Barack Obama

Read the latest post-presidency news about President Barack Obama on Newser.com

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Well Played, Blago
 Well Played, Blago 
opinion
Dec 31, 2008 7:25 PM CST

Well Played, Blago

'Skin pigment trumps ideas' among Dems: Kass

(Newser) - Roland Burris says this is his media moment, but Illinois' "circus of the politically bizarre" still belongs to Rod Blagojevich, John Kass writes in the Chicago Tribune. No hapless jester, the brazenly calculated governor has dumped Democrats back into the racial politics Obama was supposed to transcend.

Illinois House Revives Chance of Special Election

Bill returns to committee hearing scheduled for next week

(Newser) - Add this to the confusion over a certain Senate seat in Illinois: Democrats may try to hold a special election to fill it after all. One day after Rod Blagojevich surprised all by naming his own appointment, the Illinois House speaker quietly revived the possibility of holding an election by...

Obama to Market Stimulus Plan

Republicans hoping to delay bill may filibuster

(Newser) - The incoming Obama administration plans to launch a nationwide political push for a quick passage of his $775 billion economic stimulus plan, the Los Angeles Times reports. Says adviser David Axelrod: “There shouldn't be endless debate about it.” Republicans acknowledge that they can’t stop his plan, but...

Hollywood Shells Out for Obama's Big Day

A-listers fork over $50K for events

(Newser) - A blackout hit Barack Obama’s Hawaii vacation home last week, but his inauguration next month will be lit up with plenty of star power. Hollywood A-listers have been shelling out top dollar to help pay for the president-elect’s big day, Politico reports. Donors include Halle Berry, Jamie Foxx,...

Hudson May Perform at Inauguration

It would be first performance since family murders

(Newser) - A still-grieving Jennifer Hudson’s first performance since her family tragedy may be at Barack Obama’s inauguration, the New York Post reports. Organizers have asked Hudson to sing the national anthem, which she also performed at the Democratic National Convention. Hudson, whose mother, sister, and nephew were murdered in...

Burris: Don't Hold Blago Against Me

He says guv has power to appoint, objections might just be racist

(Newser) - This should be about me, not Rod Blagojevich, Ronald Burris has been saying in TV interviews since Blago named him to fill Barack Obama’s open Senate seat yesterday. Last night, he told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, “I have nothing to do with the problems of the governor.”...

Burris Flap Rouses Ghosts of Obama's Past

 Burris Flap Rouses 
 Ghosts of Obama's Past 
ANALYSIS
Dec 31, 2008 10:44 AM CST

Burris Flap Rouses Ghosts of Obama's Past

President-elect probably wants to forget these guys

(Newser) - If Barack Obama caught Rod Blagojevich’s press conference yesterday, in which he named Roland Burris to fill the vacant Senate seat, Obama probably saw everything he doesn’t miss about Illinois. Each member of the trio on stage—Blagojevich, Burris, and Rep. Bobby Rush—claims a history with Obama,...

Obamas to Move Into DC Hotel
Obamas to Move Into DC Hotel
UPDATED
Dec 31, 2008 10:34 AM CST

Obamas to Move Into DC Hotel

First family to settle into Hay Adams this weekend so girls can start school Monday

(Newser) - Barack Obama, who has mostly avoided the capital since the election, will move his family into a hotel suite this weekend, aides tell the New York Times. The girls will start school Monday and Obama will begin working with the new Congress on his stimulus package. While the Times didn't...

Obama Blasts Blago's Move
 Obama Blasts Blago's Move 
Dec 30, 2008 5:47 PM CST

Obama Blasts Blago's Move

(Newser) - Barack Obama today criticized Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's decision to appoint a successor to the president-elect's Senate seat, CNN reports. Obama called the governor's move "disappointing" and said he backed Democrats' position of blocking any such appointment. Obama again urged Blagojevich to resign so Illinois could have a "...

First Granny Mulls White House Move

Resident mom-in-law good for the nation, if not the Obamas

(Newser) - With the Cabinet-pick mania waning, Beltway buffs are left speculating on whether first granny Marian Robinson will join the Obamas in their new residence. One poll places the move-in likelihood at 70%, and there's a petition going that supports "her presence in the Obama White House." Even...

Groups Go High-Tech in Push for Obama Jobs

Groups modernize process of sorting resumes

(Newser) - Special interest groups eager to cement plum spots in the Obama administration are using private websites and online databases to angle for positions, Politico reports. Instead of tossing their résumés onto the pile at Change.gov, savvy applicants are casting their lots with these groups, which pore over...

Has Obama Got Game on the Green?

President-elect gets mixed reviews

(Newser) - Sure, he cleaned up in the electoral college, but how’s Barack Obama’s golf game? According to one vocal observer, it beats his bowling, the Chicago Tribune reports. The “protective pool” of press that tails Obama 24/7 offers a play-by-play of his day on a Hawaiian green, describing...

'Magic Negro' Flap May Help GOP Pol
'Magic Negro' Flap May Help GOP Pol
Dec 30, 2008 12:33 PM CST

'Magic Negro' Flap May Help GOP Pol

RNC members rally against outrage over tasteless satire

(Newser) - When a conservative politician is called racist, expect a backlash. The fracas over Chip Saltsman’s distribution of the song “Barack the Magic Negro” in his campaign to be Republican National Committee chairman has, as per usual, caused compatriots to flock to his defense, Politico reports, and may actually...

Obama Stays Tactically Silent on Gaza
Obama Stays Tactically Silent on Gaza
Analysis
Dec 30, 2008 9:22 AM CST

Obama Stays Tactically Silent on Gaza

Leaves himself room to maneuver when he takes office

(Newser) - As the violence mounts in Gaza, the vacationing Barack Obama has remained pointedly silent, resisting calls from both Jewish and Muslim groups to take a stand on the conflict. The White House and senior Democrats like Harry Reid have been less shy, expressing strong support for Israel, but Obama doesn’...

Tony Blair: Part Obama, Part Bush

Ex-prime minister optimistic but doesn't regret Iraq war

(Newser) - Tony Blair was both Britain's Barack Obama, promising change, and its George W. Bush, dragging his country into an unpopular war, Jennifer Senior writes in New York. But now the Middle East envoy and superstar Yale lecturer is his own man. He's excited about Obama's victory and urges the president-elect...

The Bra Wire That Brought Down Blago
 The Bra Wire 
 That Brought 
 Down Blago 
GLOSSIES
Dec 29, 2008 1:25 PM CST

The Bra Wire That Brought Down Blago

Ill. corruption probe started with hospital administrator

(Newser) - The FBI corruption investigation that ended with the Illinois governor started in the bra of a surburban Chicago hospital exec, Nina Burleigh writes in the New Yorker. In 2003, Pamela Davis was trying to get a new building approved when she was told to use a certain contractor or kiss...

Year's Top 10 Moments of Celeb Activism

Oprah, Paris, Will.i.am make a difference

(Newser) - It’s been a big year for celebrity activism—so big that it deserves its own year-end top 10 list, Tina Daunt writes in the Los Angeles Times. Some famous faces that made a difference in 2008:
  • Oprah Winfrey fought hard for Barack Obama, including hosting a traffic-stopping garden party.
...

As Presidential 'Bubble' Closes, Obama Pokes Back

President-elect ditches the reporter pool to take daughters to a water park

(Newser) - There's a growing gaggle of press and Secret Service standing between Barack Obama and the outside world—not to mention the corner hotdog stand—and the president-elect is showing signs that the presidential "bubble" is wearing on him, Politico reports. Obama ditched the pool of reporters assigned to follow...

Gaza Strikes Push Clinton, Obama to Mend Fences
Gaza Strikes Push Clinton, Obama to Mend Fences
ANALYSIS
Dec 28, 2008 2:29 PM CST

Gaza Strikes Push Clinton, Obama to Mend Fences

World waiting to see how former rivals react to latest crisis

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton criticized Barack Obama’s world affairs know-how in the primaries, but now the two are poised to join forces on their first foreign policy test, Tony Allen-Mills writes in the Times of London. Israel’s air offensive in Gaza undid months of negotiations to kick-start a peace process,...

Best Political Scoops of '08
 Best Political Scoops of '08 
Dec 27, 2008 9:19 PM CST

Best Political Scoops of '08

(Newser) - Traditional media outlets and on-the-spot amateurs alike captured the year's biggest US political moments. Here is Politico's look at some of the biggest scoops:
  • Palin meets Couric: Interviewed by Katie Couric on CBS, Sarah Palin fumbled with softball questions such as which publications she reads. Democrats and Tina Fey pounced.
...

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