President Barack Obama and his lovely wife Michelle took their first trip abroad this past week as President and First Lady. The Obamas’ arrived in England last Tuesday to kick off an eight day, five country trip in which he’ll meet with European leaders and dive head first in the demanding task of improving the United States’ image and relations with foreign countries. His first order of business was the G20 Summit in London to address the global financial crisis among a group of 20 wealthy and developing nations that together represent 85 percent of the worlds economy.
While her husband met with the leaders of many important and influential nations, Michelle Obama enchanted Europe with her personal style and elegance. Although she captivated the Europeans, it was First Lady Obama’s personal approach which truly won over the public’s opinion. She took to sightseeing in France, met Queen Elizabeth II (whom she hugged and was asked to keep in touch with), made a surprise visit to an inner city school in London and gave a speech on the importance of believing in one’s self.
According to several news polls, President Obama’s European tour was a success in the eyes of the American people. About 79 percent of Americans who were surveyed felt that the President’s trip had a positive effect on how the people of other countries view the USA. On his way back to the U.S. President Obama made a surprise visit to Iraq. He met with members of the U.S. military and took part in the awarding of 10 medals of valor.
In less than three months Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and the entire State Department, have embarked on a digital diplomacy overhaul aimed at spreading the word about American foreign policy and restoring Washington’s tainted image. This overhaul, being a part of a broader internet outreach by the Obama administration, has already surpassed Clinton’s predecessors.
Here’s the rundown:
They’ve revamped the State Department website and blog to include colorful graphics and exciting new features, one of which allows the user to sound off on how Secretary Clinton should handle situations that may arise during her tenure.
You can track Clinton’s foreign travels on an interactive map.
You can keep up virtually with the Secretary’s every move via outlets such as Twitter, Facebook, Flicker, and YouTube.
Before you could only pose questions in the departments ‘Ask the Secretary’ column which has now been changed to also include a ‘Text the Secretary’ option.
I’m excited for this change. It makes Secretary Clinton WAY more accessible than any of the men and women that sat in her seat before. Just imagine being able to track her travels, post questions about her progress, and even follow her department on Twitter. It all may seem a bit overwhelming but its nice to know that this Administration actually wants to know what we think about the activities taking place in the world.
Be sure to check out the links above and make your voice heard!
Since March is Women’s History Month, this seemed appropriate to tell everyone about. President Obama signed an executive order officially creating the White House Council on Women and Girls. The Council was designed to ensure that federal agencies pay extreme attention to the way their policies impact women and families.
President Obama signed the order March 11th and said that he wanted to ensure that areas such as equal pay, childcare, and family leave, are not just women’s issues but economic, social, and family issues as well. The council will work on improving women’s economic security and women’s health care, finding innovative ways to prevent violence against women, as well as developing family friendly policies.
The White House Council on Women and Girls will be headed by President Obama’s senior advisor Valerie Jarrett, who also happens to be a single mother. She will lead a group of Cabinet secretaries and other administration officials in their crusade to ensure America is a better place for women and girls.
Check the video below of President Obama explaining his decision to create the Council:
DJ Z-Trip put together a “Victory Lap” mix for MoveOn.org and it’s available for free download here. He dropped Part I of the mix back in October and you can download that mix for free as well here. Enjoy!
DJ Zita and DMadness were recently burglarized and and the vandals stole ALL of their DJ equipment, laptop, jewelry, and many other personal belongings. All proceeds from the door & the silent auction this night will go to helping them back on their feet. Bay Area all-stars VINROC, PLATURN, MR. E, SHREDONE, DJ Zita, plus Knowmadic residents DMADNESS & MPENZI will be takin’ it back with old school hip hop and R&B.  They also have some dope items in the Silent Auction… a framed Shephard Fairey Obama HOPE poster, 2 Mixerfriendly canvases, an exclusive pair of Mama Adidas w/ matching black velvet New Era hat, an autographed copy of Jeff Chang’s book, an autographed copy of Bryant Terry’s book Grub, paintings, mix CD packs and more! Save the date! Come out, have some fun, and in true “season of giving” spirit, help raise funds to help them out. Details about the event after the jump
Everyday this week, Upper Playground and Fifty24SF are hosting a different contest each day to win Obama Prints that are valued at $200 each. For today’s contest, 5 copies of the Alex Pardee Obama print are up for grabs. The print is signed and numbered out of 200. To win, go to Upper Playground’s Facebook page and retrieve a clue, then go to Fifty24SF’s Myspace page and retrieve another clue. Then, find the video on the Upper Playground video channel that matches the two clues and post the name of it on UP’s Facebook page discussion board. Sound complicated? It’s not. Go do it! Good Luck!!
Also, along with this contest, Upper Playground and Fifty24SF are hosting a weeklong art competition where you have the opportunity to submit your own Obama print to Fifty24SF. To do so post your print entry’s to the Fifty24SF Gallery Facebook “Fan Photos” section. The winner they choose will receive five different prints from UP’s Obama series of prints, and the winning art will be featured as UP’s and Fifty24SF’s profile pic on Myspace and Facebook for all of next week leading up to the election. Your 15 minutes may be almost here!
“We’re gonna take it week by week. If she wins, I’m done. I can’t do that for four years. And by ‘I’m done,’ I mean I’m leaving Earth.”
Tina Fey can do pretty much anything. So I totally believe her when she says she’ll do a Stephen Hawking and hop a Virgin Galactic rocket to space…Okay, she didn’t say that exactly…but you get what I’m trying to say—VOTE OBAMA!
We recently posted about “The Party for Change� fundraisers for the Obama campaign put on by the amazing duo of Shepard Fairey and DJ Z-Trip. Z-Trip has generously put the mix he was doing at these shows online, in hopes of spreading the word to people who need to hear it most.
So, here it is: Click the image below to download and please read the message from Z-Trip below…
I encourage you to download it and pass it along to anyone you think should hear it. Feel free to burn copies, share it with friends, family, co-workers, strangers, and especially anyone you know is on the fence about this election. I’m also putting out a radio friendly version, in case anyone wants to broadcast it.
Please share the message. Educate those who may not know what is really going on. There is still time.
If you, or anyone you know, isn’t registered to vote, I encourage you to make it a priority and fix that before it’s too late. This election is WAY too important for anyone to not get involved. If you need more information on how and where to register, vote, or participate, please check the links below.
I honestly feel if we make our voices heard, this time WILL be different.
But I’m going to anyway. The upcoming presidential election will have an effect on us for the next 20 to 30 years. How? When you elect a president, you also need to look at his stance on the forgotten 3rd Branch of government - The Supreme Court. The President nominates potential Justices and once nominated and confirmed to the Supreme Court, Justices keep their positions for life. That means that whomever our next president nominates to the Supreme Court may have that position for many, many years.
I just read this article on NPR discussing the wide ideological differences between Obama and McCain on the abortion issue. Republican presumptive nominee McCain “has said that he would appoint Supreme Court justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark court decision from the 1970s that legalized abortion.” VERY SCARY. Read the full article on how the 2 men differ on their stances here. Make informed decisions. Register to Vote. That’s one to grow on.
