Politics. On Point.

It's not too often that you find a king and a president in the same room together, but on Monday at the White House, the East Room featured both. LeBron James and the 2012 NBA Champions, the Miami Heat, were honored by President Obama in a ceremony that saw the 'king' a bit overwhelmed.  The Miami Heat with President Obama.  Photo/CD Brown. "I mean, we're in the White House", James said to the laughter of the audience.  " So I mean, we're kids from Chicago and Dallas, Texas and Michigan and Ohio and South Dakota, Miami. And we're in the White House right now. This is like, hey, mama, I made it."  Not bad for a team the president called "a little up-and-coming basketball team". The 'up-and-coming basketball team' fended off Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma Thunder, 121-106 in Game 5 of the 2012 NBA Finals to which the president credited himself for their win. "Now, I’m not trying to take all the credit, ...

"We're So Strong" As the US military prepares to lift the ban preventing women from serving on the front lines of military combat, we're inspired by the words of Ms. Violet Palmer, the first female NBA referee who had these words to say about being a female in her own male-dominated profession. "I didn't know if they'd talk differently, look at me differently, or if they'd touch me", said Palmer who has been an NBA ref since 1997 of her fellow male referees. While the NBA and military operations are quite different animals, both surely were met with oppositionary reactions initially, but said Palmer, "I knew if I did my job well, they cynics would be quiet." Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta (who is slated to resign from his post this year) said in a statement yesterday, "The department's goal in rescinding the rule is to ensure that the mission is met with the best-qualified and most capable people, regardless of gen...

Republicans are pushing their 'No Budget. No Pay' agenda. In an email that went out yesterday House Republicans state: "Today the House passed No Budget, No Pay legislation with bi-partisan support. The bill will require the House and Senate each to pass a budget, and Member pay will be withheld if they fail. The principle is simple: no budget, no pay. It's time for the Senate to act. It has been almost four years since the Democratic-controlled Senate passed a budget, while our national debt has skyrocketed by over $5 trillion." Watch their new video "Earning It", about Senate Democrats' failure to do their jobs and pass a budget, says the email. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Chair, House Republican Conference encourages Americans to help them "keep the pressure on the Senate to follow the law and pass a budget".  She also asks her constituents to forward share the above video on their Facebook and Twitter accounts. She further wr...

Oh, the difference between Eric Holder testifying on Capitol Hill about his role in the 'Fast and Furious' debacle that saw hundreds of guns enter the pipe line of illegal guns being sold on the US streets from Mexican drug cartel seizures, and today's testimony by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton . While Holder was timid, evasive and subdued Clinton, during one portion of the questioning today on the Benghazi event that killed a US Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans, decided she'd had enough of the fervent bombardment and line of questioning from the GOP. Clinton confessed that she takes full responsibility for not providing the protection needed in the area on the day of September 11, 2012, the anniversary of the 911 attack here in the U.S. She refuted any claims that the administration gave false Intel into why the American people were told several different versions of exactly what happened during the Benghazi attack. Initially, US Ambass...

President and Mrs. Obama dance the Inaugural Dance during the Commander in Chief Ball at the DC Convention Center to Jennifer Hudsons' rendition of Al Green's Let's Stay Together . The First Lady wore a Jason Wu ruby colored chiffon and velvet gown with a handmade diamond embellished ring by jewelry designer Kimberly McDonald. Mrs. Obama's shoes are by Jimmy Choo. At the end of the Inaugural festivities, the outfit and accompanying accessories will go to the National Archives as did her first inaugural gown and shoes . Side note: Although Jennifer did a fine and wonderful job singing, we still wonder why the Rev. Al Green himself wasn't asked to perform his hit single. We're sure he would have been more than happy to do so.

After having visited the Metro A.M.E. Church on Sunday, President Obama and family attend the St. John's Episcopal Church near the White House. On the day marking the birthday celebration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the president gave his Inaugual Address on the front steps of the Capital Building in front of Congressional members and what looked to be nearly a million American citizens. "Each time we gather to inaugurate a President we bear witness to the enduring strength of our Constitution. We affirm the promise of our democracy. We recall that what binds this nation together is not the colors of our skin or the tenets of our faith or the origins of our names. What makes us exceptional, what makes us American is our allegiance to an idea articulated in a declaration made more than two centuries ago: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among ...

President Barack Hussein Obama was sworn in today for a second term as President of the United States. The entire oath ceremony, which took place in the Blue Room of the White House, lasted about one minute. Chief Justice Roberts led the president in reciting the oath. President Barack Obama takes the oath of office, administered by Judge Roberts. The president used the Robinson Family Bible. Attending were: Mrs. Marian Robinson — the first lady's mother, Craig Robinson — the first lady's mother' brother, Leslie Robinson — the first lady's niece, Avery Robinson — the first lady's  nephew, Auma Obama — President Obama's sister, Akinyi Manners — Auma Obama's daughter & President Obama's niece, Maya Soetoro-Ng — President Obama's sister, Konrad Ng — President Obama's  brother-in-law married to Maya, Savita Ng — President Obama's niece, Suhaila Ng — the president's niece, Kaye Wilson — Godmother to Sasha &; Malia, a.k.a. ...