Obama Taps Former OSU Prof. for Pentagon Post
President Barack Obama has announced his intention to nominate Joseph Westphal, who once headed the political science department at Oklahoma State University, to be the Under Secretary of the Army.
Here is the bio provided by the White House:
Joseph Westphal is University System Professor of Political Science at the University of Maine where he also served as the Chancellor of the University of Maine System. Mr. Westphal recently served as a member of the Obama-Biden Transition for the National Security Team working on Defense matters. He was Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works from 1998 to 2001 and Acting Secretary of the Army for June and July 2001. His other federal government experience included Senior Policy Advisor for Water Resources at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Staff Director of the Congressional Sunbelt Caucus in the United States Congress. His other academic appointments have included Associate Professor and Head of the Political Science Department at Oklahoma State University. While on leave from the University of Maine, Mr. Westphal worked in the Department of the Interior on issues related to water development and as a budget analyst and assistant to the Chairman of the U.S. House Committee on the Budget. He has also served as Adjunct Professor of Government at Georgetown University and Professor and Provost at The New School University in New York. Mr. Westphal received a B.A. from Adelphi University, M.A. from Oklahoma State University and Ph.D. from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
Obama Mentions Oklahoma Letter
In remarks today about educational aid for the unemployed, President Barack Obama mentioned a letter he got from an Oklahoma veteran:
“This morning, we learned that our economy lost another 539,000 jobs in the month of April. While it’s somewhat encouraging that this number is lower than it’s been in each of the past six months, it is a sobering toll. The unemployment rate is at its highest point in twenty-five years. It underscores the point that we’re still in the midst of a recession that was years in the making and will be months or even years in the unmaking; and we should expect further job losses in the months to come.
“Although we have a long way to go before we can put this recession behind us, the gears of our economic engine are slowly beginning to turn. Consumer spending and home sales are stabilizing, and construction spending is up for the first time in six months. Step by step, we are making progress.
“Of course, that’s no solace to those who have lost their jobs, or to the small business owners whose hearts break at letting long-time employees go. It’s no relief for those who continue to send out resume after resume, then wait for a call. It’s of little comfort to the families who wake up wondering how they’re going to pay their bills, stay in their homes, or put food on the table – the Americans I’ve met in towns across this country, or whose letters I read at night.
“They’re letters of struggle but also of service to others. They’re stories of heartbreak, but also of hope. It’s the story of the small business owner in California who wrote that as long as her employees depend on her, “I will not give up.” The veteran in Oklahoma, who wrote, “We’ve all got a long way to go. But we’ll stick together and get through this.” And the mother in Michigan who wrote that she and her husband can’t make ends meet, but as long as they have their jobs, they’ll work 24 hours a day to send their children to college. She ended her letter by saying, “I’m not writing to tell you about my troubles – I’m writing to please ask you to act quickly to help all the people like me.”
“Such hard-working Americans are why I ran for President. They are the reason we have been working swiftly and aggressively across all fronts to turn this economy around; to jumpstart spending and hiring and create jobs where we can with steps like the Recovery Act. Because of this plan, cops are still on the beat and teachers are still in the classroom; shovels are breaking ground and cranes dot the sky; and new life has been breathed into private companies like Sharon Arnold’s. And already, 95 percent of working Americans are seeing the tax cut we promised show up in their paychecks.
“We’re moving forward because now is not a time for small plans. It’s not a time to pause, to be passive, or to wait around for our problems to fix themselves. Now is the time to put in place a New Foundation for growth – to rebuild our economy, retrain our workforce, and reequip the American people. And now is the time to change unemployment from a period of “wait and see” to a chance for our workers to train and to seek the next opportunity – so when that new and better day does come around, our people, our industry, and our entire country are ready to make the most of it.
“Now, if we want to come out of this recession stronger than before, we need to make sure our workforce is better prepared than ever before. Right now, someone who doesn’t have a college degree is more than twice as likely to be unemployed as someone who does. And so many of the Americans who have lost their jobs can’t find new ones because they simply don’t have the skills and training they need for the jobs they want.
“In a twenty-first century economy where the most valuable skill you can sell is your knowledge, education is the single best bet we can make – not just for our individual success; but for the success of our nation as a whole. The average college graduate earns 80 percent more than those who stopped after high school. So if we want to help people not only get back on their feet today, but prosper tomorrow; we need to take a rigorous new approach to higher education and technical training. That starts by changing senseless rules that discourage displaced workers from getting the education and training they need to find and fill the jobs of the future.
“Today, I’m announcing new steps we are taking to do exactly that – to give people across America who have lost their jobs the chance to go back to school today to get retrained for the jobs and industries of tomorrow.
“The idea here is to fundamentally change our approach to unemployment in this country, so that it’s no longer just a time to look for a new job, but to prepare yourself for a better job. That’s what our unemployment system should be – not a safety net, but a stepping stone to a new future. It should offer folks educational opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise have, giving them the measurable and differentiated skills they need to not just get through these hard times – but to get ahead when the economy comes back.
“That’s what Maureen Pike did. She lost her job as a physician’s receptionist, but she didn’t lose hope. She took it as an opportunity to upgrade her skills and earn an associate’s degree in nursing from a community college – and today, she works as a registered nurse.
“The only reason she could afford to do that while supporting her children was because the state of Maine allowed her to keep her unemployment benefits and study with help from a Pell Grant. Pell Grants cover tuition at almost every community college in the country, and unemployment benefits can help those studying to gain new skills to support their families at the same time.
“But today, far too many Americans are denied that opportunity. Say an unemployed factory worker wants to upgrade his skills to become a mechanic or technician, for example. In many states, that worker might lose temporary financial support if he enrolls in a training program. To make matters worse, unemployment might mean he can’t afford higher education, and he likely won’t qualify for federal help simply because he may have made a decent salary a year ago.
“Well, that doesn’t make much sense for our economy or our country. So we’re going to change it.
“First, we’ll open new doors to higher education and job training programs to recently laid-off workers who are receiving unemployment benefits. And if those displaced workers need help paying for their education, they should get it – that’s why the next step is to make it easier for them to receive Pell Grants. I’ve asked my Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, and my Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis, to work closely with states and our institutions of higher education and encourage them not only to allow these changes, but inform all workers receiving unemployment benefits of the training programs and financial support open to them. And together, the Department of Education and the Department of Labor have created a new website – Opportunity.gov – to help workers discover and take advantage of these opportunities.
“Together, these changes will increase access to education and opportunity for hundreds of thousands of workers who’ve been stung by this recession – people just like Maureen. And like her, many may take advantage of one of America’s underappreciated assets – our community colleges. These schools offer practical education and technical training, and they’re increasingly important centers of learning where Americans can prepare for the jobs of the future. That’s why I am asking Dr. Jill Biden – a community college professor who’s devoted her life to education – to lead a national effort to raise awareness about what we’re doing to open the doors to our community colleges.
“So this is a good start. But it is only a start. These steps are just a short-term down payment on our larger goal of ensuring that all Americans get the skills and education they need to succeed in today’s economy. To that end, I’ve also asked every American to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training. It can be community college or a four-year school; vocational training or an apprenticeship; but whatever the training may be, every American will need to get more than a high school diploma. And we will back you up with the support necessary to do that and to meet the new goal that I’ve set: by 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.
“And in the weeks to come, I will lay out a fundamental rethinking of our job training, vocational education, and community college programs. It’s time to move beyond the idea that we need several different programs to address several different problems – we need one comprehensive policy that addresses our comprehensive challenges.
“That’s how we will open doors of opportunity and lay a New Foundation for our economic growth – by investing in our citizens. That’s how we have always emerged from tough times stronger than ever before – because of the hard work, determination and ingenuity of the American people. And I am confident that if we summon that spirit once again, we will get through this; we will see our nation recover; and together, we will put America on the path to shared and lasting prosperity.”
Obama Greets Gators
President Barack Obama hosted the national champs at the White House today. I post this for motivational purposes:
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
TO THE 2008 FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPION
FLORIDA GATORS
East Room
3:50 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: All right. Well, this is not The Swamp that you’re used to, but D.C. is built on a swamp, so welcome to Washington, D.C., and welcome back to the White House. I know at least that the — some of the upperclassmen have been here before. Congratulations on the national champions — being the national champions for the second time in three years. That’s outstanding. And they deserve a big round of applause, so give them a — (applause.)
I want to congratulate everybody who makes this program run — from the assistants to the trainers, from the students to the ticket takers, all of you should be very, very proud. And I should mention, by the way, there are a whole bunch of members of Congress who are here from Florida who are very proud. And so — and they brag about you in Congress all the time.
I want to thank Coach Urban Meyer, his wife Shelley, and their family for being here. I was just mentioning, as we were walking down, there’s something about Coach Meyer’s teams, they just have a lot of heart. And that’s a reflection of coaching values that talk about character and integrity, and not just winning. And so we are very appreciative of the work that you’ve done, Coach. That’s also why it’s so easy to tell that these guys have operated like one big family. And that comes across on and off the field.
I do have to give a special shout-out to Marcus Gilbert. Where’s Marcus? (Laughter.) There he is. Marcus, I’ve got a soft spot for this guy, because his dad, Jeff, was the first Secret Service agent on my detail, almost two years ago. He was with me for most of the campaign; he is a great friend of mine — and there he is back there. So that’s Marcus’s pop right here. We always tried to figure out how Marcus got so big — (laughter) — because Jeff is not that big and his wife is even smaller.
People forget now, but this team was not ranked number one until the end of the season. That’s perseverance. And that’s thanks to the tone the Coach sets. He trains these guys for “competitive excellence,” as he calls it, on and off the field. And in sports, as in life, your number may be called just once — oh, who’s phone is that? (Laughter.) Is that one of the player’s phones? ‘Fess up. (Laughter.) All right. Coach is going to talk to you after — (laughter) — about not turning off your phone.
In sports as in life — I was going to say your number may just be called once, but I didn’t mean it literally. (Laughter.) And Coach makes sure that you’re — they’re ready when that happens.
I understand that a lot of times reporters ask Coach Meyer, what did you say to the team at halftime? But what I’ve heard is he doesn’t usually have to say too much because the leaders of this team step up and say what needs to be said. So there are guys like Percy and Brandon and Louis Murphy, and — I understand there are a couple of comedians here, the 300-pound Pouncey Twins. Where are they? (Laughter.) Right there? (Laughter.) All right.
And then of course there’s — there’s the quarterback — where’s Tebow at?
MR. TEBOW: Right here.
THE PRESIDENT: There he is, over there — Heisman Trophy winner. That’s what I’m talking about. (Laughter.) Everybody is going to get a handshake afterwards, just relax. (Laughter.) Tim is an inspiration to so many — a guy whose true strength comes not from the gym, but from his faith. He says he puts faith, family, and academics above football. And that’s incredible when you think about what he’s done on the field: first sophomore ever to win the Heisman Trophy, in a season in which he personally scored more touchdowns than 87 entire teams in Division I-A football.
I remember watching the upset when you guys lost to Ole Miss. I was actually doing a debate in Ole Miss right before the game and I remember Tim apologizing — watching him on TV apologizing to Gators fans and laying down a challenge to himself, making an commitment, a promise that in fact they were going to push as hard as he — they could and he was going to personally take it upon himself to make sure that you never see a team play harder than we will the rest of the season.
You know, that’s the kind of leadership that you want to see from all our young people — taking responsibility, challenging yourself and others, rising to the moment. You didn’t promise that the Gators would win every game the rest of the way, but it’s a testament to his leadership that they did because he said we’ll always play hard.
Now, he’ll be the first to tell you he didn’t do any of this alone. Everybody stepped up. So there are guys like wide receiver David Nelson — where’s David? There we go — (laughter) — who went into Coach Meyer’s office after Tim’s promise and said he wouldn’t do — he would do anything for this team, then upped his play all year, ended up catching the clinching touchdown.
What Coach Meyer and all of these guys also understand is being a champion doesn’t stop when you leave the field. They’ve committed themselves to 400 hours each year in service to others, mentoring at-risk youth, showing them that — those youth that if they put their hearts into it, they, too, can succeed. They play with children in pediatric units, help kids learn to read, promote fitness and physical activity, and so much more.
And all of this makes the Gainesville community that much stronger, and makes Florida that much stronger, it makes our country stronger. And I know that the guys behind me get a lot of it — a lot out of it in return.
Now, last point I would make. I don’t want to stir up controversy. You guys are the national champions — I’m not backing off the fact we need a playoff system. But I have every confidence that you guys could have beat anybody else. And so we’ll see how that plays itself out.
I noticed they got all quiet after that. (Laughter.) But you know, I’m one of those politicians — I don’t just tell you what you want to hear, I tell you what you need to hear. (Laughter.)
I know final exams start this weekend, so I don’t want to keep you any longer. You guys are going to have to hit the books. But I just want to say good luck to those who are going to be back next year, to those of you who are moving on the wider stage. Congratulations to all of you for a national championship that I know that you are extremely proud of. And I look forward to continuing to enjoy watching all of you next fall.
So thank you very much, everybody. Give it up for the Gators. (Applause.)
Stimulus Money for National Parks
Considering some of the eye-popping numbers that have been associated with the $787 billion stimulus bill, the money allotted for national parks in Oklahoma seems downright modest.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced $750 million worth of projects, and Oklahoma will get $592,000 of that.
The Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Sulphur will receive $551,000 to repair restrooms, trails and a nature center.
The Washita Battlefield National Historic Site, near Cheyenne, will receive $41,000 to replace the fence along the park’s boundary.
First Lady on Native American Advisor
First Lady Michelle Obama visited the Department of Interior today and revealed that President Barack Obama would appoint a special advisor on Native American issues. Here is what she said:
And for those of you focused on meeting the federal government’s obligations to the Native Americans, understand that you have a wonderful partner in the White House right now.
Boren Backs CIA Pick
Rep. Dan Boren, D-Muskogee, today praised Leon Panetta, the controversial choice to head the CIA under the incoming Obama administration.
Boren, whose father once headed the Senate Intelligence Committee, doesn’t have a vote on Panetta since the Senate will decide whether to confirm the former congressman and White House chief of staff. But Boren urged the Senate to give Panetta the job.
Here is Boren’s statement:
“The nomination of Leon Panetta to lead our nation’s Central Intelligence Agency is a quality choice by President-elect Obama. Panetta has established himself throughout his career as a very capable administrator and public servant who has the best interests of the American people close at heart.
“As an Army veteran, a former nine-term U.S. Congressman, a former White House Chief of Staff, and most recently as a member of the Iraq Study Group, Panetta’s credentials of crisis management and conflict resolution will make him a unique asset to our nation’s intelligence services.
“I urge the swift confirmation of Mr. Panetta so that he may continue the all important task of protecting this great nation from the tyranny of evil and the terrorists who seek to destroy liberty here at home and abroad.”
Mickey Mantle Post Office
President Bush signed a bill on Wednesday that names the post office in Commerce, Oklahoma after the Mick.
According to the Mantle family website, Mickey was born in Spavinaw, in Mayes County, on Oct. 20, 1931, but the family moved soon after to Commerce, in Ottawa County, in the northeastern corner of the state.
Disaster Aid for Oklahoma Cattlemen
The USDA has approved a disaster declaration this morning for counties in northwest Oklahoma that are suffering from severe drought.
Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Cheyenne, and Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa, announced the move and said it would provide immediate relief for livestock producers in the stricken area.
“These counties in
The counties in
