Barack Obama

Read the latest post-presidency news about President Barack Obama on Newser.com

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Obama Widens Goals, Now Wants 3M Jobs

Recovery plans grow as advisers predict 9% unemployment

(Newser) - Barack Obama is expanding his plans to reverse the nation’s financial crisis and will seek to create 3 million jobs in the next two years, up from the goal of 2.5 million he proposed last month, the New York Times reports. The new figure follows a meeting in...

Obama Names 4 Top Science Advisers

(Newser) - Barack Obama today selected a Harvard physicist and a marine biologist for key science posts, in a sign he plans a more aggressive response to global warming than did the Bush administration. John Holdren and Jane Lubchenco are leading experts on climate change who have advocated forceful government action. “...

Obama Has Nothing to Hide, Plenty to Lose With Blago

Reflexively distancing himself from Illinois mess has made him look needlessly sketchy

(Newser) - Barack Obama looks to have done nothing wrong in his (however limited) dealings with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, but the president-elect seemed bent on proving otherwise, Joe Conason writes on Salon. Obama’s “unnecessary mistakes” in handling the scandal “risked creating public suspicion where there need be none,...

It's Official: Solis, Kirk, LaHood Join Cabinet

(Newser) - Barack Obama announced his final Cabinet choices today, making official what insiders have hinted at for a week, the Washington Post reports. Hilda Solis will be the nominee for labor secretary, Ron Kirk for trade representative, and Republican Ray LaHood for transportation. Solis appears to be the lightning rod, as...

With Picks, Obama Plays Both Sides of 'Change' Coin

He's got old hands on economy, foreign policy, new faces to bring shifts elsewhere

(Newser) - Barack Obama seems intent on giving America two administrations for the price of one, Gerald Seib writes in the Wall Street Journal. The first, his national-security and economic appointments, is full of well-known Washington veterans, sending a message of steadiness amid war and financial calamity. But the second wave of...

Solis Is Cabinet's Lone Progressive
 Solis Is Cabinet's 
 Lone Progressive 
ANALYSIS
Dec 19, 2008 1:39 PM CST

Solis Is Cabinet's Lone Progressive

Obama's Cabinet stocked with moderates—except Solis

(Newser) - Progressives are viewing Barack Obama's ever-so-centrist Cabinet with disappointment, except for the notable pick of union friend Hilda Solis for labor secretary, Politico reports. Solis, a rising star in the House who had been viewed as a potential Speaker, is the daughter of a teamster and a factory worker, and...

In Preacher Pick, Obama Dismisses Gays
 In Preacher Pick, 
 Obama Dismisses Gays 
OPINION
Dec 19, 2008 12:40 PM CST

In Preacher Pick, Obama Dismisses Gays

Rev. Rick Warren was big backer of Proposition 8

(Newser) - Barack Obama’s choice of Rick Warren to offer his inaugural invocation was a glaring and offensive misstep for a consistently savvy politician, writes prominent gay-rights activist Joe Solmonese in the Washington Post. Warren was a key proponent of Proposition 8, “the biggest loss our community has faced in...

Oprah House-Hunting in DC
 Oprah House-Hunting  
 in DC  
Dec 19, 2008 12:19 PM CST

Oprah House-Hunting in DC

Oprah Winfrey starts housing search in DC.

(Newser) - Call it Chicago on the Potomac—Oprah Winfrey and the Obamas may soon be neighbors again. The multimedia titan, an early and enthusiastic supporter of the president-elect’s campaign, is house-hunting in Washington, the New York Post reports. The hot rumor is that she's leaning toward a $50 million Georgetown...

Retired Admiral Will Be Next Spy Chief

Blair gets national intelligence post; CIA spot still open

(Newser) - Barack Obama will stick with the front-runner and name retired Admiral Dennis Blair to be his go-to guy on spying as director of national intelligence, reports the Washington Post. Blair, the former commander of naval forces in the Pacific, is generally well-regarded. Some in the civilian intelligence community grumbled about...

Obama Picks Physicist as Science Adviser

Harvard energy expert to get key role, cheering scientists

(Newser) - Barack Obama will appoint Harvard physicist John P. Holdren as science adviser this weekend, pointing to an expanded role for science in the next administration, the Boston Globe reports. Holdren is versed in energy, climate change, and nuclear proliferation. Coming on the heels of Nobel laureate Steven Chu’s nomination...

Castro Offers Prisoner Swap, Talks With US

Raul promises to free dissidents in exchange for Cuban 5

(Newser) - In another sign of a potential thaw in US-Cuban relations, Raul Castro offered today to release five political dissidents if the US frees five Cubans jailed on spy charges. Castro says the prisoner swap could precede talks between himself and Barack Obama, Reuters reports. “Give us back our five...

Ex-Dallas Mayor Kirk Will Be Obama's Trade Rep

Free-trade Democrat among few Southerners tabbed for cabinet

(Newser) - Barack Obama will announce former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk as his nominee for trade representative tomorrow, the Dallas Morning News reports. Kirk, who ran unsuccessfully for Senate in 2002, is pro-trade and a staunch supporter of NAFTA. Kirk campaigned extensively for Obama, and is one of the few Southern faces...

Obama Picks Solis for Labor
 Obama Picks Solis for Labor 
Dec 18, 2008 2:17 PM CST

Obama Picks Solis for Labor

Calif. Congresswoman has pushed for creation of 'green jobs'

(Newser) - Barack Obama will nominate Hilda Solis, a daughter of Latin American immigrants who’s currently a California Congresswoman, for secretary of labor, the Washington Post reports. Elected in 2000, Solis currently sits on the House Energy and Commerce committee and the Natural Resources committee, among others. She, like Obama, has...

At 27, Favreau's Writing Speech of a Generation

Obama's top writer puts away videogames for Inaugural address

(Newser) - Writing the inaugural address of an epochal president known for his oratory would be a daunting job for anyone, but 27-year-old Jon Favreau had to ditch his roomies and videogames in Chicago to do it for Barack Obama, reports the Washington Post. “If you start thinking about what's at...

Pix Bare Obama's Cocky College Days
Pix Bare Obama's Cocky College Days
Dec 18, 2008 5:12 AM CST

Pix Bare Obama's Cocky College Days

Long-lost 1980 student photos of debonair freshman emerge

(Newser) - Long-lost photos of college freshman Barry Obama smoking and posing with a hat have emerged with Time magazine's "Man of the Year" story. Photographer Lisa Jack says the 1980 photo shoot of her fellow student at Occidental College in Los Angeles reveals a "spirit of fun and thoughtfulness"...

Bush: 'I Never Sold My Soul'
 Bush: 'I Never Sold My Soul' 
Dec 18, 2008 4:43 AM CST

Bush: 'I Never Sold My Soul'

Says he knows he's unpopular

(Newser) - President Bush knows he doesn't have a lot of fans, but is proud that he didn't "compromise my soul to be a popular guy," he tells Fox News. It's particularly tough to like him given the current economic situation, he concedes. "What do you expect? We've got...

Aretha, Rick Warren on Tap for Inauguration Day

John Williams will compose new music for Obama's landmark occasion

(Newser) - Aretha Franklin will participate in Barack Obama’s inauguration next month, the New York Times reports, with the Queen of Soul hitting the stage after evangelical leader Rick Warren gives the invocation. Obama has also commissioned composer John Williams to write a new piece of music for the ceremony—to...

DC Ups Defenses for Inauguration

No specific threat, says general in detailing January plans

(Newser) - The Pentagon plans a dramatic expansion of the military presence in Washington to coincide with Barack Obama’s Jan. 20 inauguration, the Los Angeles Times reports. About 4,000 National Guardsmen and 7,500 active-duty troops will augment local police and security forces, while air patrols will be increased. No...

Obama Team Clogs Inboxes, Elicits Backlash

Mugs to donations, that David Plouffe emails incessantly

(Newser) - Barack Obama and his various Internet organs are hawking everything from civic engagement and disaster relief to coffee mugs and fleece scarves, causing fatigue among supporters, Politico reports. And while some are just tired of incessant emails from the likes of David Plouffe, watchers are concerned about how the president-elect...

Obama Adds Centrists Salazar, Vilsack to Cabinet

Salazar brings centrist cred to the team

(Newser) - Barack Obama added Ken Salazar and Tom Vilsack to his growing list of Cabinet appointments today, tapping the noted centrists as secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture respectively. “It is time for a new kind of leadership in Washington that's committed to using our lands in a responsible way,...

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