It was a tale of two Americas. In Las Vegas the casinos were humming with a hell-yes tide that was about to sweep the manic Donald Trump to his most pumped-up victory yet. In Washington DC, civilisation still existed. In the week Trump’s xenophobic bid to be the Republican presidential candidate began to look unstoppable, the man whose Americanness he has questioned was meeting 106-year-old Virginia McLaurin. In Pete Souza’s official White House photograph of their get-together, President Barack Obama cracks a delicious smile as the first lady dances with McLaurin, who was invited to visit the White House in recognition of community work she has done for decades in the US capital. The meeting was also a celebration of Black History Month – and Souza’s picture manages to be both intimate and historic. Here are three African Americans in the White House. The room they are in – the Blue Room – is opulently decorated with gold stars, Empire-style furniture, and a portrait of some grand national father who holds a white handkerchief in his white hand.
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Lovely series of behind-the-scenes pics of Barack Obama by @petesouza https://t.co/FIGFhxWMWT pic.twitter.com/IzOnDaGKvW
— Tom Standage (@tomstandage) May 29, 2016
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This is just one in a stream of vividly human and often funny photographs – released not just through White House press office, but on Flickr and Instagram – in which Souza has documented moments of the Obama administration that will never be forgotten. These photographs are precious historical documents. Critics from left and right blame the two-term presidency of this evidently intelligent and decent man for everything from the failure to close Guantánamo Bay (he’s still trying) to a continuing economic malaise that has fuelled what is shaping up to be the most extremist presidential election since 1860. Yet Souza’s photographs tell a different story – and the one that matters. Obama accomplished the impossible and made the White House an African American home for eight years…continued”
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Pete Souza on what it’s like to follow President Obama around every single day… #newsnight https://t.co/RcAMvmd23a
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) June 9, 2016
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“I’ll probably end up taking, at the end of 8 years, 2 million photographs” #newsnight https://t.co/6Wbz5HUhMN
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) June 9, 2016
***
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The Obama Diary 
LP! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!
It was an amk trick – I was talking to you back there 🙂
I posted a pretty pic for you:)
You did – and I was saying thankyou which made me late for the new thread 🙂
Nature soothes
🙂 That was NOT my plan….
Well it would have been amk’s plan – I’ll believe you just this once – as long as your state turns blue.
I would cry, jump up and down and sing at the top of my lungs:) I want them ALL GONE!!
If Trump stays the nominee – it’s a real possibility
Heh !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Just telling it like it is 🙂
Congrats on 1st df.
Thanks! 🙂
Thanks for giving Chips and Nerdy a rest, LP – and good evening to ya!
Thanks LP – I would think Pete will be sleeping for 6 months after January 2017.
I am so grateful for Pete Sousa’s vision and his documentation of this historic Presidency…. He deserves a special place of recognition.
Thank you so very much LP giving a break to NW. She has been just awesome during Chip’s absence. Yu BT’s are the greatest people in our US of A Thank you again.
Ditto from me. Thank you to Nerdy for your tirelessness and dedication always, but especially in Chips’ absence.
And thank you Lovely Plains for this awesome Souza post!
Yes! Yes! Yes! It takes a village:)
This is me every weeknight:
Still lyin’….
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-charity-lies_us_575b4094e4b00f97fba86ae1?section=politics
L.O.V.E. the editor’s note after the article! Even includes hot links!
“Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims — 1.6 billion members of an entire religion — from entering the U.S.”
HuffPo now puts that on the end of ALL the mentions of DT…because they used to only post things about him in the “Entertainment” section of HuffPo:) This was the compromise.
Shows how often I read HuffPo…
I would buy any Obama written Pete Souza book.
Any.
DITTO!!
Yep; I have his first* and cannot wait for the second to be published! In fact, I’m hoping he’s allowed to do a series. Right now I’m wondering if he’ll have the freedom to create some coffee table ‘Obama’** books or if he might be legally not allowed.
* = ‘The Rise of Barack Obama’
** = my idea of possible titles >> Obama, The Baby Whisperer; Obama and Kids; Obama Abroad; Youth and The Obamas etc. etc. I would want to own them all. 😀 😀
I also have his first book.
I have his first one as well, and I too would happily buy whatever other Obama-related book he might publish in the future. And I’ve already implored him (via twitter a long time ago) to do so as well! 🙂 I keep it on full display on my bookcase, along with a couple of other books that make my political leanings crystal clear for any visitors who aren’t already aware. It’s sort of a pre-emptive “don’t start with me, people!” warning if we aren’t on the same page. 😀 However, I would imagine Pete’s first order of business would be to sleep for at least six months straight. 😀 Sames goes for PBO and Flotus!
another words…vindictive.
meh, the establishment will burn him to the ground once this kkklown show is over.
I want folks to back off his a$$. Don’t give the rethugs the opportunity to replace him at the convention. They made the bed, now they must sleep in it!
Well, I’m with you there! I want them all to go down.
Me too, Jazziz and J’OB! To paraphrase the good book, the rethugs are reaping what they sowed!
All Hell will break lose if they try to replace him at the convention…altho i think that they will try…there will be an explosion because Trump will NOT go quietly into the night!….not sure what will rise out of the ashes…
Scary thoughts – and I agree with all of them!
How much ya wanna bet Trump never blocks anybody on twitter? Anything anybody wants to say to him makes him feel like all eyes are on ’em. So I gave it a shot.
I just noticed his tweet was from 2013 (somebody else had R/T’d it), so I gave it another shot.
Jacqueline,
You are killing me. LOL.
Ha. Thanks. (I think. LOL.)
Just scared the heck out of my cats!! Lying next to me in bed and I howled so loud at reading your second tweet! Now one of them is across the room giving me a really strange look. Thanks for the great laugh Jacqueline.
Ha. Thanks for laughing! 🙂
Me,me,me,me. Trump you are a racists, sexists, lying, thin skin bully.
Tell him, bella!
Just call me Senator Warren. 🙂
http://www.dailynewsbin.com/news/field-guide-to-defending-hillary-clinton-against-fake-scandals-the-clinton-foundation/24961/
ANd maybe this guy needs to read this…I think it’s selective ignorance
http://www.cnbc.com/2016/06/08/billionaire-republican-ken-langone-calls-trumps-judge-comments-disgraceful.html
Looks/acts like one of my cats:) Thanks!
NEVER send a republican to do a President’s job. NEVER send a cat to do a dog’s job.
I had a cat that would fetch a ball and drop it at my feet every time. Hilarious:) Alas…she is playing fetch in cat heaven now….
I can’t stop laughing at this. Way funny.
fascism at its
bestworstThey shuda known betta than calling Philly out…
love this…
limey louts at it again in euro 2016. white thugs.
night all… snooze time:)
No idea how you are going to do it – but the guns just have to go. No way any police department can keep up with the killings.
http://edition.cnn.com/2016/06/12/us/orlando-nightclub-shooting/
Police: Approximately 20 dead inside Florida nightclub after mass shooting
Stay safe my friends over there.
New post.
https://theobamadiary.com/2016/06/12/early-bird-chat-765/