Press Secretary Minister of Information Robert Washington Bob Gibbs is stepping down as the chief front man for the White House to become an outside adviser to the president and his re-election campaign, Fox News has confirmed. No successor has been immediately named. But Gibbs told The New York Times, which first reported the departure, that a replacement will likely be announced within the next two weeks.
#4
BY MALIA ZIMMERMAN The Hawaii Reporter Nancy Pelosis final days as Speaker of the House were spent at the exotic Four Seasons Resort Hualalai at Historic Kaupulehu in Kona on the island of Hawaii.
Escorted throughout her trip by a mini security motorcade that included Secret Service and Hawaii County Police officers, Pelosi was seen at St. Michaels Catholic Church in Kailua-Kona, where she received Communion. Parishioners greeted her warmly, Hawaii Reporter was told. Two police SUVs were on guard outside the hotel during her week long stay.
Pelosi, who traveled to Hawaii by private plane, spent the holidays in Kona last year at the same hotel in an elaborate suite that reportedly rents for $10,000 a night.
The Four Seasons Resort Hualalais details its luxurious setting and amenities on its web site: Gloriously revitalised, this natural tropical paradise offers more than ever to explore with a newly expanded Spa, beachfront dining, fashion boutiques and new Deluxe Suites, in addition to Jack Nicklaus signature golf. Set on the Big Islands exclusive Kona-Kohala Coast, this showpiece resort captures the essence of Hawaiian design, culture and tradition.
Pelosi has her share of allies in Hawaii, including Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie, who she defended during his successful campaign for governor in 2010. Pelosi, a Democrat who will be replaced as House Speaker by GOP Congressman John Boehner in a matter of days, served in Congress with Abercrombie. When Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Mufi Hannemann claimed during the primary that Abercrombie was not effective in Congress, Pelosi issued a statement calling Abercrombie outstanding, effective and courageous.
Hawaii Reporter has requested information from the Police on taxpayers costs to guard her. Last year, Hawaii county taxpayers paid more than $21,000.
This year, the county estimates have not yet been provided to Hawaii Reporter; the request is pending. However, the Hawaii Police Department does not release the number of police officers escorting Pelosi, how many hours they dedicated to Pelosis security detail, or whether they were being pulled from other duties. No figures could be obtained for her Secret Service escorts.
Her trip coincides with President Barack Obamas nearly two-week family vacation in Hawaii.
Obamas trip to Oahu has proved much pricier to state and federal taxpayers.
In a Hawaii Reporter story published last week, some of the cost estimates included:
Obamas round trip flight to Hawaii via Air Force One: $1 million (GAO estimates)
Mrs. Obamas early flight to Hawaii: $63,000 (White House Dossier)
Housing in beachfront homes for Secret Service and Seals in Kailua ($1,200 a day for 14 days): $16,800
Costs for White House staff staying at Moana Hotel: $134,400 ($400 per day for 24 staff) excluding meals and other room costs
Local police overtime: $250,000 (2009 costs reported by Honolulu Police Department)
Ambulance: $10,000 (City Spokesperson)
TOTAL COST: $1,474,200
UNKNOWN COSTS
Rental of office building in Kailua on canal
Security upgrades and additional phone lines to private homes where Obama and friends are staying
Costs for car rentals and fuel for White House staff staying at Moana Hotel
Surveillance before the President arrives
Travel costs for Secret Service and White House staff traveling ahead of the President
Since the Obama holiday story appeared in Hawaii Reporter, readers on the island of Hawaii point to another plane similar to Air Force One (except with a communications dome atop it) that accompanied the President to Hawaii, is at the Hilo Airport.
In addition, costs should have been added for the USAF C-17 cargo aircraft that transported the Presidential limos, helicopters and other support equipment. The flight time between Andrews Air Force Base and Hawaii is at about 20 hours roundtrip, with estimated operating cost of $7,000 per hour (GAO report) for a total of $140,000 per roundtrip. Sources say the United States Marine Corps provides a presidential helicopter, along with pilots and support crews for the test flights, which travel on another C-17 flight at $140,000 for a total of $280,000.
Hawaii Reporter has requested details on the cost of the Presidents trip, but the White House will not release any figures, citing security concerns. A spokesperson maintains the costs are in line with other presidential vacations.
Hawaii Reporter has sought to determine the cost of vacations for the current president and last two presidents but it has not received any reply from four emails sent over the last week to the U.S. General Services Administration, the agency that tracks these costs.
#6
Wow Ryuge,
Never knew Klaus Nomi did that cover. While I thought him most bizarre, he is an excellent complement to the weirdness of the retiring Speaker of the House- sort of the same way a "nice Chianti goes with Fava Beans".
BTW, Nomi was quite the sensation in Deutchland before his death, one of the first AIDS victims.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klaus_Nomi
I bet many Rantburgers would remember his Saturday Night Live appearence as a back up to David Bowie in 1979, where Bowie basically "lifted" Nomi's trademark style.
#8
Yes, Capsu -
I definitely remember the SNL Bowie performance (a rare SNL with 3 - rather than 2 - songs from the musical guest). Nomi's performance clip from Urgh! A Music War is one of the highlights of the movie too. And, as mentioned in the Wikipedia article, Nomi, David Bowie and Iggy Pop belong to the Guild of Calamitous Intent in the Venture Brothers (great) cartoon series.
Thanks for the link.
President Barack B.O. Obama's top health care official says Republican repeal of his overhaul law would take away personal freedoms and put power back in the hands of insurance companies. Oh, noze! Not somebody who knows something about insurance!
Previewing the administration's counterattack, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Tuesday that new benefits under the law have freed millions of Americans from worry that they'll lose or be denied coverage, while making it easier for small businesses to sponsor a policy for their employees.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Problem is lady, the Federal Government is not really competent in anything it is actually supposed to do, it is not run by 20 year med students or accountants. Another problem lady is people like you that are not competent in anything at all.
#4
I think Sebelius is referring to her personal freedoms.
Posted by: Matt ||
01/05/2011 9:10 Comments ||
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Kathleen Sebelius said Tuesday that new benefits under the law have freed millions of Americans from worry that they'll lose or be denied coverage
What a spinmeister! Nice name for liar. More like it has broken the country and enslaved all of us to the Federal government. Washington takes our money and maybe doles out part of it back to us and then they call it a good deal. Health care costs were not supposed to increase. That didn't happen. You were supposed to be able to keep your insurance and your doctor. That didn't happen either.
#7
How would she know? She still probably hasn't read the damn thing. The only people who have, apparently, are those that question it, and they come away horrified.
Was that bill computer generated or something? If it was, likely by the same "Al Gore"-rithms that predicted that by now, because of MMGW, the surface of the Earth would be uninhabitably hot.
#8
How about this for personal freedom? I would prefer to put my health care into a private insurance company's hands where I can move to another company if I am not happy with the service or choose to drop them all together rather than be on a government program where I have no choice to precipitate or not and what is covered or not.
Still don't understand? Then go back to Soviet Russia bitch and leave us alone before we throw you out forcefully.
#11
Boehner Tells Off DingyRUSH LIMBAUGH: John Boehner -- I don't know if you know this or not. This is really cool. Harry Reid told Boehner, (paraphrasing) "Don't bother to repeal Obamacare in the House. Don't even bother, because it's gonna fail in the Senate. Don't even bother with it." So there you have the Senate majority leader telling the new speaker, "Forget it, don't even mess with repealing Obamacare. It's just gonna fail over here, why you gonna waste your time, don't even do it." From TheHill.com, here's Boehner's response: "Senators Reid, Durbin, Schumer, Murray and Stabenow: Thank you for reminding us -- and the American people -- of the backroom deal that you struck behind closed doors with 'Big Pharma,' resulting in bigger profits for the drug companies, and higher prescription drug costs for 33 million seniors enrolled in Medicare Part D, at a cost to the taxpayers of $42.6 billion. The House is going to pass legislation to repeal that now. You're welcome." Whoa! Whoa-ho-ho! Right back atcha, Dingy Harry. You know, this is the kind of thing you and I would say. Boehner actually did it. It's in TheHill.com, he actually wrote that reply back to them. He basically said, "Up yours," in polite lingo, of course.
#12
So far, Boehner is really stepping up. He is sure making the Kos kiddies howl, that's for sure. The new rules are also looking good. Hopefully he continues on this course. And this really makes me glee: Finally, and perhaps most controversially, Rep. Paul Ryan, chairman of the House Budget Committee, will have the authority to set the top line budget numbers for the year -- a change from the previous process, which went through the Budget Committee.
Looks like the Republicans are serious about de-funding Obamacare and several agencies.
#13
John Boehner grew up poor in Cincinnati. The family bar is currently being run by his sister, but it's still the neighborhood dive it was then -- not much to support such a large family. He worked third shift jobs to pay for college. Quite unlike Secretary Sebelius, who went to quite one of the nicest private schools in Cincinnati. I don't think our new Speaker of the House will have any trouble facing down a highly educated Summit Country Day girl.
#14
So according to Sebelius, a tool of the abortion industry and the collectivists and socialists of the far left in the Dem party: "Freedom is Slavery".
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/05/2011 21:35 Comments ||
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#16
I have watched Sibelius over the years and think she would be equally at home in an SS uniform putting people on a train to Dachau or in Commissar clothing sending the ideologically impure to work on Siberia's Road of Bones. Just has that special quality.
(KUNA) -- The chief of staff to Vice President Joe Foreign Policy Whiz Kid Biden ... an example of the kind of top-notch Washington intellect to be found in the World's Greatest Deliberative Body ... will depart his post at the end of this month, the Office of the Vice President confirmed on Tuesday.
Ron Klain, who also served four years as chief of staff to former Vice President, Nobel Prize winner, and crazed sex poodle Al Gore, plans to become president of Case Holdings.
In a statement, Biden said Klain had played a key role in establishing "the strong, positive relationship that exists between my staff and the President's team." "I am proud of the successes we have had over these two years, and I am grateful for the role Ron played in achieving them," Biden said.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
So, ... Case Holdings. And what is he going to do at Case Holdings? Well, head up Zipcar and Everyday Health. And these are?
Glad you asked. Zipcar is about alternatives to leasing or owning a car in urban environments. (I'm thinking subsidized electric Gov Motors vehicles here but that could be me being cynical. Again.) And Everyday Health is about online health services (from the guy who was the chief of staff for Mr. I-invented-the-Internet). My less positive side (98% of my being when it comes to politicians) says this has some tie to Obamacare. I could be wrong. My cynical side says both of these efforts are likely ticks, intended to suck the blood out of the country through subsidies. A Dem sinecure.
So, a new job linked to sustainable development and Obamacare related 'businesses'. What could go wrong. And, he worked there before.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
01/05/2011 6:45 Comments ||
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#2
Will anyone really notice this departure? It can only be a good thing. More faster please.
[Arab News] The new 112th Congress convenes Wednesday, but don't count on a new era of bipartisanship any time soon. Congress's new Republicans and old Democrats are already at war.
Lawmakers sparred Sunday during talk shows about the national debt, for starters. Even as the debt races toward $14 trillion, some Republicans said they would oppose extending the debt limit beyond the current $14.3 trillion, although such a move could shut down the government.
Rep. Darrell Issa of Caliphornia, who will head the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, promised on Fox News Sunday that Republicans and the B.O. regime are "going to be in a constant battle over jobs and the economy."
While Rep. Michele Bachmann, a Republican from Minnesota, said pushing a repeal of health care through the House was worth it even though it would face a veto from President Barack B.O. Obama if it managed to pass the Senate.
Another Republican, Sen. Lindsey Graham ... the endangered South Carolina RINO... of South Carolina, said on NBC's "Meet the Press," "I think you're going to see the fight on Obamacare across the board in the House and the Senate to try to de-fund the Obamacare bill and to start over."
Republican congressional leaders may also have to gird for some aggravation of their own from some of the Tea Party candidates elected this fall.
Republicans pledged Sunday to devote themselves to balancing the budget over all else.
Republicans elected to Congress with the help of Tea Party support said Sunday that when they start their new jobs on Wednesday they hope to change the culture of spending in Washington as they prepare to get sworn in this week. They said Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid earmarks and other items will all be on the table for serious reform.
But Tea Party leaders have already expressed concern. Although more than 40 candidates supported by the Tea Party were elected to the House and Senate -- which means roughly half of the incoming Republicans were elected with "Tea Party" support -- they lost a campaign to install their favorites as chairmen on two powerful House committees.
Their goal is to keep the new members focused on the movement's priorities -- slashing federal spending, opposing all tax increases, repealing the health-care bill and adhering to its interpretation of the Constitution -- and out of the clutches of Washington.
This will be no easy task. The passionate and sometimes controversial activists of the Tea Party are running headlong into a familiar collision: Movement idealism meets Inside-the-DC-Beltway deal-making.
Many grass-roots movements have learned how hard it is to remain outsiders in a place run by insiders and still accomplish something, said Martin Cohen, a professor of political science at Virginia's James Madison University, who is studying the Tea Party movement and its parallels to the rise of the Christian right in the 1980s and 1990s, which emerged from the grass roots in the late 1970s but eventually lost its independence as leaders were absorbed into the party establishment.
"If I had to bet on whether they would change Washington or whether Washington would change them, I would bet on Washington," Cohen told news hounds.
Tea Party leaders say they're prepared to avoid the pitfalls that have hobbled past political movements. They argue their activists are more engaged and committed. They're not advocating a single issue but a bigger campaign to "restore America." And perhaps most notable, they've proved a willingness to punish straying politicians at the ballot box.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/05/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Even those on the center-right who question the organization of the Tea Party group, can't deny that something good can be converted from their political energy.
#2
Need to dismantle Obummer's big spending machinery (even though it will face a presidential veto). The load will be be on Obama if he vetoes everything the Pubs put forth. The Pubs need to keep hammering. Otherwise, we are doomed financially. The Pubs need to publicize the obstructions put in the way by the administration.
Their egos' are writing checks our bodies can't cash.
I thought I heard about somebody famous stating that reducing the deficit would be futile because, without a budget passed, there is no way to gauge that reduction. I heard it on the radio driving and will not attest to person or quote without the written text - if anyone heard this could you please confirm or deny because the way I heard it I about went off the road in fury.
#4
Tea Party is the Only group doing thr three R's, Reading Writing Arithmetic. For the most recent con-critters, ignorance was bliss until their party was crashed by an informed segment of the electorate.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Press Secretary 
President 
(KUNA) -- The chief of staff to Vice President 
