Obama

"...After declining for years, the teen pregnancy rate increased, but the pace at which teens were having babies appeared to stop falling or even inch up.
Now, the Obama administration has entered the politically sensitive debate, promising to put scientific evidence before political ideology. A $110 million campaign will support a range of programs, including those that teach about the risks of specific sexual activities and the benefits of contraception and others that focus primarily on encouraging teens to delay sex.
The initiative exemplifies the administration's oft-repeated quest to find new strategies to defuse some of the nation's most divisive issues. In this case, officials are hoping to appease advocates of teaching teens about condoms and other forms of birth control as well as those who oppose sex outside marriage.

Although the program is being hailed by many adolescent health experts, it is being denounced by some on both sides of the abstinence debate."

"President Barack Obama is appointing women and minorities to federal judgeships at an unprecedented rate.  But with the Senate at loggerheads over judicial nominees, it's a long waiting game for many of the nontraditional nominees — and a source of frustration for their advocates.  

However, In the latest sign of easing the logjam on Capitol Hill, the Senate on Monday confirmed three of Obama's appointees: Tanya Walton Pratt, who became the first African-American federal judge in Indiana history; Brian Jackson, who became the second African-American judge to serve on the district court in the Middle District of Louisiana; and Elizabeth Erny Foote, who won a seat to the district court for the Western District of Louisiana."

"Many women's groups feel that the Obama administration has not made the promised progress on issues affecting women. Advocates request stronger leadership, funding on the Violence Against Women Act, and ensuring that the Paycheck Fairness Act gets passed through Congress. In addition, they cite the White House Council on Women and Girls as a "real disappointment" and "form over substance.

To be sure, there's no doubt that some progress has been made. If Elena Kagan is confirmed, a third of the nation's highest court will be female, thanks to Obama's nomination of Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor last year; the hate crimes legislation included gender identity and gender; the Obama administration has strengthened Title IX; and the health care bill did increase access to ob-gyn and midwifery care and mandate that some insurance companies stop charging women of the same age and health status more for insurance than men, a practice known as "gender rating." Also, this is the first administration to have a White House advisor on violence against women"