the Republicans have held both chambers since 2006.
They will now have the power to complicate, if not block completely, Barack Obama’s agenda in the last two years of his tenure in the White House.
Control of the Senate will also enable the Republicans to stymie his ability to name new federal judges, cabinet members and senior government officials.
In addition to seats the party won from the Democrats, the Republicans retained seats in Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.
In Louisiana, neither of the top two candidates gained 50% of the vote, forcing a run-off election in early December.
In Virginia, Democrat Mark Warner was expected to retain his Senate seat amid a much tighter than expected race with Republican ex-lobbyist Ed Gillespie.
One of the night’s key early results came in Kentucky, where Mitch McConnell, the Republican Senate minority leader, fended off Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes.
Mitch McConnell will now become the Senate majority leader, giving him control over the chamber’s legislative agenda and floor proceedings.
“It wasn’t about me or my opponent,” he told supporters as he declared victory, “it was about a government that people can no longer trust.”
Current Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid congratulated Mitch McConnell in a short statement.
“The message from voters is clear: they want us to work together,” said Harry Reid of Nevada, whose role in the soon-to-be Democratic minority remains uncertain.
“I look forward to working with Senator McConnell to get things done for the middle class.”
As well as taking the Senate, the Republicans are projected to increase their majority in the House of Representatives, where all 435 members were up for re-election.
They also made gains among the 36 governorships up for re-election.
Republican governors survived tough re-election battles in Florida, Maine and Wisconsin.
In two results that illustrate the breadth of the Republican sweep, the party’s candidates won in Maryland and Massachusetts, two of the most Democratic-friendly states in the nation. Republican Bruce Rauner also won in Illinois – Barack Obama’s home state – against incumbent Democratic Governor Pat Quinn.
Political gridlock in Congress has already reached historic levels and was a major concern among voters, with many expressing their frustration with the lack of progress on the key issues facing the nation.
Analysts say the Republicans’ victory could make the situation even worse before the president poll in 2016.
Republican leaders have already pledged to move forward on their key policy priorities, pressing Barack Obama to negotiate on their terms
“It’s time for government to start getting results and implementing solutions to the challenges facing our country, starting with our still-struggling economy,” said Republican House Speaker John Boehner.
[youtube -vid479I970 650]
Millions of Americans are preparing to vote in midterm elections which will decide who controls the Senate and pave the way for the 2016 race for the White House.
Polling booths open on Tuesday, November 4, beginning 06:00 Eastern time.
The Republicans, who already control the House of Representatives, need to gain just six seats to take the Senate.
Meanwhile the Democrats are battling to stay ahead as President Barack Obama’s approval ratings fall to the lowest they have been since he was elected.
Many analysts predict a Republican victory as Barack Obama’s popularity rate fails to climb much above 40%, despite recent improvements in the economy.
“This is a referendum on the president,” Republican senator and potential 2016 presidential candidate Rand Paul told NBC’s Meet the Press at the weekend.
Democrats say their proven ability to rally their supporters ahead of elections could still give them the advantage.
“Grab everybody you know, get them out to vote, don’t stay home, don’t let somebody else choose your future for you,” Barack Obama said during a campaign rally on November 2.
Without the focus of a presidential campaign, the midterms – which are named because they fall in the middle of a presidential term – typically see a low voter turnout.
Millions of Americans are preparing to vote in midterm elections which will decide who controls the Senate and pave the way for the 2016 race for the White House
They also typically favor the party that is not in power.
This year, a little over a third of the 100-seat Senate, all 435 members of the House of Representatives, 36 out of 50 state governors, and countless state and local offices are up for election.
The most closely watched action will be the races that will determine control of the upper chamber of Congress, the Senate.
The Democrats currently hold a five-seat majority in the Senate, meaning the Republicans need only six seats to take control.
As the Republicans already have a convincing hold over the lower House of Representatives, a win in the Senate would give them the power to shut down Barack Obama’s policies in the last two years of his term.
Aside from Barack Obama’s unpopularity, there is no single issue that dominates this midterm poll.
Instead voters will be swayed by a broad variety of concerns including the economy, the environment, immigration, foreign policy, abortion and healthcare.
The most competitive Senate races are expected to take place in the states of North Carolina, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa and Kansas.
Across the board, voters have expressed their dissatisfaction with both parties’ inability to co-operate in Congress and the resulting gridlock this has caused.
If the Republicans do win control of the Senate, the day-to-day running of the chamber will become the responsibility of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, should he win his own tough campaign for re-election.
As the country then shifts its focus to the 2016 presidential election, Barack Obama is likely to find it increasingly hard to operate as his term draws to a close, analysts say.
[youtube mvDQ9ZeCkI4 650]
President Barack Obama urged Americans not to give in to Ebola hysteria, stressing that the two cases contracted in the US were not an epidemic or an outbreak.
Barack Obama has also ruled out imposing a travel ban on Ebola-hit countries of West Africa.
He said isolating an entire region, a move urged by some Republicans, would make the situation worse.
The Ebola virus has killed about 4,500 people in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, according to the UN.
Barack Obama said the best way to tackle the disease was at its source, before it spreads.
“Trying to seal off an entire region of the world, if that were even possible, could actually make the situation worse,” he said.
“It would make it harder to move health workers and supplies back and forth.
“Experience shows that it could also cause people in the affected region to change their travel, to evade screening, and make the disease even harder to track.”
President Barack Obama urged Americans not to give in to Ebola hysteria (photo White House)
Barack Obama stressed that the US was not in the middle of an outbreak or an epidemic and urged Americans to stay calm.
However, the New York Times has reported that the president was furious with his aides over an inadequate response to the disease.
The newspaper said medical officials had given information that turned out to be wrong, local guidance was inadequate and categories of threats were unclear.
Some 60 Republicans in the House of Representatives have informally said they would support a travel ban, according to an unofficial count on the Hill website.
They were joined by a handful of Democrat representatives and a small number of Republicans in the Senate.
Republican House Speaker John Boehner, who supports travel restrictions, has hinted that he may propose a vote on the issue.
Several US airports have begun screening for Ebola, despite experts saying such moves were unlikely to have an impact.
Two American nurses contracted the virus after treating Liberian Thomas Eric Duncan, who subsequently died of the disease at a hospital in Dallas.
[youtube BuCaCQEse_0 650]
President Barack Obama revealed his credit card was declined at a restaurant in New York City last month.
Barack Obama said: “It turned out I guess I don’t use it enough.”
“They thought there was some fraud going on.”
Fortunately, the president said, First Lady Michelle Obama had a credit card on hand and paid for the meal.
Barack Obama told the story at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as he announced new protections for debit cards used to deliver federal benefits.
Barack Obama revealed his credit card was declined at a restaurant in New York City
An estimated 100 million Americans have been affected by identity theft in the past year, including high-profile security breaches at retailers like Target and Home Depot.
“I was trying to explain to the waitress, you know, I really think that I’ve been paying my bills,” Barack Obama said.
“Even I’m affected by this.”
Barack Obama is paid $400,000 per year, as well as given a non-taxable $50,000 expense account.
[youtube _MCbx9Mzko0 650]
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a major outbreak of Ebola in the US and elsewhere in the West is unlikely given the strong health systems.
President Barack Obama also said the risk of Americans getting the virus was “extremely low”, although he ordered a “much more aggressive response”.
Meanwhile authorities are investigating how Nurse Amber Vinson, who was infected when treating Thomas Eric Duncan in Texas, was allowed to travel on a plane.
Officials are trying to trace the 132 people who flew with Amber Vinson.
The Ebola outbreak has killed about 4,500 people so far, mostly in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.
President Barack Obama said the risk of Americans getting the virus was extremely low, although he ordered a much more aggressive response (photo Reuters)
EU health ministers will meet in Brussels on Thursday to discuss the crisis, including the possibility of sending more troops to West Africa to help contain the virus.
Christopher Dye, WHO director of strategy, said the introduction of Ebola into the US or other countries in Western Europe was a matter “for very serious concern”.
“The possibility that once an infection has been introduced that it spreads elsewhere, is something that everybody is going to be concerned about,” he said.
But he added: “We’re confident that in North America and Western Europe where health systems are very strong, that we’re unlikely to see a major outbreak in any of those places.”
Earlier, President Barack Obama said the likelihood of a widespread Ebola outbreak was “very, very low”.
However, he promised a “much more aggressive” monitoring of Ebola cases in the US and reaffirmed plans to send a “SWAT team” of experts to any hospital that reported an infection.
Barack Obama cancelled a political campaign trip to chair a crisis meeting on Ebola on Wednesday and has cleared his diary for Thursday.
The president said it would be more difficult to prevent an outbreak in the US if the epidemic “rages out of control in West Africa”.
US health officials are facing new questions about the response to Ebola infections in Texas.
Liberian Thomas Eric Duncan was treated at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital but died of the disease.
[youtube wvkF_5UNUD4 650]
President Barack Obama rode in an elevator this month with an armed security contractor who had assault convictions, in what appears to be another security lapse.
It happened on September 16 when Barack Obama visited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta.
The incident came to light on September 30, hours after Julia Pierson, the boss of the Secret Service, was grilled by Congress about a security breach at the White House.
An armed contractor with violent criminal record got in the elevator with President Barack Obama during his visit at the CDC in Atlanta (photo Reuters)
A Secret Service official confirmed the incident but declined to comment.
The gun was found when the man was questioned after taking a video in the elevator and was immediately fired by his employers, according to newspaper reports.
The Washington Post said the man had three convictions for assault and battery.
“This person was within arm’s length of the president with a gun,” said Utah congressman Jason Chaffetz, who was told of the incident by a whistleblower.
It will come as another embarrassment on the day when Secret Service Director Julia Pierson took responsibility before a hostile House oversight committee hearing for an “unacceptable” security breach at the presidential residence.
[youtube kD6vRjNvJGI 650]
US Attorney General Eric Holder is resigning after six years on the job.
Eric Holder is the nation’s first black attorney general.
The White House said that President Barack Obama would announce Eric Holder’s departure later Thursday, September 25, and that Holder planned to remain at the Justice Department until his successor was in place. White House officials said President Barack Obama had not made a final decision on a replacement for Eric Holder, who was one of the most progressive voices in his Cabinet.
US Attorney General Eric Holder is resigning after six years on the job
Advisers to Barack Obama and Eric Holder said the attorney general had been planning his departure with the president for some time. Some possible candidates who have been discussed among administration officials include Solicitor General Don Verrilli, California Attorney General Kamala Harris, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, Deputy US Attorney General James Cole and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a former Rhode Island attorney general.
Eric Holder, a 63-year-old former judge and prosecutor, took office in early 2009 as the US government grappled with the worst financial crisis in decades and with divisive questions on the handling of captured terrorism suspects, issues that helped shape his tenure as the country’s top law enforcement official. He is the fourth-longest serving attorney general in U.S. history.
He also took on questions of racial fairness, working to improve police relations with minorities, enforce civil rights laws and remove disparities in sentencing. Most recently he became the Obama administration’s point man in the federal response to the police shooting last month of Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old in Ferguson, Missouri. In the shooting’s aftermath, he enlisted a team of criminal justice researchers to study possible racial bias in law enforcement.
The news of Eric Holder’s resignation came as civil rights leaders and the families of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, who died in a New York City police chokehold this summer, were appearing at a news conference in Washington calling on the Justice Department to take over investigations into the deaths.
Many Americans took to Twitter to condemn President Barack Obama after he appeared to salute Marine Corps guards outside his helicopter while holding a coffee cup in his right hand.
The uproar began after the White House posted a video on Instagram of Barack Obama disembarking from Marine One on September 23, as he arrived in New York to address the UN General Assembly.
As of Wednesday afternoon, 2,740 followers had commented on the post.
On the surface, the debate centered on military etiquette. @Maddogritch pointed out that the president should have moved his coffee to his left hand while saluting with the right.
Others pointed out that as a civilian, the president need not salute a uniformed military service member. Doing so is a recently-adopted practice that started with Ronald Reagan.
An unnamed Reddit contributor and military veteran wrote that while he was not a big fan of the president, he thought Barack Obama was in the clear.
Many Americans took to Twitter to condemn President Barack Obama after he appeared to salute Marine Corps guards holding a coffee cup in his right hand
“He’s already saluting out of uniform. It’s a pleasantry similar to saying <<Thanks dude>>, that serves the sole purpose of letting the marine know he can cut his salute.”
More importantly, as commander-in-chief of the US armed forces, “by military custom, he doesn’t owe anybody a damn thing”, the veteran wrote.
But beneath the protocol debate was a tired argument with new props, between those who support Obama versus those who don’t.
“These types of incidents tend to flare up and go away,” says Frank Newport, editor-in-chief of the Gallup poll.
“I’m sure photos of Obama’s salute with a Starbucks cup circulated among those who were already anti-Obama, but I can’t believe, based on my experience, that it’s going to have much impact overall on how people view him and indirectly, on the Democratic candidates.”
While a great many of the 17,000 participants in the Twitter debate were critical of the president, others found it to be a good excuse to post a picture of former President George W. Bush awkwardly saluting while trying to keep his grip on his dog.
[youtube UtePtc_l84g 650]
Speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, President Barack Obama has urged the world to help dismantle the Islamic State’s (ISIS) “network of death”.
Meanwhile US warplanes stepped up air strikes against ISIS militants in Iraq and Syria.
“There can be no reasoning – no negotiation – with this brand of evil,” Barack Obama said.
The US president said more than 40 countries had offered to join the anti-IS coalition. ISIS aims to set up a hardline caliphate.
The well-armed Sunni Muslim militants have seized a huge swathe of Syria and Iraq, forcing whole communities to flee in terror. They have beheaded Western hostages and have persecuted Christians, Yazidis and Shia Muslims, whom they treat as heretics.
US warplanes hit ISIS vehicles and arms dumps in new air strikes, the US military’s Central Command said.
Eight ISIS vehicles were damaged near Abu Kamal on the Syria-Iraq border, and two others in Deir al-Zour in the east of Syria, the statement said.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, President Barack Obama has urged the world to help dismantle the ISIS network of death (photo Reuters)
In Iraq there were strikes on IS targets west of Baghdad and southeast of Irbil, near Kurdish territory.
Earlier there were air strikes on ISIS near the border with Turkey.
“The only language understood by killers like this is the language of force,” Barack Obama said.
The US “will work with a broad coalition to dismantle this network of death,” he told the UN.
“In this effort, we do not act alone. Nor do we intend to send US troops to occupy foreign lands. Instead, we will support Iraqis and Syrians fighting to reclaim their communities. We will use our military might in a campaign of air strikes to roll back ISIL [ISIS].
“We will train and equip forces fighting against these terrorists on the ground. We will work to cut off their financing, and to stop the flow of fighters into and out of the region. Already, over 40 nations have offered to join this coalition. Today, I ask the world to join in this effort.”
Barack Obama urged Muslims to reject the ideology of ISIS and al-Qaeda.
Syrian activists reported air strikes around the Kurdish town of Kobane near Turkey, which has been besieged by ISIS fighters for several days.
Witnesses saw two military aircraft approaching from Turkey but Turkish officials denied its airspace or bases had been used in the attack.
The US-led coalition expanded its raids against IS into Syria on Monday. The US said Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain and Qatar had all “participated in or supported” the strikes.
However, the aerial bombardment near Kobane, which happened at about 01:00 local time, has not been confirmed by the US or any coalition member.
Turkish military sources said neither its air force nor the US airbase at Incirlik in southern Turkey had been used.
The US has launched nearly 200 air strikes against ISIS in Iraq since August.
[youtube GLjNMrr1toQ 650]
World leaders are holding a summit on climate change at the United Nations.
The aim at the New York meeting is to galvanize member states to sign up to a comprehensive new global climate agreement at talks in Paris next year.
“Today, we must set the world on a new course,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told leaders from 120 countries.
“I am asking you to lead.”
It is the first high-level gathering since the Copenhagen summit in 2009.
With so many nations attending the summit at the UN headquarters and so little time at the one-day meeting, three separate sessions will run simultaneously in three different rooms.
Ban Ki-moon has organized the summit and on September 21 took part in a climate change march in New York with thousands of protesters – including Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who has recently been appointed a UN representative on climate change.
On September 22, more than 100 people were arrested after they refused to leave a protest near Wall Street. At one stage, demonstrators tried to push past police barricades, sparking a brief clash with officers.
The Rockefeller family, which made its vast fortune from oil, was reported to have announced their intention to sell investments in fossil fuels and reinvest in clean energy.
Leonardo DiCaprio has recently been appointed as UN representative on climate change
The Rockefeller Brothers Fund is joining Global Divest-Invest, a coalition of philanthropists pledging to rid themselves of more than $50 billion in fossil fuel assets.
Meanwhile, Google has announced it is to sever ties with a rightwing US lobbying network, the American Legislative Council, over its skeptical positions on climate.
The real bargaining on climate change is expected to take place at a private dinner on September 23 hosted by Ban Ki-moon and attended by a select list of 20 or so countries.
However, the absence of the leaders of China, Russia and India – whose PM Narendra Modi arrives later in the week – does not augur well.
President Barack Obama will strive on September 23 to generate international support for the battle against climate change when he addresses the UN, with time running out on his desire to leave an environmental legacy.
The president has warned that a failure to act on climate change is a “betrayal” of future generations. But correspondents say he faces numerous obstacles – including a Congress unwilling to curtail greenhouse gas emissions – let alone ratify an international agreement.
Barack Obama’s last meeting with heads of state in order to reach a climate deal in Copenhagen five years ago ended in disappointment, with member countries failing to agree on a timetable to reduce long-term emissions.
Ban Ki-moon has asked that the political leaders come to UN headquarters bearing pledges of action. He wants to hear commitments to cut carbon and offers of finance for those most affected.
Observers believe the meeting can still achieve political momentum despite the absence of Chinese, Indian, Australian, Russian and Canadian leaders.
[youtube ka6_3TJcCkA 650]
The Secret Service has stepped up security at the White House and launched a “comprehensive review” of procedures there after two attempted breaches in 24 hours.
The more serious incident saw a man wielding a knife enter the building on September 19, prompting a partial evacuation.
President Barack Obama was not present at the time of the incident.
The following day, another man drove up to a security gate. Both men have since been arrested.
President Barack Obama said he still had “full confidence” in the Secret Service, which is tasked with protecting senior American officials and visiting leaders.
The Secret Service has stepped up security at the White House after two attempted breaches in 24 hours
The man involved in latest incident, Omar Gonzalez, was only stopped after entering the North Portico doors, the Secret Service said.
Video footage showed the intruder running across a White House lawn after scaling a fence. He was later found to be carrying a 3.5 inch folding knife.
“Although last night the officers showed tremendous restraint and discipline in dealing with this subject, the location of Gonzalez’s arrest is not acceptable,” the Secret Service said in a statement.
“Every day the Secret Service is challenged to ensure security at the White House complex while still allowing public accessibility to a national historical site,” it added.
The president and his daughters had just left the White House by helicopter before Omar Gonzalez entered. The man was later taken to a Washington hospital after complaining of chest pains, officials said.
An apparently unrelated incident on September 20 saw a man drive up to a vehicle gate in the complex and refuse to leave.
Secret Service agents shut down nearby streets and searched the vehicle for explosives.
Officials said Saturday’s incident was an “everyday occurrence”.
The review of security was initiated by director Julia Pierson, who also ordered “the immediate enhancement of officer patrols and surveillance capabilities” around the White House.
A White House spokesman said President Barack Obama expected the review to be conducted “with the same professionalism and commitment to duty that we and the American people expect from the US Secret Service”.
[youtube X-71FgNjgkA 650]
Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko begins a key visit to the US to seek further support to tackle what he describes as Russian aggression.
Petro Poroshenko will hold talks with President Barack Obama before addressing a joint session of Congress.
He is flying to the US from Canada, where he told lawmakers Ukraine had bid “the last farewell” to the USSR after signing an EU association deal.
Ukraine accuses Russia of supporting rebels in its east. Moscow denies this.
More than 3,000 people have died in fighting between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian rebels in the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions since April.
A fragile cease-fire agreed on September 5 is holding, despite accusations of shelling by both sides.
The unrest in the east followed Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s southern Crimea peninsula in March.
Petro Poroshenko will hold talks with President Barack Obama before addressing a joint session of Congress (photo Reuters)
In Washington, Petro Poroshenko will also give a speech at the influential Atlantic Council think-tank.
During the state visit he is expected to push for closer political and economic ties between his former Soviet republic and the West, and seek further financial support for Ukraine’s struggling economy.
Petro Poroshenko has also been pressing for military assistance from the US to help defend Ukraine.
President Barack Obama – alongside with many other Western leaders – has condemned Russia’s actions in Ukraine, but stressed that any military support would only include non-lethal equipment.
Both the US and the EU have recently imposed a new round of sanctions against Russia over its role in the Ukraine crisis.
Addressing the Canadian parliament on September 17, Petro Poroshenko said Ukraine had “crossed the Rubicon” by ratifying a day earlier the association and free trade agreement with the EU.
“This was Ukraine’s last ‘farewell’ to the Soviet Union,” he said to loud cheering and applause from Canadian lawmakers.
The association agreement aims to bring Ukraine closer to the EU and away from Russia’s sphere of influence.
The deal lies at the root of Ukraine’s crisis. It was former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s refusal to sign it last November that triggered mass protests and his eventual fall from power.
[youtube m6D0-Kt49Ps 650]
President Barack Obama’s plan to train and arm the moderate Syrian opposition fighting on Islamic State (ISIS) has been approved by the US House of Representatives.
The vote passed by a large majority in the Republican-controlled House and is expected to be adopted in the Senate.
The endorsement came after President Barack Obama repeated that he would not be committing American combat troops to ground operations in Iraq.
The US has undertaken 174 air strikes against ISIS in Iraq since mid-August.
The jihadist group controls large areas of Syria and northern Iraq.
In the most recent air strikes on September 16 and 17, US forces destroyed two ISIS armed vehicles north-west of Irbil and several units south-west of Baghdad, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM).
Barack Obama’s new strategy plans similar attacks in Syria and calls on a coalition of 40 countries to confront the militant group.
President Barack Obama repeated that he would not be committing American combat troops to ground operations in Iraq
This vote was expected to pass easily. Republicans, who control the House, generally support Barack Obama’s strategy to defeat and degrade Islamic State.
But the more hawkish among them feel the plan falls short. They argue that the president should consider sending US combat troops to Syria and Iraq – something he has said he is not prepared to do.
Some lawmakers from both parties feel skeptical that the Syrian rebels are up to the job.
At a Senate committee hearing, they pressed Secretary of State John Kerry for assurances that the Syrian fighters would be properly vetted so that, in future, American weapons don’t fall into the wrong hands.
On September 17, the House of Representatives approved his $500 million request by 273 votes to 156 to help arm and train moderate rebels in Syria.
The provision has been added to spending legislation aimed at extending federal government operations beyond the end of September.
Earlier, Barack Obama said he would not commit “to fighting another ground war in Iraq”, while visiting a military base in Florida.
[youtube o3S3IJr9Psw 650]
The US troops their fighting Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Iraq will not have a combat mission, President Barack Obama has told an audience on September 17.
Barack Obama said he would not commit “to fighting another ground war in Iraq”.
The president said the US had the “unique abilities” to respond to ISIS, including air support for Iraqi and Kurdish fighters on the ground.
The US has already undertaken 162 air strikes against IS in Iraq since mid-August.
Barack Obama’s new strategy allows similar attacks in Syria, and calls on a coalition of 40 countries to confront the militant group.
The president’s reassurance to soldiers at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, came a day after a top US general suggested he would recommend US ground troops in the fight against ISIS if the international campaign of air strikes failed.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Martin Dempsey confirmed that under the current plan, US military advisers would help the Iraqi army to plan attacks against ISIS, also known as ISIL.
President Barack Obama has told an audience of US troops their comrades fighting ISIS militants in Iraq will not have a combat mission
The jihadist group controls large areas of Syria and northern Iraq. It has between 20,000 and 31,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria, according to CIA estimates.
Barack Obama arrived overnight in Tampa, Florida, where Central Command (CENTCOM) – responsible for the Middle East and Central Asia – is based.
After briefings with top military officials, Barack Obama told an assembly of troops that “the American forces that have been deployed to Iraq do not and will not have a combat mission”.
The US would see that the group was eventually defeated, Barack Obama said: “If you threaten America, you will find no safe haven.”
“We cannot do for the Iraqis what they must do for themselves,” he said, adding other countries would help with both air support and training.
“After a decade of massive ground deployments it is more effective to use our unique capabilities in support of our partners on the ground so they can secure their own countries’ futures,” Barack Obama said.
Barack Obama highlighted partner countries like France and the UK, which were already flying reconnaissance flights in Iraq, and Saudi Arabia, which has agreed to host a US-led training program for Syrian rebel groups fighting ISIS.
“Our armed forces are unparalleled and unique,” Barack Obama said.
“So when we’ve got a big problem somewhere around the world, it falls on our shoulders.”
Meanwhile, Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi rejected as “out of the question” the possibility that foreign ground troops would be allowed to fight in his country.
[youtube H_a2ZTzgdPw 650]
President Barack Obama has announced the US measures to combat the Ebola virus as he called the outbreak in West Africa “a threat to global security”.
“The world is looking to the United States,” Barack Obama said, but added the outbreak required a “global response”.
The measures announced included ordering 3,000 US troops to the region and building new healthcare facilities.
Ebola has killed 2,461 people this year, about half of those infected, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.
The announcement comes as UN officials have called the outbreak a health crisis “unparalleled in modern times”.
Among the measures announced by Barack Obama on September 16:
- Building 17 healthcare facilities, each with 100 beds and isolation spaces, in Liberia
- Training as many as 500 health care workers a week
- Developing an air bridge to get supplies into affected countries faster
- Provide home health care kits to hundreds of thousands of households, including 50,000 that the US Agency for International Development (USAID) will deliver to Liberia this week
Ebola only spreads in close contact but there is no cure and no vaccine. The outbreak began in Guinea before spreading to its neighbors Sierra Leone and Liberia.
President Barack Obama has announced the US measures to combat the Ebola virus as he called the outbreak in West Africa a threat to global security
Barack Obama said the outbreak had reached epidemic proportions in West Africa, as the disease “completely overwhelmed” hospitals and clinics and people were “literally dying on the streets”.
He called on other countries to step up their response, as a worsening outbreak would lead to “profound political, economic and security” issues.
There’s a “potential threat to global security if these countries break down”, he said, which would impact on everyone.
“The world knows how to fight this disease. We know if we take the proper steps we can save lives. But we have to work fast,” Barack Obama said.
Earlier, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the 3,000 troops would not provide direct care to Ebola patients. Some soldiers would be stationed at an intermediate base in Senegal, while others will provide logistical, training and engineering support at locations in Liberia.
Also on September 16, a US congressional panel heard testimony from Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the national Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, and Dr. Kent Brently, who recovered from an Ebola infection after receiving an experimental treatment for the disease.
Dr. Anthony Fauci told the committee 10 volunteers in a separate vaccine study had shown no ill effects from an early stage trial.
[youtube twtaXSZzn8k 650]
President Barack Obama will announce today his plans to send 3,000 troops to Liberia to help fight the Ebola virus, US officials say.
It is understood the US military will oversee building new treatment centers and help train medical staff.
There has been criticism of the slow international response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa.
Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea are the worst-hit countries.
The Ebola outbreak has killed more than 2,400 people.
More than half of those killed by the virus have been in Liberia. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned recently that the country could see thousands of more cases.
UN officials will discuss the international response to the outbreak at a meeting in Geneva.
Barack Obama is planning to send 3,000 troops to Liberia to help fight the Ebola virus
US officials said the aim of the country’s anti-Ebola initiative is to:
- Train up to 500 healthcare workers a week
- Construct 17 healthcare facilities, each with about 100 beds
- Establish a joint command based in Monrovia, Liberia, to co-ordinate between US and international relief efforts
- Distribute home healthcare kits to thousands of households
- Conduct a home and community-based campaign to train local people in how to handle patients
Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has appealed directly to Barack Obama for help in tackling the outbreak.
Several disease experts have welcomed the US plan, though some also question its focus on Liberia.
“We should see all of West Africa now as one big outbreak,” says Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, quoted in The New York Times.
“It’s very clear we have to deal with all the areas with Ebola.”
Ebola spreads between humans by direct contact with infected blood, bodily fluids or organs, or indirectly through contact with contaminated environments.
[youtube 9dL19B32rxU 650]
Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Saudi Arabia to meet key Arab leaders, as he tries to build a coalition against Islamic State (ISIS) militants.
A US official was quoted as saying John Kerry would discuss co-operation in Jeddah to facilitate US air strikes.
Earlier, President Barack Obama said he would not hesitate to take action against ISIS in Syria as well as Iraq.
Barack Obama also announced that 475 US military personnel would be sent to Iraq but said they would not have a combat role.
ISIS group controls large parts of Syria and Iraq after a rapid military advance.
Its fighters have become notorious for their brutality, beheading enemy soldiers and Western journalists on video.
Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Saudi Arabia to meet key Arab leaders, as he tries to build a coalition against ISIS militants (photo Reuters)
The US has launched over 150 air strikes against the group in Iraq and has provided arms to Iraqi and Kurdish forces fighting against IS.
John Kerry, who arrived in the Red Sea port of Jeddah on September 11, will hold talks with representatives of Saudi Arabia and other oil-rich Gulf states as well as Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon and NATO member Turkey.
“Many of the countries are already taking action against ISIL [Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant – the previous name for ISIS] ,” a State Department official was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.
“But the trip by the secretary [John Kerry] is going to broaden the coalition and bring it into more focus and intensify the lines of effort.”
Among the issues to be discussed would be training for Syrian rebels on Saudi soil and a wider over flight permission from regional states to increase the capacity of US aircraft, reports say.
In a 15-minute speech shown at peak time in the US on September 10, President Barack Obama vowed that America would lead “a broad coalition to roll back” ISIS.
President Barack Obama has announced that the US will not hesitate to take action against Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Syria as well as Iraq.
In a nationally televised speech outlining his strategy against ISIS, Barack Obama said that any group that threatened America would “find no safe haven”.
The president also announced that 475 US military personnel would be sent to Iraq but said they would not have a combat role.
ISIS controls large parts of Syria and Iraq after a rapid military advance.
Its fighters have become notorious for their brutality, beheading enemy soldiers and Western journalists on video.
The US has launched over 150 air strikes against the group in Iraq and provided arms to Iraqi and Kurdish forces fighting against IS.
In a 15-minute speech shown at peak time in the US, Barack Obama vowed that America would lead “a broad coalition to roll back” ISIS.
“Working with the Iraqi government, we will expand our efforts beyond protecting our own people and humanitarian missions, so that we’re hitting ISIL [Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant – the previous name for ISIS] targets as Iraqi forces go on the offense” he said.
Barack Obama has announced that the US will not hesitate to take action against Islamic State militants in Syria as well as Iraq (photo AFP)
He said he would welcome congressional approval for the fight against ISIS but said that he had the authority to act without it.
Barack Obama was elected in part because of fervent opposition to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and presided over the US troop pullout from the country.
In 2013, the president abandoned plans to launch airstrikes in Syria against government forces after congressional opposition.
In his speech, Barack Obama ruled out working with President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, despite the fact that his forces are also engaged in fighting ISIS.
“In the fight against ISIL, we cannot rely on an Assad regime that terrorizes its people: a regime that will never regain the legitimacy it has lost” he said.
Instead, Barack Obama said, the US would seek to strengthen the non-ISIS Syrian opposition, which fights against both ISIS and President Bashar al-Assad.
Syria’s Western-backed National Coalition welcomed Barack Obama’s plan, and urged Congress to approve it.
“The Syrian Coalition… stands ready and willing to partner with the international community not only to defeat [ISIS] but also rid the Syrian people of the tyranny of the Assad regime,” its president Hadi al-Bahra said in a statement, quoted by Reuters news agency.
Secretary of State John Kerry is already in the Middle East trying to build a coalition against IS.
John Kerry was in Iraq on Wednesday, where he praised the new government’s plans to involve more Sunnis in government and heal ties with the Kurds.
He said the president’s strategy “will succeed because doing it with allies and partners isn’t just smart, it’s strong”.
Barack Obama has already authorized $25 million in aid for the Iraqi military.
[youtube 7130A1kva7I 650]
President Barack Obama has met Congressional leaders to outline and press his case for an expanded military campaign against Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Iraq and Syria.
Barack Obama is discussing his strategy with leaders from both parties at the White House.
The talks come ahead of the president’s speech to the nation on Wednesday night.
It is not clear whether Barack Obama will seek Congressional authorization for an increased military role.
Tuesday’s meeting with Congressional leaders comes a year after lawmakers blocked Barack Obama’s previous plans for missile strikes against Syria.
Since then, the ISIS jihadist group has taken control of large swathes of Iraq and Syria.
In June it declared the creation of a “caliphate” or Islamic state.
In the past month, ISIS militants have beheaded two American journalists in protest against US airstrikes on its forces in Iraq.
Barack Obama has ruled out the possibility of a US ground operation against ISIS but has signaled he may expand airstrikes to include Syria.
While leaders in Congress have made it clear they are not interested in pursuing a vote on military action, some lawmakers have said any airstrikes or military action should be authorised by them.
Barack Obama has ruled out the possibility of a US ground operation against ISIS but has signaled he may expand airstrikes to include Syria (photo NBC)
Republican Senator Rand Paul told the website Politico that if Barack Obama does not ask for authorization, “it would show a disregard for the Constitution, and for the history of our country”.
Other lawmakers are more cautious about committing themselves to potentially risky military action, especially with the approach of Congressional mid-term elections in November.
According to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, a large majority of the American public views ISIS as a serious threat to the US and widely supports airstrikes in Iraq and Syria.
About 100 Americans are believed to have joined the militants and the US state department has tried to counter this by making a hard-hitting video that tries to dissuade potential recruits.
Barack Obama’s press secretary, Josh Earnest, told Politico on September 8 the president was hoping for a “buy-in” from Congress.
Meanwhile, France has announced it will host an international conference on Iraq on September 15 and President Francois Hollande will visit the country later this week.
On September 8, the US hailed the creation of a new government in Iraq as a major milestone and a crucial step toward defeating the militant group.
Secretary of State John Kerry said Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s cabinet had the “potential to unite all of Iraq’s diverse communities”.
Posts have been shared between the Shia Arab majority, Sunni Arabs and Kurds.
The US had made the approval of a unity government a condition for increased military assistance.
John Kerry is travelling to Saudi Arabia and Jordan this week as part of efforts to build a coalition to confront ISIS.
[youtube ehI5I1oKDCU 650]
President Barack Obama will delay taking executive action on immigration until after the midterm elections in November, White House officials said on September 6.
The president bows to pressure from fellow Democrats who feared that acting now could doom his party’s chances this fall.
In June 2014, Barack Obama promised to use executive orders that were expected to change visa rules, boost border security and give a path to citizenship for some 11 million US-based illegal immigrants.
Each year tens of thousands try to get into the US from Mexico.
President Barack Obama will delay taking executive action on immigration until after the midterm elections in November
Many are unaccompanied children, and Barack Obama has called the situation a “humanitarian crisis”.
Barack Obama has spent years promising immigration reform, but has been thwarted by Republicans in Congress.
White House officials said that the Republicans’ “extreme politicization of this issue” meant it would be harmful to the long-term prospects for reform to take action before the election.
Officials said immigration reform would still be forced through before the end of the year.
Analysts say the move is likely to benefit some Democrats up for re-election in November in closely fought seats.
Immigration advocacy group United We Dream called the delay a “slap to the face of the Latino and immigrant community”.
[youtube upUqtOipafw 650]
Barack Obama made an impromptu visit to Stonehenge on his return home from the NATO summit in Newport, Wales.
As the president toured the ancient site, he chatted to a local family and posed for photos with them.
Barack Obama made an impromptu visit to Stonehenge on his return home from the NATO summit in Newport
Janice Raffle, who lives near Stonehenge, had come down to the monument with her husband and three sons after hearing Barack Obama was there.
She said Barack Obama’s photographer took a photo with her phone.
“He sort of photobombed us, really,” Janice Raffle said.
[youtube ipzebcPwSF4 650]
Prev1...8910...31Next 
Page 9 of 31
