Democratic Chatter 3-13-2009

George Wenschhof Bio

Today, President Barack Obama will meet with Paul Volcker and receive a report on the 787 billion Stimulus Plan - Mr. Volcker is a former Federal reserve chair who is presently the chair of the Economic Recovery Board established by Obama. This afternoon, the President is expected to meet with the Press. Time.com has more here.

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Vice President Joe Biden will speak at Union Station today - he will be discussing the positive impact of the stimulus Plan on Amtrak. The Vice President will also swear in Labor Secretary Hilda Solis today. The Washington post has more here.

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How long will Michael Steele survive as RNC Chair? - since narrowly winning the chair of the Republican National Committee after 6 rounds of voting, Mr. Steele has had one misstep after another. While a delight to many Democrats, he has become an embarrassment to the Republican Party. His latest flap took place during an interview with GQ Magazine when he said he favored a woman's choice to an abortion. He went on to say it should be a state decision and not a federal decision. He has since been busy clarifying his statement. CNN.com has more here.

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Another withdraws from consideration for Deputy Director at Treasury - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is having a hard time getting out of the gate. Rodgin Cohen is the third to withdraw from consideration within the last week. Speculation is Geithner is a very good behind the scenes person, but not a good one to be leading the show and facing the spotlight. If this is true, the Obama administration should make a move here quickly as the Treasury Secretary will continue to be in the news daily during the economic crisis. Politico.com has more here.

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FBI raids D.C. office of Chief technology Officer - two individuals were arrested in a investigation of corruption. The head of this agency, Vivek Kundra was named recently by President Obama to be the federal government Chief Information Officer. Kundra is not considered a suspect in the investigation. Reuters.com has more here.

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Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao expresses concern about their investment in U.S. debt - this will certainly cause the Obama administration to listen as the Chinese government has 1 Trillion invested in U.S. debt. Stay tuned as foreign investment in U.S. debt has been a topic for discussion for some time. It is difficult to conduct sincere diplomatic discussions when a country's debt is secured by the country you are talking with on an international relations issue. The NY Times has more here.

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