44 - Politics and Policy in Obama's Washington - November 30, 2008

Shinseki Slated to Head VA, Obama Confirms

Retired Army Gen. Eric K. Shinseki is best known for his four-year tenure as Army chief of staff, and in particular his response to congressional questioning in February 2003 about troop levels necessary to protect a presumed military victory in Iraq.

By Post Editor | December 6, 2008; 6:19 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (26)
Categories: Cabinet, National Security
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Choice to Head VA Coming Sunday in Chicago

Obama plans to announce his pick for veteran affairs secretary during a news conference at which he will commemorate the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

By Post Editor | December 6, 2008; 4:05 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Cabinet
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Dorgan Won't Be Energy Secretary

Sen. Byron Dorgan (N.D.) is no longer under consideration to be secretary of energy in President-elect Barack Obama's administration, according to transition officials.

By Web Politics Editor | December 6, 2008; 11:48 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Cabinet
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Obama Offers Highlights of His Economic Stimulus Plan

The president-elect's proposal focuses on modernizing public buildings, roads and bridges, and hospitals and medical offices.

By Post Editor | December 6, 2008; 6:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (88)
Categories: Economy, Hard Times
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Transition Office Announces Policy of Document Transparency

In a memo to the staff, the Barack Obama transition team is pledging to put all documents from meetings they hold with outside groups on their website for all to see.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 7:14 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Transition
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Recount Ends in Minnesota Senate Race

The long process of determining the winner in the Minnesota Senate race is nearing its end, as a recount of the votes there wrapped up Friday afternoon.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 5:41 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Election Day
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Obama Adds Two More to White House Staff

President-elect Barack Obama continued to round out his staff today by naming two lawyers with Chicago roots to positions in his White House.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 3:22 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: B_Blog, Cast of Characters
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Asked About New House, Bush Plays Coy

President Bush just bought a house in Dallas, but apparently he doesn't want to talk about it.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 1:46 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: 43
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Teach a Child -- and Help Retire Clinton's Debt to Mark Penn

Dorothy Rodham is making a rare appeal on her daughter's behalf: asking supporters to purchase a new children's book about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, "Dreams Taking Flight," to help pay down her campaign debt.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 1:07 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Hillary Rodham Clinton
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Biden Picks Jared Bernstein as Economic Adviser

Bernstein is a well-known skeptic on free trade and has worked for years as a senior official at the Economic Policy Institute, a labor-funded think tank which advocates for low and middle-income workers.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 12:57 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: B_Blog, Cast of Characters
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Ann Romney Diagnosed with Early-Stage Cancer

Ann Romney, the wife of former Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, announced today that she was diagnosed with an early form of breast cancer and underwent a lumpectomy to remove the affected tissue.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 12:39 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: B_Blog, Mitt Romney
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Obama Reacts to Dismal Job Numbers

President-elect Barack Obama issued a statement this morning on the news that the labor market...

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 9:58 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Primary Source
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Warm and Fuzzy As Bushies Exit and Obamans Enter

Despite all the campaign nastiness between the outgoing 43rd and incoming 44th presidents, Bush White House press aides and their Democratic successors are enjoying a holiday love fest.

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 9:50 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: The Sleuth
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Washington Sketch: Congress Drives Home the Point

The Washington Post's Dana Milbank sketches the return of "The Big Three" to Capitol Hill. (Akira Hakuta / washingtonpost.com)

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 8:52 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Rough Sketch
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An Auto Industry Stalemate, Courtesy of The Decider

By Ben Pershing Amid the constant focus on the Obama transition effort and speculation about...

By Web Politics Editor | December 5, 2008; 8:49 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: The Rundown
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One More Question...

Awkward pictures pop up on Facebook of incoming White House director of speechwriting Jon Favreau.

By Web Politics Editor | December 4, 2008; 8:55 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (539)
Categories: Cast of Characters
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The Bushes Buy a Dallas House

President Bush and the first lady have purchased a house in the Preston Hollow neighborhood of Dallas, which is where they will live after leaving the White House on Jan. 20, officials said today.

By Web Politics Editor | December 4, 2008; 1:53 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (84)
Categories: 43
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Dee Dee Meyers Offers Gibbs Some Advice

Former White House Press Secretary Dee Dee Meyers offered some words of advice to incoming Barack Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs about how to keep cool in the hot seat in an interview with a women's interest Web site while promoting her book, "Why Women Should Rule the World."

By Web Politics Editor | December 4, 2008; 1:02 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Cast of Characters, Making the Rounds
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Becerra in Chicago to Meet with Obama About USTR Job

Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.), who's a top candidate to be U.S. Trade Representative in the incoming administration, is in Chicago today to meet with President-elect Barack Obama to discuss the job.

By Web Politics Editor | December 4, 2008; 12:49 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Cabinet
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Bill Gates Says He's Open to a Role Helping Obama Admin

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who is in Washington this week to press his foundation's education and global health agenda, said he is keeping an open mind about taking a role aiding the incoming Obama administration.

By Web Politics Editor | December 4, 2008; 12:41 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (21)
Categories: Barack Obama, Cast of Characters
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Bailouts Back on the Agenda

By Ben Pershing A spirited game of chicken over the fates of some of the...

By Web Politics Editor | December 4, 2008; 8:10 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: The Rundown
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Napolitano Calls Fighting Terror 'Top Priority'

Homeland security secretary-designee Janet Napolitano called the elimination of global terrorism the top priority of the incoming administration before a private briefing today by a new congressionally chartered commission on weapons of mass destruction, presided over by Vice President-elect Joseph Biden.

By Web Politics Editor | December 3, 2008; 7:38 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (9)
Categories: Cabinet
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Obama's Half-Brother, News in China

A Chinese television station report on Obama's half-brother.

By Web Politics Editor | December 3, 2008; 7:15 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (9)
Categories: Making the Rounds
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Obama or an Obama-Impersonator? Ros-Lehtinen Flubs the Call

Twice on Wednesday, President-elect Barack Obama tried to reach across the partisan divide with a phone call to Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Republican from Florida. And twice, according to her office, she hung up on him.

By Web Politics Editor | December 3, 2008; 6:53 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (20)
Categories: Barack Obama
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Richardson Appointed Commerce Secretary

President-elect Barack Obama today announced New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson as his commerce secretary at a news conference in Chicago.

By Web Politics Editor | December 3, 2008; 11:57 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (18)
Categories: Cabinet
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Obama Gives Political Ambassadors Their Pink Slips

By Glenn Kessler The incoming Obama administration has notified all politically-appointed ambassadors that they must...

By Web Politics Editor | December 3, 2008; 10:04 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (100)
Categories: Cast of Characters
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Democratic Senate Supermajority Stays Out of Reach

By Ben Pershing Today's front pages look less like a series of news dispatches and...

By Web Politics Editor | December 3, 2008; 8:43 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: The Rundown
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Gates Echoes Obama Call for 'Responsible' Troop Drawdown, Stops Short of Backing Timetable

A day after President-elect Barack Obama announced the decision to keep him on as secretary of defense, Robert M. Gates stopped short of fully endorsing Obama's plan to withdraw all combat troops from Iraq in 16 months, but said he subscribes to his new boss's call for a "responsible" drawdown based on the advice of U.S. commanders.

By Web Politics Editor | December 2, 2008; 7:19 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Cabinet
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Citizenship and Immigration Services Chief Steps Down

Jonathan "Jock" Scharfen, acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services since April, stepped down yesterday to take a position in the private sector, continuing the Bush administration transition exodus.

By Web Politics Editor | December 2, 2008; 6:26 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Cast of Characters, The Exodus
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Holbrooke Under Consideration for South Asia Diplomatic Role

President -elect Barack Obama is seriously considering appointing former ambassador Richard Holbrooke as his special envoy for south Asia, a move that would put one of America's most prominent diplomatic troubleshooters in charge of trying to resolve the thorny and interrelated problems surrounding India, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

By Web Politics Editor | December 2, 2008; 5:25 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Cast of Characters
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44: November 30, 2008 - December 6, 2008