CSPAN will have a livestream starting at 6:30 p.m. Obama will speak at the dinner, which funds journalism scholarships and feeds the hungry. Michelle Obama will present a scholarship.
Proceeds from the annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner Saturday will help feed the hungry as well as funding journalism scholarships as the group has traditionally done, the press association announced.
In recognition of hard times in the country, the association will skip formal dessert for the 2,700 dinner guests and donate the money saved, $13,140, to the Washington-based charity So Others Might Eat. The association itself will donate an additional $10,000 to SOME, which provides meals, job training and mental health and addiction treatment to the poor.
"We decided to take this unusual route this year to recognize the difficulties that lots of people are facing right now and give back some from the incredible financial success of the dinner," said Jennifer Loven, president of the association and chief White House correspondent for The Associated Press.
Funding for the journalism scholarships will remain $132,000 a year, an expanded level set in 2008. The money will support the education of as many as 16 students who study journalism at Columbia, Northwestern and Howard universities and the universities of Maryland and Missouri. WHCA
Sarah Palin will not be there. But Fox News will be bringing the first dude, Todd Palin. Sarah's dealing with some flooding in Alaska. Two heros-- Sully and Captain Phillips will be there. Wanda Sykes will be the roaster:
Wanda Sykes will soon get the chance to make fun of President Barack Obama to his face. The comic actress said Thursday that she has been selected as the entertainer at the annual White House Correspondents' Association annual dinner in Washington, slated for May 9.
Obama is expected to attend the black-tie affair at the Washington Hilton and to follow in his predecessors' tradition by putting on a comedy act of his own. The guest list of some 2,000 people will likely include the usual mix of Washington elite, White House press corps and Hollywood celebrities.
"The first thing I did when they asked me to do this gig _ I made sure my taxes were paid," quipped Sykes, taking a dig at the withdrawal of former U.S. Sen. Tom Daschle from Obama's cabinet due to unpaid taxes. Sykes, who booked the gig this week, said the idea of performing for such a high-profile crowd is "scary but very exciting." The dinner has tripped up comedians before. Rich Little and Stephen Colbert both provoked criticism of their performances before the crowd. She said it's her job to "poke fun and ridicule," and even a popular figure like Obama isn't off limits. She already has some ideas about what she could mine for laughs. For example, she noted, Obama can be "a little long-winded. So we can get him on that." Sykes, 44, has established a comic identity around her blunt, feisty personality. Last year, the comedian publicly announced she is gay and spoke out against the passage of California's Proposition 8 to ban same-sex marriage. Sykes appears on "The New Adventures of Old Christine," and first made a name on TV with stints on "The Chris Rock Show" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm."
Jennifer Loven of The Associated Press is president of the association and chose Sykes because of her fresh style and engaging stage presence. Sykes expects fumbles in the Obama administration between now and the correspondents' dinner. "I'm not rooting against him at all, because, especially in this economy and everything, we need him to succeed," she says. "But there's gonna be some incidents and missteps, like we saw with the whole tax thing." At the dinner, the association also presents its journalism awards as well as scholarships to aspiring reporters. The White House Correspondents' Association was formed in 1914 as a liaison between the White House press corps and the presidents they cover. Every president since Calvin Coolidge has attended the dinner.
Ob Fo has what's on the menu. Swarms of celebs will be there. Who cares. I'd like to sit with the ABC bunch, maybe the NBC gathering. Who would you want to table up with?
Bloomberg: Alabama Maersk Capt. Richard Phillips and wife Andrea Phillips Houston Chronicle: Alberto Gonzales Fox News: Chace Crawford, Todd Palin, Matthew Modine, Greta Van Susteren, Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, Bret Baier and Chris Wallace. National Music Publishers’ Assn.: Kara DioGuardi Wall Street Journal: Jason Wu BBC: Sir Howard Stringer, Kristi Yamaguchi, Ellen Burstyn, Phil Gordon CNN: Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore, Val Kilmer, Kyra Sedgwick, Brad Cooper, Tyra Banks, Janet Napolitano ABC News: David and Susan Axelrod; Rahm Emanuel, White House Chief of Staff; Peter Orszag, Director, Office of Management and Budget; Valerie Jarrett, senior presidential advisor; Jackie Norris, First Lady’s Chief of Staff; Leon Panetta, CIA Director; Susan Rice, UN Ambassador; Justice Antonin Scalia; Meghan McCain; Jon and Dorothea Bon Jovi; Kate Walsh; Taye Diggs and Idina Menzel NY Daily News: Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger Fortune: George Lucas and Glenn Close People: Sting and Trudie Styler, Miranda Cosgrove, Kevin Bacon, Forest Whitaker, Jon Hamm, Eva Longoria Parker, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Brooke Shields Glamour: Narciso Rodriguez, Alicia Keys, Kenneth Cole, Kerry Washington and White House social secretary Desiree Rogers USA TODAY: Tim Daly, Justin Long, Richard Belzer, Deputy White House Chief of Staff Mona Sutphen, Dept. of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Michelle Obama staffer Jocelyn Frye Atlantic Magazine:Ed Westick (Gossip Girl), Newt Gingrich * Newsweek: Lally Weymouth, Donald Graham and newly Pulitzered Jon Meacham, scored Obama heavyweights again: Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Attorney General Eric Holder. R. Todd Bradley, Executive Vice President, Personal Systems Group, Hewlett Packard; David Brennan, CEO, AstraZeneca; Representative Eric and Diana Cantor (R-VA).; Fmr. Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig; Amb. Jeffrey Feltman, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs; Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner; Amb. Richard Holbrooke, Special Envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan, and Ms. Kati Marton; Attorney General Eric Holder; Representative Steny Hoyer (D-MD); Arianna Huffington, Editor-in-Chief, The Huffington Post; Jeffrey Kindler, Chairman and CEO, Pfizer, Inc., and Ms. Sharon Sullivan; Michael Kives, Creative Artists Agency; Martin Nesbitt, President and CEO, PRG Parking Management; Natalie Portman; Sir Nigel and Lady Julia Sheinwald, Ambassador of the United Kingdom to the US; Puneet Talwar, National Security Council, Iraq and Afghanistan Affairs; Dr. Eric Whitaker, University of Chicago Medical Center; Owen Wilson; James Berkus, United Talent Agency NBC: Colin Firth, Jimmy Fallon and Mariska Hargitay to Mike Myers and William H. Macy. Jason Bateman, Natasha Bedingfeld, Connie Britton, Warren Buffett, Kyle Chandler, John Cusack, Ari Emanuel, Dr. Zeke Emanuel, Colin Firth, Whoopi Goldberg, Mariska Hargitay, Rep. Jane Harmon, Felicity Huffman, Samuel L. Jackson, Jim Jones, Sen. Amy Klobucher, Denis Leary, John Lewis, William H. Macy, Cheryl Mills, Mike Myers, B.J. Novak, Gov. Ed Rendell, Wilbur Ross. Jeff Zucker, Steve Capus and Phil Griffin will attend, along with high-profile talent: Brian Williams, David Gregory, Al Roker, Ann Curry, Natalie Morales, Hoda Kotb, Amy Robach, Andrea Mitchell, Chuck Todd, Savannah Guthrie, Luke Russert, Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, Ed Schultz,Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinkski , Norah O’Donnell, David Shuster, Contessa Brewer, Carlos Watson, Tamron Hall, Jim Cramer, Maria Bartiromo and Erin Burnett. CBS: Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Brad Hall;Mayor Adrian Fenty; Sen. Lindsey Graham; Gov. Jon Corzine, Amb. Hector Timerman; Colin Powell; Stephanie Cutter; Tom Donilon; Arne Duncan; Michele Flournoy; Lisa Jackson; David Jacobson; Katie Johnson;Bob Schieffer; recording artist Brad Paisley
Pirates taken out while the captain "relieves himself."
Update 3:
ABC: With a one of the four pirates who had been holding Capt. Richard Phillips, 53, on a lifeboat negotiating his release on board the U.S.S. Bainbridge, special forces in the area saw Phillips move to the side of the lifeboat to relieve himself, a senior U.S. official told George Stephanopoulos, ABC News' chief Washington correspondent.
At that point, forces saw their opportunity and killed the other three pirates on the lifeboat, the source told Stephanopoulos.
Update 2: from Admiral Bill Gortney: The captain was rescued 12:19 p.m. eastern time. The Maersk crew and Phillips were heroic, he said. The military had the authority to take action if the captain's life was in imminent danger. The order to take action were standing orders that came directly from the president. The pirates aimed their guns at the captain and the the Navy killed the pirates. One of the pirates had jumped off the lifeboat prior to all this and negotiators were working with him. The captain doesn't appear to have made a second attempt to jump off the boat, contrary to earlier reporting by CNN, ABC and others. Gortney is still awaiting more details on that. Why did the Navy have troubles taking down a lifeboat? Gortney says the boat is water tight, designed to be sustainable in rough waters and was difficult to board. It takes a while to work through the negotiation process just to communicate, he said. How did the pirates die? The snipers were aboard the Bainbridge when the pirates were shot. The lifeboat was 25 meters away from the Bainbridge.
What were you negotiating? It was a hostage negotiation. We were seeking to get the safe return of the captain, Gortney said.
Update: John Reinhart, Maersk Line CEO, said everyone--the government, military and the company worked tirelessly to free Richard Phillips. Reinhart talked to Richard who told him: "John, I'm just the byline. The heroes are the Navy, the Seals and those who have brought me home." Reinhart didn't take questions and said the Navy will provide operational details later. Original post: This is great news, especially after all of the naysaying on the morning political shows. I'm so glad the priority was saving the captain.
The U.S. Navy has rescued the American sea captain held by Somali pirates.
A senior U.S. intelligence official said hostage Richard Phillips was not hurt in what appeared to be a swift firefight off the Somali coast on Sunday. Phillips was safely transported to a Navy warship nearby.
The official said three pirates were killed and one was injured. Read more at MSNBC
Obama's statement:
I am very pleased that Captain Phillips has been rescued and is safely on board the USS Boxer. His safety has been our principal concern, and I know this is a welcome relief to his family and his crew.
I am also very proud of the efforts of the U.S. military and many other departments and agencies who worked tirelessly to secure Captain Phillips’s safe recovery.
We remain resolved to halt the rise of piracy in this region. To achieve that goal, we must continue to work with our partners to prevent future attacks, be prepared to interdict acts of piracy and ensure that those who commit acts of piracy are held accountable for their crimes.
I share the country’s admiration for the bravery of Captain Phillips and his selfless concern for his crew. His courage is a model for all Americans.
Manama, BAHRAIN (BNO NEWS) -- At approximately 7:19 p.m (12:19 p.m. EDT) U.S. naval forces rescued Capt. Richard Phillips, the master of Motor Vessel Maersk-Alabama.
"This was an incredible team effort, and I am extremely proud of the tireless efforts of all the men and women who made this rescue possible" said Vice Adm. Bill Gortney, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command. "The actions of Capt. Phillips and the civilian mariners of Maersk-Alabama were heroic. They fought back to regain control of their ship, and Capt. Phillips selflessly put his life in the hands of these armed criminals in order to protect his crew."
Following the rescue, Phillips was initially taken aboard the Norfolk, Va. based guided missile destroyer USS Bainbridge (DDG 96). Phillips was subsequently flown to the San Diego based amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4), where he contacted his family, received a routine medical evaluation, and is resting comfortably.
U.S. military forces have one pirate in custody, three were killed in the rescue.
A Pentagon press briefing with Navy Vice Admiral Bill Gortney, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, is planned for later today. The Admiral will provide additional details regarding the rescue operation from his headquarters in Bahrain via satellite.
Newt Gingrich Twitters that the U.S. shouldn't negotiate with the pirates, as if he knows anything that's going on.
The correct answer to piracy is to destroy it not negotiate with it Seals can retake the lifeboat Track every boat leaving somalia
I believe, Newt, that the Obama administration is trying to save the life of the captain and I'm sure there's a plan underway.
On Thursday, the second day of the incident, the White House portrayed Obama's role as an attentive listener who was getting frequent progress reports — but not getting directly involved in the decision-making of any operations.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs put the focus on an interagency group on maritime safety that includes representatives from the departments of State, Homeland Security, Commerce, Energy, Defense and Transportation, as well as the FBI and the Joint Chiefs of Staff. ..... Since taking office in January, the president has proved willing in many cases to field off-the-cuff questions from reporters at the close of events at the White House, even on matters differing from his focus that day.
But not in this case.
When reporters asked the president directly about the incident on Thursday, he demurred. Instead, he stayed on his message of the day, saying: "Guys, we're talking about housing right now." MSNBC Apparently, the media has contacted the pirates:
