Dem Groups Loyal to Obama Despite Snubs

Plan is to scale back agenda, focus on government clean up

(NEWSER) - President Obama’s new 2010 strategy, arrived at after weeks of internal debate, is to replace his sweeping “change” agenda with a more modest push for government reform. First up: a tough new campaign finance law, pushing back against the deeply unpopular Citizens United Supreme Court ruling. “Americans really turned against this opinion,” one official tells Politico , “so the biggest reform is to ensure that our politics and our campaigns are not controlled by special interests.” More»

New strategy seeks to use president's face time more wisely

(AP) - Facing criticism that President Obama isn't connecting with the public, the White House is infusing its communications strategy with some of the discipline and outside-the-box thinking that made Obama's presidential campaign famous. Sensitive about talk that the president was sometimes overexposed last year, the administration will now be more frugal with Obama's face time, and more picky about who he talks to. More»

President loath to look weak, profligate

(NEWSER) - President Obama’s ability to control his image seems to be spinning out of control, with several damaging narratives taking hold in the public consciousness. Politico breaks down the narratives Obama is most threatened by:

• Obama the Big Spender: Though economists cheered on the stimulus, the backlash was severe among independents. Obama intends to stress fiscal discipline in his 2010 State of the Union, but actually clamping down on spending will be tough.

Meeting raises questions about ties to big business

(NEWSER) - Aides to President Obama and Max Baucus met with a variety of lobbyists for corporate health care companies on April 15, to help form two industry coalitions and launch a multimillion-dollar ad campaign, Politico has learned. Though both sides insist no quid pro quo was laid out, some participants say they felt pressured to join the coalitions created at the meeting. “What were we supposed to say? No?” says one attendee. More»

Why pro-choice advocates are tepid on the Freedom of Choice Act

(NEWSER) - President Obama has promised to pass a "Freedom of Choice Act" to ban abortion restrictions, yet hasn't lifted a finger; nor have pro-choice advocates raised a fuss. With Democrats in Congress and a liberal national mood, why not strike now? Because the controversy over partial-birth abortion settled the issue years ago, Jon A. Shields writes in The New Republic. More»