Salon.com > Nedra Pickler

Obama, Bush heading to the same African city

Mon, 01 Jul 2013 12:45:00 +0000

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (AP) — President Barack Obama and former President George W. Bush are planning to be in the same city a world away from home, but the question is whether they will get together.

The Democratic president was to fly Monday into Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, the last stop on a weeklong tour of Africa that wraps up Tuesday. His Republican predecessor coincidentally also plans to be there for a conference on African women organized by the George W. Bush Institute.

Their wives plan to team up at the conference Tuesday for a joint discussion on promoting women's education, health and economic empowerment. President Bush plans to be in attendance, before delivering his own speech there the following day, after the Obamas will have left.

Initially aides said the men had no plans to meet, but Obama foreign policy adviser Ben Rhodes indicated Sunday that could change. "There may be something," Rhodes said.

Having both presidents in town "sends a very positive message that both political parties in the United States share a commitment to this continent," Rhodes said.

During his African visit, Obama has credited Bush with helping save millions of lives by creating the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

Obama to name ex-Bush aide to head FBI

Thu, 30 May 2013 11:51:00 +0000

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is prepared to nominate James Comey, a former Bush administration official with bipartisan credentials, as the next FBI director. In a possible warning sign, the top Republican on the Senate committee that would review the nomination said Comey would face questions about his ties to Wall Street.

Three people with knowledge of the selection said Wednesday that Obama planned to nominate Comey, who was the No. 2 at the Justice Department under President George W. Bush. Comey was general counsel to Connecticut-based hedge fund Bridgewater Associates from 2010 until earlier this year and now lectures at Columbia Law School.

Comey would replace Robert Mueller, who has held the job since shortly before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, which forced the FBI to transform itself into one of the nation's chief weapons in the war on terror. Mueller's last day on the job is Sept. 4.

The White House may hope that Comey's Republican background will help him through Senate confirmation at a time when some of Obama's nominations have been facing tough battles. But Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, indicated Comey's confirmation hearing would raise questions about the Obama administration's investigations of Wall Street.

Obama surveys tornado damage

Sun, 26 May 2013 19:54:00 +0000

WASHINGTON (AP) — As tornado victims are laid to rest in Moore, Okla., President Barack Obama is visiting Sunday to survey damage from Monday's storm, which killed 24 people and damaged an estimated 12,000 homes.

The White House said Obama wanted a firsthand look at recovery from the monstrous EF5 tornado that barreled through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday afternoon. The president planned to visit with affected families and thank first responders in devastated Moore, a town of 41,000 residents about 10 miles from Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said Sunday her message to Obama is that she appreciates the visit, but the state also needs quick action from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The Republican governor said so far, the agency has done a great job of speeding relief and cash assistance to affected families, but she's concerned about the long run.

"There's going to come a time when there's going to be a tremendous amount of need once we begin the debris clearing, which we already have, but really get it cleared off to where we need to start rebuilding these homes, rebuilding these businesses," she said on CBS' "Face the Nation." ''And we know at different times in the past, money hasn't come always as quickly as it should."

Obama “determined as ever” to pass gun bill

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 11:00:00 +0000

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — With time running out on the chance to pass gun control legislation, President Barack Obama on Monday warned Congress not to use delaying tactics against tighter regulations and told families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victims that he's "determined as ever" to honor their children with tougher laws.

Obama's gun control proposals have run into resistance on Capitol Hill, leaving their fate in doubt. Efforts by Senate Democrats to reach compromise with Republicans over expanding required federal background checks have yet to yield an agreement, and conservatives were promising to try blocking the Senate from even beginning debate on gun control legislation.

"The day Newtown happened was the toughest day of my presidency," Obama said in an emotional speech from Connecticut's capital, an hour's drive from Newtown. "But I've got to tell you, if we don't respond to this, that'll be a tough day for me too."

Some of the Sandy Hook families are making an attempt to push through the bill. Obama met with them privately before his speech at the University of Hartford Monday evening, then brought 12 family members back to Air Force One for the trip back to Washington. The relatives want to meet with senators who've yet to back the legislation to encourage their support in memory of their loved ones.

Obama to propose $100 million brain-mapping project

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:48:00 +0000

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is proposing a new investment into research to map the human brain in hopes of unlocking some of its mysteries.

The president planned to propose a $100 million investment for next year during remarks Tuesday morning, the White House said.

Obama mentioned the idea in his State of the Union address, comparing the potential to the Human Genome Project that mapped DNA.

"Every dollar we invested to map the human genome returned $140 to our economy. Every dollar," Obama said in the address to Congress in February. "Today, our scientists are mapping the human brain to unlock the answers to Alzheimer's."

Obama picks foreign policy aide as chief of staff

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 15:47:00 +0000

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama has chosen longtime trusted adviser and national security expert Denis McDonough as his fifth chief of staff.

A White House official said Obama will announce McDonough's appointment Friday in the East Room. McDonough, 43, will take over the key West Wing role from Jack Lew, Obama's nominee for Treasury secretary.

McDonough has advised Obama on foreign policy for nearly a decade and most recently served as the president's deputy national security adviser. He is highly regarded by White House staffers.

McDonough's place in Obama's inner circle was illustrated during the Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden in May 2011. He is among those whose images are captured in a White House photograph seated in the situation room with Obama and other senior officials watching the raid unfold.

The White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity in order to speak before the president's announcement, said McDonough has played a key role in all of Obama's major national security decisions in recent years, including the end of the war in Iraq, winding down the war in Afghanistan, responses to natural disasters in Haiti and Japan and repeal of the military's ban on openly gay service members.

John Edwards charged in felony indictment

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 14:15:08 +0000

A federal grand jury has indicted two-time presidential candidate John Edwards over massive sums of money spent to keep his mistress in hiding during the peak of his 2008 campaign for the White House.

The case of USA v. Johnny Reid Edwards contains six counts, including conspiracy, four counts of illegal campaign contributions and one count of false statements. The indictment was returned in the Middle District of North Carolina Friday.

An Edwards spokeswoman said she wasn't aware of the filing and declined immediate comment.

The indictment is the culmination of a federal investigation that lasted more than two years and scoured through virtually every corner of Edwards' political career.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

Criminal charges were likely to be filed Friday against John Edwards, the culmination of a two-year federal investigation into money used to cover up an extramarital affair during the 2008 presidential election.

Edwards' attorney Greg Craig was traveling to meet with prosecutors in North Carolina, an indication that the former presidential candidate will likely be charged, either in a grand jury indictment or in a negotiated charge to which he would plead guilty.

Criminal charges likely today against John Edwards

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 12:39:00 +0000

A person with knowledge of the investigation said Craig, a Washington lawyer who was President Barack Obama's first White House counsel, planned to be in his client's home state Friday, where prosecutors were prepared to file charges. The source insisted on anonymity in order to discuss the private negotiations.

Prosecutors have told Edwards they will charge him Friday but plea negotiations continue, so a grand jury indictment or deal on a negotiated charge are both still possible, the person said.

Former Hastings aide files sexual harassment suit

Mon, 07 Mar 2011 22:33:44 +0000

A former aide to Rep. Alcee Hastings filed a lawsuit Monday claiming he repeatedly made unwanted sexual advances and threatened her position when she refused him, allegations the congressman denied as "ludicrous."

The conservative legal group Judicial Watch is representing Winsome Packer in her sexual harassment claim against Hastings, a Florida Democrat, and the Helsinki Commission that he chaired. Packer served as the commission's staff representative in Vienna and said much of the harassment occurred when Hastings was in Europe on business for the commission, which advises on U.S. policy about security, human rights and other issues involving Europe.

Packer's suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, said Hastings kept asking to stay at her apartment or get her to visit his hotel room, hugging her and making sexual comments including asking her what kind of underwear she was wearing.

Hastings, a 74-year-old serving his 10th term in the House, issued a written statement denying Packer's claims.

"I have never sexually harassed anyone," the statement said. "In fact, I am insulted that these ludicrous allegations are being made against me. ... I will win this lawsuit."

Elizabeth Edwards dies at 61

Tue, 07 Dec 2010 22:05:00 +0000

Elizabeth Edwards, who closely advised her husband in two bids for the presidency and advocated for health care even as her marriage publicly crumbled, died Tuesday after a six-year struggle with cancer. She was 61.

She died at her North Carolina home surrounded by her three children, siblings, friends and her estranged husband, John, the family said.

"Today we have lost the comfort of Elizabeth's presence but, she remains the heart of this family," the family said in a statement. "We love her and will never know anyone more inspiring or full of life. On behalf of Elizabeth we want to express our gratitude to the thousands of kindred spirits who moved and inspired her along the way. Your support and prayers touched our entire family."

She was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004, in the final days of her husband's vice presidential campaign. The Democratic John Kerry-John Edwards ticket lost to incumbent President George W. Bush.

John Edwards launched a second bid for the White House in 2007, and the Edwardses decided to continue even after doctors told Elizabeth that her cancer had spread. He lost the nomination to Barack Obama.

The couple separated in January after he admitted fathering a child with a campaign videographer.

Elizabeth Edwards gravely ill with cancer

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 23:20:00 +0000

Elizabeth Edwards is gravely ill and doctors have told her she only has weeks to live, according to a family friend who is among those who have gathered with Edwards at her North Carolina home.

The family issued a statement Monday that said doctors have told her that further treatment for her cancer would be unproductive, and the family friend further described Edwards' condition to The Associated Press.

The friend said Edwards was briefly hospitalized last week and received treatment, but doctors have now told her that she may only have up to a couple months of life left. The friend spoke on condition of anonymity because of the personal details divulged.

Edwards' estranged husband, former presidential candidate John Edwards, and their three children were at her side at the Chapel Hill home, the friend reported. Her sister, brother, nieces, nephews and other loved ones were also there. The friend said Elizabeth Edwards is not in pain and in good spirits despite the seriousness of her condition.

Edwards, a popular figure among Democratic activists as she campaigned with her husband in two presidential bids, posted on her Facebook page that she can't express the love and gratitude she feels to those who've supported and inspired her. "The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered," she wrote.

Former Marine pleads guilty to accepting bribes

Tue, 05 Oct 2010 22:03:00 +0000

A former Marine has pleaded guilty to accepting a $25,000 bribe in exchange for awarding numerous contracts to a Lebanese-based company at Camp Falluja in Iraq.

Mariam Mendoza Steinbuch, who was a staff sergeant deployed as a contracting specialist in 2006, was arraigned Tuesday in federal court in Washington.

Court documents say that after Mendoza returned to the United States in February 2007, she flew from San Diego to Houston Hobby Airport and picked up $25,000 cash from an official with a Houston-based affiliate of the company.

Court filings do not disclose the name of the company or the value of the contracts it was awarded in the scheme.

The documents say Mendoza must turn over two all-terrain vehicles she bought with the bribe money.