Current Events issue 15, 2009

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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 15 News Updates

PRESIDENT OBAMA: GETTING DOWN TO WORK

Busy, Busy, Busy. He's been in office only little more than a week, but President Obama has been a man on a mission. Here's just a sample of some of the things he's accomplished in just seven days:

Sent an $819 billion economic stimulus package to Congress. The package is designed to put money into the economy and provide jobs for people. The House passed the package and it's now up for a vote in the Senate.
Signed an executive order calling for the terrorist detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to be closed within a year.
Signed a new law making it easier for women to sue companies that don't pay them equal pay with men.
Sent a letter to Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calling for better relations between the United States and Iran.

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 CONFIRMED
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.

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