@PeteSouza: POTUS embraces Myrlie Evers-Williams, widow of Medgar Evers, in Oval Office today
Thank you LovelyPlains
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BooMan: I told you Chris Christie had no good options. He called a press conference today to announce that he had set the general election for Frank Lautenberg’s Senate seat for October 16th, just two weeks before his own general election day. Why would he do that when he could have set it on the same day as his own and saved the state 25 million dollars? Because the likely Democratic nominee, Newark Mayor Cory Booker, is black, and Christie fears that Booker’s candidacy will drive higher than normal black turnout…..
More here – and read Steve Benen here
ThinkProgress: How Chris Christie’s Plan To Replace Senator Lautenberg Will Waste Millions In Taxpayer Dollars
See here
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VIDEO: “I don’t know what the cost is and quite frankly I don’t care.” — @govchristieyoutube.com/watch?feature=…
— Lis Smith (@Lis_Smith) June 4, 2013
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#assholeoftheday Chris Christie, for wasting $24M on an election to help his presidential bidassholeoftheday.us/post/521690699… twitter.com/assholeofday/s…
— Some Asshole (@assholeofday) June 4, 2013
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President Obama with his nominees for the US Court of Appeals for DC, Patricia Millett (R), Cornelia Pillard and Robert Wilkins
Text of remarks here
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Surprise! Americans are having less trouble paying medical bills. wapo.st/10VNLTh
— Ezra Klein (@ezraklein) June 4, 2013
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New study finds states would save $1 billion and cover 3.6 million more people by expanding Medicaid programs: bit.ly/1aXzCJK
— Kathleen Sebelius (@Sebelius) June 4, 2013
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This is flippin’ hilarious – and scary too …. truly, Bill Nye’s patience knows no bounds:
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Today @interior is proud to announce the first ever competitive offshore renewable #energy lease sale. SJ bit.ly/10VZNwa
— Sally Jewell (@SecretaryJewell) June 4, 2013
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Okay, so war crimes, if committed by your side, are just stuff that happens?
Meanwhile, can anyone tell me what an “intentional rape” is? Is there such a thing as an “unintentional rape”?
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Bloomberg’s Gun Group Makes $400K Ad Buy Against Ayotte | TPMDC tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/06/bloomb… via @tpm
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) June 4, 2013
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RT to share how President Obama is taking on patent trolls to protect American innovation: at.wh.gov/lI6dw, twitter.com/whitehouse/sta…
— The White House (@whitehouse) June 4, 2013
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Reminder, in case you’re following this character:
Troll Alert —> @demsunitenow is a RWNJ, spends time posting Fox Nation and Breitbart bile twitter.com/TheObamaDiary/…
— TheObamaDiary.com (@TheObamaDiary) June 4, 2013
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TPM: President Barack Obama will travel to Boston next week to lend his support to the Democratic candidate in a special Senate race in Massachusetts.
Obama will be in Boston on Wednesday to give a boost to Rep. Ed Markey …. he will attend a morning fundraiser for Markey at Copley Plaza.
More here
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Is “scandal hysteria” all the GOP has? (updated) immasmartypants.blogspot.com/2013/06/is-sca… @smartypants32
— Smartypants (@Smartypants32) June 4, 2013
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Turning up the heat => White House threatens to veto spending plans unless broader budget deal reached washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-pol…
— Smartypants (@Smartypants32) June 4, 2013
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Chicago Tribune: First lady Michelle Obama will meet privately with Harper High School students at the White House on Wednesday.
[The First Lady] had visited the school in the Englewood neighborhood in April to talk about the problem of gun violence.
…. The first lady has made gun violence a top cause this year. She paid an emotional visit to Harper High on April 10, weeping during a private meeting with 22 students as they told her how they had been traumatized by guns.
More here
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More newsie stuff in the morning. Chat away – and that’s an order.
The Obama Diary 
Woot!
Congrats lady Dudette on #1! 🙂
Thanks HF! 🙂
Dudette, I award you a hat:
Ahhh… quite the chapeau apropos! Many thanks, daaaahlin’! 🙂
You are most welcome, my beloved geeky pal!
I’m-a-tippin’ it to ya! 😀
Tippin’ it right back!!! 😆
Bam!
Yeh Baby! It’s me! It’s me!
This dance will never be unfunny.
🙂
Part of Christie’s Rap sheet.
Chris Christie has lost the benefit of the doubt
http://www.bluejersey.com/diary/17194/christie-has-lost-the-benefit-of-the-doubt
Does he think all this will not be used if he wants to run for President ?
Okay, it’s LL and me then! Hello there Friend! 🙂
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!
I’m bringing this over from the last thread because I think it’s important to be aware:
Some of you may have seen media reports (in your Twitter TL) of a 10-yr old girl suffering from cystic fibrosis who is in dire need of a lung transplant. The story comes with a picture of the suffering child lying in her hospital bed with what appears to be a (healthy) friend of about the same age lying next to her. But the point of the story is that HHS/Kathleen Sebellius is denying the child the priority to receive a lung transplant which will save her life.
The story, along with the picture of the two little girls in the hospital bed is going to tug at your heartstrings no doubt – but do not fall for this emotional manipulation. This is about throwing shade on HHS and Kathleen Sebellius – and the media is more than happy to do the job. It may be the MSM’s stunt to stir up controversy around ObamaCare (which Sebellius has so far successfully led), damage Sebellius’ standing with the public and create problems for HHS, the President, etc. Now that the IRS nontroversy seems to be fizzling out, they’re moving on to their next plan of attack. This time they exploit a child’s suffering to do it. They clearly do not have all the facts of what appears to be a very complicated situation but they go ahead with their story and their frantic need to portray Sebellius as a heartless government bureaucrat ignoring a dying child and her family.
ABC News HEADLINE: “Girl Left to Die by HHS Decision:” Read more of the story (and see the picture they provide) here.
http://abcnews.go.com/m/story?id=19309530
Thanks for the heads up. Never heard about this story before.
It was just reported today, probably this afternoon.
Wow.
Would ABC ever write “Millions of Americans Left to Die by GOP Decision to Repeal/Vote Against Obamacare.
Disgusting.
Bingo!
Dudette, you know the way my brain is even rustier than Boehner’s face? Well, I’ve been meaning to set you up as a poster at the blog for aaaaaaaaaages…. and finally remembered just now 😳
You should get an email, just accept the ‘invitation’ and you’ll be in. I can give you instructions after that.
Hey, **no** posting pressure AT ALL! But if you feel like doing some DJing any night (or anything else), feel free!
It would be an honor and a plum-pleasing-pleasure! 🙂
“A plum-pleasing-pleasure”
😆 The pleasure is all plum-pleasing mine!!
Never. And when the GOP unanimously blocked Gun control legislation after 20 kids were killed in a single incident, media was only too happy to look the other way pushing some bullshit “scandal” while families were deep in grief from their tragic losses.
Listen, if there’s anything that Sec. Sebellius can do to save this child’s life that would not endanger the welfare or result in unfair treatment of another child, then I’m all for her doing it for Sarah. But to imply that Sebellius is just callously and idly shuffling her feet instead of doing something to save the child, is a gross mischaracterization of the issue, and it’s extremely manipulative at the same time.
I knew I saw something about this the other day. Here it is
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/kathleen-sebelius-review-children-lung-transplants-article-1.1361028
PHILADELPHIA — Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius is calling for a review of policies affecting patients needing lung transplants as a 10-year-old Pennsylvania girl whose parents say she’s been denied the life-saving surgery because of her age remains hospitalized on a ventilator.
Sebelius sent a letter Friday to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, asking it to review the policy on lung allocation. The nonprofit agency is under contract with the federal government and also works with United Network for Organ Sharing, which manages the transplant system.
RELATED: LAW COULD PREVENT GIRL, 10, FROM LIFE-SAVING LUNG TRANSPLANT
Sebelius asked that a “transparent, deliberative” review be done as soon as possible “with the intent of identifying any potential improvements to this policy that would make more transplants available to children” consistent with the goals of fairness and best use of organs.
She said the disparity between donors and children awaiting transplants is “especially stark” with only 20 lung transplants last year involving organs from donors up to age 11. She also said she is asking federal officials to “consider new approaches for promoting pediatric and adolescent organ donation.”
She’s not DENYING anyone anything!!
Exactly df – this is truly a heart-wrenching story and I feel terribly for the child and her family. But this is really not the time or place to attack Sebellius and portray her as some heartless official. The media is exploiting that family big time.
Very manipulative.
Hi gb
Just saw your earlier posts/tweets. it seems you had a good day – walking is surely the way to go 🙂
Indeed 99. It is absolutely the way to go.
There you are 99ts! I’ve been waiting to ask – are cookies good things, and how do you identify them ? Do they come labeled? I haven’t followed your instructions yet as I don’t want to risk being cut off. I’ll do it before I sign on tomorrow; before I get caught up in the day’s happenings.
Some folks don’t like cookies because they track where you have been on the net – but as I don’t go anywhere that should upset anyone – doesn’t bother me. They record that you are known to certain sites – remember who you are – allow you to access places like TOD without having to log on all the time – keep track of your favorites.
Probably lots of other things – if you delete them all – you need to remember every password you ever had to get back places. i prefer to keep them. I do at times delete specific ones (ahem – this can help you access some sites that try to limit how many times you can get there)
Now I am heading to dentist! ahhhh – back later
Muchas gracias 😀
Also too – they are usually partly labelled by the site they come from – so if you are looking for New York Times cookies (just to mention one at random) search for nyt
ABC News Headline, better known as Jonathan Karl Lying about Benghazi WH email ABC NEWS.
I did have a note about this from change.org over the weekend. I felt it had a very weird vibration about it, which is puzzling, but my intuition is often correct, and I felt more compelled to move on than to participate. I did read the article, and the child has been sick for a very long time, so her requirement for new lungs is ongoing. Just now, only a few days before her anticipated death, a big furor hits the web, very odd. Also, knowing what an amazing task Sec. Sebelius has been doing, and the challenges she has been facing, I found it somewhat offensive to have a group pushing something like this into her face. Still, it is difficult and challenging, but I was unaware it was a political ploy, although it did have a high-sales-pitch tone to it. Good to understand what it was about. I am sorry for the family. Cystic Fibrosis is very tough, there is no cure for it, only dramatic and painful ways to extend a life of suffering.
OK, this really pisses me off. My son (age 37) died of cystic fibrosis last September while waiting for a transplant. The reason he had to wait so long was because of his size. He was small, and the lungs would have had to come from a small person. That tends to make the wait longer. I’m sure this little girl is not being discriminated against because of her age. There just aren’t a lot of lungs available for someone that small. There is a system set up for the allocation of lungs for transplant that is designed to be as fair as possible. My son would never have attempted to get the rules changed to benefit him. This whole thing is aboslutely bogus. My heart certainly goes out to the family of that little girl. Still, to try to turn this into a political thing to embarrass the Obama adminitration is beyond the pale. I wonder who put the family up to this. I confess that normally I’m a lurker here, but I had to come out of lurkdom for this.
Platypus, I’m so sorry for your loss. May your son rest in peace, and wishing some measure of comfort and healing to you and your family. Thanks for delurking to share your story with us.
I can see why you would be upset by this – which is clearly a manipulative ploy on the part of the media (and I suspect certain GOP operatives in the state of PA e.g., Toomey and Corbett).
I know the media is reporting a half-baked story about why this child hasn’t received a transplant, and there are many gullible folks as well as operatives with agendas who jump on this bandwagon, without bothering to research the facts of the situation.
I hope for her sake, the little girl is able to receive a transplant, but it is very unlikely that she’s only cystic fibrosis sufferer, child or adult, who desperately needs a transplant. Difficult decisions have to made and they cannot be made in a span of a few days with so many other things and individuals to consider.
Thanks, Hopefruit. Sadly, many people die waiting for transplants. There just aren’t enough donors to meet the need. Here in Ohio, they ask you when you renew your driver’s license if you want to be a donor, and if you say yes, your driver’s license will say “organ donor”. I think the process varies from state to state, but here it’s that simple.
What’s this? FLOTUS speaking somewhere?
Here’s the full story:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/chrisgeidner/michelle-obama-heckled-for-presidents-inaction-on-proposed-l
BAM!!!! this first Lady is not fooling around. GB I am thrilled you are here!
I’m thrilled to be with you guys Layla.
woot! gb is back! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Hey hey
Now who was that who was being disrespectful to our FLOTUS? I’m glad they were escorted out. I would have kick their butt out too.
FLOTUS’s response was great. The audience wasn’t having it either.
Wasn’t it great gobrooklyn? I think we see that FLOTUS don’t take no B.S. and I loved it that she doesn’t. Hi gobrooklyn. Welcome back.
Thanks Annie
Okay, okay… one more happy dance thingy! 😀
How do you find these things, Dudette? I mean, how much time do you spend searching for them and what attracts you to them in the first place? I must say that though I appreciate and am impressed by your stellar DJ creds, you have a strong penchant towards the weird. 😛
Tee-hee-hee! Thanks for the compliment VC! I embrace my weirdnss! I’m so glad to have found TOD so I can DO ME! 😎
I have no earthly idea how this stuff comes to me. Most of the time stuff just pops up on the screen. YouTube just seems to know what to show me and I share it with you fine folks here. It’s the interwebs. What can I tell ya! 😀
‘I have no earthly idea how this stuff comes to[= finds] me’
As I said, weird, but I admit I find myself (and I notice other TOD-ers) embracing your weirdness too. 😆 😆 You go, girl!
Aw shucks! Thank you! 🙂
More than this and that. It’s a ‘horn of plenty’. Don’t know how you pull all this news together but I love one stop reading.
Ha, ‘horn of plenty” – love that vetivera24!!! 🙂
GoBrooklyn, you are always in my prayers that you may have a speedy and successful healing. Be BLESSED.
OMG! I had to tweet this! !
You know Dudette, the minute I watched it, and stopped choking, I thought of you!!
Totally unbelievable that these people are allowed a broadcast license and use the word “News” anywhere in the title of that network.
I weep for our country!
Seriously Dudette, didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The ignorance was astonishing!
Can’t do a thing but shake my head!
Dudette, I am not even sure Science class will be enough to cure their delusional thinking. I think what the “Right Wing Media” people need is some serious mental health intervention.
Good point, nath!
GE Chips (thanks for the shoutout) TOD……
Baby lion and an ocelot
Ohhhh Da Cuteness! 🙂
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!
PBO’s personal pollster Joel Benenson is so good it is scary……attached is memo he sent out prior to election re Gallup.
https://twitter.com/Fascinatingpics/status/342034318077595648
Looks like Chris Hayes is going with Booman’s theme tonight:
He’s too hyper, makes audience squirm (and probably guests too, feeling like they’re back in a college bull session and Hayes is the fastest and loudest talker.
There is just ‘something’ about Christie that is a real turn off IMO. I sure cannot see him stepping into PBO’s shoes no matter how much political manipulating he does. I plan to cross my fingers in the hope that the people of NJ will make wise, informed political choices over the upcoming months.
He is a political schemer of the old school – always looking for the “me” angle to everything he does.
‘a political schemer’
And it shows! It seeps through his pores IMO. Hopefully enough NJ voters will react to it appropriately this time around.
O.K. I admit I have no proof since God does not talk to me, but I think God is sending a message to all of these Republicans to stop using his name in vain. Witness the fate of: Rick Perry, Allen West, Michele Bachaman, just to name a few. I remember a conversation I had with this GOP guy who was absolutely convinced that God was responsible for making George W. Bush president in order to save the United States from the sinful ways of Bill Clinton. Sadly, I lost touch with him soon after that. I wish I could see him today to ask him how God’s selection of George W. Bush turned out. It seems to me that Bill Clinton is currently more respected than George W. Bush because Bush’s policies left the country on the verge of total collapse.
A-DOR-ABLE!
Too cute!
House rejects expansion of prisons to house detainees
Pete Kasperowicz
06/04/13 07:30 PM ET
Democrats wanted to let the government spend money to expand U.S. prisons so they can house terrorist suspects.…
It’s Obamas fault!
Wow, this is huge news.
Wooooooooah!!! A-Rod, Braun and TWENTY players? At last!
Wow, I’ve totally in the dark on this one. What’s it about? Steroids I’m guessing.
Well, A-Rod has certainly, you know, availed of, well, unnatural assistance during his career ….
A-Roid indeed.
Ha! Looks like the game is nearly up??
Yeah, he’ll continue to get paid millions from a 10 year contract (!!) while he sits on the bench recovering from his 2nd hip surgery. Seriously, a young man getting hip surgery?? If that isn’t beyond suspect, I don’t know what is.
Here’s a snippet of what his Yankee’s management thinks of him. Not much!!! 🙂
During his tenure as a Yankee, in addition to the Biogenesis investigation, Rodriguez was revealed to be a steroid user before the 2009 season. Also, last October, in the midst of a horrendous postseason in which he was benched for three possible elimination games, he was alleged to have flirted with a woman in the stands behind the Yankees dugout, flipping her a baseball in an attempt to obtain a phone number.
Steinbrenner refused to specify whether his disappointment with A-Rod was in regards to on-field performance or off-field behavior, and sidestepped a question about the current state of the MLB investigation into his alleged dealings with Biogenesis, suspected by baseball of supplying players with illegal performance-enhancing drugs.
“We haven’t been told anything,” Steinbrenner said. “He’s been in Tampa, he’s been rehabbing and we hope he comes back strong. There’s innocent until proven guilty, right? We haven’t heard a thing.”
http://espn.go.com/new-york/mlb/story/_/id/9339166/hal-steinbrenner-says-new-york-yankees-s-disappointed-alex-rodriguez
Yes, there’s a guy named Tony Bosch who owned a “sports clinic” who the MLB seems to have some good evidence that it was a PED (performing enhancing drug) sales type of clinic. I’m a huge baseball fan so I can’t wait to see who the other 20 are.
Ah, so it is ‘roids’ then! No surprise at all.
Love her! Yay!!
follow up tweet:
who would you give a one-way ticket to mars?
let’s see…
Well…that depends, would TOD be available on Mars.
No way. I just couldn’t do it.
Okay, I thought of one circumstance when I’d do it:
If I was on a spaceship that could make it to Mars safely and I’d just looked out the window and watched Earth implode.
🙂 actually, i was thinking of who i’d like to send on a one way trip to mars. mclame, pissa, boner, etc!
Send “Moon Colony” Newt right along with ’em!
Thanks Chips and LP for posting the interview with Myrlie Evers.
Pete Souza captured Mrs. Evers in such an incredible moment… It looked like she was about to cry (with joy and other deep emotions).
It’s infuriating to me that the media don’t “scoop” getting an interview with someone as well-spoken and experienced as Mrs. Evers. They spend their time gossiping and speculating about people’s motives, whether it’s Chris Christie or Hillary in 2016, but thye don’t take advantage of treasures such as Mrs. Evers when they are available to them.
Mrs. Evers is history personified and most people interested in things other than themselves would find this interview fascinating and worthwhile.
The MSM is complicit in keeping the history of Americans from its audience.
Here’s an article about a true WWII hero, whose passing will likely be covered by exactly zero television news shows.
Nice story.
Anybody following the French Open?
Still trying to wrap my head around this one!! I’m so delighted for Tsonga!!
Wow…..Tsonga defeated Federer? 😯
Congrats Tsonga ❗
I know! Right?!!! 😀
Well, hopefully Floridians will be sensible enough to vote out Skeletor next time they get the chance.
Is there a republican anywhere who is “in it” for anything other than the money. What a terrible horrible society they want – money is everything – people are nothing.
You can say that again, 99ts!
I’m still in shock that nothing has changed since Newtown. Those assholes who voted for this continued slaughter of little kids.
Oh My God.
I’ve always liked Elijah Cummings…..
Myrlie Evers-Williams, a beautiful, elegant lady of distinction. She used to reside in Bend, Oregon, not far from where I live in Salem, Oregon.
She’s an amazing woman Bill, ashamed to say it was only recently I read up on her history, only knew the bare details before, what an inspiration.
Okay, gotta get an antecdote to the Rick Scott and Saxby Chambliss cooties!
Some day I am moving to the Carolina coast.
Trust me, wait ’til the Repugs aren’t running the legislature anymore.
More of America, the Beautiful! [sigh!]
I don’t know if I love this video cause it’s just too heartwarming, or cause she’s wearing a SAINTS jersey!!!
So NOLA Saints fans, which is better…lol
Baby Surprise
Awww! 🙂
[two reasons to smile]
Where was FLOTUS speaking when she “engaged with a protester”?
It was in DC, Dotster, according to KochFeed:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/chrisgeidner/michelle-obama-heckled-for-presidents-inaction-on-proposed-l
This absolutely infuriates me!
O.K. thanks. Ha—-Kochfeed. I’m losing patience with protesters. It’s so rude and, to me, counter-productive.
Specially to heckler the First Lady, what was her purpose of doing that?
I must say that President Obama has got to be the MOST photographed man in history. Just wow!
Thank goodness he’s so photogenic. The camera loves him and so do I! 😀
Couldn’t resist this one…
Oooooooooh, I LOVE him/her!!!!!
Some good news to take you into the night.
New post.
http://theobamadiary.com/2013/06/04/jack-white-loves-detroit/
Beaming ‘cuz I just noticed an artist I admire is following wittle ol’ me! 😀 😀 😀
I’ve loved this lady’s voice since she was with Groove Theory. She really should be a much bigger star. I love her song, “For Real” – I can listen to that song over and over and over.
Dance, Dance, Dance………Chic
For our GB
Yay GB!!