Bob Woodward: Obama’s Mix of Humility & Arrogance Does Not Serve Him Well November 21, 2013

Journalist & Author Bob Woodward in Overland Park Thursday night.

Author and journalist Bob Woodward says President Barack Obama’s political problems are sometimes caused by his own personal traits.
Woodward was the featured speaker and the Village Shalom fundraiser Thursday night. Woodward says Obama is a very cerebral person.
Yet is also always very aware of how improbable it is that he rose to become President. And Woodward says he can be arrogant at times.
He told the crowd that combination has posed problems for him in his Presidency.
Woodward also says Obama struggles to use the natural leadership and assertive powers of the office.
“He’s just not developed the relationships with the people, not just in the Redpublican Party, but in the Democratic Party,” Woodward said.

Obama & Clinton Do Joint Interview Today, On 60 Minutes Sunday January 25, 2013

Politico:
At the end of a week filled with talk about Joe Biden’s presidential prospects, Barack Obama will sit down for a television interview with … Hillary Clinton.
The joint interview Friday afternoon is set to air Sunday on CBS’s “60 Minutes.”
The outgoing-secretary of State — rumored to be considering a 2016 run of her own — and Obama will tape the interview at the White House with CBS News’s Steve Kroft, sources told POLITICO’s Mike Allen.
This is not only the first joint interview for Obama and Clinton, but it is also the first sit-down television interview that Obama has given with anyone other than first lady Michelle Obama, officials said
Earlier this week, Clinton testified to members of Congress about the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks at U.S. posts overseas, including the one in Benghazi, Libya, where ambassador Chris Stevens was killed.
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) is set to replace Clinton, who has maintained that she intended to step down after Obama’s first term.
Obama has done more than ten interviews with “60 Minutes” since he first ran for president.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/president-obama-hillary-clinton-interview-on-60-minutes-86713.html#ixzz2Izg24NRC

Photo: Obama Public Oath Taking January 21, 2013

Obama & Biden Sworn In For 2nd Term January 20, 2013

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden today officially embarked on their second term, taking the Constitutionally mandated oath of office in two separate private ceremonies inside their homes.

Shortly before noon in the Blue Room of the White House, Obama raised his right hand, with his left on a family Bible, reciting the oath administrated by Chief Justice John Roberts. He was surrounded by immediate family members, including first lady Michelle Obama and daughters, Malia and Sasha.

“I did it,” he said to his daughters after taking the oath.

Biden was sworn in earlier today by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic to administer a presidential oath, in a ceremony at his official residence at the U.S. Naval Observatory. He was joined by more than 120 guests, including cabinet members, extended family and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden.

Because Jan. 20 — the official date for a new presidential term — falls on a Sunday this year, organizers delayed by one day the traditional public inauguration ceremony and parade down Pennsylvania Avenue.

Obama’s Weekly Address Focuses on the Fight to Pass Gun Control Laws Watch Video
Obama and Biden will each repeat the oath on Monday on the west front of the Capitol, surrounded by hundreds of dignitaries and members of Congress. An estimated 800,000 people are expected to gather on the National Mall to witness the moment and inaugural parade to follow.

The dual ceremonies in 2013 means Obama will become the second president in U.S. history to take the presidential oath four times. He was sworn in twice in 2008 out of an abundance of caution after Roberts flubbed the oath of office during the public administration. This year Roberts read from a script.

Franklin Roosevelt was also sworn in four times but, unlike Obama, he was elected four times.

This year will mark the seventh time a president has taken the oath on a Sunday and then again on Monday for ceremonial purposes. Reagan last took the oath on a Sunday in 1985.

Both Obama and Biden took the oath using a special family Bible. Obama used a text that belonged to Michelle Obama’s grandmother LaVaughn Delores Robinson. Biden placed his hand on a 120-year-old book with a Celtic cross on the cover that has been passed down through Biden clan.

The official inaugural activities today also included moments of prayer and remembrance that marked the solemnity of the day.

Cleaver’s ‘Politico’ Op-Ed: Tim Scott to Senate is a Good Step, But Just One December 21, 2012

Tim Scott

Kansas City Congressman Emanuel Cleaver writes that the appointment of Rep. Tim Scott to be the next South Carolina Senator is a step in the right direction, but only a step.
In an opinion piece published Friday by Politico, Cleaver notes that Scott’s Senate appointment means he will be the first African-American in the US Senate from the South since Reconstruction.
“Scott is an honorable man, whose conservative political ideology and voting history seem to be in complete harmony with those of the majority of South Carolinians,” writes Cleaver.
He says the Republicans have talked about trying to include Blacks in the Grand Old Party for years. Cleaver observes, however, “but it has not been enough to show any signs of wear”.
Cleaver says it would be in the long-term interest of the GOP to start recruiting Blacks to the GOP and demonstrating genuine inclusion. The Kansas City Democrat says some GOP policies already appeal to Black Americans.
“There is a great deal of interest among African-Americans in the policies of fiscal restraint,” Cleaver wrote. He believes with more inclusionary policies and real access to GOP leadership, the Party could attract more Black voters and other minorities.
The Democrat says it’s not true that candidate Barack Obama was the first choice of many Black Voters because of his race.
“Yes, black people were proud of their support for Barack Obama, but there was no spontaneous enthusiasm until they became familiar with his political positions on the campaign trail. Originally, most African-Americans supported Hillary Clinton,”
That included Cleaver.
Confucius, the much celebrated Chinese sage once said, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.” My hope is that with this historic appointment, the GOP will keep stepping”, Cleaver wrote

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2012/12/for-gop-scott-appointment-is-first-step-85369.html#ixzz2Fgua1Jj1