Weekly Address: President Obama Offers Easter and Passover Greetings

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

Hi, everybody. For millions of Americans, this is a special and sacred time of year. 

This week, Jewish families gathered around the Seder table, commemorating the Exodus from Egypt and the triumph of faith over oppression. And this weekend, Michelle, Malia, Sasha and I will join Christians around the world to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and the hopeful promise of Easter.

In the midst of all of our busy and noisy lives, these holy days afford us the precious opportunity to slow down and spend some quiet moments in prayer and reflection.

As Christians, my family and I remember the incredible sacrifice Jesus made for each and every one of us – how He took on the sins of the world and extended the gift of salvation. And we recommit ourselves to following His example here on Earth. To loving our Lord and Savior. To loving our neighbors. And to seeing in everyone, especially “the least of these,” as a child of God. 

Of course, those values are at the heart not just of the Christian faith; but of all faiths. From Judaism to Islam; Hinduism to Sikhism; there echoes a powerful call to serve our brothers and sisters. To keep in our hearts a deep and abiding compassion for all. And to treat others as we wish to be treated ourselves. 

That’s the common humanity that binds us together. And as Americans, we’re united by something else, too: faith in the ideals that lie at the heart of our founding; and the belief that, as part of something bigger than ourselves, we have a shared responsibility to look out for our fellow citizens.

So this weekend, I hope we’re all able to take a moment to pause and reflect. To embrace our loved ones. To give thanks for our blessings. To rededicate ourselves to interests larger than our own. 

And to all the Christian families who are celebrating the Resurrection, Michelle and I wish you a blessed and joyful Easter. 

God bless you. And may God continue to bless the United States of America.

President Obama uses his weekly address to mark a sacred time for the millions of Americans celebrating Easter and Passover, and he calls on everyone to use this time to reflect on the common values we share as a nation.

Here’s a quick glimpse at what happened this week on WhiteHouse.gov.

Despite strong efforts to fix our broken national infrastructure over the past four years, much work needs to be done if we are to prove to the world that there is no better place to do business than in the United States.

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Defense Department Offers Limited Benefits To Military Same-Sex Partners

It took 17 months, but the Defense Department has finally issued guidance about benefits that can be extended to the same-sex partners of military servicemembers now that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” no longer requires that they hide their identities. The list does not address some serious issues of concern, including health care, housing, and survivor benefits because of the Defense of Marriage Act, but does allow servicemembers to designate specific protections to their partners, including some through the recognition of a domestic partnership. Here are a few of the new benefits:

Service Members Group Life Insurance BeneficiaryVeterans’ Group Life Insurance BeneficiarySurvivor Benefit Plan Beneficiary for RetireesCasualty NotificationDesignation of Persons Having Interest in Status of a Missing MemberHospital Visitation PrivilegesDesignation of Persons Authorized to Direct Disposition of Remains of Members of the Armed ForcePresentation of the Flag of the United StatesDependent ID cardsCommissary PrivilegesExchange PrivilegesMorale, Welfare, and Recreation programsEmergency LeaveYouth ProgramsFamily Center ProgramsChild CareLegal AssistanceJoint Duty Assignments

The memo announcing the benefits notes that should the Defense of Marriage Act no longer apply to the department, policy will be to “construe the words ‘spouse’ and ‘marriage’ without regard to sexual orientation, and married couples, irrespective of sexual orientation, and their dependents, will be granted full military benefits.” It also contains a new process for same-sex couples to declare to the military that they are, in fact, domestic partners, which presumably even couples that are already married would have to fulfill to receive the benefits.

OutServe-SLDN praised outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta for “getting us a few steps closer to full equality.”

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Obama Offers Compromise on Birth Control Coverage

The Obama administration on Friday offered a compromise on new Obamacare rules that would allow religious employers to exclude contraceptives from health insurance for their employees, but would still guarantee those employees access to free coverage for birth control.

The proposed compromise follows months of protest and legal action by the Roman Catholic Church, Protestant evangelicals and others groups who argued that the President Barack Obama's health care reform law forced them to violate religious tenets against contraception.

For more than a year, the Obama administration has been grappling with how to balance its desire to guarantee universal, free contraceptive coverage with religious freedoms provided in the U.S. Constitution. Obama in February said he would create some sort of exemption for religious employers.

Catholics United, a group with a history of supporting liberal causes, applauded the move.

"This is a victory not only for the Obama Administration, but for the Catholic Church," said James Salt, executive director of Catholics United.

The Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement that the rules offer religiously affiliated hospitals, universities and charities opposed to contraceptives coverage "an accommodation." Employees and students could enroll in separate contraceptive coverage plans without co-pays and without cost to the employer.

Self-insured employers would provide notice to a third-party administrator that would then work with an insurer to arrange no-cost contraceptive coverage through separate individual health insurance policies, HHS said.

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