President Obama announced executive actions in July to combat global climate change. Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants New York City to spend $20 billion to prepare for global warming-related dangers. The vast majority of climate scientists agree that human activity is contributing to changing climate, but polls still find large percentages of Americans don’t believe that climate change is real.

Joseph Lhota has spent years in the public and private sectors as a manager. He ran the MTA as chairman and CEO, and he served in Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s administration as budget director and deputy mayor. Lhota also helped run Cablevision and Madison Square Garden. He ran for the city’s top job, trying to stand out in a crowded field.

Bill Thompson lost a surprisingly close mayoral race to Michael Bloomberg in 2009. Now Thompson is back for another run for Gracie Mansion, hoping to emerge from the wide-open field as the Democratic nominee once again. With the support of the Teachers’ Union and years of private sector experience in addition to his long record as a public official, Thompson is tougher than ever.

The Common Good hosted Congressman Joseph Kennedy III for a power breakfast. The Massachusetts Democrat talked about his growing portfolio of legislation in the House of Representatives and his priorities for our country moving forward. He’s hard at work on everything from budget issues to civil rights, and has been busy promoting Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education, which is, as Joe puts it, “a vehicle not just for economic competitiveness abroad, but for economic opportunity at home.

A series of bribery scandals dominated the news from Albany this year, but the legislative session ended without movement on the reform package proposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. We asked New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman what he can do to clean up the state capital and how to keep New York’s elections fair in the future at our intimate luncheon and discussed pressing issues and legal battles

John Catsimatidis has built a supermarket empire in New York City. He wanted to be the city’s next mayor. With the support of former Gov. George Pataki, Catsimatidis battled Joe Lhota for a spot atop the Republican ticket. The Common Good was proud to present an evening reception with Catsimatidis as part of our NYC Mayoral Candidate Series.

Fighting has ravaged Syria for more than two years, as opposition forces and President Bashar al-Assad fight for control. The Common Good was proud to host a very special luncheon with a man who has connections to both sides in Syria. Ribal al-Assad is an outspoken supporter of the opposition movement and an exiled cousin of President Bashar al-Assad.

Congressional hearings have produced headlines and raised hackles over whether the Justice Department has misused its powers in going after The Associated Press and a Fox News reporter’s telephone records. We were privileged to host James Goodale, famed First Amendment attorney and author, to discuss his extremely timely and best-selling book “Fighting for the Press: The Inside Story of the Pentagon Papers and Other Battles.”

The Common Good hosted a national security and foreign affairs briefing from former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Thomas Pickering. With the U.S. facing so many complex international situations, you won’t want to miss this.

Elliott Abrams, senior fellow for Middle Eastern Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and former adviser to two Presidents, will joined The Common Good as part of our Middle East Series, for a luncheon briefing on security concerns in the region, the Arab “Autumn,” and updates on Syria, Israel, Egypt and Pakistan.

President Obama clearly has a place in history for breaking through the race barrier, but how will the rest of his presidency be remembered? The Common Good hosted a discussion comparing the current President and what may be viewed as his Presidential accomplishments with other Presidents in modern history.