On February 8 the US Department of Housing and Urban Development announced $404 million in Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) to be allocated to nearly 300 tribes in 27 states to be used for a range of affordable housing activities.

“These funds are making a real difference in tribal communities each and every day,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “Projects include affordable housing, infrastructure upgrades, community centers and safety programs that every community needs to thrive. These efforts are part of a broader commitment to ensure Native American communities can build their economies in response to their needs and as they see fit.”

With $250 million in IHBG funds still to be designated find out which communities have already received IHBG funds at HUD.gov.

When I think about how important this election is for my generation, I think of my family. I think of my 88 year-old Dad who woke up at the crack of dawn every morning during the Great Depression to run a paper route before school. A proud World War II veteran, my Dad taught me the importance of honesty, compassion, and determination.

I think of my Mom who turned down high-paying jobs in the corporate world after graduating from business school to teach English in Ethiopia and later became a human rights activist in my home state. From a young age, my Mom shared her passions of social justice, fairness, and activism with me.

And lastly, I think of my younger brother. After suffering a debilitating sports injury in high school, he worked tirelessly to get back on the field and give back to the soccer community that stood by him. He taught me the value of hard work, dedication, and character.

This election is about choices. In 270 days, we have the choice to either protect our country’s values of determination, fairness, and hard work, or turn back the clock on the progress we’ve made in the last four years. President Obama has worked hard every day to stand up for us, now it’s our time to stand up for him. For the next 270 days, I’ll be working to re-elect the President. There is just too much at stake to sit this one out.

Will you join me?

The Post-9/11 G.I. Reform Bill, the Ending Veteran Homelessness and Joining Forces initiatives, Veterans Job Corps, Hire a Hero Act, ending the war in Iraq, repealing "Don’t Ask Don’t Tell," a responsible drawdown in Afghanistan, and eliminating Osama bin Laden: These and many more examples have shown we have a commander-in-chief who understands our service members, their families, and veterans. The least I could do is to "have his back” and support his efforts in any way possible for re-election.

Are you in? We have 270 days left until Election Day on November 6. Phone bank, register voters, canvass, write letters, volunteer, and bring a friend. The President needs our help, and I am in.

After signing the National Alzheimer’s Project Act in January 2011, President Obama announced this week that an additional $50 million has been made available for cutting-edge Alzheimer’s research and an additional $26 million in caregiver support, provider education, public awareness, and improvements in data infrastructure. In addition the administration’s fiscal year 2013 budget will boost funding for Alzheimer’s research by $80 million.

“These new funds will help increase our understanding about how to manage Alzheimer’s disease, especially those services that allow families to plan in the early stages and support family caregivers,” said HHS Assistant Secretary for Aging Kathy Greenlee.

Find out more about the administration’s ongoing efforts to fight Alzheimer’s.

With this year’s presidential election only 270 days away, the sense of urgency and mission to re-elect President Barack Obama increases with each passing hour. There is so much at stake in the upcoming elections – especially for my community. As a first generation Latina, I am proud be the daughter of a hardworking, immigrant mother. The GOP’s discourse on immigration often seems so one-dimensional, discounting the human factor and extreme circumstances that lead many immigrants – especially parents – to come to this country and give their children the future they could otherwise not provide.

Many come to the United States to due to extreme economic hardships, some come due to intolerable violence in their home countries, others come simply to chase their dreams – but if there’s one thing I am sure they all come for is to give back. Give back to a country where everybody can see the fruits of their labor. Give back to a country whose basic principles respect the liberty and equality of all of those that inhabit it. And give back to a country where future generations can continue building the dream that was begun by those before them. My mother left everything behind in her native country and came to this country with nothing else but a dream. That dream is seeing her daughter become the first in her family to graduate college. For me, the dream is working for a man, who against all odds was able to become the President of a country that is the landmark of opportunity and hope – the country that made my mother’s dream come true.

Immigration is not solely about economic motives, it’s about real human beings that want the opportunity to chase dreams only this country can provide. For this reason, I will continue working for the remaining 270 days to make sure this country has a President that can protect not only the dream of a young immigrant mother, but the dreams of every single American that lives here. Si se puede!

Mark your calendars. In 270 days you will head to the polls.

A lot of work will be done between now and Election Day. We’ll be working hard to convince Americans of the importance of protecting our progress by re-electing President Obama. We need to remind voters of health care reform protecting young Americans by allowing them to stay on their parents’ insurance until they are 26 years old. We need to remind them of student aid reform that increased Pell Grants to its highest levels, opening the door to higher education to more Americans than ever. We need to remind voters about the war in Iraq and how the President made good on his promise this past year and brought our troops home.

I’ll be working every day to remind voters about these accomplishments and what the President wants to do over the next four years—like making college even more affordable so no American is denied the opportunity for a higher education because of cost.

But I can’t do it alone. Will you join me? Start by signing up on barackobama.com.

It will be a tough year, but together we can do it. It starts with you.

Will you join me?

It's a story we know all too well: Millions of responsible Americans bought a piece of the American Dream, got a mortgage they could afford, and made their house payments. But they were still hurt by predatory lenders who issued loans to people who couldn't afford them and by banks that traded risky mortgages for huge profits. In the worst housing crisis in generations, 4 million families lost their home to foreclosure.

But today, President Obama made a major announcement that will help struggling homeowners get back on their feet: His administration, working with attorneys general from nearly every state, has stood up to the big banks and stood up for struggling homeowners in an unprecedented way. They've reached a landmark settlement with the nation's largest banks to bring relief to the hardest-hit homeowners and end some of the mortgage industry's most abusive practices. This is the largest civil settlement since the tobacco industry deal in 1998.

Here's how it will help homeowners: The biggest American banks, the ones that were rescued by taxpayer dollars in 2008, will be required to put billions of dollars toward homeowner relief. They'll offer refinancing for borrowers who have high interest-rate mortgages. They'll reduce loans for families who owe more than their homes are worth. And, according to the President, "they will deliver some measure of justice for families that have already been victims of abusive practices."

The contrast couldn't be more stark between President Obama's efforts on behalf of American homeowners and Republican front-runner Mitt Romney's utter lack of concern for their plight. As he campaigns for the Republican presidential nomination, Romney has yet to offer a single proposal to lend a hand to America's struggling homeowners, make it easier for them to refinance their homes, or help them avoid foreclosure.

Instead of proposing ways to help responsible homeowners get relief, Romney's philosophy is, "Don't try and stop the foreclosure process. Let it run its course and hit the bottom."

Learn more at RomneyHousingPlan.com.

Having recently served as an active duty submarine officer in the U.S. Navy for over 10 years, I can proudly say that I served under President Obama, Commander-in-Chief.  As a veteran, I’m going to do everything I can to help get the President re-elected, and I hope that veterans and non-veterans alike will join me and volunteer their time to ensure that this president - one devoted to the U.S. military, veterans, and their families - will be victorious in November.

When I was on active duty I didn’t give much thought to the opportunities afforded to military veterans. It wasn’t until leaving active duty and being introduced to the programs for veterans that I learned what the Obama Administration had done for us – the post 9/11 GI Bill, expansion of VA healthcare, and an increase in the availability of PTSD programs, to name a few.  

That leads me to the issue of jobs.  Many of us have been personally affected or know someone who has been affected by the economic downturn at the end of the last decade. One of the hardest hit groups has been veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. With over 250,000 post 9/11 veterans unemployed, President Obama is doing everything he can to help these individuals who proudly served their country. The President’s programs have included an online Veterans Job Bank, Returning Heroes and Wounded Warrior tax credits for businesses hiring veterans, and most recently, his proposal for the Veterans Jobs Corps which would put 20,000 veterans back to work over the next five years while rebuilding infrastructure on public lands. 

As a young Navy Lieutenant, I had the privilege of meeting then-Senator Obama on a number of occasions. His leadership and personality made me see him as someone I could have in my chain-of-command which is why I supported his campaign for President in 2008. I know that I made the right choice back then, and I hope that you will join me in supporting Barack Obama as the country's President and Commander-in-Chief in 2012.