White House Movie Night: Nuclear Tipping Point

Tonight is movie night at the White House, featuring "Nuclear Tipping Point," Sam Nunn's production. Nunn is a former Georgia Senator who was once named as a possible vp candidate for Obama. He is currently chief executive of the Nuclear Threat Initiative. The movie is available for free here.

Obama and Nunn have worked together on shoring up loose nukes. Who all is going? Here is the movie trailer:

Sam Nunn's Effort to Shore Up Loose Nukes-New Movie

Sam Nunn's new FREE documentary: Watch Nuclear Tipping Point here. Obama has been working on shoring up loose nukes even before he was president. Nunn also explains what it takes to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell.

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Here is the movie trailer:

Netanyahu: We All Want to See a Free Iran

It's interesting to watch the ways David Gregory tries to get Netanyahu to criticize Obama.

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Full episode of Meet the Press June 21:

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Obama Meets With Brain Trust On Nukes

Mr. Obama set forth his vision for a world without nuclear weapons during a speech last month in Prague. On Tuesday, he followed up with a high-powered meeting in the Oval Office with four men who, he said, inspired his policy: Republicans George Shultz and Henry Kissinger, both former secretaries of state; and Democrats Sam Nunn, the former senator, and William Perry, a former defense secretary. The four have offered a plan for reducing the world’s nuclear stockpiles, and Mr. Obama has endorsed it.

“I don’t think anybody would accuse these four gentlemen of being dreamers,’’ Mr. Obama told reporters after the meeting. “They’re hard-headed, tough defenders of American interests and American security. But what they have come together to help galvanize is a recognition that we do not want a world of continued nuclear proliferation, and that in order for us to meet the security challenges of the future, America has to take leadership in this area.’’ Read more at NYT

Obama Speaks Wants Auto Czar

Some of the bites from Politico's playbook:

Yesterday, he talked to Pope Benedict. From the transition last night: 'Throughout the day today, President-elect Obama returned phone calls to world leaders and expressed his appreciation for their congratulations on his election. Today, President-elect Obama spoke with the following leaders: President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil; His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI; Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India; His Majesty King Abdullah of Jordan; President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya.

Obama wants an auto czar:

Politico's Carrie Budoff: 'President-elect Barack Obama wants a high-profile point person to oversee reforms in the ailing auto industry, according to members of Obama's transition team. ... The person would assist in efforts to create an 'economically viable auto industry,' a transition aide said – a move that could alleviate concerns about protecting taxpayer interests if more money is directed to assist automakers.'

Obama hires Sam Nunn for transition help:

The transition issues an unusual formal statement rebutting this AP story: 'President-elect Obama has hired former Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Sam Nunn to help shepherd his Pentagon transition, a spokeswoman said Tuesday. ... Similarly, a senior administration official said former Secretary of State Warren Christopher would advise Obama on his State Department transition.' Originally, the story had said the two would 'head his transition teams at the Pentagon and State Department.'

The statement from Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Spokesperson Stephanie Cutter: 'Senator Sam Nunn will play an informal senior advisor role throughout the defense transition process. His expertise and the respect he has earned will be invaluable to ensure a smooth transition. Secretary Christopher is deeply respected in the United States and throughout the international community. However, he is not playing a role in the transition process. There's a lot of disinformation out there. We're working hard to put the agency review teams together and expect they'll be announced this week and inside the agencies by the end of the week.'

In case you care, secret service names, which aren't very secret but are fun:

President-elect Obama: Renegade
Michelle Obama: Renaissance
Malia Obama: Radiance
Sasha Obama: Rosebud
Vice President-elect Joe Biden: Celtic
Jill Biden: Capri

Malia and Sasha on Hannah Montana? The Obama team says it hasn't received an invitation.

N.Y. Daily News cover – 'HANNAH OBAMA! Miley Cyrus wants First Kids on show': 'President-elect Barack Obama's girls have been invited to appear on the Disney Channel's mega-hit 'Hannah Montana' ...'We're pleased that Malia and Sasha are fans and, as long as their parents say it's okay, they are invited to the set of 'Hannah Montana,' and all Disney Channel shows, for a guest role or a visit, anytime,' the cable network said in a statement. The president-elect's staffers told the Daily News no decisions have been made.'

Lugar: One of Obama's Republican Pals

Republicans spend so much time smearing Obama for people who have nothing to do with his campaign. Here's an example of someone who Obama really palls around with.

MSNBC: Dick Lugar may not be a household name, but he's well known within international security circles. And he's famous to world leaders who are trying to protect their countries from nuclear attack.

In 1991, Lugar teamed up with Sam Nunn, then a Democratic senator, to create a program aimed at securing and dismantling the nuclear, chemical and biological weapons inside the former Soviet Union.

And it was a success. The Nunn-Lugar Act facilitated the destruction of more than 700 intercontinental ballistic missiles and the deactivation of some 7,000 nuclear warheads.

Obama would later find a way to link his name to this legislation — connecting himself to its authors’ global security efforts.

Fighting loose nukes together
As a candidate for U.S. Senate in 2004, Obama frequently spoke of the need to keep “loose nukes” out the hands of terrorists and rogue nations. He often cited the accomplishments of the Nunn-Lugar Act. And that caught the Indiana senator’s attention.

The day after Obama was elected to the Senate, Lugar wrote him a letter. At the time, he was the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and advised Obama to ask the Democratic leadership for a spot on panel.

Obama's other pals: Austan Goolsbee. Chuck Hagel and Jack Reed. Here's a whole slew of Obama's advisers. Here are Obama's top economic advisers.
Meanwhile, McCain's advisers are peeps like this.

Nunn Not Obama's Vice President

CNN: It appears Sam Nunn, the former Georgia senator and a leading Democratic expert on foreign policy issues, can safely be crossed off the list of Barack Obama's potential running mates.

Nunn spokeswoman Kathy Gwin confirms to CNN the former senator will be out of the country through Monday — far from Springfield, Illinois, where Obama is expected to hold a rally with his newly-named VP Saturday.

Bush and Clinton's Failed Russia Policy

Thomas Friedman weighs in on the Russia Georgia conflict. In summary: Bush and Clinton foreign policy both failed in Russian relations. But now, U.S. must support Georgia, he says.

NYT: If the conflict in Georgia were an Olympic event, the gold medal for brutish stupidity would go to the Russian prime minister, Vladimir Putin. The silver medal for bone-headed recklessness would go to Georgia’s president, Mikheil Saakashvili, and the bronze medal for rank short-sightedness would go to the Clinton and Bush foreign policy teams.

Let’s start with us. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, I was among the group — led by George Kennan, the father of “containment” theory, Senator Sam Nunn and the foreign policy expert Michael Mandelbaum — that argued against expanding NATO, at that time.

It seemed to us that since we had finally brought down Soviet communism and seen the birth of democracy in Russia the most important thing to do was to help Russian democracy take root and integrate Russia into Europe. Wasn’t that why we fought the cold war — to give young Russians the same chance at freedom and integration with the West as young Czechs, Georgians and Poles? Wasn’t consolidating a democratic Russia more important than bringing the Czech Navy into NATO?

All of this was especially true because, we argued, there was no big problem on the world stage that we could effectively address without Russia — particularly Iran or Iraq. Russia wasn’t about to reinvade Europe. And the Eastern Europeans would be integrated into the West via membership in the European Union.

No, said the Clinton foreign policy team, we’re going to cram NATO expansion down the Russians’ throats, because Moscow is weak and, by the way, they’ll get used to it. Message to Russians: We expect you to behave like Western democrats, but we’re going to treat you like you’re still the Soviet Union. The cold war is over for you, but not for us. Read More

Obama in Reno Aug. 17

Obama in Reno live here. If that link doesn't work, try here. 

Tomorrow, Obama will be at Saddleback Church in California talking about character and values with Pastor Rick Warren. Sunday, he's expected to be in Reno, Nevada. No other details yet.

Maybe a good time to announce Sam Nunn, loose nukes tamer, as his vice president? Nevada, Yucca Mountain. Nevada, battleground state. I'm just guessing like everyone else. It's gotten to be kind of fun. I've got my phone at the ready for the text message.

Sam Nunn Obama Vice President?

Update 8-21: Looks like Nope.
Former Georgia senator Sam Nunn is nearly as old as McCain but is well spoken and has more wits about him. Though, he has been caught referring to Czechoslovakia, like McCain.

Nunn contemplated his own run for the White House in 2007.

I have been leaning toward Tim Kaine but Nunn has been quietly in the background, unassuming and seems to know his stuff. He's got loads of experience.

Nunn is one of the few democrats who isn't slated to speak -- yet -- at the convention, leading one to believe he could be Obama's vice president. Tim Kaine and Jack Reed haven't been slated either.
Evan Bayh and Joe Biden have been announced as speakers.
Here's what Nunn had to say about Obama in April.

AJC: Based on my conversations with Senator Obama, reading his book and his speeches and seeing the kind of campaign he has run, I believe that he is our best choice to lead our nation. Senator Obama, as evidenced by his words and his deeds, recognizes that:

— We have developed a habit of avoiding the tough decisions and seemingly lost our ability to build consensus to tackle head-on our biggest challenges.

— Demonizing the opposition, oversimplifying the issues, and dumbing down the political debate prevent our country from coming together to make tough decisions and tackle our biggest challenges.

— Solving America’s problems will require difficult choices and sacrifices and leaders capable of considering new ideas from both political parties.

— On foreign policy and security policy, we must recognize that we are not limited to a choice between belligerency and isolation and that we must listen to lead successfully on the key issues facing America and the world.

— Our next president must also recognize that the battle against violent terrorists, while requiring a prudent use of military power, is also a long-term contest of psychology and ideas.

Nunn has been working to shore up loose nuclear weapons, an asset for sure.

The case for Nunn

Newsweek: The main reason Nunn has a chance is that Obama has told his advisers that he won't choose anyone who lacks the stature to be perceived immediately as a plausible president. This makes any short list much shorter. Kathleen Sebelius and Ted Strickland, for instance, are good governors but they just aren't going to make that cut; Nunn's foreign policy experience, unquestioned intelligence, and big thinking assure that he does.

In Nunn's case, out of the Senate doesn't mean out of the action. His record in the 12 years since he left is impressive. Nunn and Sen. Richard Lugar have, with little public attention, managed to reduce the greatest security threat in the world—loose nuclear weapons in the former Soviet Union. The Nunn-Lugar initiative has been a huge success and a Nobel Prize is a distinct possibility.

Some of Nunn's critics come from the gay and lesbian community.

Obama Testing Vice President Chemistry

Sam Nunn and Evan Bayh (Bayh supported Hillary in a big way) will join Obama on the campaign trail. Anyone but Ed Rendell. I hear his name a lot but after seeing him lie for Hillary during the primaries, he seems as old school as it gets. Here's another tidbit, if California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is going to be the environment and energy czar, what happens to Al Gore? Vice president?

CNN: The Illinois senator is set to be joined on the trail by Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh and former Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn — two Democrats widely believed to be on the shortlist for the vice presidential spot.

The two are set to join Obama at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana for a discussion on national security issues — a forum that is designed to set to stage for the Democratic president candidate's overseas trip next week.

Specifically, the three are set to discuss nuclear non-proliferation, bioterrorism, cyber security and emerging national security threats.

Bayh, who comes from a powerful Indiana family and once served as governor of the state, remains a very popular figure there. His aggressive campaigning on behalf of Hillary Clinton during the state's Democratic primary is widely seen as a chief factor for the New York senator's narrow victory there. He briefly flirted with his own presidential bid late last year but ultimately ruled against it.

Nunn remains one of the most respected national security and foreign policy experts on the national scene. The former senator has a serious, no-nonsense demeanor that would add instant gravitas to the ticket, and he is a popular figure in Georgia — a state the Obama campaign hopes to make competitive this cycle.

Edwards and Nunn On Obama's VP List

CNN: There's new information about the hunt for a running mate for Barack Obama.

A member of the Congressional Black Caucus who's met with Obama's vice-presidential screening team says she offered the names of former senators John Edwards and Sam Nunn — and was told they're on the list. Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick of Michigan says when she mentioned that Al Gore is her favorite, the two members of Obama's team smiled.

Kilpatrick wouldn't say which names Obama's team brought up.

Maybe Al Gore.....

RCP: "We've been brainstorming in the Congressional Black Caucus. Former Senator Sam Nunn's name has come up, as well as John Edwards' name has come up among our CBC members. I reported that to them and they had both of those names on their list," Kilpatrick said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Kilpatrick said she made several suggestions during the 45-minute meeting, including former Vice President Al Gore, Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha and Ohio Governor Ted Strickland. Gore endorsed Obama on Monday.

"I asked them what type of person the senator is looking for? And they said in general someone who could help him rebuild the country ... talking about change. How we reinvest in America, get people back to work and reinforce our education system and bring the jobs back," she said.

She declined to say which names were put forth by Kennedy and Holder. The prominent Democratic attorneys have been meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to receive feedback on Obama's potential running mate. Obama has said he won't discuss the process until he's made his choice.

When Kilpatrick said Gore was her personal choice, "they had a smile on their face. They have a list of candidates. I think I may have been the first to do that. They didn't say one way or the other."

But she wasn't the only one to mention Gore.

Carter: There Will Be no Vice President Hillary

obama doesn't need the candidate who can attract the "hard working white americans." it's not going to happen, people.

cnn: Speaking during a question and answer session at an event in Houston Tuesday night, Carter said, in his view, it's not impossible the two could pair up for the general election. But the former president said Obama will most likely search for a different vice presidential candidate.

"I think it would be highly unlikely for Obama to ask her to take it," Carter said. "Because I don't see how it would help his ticket. I think he needs somebody like a [former Georgia Sen.] Sam Nunn, but I won't name others.”

"But I think if he asked her, she would take it," Carter added.

The former president also reiterated that he does not have direct contact with either campaign and is not privy to the VP deliberations.

The Meaning Of Sam Nunn and David Boren For Obama

it means that obama will be the nominee because nunn and boren have sway, so says this wsj article, so to all you prospective $5 donors to the hillary campaign, save your money:

I believe the cement set around the Clinton coffin last Friday. The Obama campaign announced it had received the support of former Sens. Sam Nunn of Georgia and David Boren of Oklahoma.
Both are what some of us nostalgically call Serious Democrats. They represent what the party was, but is no more: sensible on national security, spending and middle-class values. Obama receiving their imprimatur is like hands reaching out from the graves of FDR, JFK and LBJ to announce: "Enough is enough. This man is your nominee. Go forth and fight with the Republicans." Make no mistake: Superdelegates with sway took notice.

Former Sen. Nunn is sometimes mentioned as a possible running mate for Sen. Obama. In a better world, Sam Nunn (or a David Boren) would have been the party's candidate for president. Such candidacies remain impossible under the iron law of Democratic primary politics: No centrist can secure the party's nomination in a primary system dominated by left-liberal activists. The iron law produces candidacies such as McGovern (1972), Mondale ('84), Dukakis ('88), Gore ('00) or Kerry ('04), who pay so many left-liberal obeisances to win in the primaries that they cannot attract sufficient moderates at the margins to win the general election.

Bill Clinton, who broke that law twice, knows all this. His 1996 triangulation campaign dangled welfare reform and spending restraint. It worked.

Obama's New Advisers

barackobama: Former Senators Sam Nunn and David L. Boren endorsed Barack Obama for president, citing his judgment and vision to be Commander and Chief and his ability to strengthen our national security.

Nunn and Boren have accepted Senator Obama’s invitation to serve as advisers to his National Security Foreign Policy Team. Senator Nunn served for 25 years (1972-1997) in the United States Senate and was Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee from 1987 through 1995. Senator Boren served in the United States Senate from 1979 to 1994 and is the longest-serving Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Between them, the two senators bring nearly 60 years of service and experience in elective office.

Former Senator Sam Nunn said, “America remains the strongest nation in the world, but we can only be successful in tackling our toughest problems if we gain cooperation at home and abroad. Our next president – working across party and economic lines – must restore and strengthen our national purpose, our credibility, our competence and our spirit.

“We need a president who has the temperament of a leader – a sharp, incisive, strategic mind, a rare capacity for self criticism, and a willingness to hear contrary points of view.

“Based on my conversations with Senator Obama, reading his book and his speeches and seeing the kind of campaign he has run, I believe that he is our best choice to lead our nation. Senator Obama, as evidenced by his words and his deeds, recognizes that:

· We have developed a habit of avoiding the tough decisions and seemingly lost our ability to build consensus to tackle head-on our biggest challenges.

· Demonizing the opposition, oversimplifying the issues, and dumbing down the political debate prevent our country from coming together to make tough decisions and tackle our biggest challenges.

Solving America’s problems will require difficult choices and sacrifices and leaders capable of considering new ideas from both political parties.

On foreign policy and security policy, we must recognize that we are not limited to a choice between belligerency and isolation and that we must listen to lead successfully on the key issues facing America and the world.

Our next president must also recognize that the battle against violent terrorists, while requiring a prudent use of military power, is also a long-term contest of psychology and ideas.


“I believe that Senator Obama has a rare ability to restore America’s credibility and moral authority and to get others to join us in tackling serious global problems that will determine our own well being and security. I believe that he will bring to the White House, high principles, clear vision and sound judgment. I believe that he will inspire people to put aside extreme partisanship for the common good. I believe that he will awaken the energy and idealism of people who have never been active in public affairs, particularly our young people. I believe that he will also attract skilled, experienced and energetic people to government and will have the sound judgment to put together an outstanding governing team, bringing people together across old boundaries.

“I believe that Barack Obama is the right choice for our nation. My own role in this campaign will be as an advisor – particularly in the field of national security and foreign policy.”

Former Senator David L. Boren said, “I am joining Senator Barack Obama’s advisory team on foreign policy and national security because I believe it is my duty as a citizen to do all I can to help our country at this critical moment. Our strength is declining. Eighty-one percent of Americans believe we are headed in the wrong direction. We must act quickly to meet and overcome the challenges we face.

“Our most urgent task is to end the divisions in our country, to stop the political bickering, and to unite our talents and efforts. Americans of all persuasions are pleading with our political leaders to bring us together. I believe Senator Obama is sincerely committed to that effort. He has made a non-partisan approach to all issues a top priority.

“Senator Obama is also a person of sound and good judgment. He had the good judgment more than five years ago to warn against our involvement in this tragic and costly war. He also understands the need to repair our partnerships with other nations and to more effectively use diplomacy to serve our national interests.

“It is my hope that in sharing what I have learned during my time in public service, I will be helping my country.”

Senator Barack Obama said, “I am honored to have the support and counsel of two of our nation’s leading voices on national security, and two of our most respected advocates for national unity. Few public servants have done more than Sam Nunn to keep America safe, and I look forward to drawing on his counsel as we work to combat nuclear proliferation and other threats to America’s national security. David Boren is one of our nation’s foremost experts on intelligence, and he has been a powerful and passionate advocate for bipartisanship in Washington. Both of these men will be important sources of advice and counsel for our campaign in the months ahead.”