Barack Obama

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

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Government Shutdown Poll: Republicans, Democrats Both to Blame

 Public Would 
 Blame Everyone 
 for Shutdown 
Poll Numbers
Mar 1, 2011 10:59 AM CST

Public Would Blame Everyone for Shutdown

Equal numbers blame each side

(Newser) - If Democrats think a government shutdown might help them politically, they might want to think again: A new survey indicates that the public would blame both parties equally for the shutdown. In a Washington Post poll, 36% say they’d blame Republicans for the shutdown, while 35% say they’d...

Obama Backs Letting States Out of Parts of Health Reform

Sticks up for unions in governors' meeting

(Newser) - President Obama intends to back legislation enabling states to duck some of the more onerous mandates of the new health care law—provided they can demonstrate that they could cover just as many people in some other way. “I think that’s a reasonable proposal; I support it,”...

White House Picks First Gay Social Secretary

Jeremy Bernard is first man to hold the job, too

(Newser) - The White House has picked a new social secretary who makes a little history on two fronts: Not only is Jeremy Bernard the first man to hold the post, he's the first openly gay person to do so, reports Lynn Sweet at AOL's Politics Daily . Bernard, a former fundraiser for...

Obama Aides Take Lobbyist Meetings Across Street

That way, they're not seen in visitor logs

(Newser) - Apparently Barack Obama’s opposition to lobbyist influence isn’t as strident as advertised. Obama’s aides still consult with lobbyists, Politico reports—they just do it across the street from the White House. These chats, held in meeting rooms just off the White House campus, aren’t recorded in...

Obama's Got GOP Trapped on Gay Marriage

Court battle is different from cable TV: Linda Hirshman

(Newser) - The Obama administration's decision not to defend the Defense of Marriage Act may seem politically risky—after all, “a majority of Americans have never polled in favor of same sex marriage,” writes Linda Hirshman for Salon . But, in fact, Obama has put Republicans in a bind: The GOP-led...

Get to Know Valerie Jarrett, Obama's Right-Hand Woman

She's admired, feared in political and business circles

(Newser) - Valerie Jarrett was once the least visible of President Obama’s top advisors—but with the exits of Rahm Emanuel, David Axelrod, and Robert Gibbs, Jarrett has gained duties while coming increasingly into the spotlight as Obama’s right-hand woman. In a lengthy profile, the Chicago Tribune traces her often...

Obama Scraps 'Conscience' Rule for Health Workers

But those who object to abortions can still opt out

(Newser) - The Obama administration today undid an eleventh-hour rule enacted by George W. Bush that gave health workers the option to refuse to perform a litany of procedures they objected to on moral, religious, or cultural grounds. Declaring the so-called "conscience" rule "unclear and potentially overbroad in scope,"...

Obama Ordered Secret Study on Arab Unrest—in August

Report discussed Egypt in detail

(Newser) - It turns out the uprisings shaking the Arab world didn’t take Barack Obama by surprise. Last August, Obama ordered a secret study into the possibility of such unrest, the New York Times reports. His advisers concluded that countries from Bahrain to Yemen to, yes, Egypt, were ripe for popular...

US Was Warned About Egypt—Last Year

But administration was reluctant to take tough stance

(Newser) - Egypt-watchers started warning the White House early last year that the country was unstable, but the administration continued to offer a muted response, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Egypt Working Group, which includes human rights activists, Mideast experts, and neoconservative policymakers, sent letters to Hillary Clinton urging a more...

Obama to GOP: Don't Make Me Veto Spending Bill

Says GOP proposal goes too far

(Newser) - President Obama issued a formal statement yesterday threatening to veto any spending bill the House GOP devises that doesn’t meet his specifications. “If the president is presented with a bill that undermines critical priorities or national security … the president will veto the bill,” the statement read,...

Hey, Kids: Obama Just Screwed You Over

 Hey, Kids: 
 Obama Just 
 Screwed 
 You Over 
andrew sullivan
Feb 15, 2011 11:33 AM CST

Hey, Kids: Obama Just Screwed You Over

President isn't serious about debt crisis, writes Andrew Sullivan

(Newser) - President Obama’s new budget proposal is a cop-out, proposing no cuts whatsoever in entitlement or defense spending—and that makes him a hypocritical coward, writes Andrew Sullivan of the Atlantic . “He has betrayed those of us who took him to be a serious president,” Sullivan fumes. “...

Romney Beats Obama in NH Poll

Of course, 78% of potential GOP voters haven't entirely made up their mind

(Newser) - The 2012 presidential race is already heating up: A new poll shows that Mitt Romney is the frontrunner in New Hampshire, beating President Obama in a hypothetical race by 49% to 41%. Romney, not surprisingly, is also the leading Republican, coming out well ahead of other potential candidates. While a...

Obama Budget Throws Ambition to the Wind

President dials it down with eye on 2012

(Newser) - If President Obama’s new budget proposal is any indication, he’s vastly dialed back his first-term ambitions in the hopes of winning a second one, observe Peter Wallsten and Perry Bacon Jr of the Washington Post . Whereas two years ago Obama laid out a sweeping New Deal-esque plan with...

Obama: Deficit to Hit $1.6T
 Obama: Deficit to Hit $1.6T 
Feb 14, 2011 7:53 AM CST

Obama: Deficit to Hit $1.6T

White House unveils $3.7T budget, plans to cut spending

(Newser) - The White House expects the national budget deficit to peak at $1.65 trillion this year, or roughly 10.9% of GDP—its highest level since World War II, the Wall Street Journal reports. That figure—which is significantly more pessimistic than the Congressional Budget Office’s $1.48 trillion...

Mubarak's Play Puts Obama in the Hot Seat

Egyptian president says he gave White House what it wanted

(Newser) - Hosni Mubarak’s non-resignation obviously caught the Obama administration by surprise—Obama after all, had hours earlier spoken glowingly of watching “ history unfold ” in Egypt, and CIA chief Leon Panetta had said there was a “ strong likelihood ” Mubarak would step down. But Egyptian officials say they...

Obama on Egypt: We Are Watching History Unfold

He promises to help orderly transition

(Newser) - President Obama took a few moments at the beginning of a planned speech in Michigan today to address the topic of the hour/day/week: “We are following today’s events in Egypt very closely,” he said. “We’ll have more to say as this plays out. But what...

Obama to Business: Time to Give Back

President makes nice in Chamber address, but urges them to hire

(Newser) - Barack Obama extended the olive branch to the US Chamber of Commerce today, pledging to work to expand trade opportunities and cut away burdensome regulations. But he also took a page out of JFK’s book, telling executives to “ask yourselves what you can do for America,” according...

O'Reilly's Obama Interview Surprisingly Pleasant

And it's not over: More will air tomorrow

(Newser) - So what did Bill O’Reilly and President Obama talk about during their much-anticipated sit-down today? Egypt, health care reform, Obama’s presidential experience, and, of course, football (Obama wouldn't predict a Super Bowl winner, but said the teams are pretty evenly matched). Mediaite has the full interview, and notes...

Pre-Game Interview Could Help Obama and O'Reilly

O'Reilly gets huge audience, Obama gets to look good

(Newser) - Despite the often bitter rivalry between the White House and Fox News, Bill O’Reilly’s pre-Super Bowl interview today with President Obama could be a win for both. It will be Obama’s first sit-down with O’Reilly—Fox News’ highest-rated host—as president. But the two have met...

Obama Prays for Egypt, Giffords, Malia's First Dance

 Obama Prays for 
 Egypt, Giffords, 
 Malia's First Dance  
national prayer breakfast
Feb 3, 2011 10:52 AM CST

Obama Prays for Egypt, Giffords, Malia's First Dance

Mark Kelly, Chilean miner in attendance at National Prayer Breakfast

(Newser) - Barack Obama said his faith has deepened during his two years in the White House, and directly addressed questions about his religion, saying his Christianity has been a "sustaining force" during times when he and his family's faith has been questioned. More highlights from today's National Prayer Breakfast in...

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