What You Need to Know: 01.12.09

Bush Asks Congress to Release Remaining $350B in Bailout Money
"At the request of President-elect Barack Obama, the Bush administration asked Congress today to release the second half of the $700 billion financial rescue package, the White House said."

In Final News Conference, Bush Strikes Elegiac Tone
"A sentimental and occasionally defiant President Bush held his final news conference on Monday, conceding that the past eight years have dealt him some disappointments but declaring that, contrary to some critics of his policies, America’s moral stature in the world is secure.

The question-answer session touched on a wide range of topics, foreign and domestic, and reflected Mr. Bush’s often-stated intent to let history be the final judge of his tenure as he prepares to exit what may be the world’s biggest stage. “I’ve had my time in the klieg lights,” he said."

Biden visits Iraq as blasts highlight ongoing war
"U.S. Vice President-elect Joe Biden arrived in Baghdad on Monday for talks with leaders of Iraq, where the withdrawal of 140,000 American troops is seen as a major challenge facing the incoming U.S. administration."

Skipping School for Live Civics Lesson
"Across the nation and beyond, students are going to great lengths to witness the presidential inauguration of Barack Obama, showing that the energy and activism his campaign ignited even among those too young to vote has continued after the November election.

On Facebook, numerous groups have been formed by students planning road trips -- one from Jamaica -- and by those angry with class schedules that conflict with the Jan. 20 ceremony. At Harvard University, hundreds of undergraduates have signed an online petition asking administrators to allow students to make up exams scheduled that day. In Montgomery County, officials initially sought to go against a regional trend and keep schools open for the inauguration, but a student petition seeking to close schools drew more than 5,000 signatures."

With Obama, many say bye-bye to boomers
"When George W. Bush lifts off in his helicopter on Inauguration Day, leaving Washington to make way for Barack Obama, he may not be the only thing disappearing into the horizon.

To a number of social analysts, historians, bloggers and ordinary Americans, Jan. 20 will symbolize the passing of an entire generation: the baby boomer years."