Though Pence delivered a polished performance, @HeerJeet writes, he told a lot of lies. Itās on us to care. https://t.co/0YUMT9lB57
— Jamil Smith Ų¬Ł ŁŁ ŁŲ±ŁŁ (@JamilSmith) October 5, 2016
At the #VPDebate, Mike Pence tried really, really hard to deny pretty much everything Donald Trump has said and done. Let's replay the tape: pic.twitter.com/5XNKyFX6az
Musicians Mavis Staples and Justin Timberlake listen to first lady Michelle Obama during a Memphis Soul music workshop in the State Dining Room of the White House, April 9
Musicians Samuel Moore, Mavis Staples and Justin Timberlake
****
Coming up:
2:0: Vice President Biden Speaks at a Law Enforcement Event at the White House
7:30: The President and First Lady host a concert celebrating Memphis Soul music as part of their āIn Performance at the White Houseā series
Senator Tim Kaine: Nearly four months after the horrific Newtown shootings, the Senate is poised to do something that hasn’t been done for a long time in Congress – actually have a meaningful floor debate on reducing gun violence. Some senators and lobbyists are trying to make sure that no vote can take place. This should outrage the strong majority of American citizens who believe in reasonable gun rules to protect public safety.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and 11 other senators have promised to filibuster any discussion of gun safety rules. Instead of just voting against restrictions they don’t like, they are trying to block any vote whatsoeverā¦.
ā¦. There are those who believe the National Rifle Association and its allies are so powerful that no legislation will pass. But the power of the organization’s leadership is vastly overrated. I’ve run three statewide races in the NRA’s home state. Its leadership campaigned vigorously against me each time, spending nearly $800,000 against me in my 2012 Senate race. I won all my races anyway.
Steve Benen: I’ve long believed we can learn a lot about politicians by how they conduct their campaigns. Candidates who are honest and above board before the election tend to be honest and above board after the votes are tallied. Those who choose to be dishonest and sleazy during the race are often less than forthright once in office.
And if this adage is true, we’re learning some unsettling things about Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnellā¦
Greg Sargent: ā¦. The suggestion by the McConnell campaign that Mother Jones engaged in āWatergate-style tactics to bug campaign headquartersā is intriguing; it constitutes a suggestion that Mother Jones broke the law. To my knowledge, the McConnell campaign didnāt provide CNN with any evidence of this. (The Mother Jones story only says that a ārecordingā of the strategy session āwas obtained by Mother Jones.ā) Itās a serious charge, and if it were made without evidence by the campaign of the Senate minority leader ā perhaps the most powerful Republican elected official the country ā itās a big deal.
The People’s View: How Obama is Vastly Expanding the Social Safety Net
Since late last week, we have been fed a steady diet of grandma on catfood and the eeeebil Obama that is trying to make that happen. As usual, focusing on the method of inflation adjustment (that isn’t simply applicable to Social Security but all of government), our venerable Leftist talking heads are missing the forest for the trees. Well, more like they’re missing the forest for the branches. While people are howling at a revised method of calculating inflation, they are completely missing broader perspective on how this president is devising a more expansive social safety net.
So let’s get some perspective. This president has expanded the social safety net in more broadly than anyone since the passage of Social Security – through health care reform, through expanding children’s health insurance, through student aid expansion and through Medicare reforms. Let’s talk about those.
NYT: David Axelrod, the political strategist behind the rise of President Obama, has signed with Penguin Press to write a memoir, the publisher said Tuesday morning. Release is slated for fall 2014.
Independent (UK): Lady Thatcherās death could propel The Wizard Of Oz track “Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead” to the top of the charts.
Those who saw her death as a cause for celebration have prompted a download surge for the track.
Within 24 hours of the former Prime Ministerās death, the song had risen to number 9 in the iTunes best-sellers chart. It reached number 2 on the Amazon singles download chart.
Msg from The Obama Diary: Genuine bloggers who create their own posts are welcome to use anything from TOD ā rebloggers, who only copy others in an attempt to up their traffic, are not. Like the reblogger who treats women like this – explicit – while copying TOD posts on womenās rights. He belongs in the GOP.
Sen. Barack Obama, Sen. Claire McCaskill and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, University of Miami, September 19, 2008
Lynn Sweet (Chicago Sun-Times): Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fl.) one of the most articulate spokespeople for Democratic candidates and causes – and a breast cancer survivor – is President Obama’s choice to replace Democratic National Committee chair Tim Kaine, who announced Tuesday he will be stepping down to run for a U.S. Senate seat from Virginia.
…Though Wasserman Schultz was a supporter of Hillary Rodham Clinton during the 2008 Democratic presidential primary, the Obama team admired her for taking on high profile surrogate choresā¦she brings to the DNC a formidable package: she comes from Florida, a 2012 battleground state; a smashing fund-raising track record; an appeal to female voters and strong connections to the U.S. Jewish community.
Former DNC co-chair Lynn Cutler, called the selection of Wasserman Schultz a “brilliant pick! She is a great energetic spokesperson, an effective fund raiser, and a very smart politician.”
Vice President Biden made the announcement of Obama’s choice in an e-mail to DNC members, whose ratification will be a formality. I’m told that when DNC executive director Patrick Gaspard told the DNC staff about Obama’s pick, the place erupted.
Schultz is the first female to chair the DNC since Debra DeLee held the post from 1994 to 1995.
Just like everybody else, “Barry from D.C.” called Va. Gov. Tim Kaine’s radio show to complain about traffic. But Barry from D.C. was really Pres. Barack Obama, who surprised Kaine with a call to his monthly show. (Dec. 22)
The Obama Diary 
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