White House news

• Obama’s Economic Forecast Relies on Rosy Assumptions

  19-02-2015 23:00
  
  The White House Council of Economic Advisers devotes a good deal of space in the 2015 Economic Report of the President, published today, to the considerable successes of the last year, in which the economic recovery finally began to take hold. The administration forecasts the long-run potential GDP growth rate in the U.S. to be 2.3 percent a year — at the very top end of the estimates from outside groups — and assumes a plethora of administration priorities are acted on in order to help the
  
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• Obama picks Jen Psaki to head White House Communications

  19-02-2015 22:14
  
  Washington, Feb 20 (IANS) US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki will become President Barack Obama's new communications director, the White House said.
  
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• For cyberthreat info-sharing, Washington seeks new ties with tech sector

  19-02-2015 22:10
  
  On the heels of President Obama's executive order to promote information sharing between federal agencies and businesses worried about hackers, the White House cybersecurity czar said the success of that effort relies on forging new ties between Washington and industry. “We are defining in the next three or four years a lot of these relationships that will operate for the next 50,” said Michael Daniel, White House cybersecurity coordinator, at an event on Wednesday at the Washington think
  
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• Rubio facing pressure to run for Senate re-election

  19-02-2015 21:38
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican officials are lobbying Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to seek re-election next year even though he says he'll forgo that campaign if he makes a bid for the White House.
  
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• Chief White House forecaster: 2015 will be a 'good year'

  19-02-2015 21:14
  
  Mr. Furman, chairman of the president’s Council of Economic Advisers, spoke to reporters Thursday at a Monitor-hosted breakfast on the same day the 400-page “Economic Report of the President” was released. Inflation is predicted to remain under control, with the consumer price index expected to rise only 1.8 percent.
  
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• Obama gives backing to Chicago Mayor Emanuel ahead of vote

  19-02-2015 21:12
  
  By Julia Edwards CHICAGO (Reuters) - President Barack Obama appeared side-by-side with his former chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, on Thursday, an old friend who has faced declining approval ratings heading into a Feb. 24 mayoral vote. Mayor Emanuel introduced Obama at an event designating part of Chicago's Pullman neighborhood as a national monument. The historic neighborhood was built for factory workers and was home to the first African-American-led union. White House spokesman Eric Schultz
  
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• Retail giant Walmart to raise wages for US staff 

  19-02-2015 21:12
  
  Global retail giant Walmart, which has faced criticism over low salaries and skimpy benefits for years, announced Thursday it would raise wages for 500,000 workers in the US. The largest private single employer in the United States said salaries for about 40 percent of its US staff would be lifted to at least $9 per hour in April, $1.75 above the federal minimum wage. President Barack Obama has also made the issue of low pay and a growing income gap across the country a key focus of his economic
  
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• Wal-Mart, under pressure, boosts minimum U.S. wage to $9 an hour

  19-02-2015 21:02
  
  Wal-Mart Stores Inc said it would raise entry-level wages to $9 (6 pounds) an hour, a 24 percent increase from the U.S. minimum wage that some employees now earn, succumbing to longstanding pressure to pay its workforce more. Wal-Mart has been a prime target of critics who say its low-wages and inflexible scheduling are a big part of the problem. The White House praised the move, pointing out that 17 states have already moved to boost their minimum wages above the federal level of $7.25 an hour
  
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• Obama rejects as 'ugly lie' notion that West at war with Islam

  19-02-2015 20:32
  By Lesley Wroughton and Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday urged countries to tackle violent Islamist militancy around the world and rejected as "an ugly lie" suggestions that the West was at war with Islam. Obama said there was a complicated history between the Middle East and the West and no one should be immune from criticism over specific policies. "And all of us, regardless of our faith, have a responsibility to reject it," he t
  
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• President Obama Rejects 'Notion That the West Is at War With Islam'

  19-02-2015 20:31
  
  President Obama today challenged the idea that terrorist groups like al Qaeda and the Islamic State are connected to the Islamic faith during remarks at the White house Summit to Counter Violent Extremism. "The notion that the West is at war with Islam is an ugly lie," Obama said.
  
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• Fourth-graders can visit national parks for free. Will it lure kids outside?

  19-02-2015 20:23
  
  Beginning in the fall of 2015, all fourth-graders and their families will have free access to national parks and other federal lands, President Obama is expected to announce in Chicago on Thursday. The statement released by the White House announcing the initiative cited a 2010 Kaiser Family Foundation study, which showed that young people devote an average of more than seven hours a day to electronic media use, or about 53 hours per week.
  
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• US State Dept spokeswoman steps down

  19-02-2015 19:56
  
  State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki, who has proved a bugbear for Russian officials, is to leave her post to become the new White House director of communications, officials said Thursday. During her two years in office, Psaki has become a familiar face both abroad and at home as spokeswoman for globe-trotting chief US diplomat John Kerry. A veteran of both President Barack Obama's political campaigns and Kerry's 2004 White House bid, Psaki was "the obvious and first choice for
  
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• US seeks to spur global action against jihadists

  19-02-2015 19:49
  
  Gathering ministers and top officials from more than 60 countries on the third and final day of a White House summit, President Barack Obama pledged the United States would be "a strong partner" in seeking to halt the march of groups like Islamic State (IS).
  
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• The top critic of the White House’s net neutrality plan was appointed by Obama

  19-02-2015 19:39
  
  AP/Susan Walsh, file FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai. One of President Barack Obama’s appointees on the Federal Communications Commission has spent the past few weeks on a high profile campaign to attack White House’s “net neutrality” plan. At a press conference last week, the Republican commissioner, Ajit Pai, didn’t mince words in his opening remarks. “The American people are being misled about President Obama’s plan to regulate the internet,” Pai declared at the FCC’s headquarter
  
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• Correction - White House denies U.S. scheduled to meet with Taliban on peace deal

  19-02-2015 19:35
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - (Eliminates reference to Pakistani military officials in first paragraph) The White House denied reports that U.S. officials planned to meet with the Taliban on Thursday, a spokeswoman said. "The United States currently has no meetings with the Taliban scheduled in Doha," said Bernadette Meehan, a spokeswoman for the White House’s National Security Council. "We remain supportive of an Afghan-led reconciliation process whereby the Taliban and the Afghans en
  
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• US seeks to spur global action to counter extremists

  19-02-2015 19:17
  
  Gathering ministers and top officials from more than 60 countries on the third and final day of a White House summit, President Barack Obama pledged the US would be "a strong partner" in seeking to halt the march of groups like Islamic State (IS).
  
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• White House says 'deeply troubled' by Ukraine fighting

  19-02-2015 18:58
  
  ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) - The White House said on Thursday that it was "deeply troubled" by reports that fighting continued in eastern Ukraine in spite of a cease-fire agreement signed last week. White House spokesman Eric Schultz said Moscow and other parties to the Minsk agreement need to abide by all their commitments. "What was agreed to last week was not a shopping list," Schultz told reporters. (Reporting by Julia Edwards; Editing by Doina Chiacu)
  
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• John Kerry: 'No one country can stop violent extremism'

  19-02-2015 18:17
  
  US Secretary of State John Kerry has said that "no one country" can stop violent extremism. Delivering the opening remarks on the second day of a White House summit on the prevention of violent extremism, Kerry said militants bent on attacks are a formidable foe that must be countered.
  
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• Obama picks State's Psaki to lead White House communications

  19-02-2015 17:53
  
  By Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has picked U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki to take over as White House communications director, bringing someone with whom he has a long history back into his inner circle as other long-time aides depart. "Jen worked on both my campaigns, she's served in the White House and she's traveled the world as an advisor to Secretary (John) Kerry," Obama said in a statement. "I fully trust Jen - and I am thri
  
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• Obama picks State Department's Psaki as communications aide

  19-02-2015 17:01
  
  President Barack Obama has picked U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki to take over as White House communications director, officials said on Thursday. "Jen worked on both my campaigns, she's served in the White House and she's traveled the world as an advisor to Secretary (John) Kerry," Obama said in a statement. "I fully trust Jen - and I am thrilled she's agreed to come back to the White House," he said. Psaki will start at the White House on April 1
  
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• Obama picks State's Psaki to head White House communications

  19-02-2015 16:30
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — White House officials say State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki will become President Barack Obama's new communications director, filling a key slot as Obama embarks on the final two years of his presidency.
  
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• US says world must fight 'new war on new enemy'

  19-02-2015 16:01
  
  On the third and final day of a White House summit called by President Barack Obama after a series of brutal jihadist attacks around the world, delegates were to hammer out ways to combat the threat posed by radical extremist groups. "We have to come together and ask what's our strategy?" Kerry said, as he opened the summit at the State Department in the wake of shocking beheadings and murders by the Islamic State group (IS) in Iraq and Syria. The "emergence of a new generati
  
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• Netanyahu on collision course with White House over Iran

  19-02-2015 15:19
  
  By Luke Baker JERUSALEM (Reuters) - For someone who was educated in the United States, speaks fluent American-accented English and worked as a management consultant in Boston, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sure knows how to rub his closest ally up the wrong way. In surprisingly critical and unvarnished comments on Wednesday, White House spokesman Josh Earnest accused Israel of distorting details of the negotiations over Iran's nuclear programme in order to scupper the talks. ...
  
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• No US-Taliban meetings planned in Doha: White House

  19-02-2015 14:50
  
  Washington (AFP) - The White House said Thursday there are currently no meetings planned in Qatar between US and Taliban officials to discuss possible peace talks on Afghanistan, as Taliban sources reported.
  
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• White House denies U.S. scheduled to meet with Taliban on peace deal

  19-02-2015 14:19
  
  The White House denied reports from senior Pakistani army officials that U.S. officials planned to meet with the Taliban on Thursday, a spokeswoman said. "The United States currently has no meetings with the Taliban scheduled in Doha," said Bernadette Meehan, a spokeswoman for the White House’s National Security Council. "We remain supportive of an Afghan-led reconciliation process whereby the Taliban and the Afghans engage in talks toward a settlement to resolve the conflict in Afghanistan."
  
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• White House: Higher wages needed to make up for stagnation

  19-02-2015 12:08
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's top economists say that even as the U.S. has managed to kick start a lasting and growing recovery, modest wage gains are far from making up for decades of paycheck stagnation for middle-class workers.
  
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• Obamacare Tax Traps Are Ready to Grab Your Refund

  19-02-2015 11:15
  
  The White House felt pretty pleased with its efforts in the second year of open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act (ACA), better known as Obamacare. The front-end problems are just the beginning, though.
  
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• 'Morocco's anti-extremism strategy a model to follow'

  19-02-2015 09:30
  
  Washington, Feb 19 (IANS) Morocco's experience in fighting violent extremism and promoting the values of moderate Islam is a model to follow not only for the Middle East and North Africa but also for the whole world, a leading US expert has said. Peter Pham, Director of the Africa Center of the US think-tank Atlantic Council, said on Wednesday that Morocco's strategy to counter violent extremism stands as a model in the region and in the world as it is based on a comprehensive approach that addr
  
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• Gaffe-prone Psaki moving to the White House - RT

  19-02-2015 09:00
  
  Gaffe-prone Psaki moving to the White House  RT
  
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• Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index closes at 15-year high

  19-02-2015 08:24
  Tokyo's Nikkei 225 closed at a 15-year high on Thursday, sitting at a level last seen when Sony's groundbreaking PlayStation 2 hit the shelves, the Dot-com bubble was collapsing and Bill Clinton still occupied the White House. The benchmark index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 0.36 percent, or 65.62 points, to 18,264.79, its best finish since May 2000, while the broader Topix index of all first-section shares climbed 0.83 percent, or 12.26 points, to 1,494.93. Wall Street closed near
  
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• ‘We’re Not Fighting Islam, But Those Who Perverted It’ – Obama

  19-02-2015 07:52
  
  United States (US) President Barack Obama said military power alone cannot stop Islamic extremists, and communities must do more to discredit the notion Islam is “polluted” by Western values. Speaking to representatives from 60 nations during a three-day event on extremism at the White House, Obama said there were a lot of Muslims who did
  
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• Not at war with Islam, but those who perverted Islam: Obama

  19-02-2015 05:40
  
  Washington, Feb 19 (IANS) Asserting that not religion but people are responsible for violence and terrorism, President Barack has declined to call the war against Islamic State terror group in Iraq and Syria as a war against a religion. "We are not at war with Islam, we are at war with those who have perverted Islam," he said in his keynote address Wednesday at a three -day White House summit on combating violent extremists attended by representatives of 60 nations. "The terrorists do not speak
  
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• Fight against extremism isn't against Islam: Obama

  19-02-2015 05:23
  
  Washington, Feb 19 (IANS) US President Barack Obama has said the fight against violent extremism is not against Islam and the world should resist granting religious legitimacy to terrorist groups. "We are not at war with Islam," Xinhua quoted Obama as saying Wednesday during a keynote speech on the second day of the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism. "We are at war with people who have perverted Islam." Obama stressed that it was vital not to stigmatise any community just becaus
  
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• ‘The Imitation Game': The White House’s Oscar Favorite

  19-02-2015 02:43
  
  Based on cryptic responses from inside the White House, President Obama and the First Family’s viewing plans on Oscar night must be a closely-guarded secret. What can be safely assumed, though, is that executive branchers will be pulling hard Sunday for one nominee they can (almost) call one of their own — “The Imitation Game”... Read more »
  
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• ‘Hamilton’ Review: Jeremy Gerard On The Hip-Hop Founders Musical

  19-02-2015 02:20
  
  Lin-Manual Miranda’s Hamilton has been the most talked-about musical since the rapper-composer-lyricist first performed the show’s title song for the Obamas at a White House gathering six years ago. Miranda, a real rising star on Broadway, is also author of the Tony-winning In The Heights. In his latest work, Manuel tells the story of Alexander Hamilton, the Founding Father best known as the face on the $10 bill and loser to Aaron Burr in a gun duel. Hamilton was much…
  
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• Obama says World must fight 'false promises' of extremism

  19-02-2015 00:49
  
  US President Barack Obama on Wednesday urged Western and Muslim leaders to unite to defeat the "false promises of extremism" and reject jihadists' claims to represent Islam. "The terrorists do not speak for a billion Muslims," Obama told delegates from 60 countries at a White House summit on countering radicalism. "They try to portray themselves as religious leaders, holy warriors," he said. In the wake of brutal jihadist attacks in Europe and the Middle East,
  
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• 'Fight against violent extremism does not equate fight against Islam'

  19-02-2015 00:36
  
  Washington, Feb 19 (IANS) US President Barack Obama said that the fight against violent extremism did not mean it was a fight against Islam and the world should resist granting religious legitimacy to terrorist groups. Delivering a keynote speech Wednesday at the second day of the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism, Obama stressed that it was vital not to stigmatise any community just because of their faith, while calling on Muslim leaders to speak up in the fight against violent
  
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• Pentagon chief opts for civilian as press secretary

  19-02-2015 00:27
  
  US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, in one of his first decisions since taking office, plans to replace the military officer who serves as the Pentagon press spokesman with a civilian, officials said Wednesday. Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters he would be stepping down and defense officials said he would be succeeded by a civilian, amid concerns that a member of the military should not be embroiled in potentially politically charged questions. Kirby, who was appointed to the post by former
  
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• Obama At Extremism Summit: ‘There’s No Way To Predict Who Will Become Radicalized’

  19-02-2015 00:07
  
  At the second day of a White House summit on violence extremism, President Obama asserted that there is no way to predict who will become a terrorist, and also addressed criticism that he’s been vague about radical Islam’s role in terrorism. There’s no way to predict who will become radicalized,” Obama said Wednesday afternoon. Obama’s comments are ironic given that the extremist summit is aimed at addressing elements rising up in the Muslim community. Obama also addressed criticism
  
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