The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
May 08, 2014

Readout of U.S.-Israel Consultative Group Meetings

 

Following productive bilateral meetings with Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Peres and National Security Advisor Yossi Cohen on May 7, National Security Advisor Susan E. Rice and the U.S. delegation participated in the U.S.-Israel Consultative Group meetings in Jerusalem on May 8. The intensive and highly constructive meetings covered a range of bilateral and regional security issues.

On Iran, the U.S. delegation reaffirmed our commitment to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. The U.S delegation briefed on the ongoing diplomatic efforts of the P5+1 and EU to reach a comprehensive solution that peacefully resolves the international community's concerns with its program. The delegations held thorough consultations on all aspects of the challenge posed by Iran, and pledged to continue the unprecedented coordination between the United States and Israel as the negotiations continue.

On other critical regional and bilateral issues, the delegations shared views candidly and intensively, in the spirit of the extraordinary and unprecedented security cooperation between our two countries.

The U.S. Delegation included Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, Under Secretary of the Treasury David Cohen, Assistant Secretary of Defense Derek Chollet, Deputy Director of the CIA Avril Haines, Director of the Joint Staff Lieutenant General David Goldfein, Special Assistant to the President and White House Coordinator for the Middle East Phil Gordon, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro.

National Security Advisors Rice and Cohen agreed that the U.S.-Israel Consultative Group is an effective forum for strategic interagency security consultations between the U.S. and Israeli Governments, and will continue to meet regularly in Washington and Jerusalem. 

 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
May 07, 2014

Remarks by the President at USC Shoah Foundation Dinner

Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel
Los Angeles, California

9:36 P.M. PDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you so much.  (Applause.)  Thank you. Thank you so much.  Please, please, everybody have a seat. 

Well, thank you, Steven, for your incredibly generous words, for this great honor, for your friendship, and most importantly, for the extraordinary work which brings us here all tonight.  To Robert Katz and all the members of the board and staff of the Shoah Foundation; to President Max Nikias and everybody at USC; to all the distinguished guests and to all the friends that I see in this audience -- it is an incredible honor to be with you as we pay tribute to a remarkable institution and one that makes claim on our moral imagination. 

Being here with you tonight, I’m taken back to the visit to Buchenwald that I took in the very first months of my presidency. And I was there with my dear friend, Elie Wiesel.  As most of you know, he who had endured that camp as a teenager.  And we walked among the guard towers and the barbed wire.  We saw the ovens and the crematorium.  We saw the memorial to the prisoners, a steel plate heated to the temperature of the human body, as a reminder of our common humanity.  And at the end of our visit, as we stood outside the place where his father and so many other souls had perished, Elie spoke these words -- he said:  “Memory has become a sacred duty of all people of goodwill.”  Memory has become a sacred duty of all people of goodwill.

And that’s what brings us here tonight.  That’s the duty that Steven and all of you embrace -- the sacred duty of memory.

Now, just a few decades ago, many survivors of the Shoah were reluctant to share their stories.  But one survivor living here in Los Angeles, a leather goods merchant named Poldek Pfefferberg insisted on telling anybody who would listen about the man who had saved his life -- a man named Oskar Schindler.  And thanks to Poldek’s persistence, Schindler’s story was published as a novel, and the world eventually came to see and understand the Holocaust like never before -- in Steven’s remarkable film, Schindler’s List, brought to life in a masterful way by Liam Neeson.  And we were reminded that the Holocaust was not a matter of distant history or abstract horror.  The voices  -- the memories -- of survivors became immediate, and intimate, became a part of all of us. 

I loved what the teacher said in the video about how it entered into our DNA.  That's what stories do.  We're story-telling animals.  That's what Steven does.  That's what Bruce does -- tells a story that stitches up our fates with the fates of others.  And that film gave us each a stake in that terrible history, and a stake in ensuring such atrocities never happen again. 

Now, if the story had ended there, it would have been enough -- dayenu.  But Steven didn’t stop with Schindler’s List, because there were too many other stories to tell.  So he created this foundation to undertake what he called “a rescue mission” -- preserving the memories that would otherwise be lost to time. 

Over the past two decades, you’ve recorded tens of thousands of interviews in dozens of countries and languages; documented the experience not only of the Holocaust, but of atrocities before and since.  As you heard tonight with Celina’s incredible eloquence, you freed voices that could tell their own story in their own way.  And as Michelle Clark described so powerfully this evening, you’ve turned that testimony into tools that can be used by scholars and students all around the world. 

Now, Steven, I know that for you -- like so many here -- this is deeply personal.  You lost distant relatives in the Holocaust, and heard your mother pass on stories told by survivors.  And as you said just a few days ago, the story of the Shoah is the story that you were put on this Earth to tell.  So, to you, to everybody at the Shoah Foundation -- and for all that you’ve done, for setting alight an eternal flame of testimony that can’t be extinguished and cannot be denied, we express our deepest gratitude.  (Applause.) 

Of course, none of these stories could be preserved without the men and women with the courage to tell them.  And I think sometimes how hard it must be to return to those moments, to remember those darkest of days, to recount how loved ones -- husbands, wives, sons, daughters -- were taken away.  And as Steven mentioned, my great-uncle was a soldier in the 89th Infantry Division, helping to liberate Ohrdruf, a part of Buchenwald.  And what he saw during the war left him so shaken that, upon his return to the States, he could not speak of his memories for years to come.  We didn’t have a word for it back then, but he returned and closed himself off for months, so shaken was he just to witness what had happened, much less experience it.

So I want to say a special word to the survivors who are with us this evening -- not just to the Holocaust, but as Steve noted, survivors of other unimaginable crimes.  Every day that you have lived, every child and grandchild that your families have brought into this world has served as the ultimate rebuke to evil, and the ultimate expression of love and hope.  And you are an inspiration to every single one of us.  And on behalf of all of us, thank you for the example of your lives, and sharing your stories with us and the world.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  We are grateful to you.   

Now, let me add that, as Americans, we’re proud to be a country that welcomed so many Holocaust survivors in the wake of World War II.  As President, I’m proud that we’re doing more, as Steven noted, to stand with Holocaust survivors in America.  We announced Aviva Sufian as our first-ever special envoy to help support Holocaust survivors living in the United States.  I’m pleased that Aviva is here tonight.  (Applause.)  We’ve proposed a new Survivor Assistance Fund to help Holocaust survivors in our country live in dignity and free from poverty.  We’re already working with members of Congress and many of your organizations on this project, and tonight I invite more of you to join us.  We need to keep faith with these survivors who already have given so much.

The work of this foundation, the testimonies of survivors like those with us tonight, also remind us that the purpose of memory is not simply to preserve the past; it is to protect the future.  (Applause.)  We tell stories -- we're compelled to tell stories -- they’re stories that bring out the best of us, and they’re stories that bring out the worst.  The voices of those recorded and unrecorded, those who survived and those who perished, call upon us -- implore us and challenge us -- to turn “Never Forget” into “Never Again.” 

We only need to look at today’s headlines -- the devastation of Syria, the murders and kidnappings in Nigeria, sectarian conflict, the tribal conflicts -- to see that we have not yet extinguished man’s darkest impulses.  There are some bad stories out there that are being told to children, and they’re learning to hate early.  They’re learning to fear those who are not like them early. 

And none of the tragedies that we see today may rise to the full horror of the Holocaust -- the individuals who are the victims of such unspeakable cruelty, they make a claim on our conscience.  They demand our attention, that we not turn away, that we choose empathy over indifference and that our empathy leads to action.  And that's not always easy.  One of the powerful things about Schindler’s story was recognizing that we have to act even where there is sometimes ambiguity; even when the path is not always clearly lit, we have to try.   

And that includes confronting a rising tide of anti-Semitism around the world.  We’ve seen attacks on Jews in the streets of major Western cities, public places marred by swastikas.  From some foreign governments we hear the worst kinds of anti-Semitic scapegoating.  In Ukraine, as Steven mentioned, we saw those disgusting pamphlets from masked men calling on Jews to register. And tragically, we saw a shooting here at home, in Overland Park in Kansas. 

And it would be tempting to dismiss these as isolated incidents, but if the memories of the Shoah survivors teach us anything, it is that silence is evil’s greatest co-conspirator.  And it’s up to us -- each of us, every one of us -- to forcefully condemn any denial of the Holocaust.  It’s up to us to combat not only anti-Semitism, but racism and bigotry and intolerance in all their forms, here and around the world.  It’s up to us to speak out against rhetoric that threatens the existence of a Jewish homeland and to sustain America’s unshakeable commitment to Israel’s security.  (Applause.)  And it is up to us to search our own hearts -- to search ourselves -- for those stories that have no place in this world.  Because it's easy sometimes to project out and worry about others and their hatreds and their bigotries and their blind spots.  It's not always as easy for us to examine ourselves.    

Standing up to anti-Semitism is not simply about protecting one community or one religious group.  There is no such thing as “targeted” hatred.  In Overland Park, a man went to a Jewish Community Center and a nursing home named “Village Shalom” and started shooting -- and none of the people he murdered were Jewish.  Two were Methodist.  One was Catholic.  All were innocent.

We cannot eliminate evil from every heart, or hatred from every mind.  But what we can do, and what we must do, is make sure our children and their children learn their history so that they might not repeat it.  (Applause.)  We can teach our children the hazards of tribalism.  We can teach our children to speak out against the casual slur.  We can teach them there is no “them,” there’s only “us.”  And here in America, we can celebrate a nation in which Christians and Muslims go to Jewish community centers, and where Jews go to Church vigils -- a nation where, through fits and starts, through sacrifice and individual courage, we have struggled to hear the truth and live out the truth that Dr. King described -- that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, that we are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.”

By keeping the memories alive, by telling stories, by hearing those stories, we can do our part to fulfill the mitzvah, the commandment of saving a life.  I think of Pinchas Gutter, a man who lived through the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, and survived the Majdanek death camp.  Today he serves as a volunteer educator at the Shoah Foundation.  “I tell my story,” he says, “for the purpose of improving humanity, drop by drop by drop.  Like a drop of water falls on a stone and erodes it, so, hopefully, by telling my story over and over again I will achieve the purpose of making the world a better place to live in.” 

Those are the words of one survivor -- performing that “sacred duty” of memory -- that will echo throughout eternity.  Those are good words for all of us to live by.

I have this remarkable title right now -- President of the United States -- and yet every day when I wake up, and I think about young girls in Nigeria or children caught up in the conflict in Syria -- when there are times in which I want to reach out and save those kids -- and having to think through what levers, what power do we have at any given moment, I think, “drop by drop by drop,” that we can erode and wear down these forces that are so destructive; that we can tell a different story.

And because of your work -- because of your work, Steven, and the work of all who supported you -- our children, and their children, and their children’s children will hear from the survivors, but they’ll also hear from the liberators, the Righteous Among the Nations.  And because of your work, their stories, years and decades from now, will still be wearing down bigotry, and eroding apathy, and opening hearts, drop by drop by drop. 

And as those hearts open, that empowers those of us in positions of power -- because even the President can't do these things alone.  Drop by drop by drop.  That's the power of stories.  And as a consequence, the world will be a better place and the souls will be bound up in the bonds of eternal life.  Their memories will be a blessing and they will help us make real our solemn vow:  Never Forget.  Never Again.

So thank you, Steven, for your incredible work.  God bless you.  God bless the United States of America.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

END
9:55 P.M. PDT 

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
May 07, 2014

Remarks by the President at DCCC Dinner -- L.A., CA

Private Residence
Los Angeles, California

6:52 P.M. PDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, everybody.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Thank you so much.  Everybody have a seat.  Thank you so much.  Well, let me start by thanking Cindy and Alan for the incredible hospitality.  (Applause.)  We are so grateful to you -- and arranging this nice weather.  It’s a little cool for L.A.  I know we've got some folks in blankets here -- (laughter) -- but for a Chicagoan, it feels pretty good.  It's pretty balmy. (Laughter.)

Let me also acknowledge two outstanding leaders who are doing great work every single day -- from the Senate, the head of the Democratic Senate Committee, Michael Bennet, the great Senator from Colorado.  (Applause.)  We appreciate him.  And California’s own former speaker and soon to be speaker again -- Nancy Pelosi is in the house.  (Applause.)  Nancy Pelosi!  We love Nancy. 

I'm going to make my remarks at the top real brief because I want to spend most of the time in a conversation, and it's a small enough group that I can spend some time on questions.  I'm in trouble at home.  And the reason is, is because I told Michelle back in 2012 I had run my last campaign, but a couple months ago, I had to let her in on a secret, and that is, honey, I got one more campaign I got to run.  (Laughter.)  I need to make sure we continue to have a Democratic Senate, and I need a Democratic House of Representatives in Washington.  (Applause.)  And I'm going to do everything I can to make that happen. 

Now, let me describe to you why this is so important, just in case you guys did not get the memo.  (Laughter.)  Over the last five and a half years, as Cindy said, we've made enormous progress on a whole range of issues.  We were losing 800,000 jobs a month; we've now created 9.2 million jobs.  The unemployment rate is the lowest it's been since 2007.  The financial sector has obviously recovered.  People have recovered the values of their pensions and 401(k)s that they had lost, so trillions of dollars of wealth restored.  The housing market has rebounded.

On the energy front, we have increased our production of wind energy threefold, solar energy by tenfold.  We've actually reduced our carbon emissions faster than any other country in the world, even as we are also producing more energy generally, doubling our production of clean energy.  Increased fuel efficiency standards on cars; saved an auto industry that was on the verge of collapse; provided health insurance to millions of Americans all across the country, including right here in California, and made the protections of those of us who already had insurance that much more sturdy.

We've expanded access for young people to go to college -- millions of young people are able to go to college that weren’t going before.  We actually have the highest college enrollment rates in our history.  We've reduced the dropout rate for Latino students; we've cut it in half since 2000.

And yet, despite all that, despite ending two wars, despite the progress that we've made on issues that are important to everybody here, there’s still disquiet around the country.  There’s an anxiety and sense of frustration.  And the reason is, is because people understand that for all that we've done, the challenges out there remain daunting and we have a Washington that's not working.

And for families, in particular, even with the recovery, they still have not seen an increase in wages, an increase in incomes.  They’re still worried that they’re not going to be able to retire when they plan to retire.  They worry about the prospects for their kids, whether they’re going to be able to live out their American Dream the same way that they did.

And we can debate a lot about whether the Senate rules need to be changed and are there problems with our media and campaign finance and there are a whole bunch of structural reasons why Washington isn’t working as well as it should.  But the principal reason is that there is just a fundamental difference in what we as Democrats believe and what this particular brand of Republicans that we’ve got in Congress believes. 

We believe in pay equity; they say, no.  We believe in a higher minimum wage; they say, no.  We believe in making sure that we’re investing in our infrastructure and putting people back to work, and investing in innovation and basic research that can unlock cures for things like Alzheimer’s; their budget takes us in the opposite direction.  We believe in early childhood education to make sure that opportunity for all actually means something, that it’s not just a slogan; they say, no.  We think climate change is real.  Some of them say it’s a hoax, that we’re fabricating it. 

And the biggest challenge we have is not just that there’s a fundamental difference in vision and where we want to take the country, not just the fact that they continue to subscribe to a top-down approach to economic growth and opportunity and we believe that the economy works better when it works for everybody and that real growth happens from the bottom up and the middle out -- (a car alarm goes off.)  Sound the alarm, because there’s a problem.  (Laughter.)  Let’s see if we can cut that.  Whose car is that?  You recognize that one?  (Laughter.)  There you go.  (Laughter.)  

But here’s what’s more disconcerting.  Their willingness to say no to everything -- the fact that since 2007, they have filibustered about 500 pieces of legislation that would help the middle class just gives you a sense of how opposed they are to any progress -- has actually led to an increase in cynicism and discouragement among the people who were counting on us to fight for them.  The conclusion is, well, nothing works.  And the problem is, is that for the folks worth fighting for -- for the person who’s cleaning up that house or hotel, for the guy who used to work on construction but now has been laid off -- they need us.  Not because they want a handout, but because they know that government can serve an important function in unleashing the power of our private sector.

And when they get discouraged, they don't vote.  And the congenital problem that Democrats have is in midterms especially, we don't vote.  Our voters are younger, they’re more likely to be minority.  And because they’re more likely to be struggling, they’re not always paying attention when the President -- presidential candidate isn't on the ballot.  And so you’ve got a self-fulfilling prophesy -- people who have the most at stake in a government that works opt out of the system; those who don't believe that government can do anything are empowered; gridlock reigns and we get this downward spiral of even more cynicism and more dysfunction.

And we have to break out of that cycle.  And that's what this election is about.  Because I am optimistic about America’s prospects.  I've been traveling a lot over the last couple months, and I go all around the world -- I go to Europe, I go to Asia -- and everywhere I go -- do not buy this notion perpetrated here that somehow America is on a downward trajectory.  By every indicator, we are better positioned than any country on Earth to succeed in this knowledge economy in the 21st century.  But what is absolutely true is if we don't make good choices, we could decline.

And we're not going to make good choices unless we break out of this cycle in which dysfunction breeds cynicism, and cynicism then breeds more dysfunction.  We've got to break out of it.  And that happens during midterms.  That does not happen during presidential elections.

A lot of people here are already excited about 2016.  You guys were excited about 2008.  You got geared up for 2012.  I am grateful.  But I need some partners.  I've got to have a Democratic Senate.  And when you think about everything I was able to accomplish with Nancy Pelosi at the helm in the House, all the issues that you care about that we were able to advance when she was the leader, I think you’ve got a big stake in making sure that we've got a Democratic House as well.

So my main message to all of you is feel a sense of urgency about this election.  This is my last campaign, and I'm going to put everything I've got into it, but I need you to feel that this is just as important -- because we can't afford to wait until 2016.  And nothing is going to happen magically, by the way, that changes in 2016 if we still have the same kind of voting patterns and the same dysfunction that we've got right now in Congress.  We'll be stymied all over again. 

The good news is we've got public opinion on our side if people actually turn out -- on every issue.  On minimum wage, on pay equity, on clean energy, on immigration reform -- there’s not an issue in which we do not possess a majority in this country.  But it has to manifest itself during election time, and especially during midterms.

So I hope you guys get fired up -- because I'm fired up.  (Laughter.)  And I continue to be ready to go.  Thank you, everybody.  Appreciate it.  (Applause.)

END
7:05 P.M. EDT

President Obama Speaks at the USC Shoah Foundation Dinner

May 07, 2014 | 18:50 | Public Domain

President Obama delivers remarks at the USC Shoah Foundation Dinner.

Download mp4 (694MB) | mp3 (18MB)

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
May 07, 2014

Remarks by the President After Surveying Tornado Damage

Vilonia, Arkansas

2:30 P.M. CDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, good afternoon, everybody.  Obviously we just had a chance to tour some of the areas that were devastated by last week’s tornadoes, and had a chance to meet with some of the families who lost loved ones.  I also had a chance to thank some of the first responders and the recovery workers and members of the National Guard who have been working nonstop to help families and businesses pick up the pieces after this devastating tornado. 

I want to express my deep appreciation for Governor Beebe and his outstanding leadership; Senator Pryor, Congressman Griffin, Mayor Firestone.  They all showed great leadership and were here, hands-on, on the ground throughout these difficult days.  And I’m here to make sure that they know, and that everybody who’s been affected knows, that the federal government is going to be right here until we get these communities rebuilt.  Because when something like this happens to a wonderful community like this one, it happens to all of us, and we’ve got to be there for them.

After the tornadoes touched down, I immediately approved a major disaster declaration to make sure every federal resource was available to help folks in Faulkner County and other areas affected by the tornadoes.  At my direction, FEMA deployed Incident Management Assistance Teams to support local recovery efforts.  Craig Fugate was down here the day after the storm, and a team of the Army Corps of Engineers has been helping search through the debris. 

Here in Vilonia, the recovery process is just beginning.  It’s especially difficult because this town has seen more than its fair share of tragedy.  Almost exactly three years ago, another tornado leveled parts of Vilonia, and some families and businesses had just finished rebuilding when they were forced to start all over.  But folks here are tough.  They look out for one another, and that’s been especially clear over the past week.

Immediately after the tornado hit, about 200 people, including fire crews from other counties, were ready to go house to house searching for injured neighbors.  Some survivors were driven to the hospital by complete strangers, and in the days that followed, thousands of volunteers showed up to help remove debris and hunt for belongings, pick up trash, deliver supplies and water.  And one volunteer, 16-year-old Casey Williams did such a good job coordinating relief efforts that Arkansas state troopers started taking orders from her.  I had a chance to meet her and she is extraordinarily impressive.  So I don’t know what she’s going to be doing in the future, but I know it’s going to be something great. 

More than any disaster, it is that dedication and that commitment to each other that truly defines this town.  As one resident said, “We just say a prayer, and then get to work.”  So the people of Vilonia and all the other towns devastated by the storm understand there’s a lot of work that remains to be done.  But I’m here to remind them that they’re not doing this work alone, that your country is going to be here for you.  We’re going to support you every step of the way.  You are in our thoughts and prayers, Mr. Mayor.  Thank you for the great leadership that you’ve shown.  I know that you can count on your governor and your senator and your congressman here to make sure that every resource that we have available to you is going to be there. 

And one of the things that the Mayor expressed to me that we’ve got some concerns about is when this happens in a town like this, it’s not just the infrastructure and the buildings that are torn down.  You also lose part of your sales tax base.  And so we’re going to have to figure out how they can make sure that they get back on their feet.  And I’ll be sure to work with Congressman Griffin, Senator Pryor and Governor Beebe to see if we can do something on that front as well.  But I could not be more impressed by the spirit of community that’s here. 

We’ve got this gentleman right here I just had a chance to meet, who was in one of these homes where he lives just when the storm hit.  Thankfully, he and his 16-year-old son and wife are okay.  It’s a reminder, obviously, that as important as possessions are, nothing is more important than family.  Those families that I had a chance to meet with, they’re still mourning those they lost.  But they couldn’t be more grateful and thankful for the way the community has responded.  So this is a testament to the strength of this community, the strength of Arkansas and the strength of America.  And I could not be more proud of everybody who has participated in the recovery process. 

Thank you very much.    

END
2:35 P.M. CDT

President Obama Tours Tornado Damage in Central Arkansas

David Hudson
David Hudson
May 07, 2014
06:00 PM EDT

Watch on YouTube

This afternoon, President Obama traveled to central Arkansas to tour the areas affected by last week's tornadoes and severe storms.

Upon arriving, the President talked with some of the families who lost loved ones as a result of the tornadoes, as well as some of the first responders, recovery workers, and members of the National Guard that are helping the community recover.

He also took time to view the devastation wrought by the tornadoes, before delivering remarks about the disaster – and the road ahead.

"The federal government's going to be right here until we get these communities rebuilt," said the President. "Because when something like this happens to a wonderful community like this one, it happens to all of us."

Related Topics: Energy and Environment, Arkansas

U.S. to Help Nigeria in the Search for Kidnapped Girls

David Hudson
David Hudson
May 07, 2014
03:34 PM EDT

More than three weeks ago, on the night of April 14, a group of militants kidnapped more than 200 teenage girls from the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Nigeria. In a video released earlier this week, Abubakar Shekau, who leads the terrorist organization Boko Haram based in northeast Nigeria, claimed that his group was behind the kidnappings.

“I abducted your girls,” Shekau said, adding that Boko Haram was holding the girls and would “sell them in the market.”

Yesterday, while talking with Al Roker of “The Today Show,” President Obama called it a “terrible situation,” and explained that the U.S. will send military and law enforcement advisors to Nigeria to support its efforts to find and free the girls:

Boko Haram, this terrorist organization that’s been operating in Nigeria, has been killing people and innocent civilians for a very long time. We’ve always identified them as one of the worst local or regional terrorist organizations there is out there. But I can only imagine what the parents are going through.

So what we’ve done is we have offered -- and it’s been accepted -- help from our military and law enforcement officials. We’re going to do everything we can to provide assistance to them. In the short term, our goal obviously is to help the international community and the Nigerian government as a team to do everything we can to recover these young ladies. But we’re also going to have to deal with the broader problem of organizations like this that can cause such havoc in people’s day-to-day lives.

Related Topics: Foreign Policy

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
May 07, 2014

Statement by the Press Secretary on the President’s Notification to Remove Certain Trade Benefits from Russia

The President notified Congress today that he intends to withdraw Russia’s eligibility for trade benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program because Russia is sufficiently advanced economically that it no longer warrants preferential treatment reserved for less advanced developing countries, consistent with the requirements of the GSP program.  Once Russia’s eligibility is withdrawn, which would be effected via a presidential proclamation, U.S. imports of GSP-eligible goods from Russia will be subject to normal, non-preferential rates of duty.

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release
May 07, 2014

Message to the Congress -- With respect to Russia’s status under the Generalized System of Preferences

TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:

Consistent with section 502(f)(2) of the Trade Act of 1974 (the "1974 Act") (19 U.S.C. 2462(f)(2)), I am providing notice of my intent to withdraw the designation of Russia as a beneficiary developing country under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program.

Sections 501(1) and (4) of the 1974 Act (19 U.S.C. 2461(1) and (4)), provide that, in affording duty-free treatment under the GSP, the President shall have due regard for, among other factors, the effect such action will have on furthering the economic development of a beneficiary developing country through the expansion of its exports and the extent of the beneficiary developing country's competitiveness with respect to eligible articles.

Section 502(c) of the 1974 Act (19 U.S.C. 2462(c)) provides that, in determining whether to designate any country as a beneficiary developing country for purposes of the GSP, the President shall take into account various factors, including the country's level of economic development, the country's per capita gross national product, the living standards of its inhabitants, and any other economic factors he deems appropriate.

Having considered the factors set forth in sections 501 and 502(c) of the 1974 Act, I have determined that it is appropriate to withdraw Russia's designation as a beneficiary developing country under the GSP program because Russia is sufficiently advanced in economic development and improved in trade competitiveness that continued preferential treatment under the GSP is not warranted. I intend to issue a proclamation withdrawing Russia's designation consistent with section 502(f)(2) of the 1974 Act.

BARACK OBAMA

President Obama Speaks on Disaster Recovery Efforts in Arkansas

May 07, 2014 | 5:00 | Public Domain

President Obama makes a statement after viewing devastation from the recent tornadoes and severe storms in Central Arkansas and meeting with families affected by the disaster.

Download mp4 (181MB) | mp3 (5MB)

Read the Transcript

Remarks by the President After Surveying Tornado Damage

Vilonia, Arkansas

2:30 P.M. CDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, good afternoon, everybody.  Obviously we just had a chance to tour some of the areas that were devastated by last week’s tornadoes, and had a chance to meet with some of the families who lost loved ones.  I also had a chance to thank some of the first responders and the recovery workers and members of the National Guard who have been working nonstop to help families and businesses pick up the pieces after this devastating tornado. 

I want to express my deep appreciation for Governor Beebe and his outstanding leadership; Senator Pryor, Congressman Griffin, Mayor Firestone.  They all showed great leadership and were here, hands-on, on the ground throughout these difficult days.  And I’m here to make sure that they know, and that everybody who’s been affected knows, that the federal government is going to be right here until we get these communities rebuilt.  Because when something like this happens to a wonderful community like this one, it happens to all of us, and we’ve got to be there for them.

After the tornadoes touched down, I immediately approved a major disaster declaration to make sure every federal resource was available to help folks in Faulkner County and other areas affected by the tornadoes.  At my direction, FEMA deployed Incident Management Assistance Teams to support local recovery efforts.  Craig Fugate was down here the day after the storm, and a team of the Army Corps of Engineers has been helping search through the debris. 

Here in Vilonia, the recovery process is just beginning.  It’s especially difficult because this town has seen more than its fair share of tragedy.  Almost exactly three years ago, another tornado leveled parts of Vilonia, and some families and businesses had just finished rebuilding when they were forced to start all over.  But folks here are tough.  They look out for one another, and that’s been especially clear over the past week.

Immediately after the tornado hit, about 200 people, including fire crews from other counties, were ready to go house to house searching for injured neighbors.  Some survivors were driven to the hospital by complete strangers, and in the days that followed, thousands of volunteers showed up to help remove debris and hunt for belongings, pick up trash, deliver supplies and water.  And one volunteer, 16-year-old Casey Williams did such a good job coordinating relief efforts that Arkansas state troopers started taking orders from her.  I had a chance to meet her and she is extraordinarily impressive.  So I don’t know what she’s going to be doing in the future, but I know it’s going to be something great. 

More than any disaster, it is that dedication and that commitment to each other that truly defines this town.  As one resident said, “We just say a prayer, and then get to work.”  So the people of Vilonia and all the other towns devastated by the storm understand there’s a lot of work that remains to be done.  But I’m here to remind them that they’re not doing this work alone, that your country is going to be here for you.  We’re going to support you every step of the way.  You are in our thoughts and prayers, Mr. Mayor.  Thank you for the great leadership that you’ve shown.  I know that you can count on your governor and your senator and your congressman here to make sure that every resource that we have available to you is going to be there. 

And one of the things that the Mayor expressed to me that we’ve got some concerns about is when this happens in a town like this, it’s not just the infrastructure and the buildings that are torn down.  You also lose part of your sales tax base.  And so we’re going to have to figure out how they can make sure that they get back on their feet.  And I’ll be sure to work with Congressman Griffin, Senator Pryor and Governor Beebe to see if we can do something on that front as well.  But I could not be more impressed by the spirit of community that’s here. 

We’ve got this gentleman right here I just had a chance to meet, who was in one of these homes where he lives just when the storm hit.  Thankfully, he and his 16-year-old son and wife are okay.  It’s a reminder, obviously, that as important as possessions are, nothing is more important than family.  Those families that I had a chance to meet with, they’re still mourning those they lost.  But they couldn’t be more grateful and thankful for the way the community has responded.  So this is a testament to the strength of this community, the strength of Arkansas and the strength of America.  And I could not be more proud of everybody who has participated in the recovery process. 

Thank you very much.    

END
2:35 P.M. CDT

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