NOT SO HEARD NEWS
Malia and Sasha go Hollywood
By Carol E. Lee
November 11, 2008
If you’re 10 or 7 years old, there are few things in life that would be bigger than meeting Miley Cyrus – aka Hannah Montana, the teenage pop sensation. Even if your dad just made history by being elected president of the United States, time on the set of “Hannah Montana” would be huge.
So reports that Malia and Sasha Obama, whose parents have made no secret of their kids’ devotion to the show, might appear on the popular Disney program this spring spawned a bit of a frenzy. MTV called press officers for the Obama transition. The Obama transition denied the girls had ever been asked. Disney, after fielding media inquires from around the world, issued a statement clarifying the matter.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15532.html
Arnold may consider Obama energy post
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said in an interview aired Sunday that he would be open to the idea of serving as energy czar in a Barack Obama administration.
Regardless of whether he takes that particular job, Schwarzenegger, a Republican, added on ABC’s “This Week” that he’s now committed to continuing public service even after he leaves Sacramento.
Schwarzenegger endorsed John McCain at the end of January, and McCain has appeared with “the Governator” to praise his efforts to deal with climate change.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0708/11710.html
No shirt, no shoes, no public service
By Helena Andrews | 6/26/08 4:52 AM EST
Robert Primus has a pet peeve he is reminded of between May and September.
“I actually have a problem with how most offices dress or how they allow their offices to dress,” said Primus, chief of staff for Rep. Michael E. Capuano (D-Mass.). “I don’t care if it’s summertime or not.”
“I always say that staff should not look like tourists,” he added.
Flip-flops, heightened hemlines, tank tops, spaghetti straps, Capri pants and, of course, jeans are all on Primus’ haute hit list, and there are other offices that agree.
“When our constituents make the effort to come visit us in Washington, we make the effort to greet them in a professional and respectful manner,” said Catherine McKenna Ribeiro, a spokeswoman for Rep. John F. Tierney (D-Mass.). “We are not at the beach.”
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0608/11339.html
Clinton and Obama are chums on Senate floor
By Manu Raju
Posted: 02/06/08 07:59 PM [ET]
A day after the biggest primary night of the election season, Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.) had a brief but warm interaction on the Senate floor during a cliffhanger vote over a Democratic economic stimulus package.
The two largely avoided eye contact during the vote, even as they stood feet away from each other and huddled with senators who have endorsed their respective campaigns.
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/clinton-and-obama-are-chums-on-senate-floor-2008-02-06.html
GOP Senators Reassess Views About McCain
His Old Foes Still Wary Of His Pugnacious Style
By Paul Kane
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 4, 2008; Page A01
John McCain once testified under oath that a Senate colleague inappropriately used tobacco corporation donations to sway votes on legislation. He cursed out another colleague in front of 20 senators and staff members, questioning the senator's grip on immigration legislation. And, on the Senate floor, McCain (R-Ariz.) accused another colleague of "egregious behavior" for helping a defense contractor in a move he said resembled "corporate scandals."
And those were just the Republicans.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/03/AR2008020303242.html
Bush to charge lawmakers $200 for budget hard copy
By Alexander Bolton
Posted: 01/30/08 12:01 AM [ET]
President Bush’s budget proposal has never been popular on Capitol Hill, but this year’s request comes with an added layer of insult: a price tag of $200.
In the past, the administration gave away about 3,000 free copies of its budget proposal to lawmakers, federal agencies and members of the media. But next week, when Bush submits the last of his eight budget requests to Congress, the White House only plans to post it on the Internet.
Warming bill goes new distance
By: Daniel W. Reilly
Jan 16, 2008 06:02 AM EST
While lobbyists of all sorts mobilize around the climate change bill, Senate leaders are mulling the best timing to push the legislation.
“There has been some melting of the icebergs here in the Senate,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), referring to the softening stances of some of her hard-line Republican colleagues. “You have some real acknowledgement that there is a problem and we need to move forward.”
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0108/7921.html
Senate GOPers meeting to form message strategy
By Manu Raju
Posted: 01/16/08
Senate Republicans announced Tuesday they will hold a closed-door retreat next week to discuss what kind of message to take to voters as they head into a bleak election landscape.
The Jan. 23 retreat at the Library of Congress will mark the first time a meeting is convened by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.). He was elected in December as the new chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, which spearheads the conference’s messaging and communications strategy.
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/senate-gopers-meeting-to-form-message-strategy-2008-01-16.html
Gen X and Gen Y heading for Congress in November
By Aaron Blake
January 15, 2008
More than a dozen 20- and 30-somethings have a real shot at being elected to Congress this November, suggesting that the apparent surge of youthful participation in national politics is not confined to the presidential contest.
The average age of members of Congress has crept steadily toward 60, but retirements should make way for some very young blood when a new House of Representatives is sworn in next January.
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/gen-x-and-gen-y-heading-for-congress-in-november-2008-01-15.html
White House Secrecy Starts to Give
As Congress Intensifies Efforts for Openness, Administration Accedes
By Elizabeth Williamson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, January 13, 2008; Page A05
After years of hammering on the walls of secrecy surrounding the Bush White House, activists and Congress have begun, slowly, to open some cracks.
A federal magistrate on Tuesday ordered the administration to reveal by this week whether it has backup copies of millions of missing White House e-mails, which may describe decisions related to the Iraq war.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/12/AR2008011202308.html?nav=hcmodule
House Panel Delays Testimony by Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte
By Edward Epstein, CQ Staff
A much-anticipated House committee hearing next week at which ace pitchers Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte were asked to testify about the use of illegal performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball has been postponed until Feb 13.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee said the hearing was delayed from Jan. 16 to allow the panel to obtain the testimony of Kirk Radomski, a former bat boy and equipment manager for the New York Mets who has pleaded guilty to distributing illegal performance enhancing drugs to dozens of major league players. He faces sentencing after the originally date for the hearing.
http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?parm1=1&docID=news-000002653476
Bush Lauds Economy for Its Resilience
President Bush gave a wide-ranging speech about the economy yesterday, but proposed no new policies to deal with the emerging economic distress. Instead, he asked Congress to take up various actions that have been mainstays of the administration's second-term economic policy.
Bush stressed that the economy has been resilient in responding to problems, an apparent rebuke to those who have predicted that the downturn in housing and financial markets will cause prolonged weakness.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/07/AR2008010702941.html
California Sues EPA Over Emissions Rules
15 Other States Back Effort to Win Waiver to Allow the Setting of Tougher Standards
By Keith B. Richburg
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, January 3, 2008; Page A02
NEW YORK, Jan. 2 -- California, joined by 15 other states led by New York, sued the Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday over its refusal to allow the state to set its own, tougher vehicle-emissions standards to control greenhouse gases and combat global warming.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/02/AR2008010202833.html
Events Near and Far Overshadow Bush's Agenda
By Amy Gardner
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 2, 2008; Page A02
On the first day of his last year in the White House, President Bush returned to Washington with an ambitious agenda for 2008, including tackling the mortgage lending crisis and securing more money from Congress for Iraq.
Those plans, however, face significant challenges, not the least of which are Bush's approval ratings and his ability to take national attention away from those campaigning to replace him.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/01/AR2008010101821.html
Candi Wolff leaves White House
By: Patrick O'Connor
Dec 28, 2007 06:02 AM EST
Candi Wolff on Friday concludes her three-year run as the president's top congressional liaison after helping George W. Bush navigate the rockiest stretch of his presidency.
Her tenure began with the failed push to reform Social Security and ended last week with a string of legislative wins for the White House, which included an unfettered $70 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1207/7586.html