![Zach Galifianakis Interviews President Barack Obama [VIDEO]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_uH52h607QSDBcTXDgekV-wfDA1mRWdFbEtBO3xzfA0g8Bm_Asogt_UG3tjxwLjpWOP9-2ZyzZXVilHYy1btWPWj-iodUbiUHl4x-qFdrW3tTLJmHztziX7HPCqT04ueCkol1iL7mgDG35IlkPktFA7cZvwjZcS=s0-d)
Zach Galifianakis and Obama partake in witty banter against each other. Obama criticizes the popularity of the show, The Hangover 3 being a dud, and Bradley Cooper being superior to Zach. Zach mentions Obama’s birth certificate and asks what it’s like to be the “last black president.”
Naturally, all the jokes lead into Obama’s plug for the Affordable Healthcare Act, which still affords a few laughs.
For decades, opportunity has lagged behind for boys and young men of color. But across the country, communities are adopting approaches to help put these boys and young men on the path to success. The President wants to build on that work. We can learn from communities that are partnering with local businesses and foundations to connect these boys and young men to mentoring, support networks, and skills they need to find a good job or go to college and work their way up into the middle class. And the Administration will do its part by helping to identify and promote programs that work.
That starts by using proven tools that expand opportunity at key moments in the lives of these young people. The President believes this includes ensuring access to basic health, nutrition, and to high-quality early education to get these kids reading and ready for school at the youngest age. But that’s not enough. We need to partner with communities and police to reduce violence and make our classrooms and streets safer. And we need to help these young men stay in school and find a good job– so they have the opportunity to reach their full potential, contribute to their communities and build decent lives for themselves and their families.
Full Story: Whitehouse
Obama will also pledge to work with Congress on legislation to increase the federal minimum wage for all workers from its current $7.25 to $10.10, said the administration officials who disclosed the plan on condition of anonymity so as not to preempt the president’s speech.
“The President is using his executive authority to lead by example, and will continue to work with Congress to finish the job for all Americans by passing the (congressional) bill,” said in a White House statement.
Obama delivers his annual State of the Union speech Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET.
The minimum wage debate highlights a speech in which Obama is also expected to call on Congress to pass a major immigration bill, and to outline his domestic and foreign policy agendas for the year ahead, including a variety of executive orders.
Obama’s minimum wage order will cover people who are performing services, such as janitors or construction workers, and are making less than $10.10 per hour.
Officials did not estimate how many people might be affected, but it might not be many. The increase will take effect with contracts signed after Obama’s order, and would only apply to contract renewals if other terms of the agreement are changed.
In his address, Obama will also make it clear he is prepared to take executive action in a variety of areas if Congress — including the Republican-run House — does not pass legislation. In addition to the minimum wage, he is expected to announce executive actions on job training and assistance to the long-term unemployed.
“You can be sure that the President fully intends to use his executive authority — to use the unique powers of the office — to make progress on economic opportunity,” said White House spokesman Jay Carney, who declined to discuss details of the speech.
Obama is also expected to discuss pledges his team has solicited from major corporations, asking them not to discriminate against the long-term unemployed.
The commutations were the first to happen retroactively for the inmates, who all would have received significantly shorter sentences after the passing of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. President Obama and his administration have been working on ways to limit the taxpayer burden in operating prisons and to bring equality back to the justice system.
President Obama issued a statement regarding the commutations, addressing the aforementioned law and its aims of ending the disparity between crack and powder cocaine sentences.
From The White House:
Today, I am commuting the prison terms of eight men and women who were sentenced under an unfair system. Each of them has served more than 15 years in prison. In several cases, the sentencing judges expressed frustration that the law at the time did not allow them to issue punishments that more appropriately fit the crime.President Obama is calling on Congress to focus on sentence reform in a bid to lower the reckless spending of taxpayer dollars. There is currently a bipartisan bill that would make the Fair Sentencing Act retroactive for some offenders and allow their cases to be reviewed for a lower sentence.
Of the inmates, Clarence Aaron has served the longest after being slapped with three life sentences in 1993 at the age of 22. Ironically, Aaron may have been freed sooner under the Bush administration if not for a reportedly botched review process. Stephanie George received a life sentence in 1997 for stashing crack at her home for a boyfriend.
Both Aaron and George will be freed in April. The other inmates will be released in 120 days or so.
Obama made the announcement Tuesday. King will represent the United States in the opening ceremony, while Cahow will be part of the delegation for the closing ceremony.bleacherreport
The White House's official release included the following:
“An impressive group of officials and iconic athletes will represent our government at the upcoming Olympic Winter Games in Sochi. We’re honored to assist their participation in any way that we can and certain that America’s elite athletes will put on a great show.”
The move from the White House is seen as a clear and strong denouncement of Russian laws that prohibit the promotion of nontraditional sexual relationships to minors. Signed in June by president Vladimir Putin, the laws ban public displays of affection between non-heterosexual couples and even the discussion of same-sex relationships in an effort to curb their exposure to children. Penalties for violations of those laws include jail time, fines and other punitive damages.
Since those laws came into effect, many have wondered what that would entail for Olympians from other countries who are traveling to Sochi. The Russian government has sent mixed signals on this front, with Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko threatening to jail gay athletes if they violate the laws.
As outcry worldwide has increased, there have been multiple calls to action from civil rights groups. In October, multiple protesters took to New York City and called for an outright boycott of the Winter Games. While the Obama administration has refused to take that strong of a stand, the President's recent actions have clarified his disapproval of the law.
The Sochi Games will be the first time since 2000 that the United States has not sent a major political leader to the Olympics. First Lady Michelle Obama led the delegation at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, and Vice President Joe Biden did the same at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games.
German president Joachim Gauck and French president Francois Hollande have also chosen to boycott the event, per CNN's Mark Morgenstein. Human Rights Campaign spokesperson Michael Cole-Schwartz told the Associated Press' Eddie Pells that Obama's decision to have King and Cahow represent the U.S. was a huge step.
It's a positive sign to see openly gay representatives in the delegation," Cole-Schwartz said. "Hopefully it sends a message to the Russian people and the rest of the world that the United States values the civil and human rights of LGBT people."
King is one of the most recognizable gay athletes in the world. Her victory over Bobby Riggs in the Battle of the Sexes in 1973 was seen as a watershed moment for equal treatment of women in sports, and she has been a staunch advocate for LGBT rights as well. Earlier this year she was one of the first inductees into the National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame.
King told the AP's Pells, "I am equally proud to stand with the members of the LGBT community in support of all athletes who will be competing in Sochi and I hope these Olympic Games will indeed be a watershed moment for the universal acceptance of all people,"
Cahow, 28, is retired from hockey. She was a member of the United States' bronze medal-winning team in 2006 and their silver-medal run in 2010.
The Danish politician, who is married to British executive Stephen Kinnock, appeared particularly chummy with President Obama but Michelle Obama, 49, seemed annoyed at the mingling, looking solemn as she stared intently in the opposite direction and paid attention to the proceedings.
Oprah intended to make her unique White House access a part of her new network,” a source close to Oprah told me. “There were big plans, and a team was put together to come up with proposals that would have been mutually beneficial. “But none of that ever happened. Oprah sent notes and a rep to talk to Valerie Jarrett, but nothing came of it. It slowly dawned on Oprah that the Obamas had absolutely no intention of keeping their word and bringing her into their confidence.”
Oprah did not campaign for Obama in the 2012 race, and she has been absent from his battles on gun control, immigration reform and the environment. She claims she is too busy to get involved in politics, even though she hosted a fund-raiser for Newark Mayor Cory Booker, who won a US Senate seat last week.
Oprah’s friends publicly dismiss the idea that she had a falling out with Obama. They note that she phoned Michelle Obama right after the 2012 election to congratulate her. They say Michelle invited her to have dinner with the first family. But the dinner never took place, and Oprah continues to be frozen out.
“Oprah was hoping there would be a genuine change in the atmospherics,” one of her friends told me. “But there hasn’t been. Clearly, she is being rebuffed at the level of Michelle and Valerie. And, just as obviously, President Obama hasn’t interfered on Oprah’s behalf.” During Obama’s first term, I argued in my book “The Amateur” that Michelle was jealous of Oprah, furious that he was seeking her advice.
“For her part, Oprah doesn’t like being with Michelle, because the first lady is constantly one-upping the president and anybody else around her,” said an Oprah adviser. “Oprah has struck back by banning the Obamas from her O, The Oprah Magazine . . . It probably hurts Oprah more than Obama, who, if he had his head screwed on straight, would have flown to California and begged Oprah to help him save ObamaCare.
“But Obama hasn’t budged, and neither has Oprah. She’s hurt and angry, and I seriously doubt that Oprah will ever make up with the Obamas. She knows how to hold a grudge
The Prez was asked about the issues renewed controversy over the past few months … and proclaimed nostalgia isn’t a good enough reason to keep the name.
Saying if he were team owner … there’d be serious discussion about changing it.
However, Barrack doesn’t think fans of the name are being racist — they’re just passionate for team history.
Obama joins a growing movement of people once again pushing for the change — including NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
Name change or not … the Redskins still suck this season.
