George Wenschhof
Today, President Obama and the First Family will travel to the Gulf - he will participate in a roundtable discussion with residents in Panama City, Florida. Also attending the discussion will be Florida Independent candidate for Senate; Governor Charlie Crist. At 1:00 PM ET, the president will address the press.
Expect an update on the "Top kill" effort by BP which has apparently stopped the flow of oil into the Gulf. the question now is whether the "bottom kill" with a relief well will help or hurt the current status of the well.
Last night, the president made news when he spoke at the Iftar dinner celebrating the Muslim holy month - he expressed his support of the building of a Mosque near ground zero in New York City. He went on to talk about religious freedom in America being one of the main foundations of our country. You can read the president's remarks here.
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Pennsylvania Republican Senate candidate Pat Toomey is target of first ad by DSCC - the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee calls Toomey "a Wall Street wheeler-dealer" whose campaign is being funded by the financial industry.
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South Carolina senate candidate Alvin Greene indicted - on charges he showed pornography on a computer to a student. TheHill.com has more here. While convictions of this sort are rare, it continues to be a problem for Democrats who are still wondering how he won the primary with essentially no campaign. He will be facing Republican Senator Jim DeMint in the General Election.
Look for renewed efforts by the state Democratic Party to replace Greene on the Ballot.
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New Afghanistan Disclosures coming from Wikileaks.org - in spite of threats from the u.S. Pentagon, the organization plans to publish an addition 15,000 documents. The pentagon has fear of putting individuals in harms way and damaging U.S. security. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Saturday, August 14, 2010
Daily Political Wire 8-14-2010
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Friday, February 13, 2009
Democratic Chatter 2-13-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
The House to vote on the 789 billion Stimulus bill today - this is the House-Senate compromise that came out of conference committee. It is expected to pass easily in the House and the Senate is expected to vote on it tomorrow. Time.com has more here.
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President Obama continues to stumble with Cabinet picks - the first three weeks of his Presidency has not been kind as a third Cabinet nominee announces his withdrawal. This time it was Republican Senator Judd Gregg (NH) who said yesterday his philosophical differences with the Obama administration would not allow him to serve as Commerce Secretary. Questions continue regarding the vetting process. When Gregg was announced as the nominee, liberal bloggers pointed out Gregg has supported discontinuation of the Commerce Department. TheHill.com has more here
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New chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee targets nine seats in 2010 - never too early to start the rhetoric. Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) recently took over the chair from Senator Charles Schumer from New York who was able to claim large gains and a new Democratic majority while he served as chair. Menendez pointed out five open seats in Florida, Ohio, Missouri, New Hampshire, and Kansas and four other states where he feels Democrats will be competitive. The other states were Louisiana, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania. Out of the last four states, the Senate seat held by Republican Arlen Specter is the most likely pick up with Republicans going after Specter in the Primary due to his support of the Stimulus bill. CNN.com has more here.
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Leon Panetta confirmed by Senate for CIA Director - there was some initial hesitation by some Senators who questioned his total lack of experience in the intelligence field. however, in the end, he was approved by a voice vote in the Senate yesterday. Hilda Solis, the nominee for Labor Secretary, won approval in the senate committee and will be scheduled for a senate vote as early as today. The NY Times Caucus blog has more here.
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Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) proposes special commission to investigate possible wrongdoings by the George W. Bush administration - this is a hot topic among the more liberal Democrats who want investigation into possible illegal wiretapping, use of the Justice Department for political purposes, and the use of torture on detainees. A USAToday/Gallup poll conducted January 30 - February 1 showed 60% of Americans favored some type of investigation into these actions. While only 41% favored criminal probes. So far, the Obama administration has not indicated any desire to begin these proceedings. Gallup.com has more here.
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On the foreign policy front, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton leaves today for her first official trip - she is off to Asia to visit China, Japan, Indonesia and South Korea. Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke is in Afghanistan and Senator John Kerry (D-Ma.) is scheduled to visit countries in the Middle East next week. Politico.com has more here.
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