Obama administration

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Gates: Obama's Most Effective Secretary
Gates: Obama's Most Effective Secretary
Analysis
May 15, 2009 8:28 AM CDT

Gates: Obama's Most Effective Secretary

Republican holdover provides political cover on tough calls

(Newser) - Keeping Robert Gates as secretary of defense is starting to look like Barack Obama’s shrewdest personnel move, argues Gerald Seib in the Wall Street Journal. As someone appointed by the last two Republican presidents, Gates “brought to the table a credibility that no Obama appointee would have had,...

Prez Taps NYC Health Head to Lead CDC

Frieden will steer country's response to swine flu

(Newser) - President Obama today appointed Dr. Thomas Frieden as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, turning to New York City's health commissioner to deal with the swine flu outbreak and other major health issues. Frieden has served as commissioner for the past 7 years, where he led a...

Obama to Restart Gitmo Tribunals
Obama to Restart Gitmo Tribunals
May 15, 2009 6:21 AM CDT

Obama to Restart Gitmo Tribunals

But this time, suspects will have more rights, legal protections

(Newser) - President Obama will restart military tribunals for a small number of Guantanamo detainees—reviving a trial system he once said the Bush administration had abused—but with new legal protections for terror suspects, officials said. The trials will remain frozen for another 4 months as the administration adjusts the legal...

First Fox: Michelle Hits Maxim's Hot 100 List

(Newser) - First lady Michelle Obama has joined the rarefied ranks of Maxim’s 100 hottest women in the world, AFP reports. Obama, who comes in at 93 on the list, is described in the lad mag as the “stimulus package America really needs.” She's the first first lady to...

Rahm's Secret Service Name Is ...

(Newser) - Oh, the possibilities. Marc Ambinder in the Atlantic, says he’s learned the Secret Service code name for White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel. Rahmbo? Nope. A play on his favorite expletive? Sorry. It’s actually the rather dull Black Hawk. The agency assigned it to him during the...

Pelosi's CIA Charges Hardly Jibe With Obama Talk Points

(Newser) - Nancy Pelosi’s accusation that the CIA lied to Congress about waterboarding will likely have broad political consequences, Chris Cillizza writes in the Washington Post. In the short term, Pelosi has stolen President Obama’s thunder on credit-card reform and could force the early announcement of a Supreme Court nominee...

Obama's Economic Policies Skirt Abuse of Power
Obama's Economic Policies Skirt Abuse of Power
OPINION
May 14, 2009 10:40 AM CDT

Obama's Economic Policies Skirt Abuse of Power

'Dependency agenda' is corrupt: Will

(Newser) - It’s easy for President Obama to be a bold leader, given his administration's “careless regard for constitutional values” and burgeoning “tincture of lawlessness,” writes George Will in the Washington Post. Obama is pursuing a dependency agenda, he argues, “maximizing the number of people and institutions...

Democrats Lose Patience Over Wars, Gitmo

Support ebbs on left as Obama's security plans look uncertain

(Newser) - Democrats are having misgivings about the war in Afghanistan and the shuttering of Guantanamo Bay, particularly in the more liberal House, the New York Times reports. Though Congress is sure to approve another $96.7 billion in war funding, the House took out $80 million to close Guantanamo, saying the...

Obama's Photo Flip-Flop Has Political Roots
Obama's Photo Flip-Flop Has Political Roots
ANALYSIS
May 14, 2009 6:26 AM CDT

Obama's Photo Flip-Flop Has Political Roots

White House wasn't prepared for scale of torture outrage

(Newser) - Barack Obama's about-face on the release of photographs of abused detainees has angered civil libertarian groups, who have denounced the president for turning back on campaign promises. But as Politico writes, the move demonstrated how carefully the administration is treading on an issue that has become explosive, subsuming George Bush's...

Courts Unlikely to Block Release of Torture Pics

White House has slim hopes for appeal, may look to Congress

(Newser) - Barack Obama has said he wants to prevent the publication of photos depicting abuse of  detainees, but legal experts say the White House has an uphill battle in reversing the court decision to release them. The administration thinks that the Bush-era lawyers did not make a sufficiently strong case in...

Drugs Czar Calls for End to 'War on Drugs'

Change in terminology signals shift in drug policy towards treatment instead of jail

(Newser) - The Obama administration's newly confirmed drug czar wants to ditch the term "War on Drugs," the Wall Street Journal reports. The combative term is a barrier to dealing with the issue properly, said Gil Kerlikowske, highlighting the administration's plans to deal with drug abuse as a public...

Gitmo Inmates May Be Held Indefinitely in US

Detainees may be held without trial under authority of national security court

(Newser) - The Obama administration is considering moving the remaining detainees at Guantanamo Bay to US soil and holding them in prisons indefinitely without trial, the Wall Street Journal reports. The proposal would take place under the authority of a new national-security court, according to Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, who has met...

Obama Wants to Tame Wild Derivatives Market

(Newser) - President Obama wants to put the so-called dark markets under control, the New York Times reports, seeking congressional approval to regulate the byzantine world of derivatives trading—which played a large role in the current financial mess. In a letter to lawmakers, Treasury chief Timothy Geithner calls for an oversight...

Health Care Reform: What We Can Agree On
 Health Care Reform: 
 What We Can Agree On 
analysis
May 13, 2009 1:54 PM CDT

Health Care Reform: What We Can Agree On

High costs hurt all of us—here's how we can cut them

(Newser) - The issue of health care reform crops up regularly, then disappears—but now it may have a foothold, writes Karen Tumulty in Time. That’s because the focus of the issue is on the current system’s huge cost to everyone. Much of the spending may be unnecessary, and a...

Obama Reverses, Will Block Release of Abuse Photos

In reversal, president says images would endanger US troops

(Newser) - President Obama has reversed position and will oppose the release of abuse photos of detainees in US custody, the Washington Post reports. "The publication of these photos would not add any additional benefit to our understanding of what was carried out in the past by a small number of...

Obama Wants Health Care Bill by Year's End

(Newser) - President Obama today called on lawmakers to send him a health care reform bill before the end of the year, the Wall Street Journal reports. “We've got to get it done this year,” the president said in a meeting with House Democrats. “We don't have any excuses,...

Publicity Hound Cheney Makes Strategic Return

Ex-VP setting himself, party up to benefit from another 9/11

(Newser) - Dick Cheney isn’t in an undisclosed location anymore. The former VP is suddenly waging a one-man campaign defending the Bush administration’s interrogation tactics. Even he can’t believe that’s a great political move, writes Michael Duffy of Time, so what’s he up to? It’s possible...

OMG, You Guys, Celebs Wear Outfits Twice!

As recession chic grows, old clothes become the new black

(Newser) - Just as fashionistas have come to terms with our first lady buying clothes off the rack and (gasp!) online, a new bombshell: celebrities are wearing outfits more than once. In public! And it's not just Mrs. O—Liz Hurley rocked the same dress twice, Cher apparently recycled a...

GOP Blocks Obama Interior Dep't Pick
GOP Blocks Obama Interior Dep't Pick
May 13, 2009 11:31 AM CDT

GOP Blocks Obama Interior Dep't Pick

Rejection of top deputy marks first Republican KO of nominee

(Newser) - Republicans have blocked President Obama's pick for the No. 2 job at the Interior Department because of a flap over oil leases in Utah. In a 57-39 Senate vote, Democrats fell short of the 60 votes they would have needed to advance the nominee past GOP obstacles. It's the first...

White House Backpedals on Releasing Torture Photos

(Newser) - The White House is rethinking its promise to release photos of detainees being abused in US custody, press secretary Robert Gibbs suggested yesterday, saying President Obama has “great concern” about the impact they would have. At issue are 44 photos targeted in a Freedom of Information Act suit by...

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