Barack Obama inauguration

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, D.C. schools chancellor are engaged

Sacramento Bee (Free subscription) | 07/11/2009

Michelle Rhee, left, accompanied Kevin Johnson to the USC-Cal football game in October. Do we call them Rhee-J? The bicoastal power couple of Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson and Washington, D.C., schools chief Michelle Rhee made it official Friday: Not only are they an item, they're engaged. It's a union that has been rumored to exist for months. In the past year, they've been seen dining together...

GREEN & GLOVER: Swiss miss

The Washington Times (Free subscription) | 06/11/2009

Designer Isabel Toledo, known as the creator of first lady Michelle Obama's Inauguration Day suit, is a Cuban-American, so why was she feted at the residence of Urs Ziswiler, the ambassador of Switzerland, Wednesday night? Mr. Ziswiler explained to us that he has been impressed with Mrs. Toledo's use of Swiss fabrics in her collections, most notably those from textile producer Forster Rohner AG, and...

Velvet Junta Revisited

Pen and Sword (Free subscription) | 06/11/2009

Daniel Ellsburg, who leaked the Pentagon Papers that revealed Lyndon Johnson went along with a war he knew was unwinnable, says we’re repeating Vietnam. In an interview with The Real News, Ellsberg remarks on the war between the Pentagon and the White House. He also equates Vietnam to Afghanistan. “No victory lies ahead in Afghanistan,” he says, and “they’re not going...

Why aren't we out?

CANNONFIRE (Free subscription) | 06/11/2009

As you probably know, Major Nidal Malik Hasan -- an Army shrink at Fort Hood -- "allegedly" went berserk and shot at his fellow soldiers, killing thirteen and wounding 30. He had just discovered that he was about to be deployed overseas. Can you believe that this is going on nearly 9 1/2 months after Obama's inauguration? Why aren't we out?

Barak Obama's Jewish connection

Life in Israel (Free subscription) | 05/11/2009

Barak Obama's half brother is Jewish it turns out. I didn't know that before. His father's 3rd wife is Jewish, and his son from that marriage is therefore jewish as well. Like his novel's main character, Ndesandjo had an American mother who is Jewish and who divorced his Kenyan father. The novel, which goes on sale Wednesday by the self-publishing company Aventine Press, is one of several books in...

• Obama's Half Brother Recalls Abusive Father in Book - Fox News
• Brother Says Obama Had Abusive Father - Sweetness & Light
• See the 13 articles on the same subject

Quote of the Day: Lindsey Graham on conservatism and the GOP

The Reaction (Free subscription) | 05/11/2009

By Michael J.W. Stickings Every once in a while, the somewhat eccentric Republican senator from South Carolina says something that makes a lot of sense. Like this : To those people who are pursuing purity, you'll become a club not a party. Those people who are trying to embrace conservatism in a thoughtful way that fits the region and the state and the district are going to do well. Conservativism...

Obama’s Half-Brother Is a Huge Letdown

Daily Intelligencer - New York Magazine (Free subscription) | 04/11/2009

With a new semi-autobiographical novel coming out, an elusive half-brother of Barack Obama, Mark Ndesandjo, has finally allowed himself to be interviewed for the first time. With the world's rapt attention, he opens up to the Associated Press about the only thing anyone cares about — his insight into the president of the United States: Ndesandjo, who said he attended Obama's inauguration as a...

Casualties in Iraq... today.

the central shaft (Free subscription) | 03/11/2009

The Human Cost of Occupation American Military Casualties in Iraq Date Total In Combat American Deaths Since war began (3/19/03): 4356 3475 Since "Mission Accomplished" (5/1/03) (the list) 4217 3368 Since Capture of Saddam (12/13/03): 3893 3170 Since Handover (6/29/04): 3497 2843 Since Obama Inauguration (1/20/09): 128 71 American Wounded Official Estimated Total Wounded: 31545 Over 100000...

ABC’s Bill Weir Wistfully Asks: What Happened to Obama’s ‘Day of Unity’ Inauguration?

NewsBusters (Free subscription) | 02/11/2009

Good Morning America’s Bill Weir on Saturday interviewed Nancy Pelosi and wistfully responded to the House Speaker’s reminiscing about the "stillness" and "silence" of Barack Obama’s inauguration. He cooed, "What happened to that sense? That was such a day of, of unity. You think it's still there?" After Pelosi assured the weekend anchor that such solidarity...

Mem-wars: More Americans Want To Read Rice's Book Than Palin's, Bush's

Marc Ambinder (Free subscription) | 02/11/2009

Sarah Palin's memoir has the buzz--it even has a liberal-authored spoof on the way--and President Bush has been out of the public eye since flying away in a helicopter on the day of President Obama's inauguration, meaning his upcoming book will be the first that most Americans have heard from him in the past nine montyhs. But more Americans actually want to read former Secretary of State Condoleeza...

Change you can believe in

This Ain't Hell (Free subscription) | 02/11/2009

If the polls can be believed, the magic of the Obama Inauguration has ended. Public Policy Polling puts Mark Hoffman 15 points ahead of Bill Owens in New York’s 23rd Congressional District. And that’s before Joe Biden gets there today and insults widows, orphans and puppies. In New Jersey, Christie is polling higher than [...]

The Foo Fighters, Pure Internet Rock and The Future of Music

Larry Kless's Weblog (Free subscription) | 02/11/2009

The Foo Fighters know how to rock. They've toured live for the last 15 years reaching a fan base that stretches across the globe. But last Friday, October 30th at 7pm (PT), they opened up the virtual doors to their Studio 606 in Los Angeles to put on their first live concert produced exclusively for their fans online. The free live show was powered by Livestream and aired on the band's Livestream and...

Barry Levinson delves into celebs' politics

L. A. Times Dodgers Blog (Free subscription) | 02/11/2009

The director's documentary 'Poliwood' follows stars as they attend political events before President Obama's inauguration. The director's documentary 'Poliwood' follows stars as they attend political events before President Obama's inauguration.

White House reveals its galaxy of star visitors

Times Online (Free subscription) | 01/11/2009

For nine months the White House has been a magnet for household name liberals who felt shut out during the Bush Administration. So it is no surprise that a newly published list of visitors to the executive mansion since President Obama’s inauguration includes Oprah Winfrey, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, as well as figures including Andy Stern.

• Barack Obama's White House guest list includes Clooney Oprah and Soros - The Telegraph
• Obama Reveals (Only) 100 WH Visitors - Sweetness & Light
• See the 5 articles on the same subject

White House Opaque Transparency

Outside the Beltway (Free subscription) | 31/10/2009

Yesterday afternoon, in a bit of faux transparency like you’ve never seen before, released the names of everyone who has toured the White House from Obama’s inauguration through the end of July. This, after various Freedom of Information Act requests to determine whether, say, William Ayers and Jeremiah Wright have stopped by. A lot of people [...]

Michael Jackson's Memorial: Who Bailed and Why

bsalmons | 08/07/2009

It was expected to be the who's who of everyone in the entertainment industry, bigger than President Obama's inauguration, more star-studded than Princess Diana's funeral.