By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Analyst

Jan. 28, 2010 – President Barack Obama delivered his first State of the Union address to the American people Wednesday and highlighted his priorities in 2010: jobs, jobs and jobs.  But he also called upon his colleagues and critics to get busy with a legislative agenda that will deliver health care reform, financial reform, renewable clean energy and increased funding for education.

The speech was one of the longest the president has given since taking office –lasting more than an hour.  I counted interruptions for applause more than 60 times.  Black lawmakers were quick to react to the president’s call to action, and while most applauded his agenda, he got mixed reviews on his proposal for a three-year budget freeze:       

House Majority Whip Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.)

 ”President Obama struck the hopeful themes tonight that resonated in his campaign.  The American people want security restored.  Over the past decade, middle class families have seen their financial security eroded through job losses and declining wages, plummeting retirement accounts and skyrocketing health care costs, declining home values and rising costs of  tuition.  They are demanding our help, and this Administration and Democratic Congress are answering their call.   Our unified goals are jobs, more jobs, and even more jobs.

“President Obama has laid out an agenda that will turn the despair of the first dismal decade of the 21st century into an era of restored prosperity for both the middle class and our country.  The Congress supports his vision to build wealth in the middle class, create new home-grown, American owned economies in our country, and rebuild relationships abroad.  We have taken bold steps and laid a foundation toward accomplishing these goals during 2009, and with this renewed commitment, I believe we will make greater strides toward realizing more stability and security in the near future.”

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) Chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus

“His bold decision to stay the course on issues such as comprehensive immigration reform, energy independence and education reform is exactly the kind of ambition we need during these trying times.

“As the President stated tonight the most paramount of these issues is jobs. So, we must address this issue head on. With unemployment at record levels – particularly in communities of color, we must put in place concrete solutions that will help generate sustainable job creation. The utilization of small, minority and women-owned businesses will be critical to overall job growth – and the President’s proposals reflect that fact.

“I agree with President Obama that we must address the deficit that he inherited, but I disagree over how we should do it. Instead of freezing non-defense discretionary spending, we need to focus on bloated unnecessary Pentagon spending and cost savings for ending the wars which have already cost us over $1 Trillion.

“Many of my colleagues and I are concerned about the impact of this freeze on jobs and the economy. At this critical time we should be doing more direct government investment to create more job opportunities.”

Rep. John Lewis, (D-Ga.)

“He said we have to be more than concerned about the next election.  We have to look out for the next generation.  This is not the time for campaigning and rhetoric; it is time to get down to the business of governing.  I was glad that he had strong words for the Senate, which has not been able to move on good opportunities to bring the kind of change Americans are seeking.  The House has done its part by responding to many of the people’s needs with legislative action.  We are hoping the Senate can finish the job.

“President Obama issued a mandate on jobs, education, the middle class, small business, war and nuclear disarmament, fiscal responsibility, as well as health care.  He affirmed that members of Congress must come together and get the work of the people done.  And I believe his words and his proposals give us a platform to unify and begin to work on and pass some of the legislative ideas the President presented tonight.”

 By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Analyst

Jan. 27, 2010 – There is one clue the president won’t be just talking terror threats, budget freezes and health care reform Wednesday night during his first State of the Union address.  The president has invited Anita Maltbia from Kansas City, who runs an agency that knows what it means to be “green.”

Maltbia is the director of  The Green Impact Zone, an organization that transforms long-neglected urban city blocks in the heart of Kansas City.  The initiative was spearheaded by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) with the help of money from the federal stimulus package.   Maltbia was named director in July, and so far have been awarded Housing and Urban Development Neighborhood Stabilization programs, Smart Grid funds and Weatherization grants which has leveraged $1.5 million in municipal funding and $24 million in private capitol.

The organization is already seeing the impact the stimulus is having on creating community partnerships. “Capacity building and sustainability is absolutely our goal – this is the way we’ll need to operate in the future,” Maltbia told me.  Through a community council Maltbia said they have gained “great support” for the work they are doing. 

The American Reinvestment and Recovery Act has made it possible for Maltbia to conduct training,  hold community meetings, manage financial investments in the project, and share with the community how they can prepare and create green jobs of the future.  But more importantly she wants to see stimulus dollars stimulate job creation and urban development.  Kansas City has more than 50 percent of its residents earning income below the poverty level, so jobs are high on the priority list. 

The White House said Maltbia and The Green Impact Zone reflect the president’s new approach to urban policy; creating smart local plans that include all the elements needed give a city the tools they need to create housing, transportation, energy efficiency, and jobs. 

Training for these jobs is already underway Maltbia told me; young people are learning “concrete finishing, we’re in partnership with the community college teaching customer service skills, we’re a [U.S.] Census Center where they can apply for census jobs, and we are part of the Smart Grid energy technology partnership with the local energy company.”  

While stimulus spending has brought good news to Kansas City, questions abound about which line items will be facing budget freezes in the 2011 budget.   That’s what reporters wanted to know during a conference call Tuesday with Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget Rob Nabors.  Nabors couldn’t reveal details of what would be hit by the freeze – he told us we would get more details on Monday. What he would say is there would be no impact on Medicare, Medicaid, Homeland Security and money impacting military readiness.  “There will be some budgets that may be cut, other may be increased – it’s not an across the board cut,” he said.

That was pretty much the same message delivered during the daily briefing with White House press secretary Robert Gibbs.  “We are investing in what we believe is important to invest in.  We’re cutting in programs that we think have outlived their usefulness and that need to be cut.  Again, that’s what a family does; that’s what the government should begin to do, and under this proposal that’s what they will do.”

The president’s speech will air live at 9:00 p.m., E.S.T. on BET, CENTRIC, and BET.com.

By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Analyst 

Feb. 24, 2009 — Tonight, when President Barack Obama addresses the joint session of Congress, everyone will be waiting to hear how he plans to keep his pledge to cut the U.S. budget deficit by half during his first term.

The president will give an overview of his priorities Tuesday, said White House press secretary Robert Gibbs yesterday. “The President outlined in his radio address [Saturday] a budget that is sober in its assessments, honest in its accounting — which is a change — that will, as I said, invest in what we need, cut out what we don’t, and restore fiscal responsibility.”

 The details of the president’s first budget will be rolled out on Thursday.

During the opening of a summit on fiscal responsibility, Obama told participants, “If we confront this crisis without also confronting the deficits that helped cause it, we risk sinking into another crisis down the road.”

The summit was called to look at what’s in store for the nation’s fiscal future and to examine the financial health of the country.  The president and Vice President Joe Biden met with Republican and Democratic governors, who could benefit from his $787 billion emergency spending-and-tax-cut measure.

Warning signs of a tough road ahead were scattered throughout the president’s remarks, but ended with an optimistic plan for the future. It’s true he inherited a $1.3 trillion deficit when he took office and he noted interest payments in 2008 alone hit $250 billion. That’s the bad news.

“We cannot and will not sustain deficits like these without end,” he said. “Today I’m pledging to cut the deficit we inherited by half by the end of my first term in office.”

The summit, like his address to Congress, had folks from both sides of aisle.  Republicans are now calling for a spending freeze on the heels of the president’s stimulus bill becoming law.

Tuesday night we’ll hear a lot focused on pulling the United States out of recession, getting folks back to work and addressing the problems in the financial sector that sparked the downturn.  But that won’t be all. Obama also wants to make good on campaign promises that he’ll extend health care benefits to the uninsured, tackle the fighting climate change and reduce dependence on foreign oil.

This sounds like a tall order.