Thanksgiving: An Act Of Service

President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and their family serve food to residents of the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Washington, D.C.

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This and That

President Obama & the First Lady backstage in the Green Room before today’s Joining Forces event. Photo by Pete Souza

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this is the fake benghazi story ed henry is amplifying at the press conference -> bit.ly/13J0POi

— Oliver Willis (@owillis) April 30, 2013

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Michael Tomasky: Well, we learned something new about what’s going on in wingnut land. Apparently, you see, there are four–no; make that at least four!–diplomatic officials who are in possession of vital information about Benghazi: the department’s (er, Hillary’s) refusal to increase security in the months before the attack; the diplo security forces (er, Hillary’s) failure to respond to the attack in the most forceful way; and finally, the administration’s (er, Hillary’s) cover-up and lies in the aftermath.

Ed Henry asked about this right off the bat, injecting a dose of Breitbartism into the proceedings. Like everyone else in America who tries not to patronize the fever swamps, I went “huh?” Then I Googled it and got this Fox News piece laying out the whole vast conspiracy:

More here

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Here’s the press conference again:

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# 1 public priority: jobs. Bottom of list: Benghazi.1st question asked at presser: Benghazi.# of questions re jobs? 0 That’s malpractice

— john miller (@deaconmill) April 30, 2013

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That ‘Honest, I’m trying *reeeeeeally* hard to take you seriously’ look

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How the hell does Chuck Todd not know the Feds will step in and set up health exchanges if the states won’t? Jesus H. Marychain. #whpresser

— Imani ABL (@AngryBlackLady) April 30, 2013

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Joining Forces: A Year Ahead Of Target….

Read more 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

Steve Benen: …. I watch a whole lot of Obama’s speeches, and I’d say he seemed a little more fired up than usual. (Pay particular attention to his tone of voice in the last 90 seconds.)

Las Vegas, August 22

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Politico: President Obama said he’s beating Mitt Romney “by a few points” and said time is running out in the 2012 presidential election.

“I can’t resist a basketball analogy,” he told donors at a Lincoln Center fundraiser that featured NBA commissioner David Stern and current and former basketball stars including Michael Jordan. “We are in the fourth quarter. We’re up by a few points but the other side is coming strong and they, they, they play a little dirty. We’ve got a few folks on our team in foul trouble. We’ve got a couple of injuries and I believe that they’ve got one last run in them.”

“I’d say there’s about seven minutes to go in the game. And Michael’s competitiveness is legendary and nobody knows better than Michael that if you’ve got a little bit of a lead and there’s about seven minutes ago, that’s when you put them away.”

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Cagle

Politico: President Obama mocked Missouri Rep. Todd Akin here, telling a fundraising crowd packed with pro basketball stars that the embattled Senate candidate “somehow missed science class.”

“Recently some of you have been paying attention to the commentary about the senator from Missouri, Mr. Akin,” Obama said. “The interesting thing here is that this, this is an individual who sits on the House Committee on Science and Technology but somehow missed science class. And it’s representative of the desire to go backwards instead of forwards and fight fights that we thought were settled 20 or 30 years ago.”

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Politifact

Chat away

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President Barack Obama talks with Senior Advisor David Plouffe on Air Force One during the flight to Columbus, Ohio, Aug. 21, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

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The First Lady is speaking now in Florida (5:50 ET):

CNN

From DC to Seattle

First Lady Michelle Obama greets guests during a Mother’s Day Tea in the East Room of the White House (Official White House Photo by Sonya N. Hebert)

First Lady Michelle Obama greets a young boy during a reception for military children and their families in honor of Mother’s Day in the East Room at the White House, May 10

More about the event here

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President Obama gestures as he and Senator Patty Murray step off Air Force One upon arrival at King County International Airport in Seattle

….. greeted by Washington Governor Christine Gregoire

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A supporter of President Obama holds a placard near a private residence where Obama was attending a campaign fundraiser in Seattle

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First Lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden help assemble Mother’s Day packages that deployed US troops have requested to be sent to their mothers and wives at home as part of a Joining Forces service event with spouses of members of Congress at the Naval Observatory

First Lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden with the Bidens’ dog Champ …..

….. they’re feeding Champ well!

rise and shine

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Friday:

9:50 AM: PBO departs the White House en route Joint Base Andrews

12:15: Arrives in Tampa, Florida

12:40: Tours the port of Tampa

1:20: Delivers remarks at the port of Tampa

2:35 Departs Tampa en route Cartagena, Colombia

5:45: Arrives in Cartagena, Colombia

10:10: Arrives at the base of Castillo, San Felipe de Barajas

10:20: Attends a leader’s dinner

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Friday: On the way to the Summit of the Americas, the President will speak at the Port of Tampa about the importance of U.S. exports to the Americas and the need to deepen trade and investment. He arrives in Cartagena Friday night, and he’ll begin the summit with a dinner that the Colombians are hosting for summit leaders.

Saturday: PBO begins his day with a CEO Summit of the Americas. He will then join the other leaders for an arrival ceremony in the early afternoon. From that, they will go into the plenary session, which will run throughout the afternoon. The leaders will again have a dinner during which they will continue their discussions.

Sunday: In the morning there will be an official photo for the Summit. That will be followed by the leaders’ retreat, which will run throughout the morning and conclude the summit program. The President will then have a multilateral meeting with Caribbean leaders.

In the afternoon, the President will have a bilateral program with President Santos of Colombia that will include a meeting and a working lunch. The two leaders will then hold a joint press conference and will participate in an event at San Pedro Claver Church. In the late afternoon, the President will return to the United States, getting back to Washington late Sunday night.

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Cagle

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NYT: Punctuating a week of political assaults on Mitt Romney over taxes, President Obama and Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. plan to release their own income tax returns on Friday, along with a statement calling on Mr. Romney to do the same, according to an Obama campaign official.

The release of the returns, four days ahead of the Internal Revenue Service’s tax deadline for the public, will set the stage for another week of wrangling over taxes, with the Senate scheduled on Monday evening to take up the White House’s proposed “Buffett Rule” minimum tax for the wealthiest Americans.

…. While Mr. Obama has long acknowledged being in the nation’s high-income echelon, thanks largely to sales of his best-selling books, he and his wife, Michelle, have paid an effective federal tax rate nearly twice that of Mr. Romney and his wife, Ann, according to tax returns released by both couples.

…. Asked Thursday if Mr. Romney had plans to release his returns, an aide said, “I can’t give you any guidance on when they will be released, but I can let you know that in previous years, Mitt Romney has sought an extension.”

More here

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ThinkProgress: Mitt Romney has not publicly stated his opinion on the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), the reauthorization of which Republicans are delaying this year because of added provisions for marginalized communities.

….. In 2008, Romney didn’t even know what VAWA was: During an “Ask Mitt Anything” forum …. he demurred when an audience member asked him whether he would hold up reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act on the grounds that it kept men from visiting their children.

“I’m not familiar with the Act,” Romney replied.

The answer surprised some women’s rights advocates, since the Violence Against Women Act – which established new federal crimes for domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking – has been federal law for more than a dozen years. Former President Bill Clinton signed it in 1994, it was the subject of a high-profile Supreme Court case in 2000 and has been reauthorized twice by Congress. Bush signed the most recent version in 2006.

More here

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ThinkProgress: For the first time in history, the United States government has issued an indictment in a case that involves a hate crime based on the victim’s sexual orientation. Defendants David Jason Jenkins and Anthony Ray Jenkins of Kentucky allegedly kidnapped Kevin Pennington, took him into a secluded part of a state park, and beaten until he was nearly dead. The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act was signed into law on October 28, 2009 by President Obama, but this is its first application.

Washington Post: …. The grand jury charged the men with violating a hate crime law that was expanded in 2009 to cover assaults motivated by bias against gays, lesbians and transgender people…

“The indictment marks the first federal case in the nation charging a violation of the sexual orientation section of the Federal Hate Crimes Law,” said a U.S. Department of Justice statement.

“It’s vindicating to see that the years of hard work that went into making sure this law was on the books is now being put into place,” said Michael Cole-Schwartz, a spokesman for the Washington-based Human Rights Campaign, which pushed for the law’s passage.

More here

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Romney speaks at the NRA annual convention in St. Louis today – which Willard will turn up?

Mitt Romney: “I purchased a gun when I was a young man, I’ve been a hunter pretty much all my life.”

Carl Cameron (Fox): “…. when it was later revealed that in fact he’s only been hunting twice he said he meant varmints and rodents – but any sportsman will tell you, that ain’t hunting, that’s pest control.”

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The Week

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Marking The First Anniversary Of Joining Forces:

… the launch of Joining Forces in the East Room of the White House, April 12, 2010

….. recorded public service announcements for the Joining Forces initiative at Kaufman Studios in Astoria, N.Y., April 18, 2011

…. huddling with military family children at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., July 5, 2011

….. at a Military Family Cookout at the New Hampshire National Guard headquarters in Concord, N.H., July 24, 2011

…. welcoming military families to the White House for for the first viewing of the 2011 holiday decorations

More photos here

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Hey, our Colombian Obot is fired up and severely ready to go:

Colombian Silvio Carrasquilla gestures in front of a huge picture of the US presidential family, during an interview at his house in Turbaco, some 60 km from Cartagena. Obama will attend the VI Summit of the Americas, being held in Colombia’s Caribbean resort city of Cartagena.

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Morning everyone 😉

evening all

Steve Benen: ….. the Huffington Post’s Sam Stein asked whether Romney supports the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and the campaign aides, after a painfully long delay, had no idea.

These weren’t trick questions. This was, after all, a call about women’s issues. It was organized by the Romney campaign, so it’s not as if these staffers could say they were caught off guard by extraneous and unrelated issues. Presumably, these folks prepared for their own telephone press conference.

Romney has cited a misleading statistic, and his aides couldn’t defend it. Romney has said current policies are keeping women from getting more jobs, and given three separate chances to say something coherent, his aides couldn’t explain what would change if the former governor is elected president. Were they not expecting these kinds of question?

…. Welcome to the general election, Mitt. I think you’ll find it’s a little more difficult than going up against Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum.

More here

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TPM: Mitt Romney’s having a terrible time turning the tables on Democrats. But his camp’s claim that President Obama is the one waging the “real war on women” is best debunked visually.

….. male employment and female employment have nearly returned to the levels they were at when Obama took office. And if Obama is waging a war on women, he’s doing a poor job of it. Despite these setbacks, female labor force participation remains near its historic high.

More here

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Greg Sargent: I’m glad to see that there’s been a moderately aggressive media response to Mitt Romney’s latest falsehood: The claim that 92 percent of the people who have lost jobs on Obama’s watch are women.

The argument, which his campaign is now making regularly, is central to Romney’s effort to win back women who were apparently alienated by the primary.

The assertion has now been debunked by Politifact, the Post’s Glenn Kessler, and NBC’s Domenico Montanaro.

More here

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ThinkProgress: As part of its bizarre strategy of blaming President Obama for the GOP’s “war on women,” the Romney campaign released statements today from two Republican Congresswomen, Reps. Mary Bono Mack (R-CA) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA). The statements correctly note that women have been hit particularly hard by job losses in recent years, but misleadingly lay the blame for those losses on Obama, just as Romney himself has been doing recently.

…… their concern for pay equity and women in the workplace must be a recent development. Both congresswomen voted against the landmark Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009…..

More here

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Buzzfeed

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Don’t miss Liberal Librarian’s latest post at The People’s View: The “Reagan Rule” and the GOP crackup

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Thanks Dotster

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PPP: Barack Obama’s opened up a 13 point lead on Mitt Romney in Colorado at 53-40. He’s gained 11 points in the state since December when he led just 47-45.

The formula for Obama’s gains is the same in Colorado as it is everywhere. He’s getting more popular and Romney’s getting less popular. In December only 45% of voters approved of the job Obama was doing to 50% who disapproved. Now he’s on positive ground with 50% giving him good marks to 47% who think he’s doing a poor job. The main thing that’s changed is Democrats really rallying around him. In December he was at 76/18 with them, but now it’s 89/8. The party is getting a lot more unified as the election comes closer.

Romney’s headed in the other direction. His net favorability has gone from -18 (35/53) to an even worse -29 (31/60) …. he’s extremely unpopular with independents at 25/65.

More here

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PPP: Mitt Romney may have effectively wrapped up the GOP nomination with Rick Santorum’s withdrawal yesterday, but PPP’s newest North Carolina poll really shows how much Romney was hurt by the process with Barack Obama as the ultimate beneficiary.

President Obama now leads Romney by 5 points in North Carolina, 49-44. That’s the largest lead we’ve found for him in monthly polling dating back to November of 2010. Obama has a 51-38 advantage with independents and is particularly strong with women (54-39), African Americans (90-7), voters under 30 (61-33), and folks in the Triangle (60-33).

The Republican nomination process has taken a huge toll on Romney’s image in North Carolina. In February of 2011 voters in the state were almost evenly divided on him with 37% rating him favorably to 39% who had a negative opinion of him. Now that spread is a dreadful 29/58….

He was actually popular with independents at 45/36 last winter, now he is incredibly unpopular at 25/62.

More here

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ThinkProgress

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ThinkProgress: According to several experts in Florida law, Sean Hannity could be compelled to testify about his conversations with George Zimmerman. Tamara Lave, a professor of criminal law at the Universtiy of Miami who also practiced as a public defender for 10 years, told ThinkProgress it’s a “no brainer.”

Under Florida Law, there is a “qualified privilege” for journalists that protects their conversations with sources. But this privilege can be overcome, per Florida Evidence Code 90.5015….

More here

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2008

Don’t forget Michelle Obama on The Colbert Report tonight

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Florida Atlantic University, April 10

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People look at their pictures with First Lady Michelle Obama as Mrs. Obama continues to greets guests at the Joining Forces Community Challenge event on the South Lawn of the White House, April 11. (Official White House Photo by Sonya N. Hebert)

afternoon all

First Lady Michelle Obama participates in a pre-Easter celebration with military families and children at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, April 4

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President Obama signs the STOCK Act into law at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, April 4. The STOCK Act is a bipartisan bill that prevents members of Congress from trading stocks based on nonpublic information they gleaned on Capitol Hill

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The Week

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Liberal Librarian: Can we call it “fascism” now?

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The First Lady and Dr. Biden’s Joining Forces tour schedule:

Wednesday, April 11:

White House, 11:00 AM ET – Anniversary Celebration

First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden will honor the 20 finalists of the Joining Forces Community Challenge at the White House. The finalists will be joined by the Challenge’s notable judges, Tom Brokaw, who will deliver opening remarks, J.R. Martinez, San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro, USO President Sloan Gibson and Deanie Dempsey, wife of General Martin Dempsey.

University of Pennsylvania, 2:15 PM ET – Nurses Nationwide Join Forces to Support Veterans and Military Families

First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden will announce a major initiative by more than 150 of America’s leading nursing organizations and more than 450 nursing schools in 50 states and territories to ensure our nation’s nurses are prepared to help meet the unique health needs of service members, veterans, and their families.

New York City – The Colbert Report

First Lady Michelle Obama will appear on The Colbert Report to discuss her Joining Forces initiative.

Thursday, April 12:

Shreveport, Louisiana, 1:15 PM CT / 2:15 PM ET – Announcing Joining Forces’ 50,000th Hire

Last August, President Obama announced a series of policies to increase veterans’ employment and asked the First Lady and Dr. Biden to lead an effort through Joining Forces to challenge the private sector to hire or train 100,000 veterans and military spouses by the end of 2013. Well on track to exceed this goal, First Lady Michelle Obama will travel to Shreveport, Louisiana, to announce the 50,000th veteran or military spouse to have been hired by a company through the Joining Forces initiative. Mrs. Obama will visit the Kansas City Southern Railway Company, which has aggressively hired veterans in the last year because of the unique skill set that they bring to the job

Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida, 6:00 PM ET – Honoring Young Women from Military Families

First Lady Michelle Obama will invite young women from military families to a celebration honoring their service to our nation as members of a military family. Mrs. Obama will deliver remarks to the high school junior and senior girls and their parents and reveal surprise guests who she invited for this special occasion.

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More here

afternoon all

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USA Today: Almost 4 million seniors saved about $2.16 billion through discounts for their prescription medications in 2011, the Department of Health and Human Services plans to announce today. This, administrators say, should help keep costs to the government down in the future.

“Before, many beneficiaries were forced to stop taking the drugs,” said Jonathan Blum, director of the Center for Medicare. “This reduces costs through better management.”

…. The 2010 health care law required a 50% discount on prescription drugs in the so-called doughnut hole, or the gap between traditional and catastrophic coverage in the Medicare drug benefit, also known as Part D. In 2012, the coverage gap is $2,930. The Affordable Care Act eliminates the doughnut hole by 2020.

The previous report, with numbers through the end of October, had shown 2.65 million Medicare recipients saved $1.5 billion on prescriptions. That rose to 3.76 million recipients by the end of December.

More here

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NYT

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Bob Cesca: The President is Crushing the Budget Deficit

See here

Thanks Desertflower

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Has Gallup taken happy pills today?

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The Hill: Senate Democrats raised more than $5.3 million in February, marking the third straight month in which they raised more than the month before.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) ended February with almost $19 million in the bank. That’s about $3.5 million more than it had one month ago, meaning the committee saved most of what it raised.

Democrats have cleared their debt and raised more than $52 million during the cycle. DSCC Executive Director Guy Cecil said it was the most successful February the committee has ever had.

More here

Thanks Jovie

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Cagle

Cagle