Some question pep rally atmosphere at Obama speech (AP)

Some question pep rally atmosphere at Obama speech
President Barack Obama greets Daniel Hernandez, a intern for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords who helped her after she was shot, at a memorial service in Tucson, Ariz., on the University of Arizona campus, Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2011. Some conservative commentators are criticizing the cheering and peppiness of the Arizona Mass Shooting memorial that featured President Barack Obama. Some have wondered whether it was a scripted political event, but White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Thursday he and othe...

Some question pep rally atmosphere at Obama speech
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Some conservative commentators are criticizing the cheering and peppiness of the Arizona Mass Shooting memorial that featured President Barack Obama. Some have wondered whether it was a scripted political event, but White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Thursday he and other aides didn’t expect Obama’s Speech to receive as much applause as it did. The University of Arizona, which hosted the event, insisted it was not political. The school said it planned ...

Some question pep rally atmosphere at Obama speech
(01-13) 23:27 PST Tucson, Ariz. (AP) -- What was billed as a memorial for Victims of the Arizona shooting rampage turned into a rollicking rally, leaving some conservative commentators wondering whether President Barack Obama's Speech was a scripted political event. Not so, insisted the White House and host University of Arizona. Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said Thursday he and other aides didn't expect the president's remarks at the school's Basketball arena to receive as much rousing applau...

Some Question Pep Rally Atmosphere At Obama Speech
TUCSON, Ariz. — What was billed as a memorial for Victims of the Arizona shooting rampage turned into a rollicking rally, leaving some conservative commentators wondering whether President Barack Obama's Speech was a scripted political event. Not so, insisted the White House and host University of Arizona. Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said Thursday he and other aides didn't expect the president's remarks at the school's Basketball arena to receive as much rousing applause as it did. Gibb...

White House Works on Shedding Boys Club Image with New Blog Post
Based on a recent blog posting to the White House website, it seems the administration is trying to shed the image of a boy's club at the White House. The Obama Administration has been criticized for sticking to an old Washington stereotype that at the highest levels, the president only surrounds himself with men. Friday they released on the White House blog a posting with a photo gallery titled, "Women and Girls and the Obama Administration." The posting by Jenny Kaplan, Deputy Director of the ...

Obama's Tucson Speech: Video and Reactions
Mother Jones' own David Corn : "President Barack Obama's Speech in Tucson was undeniably a high moment of his presidency. But you can judge that for yourself. (As the father of a nine-year-old daughter, I could not imagine delivering such an address—and keeping it together.)" The Atlantic's Andrew Sullivan : "To rate this address on any political meter would be to demean it. The president wrested free of politics tonight and spoke of greater things. I pledge myself to try an...

Obama's speech likely bound for history books
It's still early, but it already seems like President Obama's eulogy for the Arizona Shooting Victims is bound for many an Obama biography. Many conservative critics of Obama's presidency are giving high marks to his call for national unity in the wake of tragedy. In a post entitled "the non-accusatory case for civility," Rich Lowry of National Review wrote that Obama "subtly rebuked the Left's finger-pointing, and rose above the rancor of both sides, exactly as a president should. Tonight, he ...

Critics Assail Cheering and T-Shirts at Obama Tucson Speech
T-shirts reading "Together We Thrive: Tucson & America" were handed out to attendees at the event, prompting conservative pundit Michelle Malkin to complain: "Isn't the churning of the instant messaging machine a bit, well, unseemly? Can't the Democrat political stage managers give it a break just once?" Pointing to the fact that the slogan appeared on various items at the event, Malkin wrote, "Yes, the Tucson massacre is being branded." She later wrote that she had been informed that the...

John McCain on Obama's speech: Can he return to his old bipartisan self?
John McCainJohn McCain has extended a hand to his old rival. Writing in the pages of the Washington Post, McCain praises President Obama for his remarks at the Tucson memorial on Wednesday and makes his own commitment to not let his passion get the best of him. He also bears witness. Referring to the president, McCain writes: "He is a patriot sincerely intent on using his time in office to advance our country's cause. I reject accusations that his policies and beliefs make him unworthy to lead A...

Obama re-wrote Arizona speech on way to arena
In the hours before President Obama's Tucson memorial Speech, White House officials said he would likely be working on the speech up to the last minute. And that turned out to be literally true. In fact, one of the most reported moments of his speech -- Obama's revelation that wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., had opened her eyes that day -- surfaced in the car ride to the University of Arizona Basketball arena, officials said. Giffords' husband and mother accompanied Obama in the presi...

A day with Fox News
Scott Stinson, National Post · Friday, Jan. 14, 2011 Shortly after Barack Obama delivered his address at the Arizona memorial service on Wednesday night, the cable-news pundits weighed in. It was “remarkable and extremely effective,” one noted. “[The President] behaved,” another said, “with considerable dignity and grace.” These plaudits were not exceptional on their own — Mr. Obama rarely gives a Speech in which his oratorical skills are not salute...

McCain praises former rival
(CNN) - Republican Arizona Sen. John McCain issued high praise for President Obama's Wednesday address that honored Victims of the Arizona shootings. In an op-ed set to publish in the Washington Post Sunday, the 2008 GOP presidential nominee said his former rival gave a "terrific Speech" and echoed the president's sentiment that political discourse should be "more civil than it currently is." "Our political discourse should be more civil than it currently is, and we all, myself included, bear so...

McCain praises former rival (President Obama)
Source: CNN (CNN) - Republican Arizona Sen. John McCain issued high praise for President Obama's Wednesday address that honored Victims of the Arizona shootings. In an op-ed set to publish in the Washington Post Sunday, the 2008 GOP presidential nominee said his former rival gave a "terrific Speech" and echoed the president's sentiment that political discourse should be "more civil than it currently is." "Our political discourse should be more civil than it currently is, and we all, myself inclu...

MLK Jr. "I Have A Dream" Speech (VIDEO)
Martin Luther King Jr. Day is Monday, honoring one the greatest Civil Rights leaders of all time. Celebrated this year on January 17, 2011, the holiday falls on the third Monday of January every year, right around King's birthday, which is January 15. King would have been 82 this year. His "I Have A Dream" Speech was recited on August 28, 1963 during the March on Washington. King spoke in front of the Lincoln Memorial. Perhaps the most famous of King's speeches, the repetition "I have a dream"...

Administration Still Saying Little About Afghan Drawdown
As expected, the White House is still saying little about the pace and scale of the Military withdrawal from Afghanistan that's scheduled to begin in July. Ever since Obama announced the withdrawal plans on Dec. 1, 2009 in a Speech at West Point, the administration has played it close to the vest. Troops will begin to come home then, Obama has said, but how many will leave Afghanistan, and how quickly they will leave it, has been left to be decided in July and beyond. After Vice President Joe B...

Palin to Keynote Gun and Hunting Convention in Nevada
Sarah Palin, who took a pummeling this week in the heated debate over guns following the Mass Shootings in Tucson, will make a keynote address to a gun convention later this month. Coming off what some critics call her "worst week," Palin has had little success fending off accusations that she had directly or indirectly helped fuel the vitriolic and violent climate that some say may have contributed to the shootings that left six dead and 14 wounded, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, a moderate...

In Arizona, even a TV station is called KGUN
TUCSON, Ariz. — At the Frontier Gun Shop toward the east side of this city, Jim Sharrah figures he can outfit you with a quality Handgun or rifle, ammunition and pretty much whatever else you need in 15 to 20 minutes. As long as you're a resident of Arizona and at least 21 without an adjudicated history of violence or mental issues, that's about how long the entire process takes, including the Background Check. You can walk out with the weapon loaded and tucked inside a coat, if ...

Wild Wild West: Guns Still a Part of Arizona's History
As the Victims of the Mass Shooting in Tucson, Ariz., are being laid to rest, some politicians are calling for stricter Gun Control laws. Guns are ingrained in America's history, especially in Arizona, which was once home to the Wild Wild West. Saloons, stagecoaches and shoot-outs all played an important part in Arizona's long history, and that's why even today you'll find the ethos of the Wild West permeates their culture. And Arizonans have very strong opinions about gun control. The mass s...

Rush: Obama Speech Was Pep Rally
Mediaite reports: Rush Limbaugh took to the airwaves and wasn’t so eager to echo the overwhelming praise of President Obama’s memorial Speech last night. Not only was he shocked by the “pep rally” tone of the crowd (something that also troubled CBS’ Mark Knoller during today’s Press Conference with Robert Gibbs), but he also had some complaints about what was said, the timing of the ceremony and the media reaction to it. Limbaugh first doubted the wisdom of having Depar

Rep. Mike Honda: What Would Dr. King Do? Remembering Arizona on MLK Day
As our country continues to mourn and heal from Arizona's inexplicable violence, we are reminded of the timeless and transcendental teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, whose life and legacy is remembered this Monday, January 17, 2011. Dr. King's commemoration could not come at a more appropriate time. Arizona's violence is a sad reminder of the culture of violence that pervades this country and propagates such actions, manifesting in a myriad of ways, be it by pistol, pen, podium or a pol...

Greg Gutfeld vs. Tom Brokaw
So Tom Brokaw just appeared on Morning Joe (named after a sex act), to discuss the boost in gun sales since the Arizona shooting. Brokaw explained this upsurge as a bunch of scared lemmings stockpiling their guns in “underground bunkers” in case new laws arrive to ban them. “In Arizona they have a wide open system. I would be nervous about going into a bar or restaurant in Arizona on a Saturday night where people can carry concealed without permits.” You would be nervous?...

Poll Finds Americans Rejecting the Blame Game Over Arizona Shooting
Friday, January 14, 2011 By Matt Cover Law Enforcement officers near the scene of the shooting attack that wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and killed five others. (AP Photo/Kelly Presnell) (CNSNews.com) - A poll from Quinnipiac University finds that Americans are not buying the efforts to blame the shooting of an Arizona congresswoman, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), on political metaphors or Gun Control laws. “Americans seem to be rejecting the blame game for the Arizona shooting. B...

When Your Powers Combine, I am Captain Palin!
There’s really not much to say about this. It’s classic Palin, a Speech designed to draw her flock closer by refusing to give an inch to her opponents. Thus, we now have Josh Marshall from Talking Points Memoopining that “[t]oday has been set aside to honor the Victims of the Tucson massacre. And Sarah Palin has apparently decided she’s one of them.” And we have The National Review’s Daniel Lowry asserting that “Palin in gravitas mode like...

David Rieff Overheats
David Rieff writes: “Despite the irate denials on conservative websites (as usual, National Review Online, with the honorable exception of Heather Mac Donald, made this case with particularly breathtaking dishonesty), there is really no doubt that the apocalyptic Rhetoric that is the common currency of the Becks, Palins, Limbaughs, and worse has the potential to make unstable people murderous.” Examples adduced of dishonesty: zero. (If I wanted to nitpick-and why not?-I&#...

Barbour to GOP: Keep your finger pointed at Democrats
I really hope there's video of this Speech by Haley Barbour to the House GOP's annual retreat: Baltimore - Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi is advising Republicans newly in charge of the House that they must keep voters' frustrations with the nation's lagging economy focused on Democrats who still run the Senate and control the White House. Barbour told House Republicans on Friday that they mustn't become arrogant or believe that they are running the government. He says some in the GOP b...