Live streaming
6:55: The President and First Lady host a concert celebrating Memphis Soul music as part of their “In Performance at the White House” series
Sam Moore, of the legendary group called Sam and Dave, and Mavis Staples, of the Staple Singers, enjoy a light moment during the Memphis Soul Workshop in the State Dining Room of the White House. Mavis had mentioned that it was easy to transition to soul music from gospel music by substituting ‘baby’ for ‘Jesus’.
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Next up:
7:30: The President and First Lady host a concert celebrating Memphis Soul music as part of their “In Performance at the White House” series
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Justin Timberlake congratulates Sam Moore after he performed “Soul Man”
Musicians Mavis Staples and Justin Timberlake listen to first lady Michelle Obama during a Memphis Soul music workshop in the State Dining Room of the White House, April 9
Musicians Samuel Moore, Mavis Staples and Justin Timberlake
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Coming up:
2:0: Vice President Biden Speaks at a Law Enforcement Event at the White House
7:30: The President and First Lady host a concert celebrating Memphis Soul music as part of their “In Performance at the White House” series
Both on White House live
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Senator Tim Kaine: Nearly four months after the horrific Newtown shootings, the Senate is poised to do something that hasn’t been done for a long time in Congress – actually have a meaningful floor debate on reducing gun violence. Some senators and lobbyists are trying to make sure that no vote can take place. This should outrage the strong majority of American citizens who believe in reasonable gun rules to protect public safety.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and 11 other senators have promised to filibuster any discussion of gun safety rules. Instead of just voting against restrictions they don’t like, they are trying to block any vote whatsoever….
…. There are those who believe the National Rifle Association and its allies are so powerful that no legislation will pass. But the power of the organization’s leadership is vastly overrated. I’ve run three statewide races in the NRA’s home state. Its leadership campaigned vigorously against me each time, spending nearly $800,000 against me in my 2012 Senate race. I won all my races anyway.
Full Op-ed here
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Read here
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Steve Benen: I’ve long believed we can learn a lot about politicians by how they conduct their campaigns. Candidates who are honest and above board before the election tend to be honest and above board after the votes are tallied. Those who choose to be dishonest and sleazy during the race are often less than forthright once in office.
And if this adage is true, we’re learning some unsettling things about Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell…
More here
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Greg Sargent: …. The suggestion by the McConnell campaign that Mother Jones engaged in “Watergate-style tactics to bug campaign headquarters” is intriguing; it constitutes a suggestion that Mother Jones broke the law. To my knowledge, the McConnell campaign didn’t provide CNN with any evidence of this. (The Mother Jones story only says that a “recording” of the strategy session “was obtained by Mother Jones.”) It’s a serious charge, and if it were made without evidence by the campaign of the Senate minority leader — perhaps the most powerful Republican elected official the country — it’s a big deal.
More here
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The People’s View: How Obama is Vastly Expanding the Social Safety Net
Since late last week, we have been fed a steady diet of grandma on catfood and the eeeebil Obama that is trying to make that happen. As usual, focusing on the method of inflation adjustment (that isn’t simply applicable to Social Security but all of government), our venerable Leftist talking heads are missing the forest for the trees. Well, more like they’re missing the forest for the branches. While people are howling at a revised method of calculating inflation, they are completely missing broader perspective on how this president is devising a more expansive social safety net.
So let’s get some perspective. This president has expanded the social safety net in more broadly than anyone since the passage of Social Security – through health care reform, through expanding children’s health insurance, through student aid expansion and through Medicare reforms. Let’s talk about those.
More here
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Thanks Donna
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NYT: David Axelrod, the political strategist behind the rise of President Obama, has signed with Penguin Press to write a memoir, the publisher said Tuesday morning. Release is slated for fall 2014.
More here
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Yikes:
Independent (UK): Lady Thatcher’s death could propel The Wizard Of Oz track “Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead” to the top of the charts.
Those who saw her death as a cause for celebration have prompted a download surge for the track.
Within 24 hours of the former Prime Minister’s death, the song had risen to number 9 in the iTunes best-sellers chart. It reached number 2 on the Amazon singles download chart.
More here
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Guess who’s paws? twitter.com/petesouza/stat…
— petesouza (@petesouza) April 9, 2013
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Today:
10:30: The President and Vice President receive the Presidential Daily Briefing
11:0: First Lady Michelle Obama hosts ‘Soulville, USA: The History of Memphis Soul Workshop’
11:30: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney
2:0: Vice President Biden Speaks at a Law Enforcement Event at the White House
3:0: The President and Vice President meet with Secretary of Defense Hagel
7:30: The President and First Lady host a concert celebrating Memphis Soul music as part of their “In Performance at the White House” series
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From Donna:
I urge you to take the Sandy Hook Promise and then let’s get busy honoring the lives that were lost on 12/14
Call to Action Tuesday
Please contact your Senators and local Congress Person and ask them to support common sense gun control measures.
Email them the links to the CBS 60 minute segments by the Sandy Hook Promise Group.
Also, let’s not let the Blue State Senate Republicans off the hook. Pound away at them today. Convince your family and friends to contact them as well.
Kirk of Illinois
Portman of Ohio
Rubio of Florida
Toomey of PA
Ayotte of New Hampshire
Grassley of Iowa
Heller of Nevada
Johnson of Wisconsin
All of your contact information can he found here at What is Working
Please do it for our kids…
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Hey, any excuse:
Tuesday:
WH.gov: As part of their “In Performance at the White House” series, the President and First Lady will invite music legends and contemporary major artists to the White House for a celebration of Memphis Soul music.
The program will include performances by Alabama Shakes, William Bell, Steve Cropper, —-> Al Green <—-, Ben Harper, Queen Latifah, Cyndi Lauper, Joshua Ledet, Sam Moore, Charlie Musselwhite, Mavis Staples and Justin Timberlake, with Booker T. Jones as music director and band leader.
The entire event will be streamed live on White House live starting at 6:55 PM ET – and will be broadcast Tuesday, April 16 on PBS ….
As she has done with previous White House music events, the First Lady will host a special daytime event for students.
The First Lady will welcome 120 middle and high school students from across the country to take part in an interactive student workshop event: “Soulsville, USA: The History of Memphis Soul.” Beginning at 11:00 AM in the State Dining Room, Robert Santelli, Executive Director of The GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles, will lead the students in an overview of the origins of Memphis Soul, discuss important artists from throughout its history, and explore the elements of soul and gospel that helped contribute to the genre’s unique sound.
The workshop, “Soulsville, USA: The History of Memphis Soul,” will stream live on White House live
More here
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I. Am. In. Heaven.
Obama White House.gov WH Tumblr The People’s View Steve Benen
The Obama Diary 
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