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♪♪ (drum and bugle corps) ♪♪
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Narrator:
Welcome to the West Wing
Week, your guide to everything
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that's happening at 1600
Pennsylvania Avenue.
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This week, Education Month
continued, with President Obama
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asking Congress to fix No Child
Left Behind before the start of
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the next school year.
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And monitoring the relief
efforts in Japan,
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offering America's help.
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The Prime Minister of Denmark,
the Taoiseach of Ireland, and
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the Chicago Blackhawks
all stopped by.
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That's March 11th to the 17th,
or punching above your weight.
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President Obama:
Denmark is acountry that in American terms punches
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above its weight.
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Narrator:
On Friday, March 11th,
President Obama went to the EEOB
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to address rising gas prices and
take questions from the media.
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But first he stopped to
acknowledge the tragedy
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unfolding in Japan after
the massive earthquake
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and tsunami there.
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President Obama:
Today's events remind us of just how fragile life can be.
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Our hearts go out to our friends
in Japan and across the region
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and we're going to stand with
them as they recover and
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rebuild from this tragedy.
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Narrator:
Later that afternoon,
President Obama welcomed the
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Stanley Cup Champion Chicago
Blackhawks to the White House.
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President Obama:
Where's the enforcer, come on?
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(laughter)
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President Obama:
Look, somebody knocks his teeth out, hand is all messed up.
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Narrator:
While in town, the Blackhawks
visited servicemen and women at
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Walter Reed Hospital and held a
street hockey clinic with the
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First Lady on the south
lawn of the White House.
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(laughter)
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On Monday, March
14th, the President visited
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Kenmore Middle School in
Arlington, Virginia, with
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Education Secretary Arne Duncan
to make a speech on education
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and discussed how to prepare
our kids for the 21st century.
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President Obama is urging reform
of No Child Left Behind by the
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start of the new school year.
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He stressed that we must not
only leave no child behind,
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but also help every
student get ahead.
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President Obama:
That's why you've got
the gray hair like me.
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(laughter)
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That's why you've
got the gray hair like me.
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The best economic
policy is one that
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produces more college graduates.
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(applause)
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And that's why for
the sake of our children and our
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economy and America's future,
we're going to have to do a
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better job educating every
single one of our
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sons and daughters.
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Narrator:
While at Kenmore,
the President also visited a
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classroom where students were
learning about the Harlem
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Renaissance by exploring
arts, poetry and music.
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President Obama:
Now that you've studied Ellington, you've
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got to keep going, Coltrane,
Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock,
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Louis Armstrong.
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Speaker:
Thank you, Mr. President.
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Speaker:
Thank you.
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(applause)
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Narrator:
Back at the White House,
the President met with
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Denmark's Prime Minister
Rasmussen to discuss the strong
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ties between the United States
and Denmark, the common global
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challenges our two nations face,
including the situation in the
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Middle East and economic
and environmental issues.
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President Obama:
Of special importance has been our appreciation of the
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sacrifices that have
been made by Danish
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troops in Afghanistan and the
extraordinary leadership that
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Denmark has shown
as part of ISAF.
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Narrator:
On Tuesday, March 15th,
President Obama did several
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interviews with local television
stations from the map room of
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the White House on the
importance of education
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reform and the need to
fix No Child Left Behind.
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President Obama:
Investments in education
are an investment
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in our future, and I would
rather see us make cuts in some
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things that we don't need to
make sure that we're funding
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the things that we do.
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And I think education is one of
those things that's going to be
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absolutely critical
for our future.
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Narrator:
The President also spoke
to ESPN in the library,
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filling out his bracket for
the men's and women's NCAA
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basketball tournaments.
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President Obama:
I've never picked
all number one seeds.
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Narrator:
He also urged Americans to
give to those in need in Japan.
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President Obama:
One of the things that
I want to do on the
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show was as people are filling
out their brackets, this is
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obviously a national past time,
we all have a great time, it's a
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great diversion, but I know a
lot of people are thinking how
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can they help the Japanese
people during this time of need.
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If you go to usaid.gov,
usaid.gov, that will list all
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the nonprofits, the charities
that are helping out there.
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Narrator:
Later that afternoon, the
President went to Arlington
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National Cemetery to pay his
respects to Frank Buckles of
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the United States Army.
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Mr. Buckles was 110 years
old and the last surviving
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veteran of World War I.
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On Wednesday, March 16th, the
President spent the day in
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meetings, including one with
USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah
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to discuss humanitarian
assistance efforts in the Middle
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East, Africa, Haiti, Afghanistan
and Pakistan, and the disaster
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assistance being provided to
the Japanese government as they
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respond to the recent major
earthquake and tsunami.
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On Thursday, March 17th, Saint
Patrick's Day, President Obama
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welcomed the Taoiseach of
Ireland to the White House,
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a traditional visit where they
discussed the mutual heritage
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and deep ties between
our two nations.
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President Obama:
We obviously have the strongest possible relationship
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with Ireland.
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The warmth, the affection, the
familial and person-to-person
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contacts between our two
countries extend far beyond any,
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you know, dry policy issues.
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There is just an incredible
bond between our two countries.
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Narrator:
Later, the Vice President
joined the President and
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Taoiseach for a Saint Patrick's
Day lunch at the United States
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Capitol and a reception on the
State Floor at the White House.
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That afternoon, President Obama
went to the Japanese Embassy in
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Washington, D.C. to offer his
condolences to the Japanese people.
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Ambassador Fujisaki:
We awake in 24 hours and the
sympathy and assistance is --
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means a lot to all Japanese.
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Thank you very much.
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Narrator:
To find out more information on
any of these topics or receive
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complete videos of these
events, go to whitehouse.gov.
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And thanks again for checking
out your West Wing Week.
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Speaker:
Fireside chat.
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President Obama:
That's Biden material.
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I'm not going to tell
him you said that --
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Speaker:
Do not take my picture now.
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(inaudible)
