The Newark Mayor's decision to run for Senate has offended Lautenberg, and frustrated the state's Democratic party. “I'm not angry, I'm disappointed.”

Newark, N.J. Mayor Cory Booker

Image by Max Morse / Getty Images

Cory Booker may be "America's favorite mayor," but in New Jersey, his fast rise and transparent ambition has rankled many establishment Democrats, who suggest he's putting himself above his state party.

The Newark Mayor's December announcement that he'd "consider" a Senate bid in 2014 — a decision that followed a long, public deliberation played out on Sunday shows and cable news — may have served to raise his national profile. But Democratic insiders complain that it upended the state's political landscape, making Republican Governor Chris Christie, without Booker challenging him, a virtual lock to win re-election, and setting in motion an intra-party war that has the state choosing sides between Booker and the 88-year-old incumbent Senator Frank Lautenberg.

Technically, Booker says the Senate bid is only a possibility, but N.J.'s political class knows better.

By the morning of Booker's video announcement, the call to supporters was already out and a political action committee was poised to send an e-mail blast to 75,000 potential Booker-for-Senate donors — "Cory Booker is running for Senate,” the email said. The group, PAC Plus, now plans to contact 500,000 supporters over the next month, with a goal of raising $100,000 for Booker by June, director Steve Phillips told BuzzFeed.

The Senate run that Booker said he would “explore” — a “possibility,” he called it in his announcement video — was in high-gear from day one.

As a N.J. Democratic official put it, “Booker is running — that’s the bottom line.”

“No one in the state ever thought he was running for governor,” said the official. “That was all bullshit. Christie owns him, but he was really being pushed by other power brokers in the state who are much more concerned about the down-ballot effect of what could potentially be a slaughter in 2013.”

Even before Booker said he wouldn't challenge Christie for the governorship, the chances of any Democrat taking on the incumbent seemed grim. The governor's approval ratings went as high as 77 percent after Hurricane Sandy.

But with Booker out of the gubernatorial race, the chance of a major thumping in 2013 is all the more likely. The party has yet to rally behind a single candidate, in part, sources say, because the bench players had to wait on Booker’s decision before they could get in the game themselves.

Already late in the race, only one Democrat — progressive state Senator Barbara Buono — has officially declared herself a contender. Other possible Democratic candidates include Rep. Bill Pascrell, former N.J. governor Dick Codey, and state Senate president Stephen Sweeney, who received a call of encouragement from Booker himself last month.

New Jersey state Senator Loretta Weinberg told BuzzFeed she’d personally tried courting Booker for a gubernatorial run as early as the Democratic National Convention in September to avoid the disparate field with which the party is now coping.

She wasn’t the only one, either. In the Charlotte hotel where New Jerseyans set up camp for the DNC, the bar was host to private confabs between state officials. “You could see all the grand poobahs in the Democratic party meeting with him,” Weinberg remembered. “We thought Booker would be an excellent candidate.”

Weinberg said she'd given the mayor some advice: "In politics, you’re usually better off going to the position that’s offered to you, not necessarily the one you want two years from now, because they’re not necessarily mutually exclusive.”

But when it became clear that Booker was leaning away from the governor's race, Weinberg would make a public plea to Booker — an open letter on bluejersey.com. “The state needs you and our party needs you,” she wrote.

Ten days later, on the morning of the announcement, Weinberg got a call from Booker with the heads-up — he wasn’t going to be taking her advice.

The big problem, though, was that Booker “took a long time to make his decision and was inappropriately agonizing over it,” said Weinberg. “I’m not angry, I’m disappointed. And I don’t think it was handled in the most appropriate way because it took much too long.”

Democrats are desperate, said Weinberg, to regain control of the New Jersey governorship, considered one of the most powerful of any state in the country. By law, Christie has the authority to traditionally veto, outright veto, or rewrite any piece of legislation and send it back in a different form to the Democrat-controlled state Senate.

“The longer we take and the less unified we are, the harder it’s going to be,” she said, referring to the governor’s race this fall. “We’re very anxious now as a party to rally around our candidate whoever it will be. The sooner it will get through this, the better it will be for the party.”

The party is also faced with the uncomfortable dynamic Booker’s Senate race has created surrounding Sen. Frank Lautenberg, one of the most respected, storied figures in the state’s political history, who also happens to be 88 years old and hell bent on staying in office — or at least retiring on his own terms.

Although Lautenberg would be 90 years old in 2014, running a re-election bid for a six-year term, he has not publicly indicated even the impression that he wants to retire.

Lautenberg did retire once before in 2001, but he was asked a year later to unseat an incumbent candidate, Sen. Bob Torriecelli, after he was charged with federal corruption. But Lautenberg’s respite from office was a decision he is said to have regretted within minutes of making.

Although Lautenberg’s office received advance warning of Booker’s announcement, a N.J. Democrat said, the Senator was offended that his retirement should be anyone’s decision but his own.

Booker chose his words on the subject carefully in the video announcing his Senate run. "I forward to consulting with Senator Frank Lautenberg,” said Booker, adding that “it would be a privilege and honor to continue his legacy of service."

Booker also tweeted hours later that Lautenberg “has served NJ well. Right now I’m going to talk with him,” he wrote.

But Booker wasn't waiting around for Lautenberg to make up his mind. The mayor was already on Twitter, rallying the troops. “So happy to hear of your plans to run for US Senate,” said one supporter. Booker’s response — “Thanks! Please register at corybooker.com.” Another supporter, on the day of Booker’s announcement: “Caught up on the news of today. Cory Booker has my vote.” The response from Booker again — “Please register your email at corybooker.com.” Ten more such tweets exist on Booker’s feed.

A day after the announcement, Booker told NBC Channel 4 that he personally had “not been able to connect with the Senator.” That same day on NJTV, when asked about a potential primary race against Lautenberg, Booker responded, “That hypothetical question is inappropriate right now. Let me afford him the respect of hearing what his thoughts are and what he wants to do. He hasn’t commented on that yet.”

(Lautenberg, meanwhile, had issued a response. The day before, the Senator’s spokesman Caley Gray released a statement to the press: “This is not the time for political distractions and the Senator will address politics next year,” said Gray.)

Booker should have shown more deference to Lautenberg, Weinberg said, but added that “it’s very difficult to find language that covers both sides of the coin — the respect for Senator Lautenberg, and also the plan to run.”

One N.J. Democratic official said Senator Lautenberg’s decision about 2014 won’t be swayed by Booker’s announcement. “The analysis about respect and disrespect — it doesn’t matter, Booker is running, and Lautenberg will have to make his own decision,” said the official.

“It’s up to Senator Lautenberg,” said Weinberg. “Frank Lautenberg has earned the right to make this decision in his own time and in his own place. He is still our Senator.”

Weinberg indicated that if Lautenberg did put up a primary fight, the majority of the state party would support him over the Newark mayor. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said as much on the day of Booker’s announcement. “I always support incumbent Senators,” Reid said. “I would always support Lautenberg or anyone else that’s up for reelection.”

In 2008, Lautenberg faced a similar, if not more confrontational, challenge to his seat from Democratic Congressman Robert Andrews, who openly gestured toward Lautenberg’s age during his campaign for the nomination.

Lautenberg, then 84 years old, retained the support of Governor Jon Corzine and the state county chairs.

But one powerful New Jersey Democrat said Lautenberg wouldn’t enjoy the same level of backing this year, were he to run for another term.

“The support that Frank Lautenberg had when Rob Andrews ran against him four years ago and brought up the age issue that offended so many people wouldn’t offend those supporters now,” said the source. “With Chris Christie in office, able to appoint a Republican successor, it would be a completely different situation.”

But even if state Democrats rally behind the Lautenberg camp, the Senator would face a bitter primary fight. A poll released in late November by Public Policy Polling showed Booker leading Lautenberg in a theoretical primary by a 59-22 percent margin.

A third potential contender for the Senate seat, Congressman Frank Pallone, is “all but certain to run for Senate if Lautenberg retires in 2014,” according to a report by Roll Call.

But the difference, the N.J Democratic official told BuzzFeed, is that Pallone has long showed Lautenberg the deference that the senior Senator so values. “Pallone handled it in a way where it’s always been clear that he would only run if Lautenberg retires. He’s been saying that for years.”

“The real question is, will Pallone hypothetically let Booker step into the seat, or anybody else,” said the official. “Open Senate seats don’t come around often, and he’s been waiting his turn patiently.”

Democrats in the state know that if Lautenberg is offended enough, he may step out of the race only to endorse Pallone, a candidate more likely to spend decades in his Senate post — in the tradition of Lautenberg — rather than Booker, who might make another pass at governor or go all the way to the White House.

But a potential primary between Lautenberg and any candidate, the Democratic official said, would be “a super-contested and messy race against a Democratic legend.”

In short, a bad look for New Jersey.

Lautenberg, who will likely have to make a decision before June of 2013, is a fighter and "he's not gonna be boxed out of a fight," said the official. "Booker is running — it is what it is. And Lautenberg will make his announcement when he's ready. No one is counting him out — anybody in New Jersey politics would be crazy to count Lautenberg out.”

After Congress redefined “wealthy” to mean individuals making over over $400,000, Massachusetts's newest senator won't define the middle class.

Source: youtube.com

Being on bath salts is apparently like being in a video game set to dubstep.

Via: theatlanticwire.com

“I called the governor and said I think I can be a help in reaching a fair solution to some of these issues,” Frank said Friday. The appointment would be temporary, until a special election can be held.

Retiring Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass. talks on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, prior to the start of the 113th Congress.

Image by Cliff Owen / AP

WASHINGTON — Former Rep. Barney Frank, on his first full day out of Congress in more than 30 years, said this morning that he has asked to return to Congress, in the Senate seat currently held by Sen John Kerry on an interim basis.

Frank said Friday on MSNBC's Morning Joe that he has talked with Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick about the interim appointment Patrick would make to the Senate if Kerry is approved for Secretary of State until a special election is held. Although Patrick has said he will not make a move on the appointment until there is a vacancy, Kerry is expected to be confirmed easily for the position.

"I’m not going to be coy," Frank said. "It’s not something I’ve ever been good at. I’ve told the governor that I would now like, frankly, to do that because I would like to be a part of that. It’s only a three-month period; I wouldn’t want to do anything more."

The nation's largest LGBT rights group, the Human Rights Campaign, called Frank "an incredible choice to fill a vacant Senate seat" on Friday.

In a follow-up interview with the Boston Globe, Frank expanded on his reasons, discussing congressional action on spending cuts in the coming months:

"The first months of the new Senate will be among the most important in American history. I may be a little immodest, but I called the governor and said I think I can be a help in reaching a fair solution to some of these issues.

"I think there are progressive ways to work on Social Security and Medicare. I think making the case against them (Tea Party Republicans) on the debt limit is important. A split emerged in the Republican Party over the fiscal cliff, with mainstream Republicans splitting with the radical right. I think it’s important for us to continue to exploit that. We need to reach out to conservative Republicans who nonetheless are willing to compromise, and find a way to reach a deal."

Frank first opened the door to considering the appointment in an interview before the fiscal cliff conclusion, however, with Politico.

Among the other issues that could come up during a temporary appointment of Frank: the nomination of a defense secretary to replace Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. Frank already has said he opposes one potential nominee, former Sen. Chuck Hagel, for comments Hagel made about an out Clinton nominee, James Hormel, in 1998.

HRC spokesman Michael Cole-Schwartz told BuzzFeed, "As the Congress continues to grapple with taxes and the budget, as well as moving LGBT priorities forward, bringing his experience and intellect to bear would be a benefit to all Americans."

If appointed, Frank would follow Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, who took office Thursday, as the second out LGBT senator.

Source: youtube.com

Despite Obama's insistence that he won't let the issue become an argument, Boehner told Republicans “a debate is already underway,” according to a source.

House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio bangs the gavel after being re-elected as House Speaker of the 113th Congress, Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, on Capitol Hill in Washington.

Image by Susan Walsh / AP

WASHINGTON — Speaker of the House John Boehner told the Republican conference Friday morning that there will be a debate to raise the nation's borrowing limit — setting up a fight with the White House over whether to even negotiations over the debt ceiling.

According to a source in the room, Boehner told lawmakers that a "debate is already underway," citing a poll that shows support for cutting spending along with an increase to the borrowing limit. The nation hit the cap on December 31, 2012, with Treasury using "extraordinary measures" to allow the government to pay its bill for two more months.

"With the cliff behind us, the focus turns to spending," Boehner told lawmakers according to the source. "The president says he isn't going to have a debate with us over the debt ceiling. He also says he's not going to cut spending along with the debt limit hike.

"This morning we’re releasing the results of a survey by the Winston Group taken December 29-30 among 1000 registered voters. 72 percent of Americans agree any increase in the nation's debt limit must be accompanied by spending cuts and reforms of a greater amount. That's the principle I laid out before the Economic Club of New York in May of 2011, and I've repeated a number of times since. The debate is already underway."

Boehner, who is on thin ice with conservatives in his conference after the fiscal cliff talks, is trying to demonstrate new resolve on fiscal policy. President Barack Obama has repeatedly said he will not negotiate over the borrowing limit, saying Congress must act to pay the bills it has incurred.

Obama and members of Congress have promised top billing to gun control, climate, immigration — and the list goes on. Something's gotta give.

Gun Control

In an appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press," Obama said that new gun control measures in the wake of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary school were "not something I will be putting off... I'd like to get it done in the first year." The president's comments echoed ones earlier in the month by Senator Dianne Feinstein, who vowed to introduce new gun legislation on the first day of the new Congress.

Immigration Reform

In an off-the-record meeting, later made public, with the Des Moines Register, President Obama said one thing he was "confident we'll get done next year is immigration reform." The week after his re-election, in a meeting with progressive leaders, Obama made a promise for swift action on immigration in 2013. "If there’s one thing he was crystal clear he was going to get done in 2013...it was immigration reform," a source in the room told the Huffington Post. "He was going to lean into it; he was sure Republicans were going to come to the table. It was sort of what he’s said before, but with huge conviction.” In a Time interview a month later, Obama listed immigration reform as one of three items — along with the economy and climate change — at the top of his agenda.

Filibuster Reform

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will pursue bipartisan filibuster reform later this month, according to a report by The Hill. Reid said as early as the day after the election that changing Senate rules would be a priority of the new Congress. "We will not do away with the filibuster, but we will make the senate a more meaningful place. We are going to make it so we can get things done," said Reid.

Hurricane Sandy Aid

During its first day in session, the new House of Representatives voted in favor of a $9.7 billion aid package for victims of Hurricane Sandy. But the remainder of the original $60 billion bill — delayed Tuesday night by Speaker John Boehner — will still have to be addressed by Congress later this month. In a joint statement released Wednesday, Speaker Boehner and Leader Eric Cantor promised that "getting critical aid to the victims of Hurricane Sandy should be the first priority in the new Congress."

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Three more months of Barney Frank in public office is a win for everybody. Here's why.

He'll fart on live television.

He can find common ground with an ideological polar opposite.

He knows when to shut up. Well, kind of.

He knows the rules better than you.

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What a difference 50 years makes. Yesterday marked the first day of the historic 113th congress of the United states of America. Why is it historic you might ask?

The US Congress was a different place 50 years ago

Via: house.gov

Democrats had Super Majorities in both Houses

Via: n.wikipedia.org

And this family controlled the Executive Branch

Via: archives.gov

This gentleman was Speaker of the House

Via: content.lib.washington.edu

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But most funding won't come to a vote until later this month.

Image by Alex Wong / Getty Images

WASHINGTON — Congress approved $9.7 billion for flood insurance Friday, drawing an end to a protracted fight to secure the first wave of disaster relief funding since the storm Sandy ravaged parts of the East Coast.

The vote was cast with little time to spare: The flood insurance program was set to run out of money next week.

"We should not have parades down the street because this bill passed," said Sen. Chuck Schumer, of New York, in a speech on the Senate floor. "The major work of helping the victims of Sandy is still ahead of us."

Indeed, most of the money affected states have requested for Sandy relief will not be approved by Congress until later this month, when the House will vote on a $51 billion funding package.

Earlier this week, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie chided the House for delaying a vote at the last minute on the flood insurance funds.

"There is only one group to blame," Christie said during a press conference Wednesday. "The House majority and their speaker, John Boehner."

In Congress, lawmakers from New York and New Jersey have been comparably vocal about the need for aid and have bemoaned the length of time — more than two months — it took to approve even the first wave of funding.

"New York, above anything, is the can-do city," said New York Rep. Carolyn Maloney after the House voted Friday. "But we need federal help," she added.

"The longer we don't have the money in place, the harder it is to rebuild."

The Senate approved the bill by unanimous consent after it passed in the House with a vote of 354-67. In the House, all 67 "no" votes came from Republicans.

Earlier Friday, before either chamber had voted, Club for Growth, a prominent conservative group, emailed members of Congress urging a "no" vote and warning that the vote would be scored.

“President Obama and Congress owe the people of New York and New Jersey better,” Ryan said.

Image by Drew Angerer / Getty Images

WASHINGTON — Budget Chairman Paul Ryan Friday joined with 66 other conservative Republicans in opposing a $9 billion flood insurance measure aimed at helping Hurricane Sandy victims.

In a statement released by his office, Ryan argues he believes "we must help those affected by Hurricane Sandy. We should meet all of their needs as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, Washington's legislative response fails on both counts. It refuses to distinguish—or even prioritize—disaster relief over pork-barrel spending.”

Ryan did not actively oppose the bill, and the measure passed on a lopsided basis, making the no votes largely symbolic. However, the level of opposition was still significant, and it could mean troubles for a larger $51 billion Sandy spending bill that Speaker John Boehner has promised to bring to the floor later this month.

The influential Club for Growth also came out against the bill.

Ryan and other conservatives have long demanded reforms to the National Flood Insurance Program, which is billions of dollars in debt, and he argued, “It would be irresponsible to raise an insolvent program’s debt ceiling without making the necessary reforms.”

Ryan also noted that much of the borrowing authority in the bill won’t be available for years and that not all of it is directed at victims of Sandy.

“In a time of crisis, we must ensure that every dollar we spend is on those who need it. President Obama and Congress owe the people of New York and New Jersey better,” Ryan said.

A strange photo from 2007 shows presumptive Secretary of Defense nominee Chuck Hagel dressed up in a Joe Biden costume.

Source: media3.washingtonpost.com

A Steve Clemons story from 2009 clarifies that Hagel wore this outfit to a Senate Foreign Relations Committee meeting on Halloween 2007 that Biden was chairing. Hagel, who is expected to be nominated for Secretary of Defense early next week, also reportedly once dressed up as Colin Powell to visit him at the State Department.

h/t Adam Blickstein

The British hospital where the Pakistani schoolgirl activist shot by the Taliban recovered has released photos and video of her leaving. Malala survived being shot in the head and will still require more surgery later on.

Image by Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham / AP

Image by Dylan Martinez / Reuters

Image by Dylan Martinez / Reuters

Image by Dylan Martinez / Reuters

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At the swearing-in ceremonies Thursday for Reps. Sean Patrick Maloney and Mark Pocan, House Speaker John Boehner met their spouses, “Congressional Spouse” pins and all.

Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, right, and his partner, Randy Florke, along with their children at Maloney's ceremonial swearing-in with House Speaker John Boehner.

Image by Charles Dharapak / AP

Rep. Mark Pocan, right, and his husband, Philip Frank, at Pocan's ceremonial swearing-in with House Speaker John Boehner.

Image by Charles Dharapak / AP

The Kentucky libertarian has held a quiet round of meetings with Dan Senor and other policy hands in the run-up of his appointment to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Foreign aid cuts “wouldn't start with Israel,” he now says.

Image by John Gress / Reuters

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul has been holding a series of meetings with neo-conservative pro-Israel foreign policy hands as the libertarian prepares to take a seat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, sources familiar with the meetings said.

Paul's new contacts include Dan Senor, a former key Mitt Romney foreign policy aide who is also close to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who met Paul in his Washington office.

Paul is also going to take a "fairly impressive list of folks" on his trip to Israel next week, according to a source close to him, and he is planning on delivering a major foreign policy address in early February.

Both Paul and his father, outgoing Rep. Ron Paul, are viewed with considerable skepticism among the U.S. pro-Israel community for their past opposition to U.S. aid to Israel, and to American involvement abroad in general. National Jewish Democratic Council president David Harris said in a statement on Friday that "Senator Rand Paul's membership in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee should be raising red flags and provoking severe concern across the pro-Israel community." One foreign policy watcher who wished to stay anonymous told BuzzFeed that "having Rand Paul on the foreign affairs committee makes about as much sense as having a Communist run the treasury department."

But recently, the junior Paul has begun an under-the-radar campaign to make overtures to those in his party whose foreign policy views are far less libertarian than his. He did an interview with the Washington Post's hawkish blogger Jennifer Rubin, who found him "more self-aware and engaging than is the elder Paul, a wide-eyed libertarian."

"I'm irreconcilable on this point," said one prominent Jewish conservative. "But others take a different view and have met with him in the past and in the run up to this trip."

A source close to Paul confirmed the meetings and said that "Senator Paul has always spoken with a wide range of foreign policy experts." A spokesperson for Paul didn't respond to a request for comment.

Paul's trip to Israel begins on Sunday and he will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres on Monday, according to The Jerusalem Post. The trip has been widely interpreted as a signal from Paul of his national intentions.

Paul has tried to soften his tone on Israel in recent days, telling the Louisville Courier-Journal last month that cutting U.S. foreign aid "should start with countries who have not been good allies.... I wouldn’t start with Israel.”

“Senator Hagel has said he is 'committed to LGBT military families,' so, if nominated and confirmed, he should immediately extend, via secretarial directive, all benefits available to married same-sex military couples and families,” OutServe-SLDN's Allyson Robinson says.

Image by Dave Weaver, File / AP

WASHINGTON — The head of the leading organization for LGBT servicemembers and their families, following reports that former Sen. Chuck Hagel is expected to be nominated for Secretary of Defense, called it "incumbent" upon Hagel "to lay out demonstrable actions he will take to support" LGBT service members and their families.

Hagel has faced some criticism from LGBT organizations for comments he made in 1998 opposing Clinton nominee James Hormel as "aggressively gay," although he recently apologized for those comments. Former Rep. Barney Frank has said he opposes Hagel's nomination because of the comments and a track record of being "against fairness for LGBT people."

OutServe-SLDN executive director Allyson Robinson, in a statement provided to BuzzFeed Friday afternoon, said:

Senator Hagel clearly has the military credentials and experience to do the job of running our nation’s Defense Department — at OutServe-SLDN, we have no doubt about that — and we appreciate his apology for the anti-gay remarks he made in 1998 and the commitment he expressed to LGBT service members and their families. It will now be incumbent upon him during the nomination and confirmation process to lay out demonstrable actions he will take to support that commitment.

Specifically, Robinson said the group is looking for Hagel's commitment to movement in two areas that LGBT advocates have been unsuccessful in getting accomplished since the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in 2011:

Senator Hagel has said he is ‘committed to LGBT military families,’ so, if nominated and confirmed, he should immediately extend, via secretarial directive, all benefits available to married same-sex military couples and families while the so-called Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is still on the books. He said he is ‘fully supportive of open service,’ so he should extend military equal opportunity and nondiscrimination policies so that all qualified Americans who wish to serve this nation in uniform may do so without fear of harassment or discrimination. Steps such as these would do a great deal to allay the concerns many in our community have expressed over the last several weeks. I look forward in the weeks ahead to discussing these and other issues important to LGBT service members and their families with Senator Hagel and his designees.

Only 14 of the president's 400-plus campaign bundlers have written a check.

WASHINGTON — The committee responsible for planning President Barack Obama’s inauguration appears to be having a hard time raising money from some of the president’s most important supporters.

On Friday, the Presidential Inaugural Committee released a list of 417 corporate and individual names that have contributed more than $200 to the organization, which plans events like the National Day of Service and the two Inaugural balls. But only 14 of Obama’s 443 campaign bundlers — those who raised more than $50,000 to well upwards of $500,000 — have so far donated to the group.

The list of bundlers who have not given to the Inaugural Committee include all four of the Obama campaign’s finance chairs: Ambassador Matthew Barzun, Eva Longoria, Jane Stetson, and Frank White, each of whom raised hundreds of thousands of dollars during the election. And while bundlers don’t necessarily donate their own money, each of them also gave the maximum legal amount to both the campaign and the Democratic National Committee, according to FEC records.

No one who raised more than $500,000 for the reelection has yet donated to the committee. Inaugurals rarely draw the same donor excitement as the election, and many of Obama's bundlers were pressed to raise more and more in the final months of the campaign, but in 2009 scores of Obama bundlers proceeded to write checks for the events surrounding their candidate's swearing-in.

Among the prominent Obama bundlers who haven’t yet donated to the inaugural committee are Salesforce.com founder Marc Benioff, film producer and Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg, hedge fund executive Orin Kramer, Yahoo CEO Marissa Meyer, Chicago philanthropist Penny Pritzker, film producer Harvey Weinstein, and Vogue editor Anna Wintour.

Obama relaxed self-imposed ethics regulations for the inaugural committee for the second term. In 2009, the committee was barred from accepting corporate donations, and individual contributions were capped at $50,000. Both of those restrictions have been relaxed, and Microsoft and AT&T are listed among the 2013 donors. The committee did not report corporate affiliations of the individual donors, nor how much they donated to the organizations.

In 2009 the inaugural committee raised more than $54 million. The goal for this year’s committee is $50 million.

Addie Whisenant, a spokesperson for the committee, said "The list on our website is an initial list and we will be updating it multiple times in the days leading up to Inauguration Day."

Uniting the Tea Party. “Who's the King David?”

Michael Savage.

Image by John Storey / AP

The conservative radio host Michael Savage Sunday called for a third, "nationalist" American political party to challenge the Republican Party on the right of the political spectrum.

“We need a nationalist party in the United States of America,” said Savage on Aaron Klein's WABC radio show.

"You have the rudiments of a new party in this country called a Tea Party. They need to restructure their party. They need a charismatic leader, which they don’t have," he said. "When you say Tea Party no one knows who the leader is because there is no leader. No man has stepped forward who can lead that party."

Savage is the third-most widely heard radio talker in the country, and a leading voice among conservatives seeking an alternative to the Beltway Republican Party.

"The Tea Party is the rudiment of the new nationalist party," he said. "Somebody has to bring them all together, unite them like King David did the ancient tribes of Israel. And there is no King David out there. Who’s the King David? Tell me who is going to do it?"

Savage passed on nominating himself for the role.

"I could do it if I was 20 years younger. I would do it right now. But I’m not 20 years younger and I don’t have 20 years left in me. This is going to require enormous resource and enormous energy," he said.

"There are people so frustrated by the democracy that is gone in this country, the structure that has replaced, lets put it to you this way, replaced our democracy, is what I meant to say, that they would clamor for the new nationalist party," Savage said, going on to slam the Republican Party.

"There is no Republican party. It’s an appendage of the Democrat machine as we’ve all just seen. It’s two card Monte, as we all know. It’s a game being played against the American people. You’ve got the drunk Boehner on the one side, and the quasi-pseudo-crypto Marxist on the other, who is really just enjoying the ride in Hawaii right now, representing his factions," he said.

The 19-year-old was picked up for being “drunk and disruptive” on Saturday night.

via Charlotte Mecklenburg Police

Senator Rand Paul's son and Rep. Ron Paul's grandson William Paul was arrested on Saturday evening at the Charlotte, N.C. airport, according to the local NBC affiliate.

Paul, 19, was being "drunk and disruptive," police said.

Sen. Paul's spokeswoman Moira Bagley put out a statement on Sunday asking for privacy for the Paul family:

Sen. Paul is a national public figure and subject to scrutiny in the public arena, however, as many parents with teenagers would understand, his family should be afforded the privacy and respect they deserve in a situation such as this.

Meanwhile, Sen. Paul, who was recently appointed to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is heading to Israel Sunday night for meetings with Israeli officials this week. He's had his own airport run-in in the past; he was detained at the Nashville airport last year for refusing a TSA patdown.

Hurricane politics.

Source: youtube.com  /  via: ralstonreports.com

WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid proclaimed that Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed much of the Gulf coast in 2005, was "nothing in comparison" to Hurricane Sandy, which pummeled New York, New Jersey and Connecticut last year.

Speaking on the Senate floor Friday to encourage passage of a $9.7 billion bill to finance the National Flood Insurance Program for a surge of Sandy-related claims, Reid said the storm, which killed 125 people, was far worse than Katrina — a storm responsible for the deaths of 1,833. Katrina caused more than $108 billion in damage to the Gulf region, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Reid's remarks from the Congressional Record:

I really do believe it is important that I have the record reflect the reason we have gotten as far as we have on Sandy is because of the senior Senator from New York. It is too bad that it has taken so long. When we had that devastation from Katrina, we were there within days taking care of Mississippi, Alabama, and especially Louisiana—within days. We are now past 2 months with the people of New York and New Jersey.

The people of New Orleans and that area, they were hurt but nothing in comparison to what happened to the people in New York and New Jersey. Almost 1 million people have lost their homes; 1 million people lost their homes. That is homes, that is not people in those homes. So I think it is just unfortunate that we do not have the relief for New York and New Jersey and the rest already. It has to be done. We have to meet the needs of the American people when an act of God occurs.

Reid's remarks were first reported by Nevada political reporter John Ralston, and later drew criticism from New Orleans news outlets. UPDATE: The remarks were first reported by The Weekly Standard.

The latest, questionable Israeli entry features the President holding a boom box. Also, the 11 most memorable, from KFC to condoms.

Reshet Bet 95.5 FM, 2013

Ahead of the Knesset elections, January 22nd, news station Reshet Bet 95.5 FM is apparently running this badly Photoshopped ad (created by Y&R Israel) showing the President listening to their broadcast on a boom box (no on-purpose racial stereotyping here, one would hope).

A second ad in the campaign shows Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad listening to the radio while bathing, with the thought, presumably, that he might accidently kill himself. The copy has been translated to English for publicity purposes.

The Israeli campaign is just the latest in a bulging portfolio of illicit Bam-branding from the last four-plus years. This President has been used in scores of ads worldwide to sell everything from ice cream in Russia to Dijon mustard in Canada. Obama has been exploited in advertising like no other President in history, excepting Washington and Lincoln during the annual glut of Presidents Day sales ads. The only historic leader who compares to him in ad appearances is, maybe, Hitler.
 
Why has this happened? There are two obvious reasons. First, he is immensely popular in other countries, and is instantly recognized worldwide — thus giving brands an immediate boost in memorability and recall. There is also the enduring global fascination with the unorthodoxy of Obama's being the first black U.S. President.

Pretty much all of the international Obama ads have featured positive selling messages. This was not the case with his White House predecessor, George W. Bush. The Bush-riffing ads were universally negative. Just a few examples: Tesa tape, a TV showing of American Psycho, Philips Power4Life, and Veet hair removal cream.

We probably won't see quite as many Obama ads in his second term as we saw in his first, now that the novelty is gone. (Though Durex has already weighed in on Bam's penis.) But brands will continue to exploit him as long as his brand continues to be a winning one.

The 11 Obama exploitation ads presented here are the most memorable out of about 100 worldwide from the last five years. I’m sure there are many more out there that aren’t online. None of them appear to have been run by the White House legal team for approval.

Benetton, 2011

Trying to again stir up controversy via their advertising, the Italian clothing retailer launched a campaign titled "Unhate." Obama was featured in two ads, one (L) smooching Chinese leader Hu Jintao, and the second showing him swapping spit with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. The effort was named best press campaign at Cannes last June, which left me shaking me damn head.
It wasn't even a very original idea by Benetton, as proven by this 1991 ad.

Axe, 2008

2008.
Print ad ran in several editions of Metro and AM New York during February, 2008. Kinda funny, but Obama wearing white mook boy scent Axe was just too much of a stretch in believability.

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