Obama Administration

The administration of President Barack Hussein Obama II came into office on January 20, 2009. Initial focus of the administration was announced to be centered on the continued navigation of the financial crisis, a troop draw down in Iraq and a revamped strategy for Afghanistan; as well as the implementation of a political agenda outlined during Obama's Presidential campaign which included health care reform.

In February 2009, some of Obama's nominees started to come under scrutiny. Timothy Geithner and Tom Daschle both had issues surface that indicated they owed back taxes to the IRS. While Geithner was confirmed, Dashle withdrew his nomination.US News and World Report: Obama less likely to get health reform (February 11, 2009) Another nominee to back out of the administration was Republican Judd Gregg, who was slated for the commerce secretary position. He cited differences of opinion on the 2009 Stimulus Package and the controversy involving the US Census Bureau as his reasons for pulling out.Michelle Malkin: Judd Gregg withdraws nomination (February 12, 2009)

Health Care Reform

On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the short title for legislation passed by the U.S. Congress, popularly known as health care reform.http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/health/policy/24health.html Containing certain elements which Obama had campaigned on in his bid for the presidency in 2008, the new law mandates that all Americans have some form of approved health insurance coverage and prohibits an insurer to deny coverage to a person due to a pre-existing condition. A public option, which had been mentioned as a key issue during his Presidential campaign and in the early months of his presidency was not included in the legislation.http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/health/policy/24health.html

Guantanamo Bay Closure

In the first hours of the Obama Administration, an immediate halt to the military commissions system of prosecution of Guantanamo Bay detainees was ordered by the White House through the Department of Defense.http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/washington/22gitmo.html?_r=1&hp

Two days later, on January 22, 2010, President Obama signed three Executive Orders pertaining to Guantanamo Bay and its detainees. One formally banned the use of interrogation techniques which under the Army field manual could be viewed as torture, another that established a task force to review detention policies and procedures, and yet another which called for the closure of the detention facility on Guantanmo Bay by January of 2009.http://edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/22/guantanamo.order/index.html

As of April 27, 2010, the detention facility remains open and in operation.

Cabinet Nominations

Obama assembled his picks for his cabinet quickly during the transition from President George W. Bush and some of his selections, including Eric Holder for Attorney General and Hillary Clinton for Secretary of State, are already being considered for approval by the Senate.

Just hours after the inauguration the Senate voted unanimously to confirm the nominations of six of Obama's cabinet picks. The vote to confirm Obama's nomination of Hillary Clinton for secretary of state was postponed due to the objection of Republican Sen. John Cornyn. Cornyn was requesting more information into former President Bill Clinton's foreign charitable contributions. Clinton was confirmed by the Senate on January 21, 2009 Fox News: Senate Confirms 6 Obama Cabinet... (January 20, 2009)