Welcome to Current Events!

“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.
The important thing is not to stop questioning.” —Albert Einstein

On this site you will find story updates, additional resources, including Smart Stuff quizzes, and links to CE’s News Blog for students. Be sure to check back each issue!

Issue 14 News Updates

GETTING OUT OF GAZA

Israel and Hamas have agreed to put down their weapons—for a little while, anyway. On January 18, both sides separately announced temporary cease-fires to end the violence that has recently wracked the Gaza Strip. On December 27, Israel launched a massive assault on Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls Gaza, in response to rocket attacks by Hamas into Israel. At least 1,300 Palestinians and 13 Israelis died in the fighting. Israelis and Palestinians have clashed for decades over land. Though Israeli troops have withdrawn from Gaza, neither side has achieved any long-term goals. Many people wonder how long the fragile cease-fires will hold.

OBAMA CABINET WATCH

It’s official! Former New York Sen. Hillary Clinton is the U.S. Secretary of State. On January 21, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly approved Clinton to run the State Department in a 94 to 2 vote. Who will take her Senate seat? That’s official too. On January 23, New York Gov. David Paterson appointed U.S. Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand to replace Clinton. Here’s how the rest of the Cabinet and Obama Administration is shaping up:

• Secretary of State: Sen. Hillary Clinton, Obama's former Democratic rival for the presidency  CONFIRMED
• Attorney General: Eric Holder, a longtime Justice Department official and former judge
• Defense Secretary: Robert Gates, currently President George W. Bush's secretary of defense
• U.S. Treasury Secretary: Timothy Geithner, president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank
• Energy Secretary: Steven Chu, Nobel Prize-winning physicist and director of the Energy Department's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California  CONFIRMED
• Education Secretary: Arne Duncan, head of the Chicago Public Schools  CONFIRMED
• Transportation Secretary: Ray LaHood, a U.S. House member from Illinois  CONFIRMED
• Labor Secretary: Hilda Solis, a congresswoman from California
• Interior Secretary: Ken Salazar, a U.S. senator from Colorado  CONFIRMED
• Agriculture Secretary: Tom Vilsack, former Iowa governor  CONFIRMED
• Homeland Security Secretary: Janet Napolitano, governor of Arizona  CONFIRMED
• Veterans Affairs Secretary: Gen. Eric Shinseki, former Army Chief of Staff  CONFIRMED
• Health and Human Services Secretary: Tom Daschle, former U.S. Senate Democratic leader
• Housing and Urban Development Secretary: Shaun Donovan, New York City Housing Commissioner  CONFIRMED
  Other top-ranking officials and close advisors announced so far include:
• Chief economic advisor: Lawrence Summers, former U.S. Treasury secretary
• National Security Advisor: Retired Marine Corps Gen. Jim Jones
• Chief of Staff: Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois.
• U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations: Susan Rice, a foreign policy expert and former National Security Council staff member  CONFIRMED
• Environmental Protection Agency Administrator: Lisa Jackson, former head of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection  CONFIRMED
• White House Council on Eneregy and Climiate Director: Carol Browner, who headed the EPA in the Clinton administration
• Office of Management and Budget Director: Peter Orszag, Congressional Budget Office director  CONFIRMED

EYEWITNESS TO HISTORY CONTEST!

The 2009 Eyewitness to History Contest is open. Check your issue 8 teacher's guide or click here for the rules. Check out last year's winners, too.