Statement by the Press Secretary on H.R. 4045 and H.R. 4967

On Friday, May 25, 2012, the President signed into law:

 H.R. 4045, which authorizes a modification to the award of Post‑Deployment/Mobilization Respite Absence administrative absence days for certain members of the reserve components; and

H.R. 4967, the "Temporary Bankruptcy Judgeships Extension Act of 2012," which extends authority to fill vacancies in temporary offices of bankruptcy judges in certain Federal judicial districts.

Statement by the Press Secretary on Student Loan Interest Rate Votes in the Senate

With only 37 days left to stop student loan interest rates from doubling on July 1, Senate Republicans still have not proven that they’re serious about resolving this problem.  For the second time this month, they voted to ask millions of students to pay an average of $1,000 each rather than close a loophole that allows the very wealthy to avoid paying their fair share.  Now is not the time to refight old political battles, and certainly not the time to cut preventive health care measures.  With only a few days left until student loan interest rates double, it’s time to get this done so hard working students get a fair shot at an affordable education.

President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

• Greta C. Holtz – Ambassador to the Sultanate of Oman, Department of State
• Alexander M. Laskaris – Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea, Department of State
• Allison M. Macfarlane - Commissioner, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, upon appointment to be designated Chair
• Marcie B. Ries – Ambassador to the Republic of Bulgaria, Department of State
• Walter M. Shaub, Jr. – Director, Office of Government Ethics

The President also announced his intent to appoint the following individuals to key Administration posts:

• Fred P. Hochberg  - Member, Board of Trustees of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
• Earl W. Stafford – Member, President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities

President Obama said, “These dedicated individuals bring a wealth of experience and talent to their new roles, and I am grateful they have agreed to lend their considerable talents to this Administration. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”

President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key Administration posts:

Greta C. Holtz, Nominee for Ambassador to the Sultanate of Oman, Department of State
Greta C. Holtz, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, serves as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Strategic Communications in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs.   From 2009 to 2010, Ms. Holtz was Director for Provincial Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.  Previous assignments in Washington include Director of the Middle East Partnership Initiative in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (2006-2007) and Coordinator for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe within the Bureau of European Regional Political-Military Affairs (2004-2006).  Ms. Holtz entered the Foreign Service in 1985 and has served at U.S. Missions in Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Tunisia, Syria, and as Principal Officer in Adana, Turkey.   She received a B.S. from Vanderbilt University, an M.A. from the University of Kentucky, and an M.S. from the National War College.

Alexander M. Laskaris, Nominee for Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea, Department of State
Alexander M. Laskaris, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, is Consul General at the U.S. Consulate in Erbil, Iraq, a position he has held since June 2010. Previously, he was the Team Leader for the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Mosul, Iraq from 2008 to 2009.  Prior to serving in Iraq, he was the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Kosovo (2006-2009) and Burundi (2003-2005).  Previously, Mr. Laskaris was a member of the U.S. Secretary of State’s Policy Planning Staff (2001-2003) and Advisor to the U.S. Mission to the United Nations (1999-2001).  Other overseas assignments have included Political Officer in Luanda, Angola; Political and Economic Officer in Gaborone, Botswana; and Vice Consul in Monrovia, Liberia.  From 1996 to 1997, he served as Desk Officer for Rwanda and Burundi at the Department of State.  He received a B.S. from Georgetown University and an M.A. from the U.S. Army War College.

Allison M. Macfarlane, Nominee for Commissioner, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and upon appointment to be designated Chair
Allison M. Macfarlane is an associate professor of Environmental Science and Policy at George Mason University (GMU), a position she has held since 2006.  Dr. Macfarlane served as a member of the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future from March 2010 to January 2012. Dr. Macfarlane worked as a research associate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) from 2004 to 2006 and 2000 to 2003, and as an associate professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology from 2003 to 2004. She was also a fellow at Harvard University’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs from 1998 to 2000, and a fellow at Stanford University's Center for International Security and Cooperation from 1997 to 1998.  Dr. Macfarlane began her teaching career in the Department of Geography and Earth Systems Science at GMU.  She received a B.Sc. from the University of Rochester and a Ph.D. in Geology from MIT.

Ambassador Marcie B. Ries, Nominee for Ambassador to the Republic of Bulgaria, Department of State
Ambassador Marcie B. Ries, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Career-Minister, is currently Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance.  From 2008 to 2009, she was Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs.  Previously, she served as Minister-Counselor for Political-Military Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad (2007-2008), U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Albania (2004-2007), and Chief of Mission at the U.S. Office in Pristina, Kosovo (2003-2004).  She has also served as Director of the Office of United Nations Political Affairs in the Bureau of International Organizations (2001-2003) and as Political Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in London (1996-2000).  Other overseas assignments include posts to the U.S. Mission to the European Union in Brussels; Ankara, Turkey; and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.  She received a B.A. from Oberlin College and an M.A. from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Walter M. Shaub, Jr., Nominee for Director, Office of Government Ethics
Walter M. Shaub, Jr. is Deputy General Counsel of the U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE), a position he has held since 2008. In addition, he served as a supervisory attorney at OGE from 2006 to 2008. From 2004 to 2006, he worked as an attorney with the law firm Shaw, Bransford, Veilleux and Roth, P.C., where he focused on federal employment law. Previously, Mr. Shaub served as a staff attorney at several federal agencies, including OGE from 2001 to 2004, the Central Office of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from 2000 to 2001, the Office of General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from 1998 to 2000, and the VA’s Baltimore-Washington Regional Counsel’s office from 1997 to 1998. He earned a B.A. in History from James Madison University and a J.D. from American University Washington College of Law.

President Obama announced his intent to appoint the following individuals to key Administration posts:

Fred P. Hochberg, Appointee for Member, Board of Trustees of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Fred P. Hochberg is President of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, having been appointed by President Obama in May 2009.  From 2004 to 2008, Mr. Hochberg was Dean of Milano, The New School for Management and Urban Policy in New York, N.Y.  From 1998 to 2001, he served first as Deputy Administrator, then as Acting Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA).  Prior to his service at SBA, Mr. Hochberg was President and Chief Operating Officer of the Lillian Vernon Corporation.  He is a past board member of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the Citizens Budget Commission, the Foundation for International Community Assistance, and the New York State Financial Control Board.  Mr. Hochberg received his B.A. from New York University and an M.B.A from Columbia University.

Earl W. Stafford, Appointee for Member, President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Earl W. Stafford is Chief Executive Officer of The Wentworth Group, LLC, a position he has held since February 2009.  Mr. Stafford is also Chairman of The Stafford Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization he founded in 2002. From 1988 to 2009 he was Chairman and Chief Executive of Universal Systems & Technology, Inc.  Previously, Mr. Stafford served in the United States Air Force from 1967 to 1987.  He currently serves on the boards of several organizations, including the Horatio Alger Association, the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, the Wesley Theological Seminary, and the Venture Philanthropy Partners. Mr. Stafford holds a B.B.A. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and an M.B.A. from Southern Illinois University.  He is a graduate of the Owner/President Management Executive Program at Harvard Business School, and received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Virginia State University.

President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individual to a key Administration post:

• Jonathan Lippman – Member, Board of Directors of the State Justice Institute

The President also announced his intent to appoint the following individual to a key Administration post:

• John F. Sopko – Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction

President Obama said, “The extraordinary dedication these individuals bring to their new roles will greatly serve the American people.  I am grateful they have agreed to serve in this Administration and I look forward to working with them in the months and years to come.”

President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individual to a key Administration post:

Judge Jonathan Lippman, Nominee for Member, Board of Directors of the State Justice Institute
Judge Jonathan Lippman is currently Chief Judge of the State of New York and Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, a position he has held since 2009.  Judge Lippman has spent his entire legal career in the New York State court system, serving for 40 years in a variety of roles. He was Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court, First Department from 2007 to 2009; an Associate Justice of the Appellate Term for the Ninth and Tenth Judicial Districts from 2006 to 2007; a Justice of the Supreme Court, Ninth Judicial District from 2006 to 2009; and Chief Administrative Judge of all New York State Courts from 1996 to 2007.  Judge Lippman is a member of the Board of Directors of the Conference of Chief Justices, former President of the Conference of State Court Administrators, and former Vice Chair of the Board of the National Center for State Courts.  He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence, which the National Center for State Courts awarded to him in 2008.  He holds a B.A. from New York University in Government and International Relations and a J.D. from the New York University School of Law.

President Obama announced his intent to appoint the following individual to a key Administration post:

John F. Sopko, Appointee for Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction
John F. Sopko is currently a partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, a position he has held since 2009. From 2007 to 2009, Mr. Sopko served as Chief Counsel for Oversight and Investigations for the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Previously, he was Deputy Director of the Homeland Security Institute from 2005 to 2007, and Minority General Counsel and Chief of Investigations for the U.S. House Select Committee on Homeland Security from 2003 to 2005. From 1999 to 2003, Mr. Sopko held a number of roles at the U.S. Department of Commerce, including Deputy Director of the National Technical Information Service, Acting Assistant Secretary and Deputy Assistant Secretary of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement, and Chief Counsel for the Special Matters Unit at the Office of General Counsel. From 1982 to 1997, Mr. Sopko was Deputy Chief Counsel at the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations and from 1978 to 1982, he was Special Attorney at the Organized Crime and Racketeering Section of the U.S. Department of Justice. He holds a B.A. in Economics and Sociology from the University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from Case Western Reserve University School of Law.