Obama's Schedule March 1

Times are eastern.

10:00 AM
Obama receives the presidential daily briefing.

10:30 AM
Obama departs the White House en route Joint Base Andrews.

10:45 AM
Obama departs Joint Base Andrews en route Nashua, New Hampshire.

12:05 PM
Obama arrives Nashua, New Hampshire.

12:45 PM
Obama tours Nashua Community College.

1:30 PM
Obama delivers remarks at Nashua Community College.

3:00 PM
Obama departs Nashua, New Hampshire en route New York City.

4:00 PM
Obama arrives New York City.

4:55 PM
Obama delivers remarks at a campaign event.

6:05 PM
Obama delivers remarks at a campaign event.

8:20 PM
Obama delivers remarks at a campaign event.

9:25 PM
Obama delivers remarks at a campaign event.

11:10 PM
Obama departs New York City.

Obama: Apology for Koran Burning Was to Save Lives

See the dinner the Obamas hosted for the military and their families tonight here.   

White House Press Briefing Feb. 29

Obamas Host Armed Forces for Dinner at White House

Republicans Report Positive Meeting with Obama

If only we could have more of these rare moments. We don't necessarily need more moderates or centrists in Congress, we just need more people -- liberals and conservatives -- who are willing to put the nation's interests first. We need behavior changes:

Olympia Snowe on Why She's Leaving

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North Korea Agrees to Nuclear Disarmament Talks

What's striking is that they're willing to be cooperative in exchange for food.

North Korea agreed to suspend nuclear weapons tests and uranium enrichment and allow international inspectors to monitor activities at its main nuclear complex, the North’s official news agency and the State Department announced on Wednesday. The promises could end years of a standoff that has allowed the North’s nuclear program to continue with no international oversight and are part of a deal that included an American pledge to ship food aid to the isolated, impoverished nation.

Although the Obama administration called the steps “important, if limited,” they signaled a potential breakthrough in the impasse over North Korea’s nuclear weapons program following the death late last year of the country’s leader, Kim Jong-il. He has since been replaced by a son, Kim Jong-un, and administration officials have been watching closely to see if his rise to power would alter the country’s behavior. NYT

Romney's Obama "Kill Romney" Strategy Ad

The only thing this ad does is assume that Americans are very under educated. This ad is insulting to anyone.

Obama's Schedule Feb. 29

Times are eastern.

10:30 AM	The Vice President meets with the National Guard Adjutants General Eisenhower Executive Office Building
11:00 AM	The President and the Vice President receive the Presidential Daily Briefing Oval Office Closed Press
12:00 PM	The President and the Vice President meet for lunch with Congressional Leadership Private Dining Room Closed Press
1:30 PM	Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney  Live stream
8:20 PM	The President and the First Lady host a dinner in honor of the Armed Forces who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn and their families; the Vice President and Dr. Biden also attend East Room Pooled Press

Franklin Graham Apologizes for Questioning Obama's Faith

Questioning Obama's status as an American or as a Christian just isn't going to fly in 2012. Enough is enough.

Evangelist Franklin Graham apologized Tuesday (Feb. 28) to President Obama for questioning his Christian faith and said religion has “nothing to do” with Graham’s decision not to support Obama’s re-election. Graham’s apology came after a group of prominent black religious leaders criticized the evangelist for saying he did not know whether Obama is a Christian and suggesting that Islamic law considers him to be a Muslim. WaPo

Fed Nabs Doctors Who Bilked $375 Million from Medicare and Medicaid

A bunch of doctors making themselves wealthy at the expense of the rest of us were nabbed for allegedly bilking $375 million from Medicare and Medicaid. One of the doctors apparently was a tea party member from Texas, naturally. It's quite patriotic to rip off your fellow Americans, didn't you hear?

Going: Olympia Snowe One of the Last Moderates

Sen. Olympia Snowe, one of the last moderate republicans left in the GOP, won't run for re-election, thanks to the ideology of our politics. Healthcare legislation wouldn't have passed without the help of Snowe and her Maine counterpart, Susan Collins (she didn't vote for the final bill but she and Collins were the only 2 republicans to participate at all). Many liberals didn't like her because she was against the public option. Ideology. Bad.

"I am well prepared for the electoral battle, so that is not the issue," said Senator Snowe, who won her last race with 74 percent of the vote. “However, what I have had to consider is how productive an additional term would be.” “Unfortunately, I do not realistically expect the partisanship of recent years in the Senate to change over the short term,” she added. CSM

 Obama's statement:

For almost three decades, Olympia Snowe has served the people of the great state of Maine. Elected to the state House in 1973, Olympia went on to be the first woman in American history to serve in both houses of a state legislature and both houses of Congress. From her unwavering support for our troops, to her efforts to reform Wall Street, to fighting for Maine's small businesses, Senator Snowe’s career demonstrates how much can be accomplished when leaders from both parties come together to do the right thing for the American people. Michelle and I join Mainers in thanking Senator Snowe for her service, and we wish her and her family all the best in the future.

White House Press Briefing Feb. 28

At the top, Jay Carney calls out republicans for politicizing gas prices. You'd think republicans would know better, given they consider themselves the economic and business experts, and gas prices are dependent on global happenings. I guess they're just counting on republican voters being ignorant.

Obama Speaks at UAW Conference

Obama highlights Romney's folly -- Let Detroit Go Bankrupt -- at the UAW conference in Washington D.C.  Full video:

Obama's Schedule Feb. 28

Times are eastern.


10:30 AM
Obama and Biden receive the daily briefing.

11:00 AM
Biden meets with representatives of the Council of Religious Institutions of the Holy Land.

11:30 AM
Obama delivers remarks at the United Auto Workers conference at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park. LIVE STREAM

12:30 PM
White House press briefing

12:45 PM
Obama and Biden meet for lunch in the private dining room.

4:30 PM
Obama and Biden meet with Panetta in the Oval Office.

White House Press Briefing Feb. 27

A lot of focus today on Afghanistan.

Keb Mo's America The Beautiful

Michelle Obama and Jill Biden Speak to Nation's Governors

Obama Speaks to Nation's Governors Feb. 27

The national media says Obama is jabbing Santorum on education, but Obama always talks about education. He talked about education at last year's governors association meeting. Obama's likely laughing at Santorum, not jabbing. Full video. Biden is up first:

Obama's Schedule Feb. 27

Times are eastern.

9:30 AM	The President and the Vice President receive the Presidential Daily Briefing Oval Office Closed Press
10:00 AM	The President meets with senior advisors Oval Office Closed Press
11:20 AM	The President and the Vice President deliver remarks to the National Governors Association; the First Lady and Dr. Biden also deliver remarks LIVE STREAM State Dining Room Pooled Press
3:15 PM	The President and the Vice President meet with Secretary Geithner Oval Office Closed Press
4:30 PM	The President attends a campaign event The Jefferson Hotel Closed Press

Obama Toasts Nation's Governors at 2012 Dinner

Update Feb. 27: Obama's speech to the governors is here.

Lameness of Romney Helped Spark Wackadoodle Primary

That Mitt Romney finds himself so imperiled by Rick Santorum—Rick Santorum!—is just the latest in a series of jaw-dropping developments in what has been the most volatile, unpredictable, and just plain wackadoodle Republican-nomination contest ever. Part of the explanation lies in Romney’s lameness as a candidate, in Santorum’s strength, and in the sudden efflorescence of social issues in what was supposed to be an all-economy-all-the-time affair. But even more important have been the seismic changes within the Republican Party. “Compared to 2008, all the candidates are way to the right of John McCain,” says longtime conservative activist Jeff Bell. “The fact that Romney is running with basically the same views as then but is seen as too moderate tells you that the base has moved rightward and doesn’t simply want a conservative candidate—it wants a very conservative one.” 

The transfiguration of the GOP isn’t only about ideology, however. It is also about demography and temperament, as the party has grown whiter, less well schooled, more blue-collar, and more hair-curlingly populist. The result has been a party divided along the lines of culture and class: Establishment versus grassroots, secular versus religious, upscale versus downscale, highfalutin versus hoi polloi. And with those divisions have arisen the competing electoral coalitions—shirts versus skins, regulars versus red-hots—represented by Romney and Santorum, which are now increasingly likely to duke it out all spring. Read more at New York mag

Santorum Doesn't Believe in Separation of Church and State

Santorum is a theologian. His religion means everything to him. His intolerance of others who aren't like him is a disease. Santorum said JFK's speech on religion almost made him throw up. If we had a Muslim president, I'd bet Santorum would be singing a different tune, given his prejudices. Most Americans believe in the separation of church and state.
Santorum also says he was penalized in college for his conservative views.

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum on Sunday said the Founding Fathers did not intend for an absolute separation of church and state, and he defended a statement he made last fall that after reading John F. Kennedy’s now-famous 1960 speech on religion, he “almost threw up.” He explained on ABC’s This Week that he almost vomited “because the first line, first substantive line in the speech says, ‘I believe in America where the separation of church and state is absolute.’ I don’t believe in an America where the separation of church and state is absolute. The idea that the church can have no influence or no involvement in the operation of the state is absolutely antithetical to the objectives and vision of our country.” NJ

Jan Brewer and Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown also were on Meet the Press today. Brewer was batty as usual. She's endorsing Romney, as if it matters.
Santorum also slammed Obama for apologizing for the Koran burning at the U.S. air base in Afghanistan, to which I wonder where is the morality in that?
And for all the criticism Santorum is getting for saying politics is a team sport, for me, that was the only grown up thing he's said.

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And finally, Robert Gibbs:

Clinton Answers Question on Anti Muslim Rhetoric

The world is always watching, looking to the U.S.
It's embarrassing the world has to see our shameful republican presidential candidates race to the bottom. That's not rhetoric. That's a fact.
Hillary Clinton, traveling in Tunisia, responded to a question from a student concerned about the rhetoric in this country against Muslims:

Clinton was responding to a question from a Tunisian student named Ivan, who asked about the staunch pro-Israel stance nearly every American politician, both Republican and Democrat, espouse when they're running for office. Clinton, a former presidential candidate herself, said campaign trail stumping often gains outsize significance that doesn't actualize when governing. "You will learn as your democracy develops that a lot of things are said in political campaigns that should not bear a lot of attention," Clinton said. "There are comments made that certainly don't reflect the United States, don't reflect our foreign policy, Don't reflect who we are as a people. If you go to the United States you see mosques everywhere, you see Muslim Americans everywhere. That's the fact. So I would no pay attention to the rhetoric." ... Clinton said political observers from abroad should take cues about American policy from Obama, not from the presidential candidates.

CNN

In answering the question, Hillary says: "Probably my enthusiasm for the president got a little out of hand:"

Hillary Clinton Blasts China and Russia on Syria

Hillary Clinton made impassioned remarks regarding China and Russia not backing the rest of the world in taking action against Syria.

Sheldon Adelson's Play Money Going to Newt

Sheldon Adelson, the casino mogul who blew up the Sands (that's the way I'll always know him), Israel's bestie and staunch anti-union employer (he once tried to say he owned the sidewalks in front of his hotel, so he could prevent unions from picketing), may give Newt $100 million more. Imagine the wonders $100 million could do outside of politics.

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Gas Prices Could Hit $5

Eight reasons why.
There is one upside to high gas prices -- incentive to develop alternative forms of energy.

Santorum: What a Snob Obama is

First Obama wants to indoctrinate kids against religion by sending them to college, and now he's a snob because he wants kids to have the opportunity to go to college. Obama has never said everyone should go to college. He's only said that everyone should have the opportunity to go college.
Republicans appear to have grown increasingly education phobic, afraid that it will make people less religious. That doesn't say much for religion, does it? If a little learning shuts down religion, then maybe religion isn't so great.
I'll point to Francis Collins, chosen by Obama to head the National Institutes of Health. Collins is a scientist, and yet he's a believer. Santorum's fear that education makes people less religious doesn't stand.
Santorum says "I understand why he wants you to go to college. He wants to remake you in his image," which seems to suggest that Santorum believes Obama is the anti-Christ. Don't be surprised, 24% of republicans believe that.
If I believed in Satan like Santorum, I'd say he's been spending a little too much time tuned into Satan's frequency. Santorum is a man filled with fear, not the kind of person you want at the helm.
Anyone who wants information on Obama's education initiatives or speeches can find it here.

Obama's Weekly Address Feb. 25

White House Press Briefing Feb. 24

Obama Meets with Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt of Denmark

Obama also discusses Syria.
Fact sheet from the White House:

President Obama hosted Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt for a meeting in the Oval Office on February 24.  Denmark has the distinction of being the only Nordic country that is a member of both NATO and the European Union (EU), making it an especially valuable partner of the United States in a wide variety of endeavors in Europe and around the world.  Denmark currently holds the rotating EU Presidency until the end of June.

Defense and Security Cooperation:  As NATO allies, the United States and Denmark are committed to each other’s security and stand together in critical crisis areas worldwide.

Libya:  Denmark was among the first and most active participants in the UN-authorized NATO military intervention to protect Libyan civilians.  It deployed F-16s during the entire seven-month civilian protection mission.
Afghanistan:  Denmark is a key contributor to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), currently providing 650 combat troops operating without national caveats in one of the most challenging areas of the country.   Denmark will continue to play a strong role in Helmand Province providing military forces through 2014 and other training and development assets beyond that date.  Since 2002, it has given approximately $530 million in bilateral development assistance to Afghanistan.
NATO Capabilities:  Denmark is one of NATO’s most capable allies.  The United States welcomes its interest in leading the Smart Defense initiative to purchase jointly and stockpile munitions, which will cut costs and improve efficiency.
Bilateral Defense Cooperation:  The United States and Danish militaries enjoy a very high level of interoperability; many Danish officers, including all its pilots, have trained in the United States.
Missile Defense:  The United States and Denmark cooperate actively in implementing the European Phased Adaptive Approach.  The Kingdom of Denmark is home to U.S. early-warning radar at Thule Air Base in Greenland and hosted the 2011 multinational missile-defense conference, where NATO focused on strengthening cooperation to protect our populations and territory from ballistic missiles.
Counter-Piracy:  Denmark is one of the world’s main seafaring nations (some 10 percent of global shipping moves in Danish-owned or –operated ships), and as such, is a leader in international efforts to counter piracy off the coast of Somalia, chairing an international working group on legal issues and twice commanding an international naval task force.  Denmark has made significant contributions, including maritime patrol aircraft, to the NATO-led counter-piracy operation.
Security and Capacity-Building Cooperation Against Terrorism:  Denmark is one of the United States’ strongest and most dynamic counterterrorism partners.  Denmark is a member of the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF), a major multilateral initiative to strengthen the international architecture to deal with 21st century terrorism.  Denmark is particularly active in the Forum’s work in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa.
Nuclear Security Summit:  The United States and Denmark will participate in the March 26-27 Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul.  Both countries support efforts to lock down vulnerable nuclear material and acknowledge the important actions of the IAEA and multilateral initiatives such as the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism to reduce the threat of nuclear terrorism.
Law Enforcement:  U.S. and Danish authorities enjoy excellent cooperation encompassing a wide range of law-enforcement issues, including cyber, drug, fraud, fugitive, gang-violence, and online child-predator matters. Read the rest

Obama Swore in on Lincoln Bible at Inauguration

It's happening again, just like 2008. The mindless masses are saying Obama swore in on a Koran. For some people, Obama never became president and 24% of republicans believe he's the antichrist. People are so ridiculously ignorant it's infuriating. Let's get smart, people, about things that matter, instead of acting like imbeciles. I suspect this is coming up again due to Obama apologizing for the burning of the Koran at a U.S. military base. People have to stop and think. What if it were the reverse-- the Bible was burned en masse? So much for religious morality.

Santorum: Obama Wants Kids in College to Indoctrinate Them

I'm thinking that Satan is speaking to Santorum and he just hasn't figured it out yet. He thinks he's got the good guy talking in his ear. So does his wife.
Presidential candidates shouldn't be appearing on the Glenn Beck show. It's improper. That should be a given. Beck is filled with so much rage and hatred.
Also, I feel the need to stick up for atheists. People who don't believe in a supernatural being aren't less moral. For some people, religion is a pathway to morality. Santorum is absolutely wrong in insisting that one needs a god to be moral. Just look at world affairs and think about how much war is waged in the name of someone's particular religion. Fact is, if Santorum was born in Saudi Arabia or Iran, he'd most likely be a Muslim. Religion is a consequence of culture and birthplace.

DALLAS, Texas – Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Thursday that President Obama wants more young adults to go to college so they can undergo “indoctrination” to a secular world view.

In an hour-long interview with conservative television host Glenn Beck, Santorum also defended his record on abortion and his vote in favor of President George W. Bush’s No Child Left Behind education law.

On the president’s efforts to boost college attendance, Santorum said, “I understand why Barack Obama wants to send every kid to college, because of their indoctrination mills, absolutely … The indoctrination that is going on at the university level is a harm to our country.”

He claimed that “62 percent of kids who go into college with a faith commitment leave without it,” but declined to cite a source for the figure. And he floated the idea of requiring that universities that receive public funds have “intellectual diversity” on campus. Read on at the NJ

Romney Held a Speech in an Empty Field in Michigan

I sincerely hope he didn't think he could actually fill the 65,000-seat Ford Field stadium in Michigan. Wasn't another location available? Once again, Mitt told everyone how much he loved trees and cars and Michigan.

Who is telling Mitt that he should keep saying that he loves the trees of Michigan?

West Wing Week Feb. 24

Obama's Schedule Feb. 24

Times are eastern.

12:20 AM	The President arrives Joint Base Andrews Travel Pool Coverage
12:25 AM	The President arrives the White House South Lawn Open Press
10:00 AM	The President receives the Presidential Daily Briefing Oval Office Closed Press
11:15 AM	The President attends the Democratic Governors' Association Meeting Eisenhower Executive Office Building Closed Press
3:00 PM	The President holds a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt of Denmark Oval Office