George Wenschhof
President Barack Obama will host the Apollo 11 Crew at the White House tomorrow - marking the 40th anniversary of the U.S. landing on the moon. All close to 80 now, Michael Collins, Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstong will all visit wit the president. You can read more here.
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Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in New Dehli, India - as part of a overseas trip that will also include a visit to Thailand. She spoke yesterday of hope the U.S. and India can come to an agreement on climate control measures. Both India and China with emerging technology and industrialization are currently major polluters. You can read more here.
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Meanwhile, no resolution has been reached in regard to the ouster of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya - the President of Costa Rica; Oscar Arias has been mediating talks between representatives of Manuel Zelaya and Roberto Micheletti, the interim President of Honduras. Talks centered around restoring Zelaya to power and creating a coalition government have not proved successful to date. The NY Times has more here.
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Taliban releases video of captured U.S. soldier in Afghanistan - in it, the captured soldier pleads for the people in the U.S. to pressure the government to end the war and to bring them home. These type of videos bring home the horrors of war as the captors coerce statements from prisoners to be used for propaganda purposes. MSNBC.com has the video here.
The U.S. military condemned the use of the video and said it violated international law, adding they were doing everything they could to bring the man home safely. Reuters.com has more here.
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Health Care Reform continues to move forward - in spite of the Republican Party of "No" and concerns about a rising budget deficit, the passage of universal health care is on a course for passage. President Obama has secured the support of the pharmaceutical association, the hospitals, nurses, and doctors as the push to insure the 47 uninsured Americans remains strong. Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) who has fought for this all of his political career, has a good read in Newsweek. You can read it here.
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Sunday, July 19, 2009
Daily Democratic Wire 7-19-2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
Daily Democratic Wire 7-10-2009
George Wenschhof
Today, President Barack Obama is in Rome - He will be meeting with Pope Benedict XVI. Yesterday, the G-8 agreed to contribute 20 Billion in farm aid to help feed needy nations. Reuters.com has more here.
The President then heads to Ghana where a huge crowd is expected. BBC has more here.
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Obama says health care reform will happen this year - he offered these comments from L'Aquila, Italy, prior to heading to Rome to meet with the Pope. the president is urging Congress to have a bill out by the end of August. Obama acknowledged reform was not easy due to intense lobbying by special interests who benefit from the current system. Politico.com has more here.
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Costa Rica President Oscar Arias begins mediation of Honduras situation -yesterday, he hosted separate meetings with ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya and interim President Roberto Micheletti. No agreement was reached. You can read more here.
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GM emerges from bankruptcy after only 40 days - CEO Fritz Henderson says the auto maker will focus on "customers cars, and culture". Makes you wonder, what were they focusing on previously? Let's see how they do now that their massive debt has been eliminated. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Senator John Ensign (R-Nev.) stays in spotlight as his parents admit they gave his mistress's family $96,000 - a benevolent gift, of course and not to be confused with the term "hush money". I guess the line "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" did not apply in this case. Republicans continue to receive the headlines they do not want. TheHill.com has more here.
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Illinois Senator Roland Burris (D) will not run for election in 2010 - Democrats had their share of wackiness as the entire former governor rod Blagojevich saga was being played out. Along the way, the Governor appointed Burris to fill the vacant U.S. Senate seat held previously by Barack Obama. Burris is set to announce today, he will not run for election next year. The Chicago Sun-Times has more here. One Democrat to watch in the coming primary, is businessman Chris Kennedy, the son of the late Robert F. Kennedy.
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Monday, June 29, 2009
Daily Democratic Wire 6-29-2009
George Wenschhof
Today, President Barack Obama will meet with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe - the meeting to be held at the White House will likely cover the U.S. concerns in regard to Human Rights and Colombian interest in a trade pact. The Washington Post has more here. It was just last year during the presidential campaign that Mark Penn, a senior adviser to the Hillary Clinton campaign, caught some flack over his company representing Colombia in regard to trade negotiations.
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Meanwhile in South America, a coup results in the ouster of Honduras President Manuel Zelaya - President Obama called for Democracy and the rule of law and a return to power of Zelaya. U.S. diplomats are working to ensure the safety of Zelaya and his family. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Over in Iran, results from a partial recount are expected to be released at the end of today - the government indicated they were conducting a recount of 10% of the vote. Hard to say what the recount will tell us as Iran Supreme Leader Khamenei has already ruled the election will stand. Reuters.com has more here.
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Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak to meet with U.S. Middle East Envoy George Mitchell - it is expected during a meeting in D.C. tomorrow, Israel will offer to suspend building on the West Bank for a period of 3-6 months as negotiations continue toward a two-state solution with Palestine. President Obama has said that Israel must stop the settlements in the West Bank in order for peaceful solutions to move forward. The NY Times has more here.
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Back home in the U.S., Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty (R) says he will not delay issuing certificate to Al Franken (D) - the Minnesota supreme court is expected to rule soon on the vote challenge by Norm Coleman (R). Minnesota has been one Senator short on Capitol Hill since the November 2008 election due to legal challenges by Coleman. Politico.com has more here.
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The Obamas decide on a Church - after visiting many of the churches in D.C., they have decided on the Evergreen Chapel located at Camp David, the presidential retreat. It is a nondenominational church and is the same one used by former President George W. Bush. Time.com has more here.
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