Daily Political Wire 6-5-2010

George Wenschhof

Today, President Obama is expected to make a statement to the press at 10:30 AM ET - while he may address the drop in unemployment, the gulf coast oil crisis, or the latest seizure by Israel of a humanitarian aid ship bound for Gaza, the most likely announcement will be his nomination of Dennis Clapper for Director of National Intelligence. He currently serves as the Pentagon's Intelligence Chief. CBS News has more here.

He would replace Dennis Blair who resigned when questions concerning coordination and sharing of information among intelligence agencies surfaced after the Christmas Day underwear airline bomber attempt.

The position was created after 9/11 when a myriad of questions arose concerning the integration efforts of U.S. intelligence agencies.

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Tomorrow's Sunday morning "Talking Heads" lineup - The president's point man on the BP oil spill; Admiral Thad Allen, will appear on four of the morning shows. He has done a credible job of communicating the efforts to date of BP and the government to both stop the leak and protect wildlife and the environment. Otherwise, Sunday morning promises to be a grab bag of topics; ranging from the heated Arkansas Democratic senate run-off election, to discussion on the Climate bill, to RNC Chair Michael Steele trying to elevate the attention on the WH job offers to Democratic candidates.

NBC "Meet The Press" - no show today - French Open coverage

CBS "Face The Nation" - Admiral Thad Allen, Senator Bill Nelson (D-Fla.)

ABC "This Week" - Admiral Thad Allen. Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.) and John Cornyn (R-Tex.)

CNN "State of The Union" - Admiral Thad Allen. Arkansas Lt. Governor Bill Halter and incumbent Senator Blanche Lincoln. Halter has enjoyed the support of the liberal Netroots and riding the support of those voters wanting change. While, Lincoln has benefited by the support of former President Bill Clinton.

Fox News Sunday" - Admiral Thad Allen, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour (R), Israel Ambassador Michael Oren, and RNC chair Michael Steele.

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Representative Charles Rangel (D-NY) expected to announce reelection bid tomorrow - even though he continues to be under investigation over ethics charges. Earlier, he had stepped down as chair of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. Politico.com has more here.

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Israel seizes another aid ship bound for Gaza - this time there was no violence or deaths as the ship was boarded by Israelis by sea. The ship; MV Rachel Corrie was named after an American who was accidentally crushed to death by an Israeli operated bulldozer while protesting the demolition of houses on the Gaza Strip in 2003. MSNBC.com has more here.

Let's hope this nonsense ends soon with UN inspections and oversight put in place so humanitarian aid can safely be transported to Gaza. It is hard to believe Israel does not see how their actions prohibiting aid are helping the militant political group Hamas in Gaza.

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