State of the Union

President Barack Obama gave his first State of the Union address in his second term. He began by quoting John F. Kennedy, saying, "The Constitution doesn't make us rivals for power, but partners for progress...it is my task to report the state of the union -to improve it is the task of us all."
Obama began by reporting that our men and women in uniform will be coming home (he said that by next year the war in Afghanistan would be over and 34 thousand troops would be home), that 6 million new jobs have been created since 2008, and that we are less dependent on foreign oil than we have been in 20 years. He said the reforms for our country are going to be asking more from the wealthy, changing the way we pay for medicare, and not taking the cuts to education and military that the Budget Control Act would have taken.
Obama said, "The government is not expected to fix everything or agree on everything, but the American people expect government to put their interests before it's own."
Obama wants to raise the minimum wage, which is 7.25 in North Carolina, to 9 dollars.
He also brought up gun violence, saying that it needs to be voted on. "The families deserve a vote." (In the audience were families from Newtown and Aurora)  

The Pope's Resignation

     "Strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me," said Benedict XVI, age 85.

     The religious leader of 1.2 billion Roman Catholics, Pope Benedict XVI, announced on Monday that he will resign at the end of the month "because of advanced age". Benedict will become the first pope to resign since Gregory XII in 1415. The news has shocked the Catholic world and led to speculation about who would replace him.

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U.S. Postal Service Ending Saturday Deliveries

The United States Postal Service will no longer deliver mail on Saturdays beginning in August. Packages will be delivered six days a week and the post offices will continue to be open on Saturdays. Cutting Saturday mail deliveries will save approximately 2 billion annually. The USPS had a 15.9 billion loss in 2012. To close its budget gap and debts it needs to produce 20 billion in cost reduction.