Category: Barack Obama

Inauguration Day: Trump to become America’s 45th president

Donald Trump, a real estate mogul and reality television star who upended American politics and energized voters angry with Washington, will be sworn in Friday as the 45th president of the United States, putting Republicans in control of the White House for the first time in eight years. Ebullient Trump supporters flocked to the nation’s capital for the inaugural festivities, some wearing red hats emblazoned with his “Make America Great Again” campaign slogan.

The Reader

That US is losing one of its best-read presidents, and will gain one of the least likely to have ever read a book. Does that matter? Mihir S Sharma explains why it should.

A Look at Where Donald Trump Will Spend Inauguration Eve

But on the last night before Trump will call 1600 Pennsylvania Ave home, he is expected to spend his final night as president-elect at a lesser-known address just across street at 1651 Pennsylvania Avenue. “It’s a very small part of the day but a very important part of day,” said White House Historical Association curator John Botello, who explained how the house plays a role in kicking off a “new era” in presidential history.

All change for the Trump White House

From the role of the First Lady to presidential getaways, Donald Trump’s White House is going to look very different from that of his predecessors, even without a bling ballroom makeover. Franklin Roosevelt had his “fireside chats” broadcast over the wireless, John F Kennedy deployed his dashing good looks to black and white television and the grand orator Barack Obama saw few problems that could not be solved by a hefty speech.

Madonna: Donald Trump’s election was necessary

Speaking hours before his official inauguration, the pop superstar said: “I do believe that Trump was elected for a reason, to show us how lazy and un-unified and lackadaisical and taking for granted we’ve become of our freedom and the rights that we have as Americans. #MichaelForbes Y o Y a i Y o Y a i Y o Y a i Superman to the rescue!! Y-1 2 Y-1 2 Y-1 2 Y-1 2 Y-1 2 pic.twitter.com/ax9gIHdwXn Her comments came during an event at the Brooklyn Museum on Thursday, where she wore all black and a top emblazoned with the word “Feminist”.

Change? Hypocrisy thrives in Washington

In the four days leading up to Friday’s inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th President of the United States of America, nearly 450,000 people chose to read a four-year-old story in Capitol Hill Blue about a number of Republicans who would not be attending the second inaugural of Barack Obama. The article, written by Ken Thomas of The Associated Press, said Republicans, after losing the second straight Presidential election to Obama, weren’t in any mood to celebrate.

California flood sweeps cabins, cars down coastal canyon

More than 20 people escaped injury when a flood swept cabins and vehicles down a coastal canyon as the second in a trio of storms drenched California with heavy rain and brought more snow to the mountains. The dramatic scene about 115 miles northwest of Los Angeles came during a day of pounding rain in Southern California that caused flooding, rockslides and an avalanche warning.

Trump turns to routine matters after day of bashing media

British Prime Minister Theresa May says she will discuss free trade and the importance of the NATO alliance when she meets President Donald Trump in Washington Friday British Prime Minister Theresa May says she will discuss free trade and the importance of the NATO military alliance when she meets President Donald Trump in Washington on Friday More than 1 million people rallied at women’s marches around the world to signal to President Donald Trump that his agenda wouldn’t go unchallenged Trump’s lease with the federal government to develop and operate a hotel inside the historic Old Post Office building expressly prohibits any elected official from benefiting from the property, yet Trump has not divested from his company or this particular project.

50 top Obama officials to work for Trump administration

Washington, Jan 20 – About 50 top officials who have been working in outgoing US President Barack Obama’s administration will continue serving in those positions for Donald Trump’s incoming government, future White House spokesman Sean Spicer said on Thursday. Spicer said that Trump is aware of the importance of guaranteeing continuity in the government and, therefore, he has asked some 50 people occupying key positions in the current administration to continue in their posts for the time being, Efe news reported.

Trump steps into security bubble; will he bring his phone?

President-elect Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump arrive at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, ahead of Friday’s inauguration. President-elect Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump arrive at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, ahead of Friday’s inauguration.

The Latest: Obama lashes out at Congress over Guantanamo

Demonstrators gather near the White House in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, to thank outgoing President Barack Obama as preparations continue for Friday’s presidential inauguration. Demonstrators gather near the White House in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, to thank outgoing President Barack Obama as preparations continue for Friday’s presidential inauguration.

President Obama commutes 330 drug sentences

In a last major act as president, Barack Obama cut short the sentences of 330 federal inmates convicted of drug crimes on Thursday, bringing his bid to correct what he’s called a systematic injustice to a climactic close. With his final offer of clemency, Obama brought his total number of commutations granted to 1,715, more than any other president in U.S. history, the White House said.

Actors, mayors to join inauguration-eve Trump demonstration

The temperature in Alaska’s second-largest city never reached 30 degrees below zero last winter, but Mother Nature is making up for it this year In his last major act as president, Barack Obama cut short the sentences of 330 federal inmates convicted of drug crimes, bringing his bid to correct what he’s called a systematic injustice to a climactic close In a last major act as president, Barack Obama cut short the sentences of 330 federal inmates convicted of drug crimes, bringing his bid to correct what he’s called a systematic injustice to a climactic close A federal judge says he’s inclined to allow trial for a lawsuit against two psychologists who designed the CIA’s harsh interrogation methods for the war on terror A group of NASA-funded researchers are poised to enter an isolated geodesic dome on a Hawaii volcano to study human behavior for long-term space exploration, including a … (more)

There Have Been Rockier Transitions Than This One

Larry Sabato : “Truly, has there ever been as dramatic a contrast between outgoing and incoming chief executives as Barack Obama and Donald Trump? Actually, yes: the refined John Quincy Adams and the rough-hewn populist Andrew Jackson despised each other. Jackson believed he had been cheated out of the White House by a corrupt bargain during 1824’s House of Representatives “run-off” that installed Adams as president.

Perry regrets call to eliminate Energy Department

Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to head the Energy Department, said Thursday he regrets his infamous statement about abolishing the federal agency and insisted it performs a critical function. Perry told a Senate committee that if confirmed, he will be a passionate advocate for the department’s core missions and will seek to draw “greater attention to the vital role played by the agency,” especially in protecting and modernizing the nation’s nuclear stockpile.

Well Wishes Pour In For Ex-President, First Lady

Former President George H.W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, remain hospitalized in Houston, where he was in intensive care for pneumonia and she was being watched after complaining of fatigue and coughing. The 92-year-old former president went into the ICU on Wednesday and underwent a procedure “to protect and clear his airway that required sedation,” family spokesman Jim McGrath said in a statement.

Mideast Expects Big Changes Under Trump

Donald Trump’s all-but-dismissal of human rights as a foreign policy principle could hit like an earthquake across a Middle East landscape beset by warring factions and beleaguered governments, with some players eyeing the prospect of once unimaginable new alliances. Syria is the foremost test of Trump’s promise of a return to a hard-headed realpolitik and could quickly show whether America is truly abandoning promotion of democracy and the rule of law in a way that could reshape much of the region’s post-Cold War, post-9/11 order.

County residents to attend inauguration

Donald Trump will be sworn in as America’s 45th president on Friday and Delaware County will be far from underrepresented for the celebrations and the protests.Ohio Wesleyan University will send about 30 students for the inauguration, said Dwayne Todd, vice president of student engagement.

Day before inauguration, State Department lacks interim boss

It’s a little more than a day before Donald Trump becomes president and he still has no one ready to run American diplomacy until his nominee is confirmed. And with Russian-sponsored Syrian peace talks scheduled on Trump’s first full business day in office, the State Department doesn’t know who, if anyone, to send.

Obama’s U.S. better than he found it

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Ignorance may be only option

Out of, perhaps, an over-exaggerated sense of fair play, I offer this spoiler: If you’ve landed on this page expecting humour, satire, light-heartedness or limited insights into the goings on of Tiny Town, move along; nothing to read here. With extreme reluctance, I’m going to mourn the death of a dear friend, an acquaintance I’ve known intimately and loved deeply since the day I was born.

Obama praised for bridging gap between hip-hop and politics

Not only is President Barack Obama the nation’s first black president, but it’s safe to say he has been America’s first hip-hop commander-in-chief. Obama embraced hip-hop more than any of his predecessors: He’s referenced Jay Z’s lyrics and Kanye West in speeches, released playlists on Spotify that included Nas, Chance the Rapper, Mos Def and Method Man, and was caught dancing to Drake’s “Hot Line Bling” at a White House event.

Trump versus Paris accord

The Paris Agreement aimed at combating global warming, which went into effect on Nov. 4, is exposed to the same crisis that beset the Kyoto Protocol adopted at the 3rd United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in December 1997. When the Kyoto Protocol was adopted, the United States was led by the administration of President Bill Clinton.

Obama offers reassurance mixed with warnings

With that parting message to the nation, a sanguine Barack Obama sought to reassure the millions of Democrats disorientated and fearful about Donald Trump’s pending inauguration that presidents may change but the nation always endures. Still, in his final news conference as president, Obama warned that only an active citizenry and relentless political engagement can preserve what he sees as the successes of his administration and the values he believes have already made America great.

Bush senior in intensive care, wife Barbara also hospitalized

Former president George H.W. Bush was admitted to an intensive care unit Wednesday suffering from pneumonia, highlighting concerns about the health of a political dynasty’s patriarch just as a new US leader prepares to enter office. Bush, 92, was initially hospitalized Saturday for shortness of breath, but was moved to intensive care “to address an acute respiratory problem stemming from pneumonia,” Bush’s office said in a statement.