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Subscribe to RSS“President Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday night will mark a return to a focus on the nation’s still-struggling economy, according to the White House,” the New York Daily News writes. “Some of Obama’s second-term priorities that have dominated recent headlines — like gun control, climate change and immigration reform — will be mentioned in the speech but will take a backseat to the nation’s jobs crisis.”
Ron Fournier: “White House officials tell me they feel stung by coverage of the inaugural address. Reporters highlighted the president’s left-leaning stances on immigration, gun control, climate change and gay and women’s rights. Obama’s aides argue that he devoted more inaugural address language to the economy, jobs and the deficit than all other issues combined. Still, the perception remains that Obama lost focus on the economy -- the top issue in the minds of most voters. So look for an address Tuesday tilted heavily toward policies pledging action on joblessness, growing the economy and expanding the middle class, White House officials said Friday. The other issues will be discussed, aides said, but there will be no mistaking that Obama’s paramount concern is the economy.
Politico’s Thrush: “The anodyne, stage-managed West Wing leaks have the State of the Union speech focusing on ‘jobs creation,’ poll-tested paeans to the ‘middle class’ and a new slate of infrastructure projects that will have a tough time passing Congress. Privately, administration officials see it as an extension of Obama’s unabashedly provocative and progressive Jan. 21 inaugural address, their latest attempt to leverage favorable deals on the sequester and the debt ceiling comparable to the watershed deal Obama secured on increasing taxes on the wealthy.”
Quinnipiac: “President Barack Obama should focus on the economy in his State of the Union Address, 35 percent of American voters say in a Quinnipiac University national poll released today. Another 20 percent say the federal deficit is the top priority, with 15 percent citing gun policy and 12 percent listing health care.” Two-thirds of people say they’re either “likely” or “very likely” to watch.
USA Today: “When he delivers his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Obama not only will be speaking to the 40 million or so TV viewers across the country. His words also will be aimed at a few people sitting right in front of him. A junior Republican who is key to an immigration deal. A senior Democrat who may need coaxing to compromise on gun control. A member of the GOP ticket Obama vanquished in November. And a Supreme Court justice likely to be the swing vote on same-sex marriage. What the president says and how he says it can set the stage for cooperation or confrontation on an issue. He can boost an ally or lay down a marker.”
“The White House and outside supporters of President Barack Obama are launching simultaneous social media, public outreach and fundraising campaigns tied to Tuesday’s State of the Union address,” AP writes. “The efforts will concentrate on key issues Obama will raise in his prime-time address to a joint session of Congress: jobs and the budget, gun control, immigration and climate change. The wide-ranging outreach reflects a decision by the president and his advisers to focus more on using public support to pressure Congress rather than getting bogged down in partisan fights with lawmakers.”
Roll Call: “The passion of gun owners has met the passion of protective moms in the fight over firearms restrictions, which will intensify this week as President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union address. … Obama will promote his gun safety agenda in his annual address to Congress on Tuesday, the first time in more than a decade that the State of the Union will tackle the emotional topic of guns. His new grass-roots advocacy group, Organizing for Action, is also urging its members to mobilize behind the president’s agenda, which includes a ban on military-style assault weapons and universal background checks for gun purchasers.
Gun safety advocates plan rallies and news conferences Monday in at least a dozen congressional districts. The activists will urge key lawmakers they view as persuadable on the issue to support the president’s gun proposals.”
“Defense secretary nominee Chuck Hagel could get a vote in committee as early as Tuesday, but Republican aides reacted to that idea by suggesting that some members could walk out in protest,” Politico writes. Levin is said to be “fed up” with Republican demands, but he “faces a conundrum: He has the ability to force a Hagel vote through the committee on a party-line vote, since Democrats outnumber Republicans. But doing so could damage the committee’s longtime bipartisan spirit.”
AP: “This is what ‘Forward’ looks like. Fast forward, even. President Barack Obama’s campaign slogan is springing to life in a surge of executive directives and agency rule-making that touch many of the affairs of government. They are shaping the cost and quality of health plans, the contents of the school cafeteria, the front lines of future combat, the price of coal. They are the leading edge of Obama’s ambition to take on climate change in ways that may be unachievable in legislation. Altogether, it’s a kinetic switch from what could have been the watchword of the Obama administration in the closing, politically hypersensitive months of his first term: pause.”
“Secretary of State John Kerry and his Canadian counterpart refused to offer hints Friday about the biggest economic decision facing their countries: the fate of the Keystone XL pipeline,” Politico notes.
Dick Cheney, by the way, in remarks before the Wyoming Republican Party, called Obama’s national-security picks “second rate.”
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Not sure who those White House folks are that Ron Fournier claims felt stung by the coverage of President Obama's inaugural speech, it was a great speech which resonated with Americans--moderate right, independent and liberal. It was praised by many in the media. The only ones who lampooned it were the far right tea-drinking, libertarian crowd who possess a distorted view of their power and saw the speech as pointing out how completely out of the mainstream the far right is and they did not like being exposed for what they are.
Cheney's still talking???
Yeah, I guess Obama should have had first rate picks like clueless Condoleeza or I-can't-recall Rummy.
Cheney's still trying to appoint himself President.
Has Obama got his "LASER" fixed ? Let's see .... The first time around he promised his "laser-like vision" on the jobs and the economy. After wasting a trillion or so on a FAILED "STIMULUS" .... Obama later admitted the shovel-ready jobs were NOT so shovel-ready !! LOL !!!
I wonder if he will be SHOVELING the same old $HIT he did the first time around ? Will he dare to mention the possibility of actually having a BUDGET ? Will he call for more spending ?? .... you betcha !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cheney should be talking to the ICC......International Criminal Courts.
I wonder how much he would have to say then!
Amy B from Portland ME, in remarks on the First Read blog, calls former Vice President Cheney a psychopath who cut his teeth on political barbarism during the Nixon era, and who really should crawl into his man-sized safe, and stay there.
Democrats to Cheney: we got this.
Hi Amy. Glad to see you survived the record snow you got in Portland. Hope all is well.
Now, back to regular programming. : )
Thank you, Talk. I waded through waist high snow drifts to dig myself out on Saturday (see liberals are as self-reliant as conservatives,) hopefully burning up the calories in the pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream I ate as part of my storm preparation.
And Sunday the sun came out and the city looked like a winter wonderland. It's all good, here!
The New Normal
You are seeing it over and over again. The new normal, school shooting, children killing parents, people just snapping. Parents abusing and killing their children. But everyone just tosses up their hands in un-belief and some say O My God, or how could God let this happen. Well, I’m not sure why your bringing God into it, America has been trying to kick God out for years. You have kicked God out of our schools, government building, ect. And now that God has left and let hell run its course you blame it on God?
Hell has done its job well. Hell has flooded our media with evil and when I say evil I’m talking about evil on steroids. Hell has made it fun to enjoy for the whole family. Hell has flooded the TV, our movies, our video game, you name it and it’s there. We have also became a country of pill poppers, they have made a pill for everything to give to our youngest to our oldest because it’s easy. Just take a look at the side effects and some say right there in black and white may cause depression, hallucinations, suicidal tendencies, oh and let’s not forget this one and sometimes death. What happened doctors, don’t you remember what you promised? Your oath, do no harm, sounds a bit like doing harm to me.
You know when I was a boy we didn’t have all this violence. But we didn’t have Hell crammed in 24/7. You can tune into hell full HD just by the push of a button, but when I say you I mean your kids. Your kids submerge themselves into their killing spree HD on the big screen and pop the ADD or whatever kind of pill. And you have the gall to wonder why we have all the killing? That’s all our kids know, they are flooded with it you fools, but this is what you get by saying if you don’t want to watch it you can turn it off. You were stupid the first time you said it and you are stupid now because you will not put a stop to it. You are going to continue to allow the so called media makers to keep flooding our TV, movies, games with the most vile thing the mind can come up with and say it’s ok and not obscene because it’s not showing nudity.
You know, in war times they brain wash someone by drugging them and flood there mind with whatever they want in the enemies brain to make them do or kill anyone that person can get close too. You’re allowing them to do that to your kids and you’re paying them to do it.
Did you know a 1 minute commercial during the Super Bowl cost 3.5 million dollars and they have the nerve to say a little bit of TV or entertainment never hurt anybody? Did you know they have to sell 3 times as much stuff to just break even to the cost? They are banking 3.5 million dollars on 1 minute of time will influence Americans enough to buy 10.5 million dollars worth of stuff from that 1 minute ad on TV. Do you still believe a little bit of TV doesn’t bother you or your kids, a little bit of violence, a little bit of sex, a little bit of people doing drugs, a little bit of rape, a little bit of murder.
If you don’t get a clue and figure out what is really causing our issues by what I’m telling you and stop them from allowing this rot into your kids mind, you have just seen a small amount of what is to come. America is rotting from the inside. You can stop the madness. There is only 1 way, but America will never allow it or believe it because they would rather rot and have its entertainment filth. God is real, this was once a nation under God but now it is not, it’s a nation of our kids thinking we came from monkeys which is being taught to them in our schools.
There are only 2 directions for our country to go, the way it is now and will become worse then you have ever seen or the way it used to be which is old fashion and behind the times. The new normal with your faith in man leading you to your doom as you see it happening before your very eyes or faith in God leading to salvation as our forefathers setup at our countries birth, remember, 1 nation under God.
You know, when I was a kid we didn’t have this kind of problem, and I know why.
Horse pucky, there is no God, if there was these things wouldn't happen. To pass it off as Gods will, or the devil made them do it is fallacy at its finest. I do believe there is evil. The first and worst kind of evil is to try and make me believe in superstition and myth in the name of God. In history, the worst wars and the worst killing was in the name of this myth called God. You believe in what you want too, I believe I will have another beer.
Obama is Johntho's God...false idols. Fool!
Fear separates hard working Americans from their money. "The only thing we have to fear is fear it's self". How true.
JFK, STFU, Obama is my president and yes I did vote for him and think he is doing a good job. However he is not got. I just got through stating there is no God.
God created man with the ability to make decisions on his own. God doesn't need to intervene in these actions. Humans have been given control and dominion and how we use it is our own. God is resting after creating everything in 6 days so we are told. Leave Him rest. People will suffer whatever consequences are in store for them in the afterlife, if there is one, based on their decisions and actions. Judgement day comes for everyone. Eventually we will all face Him who makes decisions in the Name of His Father.
Religion is a personal thing and has no place in affairs of a secular government. We have freedom of and from religion as provided in our Constitution and it should remain that way. The diversity of this country doesn't mean we are all bound to be white anglo-saxon protestants any more.
The Teabeggers need to sit down, shut-up, and pay attention to what the President is going to be discussing. Now the Teabeggers have a very difficult time listening carefully, comprehending what is said, and understanding basic facts. The Teabeggers also have a very low attention span, and are unable to stay on task. The Teabeggers also have no concept of respect for others, or for themselves. The Teabeggers do not understand that President Obama is the President of the United States, and have no concept that their economic proposals are 'bankrupt.' Have a good speech Mr. President!
We understand Obama has run up the national debt $5.8 trillion while never having a budget !
We understand Obama has ignored immigration laws, and DOMA because he didn't "like" the laws !
We understand our unemployment rate is 7.9% ... same as when Obama took office !
We understand Obama LIED with respect to Obamacare and televised promises !
We understand Obama has failed to give answers on Fast and Furious and the aftermath of Benghazi !
We understand Obama has raised taxes twice through Obamacare and through the fiscal cliff deal !
We understand Obama has changed his position on gay marriage ... not once, but twice !
We understand Obama wants to limit and control second amendment rights !
We understand Obama would like to raise the debt limit ALL BY HIMSELF ... without congress approving.
We understand Obama decried raising the national debt ceiling ... yet now wants more and more !
We understand Obama wants sole authority to kill Americans in other countries with drone strikes !
We also understand, Regressive=BendOverBAckwards, that liberals "like" getting screwed by our President ! We will send you some lubricant
It's like you described all the traits you exhibited in your posting. But with a liberal view. Read your posting again and tell me how the tone differs from a ranting teabagger, in anything but the political leaning.