This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/americas/7975405.stm
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Obama diary: The first 100 days | Obama diary: The first 100 days |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Barack Obama was elected on a message of change. Now he is in office, change is expected both in foreign and domestic policy. Here the BBC's team in Washington tracks developments in the first 100 days of the Obama presidency. | Barack Obama was elected on a message of change. Now he is in office, change is expected both in foreign and domestic policy. Here the BBC's team in Washington tracks developments in the first 100 days of the Obama presidency. |
| MONDAY 6 APRIL - DAY 77 | |
| 1350 EST Obama's Turkish speech | |
| BBC North America Editor Justin Webb: This - for the Turkish government and for many Turkish people - was quite a day. | |
| There were some anti-American protestors and around 20 were charged by riot police outside the Turkish parliament, but generally there was a warm welcome. | |
| Foreign visitors down the years have paid homage at the tomb of Turkey's founder, Kamal Ataturk, but for Barack Obama to make this such an early stop on his first visit overseas is being seen here as a sign of something new, which is exactly what the president intends. He was here to build bridges. | |
| George W Bush supported Turkey's right to join the European Union, but Barack Obama went further today, admonishing those Europeans who were hostile to the idea. | |
| And in a wider message intended to be heard across the Middle East, Mr Obama said America was "not at war with Islam". | |
| There are some back in the United States who wonder whether Mr Obama is going too far, but his intention seems clear. He is on a mission to charm with the hope that in years to come there is a tangible benefit for America and the world. | |
| 1252 EST Media get access to return of dead US soldier | |
| Kevin Connolly: With the chilly silence broken only by the briefest military words of command, the American military authorities brought the flag-draped coffin of Staff Sgt Philip Myers home to his family. | |
| He died in Afghanistan at the weekend - killed by an improvised explosive device - and became the first American serviceman publicly welcomed home in this short, grim ceremony for 18 years. The American government banned public coverage of such ceremonies during the Gulf War in 1991. | |
| Critics of the ban on media coverage of such events always felt it was an attempt by the American government to disguise the human cost of war from public opinion - Barack Obama ordered a review of the policy shortly after he took office. | |
| Some historians believe that widespread media coverage of the repatriation of dead American service personnel from Vietnam helped to turn the public mood against that conflict in the late 1960s and early 1970s. | |
| It remains to be seen how prominently such ceremonies will be featured by the American media as US operations in Afghanistan and Iraq continue - and what effect they will have on attitudes towards the fighting. | |
| FRIDAY 3 APRIL - DAY 74 | FRIDAY 3 APRIL - DAY 74 |
| 1051 EST The Obama tour continues | 1051 EST The Obama tour continues |
| The BBC's North America Editor Justin Webb is still following President Obama on his tour of Europe. Read his thoughts on the way the President's press team is handling the trip - and the way the President is handling the press . | The BBC's North America Editor Justin Webb is still following President Obama on his tour of Europe. Read his thoughts on the way the President's press team is handling the trip - and the way the President is handling the press . |
| Read World Affairs Correspondent Paul Reynolds's take on the G20 agreement. | Read World Affairs Correspondent Paul Reynolds's take on the G20 agreement. |
| Justin Webb adds: President Obama has appealed not only for more help in Afghanistan but also for better transatlantic relations. So far he has received a warm welcome from this hosts at the NATO summit. He was also given an ecstatic reception when he visited a sports arena to take questions from students. | Justin Webb adds: President Obama has appealed not only for more help in Afghanistan but also for better transatlantic relations. So far he has received a warm welcome from this hosts at the NATO summit. He was also given an ecstatic reception when he visited a sports arena to take questions from students. |
| 1004 EST Budget resolutions pass | 1004 EST Budget resolutions pass |
| Jonathan Beale: Both houses of Congress have approved budget resolutions for 2010 in line with President Obama's spending plans. | Jonathan Beale: Both houses of Congress have approved budget resolutions for 2010 in line with President Obama's spending plans. |
| The House voted through a $3.6tn budget with 233 votes for and 196 votes against. The White House welcomed the House vote saying that it was another step to rebuilding America's struggling economy. In a statement President Obama said the House budget embraced his fundemental priorities for green energy, improved education and health care. | The House voted through a $3.6tn budget with 233 votes for and 196 votes against. The White House welcomed the House vote saying that it was another step to rebuilding America's struggling economy. In a statement President Obama said the House budget embraced his fundemental priorities for green energy, improved education and health care. |
| The House's budget resolution differs slightly from the plan proposed by the President last month. But the vote is still a victory for Barack Obama, who says the increase in spending is essential for America's economic recovery. | The House's budget resolution differs slightly from the plan proposed by the President last month. But the vote is still a victory for Barack Obama, who says the increase in spending is essential for America's economic recovery. |
| Republicans have been bitterly opposed. They've called the Democrats' budget a road map to disaster. But the Republican's rival plan to slash spending and to cut taxes was voted down, with 37 moderate Republicans joining the Democrats in opposition. | Republicans have been bitterly opposed. They've called the Democrats' budget a road map to disaster. But the Republican's rival plan to slash spending and to cut taxes was voted down, with 37 moderate Republicans joining the Democrats in opposition. |
| The Senate voted 55-43 for its resolution, which differed slightly from the House version. Differences between both versions will have to be worked out before a final budget is approved. | The Senate voted 55-43 for its resolution, which differed slightly from the House version. Differences between both versions will have to be worked out before a final budget is approved. |
| THURSDAY 2 APRIL - DAY 73 | THURSDAY 2 APRIL - DAY 73 |
| 1730 EST How is Obama being viewed back in the US? | 1730 EST How is Obama being viewed back in the US? |
| Max Deveson: The president is getting some pretty good write-ups on this side of the Atlantic. | Max Deveson: The president is getting some pretty good write-ups on this side of the Atlantic. |
| Jonathan Martin, at Politico , suggests the G20 should perhaps have been renamed "the O20". | Jonathan Martin, at Politico , suggests the G20 should perhaps have been renamed "the O20". |
| "Barack Obama commanded centre-stage at this high-wattage gathering of the world's industrialized nations," he writes, "vacuuming up attention both inside the summit and throughout a sophisticated city not easily star-struck." | "Barack Obama commanded centre-stage at this high-wattage gathering of the world's industrialized nations," he writes, "vacuuming up attention both inside the summit and throughout a sophisticated city not easily star-struck." |
| Matthew Yglesias from liberal think tank the Centre for American Progress notes the difference that having a popular president makes: | Matthew Yglesias from liberal think tank the Centre for American Progress notes the difference that having a popular president makes: |
| "We... saw the difference between a situation in which, at the margin, world leaders would prefer to be seen as cooperating with the President of the United States and the situation that previously prevailed in which, at the margin, world leaders would prefer to be seen as hostile to the President of the United States." | "We... saw the difference between a situation in which, at the margin, world leaders would prefer to be seen as cooperating with the President of the United States and the situation that previously prevailed in which, at the margin, world leaders would prefer to be seen as hostile to the President of the United States." |
| The New York Times's Paul Krugman disputes Mr Obama's description of the summit as "a turning point", but admits that while "realistically, most big-time international meetings produce nothing; this did something significant." | The New York Times's Paul Krugman disputes Mr Obama's description of the summit as "a turning point", but admits that while "realistically, most big-time international meetings produce nothing; this did something significant." |
| But the conservative commentator, Mark Steyn, writing at the National Review , was quick to mock the media's uncritical appraisal of the trip. Quoting a reader, he says that talk show host Rush Limbaugh "should cease calling them the "drive-by media": After their coverage of the Obamas in London, they're more like the drool-bys." | But the conservative commentator, Mark Steyn, writing at the National Review , was quick to mock the media's uncritical appraisal of the trip. Quoting a reader, he says that talk show host Rush Limbaugh "should cease calling them the "drive-by media": After their coverage of the Obamas in London, they're more like the drool-bys." |
| Read BBC North America Editor Justin Webb's take on Barack Obama's press conference | Read BBC North America Editor Justin Webb's take on Barack Obama's press conference |
| WEDNESDAY 1 APRIL - DAY 72 | WEDNESDAY 1 APRIL - DAY 72 |
| 1519 EST The Obamas in London | 1519 EST The Obamas in London |
| The BBC's North America Editor Justin Webb is following Barack Obama as he travels round Europe. Here's his first take on the London leg of the trip. | The BBC's North America Editor Justin Webb is following Barack Obama as he travels round Europe. Here's his first take on the London leg of the trip. |
| TUESDAY 31 MARCH - DAY 71 | TUESDAY 31 MARCH - DAY 71 |
| 1745 EST Cuba (travel) libre? | 1745 EST Cuba (travel) libre? |
| Kim Ghattas: When something hasn't worked for 50 years, it's time to try something different. | Kim Ghattas: When something hasn't worked for 50 years, it's time to try something different. |
| This was the very straightforward explanation lawmakers gave on Capitol Hill today when they explained why they were introducing the Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act, which would lift restrictions on Americans travelling to Cuba. | This was the very straightforward explanation lawmakers gave on Capitol Hill today when they explained why they were introducing the Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act, which would lift restrictions on Americans travelling to Cuba. |
| Calls have been growing here for a change in Washington's policy towards the communist island. Earlier this month, Congress voted to ease restrictions imposed in 2004 by President George W Bush on travel and remittances for Cuban-Americans. | Calls have been growing here for a change in Washington's policy towards the communist island. Earlier this month, Congress voted to ease restrictions imposed in 2004 by President George W Bush on travel and remittances for Cuban-Americans. |
| The new bill would allow unrestricted travel for everybody from the US to Cuba. But no one is yet calling to lift the trade embargo. Lawmakers supporting the bill said US policy provided the Cuban government with an excuse for its problems and a justification for its policies - the best agent for change would be visitors from the US. | The new bill would allow unrestricted travel for everybody from the US to Cuba. But no one is yet calling to lift the trade embargo. Lawmakers supporting the bill said US policy provided the Cuban government with an excuse for its problems and a justification for its policies - the best agent for change would be visitors from the US. |
| The same bill was proposed two years ago but died quickly. Policy change on Cuba has faced stiff resistance from the influential Cuban-American community in Florida. This time, the bill seems to have enough backing to be adopted, but it will likely provoke a lively debate. | The same bill was proposed two years ago but died quickly. Policy change on Cuba has faced stiff resistance from the influential Cuban-American community in Florida. This time, the bill seems to have enough backing to be adopted, but it will likely provoke a lively debate. |
| 1408 EST Obama's European tour | 1408 EST Obama's European tour |
| Max Deveson: Barack Obama has embarked on his tour of Europe. | Max Deveson: Barack Obama has embarked on his tour of Europe. |
| The president will spend a few days in London, where he will attend the G20 summit, before heading to Strasbourg for a Nato summit and Prague for an EU-US summit. He will then fly to Turkey - his first visit to a Muslim country as president. | The president will spend a few days in London, where he will attend the G20 summit, before heading to Strasbourg for a Nato summit and Prague for an EU-US summit. He will then fly to Turkey - his first visit to a Muslim country as president. |
| The London leg of the tour will be focused on economic policy - Gordon Brown wants world leaders to sign up to a new system of global financial regulation. The rest of the trip, Mr Obama will change his focus to issues of war and peace - the continuing military operation in Afghanistan, and a new direction on nuclear non-proliferation. | The London leg of the tour will be focused on economic policy - Gordon Brown wants world leaders to sign up to a new system of global financial regulation. The rest of the trip, Mr Obama will change his focus to issues of war and peace - the continuing military operation in Afghanistan, and a new direction on nuclear non-proliferation. |
| Above all, perhaps, it will be a chance for Europeans to show the new president some love - he is incredibly popular there, and any public appearance he makes is likely to be a melee of adulation. He'll probably need some pretty heavy security... | Above all, perhaps, it will be a chance for Europeans to show the new president some love - he is incredibly popular there, and any public appearance he makes is likely to be a melee of adulation. He'll probably need some pretty heavy security... |
| Obama diary: Days 1-10 Obama diary: Days 11-20 Obama diary: Days 21-30 Obama diary: Days 31-40 Obama diary: Days 41-50 Obama diary: Days 51-60 Obama diary: Days 61-70 Obama diary: Contributors | Obama diary: Days 1-10 Obama diary: Days 11-20 Obama diary: Days 21-30 Obama diary: Days 31-40 Obama diary: Days 41-50 Obama diary: Days 51-60 Obama diary: Days 61-70 Obama diary: Contributors |