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Steele talks Palin

Domenico Montanaro — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 14:25:00 -0800

[NBC News]

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro and Kelly Paice
NBC's Andrea Mitchell interviewed Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele on MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

Here is some of what Steele had to say about Sarah Palin. A clip is below with text after the jump.

HERE'S THE FULL VIDEO.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

...(read more)

Obama talks jobs at Cabinet meeting

Domenico Montanaro — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:28:00 -0800

[NBC News]

From NBC's Athena Jones
In a Cabinet meeting Monday afternoon, President Obama acknowledged fledgling economic growth had not yet improved things on the jobs front and previewed a summit next week aimed at helping find ways to spur job creation.

The nation's unemployment rate hit 10.2 percent last month, the highest number in decades. The proportion of jobless in more than a dozen states remains in the double digits, with Michigan in the worst shape at 15.1 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

"Our economy is growing for the first time in more than a year, and we know that economic growth is a prerequisite for job growth," Obama said. "But, having said that, what I emphasize today is we cannot sit back and be satisfied, given the extraordinarily high unemployment levels that we've seen. We have only taken the first step in curing our economy and making sure that it is moving on the right track and I will not rest until businesses are investing again and businesses are hiring again and people have work again."

...(read more)

Dems to get their White knight in TX?

Mark Murray — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:01:00 -0800

[NBC News]

From NBC's Mark Murray and Ali Weinberg
The last full year in which Texas had a Democratic governor -- in 1994 -- Bill Clinton was in his second year in office, Texas A&M was the dominant college football team in the state, and Kurt Cobain had just died.

In short, it was a LONG time ago.

But today's chain of events -- Tom Schieffer (D) exiting the gubernatorial race and popular Houston Mayor Bill White (D) possibly getting in -- could very well give Democrats their best chance at the governor's mansion since Ann Richards served there in the early 1990s.

Indeed, a Democratic source tells First Read that it appears White is getting in. "It's not firm or done yet," the source adds.

Perhaps biggest reason why White has a solid chance in this red state is due to the Rick Perry-vs.-Kay Bailey Hutchison primary on the Republican side. Perry beating Hutchison in a bloody, divisive primary -- in which both Republicans are appealing to the right -- could very well end up alienating independents and women, opening the door for a strong Democratic candidate.

Enter Bill White...

...(read more)

Kennedy flap reveals old Catholic divide

Domenico Montanaro — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:48:00 -0800

[NBC News]

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
The news of Rep. Patrick Kennedy's Communion flap with Rhode Island's hard-line bishop is yet another chapter in the long history of the divide between Kennedy social justice Catholics and more hard-line conservatives, whose overarching issue is abortion.

Remember that the St. Louis Archbishop said he would deny Rudy Giuliani and John Kerry communion. Kerry was also rebuked by Boston Archbishop, who stopped short of calling for him to not receive the eucharist.

Kerry, Giuliani and Patrick Kennedy may be the most recent but they are two in a long line of politicians who have clashed with the church over their views on abortion. New York Democrats Mario Cuomo and Geraldine Ferraro, for example, have drawn the church's ire for their public views on abortion.

Disapproval of Catholic politicians, who are pro-abortion rights, has gone as high as the Vatican -- and even the current Pope.

...(read more)

Sanford facing 37 charges

Domenico Montanaro — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:40:00 -0800

[NBC News] From NBC's Domenico MontanaroAP reports: "South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford faces 37 charges he broke state laws limiting official use of airplanes and campaign money. The details were released Monday by the State Ethics Commission. They came five days after the panel charged the governor without offering any specifics. Sanford's lawyers have claimed the charges involve minor and technical aspects of the law." The New York Times: "Some of these trip charges fall under a specific allegation saying...(read more)

Dems search for public option fix

Mark Murray — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:22:00 -0800

[NBC News]

From NBC's Ken Strickland
Senate Democratic aides say that Majority Leader Harry Reid and his leadership team have begun searching for a fix on the public option. At least four Democratic Senate moderates made it clear this weekend they would block the final passage if it included the current version of a government-run insurance program.

As Reid needed 60 votes to get the bill on the floor, he'll also need 60 votes to pass it -- every member of his Democratic caucus. But drawing his moderate members into the fold may simultaneously push out liberals.

After Sen. Mary Landrieu gave a speech on Senate floor Saturday voicing her support to start debating the bill, she told a small gaggle of reporters the failure to find a compromise with centrists could "blow up the whole effort."

"I believe it's going to be very clear at some point very soon that there are not 60 votes for the current [public option] provision in the bill," she said. "And that the leader and the leadership are going to have to make a decision. And I trust they will figure out how to do that."

Democratic sources say the leadership has started feeling out the caucus for two possible compromises.

...(read more)

Is the GOP making a comeback?

Mark Murray — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:00:00 -0800

[NBC News] From NBC's Mark MurrayHere is our take from last week's Republican Governors Association meeting in Texas. CEDAR CREEK, Texas - The message that the Republican Governors Association was trying to send to the donors, party big-wigs and political reporters who attended its annual meeting last week wasn't subtle. The Republican Party, the RGA boasted, is making a comeback. They underscored this in a video presentation to attendees. "America’s comeback starts with us," said the narrator in the...(read more)

VP Biden's Thanksgiving Dinner for the Troops

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:47:43 -0800

[ABC News] ABC News' Vija Udenans reports: Vice-President and Dr. Jill Biden hosted a family style Thanksgiving dinner at their residence in Washington tonight for military families to thank them for their service.

A GOP purity test?

Domenico Montanaro — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:42:00 -0800

[NBC News]

From NBC's Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, and Domenico Montanaro
First Read has obtained a resoultion being e-mailed around to Republican National Committee members for comments that proposes a conservative litmus test of sorts.

This comes on the heels of a rift in the party that was exposed in the once-obscure special election in Upstate New York's 23rd Congressional District, in which national conservative leaders, including Sarah Palin, clashed with national establishment Republicans. The so-called GOP civil war threatens to derail moderate Republican candidacies in heated 2010 Republican primaries already underway. Florida's Senate race is perhaps the best and most prominent example.

The "Resolution on Reagan’s Unity Principle for Support of Candidates" outlines 10 conservative principles the group of signees wants potential candidates to abide by. The principles include support for:

(1) Smaller government, smaller national debt, lower deficits and lower taxes by opposing bills like Obama’s “stimulus” bill
(2) Market-based health care reform and oppose Obama-style government run healthcare;
(3) Market-based energy reforms by opposing cap and trade legislation;
(4) Workers’ right to secret ballot by opposing card check
(5) Legal immigration and assimilation into American society by opposing amnesty for illegal immigrants;
(6) Victory in Iraq and Afghanistan by supporting military-recommended troop surges;
(7) Containment of Iran and North Korea, particularly effective action to eliminate their nuclear weapons threat
(8) Retention of the Defense of Marriage Act;
(9) Protecting the lives of vulnerable persons by opposing health care rationing and denial of health care and government funding of abortion; and
(10) The right to keep and bear arms by opposing government restrictions on gun ownership

"President Ronald Reagan believed, as a result, that someone who agreed with him 8 out of 10 times was his friend, not his opponent," the resolution states.

But if a candidate disagrees with three of the above, then the group wants the RNC to withhold financial assistance and an endorsement from that candidate.

...(read more)

Whining over whining

Domenico Montanaro — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:53:00 -0800

[NBC News] From NBC's Domenico MontanaroRep. Emanuel Cleaver's legislation to dub the day before Thanksgiving "Complaint-Free Wednesday" has flown largely under the radar. But as the L.A. Times reports this morning, the Missouri Democrat has heard lots of complaining for trying to curb complaining. "Now, this is a Congress that has given us National Ice Cream Month and found time to praise the plumbing industry," The Times writes. "Surely, then, the notion that on Thanksgiving eve, people might stop whining...(read more)

Life and Debt

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 12:50:32 -0800

[ABC News] Last week the national debt passed the $12 trillion mark. The annual debt was a record-breaking $1.4 trillion for the fiscal year that ended in September. While the president is contemplating spending more money on more stimulus, he's also worried about massive government debt.

HRC confident Iraq elections will happen

Domenico Montanaro — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:28:00 -0800

[NBC News] From NBC's Sue KrollSecretary of State Hillary Clinton told reporters today that the U.S. has every reason to believe that Iraq's election will happen although the date "might slip by some period of time". Iraq's Vice President vetoed a key part of Iraqs election law last week raising doubts that the election may not happen by the end of January. By law the Iraqi law the elections must take place before the end of January. "We have every reason to believe that elections will be held which...(read more)

Obama To Cabinet: “We Cannot Sit Back and Be Satisfied” With Some Progress Amid High Unemployment Rate

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:24:13 -0800

[ABC News] Fresh off his week-long trip to Asia, President Obama today assembled his fourth Cabinet meeting of his administration for “updates on progress made across several areas,” including national security, the budget, health insurance, and the economy.

Today’s Qs for O’s WH – 11/23/2009

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 06:43:15 -0800

[ABC News] TAPPER: While we're on the subject of the deficit, the president said last week, "I think it's important, though, to recognize, if we keep adding to the debt, even in the -- even in the midst of this recovery, at...

Obama Calls for Annual Science Fair: Achievement Should be Recognized like NCAA Championship Win

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 06:14:52 -0800

[ABC News] In order to show kids “how cool science can be,” President Obama announced today that he will convene an annual science fair starting next year.

Obama Decision on Copenhagen Summit Attendance “In the Coming Days”

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:34:59 -0800

[ABC News] ABC News' Sunlen Miller reports: President Obama will make a decision if he will attend the December Copenhagen climate change summit in “the coming days,” a senior administration official said today.

Gitmo Detainees Intend to Plead Not Guilty in U.S. Court

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 03:51:18 -0800

[ABC News] The five detainees being held at Guantanamo Bay who will soon be brought to the U.S. for trial -- Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Walid bin Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali , Ramzi bin al-Shibh, and Mustafa al-Hawsawi – intend to plead not guilty, an attorney for one of the defendants confirmed to ABC News’s Jason Ryan over the weekend.

President Obama Calls 9th War Council Meeting for Tonight

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 02:22:34 -0800

[ABC News] As he winds down his decision-making process to settle on a new way forward in Afghanistan and Pakistan, President Obama called for a 9th meeting this evening at 8 pm of his war council in the White House situation room.

Health Care Hurdles

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:48:41 -0800

[ABC News] After the Senate narrowly voted to beging debating Democrats' health care reform legislation, President Obama said he now looks forward to "a thorough and productive debate." But many hurdles lie between here and the finish line -- a "significant, formidable and never-ending list," one top Senate Democratic aide says.

The Presidential Planner

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:00:00 -0800

[ABC News] From Sunlen Miller: Back from his week-long trip in Asia, President Obama starts his week refocusing on the domestic agenda with an event focusing on “initiatives designed to boost science, technology, and mathematics education,” in the South Court Auditorium in...

White House Study Looks at Job Creation in Illinois if Gitmo Prisoners Transferred There

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 06:36:55 -0800

[ABC News] President Obama's Council of Economic Advisers has prepared an economic analysis of job creation if the federal government takes over the underutilized Thomson Correctional Center in Illinois for the purposes of housing detainees currently at Guantanamo Bay, as the Obama administration is strongly considering doing.

President Obama: Asia Trip Helped Usher in a New Era of American Engagement

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 22:01:00 -0800

[ABC News] ABC News' Jordyn Phelps and Lisa Chinn report: President Obama hailed his recently concluded Asia trip a success, saying the trip helped to facilitate “a new era of American engagement.” In his weekly address, taped earlier this week while in...

Secretary Sebelius Celebrates the Tenth Anniversary of National Adoption Day

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:06:37 -0800

[ABC News] Secretary of Health and Human Services Sebelius celebrated the tenth anniversary of National Adoption Day at the Department of Health and Human Services today.

Organizing for America Targets Sarah Palin

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:37:58 -0800

[ABC News] In his new book The Audacity to Win, Obama for America campaign manager David Plouffe recalls that Sen. John McCain's selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate was a fundraising boon -- for the Obama campaign.

Obama Administration Starts to Publicly Raise Issue of Detained US Citizen Xue Feng

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 02:59:46 -0800

[ABC News] On Tuesday President Obama brought up various human rights cases with Chinese President and Paramount Leader Hu Jintao, a senior administration official tells ABC News. One of those cases was that of Xue Feng, a US citizen born in China...

President Obama Gives Interview (of Sorts) to Dissident Cuban Blogger

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:23:29 -0800

[ABC News] President Obama recently granted an interview to Cuban blogger Yoani Sánchez, which was posted at her website Generation Y. Sánchez, 34, was named one of TIME's 100 most influential people by blogging critically about the Cuban government; she emails entries...

"You Guys Make a Pretty Good Photo Op," President Obama Jokes to Troops at Osan Air Base

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:54:26 -0800

[ABC News] SEOUL, South Korea -- On his way back home, President Obama stopped at Osan Air Base in South Korea, greeting roughly 1,500 Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines, many in camouflage, in an airport hanger. Before a crowd of troops holding...

Did the Chinese Government Crack Down on an Obama Interview?

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:51:02 -0800

[ABC News] Jake Tapper and Clarissa Ward report: Fi...

Our Trip to the DMZ

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:00:20 -0800

[ABC News] Jake Tapper and Sunlen Miller report: Before we left South Korea, we paid a visit to the Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, between North and South Korea, the world's most heavily fortified border. The DMZ is approximately 2.5 miles wide, and...

President Obama Greets U.S. Troops in South Korea, Wraps Up Week in Asia

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:19:31 -0800

[ABC News] ABC News’ Karen Travers reports: SEOUL – President Obama wrapped up his weeklong Asia trip with remarks to 1500 U.S. troops at Osan Air Base in Seoul. “I couldn't come to the Republic of Korea without coming to see you...

Commemorating Germany’s freedom

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:17:00 -0800

[NBC News] by Chris Matthews Twenty years ago I stood in the rain on the East Berlin side of the great Brandenburg Gate, the grim symbol of division between East and West during the Cold War. It was a rainy night and it was cold. But people were standing around, just waiting. Word had got out that "the authorities" might be opening the great Gate that the "Vopos," those notorious East German police, were still guarding. Change was in the air. As I interviewed one East German after another I kept asking them...(read more)

In memoriam: Jody Powell

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 13:58:00 -0700

[NBC News] by Chris Matthews The death of former White House press secretary Jody Powell yesterday reminds me of the last night of the 1980 election. I remember Jody, who had been President Carter's loyal press secretary and confidant all those years, telling the President late that night that we weren't going to over night anywhere that night. Carter would give his last speech in Seattle - to catch the last time zone - then we'd fly through what was left of the night back to Georgia to vote. I remember...(read more)

Chris Matthews on The Colbert Report

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:59:00 -0700

[NBC News] Watch Chris Matthew's appearance on The Colbert Report. Matthews talks about the upcoming Hardball documentary on the Kennedy brothers. He explains why he's critical of the town hall protesters, and admits he likes to eat potatoes. ...(read more)

Hardball examines the Kennedy legacy in a new documentary

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 07:43:00 -0700

[NBC News] MSNBC will premiere its latest documentary, The Kennedy Brothers: A Hardball Documentary, reported by Hardball’s Chris Matthews, on Thursday, August 27th, at 7 P.M. ET. Before John F. Kennedy entered the political scene, no politician had ever seemed so comfortable—so himself—in front of television cameras. While politicians of the past were forever frozen in black and white photos, the Kennedy brothers were a crisp color image. They brought to Washington a level of glamour previously seen...(read more)

Matthews on humanitarian and conservation efforts in Africa

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:51:00 -0700

[NBC News] by Chris Matthews Earlier this month, I took two weeks off from the show and Kathleen and I traveled to South Africa, Mozambique and Swaziland where I had spent two years back in the 1960s helping develop small business enterprise as a volunteer in the U.S. Peace Corps. We got a fabulous chance to see the historic efforts some very good people are making to save the amazing wildlife of Africa. I've got to give a real shout-out to Greg Carr, an American who is working and investing...(read more)

Remembering Ed McMahon

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:49:00 -0700

[NBC News] by Chris Matthews We lost Ed McMahon last night. The country knew him as Johnny Carson's sidekick on "The Tonight Show" where night after night, he opened with that trademark - "Heeere's Johnny!" Talk about an iconic bit of Americana. I first saw Ed riding around on the hood of a car. That's what he did every night in the commercials growing up in Philadelphia: a grown man in suit with his butt on the hood of a brand new automobile. That was our own Ed McMahon...(read more)

Hardball award to Iranian protestors

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 13:15:00 -0700

[NBC News] by Chris Matthews As people who watch Hardball - and you are the good people - know, I have extended a serious tribute over time to men and women who have had the moxie to stand up for their rights. How can I give that coveted Hardball Award to anyone on this planet this week but the people in the streets of Tehran, the hundreds of thousands who have stood out there and demanded that their votes are counted and counted fully. Whether their cause is women's rights, greater freedoms...(read more)

Sen. John Kerry: 'This is an Iranian movement'

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:07:00 -0700

[NBC News]

Following is a rush transcript of Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) on tonight's "Hardball with Chris Matthews." Sen. Kerry discusses the protests in Iran and President Obama's stance on them, saying "this is an Iranian moment, not an American moment, and we need to have the discipline, the restraint, the maturity to stand back from this as the Iranians proceed."

CHRIS MATTHEWS, HOST: Senator Kerry, John McCain, your colleague, has been critical of the president for not speaking out and joining the protests in the streets of Tehran. What's your view?

SEN. JOHN KERRY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: My view is that the president has clearly spoken out. He spoke in Cairo as clearly as any president ever has about the prospects for democracy, for the possibilities of a different future. And I think he's been very, very clear. But for the president to step into the middle of what the Iranians appear to be handling for themselves would be a mistake, because it would give to the hardliners the ability to be able to use the president and the West as an excuse.

We've seen what hard-line rhetoric has gotten us over the last eight years, Chris. It's created an Iran that's more powerful in the region, an Iran that's been more reluctant to engage with the rest of the world. The president has opened up new possibilities. I think even the elections in Lebanon a week ago showed the results that come from a different kind of diplomacy. And we need to let the president pursue that.

MATTHEWS: Do you think we're kidding anyone, though -- don't they know, on the Ahmadinejad side over there, the government side and the ayatollahs' side -- that we're rooting for the opposition? Don't they...

KERRY: They don't have any...

MATTHEWS: Don't they...

KERRY: They don't have any illusions about it, but that's very different from overt activities that they can then turn around. ...(read more)

A tribute to Tim Russert

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:05:00 -0700

[NBC News] by Chris Matthews It was a year ago tomorrow that Tim Russert died at NBC News headquarters in Washington. He died on the job that Friday preparing yet again a broadcast of his remarkable, newsmaking, pacesetting Meet the Press. I think about Tim every day each day I arrive at work, but especially on Fridays, which remind me of him and his enormous place here in our work and lives. To those who trusted him and learned from him on the air,Tim was a strong partner in understanding...(read more)

Lessons of D-Day

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 12:24:00 -0700

[NBC News] by Chris Matthews Tomorrow, on the sixty-fifth anniversary of D-Day, President Obama has a pair of tough acts to follow - his own speech yesterday and one given a quarter century ago. I remember getting up that morning in 1984 to catch President Reagan at Normandy. It was a real "morning in America" speech. I believe that Reagan's ability to connect with World War II was a reason for his enormous popularity. Here he was on the bluffs of France saying something very good about America:...(read more)

Daily Photo: Obama Jokes Around at G-20

Thu, 02 Apr 2009 08:45:27 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Kirit Radia Reports: There was at least one lighter moment as President Obama joined other world leaders for the G20 meeting in London this week to address the worldwide financial crisis. In the photo below, Italian Prime Minister...

Blackwater gets replaced in Iraq

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 08:22:06 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Kirit Radia reports: The controversial private security firm Blackwater's contracts in Iraq have been replaced by Virginia-based Triple Canopy, the State Department said today. "[On] March the 31st the department awarded Triple Canopy the ground task order for...

Daily Photo: U.S. Marines Look Out for Taliban in Afghanistan

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 08:57:35 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Kirit Radia Reports: The situation in Afghanistan has been bad for years, and all indications are the battle will get even more bloody as additional U.S. troops pour into the country this year while the Obama administration seeks...

Hillary Clinton the Tomboy and Her "Ah-Ha" Moment

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 12:32:47 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Kirit Radia reports: In an appearance at the Women's Museum in Dallas on Friday, a transcript of which was released over the weekend, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke candidly about the challenges she faced in breaking the...

Obama Administration Sudan Envoy Headed to Region

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 11:26:32 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Kirit Radia reports: The Obama administration's new envoy for Sudan, retired Air Force Major General Scott Gration, will depart on his first official trip to the region tomorrow. He's expected to make stops in Khartoum, the capital, and...

Daily Photo: Potential Flashpoint in Iraq

Mon, 30 Mar 2009 10:35:09 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Luis Martinez reports: Something to keep an eye on in Iraq, the increasingly disgruntled Sons of Iraq or Awakening Councils and their reaction to what they perceive as ongoing efforts by the Maliki government to disband their ranks....

Clinton Says New Afghanistan-Pakistan Plan Depends on Diplomacy

Sat, 28 Mar 2009 10:00:57 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Kirit Radia reports: ABC News has obtained an internal message from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) personnel worldwide, in which she said diplomacy will be the key to...

Exclusive: Three Israeli Airstrikes Against Sudan

Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:47:20 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Luis Martinez reports: Israel has conducted three military strikes against targets in Sudan since January in an effort to prevent what were believed to be Iranian weapons shipments from reaching Hamas in the Gaza Strip, ABC News has...

Additional 4,000 Troops to Be Ordered to Afghanistan

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 15:14:04 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Luis Martinez reports: As part of the Obama administration's Afghan strategy review to be unveiled on Friday, an additional 4,000 troops will be ordered to Afghanistan to help train the Afghan army and police, defense officials tell ABC...

Daily Photo: Navy Submarine Trains in the Arctic

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 09:26:15 -0700

[ABC News] ABC News' Kirit Radia Reports: Here's a preview of an exciting story you'll see soon, exclusively on ABC News' 'World News With Charles Gibson'. ABC News correspondent David Kerley will report from aboard a US Navy submarine in the Arctic...