[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 2]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 2436-2438]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            SEVEN YEARS OF CHANGE THAT YOU CAN SEE AND FEEL

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, February 29, 2016

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, today is the last day of Black History 
Month, a time when the nation pauses to remember the contributions of 
African American men and women that have enriched the fabric of our 
nation.
  That is why it is fitting and proper that we take a moment to recount 
and appreciate the extraordinary accomplishments of one of the singular 
figures in American history: President Barack Obama.
  Mr. Speaker, those of us who were there remember well that the 
morning of January 20, 2009 was one of the coldest days on record in 
Washington, DC.
  But it was nothing compared to the chill wind blowing through the 
American economy and body politic.
  The nation was facing economic challenges unseen since the Great 
Depression: Americans were losing their jobs at a frightening rate of 
800,000 per month; the national unemployment rate had risen to 7.8 
percent and would continue to climb until reaching its peak of 10.0 
percent in October 2009.
  For African Americans, the numbers were much grimmer, a jobless rate 
of 13.5 percent in January 2009 which would grow to 16.5 percent by the 
end of the year.
  And on top of this, tens of thousands of American families each month 
were losing their health insurance and their homes to foreclosure.
  The United States was still bogged down in the quagmire that was the 
Iraq War and young people by the thousands were being forced to defer 
or drop out of college because of lack of financial aid.
  And the average price of gas exceeded $4 per gallon.
  It was against this backdrop that I watched from the inaugural 
platform as Barack Obama,

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surrounded by his radiant and beautiful wife, Michelle, and their two 
adorable daughters, rose to take the oath of office.
  After being sworn in as the nation's 44th President of the United 
States, President Obama reassured an anxious but hopeful nation, 
saying:

       Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. 
     They are serious and they are many. They will not be met 
     easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: 
     They will be met.

  Watching Barack Obama address the nation that day, spectators in 
attendance and viewers across the country and around the world 
understood they were witnessing a historic president, the first African 
American ever to hold the nation's highest office.
  But more than being a historic president, Barack Obama's actions and 
leadership over the ensuing seven years would demonstrate his would be 
a consequential presidency that changed America for the better.
  His first and most pressing task was to rescue an economy on the 
brink of collapse.
  Working with the Democratic-controlled Congress, the American 
Recovery and Reinvestment Act was passed, which created 3.7 million 
jobs and saved the jobs of millions of teachers, firefighters, police 
officers, and social service providers.
  The Recovery Act also cut taxes for working families, extended 
unemployment insurance, and expanded the Earned Income and Child tax 
credits, which disproportionately benefit African American families.
  Seven years later the verdict is in on the economic plan put in place 
by President Obama and the Democratic Congress.
  The Recovery Act ended the Great Recession, transformed the economy 
from one hemorrhaging jobs to one that has created over 16 million new 
jobs over a record 71 consecutive months.
  The national unemployment rate has dipped under 5% for the first time 
since President Clinton left office, the deficit has been cut by 71%, 
and the Dow Jones stock market index topped 18,000 in 2015, an increase 
of 177% over where it stood the day President Obama took office.
  And, as an added benefit, the average price of gasoline has been 
reduced from more than $4.11 per gallon to $1.80, the lowest price 
since before the tragedy of September 11.
  These last seven years also effected policy changes in the areas of 
criminal justice reform, health and education, national security, and 
foreign affairs.
  A partial listing of these achievements is substantial, impressive, 
and varied.
  President Obama signed the Fair Sentencing Act in August 2010, which 
reduces the disparity in the amounts of powder cocaine and crack 
cocaine required for the imposition of mandatory minimum sentences and 
eliminates the mandatory minimum sentence for simple possession of 
crack cocaine.
  In July 2015, President Obama became the first president ever to tour 
a federal prison when he visited the El Reno Federal Correctional 
Institution outside of Oklahoma City.
  President Obama launched the Smart on Crime initiative through which 
the Department of Justice modified its charging policies for certain 
federal low-level drug-related offenses, improved diversion and re-
entry policies, and strengthened protections for the most vulnerable.
  President Obama established Smart on Juvenile Justice grant program 
to expand the use of effective community-based alternatives to youth 
detention and launched the Second Chance Pell Pilot Program for 
Incarcerated Individuals to test new models to allow incarcerated 
Americans to receive Pell Grants and pursue the postsecondary education 
with the goal of helping them get jobs, support their families, and 
turn their lives around.
  President Obama directed the Office of Personnel Management to take 
action where it can to ``ban the box'' by modifying its rules to delay 
inquiries into criminal history until later in the hiring process and 
called on Congress to enact legislation ``banning the box'' on job 
applications in the private sector.
  President Obama increased the use of body-worn cameras through $20 
million in grants to state and local law enforcement.
  President Obama issued an Executive Order to increase the capacity of 
VA mental-health programs by hiring 1,600 more mental-health 
professionals and expanding the capacity of the Veterans Crisis Line.
  President Obama provided nearly $60 billion in benefit payments under 
the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill to over 1.5 million individuals and relaxed the 
evidence requirements for veterans seeking disability pay for post-
traumatic stress disorder with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
  President Obama acted to reduce gun violence by issuing executive 
orders requiring background checks for people trying to buy some of the 
most dangerous weapons and other items through a trust or corporation 
and an overhaul of the background check system to make it more 
efficient and effective.
  President Obama signed into law the Affordable Care Act passed by the 
Democratic Congress which has provided access to quality, affordable 
health insurance to nearly 20 million previously uninsured Americans.
  President Obama launched the ``My Brother's Keeper'' Initiative in 
2014 to address persistent opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men 
of color and ensure that all young people can reach their full 
potential.
  In October 2009, Congress passed and President Obama signed the 
Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, 
historic legislation extending coverage of federal hate-crime law to 
include attacks based on the victim's race, religion, nationality, or 
actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.
  President Obama established the new Deferred Action for Childhood 
Arrivals (DACA) policy for young undocumented people who came to the 
U.S. as children in an effort to better focus enforcement resources.
  President Obama expanded opportunity for America's children by 
strengthening Head Start.
  President Obama made college more affordable by increasing Pell 
grants, keeping interest rates on student loans low, and helping 
students manageably repay their loans.
  President Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act, which made 
historic investments in improved child nutrition and health for the 31 
million children who rely on school meals and updated science-based 
school meal standards to increase fruits, vegetables, whole grains, 
lean protein and low-fat dairy, while reducing fats and sodium.
  In December 2010, the Congress passed and President Obama signed the 
Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 into law, allowing gay men and 
women to serve openly and with integrity in the U.S. military.
  President Obama also made history by appointing two women to the U.S. 
Supreme Court, including the first Hispanic American to serve on the 
Court.
  President Obama appointed the first African American man and woman to 
serve as Attorney General and the first woman to Chair the Federal 
Reserve Board.
  In the area of foreign affairs and national security, President Obama 
ended the Iraq War, assembled and led an international coalition to 
impose sanctions so crippling on Iran that it was forced to the 
negotiating table that yielded the Iran Nuclear Agreement that prevents 
Iran from ever attaining a nuclear weapon.
  And of course, as the world knows, because of President Obama's 
leadership, General Motors is alive and Osama Bin Laden is dead.
  For seven years, President Barack Obama has represented our country 
with grace, integrity, honor, and distinction.
  He has provided consolation, hope, and healing in the face of 
unspeakable tragedies such as the massacre of innocent children at 
Sandy Hook, worshippers at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, 
spectators at the Boston Marathon, and mass shootings in Aurora, 
Colorado and Tucson, Arizona.
  He expressed and symbolized our joy and pride in the progress made 
over the last half century--and the distance we still have to travel--
when he marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge and addressed the 
multitude from the spot on the steps where the Rev. Martin Luther King, 
Jr. shared his dream for America's future.
  So as President Obama serves the final year of his presidency, it is 
clear beyond doubt that he kept the promise he made to the nation seven 
years ago on that cold day in January when he said:

       Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. . 
     . . But know this America: They will be met.

  They were more than just met; under his leadership they were overcome 
with amazing grace.
  And because of President Barack Obama, today the United States is 
stronger, more prosperous, and better positioned than ever to win the 
future.
  As a presidential candidate in 2008, then Senator Obama promised the 
America people ``change you can believe in.''
  In office, President Obama made good on that promise, delivering 
positive change that the American people can see and feel.
  And that is what makes his one of the most consequential presidencies 
in American history.

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