Rise and Shine

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Monday: The President will host a meeting at the White House with business leaders to discuss the importance of common-sense immigration reform, including the Congressional Budget Office analysis that concludes that immigration reform would promote economic growth and reduce the deficit.

Tuesday: President Obama will speak at Georgetown University on the growing threat of climate change

Wednesday morning: The President and the First Family will depart for their trip to Africa. The trip will continue through the weekend, and the President and the First Lady will return July 2nd.

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Help keep up the momentum for comprehensive #ImmigrationReform. Add your name today: http://t.co/szxFABU7A9

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) June 21, 2013

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USA Today: Members of Congress will be in recess in August, but President Obama wants to make sure they hear from his supporters.

A pro-Obama organization said Friday that Obama will address an “Action August” summit designed “to plan for and discuss the action we will be taking during the August congressional recess in order to ensure that the voice of the people is heard and that Members of Congress are held accountable by those they represent.”

Organizing for Action said Obama will speak July 22 at “a working dinner with grass-roots leaders, volunteers, OFA founding members, campaign alumni and OFA staff to thank them for everything they are doing, but also to reaffirm that there is still so much left to do.”

Among the issues that OFA and Obama are pushing: an immigration bill, gun-control legislation and a new budget deal with higher taxes on the wealthy.

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Washington Post: Vice President Joe Biden is not letting the gun-control issue rest. At a speech in Las Vegas Friday at the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ annual meeting, Biden said that “at least five senators” who initially opposed background checks have sought him out for an opportunity to change their votes.

“We’re in an effort to see how we can provide another opportunity for the people who voted no” on universal background checks, which failed in the Senate in April. “That’s the hardest thing for a politician and we need to provide them a rationale. We will get to this eventually.”

More here

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The NSA story has exposed a real divide between the absolutist ideological fantasyland left and the real-world pragmatic left.

— Charles Johnson (@Green_Footballs) June 22, 2013

Still waiting for someone to document one single actual case of illegal wrongdoing revealed by Snowden and Greenwald. Just one.

— Charles Johnson (@Green_Footballs) June 22, 2013

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Bob Cesca: The NSA absolutely can not intentionally target U.S. citizens without an individual warrant. Even if you’re the most vocal Edward Snowden supporter in the universe, you have no choice but to acknowledge the truth and accuracy of this statement.

How can I say such a thing? On Thursday, Glenn Greenwald wrote it deep within his latest “bombshell” article for the Guardian: “To intentionally target either of those groups requires an individual warrant.” The “groups” Greenwald referred to here are U.S. persons or residents.

And there you go.

This is easily the biggest news to come out of Thursday’s dispatch …. not only does it totally decimate CNet’s journalistic blunder from last weekend …. it it also represents a striking clarification in Greenwald’s reporting, not to mention Snowden’s claims of being able to target any American including the president at his own discretion and without a warrant. The “requires an individual warrant” line isn’t the centerpiece of the article by any stretch. It’s tossed into the mix almost as a throwaway ….

More here

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The worse for Snowden, the better for Greenwald. RT ‏@Green_Footballs Greenwald will come out of this just fine. Snowden, not so much.

— Tom Hilton (@TVHilton) June 22, 2013

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Charles Johnson: Glenn Greenwald’s Latest Self-Debunking Non-Bombshell – Libertarian hyperventilation continues

Here we go again. Glenn Greenwald’s latest overheated, over-long, deliberately confusing piece claims to reveal: The Top Secret Rules That Allow NSA to Use US Data Without a Warrant.

….. keep digging through the turgid prose. Keep digging. Because eventually you get to this:

  FAA warrants are issued by the Fisa court for up to 12 months at a time, and authorise the collection of bulk information – some of which can include communications of US citizens, or people inside the US. To intentionally target either of those groups requires an individual warrant.

Wait a minute — did Glenn Greenwald just debunk his own exaggerated claims? Why yes, he did…..

More here

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Right thinks Obama is a tyrant/dictator; some on left want him to be one. I want him to keep on Presidenting. I think he does it pretty well

— john miller (@deaconmill) June 21, 2013

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TPM: Yahoo! News issued a correction Friday evening after a reporter mistakenly referred to Kenya as President Barack Obama’s birthplace.

A piece on Obama’s upcoming trip to Africa by Rachel Rose Hartman included a lede that echoed sentiments heard among the “birther” movement.

“President Barack Obama makes the first extended trip to Africa of his presidency next week — but he won’t be stopping in the country of his birth,” Hartman originally wrote.

More here

Hi there @YahooNews, instead of sneaking in corrections, how about firing your birther’s ass? H/T @rchakras pic.twitter.com/Qh89tWLLa6

— TheObamaDiary.com (@TheObamaDiary) June 21, 2013

@rachelrhartman ‘s birther post was a copy error like Deen’s use of N word was slip of tongue. At least Deen not supposed to be a journalist

— john miller (@deaconmill) June 22, 2013

The birther who said Obama was born in Kenya is the one who counted how many times Carney told the lazy WHPC which agency to go ask.

— allanbrauer (@allanbrauer) June 22, 2013

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NYT: Paula Deen, the self-proclaimed queen of Southern cooking and a sugary mainstay of the Food Network, was dropped by the network on Friday, after a bewildering day in which she failed to show up for an interview on the “Today” show and then in two online videos begged her family and audience to forgive her for using racist language.

More here

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ThinkProgress: …. what was striking both about some of the accusations she faced, and her sworn testimony in the deposition, was that Deen seemed more afraid of getting caught out being racist or being accused of having caused offense than of the idea that she might have caused someone else pain…..

Deen’s desperate to be forgiven, which in this context means not facing a boycott or loss of business …. there’s no reason anyone should gratify her until she demonstrates that she’s making real efforts to become a different person and to establish a different environment in her businesses. Paula Deen isn’t entitled to our goodwill just because she wants it…..

More here

Rise and Shine

St. Petersburg, Florida, Sept 8

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Today:

11:10: The President delivers remarks at a campaign event at Charles & Ruth Clemente Center, Melbourne, Florida

4:50: Delivers remarks at a campaign event at West Palm Beach County Convention Center, West Palm Beach, Florida

5:55: Departs West Palm Beach

8:0: Arrives Joint Base Andrews

8:15: Arrives the White House

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University of Iowa medical student Shadee Giurgius’s white lab coat has new significance. President Barack Obama, in Iowa City for a campaign rally, took a black marker and wrote “Go Obamacare!” and signed his autograph, Giurgius said.

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The week ahead:

Monday: The President will attend meetings at the White House.

Tuesday: To mark the 11th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, the President, the First Lady and White House staff will gather on the South Lawn of the White House Tuesday morning to observe a moment of silence. Later that morning, they will travel to the Pentagon Memorial. In the afternoon, the President will travel to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and visit with wounded warriors who are being treated at the hospital and their families

Wednesday: The President will travel to Las Vegas and Denver for campaign events. He will remain overnight in Denver

Thursday: The President will travel to Arvada, Colorado. He will return to the White House in the evening

Friday: The President and First Lady will welcome the 2012 U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams to the White House

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Kissimmee, Florida, Sept 8

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Rise and Shine

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McClatchy

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Charles Pierce: I was driving most of yesterday and, therefore, only got the news piecemeal of Willard Romney’s descent to previous unplumbed depths in a racist bathysphere of how own devising. I felt a little out of the loop until I was presented with the comforting familiarity of what a dipshit Mark Halperin is:

“After reading a lot of tweets, listening to some talk radio, and watching some cable TV, I can say that this Romney/birther moment is representative of the whole, horrible campaign cycle we are in. The level of vitriol and personal animus that exists on both sides over the flap is truly discouraging.”

…. Jesus, these people…

Full post here

This and That

Yet another TOD post that has been reblogged by Jueseppi B, despite requests that he make his own effort to support PBO rather than copying others simply to drive up his reblog’s traffic. He doesn’t take kindly to being challenged, as another woman found out: explicit. Genuine bloggers are welcome to use anything they ever see at TOD. Thanks

Support Obama/Biden 2012 – get your mug here!

And your button here

And your stickers here

Or you can donate to one of the TOD fundraisers:

a4alice * Alycee * BWD * CollegeKay * Cookemom * DonnaDem4Obama

Hgerhard * HZ * Judith Fardig * Mae Who Love Our CIC

Marlz * Meta * Pamela *prettyfoot58 * proudmemberofglobalzero * Rita * Theo67 * The Obama Diary

Let’s make it a costly day for Willard the Birther 😉

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Retweet!

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Cagle

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Cagle

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Las Vegas, August 22 (Scout Tufankjian for Obama for America – go to the link to see more)

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Make sure you visit Eclectablog to see more of Anne Savage’s gorgeous photos of VP Biden’s rally in Detroit

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Chat away 😉

Don’t get mad, get even: donate to Obama/Biden 2012

a4alice * Alycee * BWD * CollegeKay * Cookemom * DonnaDem4Obama

Hgerhard * HZ * Judith Fardig * Mae Who Love Our CIC

Marlz * Meta * Pamela *prettyfoot58 * proudmemberofglobalzero * Rita * Theo67 * The Obama Diary

afternoon all

Honestly, I haven’t made this up – a Ron Paul-supporting freak actually thought it was good news that the former KKK guy endorsed the nutjob!

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Jonathan Bernstein: I have to say: If I were running Mitt Romney’s campaign, I’d much prefer reporters going on today about a mini-flap involving one of Mitt’s sons going birther and then apologizing than have them reporting on the Santorum surge.

….in the long run (or perhaps even by Tuesday) this particular incident will be long forgotten, it still can’t hurt Romney with Tea Partiers to hint that his camp is on the same page with them culturally.

Of course, I’m not hinting, nor am I voicing any suspicion, that the Romney camp would actually do something like this on purpose.

Full post here

Get your mug here!

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Reuters: New U.S. claims for jobless benefits rose last week but the underlying trend pointed to an improving labor market, while regional factory data showed the economy gaining momentum as the year ended.

The growth picture was brightened by other data on Thursday showing pending sales of previously owned homes jumped to a 1-1/2 year high in November, adding to signs of a tentative recovery in the housing market.

Indications the economy was wrapping up the year on a much firmer footing than had been previously anticipated leaves it better positioned to deal with headwinds from the festering debt crisis in Europe and fiscal tightening at home.

More here

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Friend,

This holiday has felt a bit like one last long, deep breath before we plunge into 2012.

This time next year, I don’t want us to have any regrets. I want to be able to say we rose to the task, and got it done. We’ve all got some work to do right now.

Over the next 11 months we’ve got an organization to grow, voters to register, and people to get fired up.

I hope you’ll close out this year by donating $3 or more now to help make sure we’re ready for the next one.

Thank you so much, and happy new year,

Michelle

P.S. Also, when you donate today, you are automatically entered for a chance to be one of three supporters to have dinner with Barack and me.

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If you have a few dollars to spare you can donate here:

OFA

or

through Donna Dem’s fundraising page at OFA:

Link

or through The Obama Diary’s OFA page:

Link

Whichever you choose, the money goes to the same place: Obama/Biden 2012. Thanks everyone.

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The Official Store

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Soooooooooo Presidential:

Twitter

good evening, good people

President Barack Obama’s motorcade approaches Buckley Air Force Base, in Denver, Colo., following his remarks at at the University of Colorado, Oct. 26, 2011. The President announced executive actions that will make college more affordable by helping millions of borrowers better manage their federal student loan debt. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

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good afternoon

Air Force One heads down a snowy runway for takeoff at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora, Colo. as President Barack Obama headed back to Washington

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Washington Post: Obama moves to ease student loan burdens

President Obama on Wednesday announced a plan to allow college graduates to cap federal student loan repayments at 10 percent of discretionary income starting in January, two years before the cap was due to take effect under federal law.

The accelerated “pay as you earn” program, which Obama will authorize through executive order, could benefit up to 1.6 million borrowers and reduce their payments by as much as a couple hundred dollars a month, administration officials said. All remaining debt on the federal loans would be forgiven after 20 years – five years earlier than under current law.

Read full article here

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😯

Thanks Esmerelda

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Reuters: …. President Obama’s appearance on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” lifted the show to its highest Tuesday-night ratings since March 2, 2010, the night after Leno returned to the show.

Tuesday’s episode received a 4.1/11 metered-market household rating, a 52 percent leap over his Tuesday-night average so far this season. With Obama’s appearance,” The Tonight Show” handily surpassed “Late Show with David Letterman,” which posted a 2.7/7 household rating, “Nightline,” which drew a 3.6/9, and “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” which received a 1.8./6.

Thanks Proud

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Ruth Marcus (Washington Post): In an interview with Parade magazine, the Texas governor declared Obama’s place of birth a “distractive” issue even as he happily latched on to the opportunity to distract ….. It was classic Perry, combining logical incoherence and a smarmy cheap shot.

…. Is this a presidential campaign or a middle-school playground? I’ll show you mine if you show me yours? By the way, if I had Perry’s grades, I wouldn’t be mentioning them. Certainly not if I were running against a former president of the Harvard Law Review.

…. You might think this was the candidate cannily trying to have it both ways: a nod to the birther crazies with a simultaneous wink at those who know this is a ridiculous distraction. Except that Perry managed to step on his real message of the day: his unaffordable and unfair proposal to “simplify” the tax code – by grafting a flat-tax alternative onto the existing system.

…. The matter of Obama’s birth certificate should be a closed case. It is astonishing that a sitting governor, no less a serious candidate for president, would stoop to playing this game.

… The country is facing serious problems. This will be a fateful election. Voters deserve better than scare tactics and drivel.

Full article here

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President Obama returns a salute as he steps off Marine One helicopter on the South Lawn of the White House as he returned from a three day trip to Nevada, California and Colorado.

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See here for more information

Thanks Marlz

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‘night ;-)

President Obama greets people upon his arriving at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora, Colorado, Oct. 25

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Wednesday:

12:45 President Obama delivers remarks on college affordability

1:45 Departs Denver

5:10 Arrives at the White House

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Ooooops, watch Huntsman sink from 1% to zero in the GOP polls:

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Crikey, this is embarrassing. Professional Left, um, icon Cenk Uygur devotes a section of his own show to a Halloween mask of …. Cenk Uygur. Seriously. Ego much?

In time he might get around to mentioning what happened when he visited OWS:

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President Obama is introduced by Sen. Michael Bennett at a campaign event at the Pepsi Center in Denver

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See you tomorrow 😉

good afternoon

ABC: President Obama has crossed off 60 percent of his 2008 campaign promises from his to-do list, he told supporters in Los Angeles Monday as he asked them to help him check off the remaining items.

“I keep a checklist in my desk, and I kind of see, all right, I made a bunch of these promises during the campaign and let me see, yes, I got that done and that one, yes. No, that one’s not done yet. So we’ve got about 60 percent done in three years”….

The president listed health care reform, the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” and passing consumer protections among the promises that he has fulfilled.

“A lot of the things that we promised we’d do, we’ve done… we’ve made great progress, but we’ve got so much more work to do” …. Items left on the president’s agenda include comprehensive immigration reform, passing energy policy “that makes sense” and, of course, fixing the economy.

To check off the remaining 40 percent, the president said lawmakers will have to put politics aside. “Obviously, in Washington, the politics that I think people are hoping for is not what they’re getting. It’s still dysfunctional, it’s still perversely partisan. You still have folks who seem to be more interested in the short term and the party and elections than they are in the long term and the future and the next generation”….

Read full post here – thanks Marlz

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From yesterday:

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Today:

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Thank you Tally 😉

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OFA

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Loop 21: Even though they can barely hear over the echo from their empty wallets, unemployed people are still shouting “Yes We Can!” apparently.

The Associated Press has found that President Obama still receives tons of support from the jobless, even as Republicans attempt to blame him for high unemployment and after blocking his jobs bill.

A study conducted by the AP shows that people living in the most economically distraught areas with the highest unemployment rates are still donating money to Obama’s re-election campaign. In fact, they are actually donating more than they were in 2008 during Obama’s first presidential campaign and right before the recession hit.

Detroit for example, even with a 14% unemployment rate, wrote more checks to the campaign than it did in 2007. Even though the amounts are smaller (Obama’s website allows people to donate as low as $10), they all still add up eventually.

Thanks Gobrooklyn

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Michael Tomasky (Daily Beast): Perry’s Ridiculous Tax Plan

….. his plan, like all flat-tax plans, is a gussied-up way of stealing money from the working and middle classes and handing it to the rich…..

…. whether Perry revives his candidacy or not, the real issue here is that a flat tax or something like it is getting ever so closer to becoming GOP dogma. Some years ago, it was just the messianic loons: Steve Forbes. Now the flat tax is mainstreaming within the GOP. Mitt Romney, who used to hate it, has recently opened up to the idea. It’s getting … respectable.

Simplicity is for simpletons: a handy slogan for the ruling class that wants more of your money. Don’t be that simple.

Full post here

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The Obama Administration is announcing two new initiatives to help create jobs for veterans – read more here

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New CBS/NYT poll

Wait til they see this, um, extraordinary ad, Herb will go up another 10 points:

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I thought at first this was a kitten watching a GOP debate on TV:

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More soon 😉