Hello
Friday's mishmash under the cut.
First, few HCR Summit leftovers:
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Dana Milbank? Is that really you??
...Republicans had been hesitant to accept President Obama's invitation to participate in Thursday's White House health-care summit. Their hesitance turned out to be justified. ..
...Obama controlled the microphone and the clock, and he used both skillfully to limit the Republicans' time, to rebut their arguments and to always have the last word. ..
...The 40 lawmakers and administration officials, seated in squeaky chairs around the square, were to speak only when called on. After each talked, Obama would determine whether the speaker's point was a "legitimate argument"...
..."Let me just make this point, John," the president said when the tirade ended. "We're not campaigning anymore. The election's over." Teacher directed student to drop the "talking points" and "focus on the issues of how we actually get a bill done."
...Obama made McConnell look small in his chair. "You're right, there was an imbalance on the opening statements," he said, "because I'm the president."
...House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio), in his turn, tried all the Republican buzzwords: "scrap this bill . . . bankrupt our country . . . dangerous experiment . . . government takeover of health care . . . new taxes . . . Medicare cuts . . . unconstitutional."
Obama shook his head. "John," he scolded, "every so often, we have a pretty good conversation trying to get on some specifics, and then we go back to, you know, the standard talking points."
It was the Blair House equivalent of being ordered to wear the dunce cap.
Joe Conason: Propaganda meets professor at the health summit
...Although much too long to be called a teachable moment, today’s session offered a real chance to learn what leading Republican politicians really think about healthcare, insurance companies and working people who don’t enjoy the same kind of coverage that we provide for them. And it also emphasized what Americans already know and appreciate about Obama -- namely, that he has allowed the opposition many chances to seek bipartisan compromise, only to be spurned in the most cynical way every time.,,,
...In his summation, Obama was as masterful as usual in such circumstances. He outlined the potential areas of agreement, delineated the sharp points of dispute, and explained why Democrats should not be intimidated by polls. He said again that his purpose is to achieve what every other advanced nation does for its people – to provide health security for all at a reasonable cost to the nation. He offered a final chance to seek consensus between the parties, to be followed by "hard choices."
LA Times editorial:
What did Obama's summit prove? That Democrats are on the right track, and need to get a bill passed.
...The session identified a number of areas where the Democrats' proposal could be improved, such as removing special deals for states and providing more flexibility in the choice of plan. But rather than making a persuasive case for starting over, Republicans showed that their half-steps wouldn't get to the root of the problems they're trying to solve. That alone should persuade Democrats to move forward -- through reconciliation, if necessary.
Reuters: Obama dominates the room at healthcare summit
...Obama dominated the debate during Thursday's nearly seven hour cross-party summit on healthcare, always in command not only of the room but also of the most intricate policy details, as he personally rebutted every point he disagreed with.
His tone was at times professorial, occasionally combative and at one point even dismissive of his 2008 rival for the presidency, Republican Senator John McCain...
...Convening nearly 40 lawmakers around a cramped square table in the Blair House guest quarters across from the White House, Obama was at his most schoolmasterly as he warned participants against turning the event into "political theater" or an exercise in pointscoring.
He was almost scornful of Republican Congressman Eric Cantor for sitting behind a copy of the 2,700-page Democratic legislation the Republicans say is overly complex and beholden to special interests.
"We don't care for this bill," Cantor said.
Obama accused him of using the pile of papers as "a prop".
"The truth of the matter," he added, "is that healthcare is very complicated."
Newsweek' Quote of the Day:
"I even had one constituent—you will not believe this, and I know you won't, but it's true—her sister died. This poor woman had no dentures—she wore her dead sister's teeth, which of course were uncomfortable, did not fit. Did you ever believe that in America that that's where we would be? This is the last chance as far as I'm concerned, particularly on the export business. We have fallen behind, we're no longer the biggest manufacturer in the world, we've lost our technological edge. We have an opportunity to do that, but a major part of the success of that is getting this health care passed."
--Rep. Louise Slaughter of New York, speaking at this afternoon's health-care summit.
And just for the fun, here's Obama really trying hard to hide how much he despise Eric Cantor:
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Obama names labor leader to fiscal commission
President Obama announced today his appointees to a recently created bipartisan fiscal commission, including prominent labor leader and Democratic activist Andy Stern.
Stern, chairman of the Service Employees International Union, is one of the most powerful figures in the labor movement and has pushed aggressively for a number of Democratic causes, including healthcare reform...
...Other appointees include Alice Rivlin, former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ann Fudge, former CEO of Young and Rubicam Brands, and Dan Cote, CEO of Honewell.
...The choice of Stern is already drawing fire from business groups.
The Workforce Fairness Institute, which has steadfastly opposed major labor legislation supported by SEIU, blasted the decision in a statement Friday morning.
"Either the White House doesn’t read the newspaper or simply doesn’t care, but naming Andy Stern as a member of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility doesn’t pass the laugh test," said Katie Packer, the group's executive director.
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U.S. Economy Grew at 5.9% Annual Pace Last Quarter
Feb. 26 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. economy expanded at a 5.9 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter, more than the government reported last month, reflecting stronger business investment and a greater contribution from inventories.
The rise in gross domestic product, which exceeded the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News, marked the best performance in more than six years, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Inventories added 3.88 percentage points to GDP, more than previously reported, and investment in software and equipment grew at the fastest pace in almost a decade...
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Afghan Flag Raised Over Marja
After 12 days of combat, U.S. commanders said today the worst of the fighting is over and as if to prove the point they watched as the new Afghan government raised its flag over the former Taliban stronghold of Marja for the first time in years.
U.S. military commanders were upbeat, bolstered by the high turnout in the center of town to watch the flag raising ceremony and the swearing-in of Abdul Zahir Aryan as the town's new administrator.
"What you see here is Afghan government getting under way and the hard work really starts from today onwards," Major Gen. Nick Carter said.
Slowly residents are returning home to the town that international and Afghan forces began clearing of Taliban militants 12 days ago.
"We are in control of all the key populated areas of Marja, we're in control of all the key infrastructure. We're still clearing a few roads out. Our focus now is on markets. Our focus now on getting the roads open and taking care of the people," he said...
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Let's not forget Haiti.
TITAYEN, HAITI - FEBRUARY 25: Elvilhomme Desboules wears a watch with the image of U.S. President Barack Obama while digging in rocky soil to prepare for the burial of about 30 unclaimed and unidentified earthquake victims February 25, 2010 in Titayen, Haiti. About a dozen grave diggers work each week to bury the dead from the Port-au-Prince General Hospital in the same area where tens of thousands of people were buried in mass graves after last month's 7.0 earthquake that left more than 200,000 people dead and 1.2 million homeless. Titayen is also infamous as the drop site for the victims of the dictators Duvaliers' death squads, the Tonton Macoutes. (Getty Images).
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"IF YOU FALL, I'M LIABLE"!
Do not miss this vid of the National Medal of Arts and the National Humanities Medal ceremony, that was held at the White House yesterday following the health care summit. Beautiful and moving half an hour. Enjoy.
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US President Barack Obama presenting performer Rita Moreno with the 2009 National Medal of Arts during a ceremony February 25, 2010 in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC (MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)
President Barack Obama presents the 2009 National Humanities Medal to Elie Wiesel. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
President Barack Obama presents the 2009 National Medal of Arts to Jessye Norman. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
President Barack Obama presents the 2009 National Humanities Medal to Theodore C. Sorensen. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
President Barack Obama congratulates architect Maya Lin after presenting her with the 2009 National Medal of Arts. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
President Barack Obama presents the 2009 National Medal of Arts to John Williams. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
And this is in honor of John Williams, the greatest movie composer ever.
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