The White House Blog and Other Changes in the Federal Government Websites

Now that the transfer of power has been completed from George W. Bush to Barack Obama, some changes have taken place at the President’s official website (www.whitehouse.gov). One of the intriguing new features is the White House Blog. The first post on the blog (posted by Macon Phillips, Director of New Media for the White House) details some of the new features on the website and discusses the goals these new methods of communication and information will attempt to meet. Another post features the text and video of President Obama's Inaugural Address for those who may have missed it.

Links to the individual pages for members of the Obama Administration (including Vice President Joe Biden and the First Lady), as well as links to the various Departments of the Cabinet are located at the bottom of every page of whitehouse.gov.

The websites for the United States Senate (www.senate.gov) and House of Representatives (www.house.gov), while not overhauled to the degree of the new President’s website, will certainly have new faces and issues to explore as the 111th Congress begins. The Library of Congress (loc.gov) also provides THOMAS (thomas.loc.gov) to help you search for bills, resolutions, and other current legislative actions (as well as activity from congresses past).

Finally, Chief Justice Roberts, who administered Barack Obama’s oath of office in yesterday’s Inauguration, and the rest of the Supreme Court have their own website (www.supremecourtus.gov) for those interested in researching past cases or finding out more about the Court and its present and previous Justices.