Rise and Shine

A year ago: President Obama tours the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., with Sara Bloomfield, museum director, and Elie Wiesel, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Holocaust survivor, April 23, 2012 (Photo by Pete Souza)

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Today:

12:30: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney

2:15: The President honors the 2013 National Teacher of the Year

2:45: Meets with the Amir of Qatar, His Highness Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani

6:30: Meets with a bipartisan group of women Senators for dinner

8:30: Vice President Biden Speaks at the Time 100 Dinner

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Peter Beinart: The rap against Barack Obama, at least on the left, has long been that he’s too cautious, too calculating, too conciliatory. Not a guy willing to take risks.

We can apologize now.

What Obama did in the four months between December’s Newtown shooting and this Wednesday’s Senate capitulation was one of the great displays of presidential guts in American history…..

…. [he] pursued gun control with a force of mind and soul that was astonishing to behold. “I never saw a president fight so hard,” remarked Sen. Barbara Boxer, “never on any issue.”

Why did he do it? In part because the Obama-as-timid meme was always a lie …. but beyond that, I suspect that once Obama saw an opportunity, he pushed gun control so hard because he simply cares more. As a community organizer, he worked and lived in the kind of communities where Americans are most often shot…

…. The gun control struggle will likely continue for decades. And this week its arc feels particularly long. But one day, a future president will look back at the last four months as the moment when Barack Obama began to make it bend.

Full post here

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An enemy combatant, according to Lindsey Graham, has no rights except the right to buy gun with no background check. bit.ly/17L26ER

— LOLGOP (@LOLGOP) April 23, 2013

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Steve Benen: As the debate over new measures to prevent gun violence reached its apex, Republican lawmakers and conservative activists became surprisingly hostile towards the family members of those slain in the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary. If there’s one group of people who would appear to be off-limits when it comes to political pushback, one might think it’d be Newtown families, but apparently not.

What’s next, cheap shots at Gabrielle Giffords? Actually, yes…..

Full post here

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Moment of Silence

Pete Souza: Photo of President Obama observing a moment of silence at 2:50pm today in honor of Boston Marathon victims

Rise and Shine

President Obama reacts as Joey Hudy of Phoenix, Arizona, launches a marshmallow from his Extreme Marshmallow Cannon during the second White House Science Fair, February 7, 2012

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Today:

12:0: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney

1:35: President Obama views science fair projects, East Garden and State Dining Room

The President will host the White House Science Fair and celebrate the student winners of a broad range of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions from across the country. The President hosted the first-ever White House Science Fair in late 2010, fulfilling a commitment he made at the launch of his Educate to Innovate campaign to inspire students to excel in math and science. As the President noted then, “If you win the NCAA championship, you come to the White House. Well, if you’re a young person and you produce the best experiment or design, the best hardware or software, you ought to be recognized for that achievement, too.”

2:25: Delivers remarks at the White House Science Fair

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Happy Earth Day to you.Happy Earth Day to you. Happy Earth Day, dear planet we’re destroying.Happy Earth Day to you.

— God (@TheTweetOfGod) April 22, 2013

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Steve Benen: The latest reports suggest Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is still unable to speak, due to a gunshot wound to the neck, but he’s begun to respond to questions…. while everyone involved certainly hopes these discussions produce answers, they coincide with a growing political debate, spurred on by conservative Republicans, about Tsarnaev’s legal fate….

…. It’s worth emphasizing that [Sen. Lindsey] Graham, a longtime lawyer and a member of the Judge Advocate General’s Corps, appears to be simply be making up legal standards as he goes along.

The Obama administration has already invoked the public-safety exception to the Miranda law, though Graham is arguing this isn’t enough …. he’s saying officials should look for al Qaeda connections for a month, in the hopes that evidence might justify the move retroactively. That Tsarnaev is an American citizen, captured on American soil, apparently doesn’t matter to Graham and his allies…..

Full post here

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Lindsey Graham thinks reading terrorist his Miranda rights is a bad idea, but letting them buy AR-15s at flea market is fine.

— DR (@pollbuster) April 20, 2013

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The Lies Of Glenn Greenwald…

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Okay, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has been captured. What next? Intelligent people would look to the law for that answer. Intelligent people would study the law and not make up lies to conform to their warped view. Not so Glenn Greenwald. Why? Because Glenn happens to suffer from that all too familiar “Obama Derangement Syndrome” that has inflicted many a former so called logical person since January 20, 2009 when Barack Obama took the Oath of Office and became the 44th President of the United States. Glen Greenwald’s latest drivel (click on his name to read it if you wish) claims President Obama has rolled back Miranda Rights and will do the same for Tsarnaev instead of following due process of the law. People connected with reality, know that’s hogwash. Doug Mataconis’s, @Lawscribe’s (that’s his twitter handle), and Orin Kerr’s articles clear up the stink in the air.

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Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Miranda, and The Public Safety Exception

Doug Mataconis: As James Joyner has already noted this morning, Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev will, at least initially, not be read his Miranda rights and authorities will attempt to question him regarding the plot that he engaged in with his brother, whether the two of them had any assistance from others in the United States or elsewhere, and presumably whether there are other bombs out there. While ordinarily police give the warnings required by Miranda v. Arizona fairly soon after someone is arrested, in this case authorities are relying on what’s called the “public safety” exception to Miranda

Before getting into a discussion of the “public safety” exception, it’s important to recognize what Miranda does and does not require, and what the consequences are if the police do not comply with it properly. Contrary to the conclusion that most people are likely to gather from watching crime dramas like Law & Order, officers are not required to give the warning before they arrest someone and failure to give the warning will not result in dismissal of the case. Miranda is more properly seen as an evidentiary rule that the government must follow if it wishes to interrogate a suspect and eventual defendant and use whatever statements that interrogation elicits against him in court.  If a suspect is not given his or her Miranda  warnings and the state then attempts to utilize post-arrest statements against him, then the government will generally be barred from using that statement against him in Court.

Read more here (This is a MUST read)

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Rise and Shine: The Week in Images

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama arrive to board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, April 18, on their way to Boston for a memorial service for the victims of the bombings

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A week ago, this was the President’s schedule….

Monday: The President will welcome the BCS National Champion, the University of Alabama Crimson Tide, to the White House. Later, he will participate in an ambassador credentialing ceremony * Tuesday: The President will hold a working lunch with Prince Mohammed bin Zayed of the United Arab Emirates. Later, he will welcome NASCAR’s Brad Keselowski to the White House * Wednesday: The President will welcome the Wounded Warrior Project’s Soldier Ride to the White House * Thursday and Friday: The President will attend meetings at the White House

…… how things changed

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Monday:

The White House flag lowered to half-mast after the Boston bombings

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Liberal Librarian: Be Not Afraid

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President Obama talks on the phone with FBI Director Robert Mueller to receive an update on the explosions that occurred in Boston, in the Oval Office, April 15. Seated with the President are Lisa Monaco, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, and Chief of Staff Denis McDonough (Photo by Pete Souza)

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A Word from Japa: The Blame Game

The Blame Game

by Japa

There have been some conflicts here about how to look at motives and the reasons behind the bombing in Boston. And I cringe when I read them, because so often the people going back and forth are missing what the other person is saying. And I think part of the problem is that we are sometimes afraid of being like the Right with their bigoted rushes to judgment.

When the bombings first occurred, there were a lot of people on our side of the political divide who were hoping the bombers weren’t Muslim. There were a lot on the other side that was hoping they weren’t white. Turns out they were both.

The reality is that their color may well have had nothing to do with their actions. Likewise, if they were of a darker hue, that skin color would have nothing to do with their actions. Actions like these are, for the most part, driven by one of three things: political ideology, religion or mental disorder. And it is not uncommon for it to be a combination of two or all three of these things.

So what does that mean as we go through the process with these two individuals or, in fact, examine any instances of terrorism be they bombings, shootings or whatever? And yes, I include Newtown and Aurora, and the bombing of abortion clinics or the assassination of a doctor that does abortions all to be acts of terrorism. And just as importantly, what doesn’t it mean?

Rise and Shine

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The week ahead:

Saturday and Sunday: The President has no public events scheduled

Monday: The President will host the third White House Science Fair celebrating the student winners of a broad range of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) competitions from across the country

Tuesday: The President will honor the 2013 National Teacher of the Year and finalists at the White House. Later, he will welcome to the White House the Amir of Qatar, His Highness Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani

Wednesday: The President and the First Lady will travel to Dallas to attend an event for the DNC. They will remain overnight in Dallas

Thursday: The President and the First Lady will attend the dedication ceremony of the George W. Bush Presidential Center. Later in the day, they will return to Washington, DC, and later in the evening, the President will attend the Planned Parenthood Gala

Friday: The President will host His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan at the White House

Saturday: The President and the First Lady will attend the White House Correspondents Dinner

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Ruslan Tsarni -the suspects’ uncle- is the definition of a great American. If his sentiments about USA don’t make you tear up, get checked

— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) April 19, 2013

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The Czech Republic is trending because idiots are confusing it with Chechnya. If you’re not sure whether to laugh or cry, cry.

— Chris Jones (@MySecondEmpire) April 19, 2013

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Honest, not The Onion: Czech Republic DC Embassy has to issue statement clarifying Czech Rep is not, um, Chechnya: twitter.com/TheObamaDiary/…

— TheObamaDiary.com (@TheObamaDiary) April 19, 2013

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“Yes, we will find you.”

 

Chat Away

Remember: The Tsarnaev brothers do not represent the entire Caucasian community. There are many good, law abiding Caucasians in our country.

— Feodor Chin (@FeoChin) April 19, 2013

Wolf? Keep up.

CNN reporter: “They have him cornered right now!” Wolf Blitzer: “They have who cornered?” Wolf? Keep up.

— TheObamaDiary.com (@TheObamaDiary) April 19, 2013

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Wolf Blitzer: “Something is going on, but I want to be precise – we don’t know what it is.” CNN’s new motto?

— TheObamaDiary.com (@TheObamaDiary) April 19, 2013

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Chat away.