Since Congress, thanks largely to House republicans, has lacked the ability to get it together, Obama has asked Congress to pass a small package that would delay sequester for a few months. Full statement:
You can watch the press gnaw on this in the press briefing:
For now, the Senate is introducing a bill that won't include a ban on assault weapons, but will include background checks. The idea is to introduce a bill that has a chance of passing and then debating Sen. Feinstein's ban on assault weapons on the floor of the Senate.
Read White House background on what Biden is doing in Germany, France and the UK.
Biden's agenda in Munich:
Biden's schedule today per the WH:
In the morning, the Vice President and Dr. Biden will visit Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Landstuhl, Germany. This visit will be closed press.
Later, the Vice President and Dr. Biden will depart Landstuhl, Germany, en route Paris, France.
In the evening, the Vice President and Dr. Biden will arrive in Paris. The arrival at Paris Orly Airport is open press.
Biden's meeting with world leaders:
Vice President Joe Biden met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Munich today, on the margins of the Munich Security Conference. The Vice President emphasized the importance of the two countries working together in the interest of international peace and security, including in Syria. The Vice President noted that while the United States and Russia will continue to have serious differences - including, among other things, on human rights and Russia's recent ban on U.S. adoptions - U.S. and Russian leadership is necessary to achieve practical solutions to the challenges facing the world today.
Vice President Biden met with United Nations and Arab League Joint Special Representative (JSR) Lakhdar Brahimi today in Munich, Germany, on the margins of the Munich Security Conference. The Vice President thanked Brahimi for his steadfast work to bring resolution to the ongoing crisis in Syria and pledged that the United States would continue to support his efforts. The Vice President and JSR Brahimi discussed the dire humanitarian situation inside Syria and the regional implications of the Syria crisis.
Vice President Biden also met separately with Syrian Opposition Coalition (SOC) President Moaz al-Khatib on the margins of the Munich Security Conference. The Vice President praised al-Khatib’s personal courage and leadership of the SOC, the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. The Vice President urged al-Khatib to continue his efforts to maintain unity among the SOC leadership, to isolate extremist elements within the broader opposition, and to reach out to, and be inclusive of, a broad range of communities inside Syria, including Alawites, Christians and Kurds. The Vice President reaffirmed the U.S. call for an end to the Assad regime and a transition that leads to a peaceful, inclusive and democratic Syria, where the rights of all Syrians are protected. The Vice President commended al-Khatib’s recent statements, including in Munich, expressing openness, under certain circumstances, to the possibility of negotiations to bring the Syrian people the leadership they deserve.
Dr. Allen Bard, University of Texas at Austin, TX
Dr. Sallie Chisholm, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MA
Dr. Sidney Drell, Stanford University, CA
Dr. Sandra Faber, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA
Dr. Sylvester James Gates, University of Maryland, MD
Dr. Solomon Golomb, University of Southern California, CA
Dr. John Goodenough, University of Texas at Austin, TX
Dr. M. Frederick Hawthorne, University of Missouri, MO
Dr. Leroy Hood, Institute for Systems Biology, WA
Dr. Barry Mazur, Harvard University, MA
Dr. Lucy Shapiro, Stanford University School of Medicine, CA
Dr. Anne Treisman, Princeton University, NJ
National Medal of Technology and Innovation
Dr. Frances Arnold, California Institute of Technology, CA
Dr. George Carruthers, U.S. Naval Research Lab, DC
Dr. Robert Langer, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MA
Dr. Norman McCombs, AirSep Corporation, NY
Dr. Gholam Peyman, Arizona Retinal Specialists, AZ
Dr. Art Rosenfeld, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, CA
Dr. Jan Vilcek, NYU Langone Medical Center, NY
Team:
Dr. Samuel Blum, IBM Corporation, NY
Dr. Rangaswamy Srinivasan, IBM Corporation, NY
Dr. James Wynne, IBM Corporation, NY
Company:
Raytheon BBN Technologies, MA, *Represented by CEO, Edward Campbell
Affiliations listed are the awardees’ most recently identified employers; some awardees are now retired.
