Obama Spends The Day With Netanyahu; Roosevelt Says Private Utilities Have 'Selfish' Purposes: Today In History

May 18, 2017, is the 136th day of the year, with 227 days remaining. The moon is in a waning gibbous phase, with illumination at 55 percent.

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Obama on Israel: “The common goal is peace”

In 2009, former President Barack Obama spent the day with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and spoke with the press afterward, opening his address with an expression of gratitude toward Netanyahu’s visit to the United States.

“I think we had an extraordinarily productive series of conversations, not only between the two of us but also at the staff and agency levels,” the president said, referencing the day’s schedule of meetings with the Israeli leader, which comprised a one-on-one meeting, an expanded meeting and a working lunch.

Obama referred to the relationship between Israel and the United States as “extraordinary” and “special” with historical and emotional ties and cited Israel as “a stalwart ally.” A full transcript is available in the Obama White House archives.

“As the only true democracy of the Middle East, it is a source of admiration and inspiration for the American people,” he said.

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Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Tennessee Valley Authority Act

Americans were increasingly supportive of the idea of government ownership of utilities, namely hydroelectric power plants, as the Great Depression deepened during the 1930s. During his 1932 presidential campaign, New York Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Democratic nominee, asserted that private utilities had “selfish purposes.”

The future 32nd president of the United States called on Congress to create a “corporation clothed with the power of government but possessed of the flexibility and initiative of a private enterprise.” Thus, in 1933, President Roosevelt signed the Tennessee Valley Authority Act, creating the TVA as a federal corporation.

The new act was tasked with tackling key problems facing the valley, including flooding, replanting forests and providing electricity to homes and businesses.

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Photo credit: U.S. Department of State via Flickr