Archive for the ‘Obama’ Category

Ava DuVernay Pays Tribute To Michelle Obama’s Slave Ancestor – HuffPost

What a difference 120 years can make.

Ava DuVernay shared a powerful photo on Twitter Saturday morning honoring the progress African-Americans have made throughout the history of the United States.

Become your ancestors wildest dream, the Selma director tweeted, attaching a photo of a memorial that pays tribute to one of former first lady Michelle Obamas ancestors, Melvinia Shields, who was a slave.

She was born a slave in South Carolina in 1844, the memorial inscription reads. Obama was born in 1964, 120 years after her great-great-great-grandmother.

Shields is buried elsewhere inGeorgia, but the memorial stands in Rex, a community outside of Atlanta, where she worked as a slave on a farm, a struggle referenced on the memorial.

At age 6 she was brought to the nearby Shields farm in what is now Rex, Clayton County, Georgia, states the inscription on the memorial, which was dedicated in 2014,according to The Rome News-Tribune.

Her family would endure a five-generation journey that began in oppression and would lead her descendent to become first lady of the United States of America, Michelle Obama, the inscription continues. Theirs is a story of hope.

But despite all the progress, America still has a long way to go to overcome prejudice, something Obama and her husband,former PresidentBarack Obama, know from firsthand experience.

In December, Barack Obama, spoke on CNN of the racism hed facedduring his eight years in the White House.Attitudes about my presidency among whites in northern states are very different from whites in southern states, he noted.

And last month,Michelle Obama opened up during a talk to a group of women about the struggles she experienced as first lady. Knowing that after eight years of working really hard for this country, there are still people who wont see me for what I am because of my skin color, Obama said.

Still, her great-great-great-grandmother would probably be amazed to find out that her granddaughter made it all the way to the White House. And shed sure as hell be proud of her and her husband for speaking out about the racist attacks they experienced.

We cant wait to see how the legacy of the Obama family will continue into the future. (No pressure, Malia and Sasha.)

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Ava DuVernay Pays Tribute To Michelle Obama's Slave Ancestor - HuffPost

Malia Obama Gets Turnt at 2017 Lollapalooza – XXLMAG.COM

Pool, Getty Images

Just because you are the former President of the United States daughter, it doesnt mean you cant turn up with the best of them. Malia Obama was recently spotted at 2017 Lollapalooza enjoying the show. And when we say enjoying the show, we mean she was absolutely turnt.

Footage has surfaced of the former First Daughter and a friend having a good old time at the show. In the video, the friend appears to drunkenly fall at Malias feet, who then proceeds to wildly play air drums before helping the girl up.

In another section of the clip, Malia falls to the ground and pounds the pavement as The Killers rock out onstage. She definitely looks like she had a night to remember. If she can remember anything today.

The Chicago native is definitely a fan of her hometown music festival and it seems to be the place where she likes to unwind. Last year, she was spotted at 2016 Lollapolooza reportedly smoking weed in the crowd. A festival attendee named Jerrdin Selwyn blew up Malias spot. I caught Malia smoking pot and I have the pictures to prove it, Selwyn said. You could smell the marijuana smoke. I saw some young guy hand her a cigarette and she took at least one hit on it. She had it in her hand for about one minute, then gave it back to him.

Can she live?

In other Lollapalooza-related news, Vic Mensa and Chance The Rapper reunited onstage last night (Aug. 5) at the event.

Check out the footage of Malia turning up below.

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Malia Obama Gets Turnt at 2017 Lollapalooza - XXLMAG.COM

An Obama Labor Ruling That Threatens Small Businesses – Wall Street Journal (subscription)


Wall Street Journal (subscription)
An Obama Labor Ruling That Threatens Small Businesses
Wall Street Journal (subscription)
A top goal of President Obama's National Labor Relations Board was to make union organizing easier. With this objective in mind, the board subjected countless employers to unprecedented bargaining obligations and legal liabilities. In 2015 the NLRB ...

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An Obama Labor Ruling That Threatens Small Businesses - Wall Street Journal (subscription)

It’s Officially Barack Obama Day In Illinois – HuffPost

Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner(R) has signed a law designating Aug. 4 as Barack Obama Day in the state, the governors office confirmed Friday.

The honorary holiday commemorates the former presidents birthday. Its not a legal holiday schools and state offices remained open Friday but is intended to celebrate Obamas career and recognize his political roots in the state.

August 4th of each year is designated as Barack Obama Day, to be observed throughout the State as a day set apart to honor the 44th President of the United States of America who began his career serving the People of Illinois in both the Illinois State Senate and the United States Senate, and dedicated his life to protecting the rights of Americans and building bridges across communities, reads the text of the bill.

The bill passed without any oppositionin both chambers of the states legislature.

An earlier version of the bill, which would have designated Aug. 4 as legal holiday, failed in March due to its nearly $20 million price tag.

Rauner voiced support for the honorary holiday in February.

Its incredibly proud for Illinois that the president came from Illinois. I think its awesome, and I think we should celebrate it, Rauner said to a reporter. I dont think it should be a formal holiday with paid, forced time off, but I think it should be a day of acknowledgment and celebration.

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It's Officially Barack Obama Day In Illinois - HuffPost

How does Trump White House turnover compare to Bush, Obama? – PolitiFact

A timeline of the resignations and firings of top government officials during President Donald Trump's administration.

President Donald Trump called July 31 a "great day" at the White House.

The characterization clashed with news headlines of internal upheaval: July 31 was the 10th and final day of Anthony Scaramuccis tenure as communications director and John Kellys first day as chief of staff after the forced departure of Reince Priebus.

In the past six months, the Trump administration has seen the firing or resignation of its chief of staff, communications director, press secretary, FBI director, ethics director, national security adviser and more.

Pundits and members of the media have remarked on the "chaotic" turnover.

But is the Trump turnover as rapid as it seems?

We compared the length of service of the most high-profile departed Trump staffers to people in the same role in the administrations of President Barack Obama and President George W Bush.

In context, the speed of Trumps hires and fires have been surprising, but not unprecedented across the board.

Chief of Staff

Bushs first: 1,911 days

Obamas first: 620 days

Trumps first: 189 days

Priebus was in fact the shortest-serving chief of staff in history. He served for 189 days, while the second-shortest stint (Kenneth Duberstein under Ronald Reagan) lasted 203 days.

Pete Rouse served for only 104 days as interim chief of staff for Obama in 2010 after his first chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, left to run for Chicago mayor. But Priebus wasnt in an interim role.

Communications director

Bushs first: 256 days

Obamas first: 92 days

Trumps first: 134 days

The communications director is the newest role on this list, created in 1969 by the Nixon administration. The first director was Herbert Klein, who lasted the longest in office. He was tasked with dealing with the Watergate scandal that eventually led to Nixons impeachment.

Trump has gone through three communications directors so far, with Scaramucci serving the shortest period as the second person named to the role.

His 10 days as communications director (he was not officially supposed to start until Aug. 15th) almost beat out Jack Koehler for shortest tenure. Koehler worked in the Ronald Reagan administration and stepped down after a week on the job, when news broke that he once belonged to a Nazi youth group.

Trumps first communications director was Republican operative Michael Dubke. He was on the job for 134 days. Press Secretary Sean Spicer took on his responsibilities for 53 days until Scaramucci came along, at which point he resigned.

There have been other brief tenures in the position in the recent past.

Ellen Moran served for 92 days at the start of the Obama administration, after which she became chief of staff for Commerce Secretary Gary Locke.

George Stephanopoulos, under the Clinton administration, served for 138 days. George W. Bushs first communications director, Karen Hughes, lasted just over eight months.

Press secretary

Bushs first: 906 days

Obamas first: 753 days

Trumps first: 182 days

Spicer, Trumps first press secretary, lasted 182 days.

There have been shorter tenures. Jerald Franklin terHorst was in office for one month at the start of Gerald Fords presidency and acting press secretary Stephen Early served for 13 days under President Harry Truman.

In more recent history, Bushs first press secretary, Ari Fleischer, lasted over two and a half years. Obamas Robert Gibbs worked in the role just over two years.

National Security Adviser

Michael Flynn set another record for shortest tenure as national security adviser, a position established in 1953 amid the Cold War.

Flynn was on the job for 24 days before he resigned (Feb. 13); the average is 2.6 years, according to the Washington Post.

Flynn acknowledged in his resignation that he misled Vice President Mike Pence and others about illegal conversations with a Russian official.

Stephen Hadley lasted four years as Bushs first national security adviser and Thomas Donilon lasted for two years and eight months under Obama.

FBI director

Former FBI director James Comey wasnt the shortest-serving FBI director in history, but his tenure is on the shorter end at three years and eight months. He is the second FBI director ever to be fired.

The last and only other time this happened was when Clinton fired William Sessions after he refused to step down amid ethical concerns in 1993.

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How does Trump White House turnover compare to Bush, Obama? - PolitiFact