Obama urges calm
Obama addresses the grand jury decision from the White House as rioters overtook streets in the St. Louis suburb and cable TV broadcasts showed them setting fires and attacking police cars.
We need to accept that this decision was the grand jury’s to make. There are Americans who agree with it, and there are Americans who are deeply disappointed, even angry. It’s an understandable reaction. But I join Michael’s parents in asking anyone who protests this decision to do so peacefully.
The fact is, in too many parts of this country, a deep distrust exists between law enforcement and communities of color. Some of this is the result of the legacy of racial discrimination in this country. And this is tragic because nobody needs good policing more than poor communities with higher crime rates. We need to recognize that this is not just an issue for Ferguson, this is an issue for America.
Heckled during speech
0 CommentsHecklers interrupt
President Obama several times while he gives his immigration policy speech in Chicago. The hecklers are comprised of four or five women, including one who was seated on the stage behind Obama. Though signs are banned from the event, the woman holds up a fabric banner regarding deportation policy. President Obama addresses the hecklers and continues with his speech.
OK, it’s good to be back in Chicago. But I’m not going to be able to have a conversation with each of you separately. There are other ways of engaging. Just sit down…. I know people are passionate about this. But be respectful of people who are here.
GQ’s ’30 Least Influential People’ list
Obama is named to GQ‘s 30 Least Influential People list for 2014.
Putin is conquering Europe. The CDC is playing nude Twister with Ebola patients. U2 is forcing bad songs on everyone. The NSA won’t stop watching me masturbate. I need you ON THIS. Are you even president anymore? When Obama got blasted for golfing shortly after ISIS beheaded journalist James Foley, he said,’‘I should’ve anticipated the optics.’ How do you win the presidency without knowing that golfing makes you look rich and indifferent?
Announces immigration plan
Obama announces the plan to issue an executive order that will allow around five million people living in the U.S. without legal visas to remain in the country:
We’re going to offer the following deal. If you’ve been in America for more than five years; if you have children who are American citizens or legal residents; if you register, pass a criminal background check, and you’re willing to pay your fair share of taxes – you’ll be able to apply to stay in this country temporarily, without fear of deportation. You can come out of the shadows and get right with the law.
That’s what this deal is. Now let’s be clear about what it isn’t. This deal does not apply to anyone who has come to this country recently. It does not apply to anyone who might come to America illegally in the future. It does not grant citizenship, or the right to stay here permanently, or offer the same benefits that citizens receive – only Congress can do that.
All we’re saying is we’re not going to deport you.
Federal action on immigration
Obama says that he will order his own federal action on immigration, potentially allowing five million people who are in the U.S. without legal visas to receive amnesty. He says in a video released via Facebook that the action will be announced in a speech at 8 p.m. Eastern on Thursday, Nov. 20.
Tomorrow night I’m going to be announcing, here from the White House, some steps I can take to fix our broken immigration system.
‘An act of pure evil’
President Obama denounces Kassig’s murder:
[Mr. Kassig ] was taken from us in an act of pure evil by a terrorist group. Today we offer our prayers and condolences to the parents and family of Abdul-Rahman Kassig, also known to us as Peter.
He also acknowledges the “anguish at this painful time” felt by Mr. Kassig’s family.
Declares major disaster
Obama declares the lava flow a major disaster and orders federal aid. USGS scientist:
As the flow widens of course then the downslope areas get wider as well and so the potential impact for people spreads out over a larger area
Obama: We can’t seal ourselves off
Pres. Obama says that restrictive measures that confine U.S. healthcare workers on their return from west Africa could discourage from fighting the virus at its source:
We can’t hermetically seal ourselves off
Strict travel measures won’t prevent infections:
Yes, we are likely to see a possible case elsewhere outside of these countries, and that’s true whether or not we adopt a travel ban, whether or not you adopt a quarantine. We have to keep in mind that if we’re discouraging our health care workers, who are prepared to make these sacrifices, from traveling to these places in need, then we’re not doing our job in terms of looking after our own public health and safety.
Obama: America may see more cases
The President says more cases may be unavoidable while the outbreak continues in west Africa:
We may still continue to see individual cases in America in the weeks and months ahead.
He says the U.S. healthcare system has proven to be well capable of handling Ebola cases.
‘Vote once – this isn’t Chicago’
0 CommentsObama encourages voters in Wisconsin to participate in early voting:
One week, Wisconsin. One week. One week from today you get to choose a new governor. And because early voting runs through this Friday, you don’t have to wait until election day […] You can vote all week. I mean you can only vote once, this isn’t Chicago now. I’m teasing Chicago, I’m messing with you. That was a long time ago.
Attkisson: Obama called Benghazi terror attack
Attkisson writes in Stonewalled that after Pres. Obama confronted Romney in the second presidential debate about Romney’s decision to label the Benghazi attack ‘terrorism,’ she learned that CBS’s Steve Kroft did a 60 Minutes interview with Obama the day following the attack. She says she was instructed to do a story on the debate using the 60 Minutes script, but found out later that parts of it were never aired, including part that showed Obama also apparently calling the attack an act of terror. Unaired exchange:
KROFT: Mr. President, this morning you went out of your way to avoid the use of the word terrorism in connection with the Libya attack.
OBAMA: Right.
KROFT: Do you believe that this was a terrorist attack?
OBAMA: Well, it’s too early to know exactly how this came about, what group was involved, but obviously it was an attack on Americans.
She says this was done intentionally:
I couldn’t get past the fact that upper-level journalists at CBS had been a party to misleading the public.
She says CBS posted the transcript to its website the night before the election, but it was lost in the final hours of the campaign. An internal investigation was promised but never happened.
Call from Obama
Pres. Obama calls Vinson from the White House to say the administration appreciates the effort of her and other health care workers. After the call:
We’ve got to make sure that those workers who are willing and able and dedicated to go over there in a really tough job, that they’re applauded, thanked and supported. That should be our priority. And we can make sure that when they come back they are being monitored in a prudent fashion.
Meets Obama
0 0 Mark Devlin Mark Devlin2014-10-24 14:36:462014-10-24 14:38:08Meets ObamaObama ‘shaken’
Obama condemns the shootings in Canada, saying the motive for the shootings remained unknown, but that as more becomes known, that information will be factored into U.S. security considerations.
[They are] outrageous attacks. We’re all shaken by it.
We have to remain vigilant.
Earlier Obama spoke by telephone Wednesday with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, offerring condolences on behalf of the American people.
Calls for public to avoid hysteria
Obama says in his weekly address that the virus must be kept in perspective, saying that ‘what we are seeing is not an outbreak or an epidemic in America.’ He notes that there have been three cases in a nation of 300 million, and says that he has met with a recovered patient. The U.S. knows how to fight the disease and knows the protocols, and has safely treated the five Americans who contracted the disease, while the CDC is stepping up efforts, and screening measures are in place. The U.S. can’t ‘cut itself off’ from west Africa but must stop the virus at its source. He says avoid panic:
All of us – citizens, leaders, the media – have a responsibility and a role to play. This is a serious disease, but we can’t give in to hysteria or fear-because that only makes it harder to get people the accurate information they need. We have to be guided by the science. We have to remember the basic facts
White House: Not solely a medical response
Earnest explains that Klain will lead a response effort that incorporates many government agencies and says Pres. Obama wanted a person in charge of the response who focused solely on the virus:
By bringing on Mr. Klain he will dedicate 100% of his time to coordinating this whole-of-government approach…The president recognized that the response would benefit from having someone that could devote 100% of their time to coordinating the response, and somebody like Mr. Klain, who has a strong management track record both inside government and outside has the right track record…This is much bigger than a medical response…there is a significant medical component, but it’s not solely a medical response
Obama shows frustration
President Obama is reported to show frustration in private meetings about the Ebola response, as medical officials have given information that later turned out to be wrong, guidance to local health teams has been inadequate, and it’s unclear which patients belong in which threat categories. Obama:
It’s not tight.
Axelrod:
Part of the challenge is to be assertive, to be in command, and yet not feed a kind of panic that could easily evolve here. It’s not enough to doggedly and persistently push for answers in meetings. You have to be seen doggedly and persistently pushing for answers.
People familiar with the situation say the President has placed a lot of blame on the CDC for the inadequate response. They say that a ‘business-as-usual’ attitude that persisted after Duncan’s case changed abruptly when Vinson was infected. Aide:
This Frontier thing took it out of the abstract thing and to this level where people could identify with and made them scared
They say the White House has begun to return to normal with the appointment of Klain to head the response to the virus.
Confident serious outbreak can be prevented
A White House pool report says Obama stated that the administration is confident of preventing a serious outbreak. He added that he has met, hugged, and even kissed healthcare workers at Emory who have treated Ebola patients. Obama:
We are going to have to make sure that we do not lose sight of the importance of the international response to what is taking place. I’m confident that we can prevent a serious outbreak of the disease here in the U.S.
Cancels fundraising trip
Obama cancels a trip to raise funds for Democrats before the November elections. White House:
The President’s travel today to New Jersey and Connecticut has been postponed. Later this afternoon, the President will convene a meeting with cabinet agencies coordinating the government’s Ebola response.
Hosts Democratic fundraiser
Paltrow hosts a fundraiser for President Obama in the backyard of her Brentwood mansion. After congratulating the president for endorsing equal pay for women, an issue she said is “very important to me as a working mother,” she compliments the President:
You’re so handsome that I can’t speak properly …