Obama's Speech at the Alfalfa Dinner Jan. 28

Is this the best cover ever?

Apparently speeches at the Alfalfa Dinner aren't traditionally filmed, but the White House released parts of Obama's speech:

And Speaker (John) Boehner, it is good to see you at the head table. I know how badly Eric Cantor wanted your seat. But, John, I want you to know: I am eager to work with members of Congress to be entertaining tonight. But if Congress is unwilling to cooperate, I will be funny without them. It is great to be here tonight, because I have about 45 more minutes on the State of the Union that I'd like to deliver tonight.

You've heard it from the pundits: "Obama is cloistered in the White House." "He's aloof." "He's in the bubble." "He's not connecting." And that's why one of my big goals this year was to get out and be among everyday, ordinary Americans -- like the men and women of the Alfalfa Club.

At least my harshest critics can agree I have a promising future -- as a Al Green impersonator.

It is great to see Jeb Bush, who is accepting a nomination for President tonight. I have to say, though, it's not fair to tease your friends like that.

I'd like to acknowledge a very good friend of mine -- Warren Buffet's secretary's boss is in the house.

We are reminded on evenings like this that for all our differences, we are bound by something greater. Sometimes we're going to disagree. We're going to do battle, politically, from time to time. That's the nature of our democracy. But let us never forget the extraordinary privilege that we share as Americans, and the responsibility that we all have, as leaders, to the continued success of this country that's made so many of our stories possible.

Obama Photos Jan. 28

It's picture day (photo credits).
Obama calls Jessica Buchanan's father to tell him the SEALs rescued his daughter

Obama in Michigan (photo apparently taken by Matt, who works at Comet)

It's VPOTUS

Unlike Mitt's dog, Obama's Bo rides in the car

Obama and his National Security advisor, Tom Donilon

Obama family before the national tree lighting in December

Obama family at the MLK memorial

Obama and Gabby Gidffords the night of the SOTU

Obama and Biden with guns

Obama with Orlando's mayor aboard Air Force One

Obama at Sasha's basketball game

Obama and his defense and security peeps

Singing

Obama at the memorial for the Arizonans killed during the Giffords event

Obama Speaks Through His Anger Translator

A roundup of good natured Obama funnies:

It's Alphacat:



Short and sweet:

Jon Voight Stumping for Romney

If Mitt wants to win why in the world does he have McCain and Voight stumping for him? DESPERATE. McCain is a bitter man who lost to Obama. Voight is a radical and hateful man and has no appeal to anyone except a sliver of extremists on the right. Voight is a birther and an Alinsky pusher. He's one of those who have created an imaginary archenemy in Obama. Shame on Mitt. The GOP has lost its way.

Mr. Romney, Mr. Voight said, “is strong, honest, and wants to bring the country back to its exceptional place where we have been for hundreds of hundreds of years, until President Obama decided to follow his father’s footsteps and take us to socialism.”

“We cannot afford another four years of rhetoric,” he continued. “I’m sorry to say Speaker Gingrich may fall short in many ways,” he said of Mr. Romney’s rival, Newt Gingrich, a former House speaker.
Read more at NYT

Here's a sampling. Now this is radical:



Mitt has to make up for his less than stellar conservative history:

Private Equity Profits on Government Subsidies

The real reason that we should be concerned about private equity’s expanding power lies in the way these firms have become increasingly adept at using financial gimmicks to line their pockets, deriving enormous wealth not from management or investing skills but, rather, from the way the U.S. tax system works. Indeed, for an industry that’s often held up as an exemplar of free-market capitalism, private equity is surprisingly dependent on government subsidies for its profits. Financial engineering has always been central to leveraged buyouts. In a typical deal, a private-equity firm buys a company, using some of its own money and some borrowed money. It then tries to improve the performance of the acquired company, with an eye toward cashing out by selling it or taking it public. The key to this strategy is debt: the model encourages firms to borrow as much as possible, since, just as with a mortgage, the less money you put down, the bigger your potential return on investment. The rewards can be extraordinary: when Romney was at Bain, it supposedly earned eighty-eight per cent a year for its investors. But piles of debt also increase the risk that companies will go bust.

Read more at New Yorker

SuperPacs Do the Dirty Work

Obama's Weekly Address Jan. 28

Obama takes aim at Utah Sen. Mike Lee, who said he'd block judges and public service employees if Obama appointed Richard Cordray head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Obama's Speech to House Democrats Issues Conference

Obama's Schedule Jan. 28

7:15 PM
Obama delivers remarks at the 99th annual Alfalfa Club Dinner in Washington. Michelle Obama attends.

What the heck is the Alfalfa Club? 

Romney on the Blind Trust Then and Now

In 1994, he called it a ruse:



Last night it was his excuse for investing in Freddie and Fannie.

Newt Too Good to be True

Newt sparked and stalled, sparked and now he's stalling again, thanks to Romney's backers, who aren't excited to have Newt as the nominee. But Newt has his own backers, namely casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, who mostly cares about Israel. Forget about bridges to the Muslim world if Newt ever became president. Newt is a kept man. Adelson, who contributed at least $10 million to Newt through a superpac, wants to buy the presidency. Adelson once said he owned the sidewalk outside of his Venetian casino (he lost that battle in court) because he wanted to keep union protesters off the sidewalk. Talk about maniacal.
In reality,  there's not much difference between Newt & Mitt. Newt enriched himself by milking our government as a "historian" and Mitt enriched himself by milking our tax system. Two out of touch rich guys.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Must see video about Adelson:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Obama Gets a Social Visit From HW Bush and Jeb Bush

The AP says it was a social call. H.W. Bush says it was a "good meeting, good meeting" with Obama.

Obama Campaign Returning Lobbyist Donations

President Barack Obama's re-election campaign is refunding the donations of five registered federal lobbyists who gave to the committee last year, OpenSecrets Blog has learned. Some of these refunds were triggered after OpenSecrets Blog brought the contributions to the campaign's attention.

The Obama campaign has pledged to refuse contributions from lobbyists, continuing a policy it set during the 2008 campaign.
Open Secrets ...... 

Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt told OpenSecrets Blog that refunds would be issued to all individuals who were registered lobbyists. "When we catch [a contribution] from a federal lobbyist that slips through the cracks, we immediately return the contribution," LaBolt said. "Unlike our opponents, our campaign does not accept contributions from Washington lobbyists."

West Wing Week Jan. 27

Instagram Founder on Sitting in the First Lady's Box

See who else sat with FLOTUS during the State of the Union here.

Rubio Trying to Change GOP Anti-Immigrant Mindset

Note the light applause after he says "we must admit we've used rhetoric that is harsh... sometimes we've been too slow in condemning that language for what it is." He says the left is using immigration for pure politics, which is so far from the truth. The truth is democrats actually care about people. The GOP's constituents is business and only business. Traditionally, republicans haven't been in favor of immigration reform because business enjoys the cheap labor.
But good luck to Marco Rubio. I commend him.

The Essay Obama Loved

The essay by Bob Kagan begins:

Is the United States in decline, as so many seem to believe these days? Or are Americans in danger of committing pre-emptive superpower suicide out of a misplaced fear of their own declining power? A great deal depends on the answer to these questions. The present world order—characterized by an unprecedented number of democratic nations; a greater global prosperity, even with the current crisis, than the world has ever known; and a long peace among great powers—reflects American principles and preferences, and was built and preserved by American power in all its political, economic, and military dimensions. If American power declines, this world order will decline with it. It will be replaced by some other kind of order, reflecting the desires and the qualities of other world powers. Or perhaps it will simply collapse, as the European world order collapsed in the first half of the twentieth century. The belief, held by many, that even with diminished American power “the underlying foundations of the liberal international order will survive and thrive,” as the political scientist G. John Ikenberry has argued, is a pleasant illusion. American decline, if it is real, will mean a different world for everyone.
Read on 

The Cable says Obama's embrace of the philosophy (something he's always embraced) works against Romney, who argues that Obama is "leading from behind." What Tom Donilon talks about in this video is what Romney and Obama's foes call "leading from behind:"

Obama Speaks on College Affordability in Michigan Jan. 27

Read the White House fact sheet on college affordability. Full video:

Obama's NSA Tom Donilon Speaks on Iran

The next stage for Iran is to pressure Iran's oil profits and their central bank, says Tom Donilon, Obamas National Security Advisor.

Romney Camp Tries the Scare-The-American-People Tactic

John McCain, The Bitter One (I felt the hate oozing through the wire), a Mitt surrogate now, tells NPR that Obama has made the world unsafe and that we may go to war with Iran. Just yesterday, Iran said it was ready for talks. Now, given that it's Iran, that may not mean much. But I much prefer a level-headed cool cucumber approach to foreign policy than the views of a hot-headed man who's still bitter about losing to Obama. It seems to me, the one-president-at-a-time policy ought to apply. These guys shouldn't be talking about war like it's a trip to the candy store:

"History will judge this president incredibly harshly, with disdain and scorn for his failure to come to the moral assistance of the 1.5 million Iranians that were demonstrating in the streets of Tehran," Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., told Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep today. Those demonstrators, McCain said, were "crying out ... literally crying out ... 'Obama, Obama, are you with us?' ... If we had given them some moral support, it might have made some difference." Read or listen at NPR