Politics. On Point.

Today, President Obama nominated Ronnie Abrams to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and Rudolph Contreras to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.   Ronnie Abrams currently serves as Special Counsel for Pro Bono at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, a position she has held since 2008. Previously, Abrams served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York from 1998 to 2008, where she served as Acting Chief of the General Crimes Unit from 2004 to 2005, Chief of the General Crimes Unit from 2005 to 2007, and Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division from 2007 to 2008. From 1994 to 1998, Abrams was an associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP. She served as a law clerk to the Honorable Thomas P. Griesa of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York from 1993 to 1994. Abrams earned a J.D. in 1993 from Yale Law School and a B.A. in 1990 from Cornell University. Ru...

At today's opening dedication of the new African American Civil War Museum, DC Mayor Vincent Gray had some choice words. Gray was referencing the issue of home rule in the District of Columbia, and District not having a say in how its own money is spent. "We are not free in the District of Columbia", the mayor shouted. Gray said today's dedication of the African American Civil War Museum, and the August, 2011 dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial  is the "perfect opportunity" for the District's 600,000 residents to stand up in defense of that fact. Gray, in an increasingly excitable tone, posed the question, "Why is it that we have to send our laws up to a body that has becoming increasingly famous for the gridlock that exists everyday on Capital Hill". The new African American Civil War Museum is located at 1925 Vermont Avenue, sitting just behind the old Grimke School.  "My mother used to go to Grimke School...

President Barack Obama's Monday schedule is shaping up to be yet another busy one. Richard Cordary has been chosen by President Obama to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. He is scheduled to make a major personnel announcement in the early afternoon: one that states his nomimation of Richard Cordray to Lead Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. ( Update : View announcement video here ). From the White House blog on the selection: It has been one year since President Obama passed financial reform to help tackle the problems that created the financial crisis that pulled the economy into the worst recession we've seen since the Great Depression, As the President described today , the law did three things, "First, it made taxpayer-funded bailouts illegal, so taxpayers don’t have to foot the bill if a big bank goes under. Second, it said to Wall Street firms, you can’t take the same kind of reckless risks that led to the crisis. And third, it put in plac...

We love this! The First Family strolling hand-in-hand as they walk to St. John's Episcopal Church today. Here are the raw details from White House pool reporter John Stanton of Roll Call . The first fam left St Johns at 1135, and after a short stroll through Lafayette Park, returned to the White House. The homily was based on the story of Jacobs Ladder and a meditation on finding God in places you would not expect to. "The First Family were delighted to worship with the St. John's Episcopal Church congregation today as they have in the past, and look forward to visiting again," a White House official said. St. Johns is an Episcopal Church, which dates back to 1815, and since James Madison every sitting president has worshipped there ( www.stjohns-dc.org is their site). Churches in the DC area the Obamas have attended include: the 19th Street Baptist Church, Metropolitan A.M.E. Church, Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church, Vermont Avenue Baptist Church, Shiloh Baptis...

Arianna Huffington speaking at the National Press Club.  Photo/CD Brown. Media mogul and owner of AOL/Huffington Post, Arianna Huffington spoke yesterday at the National Press Club, on her birthday nonetheless. She shared the secret to her highly successful media conglomerate, recently purchased by America On Line for $310 million, and offers some staunch advice for today's journalists in a modern media world. She was joined by AOL's chairman and CEO, Tim Armstrong, Politico's  Bryan Doyle, and the Hill magazine's Al Eisele. Huffington speaks to fans after the luncheon.  Photo/CD Brown. Photos here .  Click here to hear what her birthday wish is!

President Tells Reporters "That's My Main Concern" In day 5 of negotiations between Democrats and Republicans, no agreeable solution has been made to raise the debt ceiling to keep America from defaulting on its financial obligations.  If the deadline passes without a consensus between the parties, the results could be dire. President Obama speaking during  Friday's press conference in the James Brady briefing room.  Photo/CD Brown. Chief Advisor to the president, Valerie Jarrett, speaking on the Joe Madison show this week, explains. "The affect on everyday people will be devastating", Jarrett said.  "We've already heard from the rating agencies that they will consider downgrading on our debt.  If we default on our obligations, it's just like anyone else who defaults... you're creditors will lose confidence in you."  Jarrett further explained that interest rates could go up which would increase credit rates and mortgage len...

On Sunday, July 17th, Dr. Jill Biden will lead a Presidential Delegation to Frankfurt, Germany for the Women’s World Cup Final between the United States of America and Japan .  This is the sixth FIFA Women’s World Cup competition, the world championship for women's national association soccer teams. The United States continues to be a force in women’s soccer, with a record that includes two Women’s World Cups in 1991 and 1999, and three Olympic Women’s Gold Medals in 1996, 2004 and 2008.  The 2011 Women’s World Cup serves as a great opportunity to celebrate the remarkable accomplishments of America’s female athletes at all levels, from girls taking part in their first sporting events to the athletes participating in this year’s World Cup Final, and recognize the importance of the foundation laid by Title IX. While in Germany, Dr. Biden and the Delegation will meet with the members of the U.S. Women’s National Team and their friends and family to wish them luck and offer...

Organizers of the Pray Without Ceasing Political Party met in front of the White House today to pray that Congress and the Obama Administration will come together on issues of debt conciliation and other issues. "I'm just ashamed of our Congress right now", said founder Rocky Twyman. Twyman stated that Former First Lady Betty Ford wanted it known that she was for both parties coming together to solve America's issues.  No other time is that needed than right now.  He called the timing of her death, when the two parties seemed stalled on reaching any agreement after several days of talks and bargaining, prophetic. "How prophetic it is that she told Cokie Roberts [reporter] in 2007 that she wanted it to be known at her funeral that she was for Democrats and Republicans coming together", Twyman said.   This has been a tumultuous week, with so much confusion between the Democrats and Republicans. Republicans are calling for no increas...

Delivering the Accountable Government that Taxpayers Deserve ‎By Vice President Joe Biden McClatchy-Tribune Information Services Right now in Washington, there is a big debate about how to cut spending and rein in deficits while we continue to create jobs and build the platform we need to succeed in the future. The American people have high standards for how their tax dollars are spent, and the government has to find ways to eliminate expenses that are either wasteful or non-essential. As part of that effort, our government must work harder to make sure that tax dollars are not wasted on government programs that are ineffective, duplicative or just plain unnecessary. The president and I feel strongly about this, and that is why we launched the Campaign to Cut Waste. Two years ago, the president asked me to patrol all those who received money as part of the Recovery Act. We wanted to make sure every dollar spent was accounted for and used properly. We used the most sophisticated ...

Notice: We were contacted by the PWCPP organizer and asked to post this on our website. THE WHITE HOUSE TRIBUTE TO FORMER FIRST LADY BETTY FORD - July 14, 2011 (From the PWCPP organizers). Organizers of the Pray Without Ceasing Political Party (PWCPP) say that if Betty and Gerald Ford were still alive, they would have encouraged a more civil debate about the SERIOUS DEBT CEILING CRISIS THAT IS THREATENING TO RUIN OUR AMERICAN ECONOMY. ABC'S COKIE ROBERTS JUST SAID THAT BETTY FORD TOLD HER TO TALK ABOUT THE NEED FOR BIPARTISANSHIP AT HER FUNERAL. THE TIME HAS NEVER BE MORE RIPE FOR SUCH A DISCUSSION. The country has lost a treasure in the death of Betty Ford. She and her husband came to the White House during one of the most difficult times in our country-when President Nixon resigned. In order to make sure that the true contribution of these great individuals are not lost in the annals of history, the new energized Pray Without Ceasing Political Party (PWCPP) will hold...

The Obama Administration has launched Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2), a new and customized pilot initiative to strengthen local capacity and spark economic growth in local communities while ensuring taxpayer dollars are used wisely and efficiently. To accomplish this, federal agencies will provide experienced staff to work directly with six cities: Chester, PA; Cleveland, OH; Detroit, MI; Fresno, CA; Memphis, TN; and New Orleans, LA. These teams will work with local governments, the private sector, and other institutions to leverage federal dollars and support the work being done at the local level to encourage economic growth and community development.   Additionally, communities nationwide will be eligible to compete for comprehensive economic planning assistance through a grant competition designed to spark local innovation. By integrating government investments and partnering with local communities, SC2 channels the resources of the federal government to he...

First Lady Obama and daughters Sasha and Malia were on hand for last night's Washington Kastles vs. Boston Lobsters WTT tennis contest. First Ladies enjoying a little Washington Kastles tennis. Photo/CD Brown. The girls, and mom, cheered on the team headlined by tennis great, Serena Williams. Last year Williams was to hold a tennis clinic at the White House for a South Lawn Series event, but the event was canceled because of rain.   There was no rain last evening, however, and the Kastles defeated the Lobsters 25-10. White House chef, Sam Kass was also on hand to see the Kastles in action. To see more photos from last night's fun, see our sports page here .

President Barack Obama will award Sergeant First Class Leroy Arthur Petry, U.S. Army, the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.  Sergeant First Class Petry will receive the Medal of Honor for his courageous actions during combat operations against an armed enemy in Paktya, Afghanistan in May, 2008.  He will be the second living, active duty service member to be awarded the Medal of Honor for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan.  Petry's military decorations include: two Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart, three Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, National Defense Service Medal, three Army Good Conduct Medals,  Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Combat Star, Iraq Campaign Medal with Combat Star, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, to name a few. Sergeant First Class Petry’s wife, Ashley, and other family members will join the President at the White House on July 12th ...

After meeting with both sides today at the White House, it's politics as usual and the sides remain divided. In remarks afterwards President Obama said, " We discussed the various options available to us.  Everybody reconfirmed the importance of completing our work and raising the debt limit ceiling so that the full faith and credit of the United States of America is not impaired.  What we decided was that staffs, as well as leadership, will be working during the weekend, and that I will reconvene congressional leaders here on Sunday with the expectation that, at that point, the parties will at least know where each other’s bottom lines are and will hopefully be in a position to then start engaging in the hard bargaining that’s necessary to get a deal done" .    All or Nothing. "I want to emphasize that nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed to.  And the parties are still far apart on a wide range of issues.  But, again, I thought that ...

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today introduced a resolution, which has 22 original co-sponsors, designating Saturday, July 30 as National Dance Day to promote physical exercise, dance art forms, and dance education. So You Think You Can Dance producer and celebrity judge Nigel Lythgoe will announce National Dance Day on tonight’s TV show, including how participants may access the dance routines to learn for the Dance Day flash mobs. Lythgoe, the Dizzy Feet Foundation and the Larry King Cardiac Foundation, in conjunction with Norton, will host the National Dance Day celebration  at the Sylvan Theatre on the National Mall to encourage physical activity through dance forms of all kinds. National Dance Day in DC will feature a variety of dance performances by local and regional amateur dance groups, as well as a flash mob that will include participation by those who attend. Norton and Lythgoe intend to make National Dance Day an annual celebra...

Either the president is a man of his word, or he was using yesterday's Twitter Town Hall event to plug his next program effort. Yesterday, the president, when asked what he would do differently about handling the recession America experienced the last two years, answered that he would have tried to prevent more people from losing their home. Today, the White House Press Office put out a statement that Obama officials will convene a media conference call with Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan to announce new housing program improvements to help unemployed homeowners.  The program will require home loan servicers to extend the forbearance period for unemployed homeowners with Federal Housing Administration (FHA) insured loans to 12 months. Servicers participating in the Making Home Affordable Program (MHA) will also be required to extend the forbearance period for unemployed borrowers to 12 months wherever possible und...

President Obama hosts live Twitter Town Hall Today, President Obama hosted the first ever  live White House Twitter town hall. People from around the globe could sign up at #AskObama with questions on the economy, jobs, and education.  Top topics discussed in the White House Twitter Town Hall. Photo/CD Brown. There were two that caught the attention of both the president and us here at Politics. On Point. One question came in from a 'Will Smith' (no, not that one) that asked the president (1) what mistakes had he made handling the recession, and (2) what would he have done differently? President Obama replied, "One would have been to explain to the American people that it was going to take a while for us to get out of this. I think even I did not realize the magnitude, because most economists didn’t realize the magnitude, of the recession until fairly far into it, maybe two or three months into my presidency where we started realizing that we had lost ...