In the aftermath of the massacre at the Sandy Hook Elementary School last December, the courage and resilience of teachers, parents, children, and communities in the Newtown area has been nothing short of remarkable.

From Governor Dannel Malloy to state lawmakers to the members of the Sandy Hook Promise, the entire state worked together to pass comprehensive legislation to reduce gun violence.

Unlike here in Washington, Connecticut’s lawmakers didn’t defend the status quo or shrink from tackling difficult questions. With bipartisan support, they enacted a comprehensive law to help curb gun violence and mass shootings that does not infringe on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens to defend themselves and hunt.

Connecticut’s leaders have set an example of political courage that can teach a lot to Congress and the rest of the nation. At today’s town hall meeting, Governor Malloy talked about how he decided to press ahead for new gun violence prevention measures, despite fierce attacks from the NRA.

By contrast, in Washington, Congress has so far failed to take the sensible step of expanding the background check system to close loopholes that allow criminals and the mentally ill to buy guns.

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First, back in February, Attorney General Eric Holder christened the unofficial official doctrine of "Too Big to Jail."

He told Congress, "The size of some of these institutions [TBTF banks] becomes so large that it does become difficult for us to prosecute them when we are hit with indications that if we do prosecute - if we do bring a criminal charge - it will have a negative impact on the national economy, perhaps even the world economy."

Of course, it was only the christening of another neat little name.

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Hi all --

Today, Republicans in the House of Representatives are going to come together, cast a vote, and try to repeal the Affordable Care Act just as they've done nearly 40 times before.

Don't expect much to come of it.

The health care law was passed by Congress, signed by the President, and upheld by the Supreme Court. It's been the law of the land for more than three years. It's not going anywhere. We know that, and so do the lawmakers on Capitol Hill. But instead of creating jobs and growing the economy, some of them want to make yet another gesture of protest -- even if it's meaningless.

So we're responding with a little gesture of our own, and we need your help.

We're asking people like you to speak out, to let us know if you're one of the 85 percent of Americans who've already benefitted from the health care law, and make a public stand in support of Obamacare.

Lend your name now.

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Hi everyone --

This is the start of a national debate. Across the country, we're having a serious discussion about how we can build a fair and effective immigration system that lives up to our heritage as a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants.

And we need your help to make sure that genuine, personal perspectives are part of the conversation. The truth is, that if we go back far enough, nearly every American story begins somewhere else -- so often with ancestors setting out in search of a different life, carving out a future for their children in this place that all of us now call home.

We want to make sure that idea isn't far from the minds of policymakers here in Washington as we work to reach an agreement to reform immigration.

To kick things off, one of the President's senior advisors sat down to share his story with you.

Watch David Simas tell his American story, then tell us yours.

When Americans from all over the country -- each with different backgrounds, each from different circumstances -- all speak out with the same voice, it's powerful in a way that's hard to ignore. We've seen it again and again, in debate after debate.

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It's called the American Legislative Exchange Council-or ALEC for short.

And while its name may sound perfectly harmless, it's the single reason why your vote no longer matters.

You see, due to the influence wielded by this mysterious group, elected officials have become little more than high-paid rubber stamps.

As for representation, thanks to ALEC, you don't really have any.

So what is ALEC?

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It's called the American Legislative Exchange Council-or ALEC for short.

And while its name may sound perfectly harmless, it's the single reason why your vote no longer matters.

You see, due to the influence wielded by this mysterious group, elected officials have become little more than high-paid rubber stamps.

As for representation, thanks to ALEC, you don't really have any.

So what is ALEC?

To continue reading, please click here...

Watch the West Wing Week here.

Mexico & Costa Rica Trip: On Thursday, President Obama started a three day trip to Mexico and Costa Rica for his first visit to Latin America of the second term. During the trip, the President hopes to reinforce the deep cultural, familial, and economic ties we share with Mexico and Central America.

Yesterday, the President had a bilateral meeting with Mexican President Peña Nieto at Palacio National in Mexico City. The bulk of his discussions in Mexico will cover the economy, and in Costa Rica, the President will meet with Central American leaders, who are important partners in improving foreign policy and the economy.

Ben Rhodes, Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications, previewed the trip before leaving Washington. Check out the video on YouTube.

Transportation Secretary Nominated: On Tuesday, the President nominated the Mayor of Charlotte, Anthony Foxx, for Transportation Secretary.  As mayor, Foxx modernized the electric train service to Charlotte’s downtown area, expanded the international airport, and extended the city’s light rail system. The President hopes cities can mimic the work done in Charlotte to attract more business, create more jobs, and stay competitive in the global economy.

Our top priority as a nation right now is doing everything we can to grow our economy and create good jobs and rebuild opportunity for the middle class. And one of the best ways we can do that is to put more Americans back to work rebuilding our infrastructure.

• What You Need to Know About President Obama's Plan to Improve American Infrastructure
• Fact Sheet: The President’s Plan to Make America a Magnet for Jobs by Investing in Infrastructure
• The “Rebuild America Partnership”: The President’s Plan to Encourage Private Investment in America’s Infrastructure

New FHFA and FCC Heads Picked: On Wednesday, the President announced the nominations of Representative Melvin Watt, as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), and Tom Wheeler, as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Watt served for 20 years as a member of the congressional committee that oversees housing policy and will be responsible for looking over mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The President will look for Wheeler to head the FCC to ensure American businesses and workers have “the tools they need to compete in the 21st century economy.”

Commerce and U.S. Trade Representative Tapped: On Thursday, the President announced his nominations of Penny Pritzker as Secretary of Commerce, and Mike Froman as U.S. Trade Representative.

Pritzker is one of “our country’s most distinguished business leaders” with over 25 years of management experience in real estate, finance, and hospitality.

If confirmed as U.S. Trade Representative, Froman, will bring with him over two decades in both the public and private sectors.  The President described him as “one of the world’s foremost experts on our global economy” who pushes until “he’s delivered the best possible deal for American businesses and American works.”

Hiring More Veterans: On Wednesday, President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Biden, and Dr. Jill Biden participated in a Joining Forces employment event announcing new hiring commitments for veterans and military spouses. Two years ago, the President challenged the private sector to hire or train 100,000 unemployed veterans or their spouses by the end of 2013. The First Lady announced American companies achieved this goal eight months ahead of schedule. To date, 290,000 veterans or military spouses have been hired by the private sector, almost triple the original goal.

At the event, the First Lady continued the call to action and said American companies have committed to hire or train 435,000 veterans or military spouses over the next five years.

Joining Forces is a comprehensive national initiative to serve our service members and their families. Check out Joining Forces to find simple ways you can help veterans and military families.

Open for Questions: On Wednesday, President Obama held a press conference in the Brady Briefing Room covering a range of issues. The President responded to questions pertaining to Syria and our national security, the Boston Marathon bombing, gun legislation, health care, and immigration reform.  Watch the full press conference here and read the President’s full remarks here.

WH Correspondents Dinner: On Saturday, President Obama poked fun at himself at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner at the Washington Hilton. The President was joined by host Conan O’Brien, First Lady Michelle Obama, members of the media, and a collection of celebrities. During his remarks, he shared a promo for Steven Spielberg’s follow-up to “Lincoln” called “Obama.”

You can watch the President’s full remarks on YouTube and read his remarks here.

150th Anniversary of National Academy of Sciences: On Monday, the President delivered remarks at the National Academy of Sciences on its 150th anniversary. The President thanked the Academy for its contributions and for helping create a strong economy, improving our health, and protecting our environment.

For 150 years, you’ve strived to answer big questions, solve tough problems, not for yourselves but for the benefit of the nation.  And that legacy has endured from the Academy’s founding days.  And when you look at our history, you’ve stepped up at times of enormous need and, in some cases, great peril.

• Find out about the Brain Initiative
• See coverage of the 2013 White House Science Fair
• Read about the Educate to Innovate initiative

Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows that private sector businesses added 176,000 jobs last month. Total non-farm payroll employment rose by 165,000 jobs in April. The February and March employment estimates were revised up by a total of 114,000 jobs. The economy has now added private sector jobs every month for 38 straight months, and a total of 6.8 million jobs has been added over that period.  Over 800,000 private sector jobs have been added over the last four months.

The household survey showed that the unemployment rate edged down from 7.6 percent in March to 7.5 percent in April, the lowest rate since December 2008. The labor force participation rate was unchanged at 63.3 percent in April.

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Given that national debt growth has rocketed past $16.7 trillion and is on track to exceed $17 trillion at some point in the fall, a $35 billion reduction is laughably tiny. It's just 0.02% of what we as a nation owe.

And in the very same statement, the Treasury admitted that in the following quarter it expects to be back to borrowing as usual - $223 billion worth, more than six times the amount it plans to pay down this quarter.

So why bother?

"I don't believe in coincidences," said Money Morning Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald. "Our leaders in Washington on both sides of the aisle are terribly under pressure from the American public right now, and I think this is a very convenient announcement to say, "Hey, we're doing the right thing, keep us all in office for a little while longer.'"

And apart from any political motivations, Fitz-Gerald wonders whether the plan to pay down $35 billion of the national debt can even be considered legitimate, given the way the government borrows money from itself.

"It's like taking blood from the left arm and putting in in the right arm and calling it a transfusion," Fitz-Gerald said.

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Given that national debt growth has rocketed past $16.7 trillion and is on track to exceed $17 trillion at some point in the fall, a $35 billion reduction is laughably tiny. It's just 0.02% of what we as a nation owe.

And in the very same statement, the Treasury admitted that in the following quarter it expects to be back to borrowing as usual - $223 billion worth, more than six times the amount it plans to pay down this quarter.

So why bother?

"I don't believe in coincidences," said Money Morning Chief Investment Strategist Keith Fitz-Gerald. "Our leaders in Washington on both sides of the aisle are terribly under pressure from the American public right now, and I think this is a very convenient announcement to say, "Hey, we're doing the right thing, keep us all in office for a little while longer.'"

And apart from any political motivations, Fitz-Gerald wonders whether the plan to pay down $35 billion of the national debt can even be considered legitimate, given the way the government borrows money from itself.

"It's like taking blood from the left arm and putting in in the right arm and calling it a transfusion," Fitz-Gerald said.

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Electric hybrid car maker Fisker Automotive Inc. is now on the verge of bankruptcy and owes the U.S. government more than $180 million - which would be the biggest waste of taxpayer money since the Solyndra fiasco.

According to PrivCo, a New York-based researcher, Fisker has not produced a car since last summer and has gone through more than $1.3 billion in private investment capital and government loans.

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Electric hybrid car maker Fisker Automotive Inc. is now on the verge of bankruptcy and owes the U.S. government more than $180 million - which would be the biggest waste of taxpayer money since the Solyndra fiasco.

According to PrivCo, a New York-based researcher, Fisker has not produced a car since last summer and has gone through more than $1.3 billion in private investment capital and government loans.

To continue reading, please click here...

President Barack Obama delivers remarks during the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner at the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., April 27, 2013. First Lady Michelle Obama attended the dinner with the President. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

President Obama last night joined Conan O'Brien onstage at the Washington Hilton for the annual White House Correspondents' Association Dinner, and gave his fifth address to the organization of journalists who cover the White House, and the President himself. In his remarks, the President poked at himself, as well as some of the news organizations and politicians in the room. He also showed a spoof promo for Steven Spielberg's followup to "LIncoln," a biopic called "Obama."

But while everyone had a good laugh during the speech, President Obama closed his speech on  a more serious note, reminding the audience of the important role the media plays in American society, especially during times of crisis like the Boston Marathon bombings and the explosion that killed so many first responders in West, Texas.  

You can watch the entire speech below or on YouTube:

Watch the West Wing Week here.

White House Science Fair: On Tuesday, President Obama welcomed our country’s youngest scientists and innovators for the 3rd Annual White House Science Fair. More than 100 students from more than 40 states joined the President for the all-day celebration. The President toured the fair and even hopped on a bicycle-powered, emergency water-sanitation station developed by high-school students Payton Karr and Kiona Elliott of Oakland Park, Florida.

The President launched the White House Science Fair in 2009 as way to help encourage science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.  In December of 2012 the Administration announced a goal of one million new STEM graduates in the next decade, and the President’s plan works for educational opportunities and support for women and underrepresented minorities.

• Watch Bill Nye the Science Guy and LeVar Burton interview some of the young inventors
• See all the videos from the 2013 White House Science Fair
• Check out the full list of students who participated and find out more about their inventions
• Girls in STEM: A New Generation in Science
• Watch President Obama fire a marshmallow cannon at the 2012 White House Science Fair

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All the sequester craziness has proven that our elected officials are not only inept, selfish, money-squandering bozos - they're also willing to actually inflict harm on the American people for political gain.

Virtually all of the problems created by the sequester, from the flight delays resulting from furloughed air traffic controllers to cancer clinics turning away Medicare patients could easily have been avoided.

But American citizens are suffering because Washington's warring factions - the Democrats and the Republicans - refuse to solve the nation's budget problems unless, like petulant toddlers, they can get their way.

A few Congressman - too few -- have called out their colleagues.

"What we're showing is our incompetence, or our downright disdain for the American public," Sen. Tom Coburn, R-OK, said on the Fox Business program Varney & Co.

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All the sequester craziness has proven that our elected officials are not only inept, selfish, money-squandering bozos - they're also willing to actually inflict harm on the American people for political gain.

Virtually all of the problems created by the sequester, from the flight delays resulting from furloughed air traffic controllers to cancer clinics turning away Medicare patients could easily have been avoided.

But American citizens are suffering because Washington's warring factions - the Democrats and the Republicans - refuse to solve the nation's budget problems unless, like petulant toddlers, they can get their way.

A few Congressman - too few -- have called out their colleagues.

"What we're showing is our incompetence, or our downright disdain for the American public," Sen. Tom Coburn, R-OK, said on the Fox Business program Varney & Co.

To continue reading, please click here...

It is important to recognize that GDP is made up of various components. Personal consumption expenditures, for example, rose by 3.2 percent at an annual rate in 2013:Q1, the fastest rate in over two years. Residential investment grew by 12.6 percent last quarter and has increased for eight quarters in a row, its longest streak since 2004-2005. Federal defense spending fell 11.5 percent at an annual rate in 2013:Q1, while federal nondefense spending declined at a 2.0 percent rate and state and local government purchases fell at a 1.2 percent rate.

The “advance estimate” of first quarter GDP growth encompasses the first month after sequestration began on March 1. It is likely that the contraction in Federal defense and non-defense spending, at least in part, reflects the onset of sequestration. These arbitrary and unnecessary cuts to government services will be a headwind in the months to come, and will cut key investments in the nation’s future competitiveness. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the sequester will reduce GDP growth by 0.6 percentage point for the year.

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I know many of you agree. You voice your frustration to me every week.

It's not "one" problem. There are many.

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I know many of you agree. You voice your frustration to me every week.

It's not "one" problem. There are many.

To continue reading, please click here...

A recent report from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office uncovered 162 areas of duplicate spending, which at minimum wastes tens of billions of dollars every year.

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-OK, a well-known hawk on wasteful government spending, estimates that the duplication cited in the GAO report squanders between $100 billion and $200 billion a year.

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A recent report from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office uncovered 162 areas of duplicate spending, which at minimum wastes tens of billions of dollars every year.

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-OK, a well-known hawk on wasteful government spending, estimates that the duplication cited in the GAO report squanders between $100 billion and $200 billion a year.

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The Marketplace Fairness Act would essentially end tax-free Internet shopping by forcing online retailers with revenue of $1 million or more to collect sales taxes for the states in which their customers reside.

As it stands, online retailers do not have to collect sales taxes from out-of-state customers unless the retailers have a physical presence in that state, like a store or a warehouse.

Yesterday (Monday), the bill passed a procedural vote in the Senate by a 74-20 margin, which strongly hints at passage in the upper chamber in a vote expected later this week.

While there's more resistance to an Internet sales tax in the House, the bill is known to have bipartisan support there as well. President Barack Obama also has voiced support for the bill.

If it becomes law, the Marketplace Fairness Act will radically change the online shopping landscape.

"It really should be renamed the Internet Tax Collection Act because it is going to make online businesses the tax collectors for the nation," complained Sen.Kelly Ayotte, R-NH, one of the most vocal opponents of the bill.

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The Marketplace Fairness Act would essentially end tax-free Internet shopping by forcing online retailers with revenue of $1 million or more to collect sales taxes for the states in which their customers reside.

As it stands, online retailers do not have to collect sales taxes from out-of-state customers unless the retailers have a physical presence in that state, like a store or a warehouse.

Yesterday (Monday), the bill passed a procedural vote in the Senate by a 74-20 margin, which strongly hints at passage in the upper chamber in a vote expected later this week.

While there's more resistance to an Internet sales tax in the House, the bill is known to have bipartisan support there as well. President Barack Obama also has voiced support for the bill.

If it becomes law, the Marketplace Fairness Act will radically change the online shopping landscape.

"It really should be renamed the Internet Tax Collection Act because it is going to make online businesses the tax collectors for the nation," complained Sen.Kelly Ayotte, R-NH, one of the most vocal opponents of the bill.

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President Barack Obama, with Education Secretary Arne Duncan, honors 2013 National Teacher of the Year Jeff Charbonneau, State Teachers of the Year, and Principals of the Year, in the Rose Garden of the White House, April 23, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Twelve years ago, Zillah High School in Washington state had no engineering classes. The science curriculum was lagging behind, and students had to go off campus to take technology classes.

Jeff Charbonneau, who returned to his hometown 11 years ago to teach at Zillah High, was determined to change that. And he did. Science enrollment is way up. Kids are graduating with college-level science credits. The school expects to have to hire more teachers now to meet the demand. 

And today, President Obama honored Jeff as the 2013 National Teacher of the Year.

Jeff teaches chemistry, physics, and engineering, and works to create accessible, interactive lessons that help convince kids that the science classes most students consider hardest are worth diving in to, not running away from. But President Obama said that it’s not just his work in the classroom that distinguishes Jeff.

“He started an outdoors club,” President Obama said. “He brought his passion to the drama program. He’s even helping out other schools.” Because of Jeff, hundreds of students all over Washington are now participating in high-skills robotics competitions and gaining valuable engineering experience.

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Surrounded by Americans whose lives and families had been forever changed by gun violence, President Obama spoke from the Rose Garden about today’s Senate vote on expanded background checks for gun sales.

A few months ago, in response to too many tragedies -- including the shootings of a United States Congresswoman, Gabby Giffords, who’s here today, and the murder of 20 innocent schoolchildren and their teachers –- this country took up the cause of protecting more of our people from gun violence.

Families that know unspeakable grief summoned the courage to petition their elected leaders –- not just to honor the memory of their children, but to protect the lives of all our children. And a few minutes ago, a minority in the United States Senate decided it wasn’t worth it. They blocked common-sense gun reforms even while these families looked on from the Senate gallery.

“A majority of senators voted “yes” to protecting more of our citizens with smarter background checks,” President Obama said. “But by this continuing distortion of Senate rules, a minority was able to block it from moving forward.

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