The operation was part of an overarching border patrol initiative, Project Gunrunner, run by the U. Department of Justice "to combat Mexico-based trafficking groups. A total of 34 trafficking suspects were indicted. On December 14, , about a month before the end of Operation Fast and Furious, Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed in Arizona and two guns from the operation were found near his body.
Attorney General Eric Holder testified before Congress on May 3, , stating he, "probably heard about Fast and Furious for the first time over the last few weeks. Chuck Grassley and Darrell Issa led the investigations into the scandal, and subpoenas were issued to the Justice Department on October 12, , in order to secure documents between the White House and the Department regarding Operation Fast and Furious.
On June 20, , President Obama used his executive privilege over documents sought by the congressional investigative committee, saving Holder from possible charges in the investigation.
On June 28, , the House voted to hold Holder in contempt for failure to disclose the documents. The House Oversight Committee filed a civil lawsuit over the documents on August 13, Holder requested an immediate appeal, which was turned down November 18, It was a reform designed to induce competition among states and school districts for federally allocated grants.
Duncan argued that the incentive to attain Federal grant money and the resulting competition would spur innovation and improve student achievement. To become eligible, states needed to satisfy a "Common Core" of achievement standards. States proposed sweeping reform objectives and then submit grant proposals for programs they believe would achieve the objectives outlined.
Proposals were measured against a scoring criteria, and grants were awarded. The Department of Education then measured states' progress towards their target objectives as the grant renewal process proceeded. Several states were unable to meet proposed targets in Race to the Top funded programs.
As a result, grant allocation slowed significantly after three initial rounds. In , the Department of Education began a new grant allocation round -- Race to the Top-District -- in which school districts, rather than state school systems, may apply for Race to the Top program grants. They were "informed by the highest, most effective models from states across the country and countries around the world and provide teachers and parents with a common understanding of what students are expected to learn" in order to "provide a clear and consistent framework to prepare our children for college and the workforce.
Developed specifically for English Language Arts and Mathematics instruction, "the Standards are 1 research and evidence based, 2 aligned with college and work expectations, 3 rigorous, and 4 internationally benchmarked. Grants are rewarded based on these scores and subsequent rankings: []. The goals of the Race to the Top reforms were: []. Race to the Top grants recipients were announced in three initial rounds. Race to the Top grant allocations slowed significantly after the first three rounds as many states faced delayed implementation of promised reforms.
In , the Department of Education announced a new round of grant allocation -- Race to the Top-District -- in which individual school districts and charter school programs would be eligible for grants.
Sixteen grant winners were selected in A second round of Race to the Top-District grants will be allocated, and in October , 16 finalists for were announced. Despite 45 states and four territories formally adopting Race to the Top's Common Core, public backlash against the new standards became a frequent occurance. In response to the public outcry, several states delayed implementation or rescinded adoption of the standards entirely.
The Alabama state school board voted to revoke their agreement to adhere to the Common Core standards on November 14, However, their existing state standards were still in line with Common Core. However, others such as Pennsylvania and Indiana chose to halt implementation. The aim of the law was to provide an expansion of health insurance coverage to more Americans through both individual health insurance marketplaces as well as through employer-provided plans.
Minimum requirements of coverage were established and both individual and employer mandates were established over a period of years in order to achieve the goal of expanded coverage. Subsidies and tax credits are provided to individual consumers based on income level and dependents, and existing programs such as medicaid and CHIP were expanded to increase reach. Small businesses receive tax credits based on the level of insurance offered to employees, as well.
The law included ten essential benefits that plans created after the law's passage needed to include. Existing plans were grandfathered in, but few of the grandfathered plans remain due to frequent changes to health insurance policies. The case argued that mandated coverage of birth control violated religious freedoms. Both companies' appeals were heard together during a one-hour public session.
Hobby Lobby on June 30, The decision allowed companies to opt out of offering contraceptives on the basis of religious beliefs. Justice Samuel Alito wrote the court's opinion, stating, "We doubt that the Congress that enacted RFRA — or, for that matter, ACA—would have believed it a tolerable result to put family-run businesses to the choice of violating their sincerely held religious beliefs or making all of their employees lose their existing healthcare plans.
The dissenting justices claimed the ruling would allow companies to "opt out of any law saving only tax laws they judge incompatible with their sincerely held religious beliefs. Although the decision expanded the notion of corporate personhood to include religious rights "to provide protection for human beings," members of the public found it highly divisive in nature as it reaffirmed the Court's "pro-business" stance. The order allowed states to individually determine which policies would be more effective for them to reach their goals.
A similar bill was debated by Congress during Obama's first term in office, but it failed to pass. Obama used powers established by the Clean Air Act to sign the executive order. This is about protecting our health and our homes.
This is about protecting local economies and jobs. President Obama gave the EPA until June to finalize the rule, and states had until June to submit their plans, but the EPA pushed the deadline for states back to for those working individually and for those working together on plans.
Coal plants were most likely to be hit the hardest, with estimates that hundreds of the nation's 6, plants would be shut down by He stated, "The proposed rule … will lead to long-term and irreversible job losses for thousands of coal miners, electrical workers, utility workers, boilermakers, railroad workers and others without achieving any significant reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions. Nick Rahall D-WV. On August 26, , President Obama announced 19 new executive orders aimed at improving the functionality of Veterans Affairs hospitals across the country in addition to providing other benefits for veterans.
The executive orders enacted programs in the following areas. Every year in office, the president of the United States addresses Congress on the present state of affairs as well as the administration's goals for the coming year. Obama sought and won re-election as President of the United States in Other candidates that appeared on the ballot received less than 0.
Allen and Bradford Lyttle. The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may not represent all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer, and campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete.
For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law. Obama won re-election to the U. Presidency in Obama won election to the U. Senate in Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets. House seats and 2 Senate seats in In state government elections, the Democratic Party lost one governor's office and gained control of two state legislatures.
House seats and 6 Senate seats in The House turnover was the largest differential since the general election. In state government elections, the Democratic Party lost 8 governors ' offices and lost control of 10 state legislatures. The turnover in state legislature control was the largest differential since the general election. Delegate to the DNC click to expand. Obama was a superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention from Illinois. Obama supported Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination.
Superdelegates in were automatic delegates to the Democratic National Convention, meaning that, unlike regular delegates, they were not elected to this position. Also unlike regular delegates, they were not required to pledge their support to any presidential candidate, and they were not bound by the results of their state's presidential primary election or caucus.
In , superdelegates included members of the Democratic National Committee, Democratic members of Congress, Democratic governors, and distinguished party leaders, including former presidents and vice presidents.
All superdelegates were free to support any presidential candidate of their choosing at the Democratic National Convention. Illinois had delegates at the Democratic National Convention. Of this total, were pledged delegates. National party rules stipulated how Democratic delegates in all states were allocated. Pledged delegates were allocated to a candidate in proportion to the votes he or she received in a state's primary or caucus.
A candidate was eligible to receive a share of the state's pledged delegates if he or she won at least 15 percent of the votes cast in the primary or caucus. There were three types of pledged Democratic delegates: congressional district delegates, at-large delegates, and party leaders and elected officials PLEOs.
Congressional district delegates were allocated proportionally based on the primary or caucus results in a given district. The collection of fine art at the White House has evolved and grown over time. The collection began with mostly Since the James Madison presidency, St. Search WHHA - start typing and then listen for common searches like yours. Explore the Initiative. The Sessions Podcast. Have you Ever Wondered How was the location of the White House selected?
Which president started the tradition of pardoning the Thanksgiving turkey? Who oversees the White House and the Residence staff? Have any presidents or first ladies died at the White House? When did the White House first get plumbing? Mary Todd, whose nickname was Molly, was the child of wealthy parents and received her education in prestigious all-girls schools where On November 4, , T.
Eliot wins the Nobel Prize in Literature, for his profound effect on the direction of modern poetry. Eliot was born in St. Louis, Missouri, to a long-established family. His grandfather had founded Washington University in St.
Louis, his father was a The film, which opened across the United States on November 21, After finding Rothstein bleeding profusely at the service entrance of the hotel, police followed his trail of blood back to a suite where a group of Born in , Owen was teaching English to children near Live TV.
This Day In History. He went on to attend law school, where he became the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review. Upon graduation, he returned to Chicago to help lead a voter registration drive, teach constitutional law at the University of Chicago, and remain active in his community.
President Obama's years of public service are based around his unwavering belief in the ability to unite people around a politics of purpose. In the Illinois State Senate, he passed the first major ethics reform in 25 years, cut taxes for working families, and expanded health care for children and their parents.
As a United States Senator, he reached across the aisle to pass groundbreaking lobbying reform, lock up the world's most dangerous weapons, and bring transparency to government by putting federal spending online.
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