George Wenschhof Bio
The economy will continue to be the focus of discussion by pundits this coming Sunday morning. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will appear on "Meet The Press" and "This Week". Perhaps Mr. Geithner feels buoyed by the third straight week of gains on the Dow Jones. This is the first time that has happened in almost a year.
Geithner is not exactly a good front man so we will all get to see how he does explaining his latest public-private partnership plan to rid banks of their toxic assets. In addition, he will be asked about his request from Congress of new regulations on financial institutions.
On Monday, the president's auto industry task force will be announcing their recommendations to the automakers on how to restructure their companies. These changes will be monitored and tied to the receipt of the additional 22 billion that has been requested by GM and Chrysler. Let's see if anyone brings this up for discussion.
The president appears on "Face The Nation" so expect him to receive the same financial questions as Mr. Geithner. Another subject that will receive attention Sunday morning is the war in Afghanistan. President Obama announced an additional 4000 troops to be deployed and 1.5 billion in yearly aid to Pakistan for the next five years. It will be interesting to see if the president receives tough questions regarding sending this amount of aid to the unstable government in Pakistan. Getting the U.S. out of Iraq and into a quagmire in Afghanistan also deserves tough questions.
Perhaps, that is why Defense Secretary Robert Gates will be appearing on "Fox News Sunday" and General Petraeus and U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke will appear on "State of The Union".
As always, remember to check your local listings for time and channel. Below is a list of the guests appearing on the Sunday Morning "Talking Heads". Tune in and enjoy.
NBC "Meet The Press" - David Gregory will interview Senator John McCain (R-Az.) and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.
ABC "This Week" - George Stephanopoulos also interviews Timothy Geithner. The roundtable will include Matthew Dowd, Paul Krugman, George Will, and Cokie Roberts.
CBS "Face The Nation" - Bob Schieffer will lead the ratings this Sunday morning as his guest is President Barack Obama.
Fox News Sunday - Chris Wallace will interview Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
CNN "State of The Union" - John King lands General David Petraeus and Richard Holbrooke who is the U.S. special envoy for Afganistan and Pakistan. Also appearing will be Senators Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Representative John Spratt (D-SC) is also on the show.
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Saturday, March 28, 2009
Sunday Morning "Talking Heads" Guests for 3-29-2009
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Democratic Chatter 3-15-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
Tomorrow, President Barack Obama will announce steps being taken to help small business - He will discuss measures being taken to provide billions in lending aid to small business owners. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner back from a meeting with the G-20 nations will also be present. Small business has long been recognized as generating employment opportunities across the country. You can read more here.
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Yesterday, President Obama tells China and other countries that investments in U.S. debt are sound - this came during a press conference following a meeting with the President of Brazil, Ignacio Lula da Silva. The Chinese have 1 trillion invested in U.S. Treasury notes. TheHill.com has more here.
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Wow! AIG to pay 165 million in bonuses after receiving 170 billion in bail out funds - American voters will be outraged when they hear this. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner reportedly demanded the bonuses not be paid but lawyers for American International Group said they were obligated to pay them. How does a company pay bonuses in this situation? More importantly, should the government continue to provide funds to AIG? The NY Times has more here.
CNN is reporting this morning that AIG CEO Edward Liddy sent a letter to Geithner yesterday pledging a reduction in bonuses by 30%. The question remains how do you pay millions of bonuses to employees of a company on the verge of collapse?
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Left leaning groups coming together to form Unity '09 - reportedly many left leaning groups are coming together to promote positions on issues. Groups, such as MoveOn.org, American Civil Liberties Union, Panned Parenthood and others are involved. Aarin Pickrell a senior aide in the Obama campaign is said to be heading the day to day activities. Politico.com has more here.
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On the foreign policy front, keep an eye on Pakistan where police are battling protesters - fueled by a continuing rift between rivals Nawaz Sharif and President Asif ali Zardari. Sharif lost to Zardari in recent elections and the two have been unable to reach a power sharing agreement in this nuclear armed nation. The stability of Pakistan is imperative in the success of the U.S. in regard to Afghanistan and the Taliban. Stay tuned. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Monday, March 9, 2009
Democratic Chatter 3-9-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
This morning, President Barack Obama will sign an executive order reversing the ban on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research - the ban had been put in place by the previous George W. Bush administration. You can read more here.
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Warren Buffet's latest comments and a volatile worldwide market may lead to losses on the Dow today - Stocks in Europe and Asia both fell as the week started. The NY Times has more here. Meanwhile, Buffet said this morning on CNBC that the economy "has fallen off a cliff". CNBC.com has more here. Expect both Buffet's comment and the losses in Asia and Europe to have a negative impact on the Dow Jones today.
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President Obama returns from Camp David early to attend Tribute to Senator Ted Kennedy - the Tribute was held at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.. Senator Kennedy received the John F. Kennedy "Profile in Courage" annual award while celebrating his 77th birthday. Many stars and politicians were in attendance including James Taylor, Bill Cosby, Lauren BaCall. CNN.com has more here.
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Senate expected to approve 410 billion omnibus bill tomorrow - much political bluster has resulted from this bill which Congress was unable to approve last Thursday. A stop gap government agency funding measure was approved for five days as elected officials from both sides of the aisle pointed fingers. The ballyhoo is over earmarks and there are plenty of them that were tacked on by both Republican and Democratic representatives. TheHill.com has more here.
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Vice President Joe Biden is off to Brussels today - he will be meeting with NATO allies to discuss Afghanistan and Pakistan. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was there last week as the Obama administration develops their plan for U.S. involvement in Afghanistan. You can read more here.
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Saturday, February 14, 2009
Democratic Chatter 2-14-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
This morning, in his weekly address to the nation, President Barack Obama spoke of the passage by Congress of his American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan - better known as the 787 billion Stimulus bill. He cautioned there are no quick fixes for the economy and recognized some questioned the effectiveness of the bill. He said Americans can check on the progress of the bill at http://www.recovery.gov/. You can watch his speech below.
privacy policy download .mp4 also available here audio
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787 billion Stimulus bill passes late last night in the Senate - the vote in the Senate was 60-38 and the reason for the late hour approval was they waited for Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Oh.) to return from memorial services for his mother who had passed away. In fact, the White House arranged for a plane to fly him to D.C. and then back to Ohio in order for him to attend funeral services today. He gave passage of the bill a veto-proof measure of victory. Senator Edward Kennedy was unable to make the vote as he was in Florida receiving treatment for his brain cancer.
You wonder where the 100th vote went? Well, it wasn't cast due to no resolution to the Minnesota Senate race involving Norm Coleman (R) and Al Franken (D). The three Republican Senators to vote in favor of the bill were Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins from Maine along with Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania. Republican Senator Judd Gregg who just withdrew from consideration for Commerce Secretary voted against the bill.
The House vote was 246-183 with seven Democrats voting with all Republicans against passage of the Stimulus bill. So much for bipartisan spirit in Washington.... The President is expected to have a bill signing ceremony on Monday. The NY Times has more here.
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Speaking of the Minnesota Senate race - yesterday, a three judge panel issued a ruling that appears will not be helpful for Republican Norm Coleman who is arguing for more rejected absentee ballots to be counted. The ruling was there had been not been a statewide problem in the counting of absentee ballots. They also provided a conservative guideline for the judges to use in determining what rejected absentee ballots should be examined. Maybe, by the end of the month Democrat Al Franken will be sworn in. Politico.com has more here.
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President Obama lays out ambitious agenda for the next two weeks - not slowing down, the President plans to present his plan to aid the housing crisis next Wednesday while in Phoenix, Arizona. On February 23, the President intends to hold a "fiscal responsibility" summit where social security and medicare will be discussed. The following day, Obama will give a speech to the joint session of Congress. CNN.com has more here.
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New fodder for Republicans to scream about - seems Representative Grace Napolitano (D-Calf.) loaned her campaign $150,000 back in 1998. Over the last ten years she has served in Congress, the campaign has paid her 18% interest on the debt amounting to $221,780 while only reducing the principle by $64,727. In 1999, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) ruled the interest payments were allowable. Nonetheless, in this economic crisis climate, expect this issue to gain traction among Republicans. Bloomberg.com has more here.
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On the foreign policy front, U.S. fired missiles from drones kill 25 militants in Pakistan - this is the third U.S. missile strike within Pakistan since Obama became President. It is being reported the killed were al-Qaeda linked militants and the location was in the South Waristan region. Pakistan has expressed outrage of the continued U.S. missile strikes within their country. Reuters.com has more here.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave her first foreign policy speech yesterday to the Asia Society in New York - she will be leaving on her first trip as Secretary of State next week to visit Japan, China, South Korea, and Indonesia. MSNBC.com has more here.
Special envoy to Afghanistan/ Pakistan Richard Holbrooke met with Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai - the Karzai administration/U.S. relationship has been deteriorating as the Taliban has regained strength in Afghanistan. President Karzai has also expressed displeasure of U.S. military tactics which have caused civilian deaths. You can read more here.
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Friday, January 9, 2009
Democratic Chatter 1-9-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
Today, President-elect Barack Obama will officially announce Panetta and Blair - he is expected to hold a press conference this morning announcing what has already been leaked days ago. Leon Panetta as director of the CIA and retired Admiral Dennis Blair as national intelligence officer. Time.com has more here. Also, John Brennan is expected to be named White House Homeland Security adviser.
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Vice-President elect Joe Biden is in Pakistan - in a little publicized trip in his capacity as outgoing chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He is joined by Republican Senator Lindsay Graham. They will meet with Pakistani Leaders and discuss the war on terror and recent flare up of tensions between India and Pakistan. You can read more here.
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National unemployment rate hits 7.2% - the Labor department reported that 2.589 million jobs were lost in 2008, the most in a single year since 1945. Bloomberg.com has more here.
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UN votes 14-0 for cease-fire in the fighting in Gaza - it has now been 14 days of fighting with no immediate end in sight. The U.S. abstained in the UN vote. The NY Times has more here.
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Illinois legislative committee recommends impeachment of Blagojevich - yesterday, they voted to recommend impeachment hearings. The Illinois House is expected to vote today and if a yeah vote, the proceedings would then move to the Illinois Senate. Also yesterday, Roland Burris testified and stated there was no quid pro quo in his appointment to the vacant Senate seat by the Governor. CNN.com has more here.
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Presidential Inauguration Committee (PIC) announces 5000 Tickets will be made available to the public today - the fee is $25 and will give you access to the bleachers along the route from the Capitol to the White House. They will be made available today at 1:00 PM ET on Ticketmaster.com on a first come-first serve basis and only up to four per person. PIC has more on their website here.
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