DAILY SNAPSHOT
Saturday, July 18, 2015

Weekly Address: A Comprehensive, Long-Term Deal with Iran

In this week's address, the President explained the comprehensive, long-term deal announced earlier this week that will prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

This agreement cuts off every pathway that Iran could take to develop a nuclear weapon, implements unprecedented monitoring and inspections of Iran's key nuclear facilities, and ensures that if Iran violates these terms, the strict sanctions previously imposed on the country will snap back into place.

This is a good deal that demonstrates that American diplomacy can bring about real and meaningful change that makes our country, and the world, safer and more secure.

Watch the Weekly Address here, and learn more about the historic deal with Iran.

President Obama Announces 46 Commutations in Video Address

On Monday, the President granted clemency to 46 men and women, nearly all of whom would have already served their time and returned to society if they were convicted of the exact same crime today. In a video address, the President underscored the responsibility and opportunity that comes with a commutation:

In taking this step, the President has now issued nearly 90 commutations -- the vast majority of them to non-violent offenders sentenced for drug crimes under outdated sentencing rules.

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"Our Criminal Justice System Isn't as Smart as It Should Be"

On Tuesday, the President traveled to Philadelphia to address the NAACP's 106th national convention. In his remarks, he laid out the reasons why we need to reform America's criminal justice system, and why we need to invest in our communities and expand opportunity for all Americans.

As the President noted, today's criminal justice system "remains particularly skewed by race and by wealth," and has adverse ripple effects on our country's families and communities.

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Launching the ConnectHome Initiative

This week, President Obama announced ConnectHome -- a plan to bring high-speed broadband internet to low-income housing in 27 cities and one Native American tribal community.

Closing the digital divide can increase productivity and open ladders of opportunity, which is why President Obama has made expanding broadband internet access a priority of his Administration.

The ConnectHome initiative would mean that more than 275,000 low-income households -- and nearly 200,000 of America's most vulnerable children -- will soon have internet access at home.

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To see more from the past week, watch the latest edition of West Wing Week here.