Former President G. H. W. Bush was a former President when he spoke at the Championship in 2008, having left office some 15 years previous.
While I’m sure there would be some security protocol for a former President (a few body guards) the protocol for the current President of the United States is much higher.
As if inspection was a hassle imagine secret security inspection. :rolleyes:
Doesn’t matter. Former presidents still keep their entire secret service for life.
I agree that the security would be a nightmare.
Perhaps a live feed from where ever his schedule has him on that day?
That law was changed either towards the end of Bill Clinton’s administration or shortly thereafter. Former presidents only get 10 years.
Anyways, this is a nice theory, but, in practice, security is a hassle. I do think that the CCA team being invited to the White House is a fantastic gesture though and I do hope it continues.
-Jack
I can speak of this now since its after the fact.
When Obama came to Hawaii, there were talks of some members of our team possibly having dinner with him with regards to Robotics, since he visits one of his close friends in Waialua annually.
Somehow, the plans changed when he had to go back to Washington cutting his stay short in Hawaii, then coming back again to finish his vacation.
Members of our team will probably read this and ask me about it, since I told no one…
I heard when Bush Sr. went to the Florida regional years ago he was placed too close to the volunteer lounge and the Secret Service wouldn’t let the volunteers in to have breakfast. We don’t need disruptions like that occurring.
I was scrolling through the White House petition website and found this petition.
I believe there is already a thread for this from about a month ago. I’ll try to find it, or someone else can post a link.
Go to this link and fill out the information and petition for president Obama to to go the FIRST Robotics World Championships!!
Yes everyone should do it… we already have 422 out of the needed 100,000 signatures…We are almost there…
not
It is a good idea though…
It would be awesome, but also an absolute nightmare.
Let me preface this by saying I have been to see President Obama three times (once at the Rose Garden, once at my school, and once at another school).
If he were to come speak, people who would be able to be on the floor during his speech would have to get background checks so that list would have to be determined in advance. This isn’t too complicated, but you’d have to collect full names, SSNs, residency statuses, state of residency, etc. from everyone who will be nearest to the President. These are the people the President comes around and shakes hands with and such.
The speech would have to be first thing in the morning or they’d have to clear everyone out, sweep the area, and then have everyone come back in. The biggest problem would be getting thousands of people through security, many of whom may not have government-issued IDs and I’m not sure what their policy is regarding student IDs. Even when I had a ticket to stand on the floor, I had to wait nearly an hour in line and that was a relatively small event.
Additionally, the President never arrives when he says he will. If someone says he’s speaking at, say, 9 am, it’s more likely to not start until 10 or later. I’ve been at events where people have fainted (President Obama actually stopped his speech once to let people know that someone had fainted) because of how hot it gets with everyone packed in and because you are not allowed to bring in anything to eat or drink; it all gets confiscated.
I’m sorry to say but I DIDN"T vote for President Obama so why would I want him at Championships?
Isn’t the Championships chaotic enough?
Unless someone has close to 100,000 friends willing to sign this petition it is not going to happen
While is sounds like a great idea, I’m thinking a nice video message from the President may be a better idea.
I’m with Ed on this one, the logistics are just too insane and would disrupt the flow of an already chaotic event too much.
Sounds good to me!
This is not about politics, but having the elected leader of OUR country acknowledge the good work that we do in promoting STEM and inspiring the next generation of citizens to make our world a better place.
That being said…
Bush 41 came to speak at the CMP in Atlanta in…I think 2009. (feel free to correct me)
Bush 41 was a strong supporter of FIRST going back to 1992 (or 1993, again, correct me if I’m wrong) when he welcomed the legacy teams to the White House after the first FIRST season. He was always a strong supporter, and his visit was laced with relevance.
Arne Duncan, as Obama’s secretary of Education, made a visit to Atlanta in 2010, but it was mostly platitudinal.
While a visit from our President would be welcome and provide exposure that we could benefit from, it would be a logistical nightmare and would probably detract from the event overall.
Nonetheless, I would welcome it, as long as he didn’t restrict the number of discs that a Robot could hold. Oops, wait, too late, the GDC already did that.
Not exactly.
October 2010 Obama invited HOF team FRC 341 Miss Daisy.
The next invitation was for February 7, 2012. It should have had 842 and 359 but it didn’t work out for them. I don’t know if it was because of a decision at FIRST or at the White House. The White House has the final word on the selection of who is coming, so it wasn’t necessarily the fault of anyone at FIRST.
Other FRC representation was there including 111 on the basis that they had won the previous robotics competition, not an earlier HOF CCA.
There was no White House event in 2011.
This is a great idea! With all the focus nationwide on improving STEM education and focusing on the next generation’s engineering challenges, I feel like we could get somewhere with this.