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   On February 11, 2022, by Executive Order 14064, I declared a national emergency pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States constituted by the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan.

     The widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan — including the urgent needs of the people of Afghanistan for food security, livelihoods support, water, sanitation, health, hygiene, and shelter and settlement assistance, among other basic human needs — and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.  In addition, the preservation of certain property of Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) held in the United States by United States financial institutions is of the utmost importance to addressing this national emergency and the welfare of the people of Afghanistan.  Various parties, including representatives of victims of terrorism, have asserted legal claims against certain property of DAB or indicated in public court filings an intent to make such claims.  This property is blocked under Executive Order 14064.

     For these reasons, the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14064 of February 11, 2022, must continue in effect beyond February 11, 2024.  Therefore, in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14064 with respect to the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan.

This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.



THE WHITE HOUSE,
    January 15, 2025.

The post Notice to the Congress on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Widespread Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan and the Potential for Deepening Economic Collapse in Afghanistan. appeared first on The White House.

   On February 11, 2022, by Executive Order 14064, I declared a national emergency pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States constituted by the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan.

     The widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan — including the urgent needs of the people of Afghanistan for food security, livelihoods support, water, sanitation, health, hygiene, and shelter and settlement assistance, among other basic human needs — and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.  In addition, the preservation of certain property of Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) held in the United States by United States financial institutions is of the utmost importance to addressing this national emergency and the welfare of the people of Afghanistan.  Various parties, including representatives of victims of terrorism, have asserted legal claims against certain property of DAB or indicated in public court filings an intent to make such claims.  This property is blocked under Executive Order 14064.

     For these reasons, the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14064 of February 11, 2022, must continue in effect beyond February 11, 2024.  Therefore, in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14064 with respect to the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan.

This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.



THE WHITE HOUSE,
    January 15, 2025.

The post Notice to the Congress on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Widespread Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan and the Potential for Deepening Economic Collapse in Afghanistan. appeared first on The White House.

TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:


     Section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)) provides for the automatic termination of a national emergency unless, within 90 days prior to the anniversary date of its declaration, the President publishes in the Federal Register and transmits to the Congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date.  In accordance with this provision, I have sent to the Federal Register for publication the enclosed notice stating that the national emergency with respect to the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan declared in Executive Order 14064 of February 11, 2022, is to continue in effect beyond February 11, 2025.

     The widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan — including the urgent needs of the people of Afghanistan for food security, livelihoods support, water, sanitation, health, hygiene, and shelter and settlement assistance, among other basic human needs — and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.  In addition, the preservation of certain property of Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) held in the United States by United States financial institutions is of the utmost importance to addressing this national emergency and the welfare of the people of Afghanistan.  Various parties, including representatives of victims of terrorism, have asserted legal claims against certain property of DAB or indicated in public court filings an intent to make such claims.  This property is blocked under Executive Order 14064.

     Therefore, I have determined that it is necessary to continue the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14064 with respect to the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.




THE WHITE HOUSE,
    January 15, 2025.

The post Message to the Congress on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Widespread Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan and the Potential for Deepening Economic Collapse in Afghanistan appeared first on The White House.

TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES:


     Section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)) provides for the automatic termination of a national emergency unless, within 90 days prior to the anniversary date of its declaration, the President publishes in the Federal Register and transmits to the Congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date.  In accordance with this provision, I have sent to the Federal Register for publication the enclosed notice stating that the national emergency with respect to the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan declared in Executive Order 14064 of February 11, 2022, is to continue in effect beyond February 11, 2025.

     The widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan — including the urgent needs of the people of Afghanistan for food security, livelihoods support, water, sanitation, health, hygiene, and shelter and settlement assistance, among other basic human needs — and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.  In addition, the preservation of certain property of Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) held in the United States by United States financial institutions is of the utmost importance to addressing this national emergency and the welfare of the people of Afghanistan.  Various parties, including representatives of victims of terrorism, have asserted legal claims against certain property of DAB or indicated in public court filings an intent to make such claims.  This property is blocked under Executive Order 14064.

     Therefore, I have determined that it is necessary to continue the national emergency declared in Executive Order 14064 with respect to the widespread humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the potential for a deepening economic collapse in Afghanistan.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.




THE WHITE HOUSE,
    January 15, 2025.

The post Message to the Congress on the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Widespread Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan and the Potential for Deepening Economic Collapse in Afghanistan appeared first on The White House.

Presidential Determination

No.        2025-03        

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE

Subject:       Eligibility of the Republic of Cyprus to Receive

Defense Articles and Defense Services Under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act

Pursuant to the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, including section 503(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and section 3(a)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act, I hereby find that the furnishing of defense articles and defense services to the Republic of Cyprus will strengthen the security of the United States and promote world peace.

You are authorized and directed to transmit this determination and the accompanying memorandum of justification to the Congress and to publish this determination in the Federal Register.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

The post Memorandum on the Eligibility of the Republic of Cyprus to Receive Defense Articles and Defense Services Under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act appeared first on The White House.

Presidential Determination

No.        2025-03        

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE

Subject:       Eligibility of the Republic of Cyprus to Receive

Defense Articles and Defense Services Under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act

Pursuant to the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, including section 503(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and section 3(a)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act, I hereby find that the furnishing of defense articles and defense services to the Republic of Cyprus will strengthen the security of the United States and promote world peace.

You are authorized and directed to transmit this determination and the accompanying memorandum of justification to the Congress and to publish this determination in the Federal Register.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

The post Memorandum on the Eligibility of the Republic of Cyprus to Receive Defense Articles and Defense Services Under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act appeared first on The White House.

The Mayflower Hotel
Washington, D.C.

10:09 A.M. EST
 
     THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Good morning.  (Laughs.)  Good morning, everybody.  (Applause.)
 
Good morning.  Good morning.  (Laughs.)  Good morning, everyone.  (Applause.)
 
Good morning.  (Laughs.) (Applause.)  Oh, good morning, NAN.  Good morning to everyone.  (Applause.)  Please have a seat.
 
I — I heard everybody was hanging out this morning.  I thought I’d come by and say hi.  (Laughter.)
 
And mostly, I just wanted to come by to thank everybody, starting with our Reverend Sharpton.
 
For the truth tellers who are here, in the spirit of Dr. King and this day that we celebrate him — his birthday, January 15th — and every day, and the spirit with which he did what he did — Reverend Sharpton, you and the leaders of NAN live that legacy in every way that is important.
 
This is about soldiers who understand the importance of using our feet, praying, doing good works that are about lifting up the people — with a sense of optimism and purpose.  Always, NAN, Reverend Sharpton, speaking truth, even when it is difficult to speak and more difficult to hear.
 
The leaders here understand, as I often say, that the true measure of the strength of a leader is not based on who you beat down.  It is based on who you lift up.  (Applause.)
 
I thank you for always lifting me up.  But more importantly, I thank you for lifting up whole communities of people who must be seen and heard, and who deserve all the dignity that God gave them to be able to live a life that is productive and a life where they have a quality of life where they know how important they are and how powerful they are.
 
     So, I came by to say thank you. 
 
As you all know, I am a native Californian — born in Oakland, California.  (Applause.)  But I do want to speak about the California fires and the devastation that has occurred in southern California because of these most recent wildfires.
 
You know, communities like Altadena — you know, you’re talking about generations of families that have lived there.  Some of the first hardworking Black families who were able to buy property in California and then pass down those homes through generations.  Many of those families who live in those homes and live intergenerationally within a block of each other, who have lost everything.
 
So, I want to speak about them.  I know we pray for them.  
 
But also, I — I’ve been thinking about it also in the context of what I saw when I was in North Carolina, when I talked to families in Georgia after, most recently, Hurricane Helene.
 
And so, NAN, as we move forward with this new year, one of the — the requests that I make of the leaders here is let’s use the voice of NAN in a way that lifts up what these moments of tragedy and th- — these extreme weather events are doing to the communities that you have historically worked to uplift, because there are a couple things going on that I see as patterns. 
 
One is this, and it’s about what the insurance companies are not doing — (applause) — to extend coverage.  They are canceling coverage, making it more difficult for young homeowners who are just first time buying their home, not even insuring them.  And what that means to those families and whole communities with these predictable extreme weather events, which are increasing.
 
     Climate change is real.  We have long known that some of the communities that will be most devastated by them are communities of color, hardworking communities, Black folks — we know when we talk about the Gulf states.  Right?
 
     So, that’s one issue.  The other issue that these extreme weather events are highlighting but is a big issue for all of us to deal with is the rampant amount of mis- and disinformation that is transiting throughout communities and the work that we then must do to not only recognize that it’s happening but figure out how we’re going to jump into that stream of mis- and disinformation in a way that we, at the very least, can debate it based on the facts that we know to be true, in terms of what’s happening on the ground, but also to rebut the sources of that mis- and disinformation because it often leads the people who NAN has historically worked for in a — in a place of despair and in a place of helplessness and hopelessness.
 
     Again, using as the example extreme weather events, when people are being told, “Oh, there will be no FEMA response.  Oh, you are not entitled to this or that.”  Or leading them astray with information that is misinformation about what they will be entitled to, which exceeds what it might be, and then they feel disappointed and they turn the whole system off.
 
     So, I’m here to talk about these couple of things because they’ve just been on my mind in the last — (laughs) — week — but for quite some time.
 
     But — but again, I’m going to just close my comments by saying this.  This is an extraordinary group of leaders.  And what Dr. King taught us — and — and the King family is here; you know I’m always quoting Coretta Scott King — (laughs) — ours is a journey.  Ours is a journey. 
 
     And the fight that we are in, which is the fight to uplift the people, the fight for freedom, the fight for civil rights, the fight for dignity, the fight for human rights must be fought and won with each generation.
 
     And what we know is that our definition of the win is the definition that takes us over a period of time, where part of how we measure the win is: Are we making progress?  How we measure the win is based on the knowledge that it is an enduring fight and that we must be strong and that whatever the outcome of any particular moment, we can never be defeated.  Our spirit can never be defeated, because when that happens, we won’t win.
 
     And as far as I know and am concerned, when I look at the group of leaders here, this is a group of winners.  (Applause.)  This is a group of winners.  So, let’s stay in the fight.  Let’s do what we got to do.
 
     And, again, I thank you, NAN, for all that you have done for me and so many people who are not in this room. 
 
     Be blessed.  Have a wonderful New Year.  Thank you.  (Applause.)
 
                             END                10:17 A.M. EST
 

# # #

The post Remarks by Vice President Harris at the National Action Network’s Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Legislative Breakfast appeared first on The White House.

The Mayflower Hotel
Washington, D.C.

10:09 A.M. EST
 
     THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Good morning.  (Laughs.)  Good morning, everybody.  (Applause.)
 
Good morning.  Good morning.  (Laughs.)  Good morning, everyone.  (Applause.)
 
Good morning.  (Laughs.) (Applause.)  Oh, good morning, NAN.  Good morning to everyone.  (Applause.)  Please have a seat.
 
I — I heard everybody was hanging out this morning.  I thought I’d come by and say hi.  (Laughter.)
 
And mostly, I just wanted to come by to thank everybody, starting with our Reverend Sharpton.
 
For the truth tellers who are here, in the spirit of Dr. King and this day that we celebrate him — his birthday, January 15th — and every day, and the spirit with which he did what he did — Reverend Sharpton, you and the leaders of NAN live that legacy in every way that is important.
 
This is about soldiers who understand the importance of using our feet, praying, doing good works that are about lifting up the people — with a sense of optimism and purpose.  Always, NAN, Reverend Sharpton, speaking truth, even when it is difficult to speak and more difficult to hear.
 
The leaders here understand, as I often say, that the true measure of the strength of a leader is not based on who you beat down.  It is based on who you lift up.  (Applause.)
 
I thank you for always lifting me up.  But more importantly, I thank you for lifting up whole communities of people who must be seen and heard, and who deserve all the dignity that God gave them to be able to live a life that is productive and a life where they have a quality of life where they know how important they are and how powerful they are.
 
     So, I came by to say thank you. 
 
As you all know, I am a native Californian — born in Oakland, California.  (Applause.)  But I do want to speak about the California fires and the devastation that has occurred in southern California because of these most recent wildfires.
 
You know, communities like Altadena — you know, you’re talking about generations of families that have lived there.  Some of the first hardworking Black families who were able to buy property in California and then pass down those homes through generations.  Many of those families who live in those homes and live intergenerationally within a block of each other, who have lost everything.
 
So, I want to speak about them.  I know we pray for them.  
 
But also, I — I’ve been thinking about it also in the context of what I saw when I was in North Carolina, when I talked to families in Georgia after, most recently, Hurricane Helene.
 
And so, NAN, as we move forward with this new year, one of the — the requests that I make of the leaders here is let’s use the voice of NAN in a way that lifts up what these moments of tragedy and th- — these extreme weather events are doing to the communities that you have historically worked to uplift, because there are a couple things going on that I see as patterns. 
 
One is this, and it’s about what the insurance companies are not doing — (applause) — to extend coverage.  They are canceling coverage, making it more difficult for young homeowners who are just first time buying their home, not even insuring them.  And what that means to those families and whole communities with these predictable extreme weather events, which are increasing.
 
     Climate change is real.  We have long known that some of the communities that will be most devastated by them are communities of color, hardworking communities, Black folks — we know when we talk about the Gulf states.  Right?
 
     So, that’s one issue.  The other issue that these extreme weather events are highlighting but is a big issue for all of us to deal with is the rampant amount of mis- and disinformation that is transiting throughout communities and the work that we then must do to not only recognize that it’s happening but figure out how we’re going to jump into that stream of mis- and disinformation in a way that we, at the very least, can debate it based on the facts that we know to be true, in terms of what’s happening on the ground, but also to rebut the sources of that mis- and disinformation because it often leads the people who NAN has historically worked for in a — in a place of despair and in a place of helplessness and hopelessness.
 
     Again, using as the example extreme weather events, when people are being told, “Oh, there will be no FEMA response.  Oh, you are not entitled to this or that.”  Or leading them astray with information that is misinformation about what they will be entitled to, which exceeds what it might be, and then they feel disappointed and they turn the whole system off.
 
     So, I’m here to talk about these couple of things because they’ve just been on my mind in the last — (laughs) — week — but for quite some time.
 
     But — but again, I’m going to just close my comments by saying this.  This is an extraordinary group of leaders.  And what Dr. King taught us — and — and the King family is here; you know I’m always quoting Coretta Scott King — (laughs) — ours is a journey.  Ours is a journey. 
 
     And the fight that we are in, which is the fight to uplift the people, the fight for freedom, the fight for civil rights, the fight for dignity, the fight for human rights must be fought and won with each generation.
 
     And what we know is that our definition of the win is the definition that takes us over a period of time, where part of how we measure the win is: Are we making progress?  How we measure the win is based on the knowledge that it is an enduring fight and that we must be strong and that whatever the outcome of any particular moment, we can never be defeated.  Our spirit can never be defeated, because when that happens, we won’t win.
 
     And as far as I know and am concerned, when I look at the group of leaders here, this is a group of winners.  (Applause.)  This is a group of winners.  So, let’s stay in the fight.  Let’s do what we got to do.
 
     And, again, I thank you, NAN, for all that you have done for me and so many people who are not in this room. 
 
     Be blessed.  Have a wonderful New Year.  Thank you.  (Applause.)
 
                             END                10:17 A.M. EST
 

# # #

The post Remarks by Vice President Harris at the National Action Network’s Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Legislative Breakfast appeared first on The White House.

Thanks to the leadership of President Joe Biden, a ceasefire and hostage deal has been reached between Israel and Hamas. I thank the mediators – Emir al-Thani of Qatar and President el-Sisi of Egypt – and I am grateful for the work of U.S. officials whose diligent diplomacy allowed us to arrive at this significant moment.
 
Doug and I pray for all the hostages, and we are grateful that some, including Americans, will soon be reunited with their loved ones. In my meetings with the families of American hostages, I vowed they will never be in this fight alone. President Biden and I have no higher priority than the safety of Americans, and are determined that all the American hostages be returned home as part of this deal.
 
We will never forget the lives taken as a result of the brutal Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, and the horrors endured by countless innocent people in the war that followed. In my many conversations with leaders in the region, my unwavering focus has been to end this war such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination.
 
Today’s agreement will begin to bring desperately needed relief to the people of Gaza through a surge in humanitarian aid and an end to the fighting. While there is more work to be done, I believe this agreement can be the foundation on which we build toward a two-state solution that creates a more peaceful future for Israeli and Palestinian people. I will never stop working to achieve a future of greater peace, dignity, and security for all people in the region.
 

# # #

The post Statement from Vice President Kamala Harris appeared first on The White House.

Thanks to the leadership of President Joe Biden, a ceasefire and hostage deal has been reached between Israel and Hamas. I thank the mediators – Emir al-Thani of Qatar and President el-Sisi of Egypt – and I am grateful for the work of U.S. officials whose diligent diplomacy allowed us to arrive at this significant moment.
 
Doug and I pray for all the hostages, and we are grateful that some, including Americans, will soon be reunited with their loved ones. In my meetings with the families of American hostages, I vowed they will never be in this fight alone. President Biden and I have no higher priority than the safety of Americans, and are determined that all the American hostages be returned home as part of this deal.
 
We will never forget the lives taken as a result of the brutal Hamas terrorist attack on October 7, and the horrors endured by countless innocent people in the war that followed. In my many conversations with leaders in the region, my unwavering focus has been to end this war such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination.
 
Today’s agreement will begin to bring desperately needed relief to the people of Gaza through a surge in humanitarian aid and an end to the fighting. While there is more work to be done, I believe this agreement can be the foundation on which we build toward a two-state solution that creates a more peaceful future for Israeli and Palestinian people. I will never stop working to achieve a future of greater peace, dignity, and security for all people in the region.
 

# # #

The post Statement from Vice President Kamala Harris appeared first on The White House.

 In light of the recent undersea cable incidents in the Baltic Sea, Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger spoke with her Nordic-Baltic counterparts from Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden to deepen cooperation on protecting undersea cables. 

The meeting participants affirmed the need to deepen practical cooperation through NATO and to jointly implement the New York Joint Statement on the Security and Resilience of Undersea Cables in a Globally Digitalized World, the principles of which outline a shared global approach to ensure the reliability, interoperability, and resiliency for the deployment, operations, and repair and maintenance of undersea cable communications networks.  All participants shared concerns about the range of threats to the security of undersea cable infrastructure whether communication networks or energy, recognizing the critical importance of this infrastructure to nearly every aspect of essential public services, international commerce, and digital economic prosperity.  

In their discussion, the participants emphasized the importance of enhancing public-private cooperation to improve regional security in addition to other efforts to protect critical undersea infrastructure, and discussed the following areas:   

• Harmonize and develop channels and procedures for sharing real-time situational awareness and incident information within national governments, across Allies, and between public and private sector stakeholders, including incorporating private sector disruption notifications,
• Identify opportunities for public-private partnerships to improve repair and maintenance fleet capacity, including through security of supply chain mechanisms, consortium investment and development funding mechanisms;
• Encourage commercial cable operators, where possible, to establish a repository or database to collect and share information between operators regarding accidental cable faults/damage, completed repair work, time taken to repair, and reasons for any repair delays;
• Streamline equipment import/export processes and allow for faster transportation of necessary commercial equipment to facilitate repairs, as appropriate/necessary; and

The participants intend to increase coordination in these areas through NATO, ongoing U.S.-Nordic-Baltic consultations, and all other relevant fora between Allies and partners.

###

The post Readout of Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger’s Meeting on Protecting Undersea Cables appeared first on The White House.

 In light of the recent undersea cable incidents in the Baltic Sea, Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger spoke with her Nordic-Baltic counterparts from Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden to deepen cooperation on protecting undersea cables. 

The meeting participants affirmed the need to deepen practical cooperation through NATO and to jointly implement the New York Joint Statement on the Security and Resilience of Undersea Cables in a Globally Digitalized World, the principles of which outline a shared global approach to ensure the reliability, interoperability, and resiliency for the deployment, operations, and repair and maintenance of undersea cable communications networks.  All participants shared concerns about the range of threats to the security of undersea cable infrastructure whether communication networks or energy, recognizing the critical importance of this infrastructure to nearly every aspect of essential public services, international commerce, and digital economic prosperity.  

In their discussion, the participants emphasized the importance of enhancing public-private cooperation to improve regional security in addition to other efforts to protect critical undersea infrastructure, and discussed the following areas:   

• Harmonize and develop channels and procedures for sharing real-time situational awareness and incident information within national governments, across Allies, and between public and private sector stakeholders, including incorporating private sector disruption notifications,
• Identify opportunities for public-private partnerships to improve repair and maintenance fleet capacity, including through security of supply chain mechanisms, consortium investment and development funding mechanisms;
• Encourage commercial cable operators, where possible, to establish a repository or database to collect and share information between operators regarding accidental cable faults/damage, completed repair work, time taken to repair, and reasons for any repair delays;
• Streamline equipment import/export processes and allow for faster transportation of necessary commercial equipment to facilitate repairs, as appropriate/necessary; and

The participants intend to increase coordination in these areas through NATO, ongoing U.S.-Nordic-Baltic consultations, and all other relevant fora between Allies and partners.

###

The post Readout of Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger’s Meeting on Protecting Undersea Cables appeared first on The White House.

MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE THE SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY

SUBJECT:       Extending and Expanding Eligibility for Deferred Enforced Departure for Certain Hong Kong Residents

The United States supports the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the residents of Hong Kong.  The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has continued to significantly erode those rights and freedoms.  I am therefore directing an extension and expansion of the deferral of removal of certain Hong Kong residents, regardless of country of birth, who are present in the United States.

By unilaterally imposing on Hong Kong the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (NSL) in June 2020, the PRC has undermined the enjoyment of rights and freedoms in Hong Kong, including those protected under the Basic Law and the Sino-British Joint Declaration.  Following the NSL’s enactment, the PRC has continued its assault on Hong Kong’s autonomy, undermining its remaining democratic processes and institutions, imposing limits on academic freedom, and cracking down on freedom of the press.  Since June 2020, at least 200 opposition politicians, activists, and protesters have been taken into custody on politically motivated NSL-related charges including secession, subversion, terrorist activities, and collusion with a foreign country or external elements.  On November 19, 2024, Hong Kong authorities also sentenced 45 pro-democracy advocates to prison for their peaceful participation in political activities protected under the Basic Law of Hong Kong.

There are compelling foreign policy reasons to extend Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for an additional period for those residents of Hong Kong presently residing in the United States who were under a grant of DED until February 5, 2025, as well as to defer enforced departure for other Hong Kong residents who arrived in the United States subsequent to the initial grant of DED.  The United States is committed to a foreign policy that unites our democratic values with our foreign policy goals, which is centered on the defense of democracy and the promotion of human rights around the world.  Offering safe haven for Hong Kong residents who have been deprived of their guaranteed freedoms in Hong Kong furthers United States interests in the region.  The United States will continue to stand firm in our support of the people in Hong Kong.

Pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct the foreign relations of the United States, I have determined that it is in the foreign policy interest of the United States to defer for 24 months the removal of any Hong Kong resident, regardless of country of birth, who is present in the United States on the date of this memorandum, except for those:

(1)  who have voluntarily returned to Hong Kong or the PRC after the date of this memorandum;

(2)  who have not continuously resided in the United States since the date of this memorandum;

(3)  who are inadmissible under section 212(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)) or deportable under section 237(a)(4) of the INA (8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(4));

(4)  who have been convicted of any felony or two or more misdemeanors committed in the United States, or who meet any of the criteria set forth in section 208(b)(2)(A) of the INA (8 U.S.C. 1158(b)(2)(A));

(5)  who are subject to extradition;

(6)  whose presence in the United States the Secretary of Homeland Security has determined is not in the interest of the United States or presents a danger to public safety; or

(7)  whose presence in the United States the Secretary of State has reasonable grounds to believe would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.

I further direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to take appropriate measures to authorize employment for noncitizens whose removal has been deferred, as provided by this memorandum, for the duration of such deferral, including by extending through February 5, 2027, employment authorization for individuals with current employment authorization under prior grants of DED for certain Hong Kong residents, and to consider suspending regulatory requirements with respect to F-1 nonimmigrant students who are Hong Kong residents as the Secretary of Homeland Security determines to be appropriate.  The Secretary of Homeland Security shall also provide for the prompt issuance of new or replacement documents in appropriate cases.

The Secretary of Homeland Security is authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE THE SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY

SUBJECT:       Extending and Expanding Eligibility for Deferred Enforced Departure for Certain Hong Kong Residents

The United States supports the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the residents of Hong Kong.  The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has continued to significantly erode those rights and freedoms.  I am therefore directing an extension and expansion of the deferral of removal of certain Hong Kong residents, regardless of country of birth, who are present in the United States.

By unilaterally imposing on Hong Kong the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (NSL) in June 2020, the PRC has undermined the enjoyment of rights and freedoms in Hong Kong, including those protected under the Basic Law and the Sino-British Joint Declaration.  Following the NSL’s enactment, the PRC has continued its assault on Hong Kong’s autonomy, undermining its remaining democratic processes and institutions, imposing limits on academic freedom, and cracking down on freedom of the press.  Since June 2020, at least 200 opposition politicians, activists, and protesters have been taken into custody on politically motivated NSL-related charges including secession, subversion, terrorist activities, and collusion with a foreign country or external elements.  On November 19, 2024, Hong Kong authorities also sentenced 45 pro-democracy advocates to prison for their peaceful participation in political activities protected under the Basic Law of Hong Kong.

There are compelling foreign policy reasons to extend Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for an additional period for those residents of Hong Kong presently residing in the United States who were under a grant of DED until February 5, 2025, as well as to defer enforced departure for other Hong Kong residents who arrived in the United States subsequent to the initial grant of DED.  The United States is committed to a foreign policy that unites our democratic values with our foreign policy goals, which is centered on the defense of democracy and the promotion of human rights around the world.  Offering safe haven for Hong Kong residents who have been deprived of their guaranteed freedoms in Hong Kong furthers United States interests in the region.  The United States will continue to stand firm in our support of the people in Hong Kong.

Pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct the foreign relations of the United States, I have determined that it is in the foreign policy interest of the United States to defer for 24 months the removal of any Hong Kong resident, regardless of country of birth, who is present in the United States on the date of this memorandum, except for those:

(1)  who have voluntarily returned to Hong Kong or the PRC after the date of this memorandum;

(2)  who have not continuously resided in the United States since the date of this memorandum;

(3)  who are inadmissible under section 212(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)) or deportable under section 237(a)(4) of the INA (8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(4));

(4)  who have been convicted of any felony or two or more misdemeanors committed in the United States, or who meet any of the criteria set forth in section 208(b)(2)(A) of the INA (8 U.S.C. 1158(b)(2)(A));

(5)  who are subject to extradition;

(6)  whose presence in the United States the Secretary of Homeland Security has determined is not in the interest of the United States or presents a danger to public safety; or

(7)  whose presence in the United States the Secretary of State has reasonable grounds to believe would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.

I further direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to take appropriate measures to authorize employment for noncitizens whose removal has been deferred, as provided by this memorandum, for the duration of such deferral, including by extending through February 5, 2027, employment authorization for individuals with current employment authorization under prior grants of DED for certain Hong Kong residents, and to consider suspending regulatory requirements with respect to F-1 nonimmigrant students who are Hong Kong residents as the Secretary of Homeland Security determines to be appropriate.  The Secretary of Homeland Security shall also provide for the prompt issuance of new or replacement documents in appropriate cases.

The Secretary of Homeland Security is authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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Today, after many months of intensive diplomacy by the United States, along with Egypt and Qatar, Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire and hostage deal. This deal will halt the fighting in Gaza, surge much needed-humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families after more than 15 months in captivity.

I laid out the precise contours of this plan on May 31, 2024, after which it was endorsed unanimously by the UN Security Council. It is the result not only of the extreme pressure that Hamas has been under and the changed regional equation after a ceasefire in Lebanon and weakening of Iran — but also of dogged and painstaking American diplomacy. My diplomacy never ceased in their efforts to get this done.

Even as we welcome this news, we remember all the families whose loved ones were killed in Hamas’s October 7th attack, and the many innocent people killed in the war that followed. It is long past time for the fighting to end and the work of building peace and security to begin. I am also if thinking of the American families, three of whom have living hostages in Gaza and four awaiting return of remains after what has been the most horrible ordeal imaginable. Under this deal, we are determined to bring all of them home. 

I will speak more about this soon. For now, I am thrilled that those who have been held hostage are being reunited with their families.

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Today, after many months of intensive diplomacy by the United States, along with Egypt and Qatar, Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire and hostage deal. This deal will halt the fighting in Gaza, surge much needed-humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians, and reunite the hostages with their families after more than 15 months in captivity.

I laid out the precise contours of this plan on May 31, 2024, after which it was endorsed unanimously by the UN Security Council. It is the result not only of the extreme pressure that Hamas has been under and the changed regional equation after a ceasefire in Lebanon and weakening of Iran — but also of dogged and painstaking American diplomacy. My diplomacy never ceased in their efforts to get this done.

Even as we welcome this news, we remember all the families whose loved ones were killed in Hamas’s October 7th attack, and the many innocent people killed in the war that followed. It is long past time for the fighting to end and the work of building peace and security to begin. I am also if thinking of the American families, three of whom have living hostages in Gaza and four awaiting return of remains after what has been the most horrible ordeal imaginable. Under this deal, we are determined to bring all of them home. 

I will speak more about this soon. For now, I am thrilled that those who have been held hostage are being reunited with their families.

###

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Thank you, Professor Stock.  I knew Jim first as the author of Econometrics, and then as a generous mentor, gifted problem solver, and brilliant colleague in the Obama administration.  

Thank you for your incredible contributions and thank you for welcoming me back to my alma mater.  

I am grateful.

As we gather today, the fury of climate change rages as fires swell in the foothill communities of Southern California – a heavy moment that reminds us: There are no climate havens anymore.  Communities far from the coasts flooded by hurricanes.  Communities far in the north melting from extreme heat.  Communities in the wealthiest nations.  Development status provides no escape for a crisis that impacts us all.

Over the last four years, the Biden-Harris administration has mapped the impacts with new satellites, better data, and a portal providing real-time information that communities can use to adapt.  We also mapped the impacts on our macro economy and fiscal health, on our infrastructure and institutions and onto the insurance markets – all propelled by two executive orders issued in the first year of the administration that recognized good data and rigorous analysis form the essential foundation for resilience. 

Then we got to work bending the curve on the risks.  

We created new grants to raise roads, to harden substations, and to deploy permeable pavement and restore critical wetlands, expanding our ability to absorb the next downpour. We brought together labor, industry, and the health sector to better engage the risk from extreme heat with new standards that protect workers, new canopy in communities that were literally hotter because of historic redlining, and new missions for old institutions, challenging development finance to step up.  We broke the fever on an epic drought out west by securing 3-million-acre feet of water in a river that feeds 40 million people, supporting rapid conservation, and standing up long-term infrastructure, from desal to catchment to a modernized canal – covered with solar, built in partnership with my friend, Governor Stephen Roe Lewis, now delivering greater water and energy security to the Gila River Indian community. And we shined the spotlight of innovation on resilience, launching a set of resilience gamechangers and convening the best and brightest to hasten the commercialization of fire-tech and water-tech and more. 

Earlier this month, we transmitted our learnings to the United Nations – our national climate resilience framework, and the largest public investment in resilience ever, as the backbone to a new national adaptation and resilience planning strategy. But the most important piece of our approach is hard to capture in any document.  

I saw it last month, as I swore in new members of the American Climate Corps (ACC).  When Hurricane Milton knocked down Andie’s community – in Boone, North Carolina – when it took away so much, Andie decided to give back.  Today, I am happy to report that over 20,000 young people have now answered President Biden’s call to join the ACC.  Faced with the heavy and heart-wrenching, they, like Andie, decided to answer with hope and hard work. 

As we enter the second half of the decisive decade for climate action, this is why we will win a safer and more prosperous future: because we carry with us a fundamentally rewritten climate playbook – an approach that eschews the gloom and doom and embraces the hope and possibilities.  In our new playbook, we have pulled the upside of climate action both forward and close, even as we took on a problem that is global in nature and decades in the making.  We are pursuing climate action in a way that is co-located with economic opportunity and coincided with pollution reduction – a geographic and temporal alignment of benefits designed to earn the political economy to go big, go fast, and go the distance.

Last night, I saw that sense of hope and possibilities in the faces of the folks from California, as I stood beside the President at the White House, looking into a crowd that was watching him sign two new national monuments into the care of future generations.  

That moment marked over 670 million acres of lands and waters protected – the most by any President – an ode to what he calls “America the Beautiful,” but also proof points of a new approach to climate action that enlists nature as part of the solution to the crisis we face down, not just to help us adapt but also to help us attack the root cause. 

Last month, we announced a new Nationally Determined Contribution – a new climate target for America that gets after the very root cause of the climate crisis, by taking aim at the greenhouse gas pollution responsible for warming our planet.  We announced a target to cut our emissions by 61-66% by 2035, relative to 2005 levels, the next evolution that moves us on a straight line toward a net zero emissions economy by no later than 2050.  

We developed this new target by going bottom up, sector by sector, finding opportunity, economic upside, and emissions reductions – everywhere.  

We took a similar analytical approach at the beginning of the administration, when we set a target for 2030.  At the time, the U.S. was on track for 15-20% emissions reductions by 2030, and off track relative to any reasonable path to stabilize our climate.  Especially, against that backdrop, a target of 50-52% was audacious, but, today, having more than doubled our pace of decarbonization – results outlined in our recently submitted Biennial Transparency Report – that target is suddenly within reach.

The math goes something like this.  In 2005, overall U.S. emissions were over 6500 million metric tons.  By marshalling a bold and broad climate strategy, harmonizing two sets of tools – the tools to deliver investments and the tools to set standards – we have unlocked a pathway that ranges between a little under to a little over 4000 million metric tons by 2030, and from the high 2000s to the mid 3000s in million metric tons by 2035.

This math is enabled by the strategy at work. The investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act, and the CHIPS and Science Act enhanced by a complementary architecture of federal standards that spur demand and generate the regulatory certainty needed to accelerate capital formation and encourage entrepreneurial risk-taking.  

It is an important combination, and the success comes from both – the catalytic public investments and tax credits and also the standards that send a signal to the market, spurring long-term investment and firming up that next bet on America.  Bringing the breadth of our tools and partners together helps as we swing for the fences in every sector of the economy. Looking for wins everywhere – power and transportation, buildings and industry, lands and agriculture – gives us a better shot at delivering for everyone. When executed well, the gains from all-in and searching-for-opportunity-everywhere climate action cascade deep through the economy.

Our past success and our future ability to break into the low 2000s in million metric tons by 2035 relies on this approach – one which engages every sector, every level of government, every layer of the capital, every party, and every part of the country.  

I have spoken about this before – about why I think our project carries momentum and is structured for resilience – but it may be worth repeating: The robustness comes from an approach that has mobilized public and private in a tech-agnostic race to net zero as north star.  From governors and mayors of every party to entrepreneurs and investors from every corner of the economy, we are together and united in the implementation, in carrying out this work.  That unity in implementation is rooted in a unity of motivation. The incentive to finish the job is also stronger because the incentive is shared.

Here is what that looks like, tons and opportunity, the incentives, through the sectors. 

First, in nature, the California monuments I mentioned were the most recent in over a dozen established by the President.  Each of those an opportunity to strengthen nature; each also carrying memory and meaning.  I felt that sense standing on the North Lawn as President Biden restored Bears Ears and the same in Arizona as he preserved the Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument.  Each time, so very powerful.  

But in some ways, the monuments are just the punction – an exclamation mark – on a sweeping story.  Like the decisive action we took to protect the trees that breathe in our excesses. Partnering with Indigenous leaders, the President conserved 9 million acres in the Tongass.  

I remember sitting there mesmerized by the creativity I heard in a visit to southeast Alaska.  And what luck to be part of scaling that approach, through the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration, an Executive Order on old growth on Earth Day 2022, and then, soaring above the Amazon with the President as part of a historic visit to build even more momentum behind this approach.  

The tons and opportunity in the nature sector also come from empowering our farmers and ranchers.  Over the last four years, we have enlisted more than 180,000 farms and 225 million acres into climate-smart practices – measures that boost total factor productivity, add new revenue for family businesses, and cut emissions.  We did not stop there.  

We also changed the way we manage public lands, boosted high-integrity voluntary carbon markets, and pushed relentlessly for better MMRV.  All of this provides a platform and path for more emissions reduction – and more economic upside – in this sector, especially as Congress takes up the Farm Bill this year.

Next, in the power sector, the biggest difference maker to the math, we added more than 100 gigawatts of clean energy to the grid – 50 Hoover Dams worth of new clean power in just four years. 

We did it by listening to everyone and by choosing to go big.  In the early days of the administration, the President personally convened unions and utilities, researchers and developers.  I remember one of those meetings – each of us spaced so far apart, each of us, including serious utility CEOs, with our beak shaped masks, the ones that make you look like a duck.  The conversation was good, the solutions clever, and we put them to work.

The progress has been incredible.  

Last year, the United States added more power to the grid than we have in two decades – and 96% of that was clean.  The new records on solar and batteries, on geothermal and hydropower, new records all across the sector, mean a chance at what I call the clean energy comeback – communities harnessing the climate imperative to produce local economic opportunity.  

I saw it in Western Michigan, where a shuttered nuclear power plant is coming back to serve two rural co-ops – the Hoosiers and the Wolverines – the co-ops teaming up despite their rivaling basketball loyalties. There, I met a union worker who thought he had retired, but was now coming back – out of retirement like the plant, beaming with a sense of pride, and eager to lift up the next generation of workers who will deliver carbon-free electricity to the grid.

This clean energy comeback can also be, if I may be so bold, a chance to come together. 

I felt that sense this summer, standing in the Oval Office as Senator Capito, the Republican Ranking Member, and Senator Carper, the Democratic Chair of the Environment Committee, walked into the Oval Office together and shook the President’s hand; as Joe Biden signed into law a bipartisan piece of legislation to advance nuclear energy, our domestic supply chains, and America’s ability to lead on the next generation of tech.

Yesterday, the President issued an Executive Order on powering artificial intelligence with clean energy.  The executive order directs action based on stakeholder engagement and spade work by a task force he formed, led by Bruce Reed and supported by a number of us – including the President’s national security advisor, national economic advisor, and national climate advisor, me.  The premise is simple: America can and will both win the AI race and power those new capabilities with clean electricity. Driven by AI, our now back-to-normal load growth – a double-digit rate of growth akin to what we witnessed nearly every decade from the end of World War II until the turn of the 21st century – should be a spur to invent and invest, not a signpost to slow down.

As we meet this new opportunity and as we race to the next NDC, there is actually a common imperative: We need to harness all the tools we have available to build a bigger and better grid. To do that, new poles and wires are critical, which is why this administration has greenlit or underwritten over 5,000 miles of new, high-capacity transmission. But there is so much more.  

To me, it is so important that we also focus on the three Rs – rewiring, repowering, resilience.

Rewiring means investing more in advanced conductoring to get more electrons across existing rights of way, dynamic line ratings to raise the grid’s speed limit, and batteries (“Storage As Transmission Assets,” or SATA) and capabilities like topology optimization to deal with rush hour traffic.

Repowering means investing more in places with idle or suboptimized interconnections, plugging in where an old power plant has shuttered or where an old power plant no longer dispatches at nameplate capacity, uncompetitive in an era of cleaner and more efficient technologies.

Resilience means investing more in a grid that can withstand the next storm, or at least bounce back faster; hardening substations, burying lines, and getting more technology developed and deployed to address persistent grid-adjacent issues like vegetation and stormwater management.

If we do these things, if we build a bigger and better grid, we can go the distance on our 2035 climate target – and unlock so much economic upside on the way there.

Third, the transportation sector.  Over the last four years, the big move here has been in cars and trucks.  I remember the drive to the Ford factory in 2021, my first trip to Michigan with the President.  I was bullish, but still cautious about our ability to go from laggard to leader in a transportation story that was increasingly being written without U.S. workers and businesses.  

At the time, we barely made any batteries despite the fact that the Nobel prize for this technology went to a professor here.  Our national labs pioneered the breakthroughs.  And yet we were very behind.  Today, that has changed.  If you tally the factories that are producing and those being built, we expect 10 million EVs worth of battery manufacturing capability will be online by 2030.  The game has fully changed.  And double click on those batteries. We are making those components here, too – the anodes, cathodes, and separators. We are even racing forward to supply input materials, new lithium facilities and an expansion in recycling – putting old materials back into the supply chain and recognizing both that mineral security and climate security are inherently interconnected and that the clean energy economy must be a circular one.

Our success in going the distance in the transportation sector, however, depends on more than bringing the EV supply chain back home.  It depends on securing the lead in the next generation of battery technologies, like solid state, and being an early mover in the scale up of clean energy technologies in heavier parts of the sector.  America must lead on clean freight, and we cannot do that if we do not lead on clean fuels.  

That is why I am so proud of our work on sustainable aviation fuels, as a proof point for what is possible.  When in the early days of the administration, we pulled together all the airline CEOs, SAF production measured in the single digit millions of gallons.  Four years later, after investment in infrastructure upgrades, acceleration of R&D, and new tax measures like the recently finalized 45Z tax credit, we are on track – based on our accounting this week against the SAF grand challenge – to produce more than 3 billion gallons a year by 2030.  

We must do this and more, in rail and in marine and in heavy trucks.  And must keep going.

Finally, buildings and industry, both hard to decarbonize but for two very different reasons. 

In buildings, we spent the last four years enlisting local governments to update codes for new build, raise ambition in existing build, and define the frontier of zero emissions buildings.  We transformed our industrial capacity to meet new market demand for heat pumps – which now lead the market in new construction and are stoking a massive manufacturing buildout and good, union jobs all across the country.  

In industry, a make-or-break sector I have spoken at length about before, we cut methane pollution with hundreds of administrative actions, bent the curve on HFCs and N2O, capped leaking wells and sealed leaking mines, and launched a broad strategy to boost the economic efficiency, global competitiveness, and environmental performance of steel, cement, aluminum, and other heavy industry.  From grants to 33 pathbreaking projects to new tax credits to a multi-state Buy Clean program, we launched a race to the top on the technologies of the future.  

Our success in both of these sectors, however, and our ability to meet our 2035 target, require a lot of additional innovation.  

The breakthroughs will be of different types – and not just in the core technologies.  We need breakthroughs in buildings of the balance-of-systems kind, to make it easier to rewire and retrofit.  We need breakthroughs in retail finance and permitting, a major acceleration in expanding the affordability and time to install, that will hopefully be aided by the investment that the Biden-Harris administration made through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, capitalizing CDFIs and green banks around the country.  We need breakthroughs in trade policy to level the playing field and level up in a way that sees the GHG molecules as they move – embodied carbon – in products crossing borders.  

But I am optimistic about the path to progress.  

Necessity is said to be the mother of innovation.  We need ways to cut energy costs for homes and small businesses.  We need ways to grow global competitiveness for our heavy industries and the workers they employ.  These breakthroughs are not just a chance to cut emissions, they are also a way to deliver on these other bottom lines.

This is the way forward – nature, power, transportation, buildings, and industry – each sector with proof points, each with possibilities yet untapped.

Today marks my last speech as National Climate Advisor, so, if you will indulge me, I want to finish with some gratitude and a final reflection.  

I am so grateful to the President and Vice President for the chance to serve this nation that I love, and to my first boss and the nation’s first National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy.  

Gina brought the motivation of a public health expert and a grandmother to a fight that needs those perspectives – that seeks every day to answer the questions: How do we pave the way for clean air, clean water, and communities that can sustain healthy people?  How do we leave the next generation sustainable prosperity, a better, brighter future?  Gina has been an incredible guide and good friend, and I am so thankful to her.

I also want to thank my team, the Climate Policy Office staff.  As they crammed into my office on the ground floor of the West Wing during our regular team meetings, I always felt so blessed to be surrounded not just by such genius but also by such heart – the best of public service.  The President and Vice President pushed for massive ambition and this team – along with the best partners across the federal agencies – answered that call every single day.  

And finally, a reflection.  

My favorite sermon from Dr. King is the one about unfinished dreams that talks about the agony and joy of working on projects that cannot be finished.  

Over the last four years, we took on the climate crisis in a way that sought to do so much   – not just to pull down our emissions, but to lift up our people and communities.  In places, where the loss of opportunity was fenced in and the chance for a comeback seemingly fenced out, we started the project of bringing down those fences, the barriers to economic opportunity, of creating jobs and purpose, and of delivering justice long overdue.  

As an immigrant, brought from Pakistan to Pennsylvania by the most amazing and wonderful parents, I have lived my American Dream.  That is why for me, this job, and the project that has consumed all my time, has been as much about climate as it is about putting more rungs in the ladder that reaches into the American Dream.  It has been my chance to give back.  It has been an unfinishable project, but it has been a joyful one. 

Dr. King talks about Schubert’s unfinished symphony and about building temples of peace and of love and of justice.  These are beautiful projects, moral projects.  And the joy comes from just being a part of their building, from the process, from the work.  That is the reward.

As I leave my post, I am so profoundly grateful to have had a chance to work on a symphony, on a temple, on a project of such significance.  My wish for you is the chance to be pulled into the same.  It is the greatest honor and such a profound source of joy. 

Thank you so much.

The post Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi at Harvard University on U.S. Climate Progress and the Path Ahead appeared first on The White House.

Today, we are announcing that an additional over 91,500 UNITE HERE workers and retirees will have their pension benefits protected from expected future cuts thanks to my American Rescue Plan.

These workers, the unsung heroes of our economy, take care of many of us while we are away from home at airports and in hotels, and these newly approved benefits will allow our nation to take care of them.

When Vice President Harris and I came into office, we promised to fight on behalf of workers to create an economy that grows from the middle out and the bottom up and to ensure a secure retirement for every American. That’s why we worked with Congressional Democrats to include the Butch Lewis Act in my American Rescue Plan.

With today’s actions, our Administration has provided security to over 1.3 million workers and retirees and will ultimately restore or protect the earned retirement benefits of roughly 2 million Americans so that they receive the full retirement benefits that they have earned over the next several decades.

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The post Statement from President Joe Biden on Protecting 91,500 UNITE HERE Pensions appeared first on The White House.

Today, we are announcing that an additional over 91,500 UNITE HERE workers and retirees will have their pension benefits protected from expected future cuts thanks to my American Rescue Plan.

These workers, the unsung heroes of our economy, take care of many of us while we are away from home at airports and in hotels, and these newly approved benefits will allow our nation to take care of them.

When Vice President Harris and I came into office, we promised to fight on behalf of workers to create an economy that grows from the middle out and the bottom up and to ensure a secure retirement for every American. That’s why we worked with Congressional Democrats to include the Butch Lewis Act in my American Rescue Plan.

With today’s actions, our Administration has provided security to over 1.3 million workers and retirees and will ultimately restore or protect the earned retirement benefits of roughly 2 million Americans so that they receive the full retirement benefits that they have earned over the next several decades.

###

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     Faith sustains many of us across our Nation, sharpening our sense of purpose, uniting us in shared belief, and reminding us of our obligations to each other.  Whether you worship in a church, synagogue, temple, or mosque, the Constitution of the United States protects every American’s right to practice their faith freely or to practice no faith at all.  Today, we celebrate our constitutional right to religious freedom which makes us a beacon of liberty and recommit to protecting that right, both here at home and around the world.

     We are all blessed to live in a Nation that is home to people of many faiths.  However, even in our land of liberty, too many people are afraid that practicing their faith will bring fear, violence, and intimidation.  Over the past year, we have seen a shocking rise in antisemitism in the wake of Hamas’s terrorist attack against Israel and a disturbing rise in Islamophobia.  Hate has no safe harbor here in America.  And around the world, minority communities continue to live in fear of violence and are denied equal protections under the law, including Christians in some countries.

     My Administration is committed to ensuring that people of every faith and belief can live out their deepest conviction freely, peacefully, and safely.  Working with the Congress, my Administration secured the largest ever increase in funding for the physical security of non-profit organizations, including places of worship.  Through that program and many related efforts, we continue to work across government to ensure that all religious communities are able to practice their faith without fear.  Additionally, I created the inter-agency group to counter Antisemitism, Islamophobia, and Related Forms of Bias and Discrimination within the United States.  We released the first-ever United States National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, which works to counter antisemitism and protect Jewish communities.  We also released the first-ever National Strategy to Counter Islamophobia and Anti-Arab Hate, which works to combat these forms of hate and safeguard Muslim and Arab Americans.  Both strategies seek to strengthen coalitions across religious communities to bring an end to hate.

     We are also working to promote and protect religious freedom worldwide, because it is not only an American constitutional right — it is a human right, enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  And so, around the globe, we are working with governments and organizations to end discrimination against religious groups.  My Administration has provided $100 million to promote religious freedom worldwide.  We have also provided hundreds of millions more to support victims fleeing religious repression.  And we have been cracking down on forced labor, which is often connected to the targeting of religious minorities.  My Administration sanctioned more than 240 individuals and entities for serious human rights abuses under the Global Magnitsky Sanctions Program.  The Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism at the Department of State promoted the United States-led “Global Guidelines for Countering Antisemitism,” a set of international best practices for effective public policy against antisemitism, which more than 40 countries and entities have endorsed.  My Administration also ended the discriminatory travel ban that prevented individuals from several Muslim-majority and African countries from entering the United States.  And the Department of State conducted a review of visa applications and took various corrective actions to process applications that were impacted by that ban, including reconsidering previously denied applications.

     Today, we recognize how religious freedom is at the core of who we are as a Nation. It is central to the freedom we offer all Americans. And it is threaded throughout all our work to advance human freedom and dignity in the world.  The task for all of us is to defend and protect religious liberty for everyone, to build a world where no one is endangered for what they believe, and to see one another as neighbors.

     NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 16, 2025, as Religious Freedom Day.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fifteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.

                              JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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