Obama on TV in 2010

So you remember seeing the President in some strange places this past year? (Yeah, me too) So here's your 2010 review of the year the President gave an interview to everyone!

Let the Retrospective Begin...

We've been busy putting together a 6 hour recap of the year in politics. However, I've been putting something very special together. These audio pieces are a recap of the weird, unusual, and darn right funny stories we covered this year.

Do the names Basil Marceaux, Kristin Davis, or Jimmy McMillian mean anything to you? If so, you're gonna want to take a listen.

POTUS Retro...Coming Soon

POTUS Retrospective 2010

The Readout's been on hiatus for a past couple of weeks. Primarily because the staff here at POTUS is scrambling to put together our year-end special. I've got my own special Retro pieces which I will post here very soon, but don't forget to join us New Year's Eve as we recount some of the biggest news stories of the year. I guarantee you won't hear anything like it anywhere else!

Sarah Palin Takes a Shot at Michelle Obama

If it’s Monday, it’s time for your weekly recap of "Sarah Palin’s Alaska." This week, Sarah loaded most of the family into a big RV and went rafting, camping, dog-sledding, even panning for gold, as well as enjoying all the treats of the great outdoors. Willow invited her boyfriend along, which her parents were none too happy with. Sarah Palin and her youngest daughter Piper served some food at their friend Peggy’s pie shop. Oh yeah, and Sarah Palin took a shot at First Lady Michelle Obama. I’m guessing that dessert reference was aimed at Michelle Obama’s campaign against childhood obesity.

JibJab's Year in Review

Your Weekend Readout

In case you missed it on Saturday, here's a piece of the Readout...

Farewell Larry King

TSA Pat Down Choir

Late night hosts have had a field day joking about the new TSA pat down procedures and body scanners, but despite all the heat the agency’s been taking, they’re now offering musical entertainment as well. The LAX TSA Choir is a group of 17 singers and musicians, all of them officers of the Transportation Security Administration, and have been surprising passengers with performances of holiday music and other tunes in the midst of one of the nation's busiest airports. The LAX choir is one of just two — the other is at the airport in Austin — made up entirely of TSA workers, according to TSA spokesman Greg Soule.

Elmo Visits the White House

The White House is promoting the passage of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act with a little help from Elmo. The “Sesame Street” character visited the kitchen at 1600 Penn. this week to star in a video on the White House blog with assistant chef Sam Kass.

The Michael Steele Puppet is Back!

See Jon Stewart's exclusive interview with RNC Chair Michael Steele (as a Sesame Street puppet)

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Your Wednesday Readout

Eric Clapton Should be US Special Envoy to North Korea

Perhaps they would chill out with the nukes if he was!
CNN reports...no joke:

One of the diplomatic cables published by WikiLeaks reveals that North Korean officials suggested the U.S. government make arrangements for rock icon Eric Clapton to perform in Pyongyang as a way of building "good will" between the countries.

The suggestion was relayed to the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, through an intermediary whose name was redacted from the document.

"Arranging an Eric Clapton concert in Pyongyang could also be useful, [the intermediary] said, given Kim Jong-Il's second son's devotion to the rock legend," the cable begins. "As Kim Jong-Il's second son, Kim Jong-chol, is reported to be a great fan, the performance could be an opportunity to build good will."

Representatives for Clapton did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Sunday.

Memo to North Korea...Clapton is English, not American.

Bon Jovi, Presidential Adviser

via Mediaite:

President Obama signed an executive order Tuesday, creating a 25 member White House Council for Community Solutions. Among the members hand-picked by the president: eBay president and CEO John Donahue, Starbucks executive vice president Paula Boggs, and–obviously–rocker Jon Bon Jovi.

How’d that happen, you ask?

According to CNN White House correspondent Dan Lothian, it’s not about Bon Jovi’s ability to “rock the house.”

Rather, it’s due to his creation of the Jon Bon Jovi Foundation, which “focuses on fighting poverty and homelessness and provides for low income people.” But of course, he also rocks the house.

(NOTE: I only picked this video because of the hair...gotta love the hair)

HGTV Going Inside the White House...

HGTV is planning on running its Spectacular White House Christmas 2010 this week and taking viewers inside 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Michelle Obama and Jill Biden make cameos in the one-hour segment. Also appearing on the show are White House chef Cristeta Comerford, pastry chef Bill Yosses, chief usher Stephen Rochon and florist Laura Dowling.

"We're very eager to see it all come together," Dowling tells the HGTV's Genevieve Gorder in the holiday special. "There's a lot of planning that goes into this."

According to Politico, "The show spotlights the work of more than 100 volunteers who were brought in to decorate 1600 Penn., and also shows a step-by-step account of the mansion's holiday transformation. (A White House electrician had to remove the Blue Room chandelier to make way for the massive Christmas tree.)

And over at the vice president's residence, the special features a rare cameo by the veep's social secretary, Carlos Elizondo, who kept the decorating "on track.""

Today's Readout

Good day Readout fans! Here's my convo with Joe from today if you missed it. On my radar...the new No Labels movement. What's this thing all about? Also, Julian Assange's Ok Cupid profile! Enjoy...

No Labels...the NEW Moderate Movement

With the launch of the brand new "No Labels" movement on Monday. The Washington Post asked an interesting question. Can this new million moderate march change the tone of politics in Washington?

via 44:

Headed by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a veritable 'who's who' of moderate politicians are participating in the No Labels launch in New York City. Among the participants are: retiring Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Rep. Bob Inglis (R-S.C.), former Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Republican-turned-independent Florida Gov. Charlie Crist.

No Labels is the latest in a lengthy list of groups preaching moderation and reason as a cure to crippling partisanship. Some have had, well, moderate success, but others have crashed and burned. Here's a sample:

Unity08: Launched to much fanfare in the lead-up to the 2008 presidential campaign with the promise of a bipartisan presidential ticket, this group ultimately fizzled out after its founders left to start an unsuccessful "Draft Michael Bloomberg" movement. However, Unity08 claimed some degree of success with the candidacy of Barack Obama, whose campaign adopted unity as its primary theme.

Shadow Convention 2000: The brainchild of conservative-turned-liberal media star Arianna Huffington, the so-called "citizens' intervention in American politics" hosted its own 2000 convention in Philadelphia. The event was headlined by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who was booed when he offered praise for his former campaign rival, George W. Bush.

Although...every great movement needs a theme song. And No Labels has Akon?!

Today's Readout

My apologies for the lack of audio/video on the blog lately. I've been trying a couple of different methods and think I've finally done it!

So, here's today's Readout. Don't forget to listen for me everyday on "The Morning Briefing" and 12:50p ET on "The Press Pool."

The National Christmas Tree

Later tonight, POTUS will join THE POTUS to light the National Christmas Tree!

Join us tonight for an exclusive event, the 2010 National Christmas Tree lighting LIVE from President's Park in Washington, DC. Tim Farley and I will be LIVE from the ellipse as the First Family participate in this annual tradition.

President Barack Obama will read a message of peace, while the first lady is slated to read the classic poem “’Twas the Night Before Christmas.” The first daughters will be there, too, helping their parents light the tree.

And like any POTUS event, this is sure to be star-studded. Celebrity performers include Maroon 5, 10-year-old singing prodigy Jackie Evancho, blues legend B.B. King, rapper Common, singer Sara Bareilles and Jim James of the rock band My Morning Jacket.

The broadcast begins tonight at 5pm ET!

Sarah Palin is Fascinating

If you had the opportunity to talk with someone dubbed one of the year’s most fascinating people, what would you ask them? Barbara Walter’s “Most Fascinating People” debuts this week and yesterday, ABC released a sneak peek into her conversation with Sarah Palin. So which clip did they preview yesterday? The one about “Dancing with the Stars” of course. With husband Todd at her side, Palin also denied Tea Party support was the reason her daughter Bristol made it so far in the competition.

via Gawker TV

Seth Myers Headed to the Correspondent's Dinner

A page from Mike Allen's Playbook today:

EXCLUSIVE – “REALLY!?!" – White House Correspondents’ Association President David Jackson of USA Today and Vice President Caren Bohan of Reuters will announce today that the entertainer for the scholarship dinner on April 30 will be … SETH MEYERS, “Saturday Night Live” head writer, and anchor of “Weekend Update.” Bio http://bit.ly/hWwLJ5 YouTube (Michael Phelps bit) http://bit.ly/dSaqYr

Michelle Obama Salutes the Troops

Michelle Obama made a brief appearance on "VH1 Divas Salute the Troops" on Sunday night, paying special tribute to the troops and the USO.

Divas |Divas Photos |Divas Video |Celebrity News

Baldwin Running? "Bull#@%$"

via USAToday:

Actor Alec Baldwin didn't mince words when asked if he's running for Congress.

"That's bull----," the 30 Rock star said after the Kennedy Center Honors program, according to a report today in The Hill, a newspaper.

Baldwin has flirted with the idea of elected office before, once contemplating taking on Democrat-turned-independent Joe Lieberman. Baldwin's name came up again this year, this time in connection with a House seat in Long Island.

Democratic Rep. Tim Bishop has a narrow lead over Republican Randy Altschuler in the New York district, the last race still undecided from the 2010 congressional elections.

Sarah Palin's Alaska...Week 4

We’re halfway through TLC’s run of "Sarah Palin’s Alaska," and if you follow Palin on Twitter, she gave a pretty big hint that she was going to kill something this episode. Palin tweeted on Sunday, “Unless you’ve never worn leather shoes, sat upon a leather couch, or eaten a piece of meat, save your condemnation of tonitht’s episode. I remain proudly intolerant of anti-hunting hypocrisy. :)” In the episode, Sarah, her father Chuck and a family friend head to bear county for a hunting trip. But they weren’t looking for bears--there main goal was to take down a Caribou.

Barkley v Obama Coming to a Court Near You

To Censure? To Censure Not?

We'll find out this week how the House decides to punish it's colleague Charlie Rangel.
The Washington Post breaks it down:
"This week's debate on the fate of New York Rep. Charles B. Rangel will be odder than most. The House will agonize, and Rangel will emote, over this question:

Will Rangel - who has been found guilty of 11 ethics violations - be scolded in person, or will he be scolded in writing?

That's all. The first option is called a censure. The second, which Rangel (D) very much prefers, is a reprimand. Neither would kick Rangel out of Congress, dock his pay, take away his right to vote - or in any other way prevent him from being the exact same congressman he is today."

Perhaps we'll see Charlie dance again, if the House opts for a reprimand over censure...

Oil Spill: The Movie

BP is in the process of putting together a feature-length film on the Gulf oil spill.

"The New York Times' Brian Stelter reports that BP will provide funding for the project, however, the oil giant insists that the film "is not intended to scrub its reputation clean." The filmmakers involved "are making a film of the spill primarily for an internal audience as an archive,” a spokesman told the Times. The BP-backed crew has already interviewed several journalists – but Yahoo’s Lookout wonders whether the journalists in question are the "BP reporters" the company employs for its in-house glossy magazine. That publication, Planet BP, sparked a minor uproar over the relentlessly upbeat spin its reporters brought to the task of chronicling the spill disaster.

This Exists...

This year's Capitol Christmas tree has its very own Twitter account?

via In the Know:
"The three-ton, six-story-tall Engelmann spruce updated followers from @TrackTheTree along its route to Washington, D.C., from Wyoming. And the tree’s not just on Twitter, According to its blog and Facebook page, this year's spruce will be "lowered into a 5-foot deep hole, strung with lights, and decorated with thousands of handcrafted ornaments made by WyomingitesThe tree's official song is "Cowboy Christmas Tree" by Bryan Ragsdale."

Pres. Bush Visits "The Facebook"

Former President George W. Bush stopped by the Facebook headquarters on Monday to promote his new memoir, "Decision Points." Mashable is blogging, “The 43rd president joined Facebook in June and uses the site to promote his various projects and speaking engagements. True to form, Bush was quick with the quips and the self-deprecating humor...President Bush revealed that he used to be a BlackBerry person but is now an iPad person. The Reliable Source notes that the interview—while a bit awkward—Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and the former President have lots in common, both feeling misunderunderstood."

Watch live streaming video from facebookguests at livestream.com

The Liberal Claus

'Twas the night before Chirstmas and all through the House, not a creature was stirring...

Happy Cyber Monday! If you’re looking for a new holiday children’s book, the Portland Mercury’s blogtown suggest you pick up your copy of The Liberal Clause: Socialism on a Sleigh.

"Written by David Hedrick, a Tea Party candidate who lost his bid this year in Washington's third congressional district, the book features an illustrated President Obama dressed as Santa with Pelosi and Reid Elves. The story came to Hedrick one night as he was making up a bedtime story for his children (the book is dedicated to them with the warning "Never forget that free goodies from liberal elves often come at a price"). The satire where Obama steals Christmas that Hedrick came up with on that fateful night was too good not to be illustrated and published for all children to enjoy."

Here's the link to the book's site.

Jay-Z and George Washingtons...More Alike Than You'd Think

For some reason, New York Magazine has taken it upon themselves to compare two figures that one would think have nothing really in common—Jay-Z and George Washington.

I haven't had a chance to read Jigga's latest book, Decoded, yet, but apparently it reveals the hidden similarities of two men from very different times.

Daily Intel’s blogging, “to consider how these mythic lives from opposite ends of the American experiment—the eighteenth-century father of our country and the 21st-century hustler-tycoon; the author of the song “Dead Presidents” and our most famous actual dead president. It turns out that their stories, placed side by side, resonate more deeply than one might expect. They were ambitious, scrappy, and self-educated—a liability in some settings, but also often an advantage."

Very interesting read if you've got a couple of minutes to spare on Cyber Monday

The Leak Before the Leak

By now, you've heard all the news about the latest Wikileaks document dump, but did you know that the info was on Twitter before Wikileaks wanted those docs released?

Gawker writes “About 12 hours before Wikileaks latests leak was scheduled to be released, a Twitter user bought a copy of a German news magazine outlining the leak after it was placed on newstands too early. According to tweets from German-speaking Twitter users who snagged an embargoed copy of this week's Der Spiegel, the cache of over 250,000 confidential diplomatic cables was a bit of a let-down. The full tranche of cables was was scheduled to be released by Wikileaks Sunday afternoon around 4:30 pm EST. But a sharp-eyed Twitter user spotted a copy of Der Spiegel at a a rest area on the Germany-Switzerland border."

Happy Thanksgiving!

We'll be back with more of the Readout when we return on Monday! But don't forget to listen to our weekend edition of the POTUS Readout Saturday at 9am ET!

Rep-Elect Sean Duffy Tours The Capitol

Sean Duffy reports via video on his first day in Congress...Happy Orientation Week.

Did Anyone Else Miss This?

I've seen "Wedding Crashers" about a million times, but somehow I never noticed Senator John McCain and James Carville were guests at the wedding?! Hmm...this connection between Hollywood and politics is a lot closer than I ever thought!

Whoops..

I forgot to post this last week. Just a little sample from Friday's Readout with Joe!

Bill Clinton in "The Hangover"

Although the surprise guest in "The Hangover Part II” was supposed to be Mel Gibson, the movie ended up with an even better cameo appearance. TMZ and People report that "President Bill Clinton was spotted on the set in Thailand Saturday … where they're told extra security was added for his presence. TMZ spies say they saw Clinton walk on the set and were told by crew members he was filming a cameo. None of the people they spoke too, however, saw Bill actually step in front of the camera. Although some people associated with the flick have told them "Bill just 'hung out,' we've now confirmed he did indeed shoot a cameo."

Blitzer's Dougie Update

CNN HAS VIDEO!!

Blitzer Knows How to Dougie

One thing you can now ask CNN’s Wolf Blitzer: “Teach me how to dougie.”
While introducing Doug E. Fresh at the 2010 Soul Train Music Awards on Wednesday night, the rapper came on stage, and taught Blitzer how to dougie. Not sure what a dougie is? Head to my blog. But Blitzer didn’t stop there. When the show’s producers learned that Eminem would not be able to accept his award, they asked Blitzer to do the honors, knowing that he was a fan. We hear that Blitzer happily went on stage to accept Eminem’s award for best hip-hop song, “Love the Way You Lie,” featuring Rihanna.

You can check out Blitzer’s moves on Nov. 28 when the show premieres on Centric and BET.

GOP loves 'The Bachelor' While Dems Prefer Kardashians

A new study by Experian Simmons shows that Democrats and Republicans have very different taste when it comes to what to watch on TV. According to the study, "Republicans favor many of TV's biggest hits such as 'Modern Family,' 'American Idol' and 'Dancing With the Stars.' On the Democrat side, TV favorites include 'Dexter,' 'Mad Men' and 'The Good Wife.'

"The big shows with mass appeal tend to have above-average scores from Democrats and Republicans but with higher concentrations of Republicans," an Experian Simmons marketing manager, told The Hollywood Reporter. "Looking at the Democrats side, I don't mean to make light of it, but they seem to like shows about damaged people. Those are the kind of shows Republicans just stay away from."

Unsurprisingly, the top show for Republicans is 'Glenn Beck' and 'Countdown With Keith Olbermann' for Democrats. But who knew Democrats favored 'Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami'?

Egg on Rahm Emanuel's Face...Almost

Former White House Chief of Staff and current Chicago mayoral candidate, Rahm Emanuel, stopped by Little Village on Wednesday to talk with the community about creating jobs. But there was at least one person in the crowd who was none too happy about Emanuel’s visit—they tossed an egg at Rahm-bo! But they missed.

The unidentified egg hurler missed his target, but a cameraman in the gaggle did get some egg on his face/lens. NBC Chicago notes is was a rough day for Emanuel. Besides getting egged—almost—he woke to news on Wednesday that the man currently renting his Northside home--and won't move out until his lease is up -- plans to run for mayor also.

Michelle Obama's Handshake Heard 'Round the World

Earlier this week, Michelle Obama caused a stir after shaking the hand of an Indonesian minister, in what might become the world's most talked about handshake. (I think it's become an Obama tradition of sorts to turn simple greetings with foreign dignitaires into news. You remember the bow? And FLOTUS touching the Queen!)

The New York Times reports, “Immediately after a ceremony on Tuesday welcoming President Obama to Indonesia, the country’s conservative Muslim information minister took to Twitter to argue that first lady, Michelle Obama, was entirely to blame for the televised handshake between the two. The minister claimed on his Twitter feed that Mrs. Obama had made it impossible for him to avoid touching her hand, writing: “I tried to prevent [being touched] with my hands but Mrs. Michelle held her hands too far toward me [so] we touched.”

Because the Rent is Too Damn High

The election's over, but we haven't heard the last of Jimmy McMillan. He's got an album!!

Punjabi MC!

Well I can see how the President and First Lady spent their extra hour this week. (I preferred to sleep a little extra over the weekend).

Well That's The End of This

Happy Election Day!!

A little ditty to run to the polls with...I guarantee the hook for "My Girl's a Republican will be stuck in your head all day."

The Real is a “hip hop sketch comedy” group (a typical video parodies “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” by using the story of Dr. Dre’s Detox, the rap world’s Chinese Democracy). For the song, they’ve basically taken every conservative figure or scandal from the past few years and mashed them together for a pun and double entendre-filled ode to the character, wiles, and sexual prowess of a sexy Sister Grizzly. It’s accompanied by an equally entertaining video which uses homemade effects, singing Glenn Beck, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and Rudy Guiliani heads to showcase the song in (what appears to be) one take.

While all the jokes are about Republicans, and some are a little off-color (“When it comes to pleasing men she’s learned from the best, Teddy Haggard, Larry Craig, Mark Foley, and all of the rest”), the whole thing seems good-natured enough to possibly even gain fans on both sides of the aisle. Besides, the singers’ are persuasive enough that even the most liberal of listeners might be willing to vote red just to meet one of these girls who “parties like she just got money from Michael Steele.”

DNC's Online Ad Buy

If you run into Barack Obama on the interwebs today, don't be surprised. The DNC spent $2 million to spread their GOTV message in one of the biggest (if not THE biggest) online ad buys this election cycle. Here's a preview:

Is That Morgan Freeman?

You'll have to decide. The Lawson for Congress campaign sent out a press release claiming Freeman's voice, but it's since been removed...interesting....

Jimmy McMillan Has an Action Figure!

Via Time:

The website Herobuilders.com offers an assortment of action figures, including politically themed figures. In addition to featuring a disproportionate amount of Sarah Palin figures, the site also has a talking Jimmy McMillan doll, otherwise known as "the rent is too damn high" guy.

What does Jimmy McMillan the action figure say? We'll give you one guess.

If you're thinking of Christmas gifts early, or know someone who really gets into the spirit of midterms, the talking McMillan will run you $49.95. Or you could save and get the non-talking McMillan figure ($39.95) but then you'd really be missing out on the best part of the action figure.

Government Doesn't Suck March

It's not as catchy as the Rally to Restore Sanity, but there's no subtlety in that title.

Ed O'Keefe's blogging:

Organizers of the "Government Doesn't Suck March" (their choice of words, not ours) were inspired in part by last week's Washington Post poll that revealed widespread negative perceptions of federal workers.

"We hear it day in and day out: the government sucks, federal employees are lazy and their positions are redundant," said march organizer Steve Ressler, founder of GovLoop, a social networking Web site for public servants.
Steve Ressler
Steve Ressler, center, chats with fellow federal workers at a recent conference. (Katherine Frey/Post)

"It's time to turn the tables and remind the world that government employees just happen to be people -- people that don't suck," Ressler said in a message sent to The Federal Eye on Sunday announcing the march. Government workers "are a lot of cool cats" who work hard, listen to good music and watch Stewart's "The Daily Show," "but that's all after they've spent a whole day keeping the country running," he said.

Top 10 Campaign Fails of 2010

The Huffington Post is writing about some of the worst moments from the 2010 campaign trail. Those cringe worthy, "OMG did they really say that?" moments from this election cycle.

Find the full list on HuffPo, but here's the top 3...

No More Viral Ads?

Gawker does have a point.

They've declared the age of the viral political ad over. They write, "It started this summer, a wave of demented campaign ads that fell into the laps of lazy political bloggers like manna from heaven. Many went viral. But now the genre is killing itself by trying way too hard....Now virality has become the sole aim of craven political ad directors who are supplanting their subjects as the true stars of the game....But the game's up. Now that their code has been sequenced, the potency of these viral videos is basically zero. Ehllinger's Wicked Witch video has a little over 2,000 views on YouTube. The viral video candidates of the summer all lost, leaving only memories and a bunch of really stupid campaign ads.

Here are some of my faves:

Voting Machine Conspiracy?!

Via Gawker:

As you can see in the video, Relyea is trying to cast his vote for Rick Perry, the Republican candidate for Governor (I know, I know). But when he presses his finger to Rick Perry's name, the machine selects Deb Shafto—the Green Party's candidate. And not just her, either: the Green Party candidates for each of the other offices are also selected. He tries again, and the same thing happens. Isn't that, you know, a little bit weird?

President Obama's "It Gets Better Video"

Last night, President Obama released his own video for the "It Gets Better" campaign. He joins Secretary Clinton, who on Tuesday released a video as well. This morning, the White House blog is linking to several sites for LGBT teens who have been victims of bullying, or just need someone to talk to.


The Trevor Project is determined to end suicide among LBGTQ youth by providing resources and a nationwide, 24 hour hotline. If you are considering suicide or need help, call: 866-4-U-TREVOR (866-488-7386).


BullyingInfo.org is a project of the Interagency Working Group on Youth Programs (IWGYP) focused on providing tools and resources for youth, parents, teachers and mental health providers to prevent and address bullying.

It Gets Better Project
President Obama’s video is just one of thousands of videos submitted by people across the country to inspire and encourage LGBT youth who are struggling. You can watch more videos at ItGetsBetterProject.com.

Obama Heads to "Daily Show"

via AP:

President Barack Obama is taking his campaign message to "The Daily Show" with Jon Stewart.

White House spokesman Dan Pfeiffer says Obama is taping an appearance on Oct. 27, just days before the Nov. 2 elections. Stewart is coming to Washington next week for the "Rally to Restore Sanity" he is holding three days later on Saturday, Oct. 30, on the National Mall.

The host of the Comedy Central show says the rally is for people who think the loudest voices shouldn't be the only ones people hear.

Obama recently endorsed Stewart's event. It will be Obama's first appearance as president on Stewart's program.

Mama Grizzly v. Mama Grizzly

So what happens when mama grizzly Sarah Palin meets a real mama grizzly? Well, you’ll have to wait until Sarah Palin’s Alaska premiers next month, but TLC’s released a clip of just that encounter to build more buzz for the show. In the clip, Palin is fishing with Todd, Piper, and her niece McKinley, when they come across a bear. Then, more bears, and eventually a bear fight. And then, the bears start getting closer to the Palin boat. I’m assuming they get out of the way of the hungry bears considering we saw Sarah Palin on the campaign trail over the weekend, but we’ll have to wait to see how the family escaped.

Solid As Barack

President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama appeared in a video released Tuesday, urging their supporters to volunteer the weekend before Election Day on Nov. 2. . The Hill’s blogging, “The video was cut for Organizing for America, an offshoot of Obama's grassroots political operation that helped propel him to victory in 2008. Both Obamas urged supporters to sign up for shifts making phone calls and getting voters to polling places. The video is yet another sign Democrats are keying in on their base supporters to help keep the congressional majorities intact against an expected Republican wave."

Sec. Clinton Says It Gets Better

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton starred in a PSA for LGBT teens who’ve been victims of bullying. The Washington Post is blogging, “The campaign to tell teenagers "It Gets Better" received huge political backing Tuesday when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took to YouTube to address teen bullying and tell them “They are not alone.”

President Obama on "Mythbusters?"

President Obama will appear on an episode of the Discovery Channel show “MythBusters” on Dec. 8, White House officials said Sunday.

Obama has already taped his cameo on the show, which, according to the Discovery Channel, “aims to uncover the truth behind popular myths and legends by mixing scientific method with gleeful curiosity and plain old-fashioned ingenuity.”

The Obama episode will air at 9 p.m. The Discover Channel says Obama "challenges hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman to revisit an ancient and somewhat controversial myth: Did Greek scientist and polymath Archimedes set fire to an invading Roman fleet using only mirrors and the reflected rays of the sun?”

More here.

Christine O'Donnell Gets Auto-Tuned

Too Much "Flippin' Fun!"

 

Sharks with Friggin' Laser Beams!

Via TPM:

West Virginia's Republican nominee for Senate, John Raese, has a plan. And that plan is to put 1,000 lasers in orbit to save us all.

Not 999. Not 1,001. 1,000 frickin' lasers.

"If there is a rogue missile aimed at our country, we have 33 minutes to figure out what we're going to do," Raese said told the crowd at a recent campaign stop, according to NBC's Shawna Thomas and Carrie Dann. "We are sitting with the only technology in the world that works and it's laser technology. We need 1,000 laser systems put in the sky and we need it right now. That is [of] paramount importance."
The cost of such a program? A cool "$20 billion," according to Raese.

Raese's not the first to suggest putting lasers in the sky to, well, do whatever one does with 1,000 sky-lasers. The notion of space-born orbiting platforms packed with missile-destroying lasers is not a new one, and Raese's 1,000 lasers appear to be his (maybe rudimentary) understanding of how the plan for a missile defense shield works. But, as the crack NBC duo reported, putting the idea of a missile defense program into practice has proven rather difficult in reality:
Laser-based technology has been long discussed as a promising method for deterring missiles, but experts say that components of a system like the one Raese described are in the infant stages of research and development and would require the negotiation of staggeringly complex international treaties.

The "1,000 lasers" quote isn't the only memorable one to come out of Tuesday's Raese appearance in Inwood, WV. Our personal favorite came when, according to the Martinsburg, WV Journal-News, Raese channeled Larry The Cable Guy while pontificating about a return to American exceptionalism.

"Weak people breed weak nations. If we are going to be weak, we are going to lose it (the nation), aren't we," Raese told the crowd. "Are we going to be weak? I don't think so ... We're not going to be weak and we're not going to lose our nation. We have two election cycles. We have got to git-r-dun."

The Dating Game...

I hope you've put on your Sunday best because Politico's playing...The Dating Game....

Just a day after Hillary Clinton was crowned the most popular politician, she made it onto another list, nabbing a spot as one of the most datable politicians in a survey conducted by online dating site, Zoosk.

Zoosk polled 1,000 singles about politics and love to find out which politicians they deemed datable and whether an inclination towards tea party views made someone hot or not.

The findings? Tall, toothy Californian Gavin Newsom was crowned the most datable male politician with 33 percent of the female vote, while Sarah Palin won most datable female politician, with 32 percent of the male vote.
Coming in behind Mr. California were President Obama with 24 percent, Sen. Scott Brown grabbing 15 percent, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger with 14 percent and John Edwards at 5 percent. (Yes, you read that correctly.)

In the political dames department, the men seemed to prefer bespectacled brown-haired Republican women. Christine O'Donnell nabbed the silver medal right behind Palin with 22 percent of the vote. Next up was Democrat M. Teresa Ruiz from New Jersey with 18 percent, followed by Hillary Clinton with six percent and Condoleezza Rice with five percent.

O'Donnell Debates Coons

As you know, last night was the debate between Deleware Senate candidates Christine O’Donnell and Chris Coons. While most people were concerned with the rescue of those miners trapped in Chile, the debate still managed to get a good amount of buzz on the web.

On Wednesday evening at 6pm, Christine O’Donnell peaked as a trending topic on Twitter. Around that same time, "Christine O’Donnell debate" was a hot search on Google, registering as a spicy topic. Related topics included "witch," "chris coons," and delaware debate.

Blogging about the debate was the National Review’s Jim Geraghty, who thought the moderators did a pretty lousy job. He writes, “The moderators were pretty awful. Both Blitzer and the local reporter seemed hell bent on… well, the metaphor burning a witch comes to mind.

Yes, Christine O’Donnell has a lot of quirks, a lot of questionable decisions in her past and a lot of evasive answers about those bad decisions. But it was pretty clear that neither moderator was all that interested in holding Coons’ feet to the fire or interested in what he had to say at all.”

Slate’s Dave Wiegel was also watching and said, “nothing much surprised him. Coons passed up a number of chances to nail O'Donnell, but he didn't really disguise his irritation at having to debate a product of the cable news universe, "Hide your contempt" is usually a good rule to follow, but does it work when most of the electorate thinks your opponent is unqualified for office? We're testing that.”

But the Baltimore Sun’s David Zurawick says the real winner last night was CNN. “If you want to do some useful ratings watching at CNN, check out the Nielsen numbers Thursday for Wednesday night's telecast of the Delaware Senate debate between Christine O'Donnell and Chris Coons co-moderated by Wolf Blitzer.

Strange Things Are Happening...

If you listened to the Readout at any point last week, you probably heard me mention the strange things happening to President Obama. On Tuesday night, his presidential seal mysteriously fell off his podium. On Thursday, a number of people fell ill during a rally at Bowie State University. But Sunday just might take the cake for the strangest events of the week.

Yesterday, while speaking in Philadelphia, someone threw a book at President Obama in the middle of his remarks




And as if that wasn't weird enough, police had to eject a naked man, who was attempting to win a million bucks for a publicity stunt. According to the Weekly Standard, 24-year-old Juan James Rodriguez, was the culprit. He was attempting to claim the $1 million prize offered by British billionaire entrepreneur Alki David to the first person to streak at an Obama event, provided that Alki’s video-sharing website is written on the streaker's chest. (Pictures at Gawker...I'm not posting them here...sorry).

Paris Hilton is Back...That's Hot...

Loves it....via Radar Online

Paris Hilton and her recent legal wrangling are at the center of a mudslinging campaign in the upcoming Las Vegas district attorney's race, RadarOnline.com has learned.

Democratic candidate Don Chairez, in a new television ad, implies the socialite's cocaine possession earned her little more than a slap-on-the-wrist from his opponent, incumbent District Attorney David Roger.

Chairez alleges Roger gave the heiress "a sweetheart deal" when giving her a year of probation after she pleaded guilty to charges of drug possession and obstructing an officer in connection with her August 26 arrest in Sin City.

"The message I'm trying to send to voters is that in traditional Las Vegas politics, money talks," Chairez told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "There are two standards of justice. If you're a regular middle-class person who can't afford a high-power lawyer, you will not get as good a deal as someone who can afford a high-profile lawyer."

The Presidential Seal Falls Off...

This probably isn't a good sign...

Things Aren't So Nice in Chicagoland

Former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel is hitting the campaign trail this week. His quest for the Mayor's office is underway, buy the man who was the second most powerful person in Washington a few days ago, is not being recieved as warmly as he would like in his hometown. The Chicago Sun Times writes:

The reception wasn't as warm at Izola's restaurant on 79th Street.

Hecklers tried to provoke a confrontation with Emanuel, holding a "Dump Quinn in 2010" banner and yelling "Get out of our neighborhood!"

Their main complaint was that the stimulus dollar "shovel-ready jobs" aren't coming to their neighborhood.

Emanuel shook the main heckler's hand and spoke politely to him.

"Welcome to Chicago!" the heckler said.

Bozo-Gate

Seriously?

Since Christine O’Donnell’s upset victory in the Delaware Republican Senate primary last month, the out-of-nowhere Tea Party sensation has been dogged by charges that she inflated her resume, exaggerated her educational record and had said some things over the years, that her detractors found, shall we say, clownish.

The latest suspicion of inflated credentials, which arose over the weekend, involved Ms. O’Donnell’s father, Daniel O’Donnell, a long-ago local television personality in the Philadelphia area whose main claim to fame, according to the O’Donnell family, was that he used to play Bozo the Clown.

Or did he...

Jon Stewart Responds to Rick Sanchez

Last night on his show, Jon Stewart finally addressed the comments former CNN anchor Rick Sanchez made to Sirius XM host Pete Dominick. How do you think Stewart handled the situation?

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Hurty Sanchez
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Rally to Restore Sanity

House GOP Conference Video Contest

House Republican Conference Vice-Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) announced a winner last week for the group's video challenge. In this contest, the Republican Study Committee won overall with its video titled "Those Voices Don't Speak for the Rest of Us." (Hit count...758,000+)

The Roots w/Obama in Philly

Hip hop group The Roots (who can be seen nightly as the house band on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon") will perform at President Obama's "Move America Forward Rally" in Philadelphia on October 10. The gig will take place near Philadelphia's Robert Fulton Elementary School.

Rush Limbaugh on Family Guy!

Rush Limbaugh guest starred as himself on this weekend’s episode of Family Guy. Popwatch is blogging, “Throughout the episode, Rush didn’t hesitate to take his share of punches — including a particularly ego-free joke about man-boobs. But he threw plenty, too, ribbing bleeding-heart liberal values, and going to town on the left-leaning haters. They even let him convert liberal Brian the dog.

Naked Cowboy for President!

He tried his hand at running for Mayor back in 2008, but New York Times installation, The Naked Cowboy, is setting his sights higher this time. He’s turning in the tidie widies, nixed the Brett Michaels hair, and is looking to officially declare his candidacy for President of the United States. TMZ caught up with The Cowboy -- real name Robert John Burck – who told them that he has a "very conservative policy” but he’s learned a lot from his last foray into politics. His web site, Naked Cowboy.com, says he will make some sort of official announcement on October 6th in Times Square. The son of a "career politician", he mentions he has a bachelor's degree in Political Science and has "participated in making New York City the number one tourist destination in the World".

TMZ has the video