Yesterday evening, The Kennedy Center and Georgetown University hosted the annual Let Freedom Ring Celebration, a musical celebration commemorating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This year’s concert featured a special performance by Grammy-winning vocalist Bobby McFerrin. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama also attended.
Toddchelle Young (COL ’12) delivered the invocation and included prayers for peace in Syria, for survivors of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, “all those affected by natural disasters in 2011,” and for the presidential candidates running in the 2012 election.
Clarence Jones was presented the John Thompson Legacy of a Dream Award by University president John J. DeGioia and former Men’s Basketball Head Coach John Thompson, Jr. This award is given to an individual or organization whose contributions to community service or social justice reflect the values and ideals of Dr. King. Jones was a speech writer and advisor to Dr. King, and was instrumental in distributing his famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. He is currently a Scholar-Writer in residence and a Visiting Professor at Stanford University.
Most famous for his hit, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy,” McFerrin’s performance was very interactive. McFerrin performs a cappella with his four octave range, and at the Kennedy Center he invited the audience as a whole to participate in the performance (to understand his style, you can watch this video of him). McFerrin closed his set with an innovative rendition of The Beatles’ “Black Bird”.
According to the Washington Post, President Barack Obama is expected to visit the newly-completed Georgetown Waterfront Park tomorrow, as part of his promotion of the American Jobs Act.
The purpose of the visit will be to discuss the Key Bridge, which was recently reported as “structurally deficient” and in need of immediate repair. Under the jobs plan, about $387 million would be available to D.C., some of which would go to repairing the Key Bridge. According to DCist, the District Department of Transportation reports that the Key Bridge would be the first to undergo repairs if this money became available.
The White House announced yesterday that Kathryn Ruemmler (LAW ’96) – a Georgetown Law graduate – would replace Bob Bauer as President Obama’s legal counsel at the end of the month.
“Kathy is an outstanding lawyer with impeccable judgment,” President Obama said in a press release. “Together, Bob and Kathy have led the White House Counsel’s office, and Kathy will assure that it continues to successfully manage its wide variety of responsibilities.”
While at Georgetown Law, Ruemmler was editor-in-chief of the Georgetown Law Journal. After graduation, she worked as a law clerk for Honorable Timothy K. Lewis of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. She subsequently served as associate counsel in the Clinton Administration. In 2001, she was appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney.
In 2003, Ruemmler was picked to assist in the federal prosecution of energy giant Enron’s founder, Kenneth Lay, and former CEO Jeffrey Skilling for accounting fraud. She became deputy director of the Enron Task Force in 2005.
President Obama appointed Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General at the Department of Justice in 2009. She joined the Office of Counsel to the President in 2010.
As Barack Obama announced the death of Osama bin Laden at the hands of US forces in Pakistan, crowds of students from D.C. universities thronged in front of the White House in a spontaneous rally.
As news of bin Laden’s death reached campus, crowds of Georgetown students grabbed taxis, rode bicycles or simply sprinted down M street in order to reach the White House. A crowd of several thousand people eventually massed, pressing up against the White House fence and pushing into Lafayette square. Members of the crowd waved American flags and chanted an energetic series of slogans: “U-S-A,” “Obama got Osama,” “yes we did,” and “Hoya Saxa” were shouted by eager students in the crowd.
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A crowd of approximately 1,000—mostly students—packed into McDonough Gymnasium this morning to hear President Barack Obama as he laid out a plan to reduce oil imports by one-third in a decade.
“Here’s the bottom line—there are no quick fixes, ” Obama said. “And we will keep on being a victim to shifts in the oil market until we get serious about a long-term policy for secure, affordable energy.”
Criticizing “the same political gridlock and inertia that’s held us back for decades,” Obama explained that the country must find and produce more oil domestically, while simultaneously reduce oil dependence by investing in clean, alternative fuel sources. With those measures in mind, Obama announced that he plans to encourage offshore oil drilling—including seven deep-water drilling permits granted in recent weeks.
“I don’t think anyone’s forgotten that we’re not even a year removed from the largest oil spill in our history,” he said. “What we learned from that disaster helped us put in place smarter standards of safety and responsibility.”
In his speech, Obama also cited a growing role for alternative energy sources, such as natural gas, renewable biofuels, and clean forms of electricity. By 2015, he said, all federal agencies will purchase only alternative fuel, hybrid, or electric vehicles.
President Barack Obama will be speaking tomorrow at Georgetown University to outline his plan for America’s energy security.
Obama will be speaking in McDonough Arena at 11:15 a.m. According to a broadcast email from the University, first-come, first-served tickets may be picked up tonight beginning at 6 p.m. in the Georgetown Athletic Hall of Fame in the Leavey Center.
Obama’s last speech at Georgetown caused great controversy–not for what he said, but because the IHS symbol in Gaston Hall was covered up during the speech.
Yesterday, four Georgetown academics–Samer Shehata, Steven Heydemann, Hesham Sallam, and John Voll–encouraged President Barack Obama to throw his support behind a week-long uprising against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
“As political scientists, historians, and researchers in related fields who have studied the Middle East and U.S. foreign policy, we the undersigned believe you have a chance to move beyond rhetoric to support the democratic movement sweeping over Egypt,” the letter, which was signed by 101 professors from around the country, read. “As citizens, we expect our president to uphold those values.”
Both Shehata and Voll work within the School of Foreign Service, while Sallam is a PhD student in Georgetown College. Heydemann is an associate professor who mainly works in the Georgetown Public Policy Institute.
After urging Obama support the revolution, the letter goes on to suggest a new era of diplomacy between the United States and Egypt.
“In order for the United States to stand with the Egyptian people it must approach Egypt through a framework of shared values and hopes, not the prism of geostrategy,” it added. “For that reason we urge your administration to seize this chance, turn away from the policies that brought us here, and embark on a new course toward peace, democracy and prosperity for the people of the Middle East.”
Another member of the Georgetown community is now a member of the Obama administration.
After being nominated this summer, President Barack Obamarecess appointed former Georgetown University Law Center adjunct professor James Cole as deputy attorney general.
Cole replaces David Ogden, who stepped down in February as the deputy attorney general.
He has been a partner at Bryan Cave LLP since 1995. Prior to working in private practice, Cole worked for the Department of Justice and served on President Clinton’s transition team in 1992.
From 1989 to 2003, he served as an adjunct professor at GULC teaching classes on public corruption laws and legal ethics.
Other recess appointments by the Obama administration included ambassadors to the Czech Republic, Turkey, Syria, and Azerbaijan.
Original post: Minutes ago, we got a strange email that urged us to arrive “at least 45 minutes earlier than you normally would” for tomorrow’s men’s basketball game at the Verizon Center. And season ticket holders got it too.
“There will be enhanced security at the entrances to the arena for this game,” the email read.
Could President Barack Obama be visiting the Verizon Center? Possibly, but he won’t be watching Georgetown play the mighty Greyhounds of Loyola Maryland. Earlier today, Wizards owner Ted Leonsis (COL ’77) gave a coy hint that suggested the security presence is for the Wizards-Heat game scheduled for Saturday night.
“We will have a big crowd on Saturday, lots of dignitaries and VIPs. If I was you, I wouldn’t be too cool for school and think you will get into the building at your leisure at 7:15 pm. I would get there early,” Leonsis wrote on his blog.
Vox Populi is the staff blog of the Georgetown Voice, a weekly newsmagazine at Georgetown University. Opinions expressed in posts are those of their author alone unless otherwise stated.
Yesterday evening, The Kennedy Center and Georgetown University hosted the annual Let Freedom Ring Celebration, a musical celebration commemorating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This year’s concert featured a special performance by Grammy-winning vocalist Bobby McFerrin. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama also attended.
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