44 - Politics and Policy in Obama's Washington - July 12, 2009

Obama Says Health-Care Reform Essential to Repairing Economy

By Michael A. Fletcher President Obama urged Congress today to push past growing doubts and...

By Post Editor | July 18, 2009; 6:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (217)
Categories: Barack Obama, Health Care
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Obama Statement on Cronkite's Death

The White House has just released President Obama's statement on the death tonight of CBS...

By Post Editor | July 17, 2009; 9:51 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Barack Obama
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White House Announces Pick for State Dept. Economic Post, Other Positions

The White House has released three more names of folks they intend to nominate.

By Web Politics Editor | July 17, 2009; 5:38 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Cast of Characters
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WH Tweets Announcement of Next News Conference

The White House announced today that President Obama will hold a prime-time news conference on...

By Post Editor | July 17, 2009; 4:54 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: New Media
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Obama on Health Care: 'This Is Going to Happen'

By Michael D. Shear President Obama vowed again today to push through health-care reform, saying...

By Post Editor | July 17, 2009; 4:45 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (20)
Categories: Health Care
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Obama Will Attend Regional Summit in Mexico Next Month

Associated Press President Obama will travel to Mexico next month to meet with Mexican President...

By Post Editor | July 17, 2009; 4:27 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (0)

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POTUS Events: Low Key Day

President Obama has no public events scheduled today. His day begins at 10:00 a.m. when...

By washingtonpost.com | July 17, 2009; 9:49 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)

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Sotomayor Hearings End With Few Lessons Learned

By Ben Pershing The confirmation hearings for Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court nomination are over, and...

By Ben Pershing | July 17, 2009; 8:30 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: The Rundown
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Health Care is Topic A at Biden Task Force Meeting in Virginia

Vice President Biden convened a meeting of the administration's Middle Class Task Force in Alexandria today to discuss how Obama's health care reform proposals will affect older Americans, taking questions for an hour before an audience of more than a hundred senior citizens.

By Web Politics Editor | July 16, 2009; 4:31 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Health Care, Joe Biden
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Obama to Address NAACP During Centennial Convention

President Barack Obama will talk to the NAACP on Thursday night about the economy, education and health care, and will also seek to quietly inspire thousands of members of the nation's oldest civil rights organization.

By Web Politics Editor | July 16, 2009; 2:00 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Barack Obama
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Up Next: Biden vs. Cantor

Vice President Biden plans a political broadside this afternoon in the home district of Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.), accusing the senior Republican lawmaker of joining in his party's smear of the $787 billion Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

By Web Politics Editor | July 16, 2009; 1:25 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (308)
Categories: B_Blog, Economy, Joe Biden
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POTUS Events: Off to the Big Apple

President Obama walks out of the Oval Office before speaking about health care reform in...

By Washington Post editors | July 16, 2009; 8:50 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)

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Social Issues Dominate Sotomayor Hearings

By Ben Pershing During the 2008 presidential campaign, so-called "social issues" were mostly overshadowed by...

By Ben Pershing | July 16, 2009; 8:21 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: The Rundown
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Chamber of Commerce Urges Lawmakers to Raise the Gas Tax

Tom Donohue, the president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, urged Congress to raise the federal gasoline tax as part of a new six-year transportation plan, saying it is less a tax than a user fee. Chamber members from around the country headed to the Hill today to deliver the same message to senators who have been siding with the White House on delaying any such action.

By Post Editor | July 15, 2009; 5:03 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Economy
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Obama, GOP Pick Stimulus Fight in Arizona

A Republican proposal to halt spending on federal stimulus projects has prompted a partisan dustup this week in Arizona, where defeated GOP presidential candidate John McCain has waded into the fight with his old Democratic rival, Barack Obama.

By Web Politics Editor | July 15, 2009; 1:11 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (40)
Categories: Economy
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Nancy Hogan Picked as New White House Personnel Director

White House aides were notified this morning that Nancy D. Hogan, chief of staff for White House personnel, has been picked to head that office, replacing office of personnel director Donald Gips, who has been nominated to be ambassador to South Africa.

By Web Politics Editor | July 15, 2009; 12:42 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Cast of Characters
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Obama: HELP Vote 'Should Give Us Hope'

President Obama hailed legislators on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee for voting the "Quality, Affordable Health Coverage for All Americans" health care reform bill out of their committee today by a vote of 13 to 10.

By Web Politics Editor | July 15, 2009; 11:07 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (12)
Categories: Health Care, Health Care, Primary Source
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Clinton: Iran Engagement Still in the Offering

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton reaffirmed the administration's interest in engaging Iran in the wake of the disputed election results and crackdown in dissent.

By Web Politics Editor | July 15, 2009; 10:29 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: B_Blog, National Security
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POTUS Events: Health Care in Focus

By Sarah Lovenheim President Obama receives his daily briefings around 10:15 a.m. Shortly after 1:00...

By Washington Post editors | July 15, 2009; 8:49 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: The Daybook
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Quietly, Health Care Debate Enters Crucial New Phase

By Ben Pershing Quick quiz, what was the most important thing that happened in Washington...

By Ben Pershing | July 15, 2009; 8:20 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: The Rundown
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Before Obama's First Pitch, a Little Wind Up

The president plans to warm up before throwing the first pitch at tonight's All-Star Game with St. Louis Cardinal slugger Albert Pujols, known to fans as Phat Albert or El Hombre.

By Web Politics Editor | July 14, 2009; 2:44 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: B_Blog, Washington Life, White House
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Task Force Will Reconsider Color-Coded Warning System

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano today named a bipartisan task force to consider changes to the nation's color-coded terror warning system.

By Post Editor | July 14, 2009; 2:27 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: National Security
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District Council Member Proposes "Barack Hussein Obama Park"

Council member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) introduced a resolution today to rename Girard Park in Columbia Heights "Barack Hussein Obama Park."

By Web Politics Editor | July 14, 2009; 2:18 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Washington Life
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Sotomayor Explains 'Wise Latina' Comment

Sonia Sotomayor explains the context of her controversial 2001 statement, saying that she was trying to inspire Latino students "to believe that they can become anything that they wanted to become, just as I had.''

By Web Politics Editor | July 14, 2009; 10:27 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Video Report
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POTUS Events: To the Midwest

President Obama begins his day with a one-on-one meeting with Prime Minister Balkenende of the...

By washingtonpost.com editors | July 14, 2009; 8:53 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: The Daybook
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Sotomayor and the Search for Bipartisanship

By Ben Pershing Nineteen members of the Senate Judiciary Committee spoke on the first day...

By Ben Pershing | July 14, 2009; 8:16 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: The Rundown
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Obama Paints a New Vision for Nation's Urban Policy

By Robin Shulman Addressing a White House urban affairs summit on Monday, President Obama called...

By Post Editor | July 14, 2009; 7:00 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Barack Obama, Economy
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Administration Considers Revamping Color-Coded Warning System

The Obama administration is considering changing a color-coded terror warning system, started after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, that has been much-ridiculed.

By Post Editor | July 13, 2009; 7:27 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: National Security
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Obama Lays Out His Plan for Pressuring Arab Leaders

President Obama told Jewish leaders today that he is putting pressure on Palestinian officials and Israel's Arab neighbors to take steps toward peace, such as allowing the landing of El Al flights, providing visas to Israeli citizens and the opening of economic or trade liaison offices.

By Post Editor | July 13, 2009; 6:49 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (9)

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Clinton: White House Vetting Is 'Cumbersome' and Getting 'Worse'

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton lashed out today at the slow pace of getting people vetted for administration jobs.

By Post Editor | July 13, 2009; 5:14 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: Hillary Rodham Clinton
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Administration, RNC Skirmish Over the Economy

The White House and the Republican National Committee exchanged rapid-fire dueling press releases this afternoon that were purported to be about the $787 billion economic stimulus. In truth, they were about something potentially even bigger -- next year's mid-term congressional elections.

By Web Politics Editor | July 13, 2009; 3:49 PM ET | Permalink | Comments (15)
Categories: Economy
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Hearing Room Clashes Could Alter Political Environment

Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings will play out against the backdrop of demographic changes that continue to alter the nation's politics. What drama exists this week is less the question of whether she will be confirmed than what the first Latina Supreme Court justice may contribute to those changing politics.

By Web Politics Editor | July 13, 2009; 11:58 AM ET | Permalink | Comments (69)
Categories: Dan Balz's Take
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44: July 12, 2009 - July 18, 2009