In his message to Congress in the Administration's first National Drug Control Strategy, the President affirmed that ..".a well-crafted strategy is only as successful as its implementation. To succeed, we will need to rely on the hard work, dedication, and perseverance of every concerned American." For 3 years this principle has guided the Administration's efforts to include all sectors of American society in a comprehensive national effort to reduce illicit drug use and its consequences. The Administration's first Strategy included 106 action items to be undertaken by Federal agencies in...

The health and longevity of our Nation's, citizenry, economy and environmental resources depend in large part on the acceleration of scientific and technological innovations, such as those that improve health care, inspire new industries, protect the environment, and safeguard us from harm. Maintaining America's historical preeminence in the STEM fields will require a concerted and inclusive effort to ensure that the STEM workforce is equipped with the skills and training needed to excel in these fields. President Obama believes that now is a time of opportunity - that we can build a true...

Russia applied to join the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1947 (GATT) in 1993. In 1994, its GATT Working Party was transformed into a working party on its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). During the 18 years of Russia's WTO accession negotiations, it worked to modernize its economy and create a stable business environment. WTO Members, for their part, worked to ensure that Russia's legal regime incorporated the key principles on which the WTO is built: national treatment, most-favored nation (MFN) treatment, transparency, and, more generally, the rule of law. The...

Fifty years ago, in January of 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson declared a "War on Poverty" and introduced initiatives designed to improve the education, health, skills, jobs, and access to economic resources of those struggling to make ends meet. While there is more work to do, in the ensuing decades we have strengthened and reformed many of these programs and had significant success in reducing poverty. In this report, the Council of Economic Advisers presents evidence of the progress made possible by decades of bipartisan efforts to fight poverty by expanding economic opportunity and...

The signs of climate change are all around us. The average temperature in the United States during the past decade was 0.8 Celsius (1.5 Fahrenheit) warmer than the 1901-1960 average, and the last decade was the warmest on record both in the United States and globally. Global sea levels are currently rising at approximately 1.25 inches per decade, and the rate of increase appears to be accelerating. Climate change is having different impacts across regions within the United States. In the West, heat waves have become more frequent and more intense, while heavy downpours are increasing...

We live in an increasingly interconnected society, where the Internet has spawned tremendous improvements in efficiency and customer service. People use the telephone and the Internet to get service 24 hours a day, seven days a week. More than 60 percent of all Internet users interact with government websites. E-Government will save taxpayers a significant amount of money, while adding value to citizens' experience with government and better serving their needs. Consequently, the President has made "Expanding E-Government" integral to a five-part Management Agenda for making government more...