Abortion Swells Obama's Woes With Catholics

James Jones, retired NATO honcho, surfaces in Hill talks

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama’s VP selection team had a busy couple of days on Capitol Hill, talking up possible running mates with legislators. A new name in the mix is that of retired Gen. James Jones, MSNBC reports. Joe Biden and Ohio governor Ted Strickland also came under scrutiny; Bill Richardson, Janet Napolitano, Mike Bloomberg, and Chuck Hagel did not.. More»

But those who object to abortions can still opt out

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration today undid an eleventh-hour rule enacted by George W. Bush that gave health workers the option to refuse to perform a litany of procedures they objected to on moral, religious, or cultural grounds. Declaring the so-called "conscience" rule "unclear and potentially overbroad in scope," the administration trimmed it down to allowing workers to opt out of performing abortions and sterilizations, the Washington Post reports. More»

White House proposal aims to unite Dems ahead of summit

(NEWSER) - The White House is crafting its own health care bill aimed at uniting House and Senate Democrats ahead of a bipartisan summit next week. The president hopes to avoid a Republican filibuster by attaching it to a budget bill, using the procedure called budget reconciliation. However, congressional Democrats have yet to see the bill—and it may be a tough sell. “There has not been a collaborative process,” a Dem tells the New York Times . "This is very much a White House proposal.” More»

(NEWSER) - A lot of people are lying about having voted for President Obama. A recent Wall Street Journal poll gives Obama a 50%-39% edge over John McCain—a big bump over his actual 7% victory. A New York Times survey shows Obama winning with a nearly 2-to-1 margin. That’s a remarkable number, but don’t get too excited; this always happens, Christopher Beam writes for Slate. More»

President's Notre Dame speech was radical and conservative: Dionne

(NEWSER) - Abortion opponents protested and pro-life students skipped, but Barack Obama's Notre Dame commencement address was at once "the most radical and the most conservative speech of his presidency," writes Washington Post columnist EJ Dionne. The president refused to indulge the protesters' desire to "reignite the culture wars," opting for humility and compromise—but he showed a comfort with the language of faith equal to George Bush. More»