President Barack Obama met today in the Vatican with Pope Benedict XVI.
** NEW COLUMN COMING UP … DIMINISHING RETURNS FROM OBAMA’S SUMMITEERING?
** QUICK HITS. President Barack Obama’s buddy, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev, announced today as the G-8 summit ended that if the proposed US anti-missile shield in Eastern Europe isn’t resolved to Moscow’s satisfaction by September, he will move offensive missiles into Kaliningrad, formerly the Prussian/German city of Konigsberg, a Russian enclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic. … Obama is in Ghana for a major address tomorrow. … With California Democrats going after former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorini, a potential challenger to Senator Barbara Boxer, the San Francisco Chronicle today reported that she failed to register her business and foundation with the state. Readers know I don’t take her very seriously as a rival for Boxer. … Former UCLA Chancellor Charles Young, now director of LA’s Museum of Contemporary Art, sued today to try to get the California Supreme Court to invalidate Prop 13 and its requirement for a two-thirds vote to raise taxes. His theory? That the famed initiative did not merely amend the state constitution, but revised it, meaning it needed to go through more of a process than mere adoption in a popular vote. The same theory was used by most gay marriage advocates recently, and quite unsuccessfully, in a challenge to the anti-gay marriage Prop 8. … No progress today in California’s chronic-turned-chaotic budget crisis, though there was some more sniping, fairly desultory in nature. SEIU is intimating it may stage a strike of state employees. That seems like a less than brilliant idea to me.
** A SOBERING REPORT FROM THE CALIFORNIA STATE CONTROLLER. Democratic state Controller John Chiang released his monthly fiscal report this afternoon.
“California continues to pay for its history of unbalanced budgets. The State spent $10.4 billion more than it collected last year alone, and is now without enough cash to cover all of its payment obligations,” said Chiang.
“Our major sources of revenue have continued their trend downward, leaving no viable option but to craft a new budget that recognizes California’s recovery has yet to begin.”
Personal income taxes in June were $987 million below (-18.0%) estimates in the May Revision, and sales taxes were short by $154 million (-5.8%). Corporate taxes were $1.31 billion above estimates (41.2%). Corporate taxes in May and June were boosted by a surge of payments from corporate taxpayers hoping to avoid a new State penalty.
The State started the fiscal year with a $1.45 billion cash deficit, which grew to $11.9 billion on June 30, 2009. Borrowed money from special funds provided enough cash to fund State operations through June 30. The Controller faced a large cash shortfall at the end of July, forcing his office to begin issuing registered warrants or “IOUs” to any General Fund payment that was not protected by the State Constitution, federal law, or court decision. Without IOUs, the State would have run out of cash and begun missing those protected payments at the end of July.
While updated cash projections show that IOUs will preserve enough cash to make those protected payments through September, the cash shortfall in October will endanger the State’s ability to make those payments.
** NO EXODUS OF THE RICH FROM CALIFORNIA. The Public Policy Institute of California has a new report undermining the conservative argument that California’s high taxes (which are not actually that high) are driving the rich from California. In reality, says the PPIC survey, it’s the low income who are more likely to leave. Perhaps because of the unemployment situation.
Though the state’s population, biggest in the US, continues to grow, due to native births, more people are leaving California than arriving here. But there is disagreement as to how long that’s been going on. Some say it began at the beginning of the decade; others in the last few years. And the reasons are unclear. One reason may be that the state has an ever-growing population.
** PANETTA ACKNOWLEDGES PAST C.I.A. LYING TO CONGRESS: VINDICATION FOR PELOSI? CIA Director Leon Panetta has recently acknowledged several instances of lying by Central Intelligence Agency officials to Congress, perhaps providing the cover of vindication to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who said in the spring that a CIA record showing that she was personally briefed in on the use of torture in interrogation was false. The Senate Intelligence Committee chairman of the time, Florida’s Bob Graham, supported Pelosi’s contention, saying that a similar CIA report about him was also false.
Among the revelations from Panetta is a secret program about which CIA lied to Congress throughout the Bush/Cheney Administration. But there’s not yet disclosure of what that program was, though it is said to directly involve former Vice President Dick Cheney. Whatever it was, it began shortly after 9/11.
** BURRIS STEPS AWAY. Illinois Senator Roland Burris, the only African American in the US Senate, announced today that he will not seek election to the seat to which he was appointed late last year by then Governor Rod Blagojevich. At issue is President Barack Obama’s Senate seat, which Blagojevich is accused of trying to sell. He appointed Burris after the controversy erupted, and Burris was finally seated. However, Burris’s position became untenable once it was shown that he had agreed to raise money for Blagojevich as he sought the Senate appointment.
Burris says he’s not running because of the demands of re-election fundraising. But the reality is that he was simply out of options. Meanwhile, Blagojevich’s former chief of staff has cut a deal to add to the corruption case against the former governor.
** BIPARTISAN HEALTH CARE REFORM COMING UP SHORT FOR OBAMA. ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, the former top Bill Clinton aide, reports that negotiations for a bipartisan universal health care plan are really going nowhere on Capitol Hill.
This makes it likely that Obama and the Democrats will go it alone in Congress. Not an issue in the House, where Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said for weeks that she has the votes. But in the Senate, this will test the Democrats’ new 60-vote filibuster-proof majority.
Especially since on a Democrats-only health care bill, Obama will almost certainly include the so-called public option, which would allow Americans to opt for a true national health service.
President Barack Obama, wrapping up his participation in the G-8 summit today in Italy, said he’s pursuing his universal health care plan as a top priority.
** OBAMA TODAY. President Barack Obama wrapped up his participation in the G-8 (group of eight advanced industrial nations) summit in L’Aquila, Italy. The time there is nine hours ahead of California.
He and First Lady Michelle Obama then went to Rome, and to Vatican City.
There they met with Pope Benedict XVI and toured the Vatican.
At 9 AM Pacific, they depart Rome for Accra, Ghana on Air Force One.
At 1:20 PM Pacific, they arrive in Accra, Ghana.
The time in Ghana is seven hours ahead of Ghana.
Obama will deliver a major address in Ghana on Saturday on America in relation to Africa and the Third World.
With Obama’s encouragement, the G-8 leaders agreed to provide $20 billion in food aid, mainly in development programs rather than cash which would otherwise likely end up in the pockets of corrupt regimes.
The G-8 summit does not appear to have been much of a success. While leaders agreed to continue economic stimulus efforts, with the International Monetary Fund projecting a 1.4% contraction in the global economy this year (down slightly from the previous forecast), there’s still concern about continuing unemployment. Which is usually a lagging indicator of any recovery.
The more established industrial countries are at loggerheads with more recently industrializing countries on cutting greenhouse gas emissions. China and India are not on board. As a result, the more established powers agreed to a goal of cutting temperature rises but not specific targets in greenhouse gas reductions.
This means there is a great deal to be done prior to the big Copenhagen conference late this year on climate change.
While at the G-8 summit, Obama said he wants his universal health care plan passed by August. The administration has gained nearly a quarter of a trillion dollars in savings to be applied to the plan through deals with the hospital and pharmaceuticals industries.
Meanwhile, Vice President Joe Biden is holding a roundtable with small business owners on health care.
A new, though much smaller, round of protests in Tehran is being forcibly dispersed by Iranian security troops.
And there was more disorder today in Iran, where perhaps a few thousand protesters turned out in various parts of Tehran on the day after the 10th anniversary of student protests. They are protesting the promptly declared landslide re-election of radical Islamist President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The protesters were forcibly dispersed by Iranian security forces.
** FROM THE ARNOLD FILE. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger holds private meetings and discussions in Sacramento and Los Angeles, focusing on California’s chronic-turned-chaotic budget crisis.
He has no scheduled public events today.
The situation has devolved into a static storyline, with sniping but no alternative budget plans on the table.
** OBAMA DOES MOSCOW, AND VICE VERSA. Flying to Italy Wednesday morning for the troubled G-8 summit, President Barack Obama departed Moscow after a very intriguing summit with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
This was the so-called “Reset Summit” to bring American/Russian relations out of the neo-Cold War depths they’d sunk to last year. It certainly succeeded at that, and at some other things as well, especially with regard to sharp reductions in nuclear weapons, aid for the US effort in Afghanistan, and a pullback on NATO expansion, a longtime thorn in the side of Russia. But other sticking points remained, on a US anti-missile shield and on Iran.
All amidst some notable intrigue, some of it generated from the Obama side. …
Unlike most of the rest of Europe, Russia is hardly in the grip of Obamamania. He’s certainly more popular than George W. Bush or John McCain, but that’s damning with faint praise. … From my new column.
** OBAMA’S CONSEQUENTIAL FIRST 4TH: NOKO, AFPAK, IRAQ, RUSSIA, PALIN (PALIN?!) Quite a consequential first 4th of July as president for Barack Obama.
Not only did he have 20 of daughter Malia’s schoolgirl friends over for a Camp David sleepover in honor of her 11th birthday on the 4th of July — just wait till her “Independence Day,” Dad — he had a few other things on his plate, as well as the barbeque for military families and the fireworks show. Not counting his inherited worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
North Korea was to have been the drama of the day. But it turned into a major fizzle. … From my July 4th column.
** THE GOP’S PALIN FOOD FIGHT: WHY NOW? You have to hand it to Sarah Palin. For a sideshow, she’s very good at being the center of attention. Even when she doesn’t want to be.
She had a few big controversies earlier this year — her on-again/off-again headlining of the big GOP congressional fundraiser, her pregnant teenage daughter, the usual Alaska stuff — but she’s hit the jackpot this week with a huge food fight among big name Republicans. What’s unexamined is this question: Why now? … From my July 2nd column.
** TRANSFORMATIVE: LE CINEMA DE MICHAEL BAY. I love the films of Michael Bay. In fact, they are so dramatic and compelling that …
Gotcha! I actually do not love the films of Michael Bay. I don’t hate them, either. And there are a couple that I like. But the fact that it is considered preposterous for a writer — a writer who writes about anything, even wallpaper — to not dismiss Bay’s work in the most vehement of terms points up a dramatic disconnect between the critical community and the movie-going audience.
Bay’s new flick, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, just took in an astounding $200.1 million at the domestic box office in its first five days of release. … From my June 29th essay.
** STAR TREK FIRSTS … 43 YEARS ON. … From my June 23rd essay.
** OBAMA AND THE AYATOLLAH. . … From my June 19th column.
** OBAMA’S CRISIS MANAGEMENT: NORTH KOREA, AGAIN. … From my June 12th column.
** REMEMBERING AMERICA: OBAMA’S D-DAY SPEECH AND TWO DAYS IN JUNE. … From my June 8th column.
** REPOSITIONING AMERICA: OBAMA’S CAIRO SPEECH AS THE ULTIMATE IN EVENT MARKETING. … From my June 4th column.
** TERMINATING THE DARKNESS: HOPE FLOATS, BUT ANXIETY ABIDES. … From my May 31st column.
** THE AVOIDABLE TRAGEDY OF CALIFORNIA’S PROP 8. … From my May 26th column.
** OBAMA: RIDING WITH HISTORY. (NOTE: As Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States, this column was the featured column on the top of the front page of the Huffington Post.) … From my January 19th Huffington Post column.
** 24/7 LIVE TV NEWS FEED FROM RUSSIA TODAY. Russia has re-emerged as one of the world’s great powers. Click here for a live TV news feed on your computer, bringing you English-language, jargon-free, fast-paced coverage of global and Russian news from the new Russia Today channel. You probably already know about CNN International, BBC World, and Al Jazeera. Russia Today, which also features culture, entertainment, and sports, is based in Moscow and is owned and operated by the TV Novosti division of Russia’s state news agency, RIA Novosti. While it’s quite foolish to expect to see, say, criticism of Vladimir Putin on Russia Today, which I know as a former DemRussia advisor, the channel is very interesting nonetheless. With U.S. cable news chattering away as it does, this sort of respite can be informative. The NWN live link to RT does not constitute an endorsement of the channel’s views. It’s presented as an otherwise unavailable new media window.
** 24/7 LIVE TV NEWS FEED FROM AL JAZEERA. With the US entangled in two wars in the region, it’s valuable to keep up with news and perspectives from the leading Middle Eastern-based TV news network. Based in the Gulf Arab state of Qatar, Al Jazeera is very influential and more than a bit controversial. Click here for a live TV news feed on your computer. The NWN live link to AJ does not constitute an endorsement of the channel’s views. It’s presented as an otherwise unavailable new media window.
** SCHWARZENEGGER’S CALIFORNIA. Here is my series of five columns on the governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger for the Los Angeles Times in debate last fall, prior to the global economic meltdown, with Pulitzer Prize-winning former Times reporter/editor Bill Boyarsky, whose columns are also included. Among them is what I’m sure is the first piece examining Schwarzenegger’s legacy as governor of California. Since he will actually be governor of California until 2011. No technology known to be disruptive to the space/time continuum was used in its preparation.
You can listen to my recent video webchat with Schwarzenegger here.
** TRACK GLOBAL AND NATIONAL ENERGY PRICES IN NEAR REAL TIME VIA BLOOMBERG ENERGY MARKET WATCH. Having crashed over $147 for yet another record last July 11th, crude oil is trading around $60 per barrel.
This is up about $26 from the low of $34 per barrel prior to enactment of the Obama economic recovery program. But oil has been slumping over the past week or so from recent highs on fears that the global economic recovery is happening too slowly.
Your posts are welcome in the Forum.
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| Comments (50) |
Obama sounds good at the G8.
The protesters in Tehran don’t look like they have much chance.
hey, here’s the site. Couldn’t find it eaerlier.
I hope Barack has the votes on health care. Bill, didn’t you say Feinstein was balky?
The protesters in Tehran are very brave.
Or very crazy.
Is the “public option” still in the bill?
Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 9:51 am
I hope Barack has the votes on health care. Bill, didn’t you say Feinstein was balky?
Will you have video of Obama and the Pope?
Ask and ye shall receive.
Yes.
> Jack Aubrey says:
July 10, 2009 at 10:12 am (Edit)
Is the “public option” still in the bill?
Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 9:51 am
I hope Barack has the votes on health care. Bill, didn’t you say Feinstein was balky?
Both?
>#
Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 9:53 am (Edit)
The protesters in Tehran are very brave.
#
Jack Aubrey says:
July 10, 2009 at 10:11 am (Edit)
Or very crazy.
She is.
> Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 9:51 am (Edit)
I hope Barack has the votes on health care. Bill, didn’t you say Feinstein was balky?
They don’t, do they?
> Jonas Blane says:
July 10, 2009 at 9:38 am (Edit)
The protesters in Tehran don’t look like they have much chance.
Yes, but the whole thing looks off.
> Jonas Blane says:
July 10, 2009 at 9:37 am (Edit)
Obama sounds good at the G8.
I hope the media won’t be present at the small business roundtable on healthcare.
Obama and the Pope look chummy.
Barack did great with the Pope! He was really friendly. Especially compared to those wingnut Catholics who were so rude to him around his Notre Dame commencement speech.
I knew it would turn out okay for Pelosi. Cheney probably had the CIA lying to Congress all the time.
** PANETTA ACKNOWLEDGES PAST C.I.A. LYING TO CONGRESS: VINDICATION FOR PELOSI? CIA Director Leon Panetta has recently acknowledged several instances of lying by Central Intelligence Agency officials to Congress, perhaps providing the cover of vindication to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who said in the spring that a CIA record showing that she was personally briefed in on the use of torture in interrogation was false. The Senate Intelligence Committee chairman of the time, Florida’s Bob Graham, supported Pelosi’s contention, saying that a similar CIA report about him was also false.
Among the revelations from Panetta is a secret program about which CIA lied to Congress throughout the Bush/Cheney Administration. But there’s not yet disclosure of what that program was, though it is said to directly involve former Vice President Dick Cheney. Whatever it was, it began shortly after 9/11.
What a hopeless, time-wasting, racist, anti-semitic crank.
It’s about time that Roland Burris agreed not to run. He has been radioactive for months.
But didn’t Nancy Pelosi find out about the torture years ago and do nothing.
I mean, whether the CIA lied about briefing her about it, or not, she did know for years and did nothing. I understand why she may have done that, fighting the CIA isn’t smart politics, torture is more popular than we like to think. However, she knew early about it.
Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 1:43 pm
I knew it would turn out okay for Pelosi. Cheney probably had the CIA lying to Congress all the time.
** PANETTA ACKNOWLEDGES PAST C.I.A. LYING TO CONGRESS: VINDICATION FOR PELOSI? CIA Director Leon Panetta has recently acknowledged several instances of lying by Central Intelligence Agency officials to Congress, perhaps providing the cover of vindication to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who said in the spring that a CIA record showing that she was personally briefed in on the use of torture in interrogation was false. The Senate Intelligence Committee chairman of the time, Florida’s Bob Graham, supported Pelosi’s contention, saying that a similar CIA report about him was also false.
Among the revelations from Panetta is a secret program about which CIA lied to Congress throughout the Bush/Cheney Administration. But there’s not yet disclosure of what that program was, though it is said to directly involve former Vice President Dick Cheney. Whatever it was, it began shortly after 9/11.
All these politicians are full of shit, you know that. Some are more full of shit than others.
Obama did good with Catholic voters. This will sure help him keep it up.
Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Barack did great with the Pope! He was really friendly. Especially compared to those wingnut Catholics who were so rude to him around his Notre Dame commencement speech.
lol
Jack Aubrey says:
July 10, 2009 at 4:30 pm
All these politicians are full of shit, you know that. Some are more full of shit than others.
Why wondering if Obama has “diminished returns” from the summits? The Russian summit had breakthroughs. G-8 is an old paradigm. Africa may be a huge speech tomorrow. It looks like a good week to me.
Oh-oh…we had better get that proposed anti-missile shield in Eastern Europe thing resolved to Moscow’s satisfaction, post-haste! Or, we’re all doomed.
Look out, Lithuania.
Not necessarily my conclusion.
> marcus waldron says:
July 10, 2009 at 5:31 pm (Edit)
Why wondering if Obama has “diminished returns” from the summits? The Russian summit had breakthroughs. G-8 is an old paradigm. Africa may be a huge speech tomorrow. It looks like a good week to me.
Are you paraphrasing Orwell?
> Jack Aubrey says:
July 10, 2009 at 4:30 pm (Edit)
All these politicians are full of shit, you know that. Some are more full of shit than others.
Burris had no choice. But pols frequently just keep doing their thing no matter what as long as they can …
> marcos leon says:
July 10, 2009 at 3:55 pm (Edit)
It’s about time that Roland Burris agreed not to run. He has been radioactive for months.
No rants, they’re boring and waste your time.
> TRIATHLON says:
July 10, 2009 at 2:12 pm (Edit)
Cheney is kind of like Putin, minus the karate and the watches …
> Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 1:43 pm (Edit)
I knew it would turn out okay for Pelosi. Cheney probably had the CIA lying to Congress all the time.
** PANETTA ACKNOWLEDGES PAST C.I.A. LYING TO CONGRESS: VINDICATION FOR PELOSI? CIA Director Leon Panetta has recently acknowledged several instances of lying by Central Intelligence Agency officials to Congress, perhaps providing the cover of vindication to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who said in the spring that a CIA record showing that she was personally briefed in on the use of torture in interrogation was false. The Senate Intelligence Committee chairman of the time, Florida’s Bob Graham, supported Pelosi’s contention, saying that a similar CIA report about him was also false.
Among the revelations from Panetta is a secret program about which CIA lied to Congress throughout the Bush/Cheney Administration. But there’s not yet disclosure of what that program was, though it is said to directly involve former Vice President Dick Cheney. Whatever it was, it began shortly after 9/11.
The Pope isn’t playing to Fox News …
> Capitol Boy says:
July 10, 2009 at 1:41 pm (Edit)
Barack did great with the Pope! He was really friendly. Especially compared to those wingnut Catholics who were so rude to him around his Notre Dame commencement speech.
Why?
> Elizabeth Miller says:
July 10, 2009 at 11:13 am (Edit)
I hope the media won’t be present at the small business roundtable on healthcare.
I’ll give you three guesses and the first two don’t count.
What new video today?
Obama, and Burris.
I’m afraid you’ve lost me.
That’s too bad. But, it’s OK…it’ll come to you on the bus home, as they say.
You’re referring to a gaffe watch?
Well, yes…though, I would have put it in a slightly different way in an effort to highlight the incompetence, ineptitude and dangerous dereliction of duty of the hapless media. But, you did a very fine job of pointing that out in your latest essay on President Obama’s summiteering this past week.
Thanks. However, we must acknowledge that Biden does misspeak from time to time, no?
I am prepared to acknowledge that Vice President Biden may misspeak very rarely and certainly far less often – by a country mile – than most other politicos and media types, combined. And, more often than not, these examples are more a case of Biden speaking an inconvenient truth, to borrow a phrase.
And yet, I can think of no one else for whom a majority of the media/blogosphere/punditocracy hangs on every word, waiting and salivating, for the sole purpose of uncovering the next misspoken blunder from the “gaffe machine”.
It is ironic, or something, to think that many in the media constantly criticize politicians for not straying off the party line and always sticking to pre-set talking points on any given issue. But, when they do come across a politician who literally personifies candor and honesty and the art of speaking truth to power as Biden uniquely does, their collective reaction is to build up and perpetuate a national myth of epic proportions that portrays him as a bungling, blowhard gaffe-machine. Unfortunately, this caricature of Biden has been only too willingly and gleefully lapped up in its entirety and uncritically by too many consumers of what the media is selling.
The real irony, in my view, is that these inaccurate portrayals of Biden by the media/blogosphere/punditocracy reflect poorly onto those who would seek to perpetuate the myth and could not begin to diminish the character and integrity of Vice President Biden, try as they may.
I like Biden, as you know, but this is not manufactured by the media. Blown up too much at times, no question, but …
I’ve followed him since the ’80s, and the problem stems from his 1988 presidential campaign, in which he used long passages from Neil Kinnock and Bobby Kennedy speeches repeatedly without attribution.
Bill, you’re making me cry here. Seriously!
The plagiarism charges over the Kinnock stump speech are a crock of you-know what, in no uncertain terms. Biden gave that stump speech on several occasions, as stump speeches are, by their very nature, often repeated. What was also often repeated was Biden’s clear and unequivocal attribution to the British Labour Party leader. And, unless I am mistaken, Biden even went into great detail – at least once – in explaining why he was using the Kinnock experience in his stump speech.
I would love someone to explain to me why it is that virtually ALL reports of this plagiarism charge fail to acknowledge that Biden always provided the attribution to Kinnock but neglected to do so in one infamous and video-taped stump speech. Why is that and how can that possibly be called plagiarism, with a straight face!?
I don’t recall it being once. The notorious tape has Biden using Kinnock’s words in reference to himself.
You’re forgetting about the Bobby Kennedy stuff.
Well, I don’t know anything about Biden plagiarizing Bobby Kennedy. And, I’ve just been trying to do a search on that and just about crashed my computer…powerful stuff, I guess. Anyway, what I did find was not good but the sources were not exactly anything I would put any stock in. I don’t want to waste any of your time with this but, I have come to trust and value your opinions and judgement and I’m wondering if you could elaborate a little on this one.
In 1988, I was still recovering from my first real foray into US foreign policy – the Iran/Contra hearings – and was not following Joe Biden or the presidential campaign that closely then.
Even the best have their foibles …
True, that …