people, we’ve made it on to hollywood life!!!

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Hollywood Life: It’s the call NO mom ever expects to get from her kids – and one mom in particular will be kicking herself that she missed the whole thing!

It all takes place in a mysterious video that has popped up on YouTube, become an instant hit  and is sure to make the lucky children the envy of ALL their classmates!

In the video, the kids, who are twins, clamber into the car, and then President Obama pops into view, hands them a phone and asks them who they want to call.

The boy chooses his mom, but when she doesn’t pick up, Obama encourages him to leave a message. He says “Hi mom, I’m in the President’s car, it’s sure cool,” before the President grabs the phone back, says “ok, bye” and hangs up.

All we know is it took place in Fairfax, Virginia in 2010, and that the two lucky ‘presidential aides’ are twins. The video, titled “Mom, Pick Up!!!!! ….. President Obama,” has been seen by almost half-a-million people since it was uploaded in June by someone called TheObamaDiary!

Can you imagine getting that message, HollyMoms? Would you ever erase it?!

“……a mysterious video that has popped up on YouTube”??

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So mysterious it appeared on YouTube ….. last September:

“queen of our world”

Flowsa.com: On June 22, 2011, I walked into the Regina Mundi church in Soweto …. to find myself among thousands who had gathered to hear an address by the US First Lady, Michelle Obama. How lucky was I? …

…. Slowly the choir rose and began to sing …. The audience began to sing along ….. Graça Machel, wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela, delivered the most beautiful introduction … “We welcome you as a daughter of African heritage, and we can call you the queen of our world,” said Machel. I agree; Michelle Obama may definitely be the current queen of our world!

… As she approached the stage, holding clasped hands to her chest while fighting back tears, one could see she was moved by her introduction and welcoming…..

Her speech drew on the history of Regina Mundi, which means ”queen of the world” in Latin, paying tribute to leaders of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and the civil rights movement in the US, urging the young women in the audience to follow their example.

“The young people of this continent – you are the heirs of that blood, sweat, sacrifice and love,” she said. At this point in time I was holding back tears.

….For 45 minutes Michelle Obama spoke with conviction, passion, elegance and grace that moved me and many other women to tears. Her speech was beautifully inspiring.

She concluded with the famous slogan from her husband’s 2008 campaign to inspire and urge young women to become proactive members of change for women empowerment in Africa. “If anyone ever tells you that you shouldn’t or you can’t, then I want you to say with one voice – the voice of a generation – you tell them, ‘yes, we can’,” she said.

Yes, I can too!

This concluded one of the most inspirationally-moving speeches I have ever heard….

Full post here

Thank you SouthernGirl2 (3ChicsPolitico)

a record of achievement

See here

more from africa

omg

Steve Benen: Rep. Michele Bachmann, the unhinged Republican presidential candidate, desperately wants the public to believe she’s a “serious person,” and not at all a “flake.” She could start by avoiding mistakes like these:

Rep. Michele Bachmann kicked off her presidential campaign on Monday in Waterloo, Iowa, and in one interview surrounding the official event she promised to mimic the spirit of Waterloo’s own John Wayne.

The only problem, as one eagle-eyed reader notes: Waterloo’s John Wayne was not the beloved movie star, but rather John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer.

…. she told Fox News, “What I want them to know is, just like John Wayne was from Waterloo, Iowa. That’s the kind of spirit that I have, too.”

John Wayne is from Iowa, but not Waterloo. Bachmann is apparently confusing John Wayne and John Wayne Gacy. The former was a movie star; the latter killed 33 people. More here

Thanks Anita 😉

Note: Bachmann came from the same town as Gacy lived in for a while – Waterloo, Iowa. John Wayne came from Winterset, Iowa, around three hours away – and she still mixed them up.

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I dropped over to the dark side again to have a look at the reaction to Bachmann’s gaffe. They’re, um, not impressed:

For me, it shows she is is not very honest..she was trying to attach herself to the John Wayne mystic and cash in on it…with the theme of returning to John Wayne’s America…and claims she is from Waterloo (and is)…but didn’t know John Wayne was NOT from Waterloo but from Winterset. Maybe she kicked off her campaign from there because she thought John Wayne was from there. Unfortunately for her, there was a John Wayne from Waterloo..and that is the stake that is going to be nailed through her Presidential campaign with the media.

Somewhere, Chris Wallace is smiling …. Maybe Chris Wallace should revisit his apology on the use of the word flake. This stupid comment from her is going to make for some real laughable headlines. It is going viral..for sure ….. This could kill her campaign.

Sounds like somebody on her team isn’t on her team. A plant from another campaign? Or from Comedy Central? Or just somebody stupid?

How could she NOT know that the “Duke” was from Winterset and not Waterloo? The media is going to ravage her for this screw up.

The problem is that Bachmann is from Waterloo. She should know that the Hero was not born there and the infamous killer did live there.

Did Michele’s Waterloo become her Waterloo moment?

I think it could have blown her chance. Now everyone is going to be talking about her huge Gaffe and making fun of her. Like: Andy Daglas – “Michele Bachmann compares herself to great patriots of old, like Sam Adams and his celebrated offspring, Son of Sam.”

Palin & Bachmann can’t speak to reporters. They are both too dumb. Is it honestly too freaking much to ask for a person with half a brain??

That’s a vicious slander, and you ought to be roundly reprimanded for making it on this website.

Alright. This one is a genuine problem ….. This could be her “I can see Russia from my house” moment.

Makes me wonder if she might have a mole inside her campaign trying to make her look stupid

It depends on she is representing herself as she tries to connect with those in Iowa. It appears she was trying to cash in on where she lived and the central theme of John Wayne’s America. She blew it. And yes, this is starting to go viral.

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This guy is staying loyal, though:

Word is now that John Wayne’s parents lived in Waterloo before moving to Winterset. In fact, the Duke may have been conceived in Waterloo. A distinction almost without difference, imho.

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Bachmann fans have been busy trying to edit Wikipedia to show she was right about Wayne’s birthplace …. 😳

new jersey (video added)

President Barack Obama accepts a Colorado Rapids jersey from managing director Jeff Plush as the president welcomed the Major League Soccer champions Colorado Rapids to the White House, June 27

“are you a flake?” (updated)

Steve Benen: …..Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace apparently faced some criticism from the right over this, and he apologized, telling Fox News viewers, “I messed up. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean any disrespect.” ….It’s a shame Wallace felt the need to apologize for this, because he accidentally asked a good question, even if he regrets it now.

Societal norms apparently dictate that unhinged candidates who have no business running for president be shielded from such unpleasantness, but Michele Bachmann is arguably the most ridiculous person in Washington. She proudly embraces bizarre conspiracy theories; she routinely says crazy things on national television; she pretends to grasp public policies she doesn’t understand; and her worldview is comparable to someone who’s suffered a serious head trauma. Even as the Republican Party leaps off a right-wing cliff, Bachmann stands out for unique brand of madness.

Given this, of course response hosts should ask whether she’s a serious person. Bachmann doesn’t deserve deference; she deserves ridicule. I thought “are you a flake” was actually a rather polite way of asking a legitimate question about an unqualified candidate.

Full post (and full video) here

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LA Times: Rep. Michele Bachmann has been propelled into the 2012 presidential contest in part by her insistent calls to reduce federal spending….

But she and her family have benefited personally from government aid, an examination of her record and finances shows. A counseling clinic run by her husband has received nearly $30,000 from the state of Minnesota in the last five years, money that in part came from the federal government. A family farm in Wisconsin, in which the congresswoman is a partner, received nearly $260,000 in federal farm subsidies.

And she has sought to keep federal money flowing to her constituents. After publicly criticizing the Obama administration’s stimulus program, Bachmann requested stimulus funds to support projects in her district….

….despite her broadsides against “socialized medicine,” Bachmann’s husband, Marcus, applied for public funds for his counseling clinic, Bachmann & Associates. Since 2006, he has received nearly $30,000, according to Minnesota state records…

Michele Bachmann lists the Lake Elmo, Minn.-based clinic – which aims to provide “quality Christian counseling in a sensitive, loving environment,” according to its website – as one of her assets on her financial disclosure forms.

Another of Bachmann’s assets – a family farm owned by her late father-in-law, Paul Bachmann – received nearly $260,000 in federal money between 1995 and 2008, largely from corn and dairy subsidies …. Paul Bachmann died in May 2009, but the congresswoman retains a partnership in the farm.

Bachmann said in December that the subsidies went to her in-laws and she never received “one penny” from the farm, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. However, in financial disclosure forms, she reported receiving between $32,503 and $105,000 in income from the farm, at minimum, between 2006 and 2009.

More here

AP: ..…Examining 24 of her statements, Politifact.com, the Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-checking service found just one to be fully true and 17 to be false (seven of them “pants on fire” false)….. A look at some of her recent statements and how they compare with the facts:

BACHMANN: “The farm is my father-in-law’s farm. It’s not my husband and my farm. It’s my father-in-law’s farm. And my husband and I have never gotten a penny of money from the farm.” — On “Fox News Sunday.”

THE FACTS: In personal financial disclosure reports required annually from members of Congress, Bachmann reported that she holds an interest in a family farm in Independence, Wis., with her share worth between $100,000 and $250,000…..

BACHMANN: “Overnight we are hearing that potentially 10 to 30,000 people could have been killed in the strike.” — Criticizing Obama in May for the “foolish” U.S. intervention in Libya, and citing what she said were reports of a civilian death toll from a NATO strike as high as 30,000.

THE FACTS: The U.S. ambassador to Libya, Gene Cretz, said in late April that U.S. officials have seen reports that 10,000 to 30,000 people may have died in Moammar Gadhafi’s crackdown on protesters and the fighting between rebels and pro-government forces, but it is hard to know if that is true. He was speaking about all casualties of the conflict; no one has attributed such a death toll to NATO bombing alone, much less to a single strike.

BACHMANN: “It’s ironic and sad that the president released all of the oil from the strategic oil reserve. … There’s only a limited amount of oil that we have in the strategic oil reserve. It’s there for emergencies.” — On CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday.

THE FACTS: Obama did not empty all the oil from the strategic reserve, as Bachmann said. He approved the release of 30 million barrels, about 4 percent of the 727 million barrels stored in salt caverns along the Texas and Louisiana coasts….

BACHMANN: “One. That’s the number of new drilling permits under the Obama administration since they came into office.” — Comment to a conservative conference in Iowa in March.

THE FACTS: The Obama administration issued more than 200 new drilling permits before the Gulf oil spill alone. Over the past year, since new safety standards were imposed, the administration has issued more than 60 shallow-water drilling permits. Since the deep water moratorium was lifted in October, nine new wells have been approved.

More here

you just cannot speak highly enough of bachmann

pete souza, genius

President Obama greets people across the street from Fred’s Pro Hardware store in Toledo, Ohio, June 3. (Pete Souza)

President Obama greets children at a day care facility adjacent to daughter Sasha’s school in Bethesda following her 4th grade closing ceremony, June 9 (Pete Souza)

President Obama bids farewell to Personal Secretary Katie Johnson on her last day at the White House, June 10 (Pete Souza)

President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden head toward the Oval Office Private Dining Room for lunch, June 8 (Pete Souza)

Restaurant staff react as President Obama stops for lunch at Rudy’s Hot Dog in Toledo, Ohio, June 3 (Pete Souza)

And Samantha Appleton:

First Lady Michelle Obama talks with children as they have lunch at CentroNía Childcare Center in Washington, D.C., June 8 (Samantha Appleton)

More new photos here

‘from consensus to instincts’

President Barack Obama delivers a statement in the East Room of the White House on the mission against Osama bin Laden, May 1, 2011

LA Times: The Obama administration’s top national security officials were gathered around … to hear Army Gen. David H. Petraeus argue for a slow drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan …. President Obama quickly made clear his disagreement. More important, he said, was the administration’s goal of shifting responsibility for the country’s security to the Afghan government, which would let him bring home troops.

As a senior administration official put it: “He asked everyone, if we’re serious about transition, then when? When are we going to do it? “Everybody came out of that meeting knowing the president wanted to go this direction,” said the official who described the scene, “even though it wasn’t the pace that Gen. Petraeus was recommending.”

A week later, last Wednesday, Obama announced plans to withdraw the 33,000 “surge” troops he sent to Afghanistan.

To some who had attended the meeting, the encounter – and the president’s willingness to overrule key advisors – brought to mind another meeting four and a half months earlier. On that occasion, Obama and his top advisors were discussing the rapidly unfolding events in Egypt. Most top administration officials had been advising the president against calling for President Hosni Mubarak to step down.

But as the discussion went along, the television monitors in the Situation Room showed an angry crowd in Cairo’s Tahrir Square yelling, “Leave! Leave! Leave!” in response to Mubarak’s televised speech refusing to resign. Obama watched, and then told his aides, “Look, guys, this is not going to go back into the box.” The president said he would call Mubarak and tell him to step down, and he would deliver a public statement calling for a transition to begin immediately. The decision took aides by surprise. In retrospect, it seemed a sign of things to come.

…The success of the Bin Laden raid reinforced Obama’s security in his own judgments, aides said. “I think he reached a point where he had to trust his instincts, and there was nothing left to inform his decision except to do that,” said one advisor … “And he saw that trust borne out in what happened. … To make that risky a judgment based not just on your instincts but on your experience as commander in chief, and have it succeed, does something important psychologically that’s hard to quantify.”……

Full article here