barack & bracknell

BBC: Barack Obama and his wife Michelle will visit the UK on their first official state visit in May. US presidents who have met the Queen have mostly stayed in London, but where else in the UK might the Obamas travel?

The Obamas’ planned visit to the UK in May is their second trip to the country, but the first as official guests of the British Royal Family.

Since the turn of the 20th Century, 11 American presidents have made the trip across the Atlantic. Most have stayed in London, visiting Buckingham Palace, Downing Street and other sights on the diplomatic tourist trail.

….President Obama might consider a trip to Bracknell where his half sister Auma used to live and, it is thought, his step mother Kezia still does. A short train ride from London, the commuter town might not be an obvious choice for a world leader, but Mr Obama has already made a trip to the area. Before he became president he attended his former brother-in-law’s stag do in nearby Wokingham…..

it’s a small world

NY Mag: Ian’s on State Street – a small pizza place near the Capitol – has been fielding calls from citizens of twelve countries and thirty-eight states looking to donate free pizza to the Wisconsinites who have congregated to protest Scott Walker’s proposed legislation reducing the rights and pay of state workers. After promoting the cause on Twitter and Facebook, Ian’s gave away 1,057 donated slices yesterday and delivered more than 300 pizzas. The blackboard behind the counter now has a running list of places where donations have come from, and it includes China and Egypt.

Thank you for the photo Kasai – see it here on Facebook

Ian’s Pizza: ….maybe you’ve heard a little bit about what’s been happening in Madison this past week. Protests, marching, little ol’ Wisconsin on the national news…sounding vaguely familiar?

Yes, we’ve seen tens of thousands of people vigorously exercising their right to freedom of speech, steps from our front door….

On Tuesday night/Wednesday morning we took a late-night call from folks still over at the Capital; they were wondering if they could have our end-of-night leftovers. Well, of course – we’re always glad to hand out food at 3:30am!

The next day we got a handful of calls from folks throughout the country, people who had heard about our late-night donation. Then a few more the next day, and next thing, fast forward to 5pm on Saturday when we were so inundated with calls – from over half the states in the Union and from international locales ranging from Canada to Denmark – that our normal business had to essentially be shut down so we could focus on feeding the protestors.

…at last count we had sold over 430 of our signature 20″ mac n’ cheese pizzas to callers worldwide, and have at least 60 still waiting to be made so we could help feed what has turned into a city within a city…..

shocking proof that these wisconsin commie agitators hate america:

Inside the capitol in Madison, Wisconsin, 5,000 protesters spontaneously sing the national anthem.

‘the president’s right-hand woman’

Chicago Tribune: It was all in a recent day’s work for Valerie Jarrett. She reassured Jewish leaders about White House strategy on Egypt, helped the First Lady sync her spring agenda with her husband’s, ushered a former Fed chairman into the Oval Office, soothed Rev. Al Sharpton’s concerns about education policy and took a stroll with President Obama across Lafayette Park to patch things up with some irritated CEOs.

The schedule illustrates why no one else in the White House now has a range of responsibilities equal to Jarrett’s. When Obama took office she was the least seen of his four senior advisors. Now chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and chief political strategist David Axelrod have returned to Chicago, and Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has also departed. Jarrett, 54, remains, picking up new duties from each of them. Long the closest personal confidante of Barack and Michelle Obama, she is steadily becoming more visible at Obama’s side…..

Full article here