Michael Jackson passed away at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009.
Michael Jackson leads The Jackson 5 in a 1971 Saturday morning cartoon. This episode features the story about how they met Diana Ross; she brought them to Detroit to meet Berry Gordy of Motown... and the rest is history!
Part 1:
Part 2:
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plez sez: and you can bet a young plezWorld was plopped down in front of the RCA tv at the break of dawn on saturday mornings to see this!
Well, folk flocked to plezWorld on Friday to get the skinny on the latest from Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) (more than 400 visitors dropped by on Friday). CNN and all major news outlets have been buzzing all afternoon about the latest from the Great White North: Palin has decided that she should step aside and let her lt. governor take over, so she "can effect positive change outside of government."
Palin said she was transferring authority to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, who will be sworn in at the Governor's Picnic on July 26, 2009.
Palin Announces No Second Term No Lame Duck Session Either
Hi Alaska, I appreciate speaking directly to you, the people I serve, as your Governor.
People who know me know that besides faith and family, nothing's more important to me than our beloved Alaska. Serving her people is the greatest honor I could imagine.
I want Alaskans to grasp what can be in store for our state. We were purchased as a territory because a member of President Abe Lincoln's cabinet, William Seward, providentially saw in this great land, vast riches, beauty, strategic placement on the globe, and opportunity. He boldly looked "North to the Future". But he endured such ridicule and mocking for his vision for Alaska, remember the adversaries scoffed, calling this "Seward's Folly". Seward withstood such disdain as he chose the uncomfortable, unconventional, but right path to secure Alaska, so Alaska could help secure the United States.
Alaska’s mission – to contribute to America. We’re strategic in the world as the air crossroads of the world, as a gatekeeper of the continent. Bold visionaries knew this - Alaska would be part of America's great destiny.
Our destiny to be reached by responsibly developing our natural resources. This land, blessed with clean air, water, wildlife, minerals, and oil and gas. It's energy! God gave us energy.
So to serve the state is a humbling responsibility, because I know in my soul that Alaska is of such import, for America’s security, in our very volatile world. And you know me by now, I promised even four years ago to show my independence… no more conventional “politics as usual”.
And we are doing well! My administration's accomplishments speak for themselves. We work tirelessly for Alaskans.
We aggressively and responsibly develop our resources because they were created to be used to better our world... to help people... and we protect the environment and Alaskans (the resource owners) foremost with our policies.
Here’s some of the things we’ve done:
We created a petroleum integrity office to oversee safe development. We held the line for Alaskans on Point Thomson – and finally for the first time in decades – they’re drilling for oil and gas.
We have AGIA, the gasline project – a massive bi-partisan victory (the vote was 58 to 1!) – also succeeding as intended - protecting Alaskans as our clean natural gas will flow to energize us, and America, through a competitive, pro-private sector project. This is the largest private sector energy project, ever. This is energy independence.
And ACES – another bipartisan effort – is working as intended and industry is publicly acknowledging its success. Our new oil and gas “clear and equitable formula” is so Alaskans will no longer be taken advantage of. ACES incentivizes new exploration and development and jobs that were previously not going to happen with a monopolized North Slope oil basin.
We cleaned up previously accepted unethical actions; we ushered in bi-partisan Ethics Reform.
We also slowed the rate of government growth, we worked with the Legislature to save billions of dollars for the future, and I made no lobbyist friends with my hundreds of millions of dollars in budget vetoes... but living beyond our means today is irresponsible for tomorrow.
We took government out of the dairy business and put it back into private-sector hands – where it should be.
We provided unprecedented support for education initiatives, and with the right leadership, finally filled long-vacant public safety positions. We built a sub-Cabinet on Climate Change and took heat from Outside special interests for our biologically-sound wildlife management for abundance.
We broke ground on the new prison.
And we made common sense conservative choices to eliminate personal luxuries like the jet, the chef, the junkets... the entourage.
And the Lt. Governor and I said "no" to our pay raises.
So much success in this first term – and with this success I am proud to take credit... for hiring the right people! Our goal was to achieve a gasline project, more fair oil and gas valuation, and ethics reform in four years. We did it in two. It’s because of the people… good public servants surrounding the Governor's office, with servants' hearts and astounding work ethic... they are Alaska's success!
We are doing well! I wish you'd hear more from the media of your state's progress and how we tackle Outside interests - daily - special interests that would stymie our state. Even those debt-ridden stimulus dollars that would force the heavy hand of federal government into our communities with an “all-knowing attitude” – I have taken the slings and arrows with that unpopular move to veto because I know being right is better than being popular. Some of those dollars would harm Alaska and harm America – I resisted those dollars because of the obscene national debt we’re forcing our children to pay, because of today’s Big Government spending; it’s immoral and doesn’t even make economic sense!
Another accomplishment – our Law Department protected states’ rights – two huge U.S. Supreme Court reversals came down against that liberal Ninth Circuit, deciding in our state’s favor over the last two weeks. We’re protectors of our Constitution – federalists protect states’ rights as mandated in 10th amendment.
But you don’t hear much of the good stuff in the press anymore, do you?
Some say things changed for me on August 29th last year – the day John McCain tapped me to be his running-mate – I say others changed.
Let me speak to that for a minute.
Political operatives descended on Alaska last August, digging for dirt. The ethics law I championed became their weapon of choice. Over the past nine months I've been accused of all sorts of frivolous ethics violations – such as holding a fish in a photograph, wearing a jacket with a logo on it, and answering reporters’ questions.
Every one – all 15 of the ethics complaints have been dismissed. We’ve won! But it hasn't been cheap - the State has wasted thousands of hours of your time and shelled out some two million of your dollars to respond to “opposition research” – that’s money not going to fund teachers or troopers – or safer roads. And this political absurdity, the “politics of personal destruction” … Todd and I are looking at more than half a million dollars in legal bills in order to set the record straight. And what about the people who offer up these silly accusations? It doesn’t cost them a dime so they’re not going to stop draining public resources – spending other peoples’ money in their game.
It’s pretty insane – my staff and I spend most of our day dealing with this instead of progressing our state now. I know I promised no more “politics as usual,” but this isn’t what anyone had in mind for Alaska.
If I have learned one thing: life is about choices!
And one chooses how to react to circumstances. You can choose to engage in things that tear down, or build up. I choose to work very hard on a path for fruitfulness and productivity. I choose not to tear down and waste precious time; but to build up this state and our country, and her industrious, generous, patriotic, free people!
Life is too short to compromise time and resources... it may be tempting and more comfortable to just keep your head down, plod along, and appease those who demand: "Sit down and shut up", but that's the worthless, easy path; that's a quitter's way out. And a problem in our country today is apathy. It would be apathetic to just hunker down and “go with the flow”.
Nah, only dead fish "go with the flow".
No. Productive, fulfilled people determine where to put their efforts, choosing to wisely utilize precious time... to build up.
And there is such a need to build up and fight for our state and our country. I choose to fight for it! And I'll work hard for others who still believe in free enterprise and smaller government; strong national security for our country and support for our troops; energy independence; and for those who will protect freedom and equality and life... I'll work for and campaign for those proud to be American, and those who are inspired by our ideals and won't deride them.
I will support others who seek to serve, in or out of office, for the right reasons, and I don't care what party they're in or no party at all. Inside Alaska – or Outside Alaska.
But I won’t do it from the Governor’s desk.
I've never believed that I, nor anyone else, needs a title to do this - to make a difference... to help people. So I choose, for my State and my family, more "freedom" to progress, all the way around... so that Alaska may progress... I will not seek re-election as Governor.
And so as I thought about this announcement that I wouldn’t run for re-election and what it means for Alaska, I thought about how much fun some governors have as lame ducks… travel around the state, to the Lower 48 (maybe), overseas on international trade – as so many politicians do. And then I thought – that’s what’s wrong – many just accept that lame duck status, hit the road, draw the paycheck, and “milk it”. I’m not putting Alaska through that – I promised efficiencies and effectiveness! That’s not how I am wired. I am not wired to operate under the same old “politics as usual.” I promised that four years ago – and I meant it.
It’s not what is best for Alaska.
I am determined to take the right path for Alaska even though it is unconventional and not so comfortable.
With this announcement that I am not seeking re-election… I’ve determined it’s best to transfer the authority of governor to Lieutenant Governor Parnell; and I am willing to do so, so that this administration – with its positive agenda, its accomplishments, and its successful road to an incredible future – can continue without interruption and with great administrative and legislative success.
My choice is to take a stand and effect change – not hit our heads against the wall and watch valuable state time and money, millions of your dollars, go down the drain in this new environment. Rather, we know we can effect positive change outside government at this moment in time, on another scale, and actually make a difference for our priorities – and so we will, for Alaskans and for Americans.
Let me go back to a comfortable analogy for me – sports… basketball. I use it because you’re naïve if you don’t see the national full-court press picking away right now: A good point guard drives through a full court press, protecting the ball, keeping her eye on the basket… and she knows exactly when to pass the ball so that the team can win. And I’m doing that – keeping our eye on the ball that represents sound priorities – smaller government, energy independence, national security, freedom! And I know when it’s time to pass the ball – for victory.
I have given my reasons candidly and truthfully… and my last day won’t be for another few weeks so the transition will be very smooth. In fact, we will look to swear Sean in – in Fairbanks at the conclusion of our Governor’s picnics.
I do not want to disappoint anyone with my decision; all I can ask is that you trust me with this decision – but it’s no more “politics as usual”.
Some Alaskans don’t mind wasting public dollars and state time. I do. I cannot stand here as your Governor and allow millions upon millions of our dollars go to waste just so I can hold the title of Governor. And my children won’t allow it either.
Some will question the timing. Let’s just say, this decision has been in the works for awhile…
In fact, this decision comes after much consideration, and finally polling the most important people in my life - my children (where the count was unanimous... well, in response to asking: "Want me to make a positive difference and fight for ALL our children's future from outside the Governor's office?" It was four "yes's" and one "hell yeah!" The "hell yeah" sealed it - and someday I'll talk about the details of that... I think much of it had to do with the kids seeing their baby brother Trig mocked by some pretty mean-spirited adults recently.) Um, by the way, sure wish folks could ever, ever understand that we all could learn so much from someone like Trig - I know he needs me, but I need him even more... what a child can offer to set priorities right – that time is precious... the world needs more "Trigs", not fewer.
My decision was also fortified during this most recent trip to Kosovo and Landstuhl, to visit our wounded soldiers overseas, those who sacrifice themselves in war for our freedom and security… we can ALL learn from our selfless Troops… they’re bold, they don’t give up, they take a stand and know that life is short so they choose to not waste time. They choose to be productive and to serve something greater than self... and to build up their families, their states, our country. These Troops and their important missions – those are truly the worthy causes in this world and should be the public priority with time and resources and not this local / superficial wasteful political bloodsport.
May we all learn from them!
*((Gotta put First Things First))*
First things first: as Governor, I love my job and I love Alaska. It hurts to make this choice but I am doing what’s best for Alaska. I’ve explained why… though I think of the saying on my parents’ refrigerator that says “Don’t explain: your friends don’t need it and your enemies won’t believe you anyway.”
But I have given my reasons… no more “politics as usual” and I am taking my fight for what’s right – for Alaska – in a new direction.
Now, despite this, I don’t want any Alaskan dissuaded from entering politics after seeing this real “climate change” that began in August… no, we need hardworking, average Americans fighting for what’s right! And I will support you because we need you and you can effect change, and I can too on the outside.
We need those who will respect our Constitution where government’s supposed to serve from the bottom up, not move toward this top down big government take-over… but rather, will be protectors of individual rights - who also have enough common sense to acknowledge when conditions have drastically changed and are willing to call an audible and pass the ball when it’s time so the team can win! And that is what I’m doing!
Remember Alaska… America is now, more than ever, looking North to the Future. It'll be good. So God bless you, and from me and my family - to all Alaska - you have my heart.
And we will be in the capable hands of our Lieutenant Governor, Sean Parnell. And Lieutenant General Craig Campbell will assume the role of Lieutenant Governor. And it is my promise to you that I will always be standing by, ready to assist. We have a good, positive agenda for Alaska.
In the words of General MacArthur said, “We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
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Excerpts from the New York Times article follows:
Update | 7:00 p.m. Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska announced Friday that she would step down by the end of the month and not seek a second term as governor, fueling speculation that she is trying to position herself as a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.
Her decision follows a week of extraordinarily bad publicity, from within her own state over ethics inquiries and across the national landscape as top aides on her vice-presidential campaign and supporters have been engaged in a highly public feud that has spilled out in vociferous tones online on blogs and on television. Bloggers in Alaska, critics of the governor as well as former Palin supporters, suggest also that pending releases of e-mails among the Palins were about to expose her to further questions about her finances and governance issues.
In fact, Governor Palin signaled in her nearly breathless news conference that more trouble may lie ahead, as she cited battles that could cost her millions of dollars, a pile-up adding on to her burdens.
Ms. Palin, who was Senator John McCain’s vice presidential running mate last year and solidified the support of the party’s conservative base, explained her decision at a news conference at her home in Wasilla, Alaska, accompanied by her husband, Todd, and other family members.
“We know we can effect positive change outside of government,” she said in making the announcement. Full text of the speech.
Known as Sarah Barracuda when she played basketball in high school, Ms. Palin used point guard analogy in explaining her decision, saying she knows “exactly when to pass the ball so the team can win.”
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Brad Woodhouse, communications director of the Democratic National Committee, issued these remarks:
Either Sarah Palin is leaving the people of Alaska high and dry to pursue her long shot national political ambitions or she simply can’t handle the job now that her popularity has dimmed and oil revenues are down. Either way - her decision to abandon her post and the people of Alaska who elected her continues a pattern of bizarre behavior that more than anything else may explain the decision she made today.
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plez sez: sorry, ya'll! but i had to breakup the MJ KING OF POP tribute to pen a response in regards to my insatiable curiosity about sarah palin.
ol' girl picked the slowest of news cycles (the beginning of a major US holiday weekend) to announce the biggest political news since last year's election!
i've read her poorly written statement (which includes reference to a refrigerator magnet in her parents' house) and i have no better idea why she would quit in the middle of her term other than there is some Outside Influence guiding this decision. after reading all the drivel she obviously wrote during one sitting, you get the idea that alaska is doing really well, everyone loves the palins... so there isn't a good reason for her to step down. she would be a lame duck because she chose to be one... or does she KNOW that she'd never win re-election next year?
why is sarah palin quitting on the people of alaska: is it because she's falling off the radar politically at home and she wants to skip out before the bottom falls out? is it to raise money for the legal fees it is taking to defend her good name against the interpolators who descended on alaska during last year's campaign? is it because she wants to devote full time to campaigning for a presidential run in 2012? she has a brood of five pickaninnies running around her house (including her grandson), is she planning to devote her time to being a full-time housewife? is there some juicy scandal about to break in the coming weeks and she wants to be gone when it drops? maybe alaska is just too small time for a big time national politician of her stature?!?
this woman has been shrouded in mystery, bafflement, confusion, yet an undeniable charisma since she was thrust into our lives during the last gasps of john mccain's failed presidential bid. never has someone generated so much heat from so little kindling... a literal flash in the pan. this announcement is little more than a blip on the political meter, since alaska is a far off land with more moose than voters. but for some strange reason this woman keeps getting attention as if she was a serious candidate for national office (are the republicans THAT desparate?) or as if she ever had anything of substance to say (her little back-and-forth with david letterman a few weeks ago proves that she doesn't).
plezWorld is putting his money on the breaking of some news in the coming weeks... probably some salacious accusations involving certain members of her family (remember her jilted teenage daughter who got knocked up just before the campaign was supposed to be married to her high school sweetheart by now?).
The following Q&A was featured in men.style.com shortly after the death of Michael Jackson:
WISEGUY Q&A: QUINCY JONES' FONDEST AND WEIRDEST RECOLLECTIONS OF MICHAEL JACKSON By Jeff Gordinier
Q: How have you been holding up since Michael Jackson's death? A: Oh, man. It's surrealistic. I went to Shanghai for the movie festival over there—I took Halle Berry—and then went back to Luxembourg, and in three days I lost Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and Michael. And Michael's thing is still surrealistic to me. I can't process it, man. I don't know how to process it. It's just unbelievable—him leaving before me. I can't believe it.
Q: How did you learn that he had died? A: Well, everybody in the world called me. I got 500 e-mails. I've never seen anything like it in my life. At first they said they'd taken him to the hospital, then they said he'd had a stroke or a heart attack—it just kept going back and forth and we didn't know what was really happening. And at first I thought he was just kind of freaked out by the coming concerts, because I was in London when they announced the 50 concerts and they sold out in four hours. . . We'd see each other all the time, and I just can't believe he's not here.
Q: Have you been crying? A: Oh, man, it's more than that. It's way more than that. It hurts my soul, man. It's just a lump down there.
Q: You were there to witness the strange evolution in Michael's appearance. Did you ever step in and saying anything about it? A: Oh, we talked about it all the time. But he'd come up with, "Man, I promise you I have this disease," and so forth, and "I have a blister on my lungs," and all that kind of b.s. It's hard, because Michael's a Virgo, man—he's very set in his ways. You can't talk him out of it. Chemical peels and all that stuff.
Q: Did you believe him about the disease? A: I don't believe in any of that bullshit, no. No. Never. I've been around junkies and stuff all my life. I've heard every excuse. It's like smokers—"I only smoke when I drink" and all that stuff. But it's bullshit. You're justifying something that's destructive to your existence. It's crazy. I mean, I came up with Ray Charles, man. You know, nobody gonna pull no wool over my eyes. He did heroin 20 years! Come on. And black coffee and gin for 40 years. But when he called me to come over to see him when he was in the hospital on his way out, man, he had emphysema, hepatitis C, cirrhosis of the liver, and five malignant tumors. Please, man! I've been around this all my life. So it's hard for somebody to pull the wool over my eyes. But when somebody's hell-bent on it, you can't stop 'em.
Q: But it must've been so disturbing to see Michael's face turn into what it turned into. A: It's ridiculous, man! Chemical peels and all of it. And I don't understand it. But he obviously didn't want to be black.
Q: Is that what it was? A: Well, what do you think? You see his kids?
Q: Did you ever discuss it? Did you ever ask, "Michael, don't you want to be a black man?" A: No, no, no, please. That's not the way you do it.
Q: But he was beautiful before? A: Man, he was the most gorgeous guy.
Q: But he seemed to have some deep-seated issue with how he looked? A: Well, that comes about a certain way. I'm not sure how it happens. I'm just a musician and a record producer. I'm not a psychiatrist. I don't understand all that stuff. We all got problems. But there's a great book out called Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart. Did you see that? That book says the statute of limitations has expired on all childhood traumas. Get your stuff together and get on with your life, man. Stop whinin' about what's wrong, because everybody's had a rough time, in one way or another.
Q: I've heard you say that you wanted Michael to sing "She's Out of My Life," the great pop ballad from Off the Wall, in part because you felt like he had to deal with reality. A: I just wanted to hear him deal with a romantic relationship with a human being rather than a rat. I'm saying that facetiously, but it's true. I saw him at the Oscars very emotional about "Ben." I wanted to hear him get in touch with a real human relationship. "She's Out of My Life" was written by Tommy Bahler from a very bad ending to a marriage. So it was very real. I was saving it for Sinatra. But I gave it to Michael. And Michael cried during every take, and I left the tears in.
Q: It's interesting you mention this, because I was just watching a clip on YouTube where you're sitting on a couch with Michael and he's petting a snake the whole time. A: Oh, I remember that. Yeah, that was Muscles.
Q: Muscles? A: Muscles. That's a big boa constrictor he had. Muscles used to wrap around my leg in a record session and crawl across the console. I was never comfortable with that. It was a choice between that and Bubbles—you know, the chimp.
Q: Did you ever meet Bubbles? A: Are you kidding me? He bit a hole in my daughter's hand! Rashida's hand. Rashida Jones—did you see I Love You, Man? That's my daughter. She was a little girl. And Bubbles bit her hand. Michael used to bring Muscles and Bubbles by the house all the time, you know.
Q: What did you think of that? Wasn't that a little weird? A: I don't know, man. Everybody does his own thing. I've met every freak in the business. Everybody has their idiosyncrasies. I try not to judge it, you know. I know all women are junkies for little dogs and bags and purses. Ha ha ha ha!
Q: At root, what do you think killed Michael Jackson? A: I don't know, man. I'm a musician. I'm not a psychiatrist. I would think that the pressure of the concerts and the debt and everything else . . . look, I've been in the hands of Nobel doctors for the last five years, in Stockholm, at the Karolinska hospital, which you can't even pay to get in. I've learned so much about the human mind and the body, and the doctors talk all the time about how you become your thoughts. It's true. With one thought it starts, you know, and if you sit there and just stay hung up on one negative thought, you will become that thought. I know that Lisa Marie Presley said that she always thought he was going to die like Elvis. You sit and think about that stuff, it'll happen to you. If you start thinking about darkness instead of light, or fear instead of love, you'll get in trouble. I really believe that.
Q: With so many people asking you about Michael Jackson, is it hard to find the private space in which to mourn his death? A: Yes, it is. It's surrealistic. I don't know how to process it at all. Because everybody's reacting to it, and making up their own answers.
Q: You've said that you don't attend funerals anymore because you've lost so many friends. Do you plan to attend Michael Jackson's funeral? A: No, not at all, not at all. Because it's going to be, like, 9 million people there, and it's not what I want to see.
Q: You're not going to be there? A: No. I can't be there, anyway. I'm going to Wales the day after tomorrow, I go to Montreux, I go to Marbella, I go to the south of France. My condolences and love I've already sent to the family. But being there with 10 million people is not my idea of a tribute to somebody you were so close to—who's got a part of your soul. Our souls were joined, you know. And a piece of it goes with him.
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plez sez: Q drops the bomb... but then again, is anyone surprised?!? MJ was the KING OF POP, but he was a fatally flawed individual none-the-less: the incessant whining about a childhood lost over 40 years ago, the obvious self-hatred and desire to be anything but Black, the weird social habits, the severe drug addiction, and his desire to rekindle a childhood long past with other peoples' children.
plezWorld hated to see him go, but the sad truth is that he had peaked a long time ago in a land far, far away (his record sales fell off with the allegations of child molestation soon after "Dangerous" dropped in 1992). it's been almost 20 years since he'd had a major hit album of the magnitude of "Thriller" and "Bad." he was a tortured soul... i only pray that he is finally at peace.
Michael Jackson passed away at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009.
Michael Jackson leads The Jackson 5 (with recent addition Randy Jackson) in a lively rendition of "Dancing Machine" in 1974 on the Merv Griffin Show (alright everybody, "1 - 2 - 3 - clap!"):
Michael Jackson passed away at the age of 50 on June 25, 2009.
Michael Jackson anchors the Jackson 5 at the tender age of 10 years in 1969:
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Practicing "Beat It"... he is better practicing than most performing:
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The King of Pop at the 1988 Grammy Awards (he tears up "Man in the Mirror"):
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The King of Pop does "Smooth Criminal" live:
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plez sez: on yesterday, the world lost the consummate performer. take james brown, elvis presley, jackie wilson, fred astaire, and sammy davis, jr., roll 'em all up into one person and you get MICHAEL JACKSON!
was he weird? no doubt! but i'll be honest, there are few artists who could perform and raise their craft to a level very rarely seen before or since, MICHAEL JACKSON was one such artist. he is definitely "gone too soon!" plezWorld will remember the KING OF POP through his timeless music and videos.
i saw him in concert as a teenager when he was part of "the jacksons" and then again in the early '90s during his "Dangerous Tour"... the boy was bad! it was amazing to witness so much talent in one human being.
The New York Times article about the recent near-unanimous decision concerning the Voting Rights Act of 1965:
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday let stand a central provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, declaring that there was no need at the moment to decide whether that provision was still constitutional in light of the fundamental changes that have swept across the South in recent decades.
In an 8-to-1 ruling in perhaps the most important case of its term, the court said that passing judgment on an act of Congress is “the gravest and most delicate duty that this court is called upon to perform,” and that it need not undertake that momentous duty at this time. But the court stated pointedly that “the act also differentiates between the states in ways that may no longer be justified.”
At stake was Section 5 of the act, which requires a number of states and many local governments, mostly in the South, to seek federal permission before changing their voting procedures. That section was reauthorized by Congress for 25 years in 2006, even though the lawmakers relied on practices that have all but disappeared and voting data from decades ago.
“The historic accomplishments of the Voting Rights Act are undeniable,” Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote for the court. “When it was first passed, unconstitutional discrimination was rampant and the ‘registration of voting-age whites ran roughly 50 percentage points or more ahead’ of black registration in many covered states,” he noted, quoting from an earlier ruling involving the Voting Rights Act.
But while not striking down Section 5, the court ruled that a small Texas water district whose challenge to Section 5 led to Monday’s ruling — and by implication some other political units as well — should have an easier time applying for and obtaining exemption, or getting a “bail out,” from Section 5 provisions. So Monday’s ruling was a victory for the Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District Number One in its suit, backed by a conservative group, against the United States.
More important, the court noted: “Since 1982, only 17 jurisdictions — out of the more than 12,000 covered political subdivisions — have successfully bailed out of the act. It is unlikely that Congress intended the provision to have such limited effect.” Exactly which political units will be able to “bail out” of Section 5 will probably require detailed examination.
Only Justice Clarence Thomas dissented Monday, stating that he thought it inappropriate to sidestep the constitutional question in Northwest Austin Municipal District Number One v. Holder, No. 08-322, and that he thinks Section 5 is no longer constitutional.
Those who want the Voting Rights Act to remain intact greeted Monday’s ruling more with relief than exultation.
The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund issued a statement calling Section 5 “critical to our democracy” and saying it was pleased that “however grudgingly, the court acknowledges that in its opinion.”
Debo P. Adegbile, the organization’s director of litigation, called the Voting Rights Act “one of Congress’s greatest legacies.”
“The utility district brought this case to tear out the heart of the Voting Rights Act,” said Mr. Adegbile, who argued the case before the high court. “Today, it failed.”
Jerry H. Goldfeder, adjunct professor of election law at Fordham Law School, said the court “has essentially granted the Voting Rights Act a stay.” Since the court sidestepped the issue of constitutionality, “the law’s continuing viability is assured for the foreseeable future,” said Mr. Goldfeder, who is special counsel at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan and the chairman of the Election Law Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York.
Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued a statement expressing relief at the ruling and saying that if the court had overturned Section 5, it would have been guilty of “judicial activism.”
“However, I strongly disagree with the Supreme Court that Congress’s reauthorization of Section 5 poses serious constitutional concerns,” Mr. Leahy said. “There is no more explicit constitutional grant of power to the Congress than in the second section of the 15th Amendment, to protect the right to vote.”
When the case was argued on April 29, the questions posed by several justices hinted at a willingness to find Section 5 unconstitutional. But Chief Justice Roberts used language that every member of the court, including Justice Thomas in part, was able to embrace. Referring to the Voting Rights Act in its entirety, the chief justice wrote, “In part due to the success of that legislation, we are now a very different nation.”
How different can be appreciated, as some of those associated with the case have pointed out, with the presence of a black man in the White House and many black elected officials in what used to be the Confederacy, including Representative John Lewis, Democrat of Georgia, who was beaten by Alabama police officers in a civil rights march in 1965.
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plez sez: even though, i have not read the entire ruling, a few things come to mind:
what the HELL is wrong with clarence thomas?!? how does he look at himself in the mirror every morning when he so clearly hates the skin he's in.
what the HELL was the point of the ruling? section 5 of the voting rights act is either unconstitutional or it isn't. why did scalia and alito abandon thomas on this ruling, or did thomas not get the memo?
how much longer can a race-based criteria for federal oversight continue in the south when there is a Black man sitting in the oval office? this must've been deemed such a volatile issue (like roe v. wade) that no high court will ever have the cajones to address it.
plez sez: NOW... i've seen everything! the first major innovation in wiping your ass since the 1880's. hmmmm... what was that major innovation? perforated sheets? two ply?
"take it from me, being a big guy has its advantages... and it's disadvantages!" HA HA HA!
For the past three years, month of May has been Recital Month in plezWorld as the SugarPlum spends successive weeks performing in either piano (last weekend) or ballet (this past weekend). This is the 7-year old's fourth year in ballet with the Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education (Atlanta Ballet Company) and this is her first year in "B" level dance.
As you will see in the following clip, she has really made great strides in the mastery of her performance. This year's performances represent a leap in maturity, focus, and technical ability on both the piano and the dance floor.
This year's ballet performance was held at the Georgia Tech Ferst Center for Arts in Atlanta. Unfortunately, there was significant degradation of the video as it was moved from camera to memory card to YouTube.
The SugarPlum's Ballet Recital
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plez sez: the SugarPlum never ceases to amaze with her stage presence... after her standout performance she was given a big bouquet of roses and was treated to her favorite dessert at the cheesecake factory in buckhead.
I sincerely believe that when one door closes, another door opens.
Today, plezWorld is closing a door on a brief chapter in my life.
I wait with optimism for the door that is about to be flung open.
~~~
"Would you trade your funk for what's behind the third door?" - "Funkentelechy" by Parliament
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plez sez: although it was long and arduous, the wait was not without grace.
over the past year, i've checked a lot of doors and met a lot of interesting people. i was also instrumental in launching a new management consulting firm.
as a result of our hard work and optimism, i'm proud to announce that our company has opened the door on an exciting opportunity and the future looks bright.
An official announcement is planned for later this morning, but it appears that President Barack Obama is poised to name the first person of Hispanic descent to the Supreme Court of the United States.
Read the AJC.com report:
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama tapped U.S. Circuit Judge Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court on Tuesday, officials said, making her the first Hispanic in history picked to wear the robes of a justice.
If confirmed by the Senate, Sotomayor, 54, would succeed retiring Justice David Souter. Two officials described Obama's decision on condition of anonymity because no formal announcement had been made.
Administration officials say Sotomayor would bring more judicial experience to the Supreme Court than any justice confirmed in the past 70 years.
A formal announcement was expected at midmorning.
Obama had said publicly he wanted a justice who combined intellect and empathy — the ability to understand the troubles of everyday Americans.
Democrats hold a large majority in the Senate, and barring the unexpected, Sotomayor's confirmation should be assured.
If approved, she would join Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as the second woman on the current court.
___
May 26, 2009 - 8:36 a.m. EDT
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When the retirement of David Souter was announced, Sotomayor's name was floated as a possible nominee in a Huffington Post article.
plez sez: from reading sotomayor's background, it appears that she is an accomplished jurist with a background that will allow her to empathize with "the people." she was raised in ruff-and-tumble bronx, yet made it out of her environment to attend princeton and yale.
as a "moderate liberal" she is a perfect replacement for the moderate david souter.
if there is any unease with this selection in plezWorld, it is Obama's over-reliance on the ivy league connection for so many of his appointments. but if that's the way of the world, i guess i better work alittle harder on making sure the SugarPlum gets into an ivy league school!
This year, SugarPlum has been learning piano via the Suzuki Method, whose principles are not very different from those of the Montessori school she attends: an immersion in playing the instrument naturally at a pace set by the student. My daughter has blossomed with this method with more emphasis on playing melodies rather than with learning to play by reading notes.
My little virtuoso was given her recital piece over eight weeks ago and she mastered it in alittle over three weeks, for the past month she's been playing it while concentrating on various nuances (speed, volume, etc.). Yesterday was the piano recital for all the kids who take piano class at her school. I decided to conduct a "dress" rehearsal prior to leaving for the show.
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plez sez: SugarPlum does not have stage fright and actually thrives in front of a live audience. she played her piece even better at the actual recital!
she's going to be checking plezWorld on a daily basis for updates, so please leave comments!
In typical fashion, President Barack Obama found a well-qualified candidate to head the nation's space program. Naturally, he selected an astronaut!
The story from CNN.com:
WASHINGTON (CNN) – President Barack Obama on Saturday announced plans to nominate an African-American astronaut to fill NASA's administrator post.
He is Charles Bolden, a retired Marine general who had been selected in 1980 as an astronaut, flying two space shuttle missions as pilot and two missions as commander.
After the Challenger accident in 1986, Gen. Bolden had been named the chief of the safety division at the Johnson Space Center "with responsibilities for overseeing the safety efforts in the return-to-flight efforts," the White House said.
According to the White House, Bolden began his service in U.S. Marine Corps in 1968 and "flew more than 100 sorties in Vietnam from 1972-73."
Bolden is now chief executive officer of JackandPanther LLC, a privately-held military and aerospace consulting firm, the White House said.
Obama also announced plans to nominate Lori Garver, as deputy administrator of NASA. She was lead civil space policy adviser for Obama and helped lead the Agency Review Team for NASA during the presidential transition.
She has served as NASA's associate administrator of the Office of Policy and Plans and primary NASA spokeswoman.
"These talented individuals will help put NASA on course to boldly push the boundaries of science, aeronautics and exploration in the 21st century and ensure the long-term vibrancy of America's space program," Obama said in a statement released by the White House.
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plez sez: i was a co-operative education student with NASA (at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia) when i was in college. i had some aspirations to join the space program until i realized that none of the astronauts who i met were even close to six feet tall (and i am 6'4")!
i had the pleasure of meeting General Bolden in the early 80's, as a number of jet pilots and astronauts frequented Langley Research Center and Langley Air Force Base to test aircraft. i do recall meeting two of the recently selected Black astronauts (Bluford and Bolden) during my time there. those guys (all of the astronauts) were super sharp, so i have no doubt that NASA is in good hands.
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plezWorld is still kind of puzzled as to WHY CNN.com had to highlight the fact that Gen. Bolden was a Black astronaut in their article? if the media is watching... it is definitely time to move on from "racial profiling" of figures in the news. it added NOTHING to the story!
All of the major news organizations are reporting the Supreme Court Justice David Souter - appointed by George H. W. Bush - has decided to step down the end of this current term, which ends in June. President Barack Obama will get to appoint his replacement.
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- After more than 18 years on the nation's highest court, Supreme Court Justice David Souter is retiring, a source close to Souter told CNN Thursday.
Souter will leave after the current court term recesses in June, the source said.
Filling Souter's seat would be President Barack Obama's first Supreme Court appointment -- and the first since George W. Bush's picks of Samuel Alito in 2006 and Chief Justice John Roberts in 2005.
Souter, 69, was tapped for the court by President George H.W. Bush in 1990, but disappointed many conservatives when he turned out to be a typical old-fashioned Yankee Republican -- a moderate, with an independent, even quirky streak.
Souter's departure will leave the two oldest justices -- and the most liberal -- still on the bench. Retirements for John Paul Stevens, 89, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 76, have been rumored for years, with many expecting that one or the other would be the first to give a new Democratic president a Supreme Court vacancy.
Souter's decision came as something of a surprise, although he has long been known to prefer the quiet of his New Hampshire farmhouse to the bustle of the nation's capital.
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plez sez: the two oldest justices - john paul stevens and ruth bader ginsburg - are still hanging in there, but it will only be a matter of time before Obama will be tasked with replacing them (ginsburg returned to the bench this year after a bout with cancer). all told, Obama's appointments to SCOTUS will probably be the lasting legacy of his presidency. he will appoint at least three justices to the nine person bench.
SCOTUS appointments last far longer than the presidency, since they are appointed for life. and a relatively young justice, like clarence thomas when he was appointed, can remain on the bench for 30 to 40 years!
i can see Obama calling someone like bill clinton to bench, or reaching into the federal bench to find a hispanic or asian american to fill the open seat. your thoughts?
News from around the country as the Obama administration goes into Day 100.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
President Barack Obama said Wednesday night that waterboarding authorized by former President George W. Bush was torture and that the information it gained from terror suspects could have been obtained by other means. "In some cases, it may be harder," he conceded at a White House news conference capping a whirlwind first 100 days in office.
Obama also expressed much greater optimism now than a month ago that Chrysler could remain a "going concern," possibly without filing for bankruptcy or with a "very quick" one. Obama did not say so, but Italian automaker Fiat Group SpA is expected to sign a partnership agreement with Chrysler LLC by Thursday as part of negotiations to keep the struggling U.S. automaker alive without bankruptcy protection.
The president gave assurance that one way or another Pakistan's nuclear arsenal would not fall into the hands of Islamic extremists. He said he was confident "primarily, initially" because he believes Pakistan will handle the issue on its own. But he left the door open to eventual U.S. action to secure the weapons if need be.
The prime-time news conference was the third of Obama's presidency and the first not dominated by a recession that has thrown millions of Americans out of work.
At a town-hall style meeting in Missouri earlier in the day, as well as in the White House East Room, Obama said progress has been made in rebuilding the economy, yet more remains to be done.
"You can expect an unrelenting, unyielding effort from this administration to strengthen our prosperity and our security — in the second hundred days, and the third hundred days, and all the days after," he said in opening his news conference.
He called on Congress to enact his ambitious all-at-once agenda, including education spending to produce a better-trained work force, greater support for renewable energy development, a high-priced system for companies to buy and sell rights to emit dangerous pollutants, a vast expansion of health insurance and new rules to rein in the riskiest Wall Street behavior.
Though Obama's most notable legislative triumphs to date have been enacted on party-line votes, he said he remains eager for bipartisan cooperation with Republicans. But, he said, "I can't sort of define bipartisanship as simply being willing to accept certain theories of theirs that we tried for eight years and didn't work and the American people voted to change."
Obama said Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter's switch from Republican to Democrat wouldn't automatically change the math on legislation because of Specter's independence, nor give him a "rubber-stamp Senate." Specter gave majority Democrats 59 votes in the Senate, pushing them one step closer to the 60 needed to overcome Republican filibusters.
But the party change would "liberate" Specter to cooperate with Democrats more than he has in the past, Obama said.
The president also said he was "absolutely convinced" he had acted correctly in banning tough interrogation techniques including waterboarding, which simulates drowning, and in making public the Bush administration memos detailing their use on terrorist suspects. "Not because there might not have been information that was yielded by these various detainees ... but because we could have gotten this information in other ways, in ways that were consistent with our values, in ways that were consistent with who we are."
Obama has come under heavy criticism for his actions from former Vice President Dick Cheney and other Republicans. They have urged Obama to release memos they say will show the tough methods were successful in obtaining information.
Obama told reporters he has read the documents Cheney and others are referring to but said they are classified and declined to discuss their details. In a White House exchange with House Republican leader John Boehner last week, Obama said the record was equivocal.
The news conference lasted an hour and covered topics ranging from the outbreak of swine flu — which Obama referred to as the H1N1 virus, evidently in deference to U.S. pork producers — to abortion and the recent flare-up in violence in Iraq.
Alongside wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the situation in Pakistan has grown more ominous in recent days as a resurgent Taliban shows signs of strength.
Obama said he was "gravely concerned," not about an immediate takeover of the country by the Taliban but because he said the Pakistani government seems unable to deliver basic services and thus gain the kind of public loyalty necessary to survive against challenges over the long term.
The president also gave his strongest public admission yet that the overhaul of the current immigration system that he once promised to tackle in his first 100 days will not happen in 2009. He focused instead on the "key administrative steps" he has directed officials to take this year that he said would demonstrate competence to opponents in the contentious debate.
Obama defended his administration's continuation of Bush's policy that the president has inherent and unchecked power to shield national security information from disclosure — the so-called "state secrets" doctrine. Obama said that court filings came too quickly in his presidency to go in a new direction but that his advisers are already working on ways to have the doctrine modified, even while he said certain cases will require its use.
With the government now functioning as a major shareholder in financial institutions as well as, possibly, auto companies such as General Motors, Obama also said Washington has no intention of micromanaging private businesses or of remaining an investor for any longer than necessary. "I've got more than enough to do," he said.
But the president said the government does have the right, on behalf of the taxpayers, to "scrutinize what's being proposed and make sure that their money is not just being thrown down the drain."
Obama's intensive schedule marking his 100th day in office demonstrated the degree to which the administration saw both possibility and peril in the milestone — a symbolic evaluation point since Franklin Roosevelt took office in the depths of the Great Depression in 1933.
Presidential aides have derided it as a media-created "Hallmark holiday" in which the White House participates reluctantly. But they also recognize it is a time frame by which all modern presidents are judged, at least initially, and which can produce negative narratives that dog administrations for years. So the White House heartily embraced the marker, making high-level Obama advisers available anywhere they were needed over the last week and crafting the president's day to maximum advantage.
The opening act of the Obama presidency has been head-turning, not only for the dire times in which he took office but his flurry of activity.
The reward: strong public backing despite a still-staggering economy. An Associated Press-GfK poll shows that 48 percent of Americans believe the United States is headed in the right direction — the first time in years that more people than not expressed optimism for a brighter future.
But most of what Obama has done so far, as would be expected for little more than three months, amounts to no more than a down payment.
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Excerpts of Reuters:
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - From reluctant CEO to chief U.S. medical adviser, President Barack Obama showed how many hats he wears at a news conference marking his 100th day in office on Wednesday.
Shrugging off critics who say he has taken on too many tasks in his young presidency, Obama said all the issues had landed in his lap at the same time and had to be dealt with simultaneously:
* First off, he was his own U.S. surgeon general, since he has yet to appoint anyone to the job, offering common-sense advice to Americans on how to deal with the threat of swine flu.
"Wash your hands when you shake hands, cover your mouth when you cough. I know it sounds trivial but it makes a huge difference," he said. "If you are sick, stay home. If your child is sick, keep them out of school."
* Obama was the top U.S. human rights advocate, saying the interrogation technique known as waterboarding used during the Bush administration is torture and questioned its use.
Those who insist the techniques gained useful information from terrorism suspects that saved lives fail to answer a core question, he said.
"Which is: could we have gotten that same information without resorting to these techniques? And it doesn't answer the broader question, are we safer as a consequence of having used these techniques?"
* The president, who taught law at the University of Chicago, showed himself to be a bit of a philosophy professor, talking about how he wants to leave behind a legacy of change, that he hopes in 10 or 20 years the next generation will look back and see this was a period of transformation.
One hundred days into his term, President Obama used a pair of public events Wednesday to chart how far he has steered the country from the course set by the Bush administration, saying, "We are off to a good start, but it is just a start."
Capitalizing on the heightened public attention surrounding the milestone, Obama said his early achievements include setting a timeline to end the U.S. combat role in Iraq -- a war he inherited from President George W. Bush -- and moving quickly to remake an economy suffering as a result of irresponsible borrowing during Bush's tenure.
But his most pointed comments during a day that included a prime-time news conference at the White House and a town-hall forum in Missouri involved his decision to ban waterboarding and other abusive interrogation methods sanctioned by the Bush administration for use against terrorism suspects.
Last night, Obama flatly called those techniques "torture" and said the practice "corrodes the character of a country."
He said the "public justification" of those methods, including claims by Vice President Richard B. Cheney that they helped save American lives, "doesn't answer the core question, which is: Could we have gotten that same information without resorting to these techniques? And it doesn't answer the broader question: Are we safer as a consequence of having used these techniques?"
"This is a decision that I'm very comfortable with," Obama said. "And I think the American people over time will recognize that it is better for us to stick to who we are, even when we're taking on an unscrupulous enemy."
Obama appeared relaxed and reflective throughout the news conference, the third of his presidency, and he struck a reassuring tone on issues as diverse as the widening swine flu crisis and the security of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal. With nearly seven in 10 Americans approving of his performance, according to polling, Obama spoke more personally than he has before on issues such as abortion and the surprises he has encountered since taking office.
He said he is encouraged that two large U.S. carmakers will remain in business. He said he is "confident" that Pakistan's military has a secure hold on its nuclear arsenal even as he acknowledged that he was "gravely concerned" about the stability of that country's government in the face of Taliban gains. And twice he detailed the precautions people should take to avoid exposure to swine flu -- wash your hands, cover your mouth when you cough, don't go to work if you feel sick.
"I know it sounds trivial," Obama said, "but it makes a huge difference."
Obama spent his 100th day in office in much the same way he spent the previous 99 -- in the public eye. He began the day welcoming Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter into the Democratic Party, bringing it closer to a filibuster-proof 60 votes in the Senate, and ended it with the news conference.
In between, Obama traveled to Missouri, a state he narrowly lost to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in last year's election. At a boisterous town-hall meeting in Arnold, a distant suburb of St. Louis, Obama said, "We have begun to pick ourselves up and dust ourselves off, and we've begun the work of remaking America."
"I'm pleased with the progress we've made, but I'm not satisfied," Obama told the cheering crowd at Fox Senior High School. "I'm confident in the future, but I'm not content with the present."
WASHINGTON — President Obama said Wednesday that he was “gravely concerned” about the stability of the Pakistani government but that he was confident Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal would not fall into the hands of Islamic militants.
Speaking at a prime-time news conference on his 100th day in office, Mr. Obama called the government in Pakistan, where army forces are at war with Taliban insurgents who have been advancing on Islamabad, “very fragile.” Pakistan’s leader, President Asif Ali Zardari, is to visit Washington next week, and American officials have been pressing his government to be more aggressive in battling the insurgency.
“I am more concerned that the civilian government right now is very fragile,” Mr. Obama said, because it lacks the capacity to deliver services like health care and the rule of law. “As a consequence,” he added, “it’s very difficult for them to gain the support and loyalty of their people.”
Mr. Obama also hit back at critics including former Vice President Dick Cheney, maintaining that harsh interrogation techniques used by the previous administration did not yield any information that could not have been obtained through other means.
Responding to the fallout over his decision to release secret memorandums that laid out the Bush administration’s legal justification for interrogation techniques like waterboarding — which Mr. Obama called torture — the president said that none of the intelligence reports he had seen left him thinking such methods were justified or necessary. “I will do whatever is required to keep the American people safe,” Mr. Obama said. “But I am convinced that the best way to do that is to make sure we’re not taking shortcuts that undermine who we are.”
He offered no shift, however, in his opposition to an independent inquiry into the Bush administration’s policies on the interrogation of terror suspects.
During the one-hour news conference, Mr. Obama struck a variety of notes, ranging from historian-in-chief to mom-in-chief, when he lectured Americans to take precautions against the swine flu.
“Wash your hands when you shake hands; cover your mouth when you cough,” he said. “I know it sounds trivial, but it makes a huge difference.”
There were a few light moments, particularly when Mr. Obama was asked what has surprised, troubled, enchanted and humbled him in the past 100 days. “Wait, let me get this all down,” he said, taking out a pen.
He was surprised, he answered, by the number of critical issues that appear to be coming to a head all at the same time.
“I didn’t anticipate the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression,” he said. “The typical president has two or three big problems, we have seven or eight.”
He said he was troubled, or at least, “sobered” by how much “political posturing and bickering takes place even when we’re in the middle of really big crises.”
He called himself enchanted by American servicemen and women, and their sacrifices they make, although he allowed that “enchanted” might not be the exact characterization.
By the time he got to what humbled him, he was ready to expound, going on about the how the presidency was “just part of a much broader tapestry of American life” and how “the ship of state is an ocean liner, not a speed boat.”
Often over the course of the hour, he sought to draw distinctions between himself and his predecessor, and said that he had changed America’s relations with the world. “We have rejected the false choice between our security and our ideals,” he said.
Asked about his administration’s support in several recent court cases for the Bush administration’s position that the government had a broad right to invoke national security secrets to block litigation, Mr. Obama responded that he wants to modify the so-called state secrets doctrine, but had not had time to do so when the court cases came up.
“I actually think that the state secret doctrine should be modified,” he said. “I think right now it’s over broad.”
Addressing the economy, Mr. Obama said his administration had made progress but that there was much more to be done and that he ultimately wants a more stable economy less prone to boom and bust.
“We cannot go back to an economy that is built on a pile of sand — on inflated home prices and maxed-out credit cards, on overleveraged banks and outdated regulations that allowed the recklessness of a few to threaten the prosperity of us all,” Mr. Obama said in an eight-minute speech before taking questions from reporters.
He offered a new catchphrase to describe his economic program, calling for a “new foundation for growth,” that would encompass increased spending on issues like education and renewable energy.
Mr. Obama suggested that the pressures of governing at a time of economic crisis, war and now a potential flu pandemic have led him to pay less attention to some issues of intense interest to his political base. Asked if he would keep a campaign promise to eliminate federal, state and local restrictions on abortion, he said that while he favored abortion rights, getting rid of those restrictions were “not my highest legislative priority.”
Asked about how he would use the government’s power as a major shareholder in companies like General Motors and Citigroup, he said the government should limit its involvement.
“I don’t want to run auto companies. I don’t want to run banks,” Mr. Obama said. “I’ve got two wars I’ve got to run already. I’ve got more than enough to do. So the sooner we can get out of that business, the better off we’re going to be.”
The news conference in the East Room of the White House was the final act in a daylong series of events staged to mark Mr. Obama’s 100th day in office.
Earlier Wednesday, Mr. Obama traveled to Missouri for a town meeting in a state that he narrowly lost last year. He offered an upbeat assessment of his first three months in the White House, but implored patience as he tackles a mountain of challenges, saying he could not work miracles.
The tone of Mr. Obama’s remarks on Wednesday reflected an assessment from several advisers that the next chapter of his presidency is likely to be even more difficult than the first. But his job approval rating remains high, particularly given the wave of challenges on his desk, which in the last week grew even larger with the first health emergency of his administration.
(CNN) -- President Obama said Wednesday that he's under no illusions that he'll have a "rubber-stamp Senate" now that Sen. Arlen Specter has switched parties to join the Democrats.
"To my Republican friends, I want them to realize that me reaching out to them has been genuine," Obama said at a prime time news conference capping his 100th day in office.
"I can't sort of define bipartisanship as simply being willing to accept certain theories of theirs that we tried for eight years and didn't work and the American people voted to change."
Specter on Tuesday announced he was changing parties, saying he's found himself increasingly "at odds with the Republican philosophy." He also admitted Wednesday he was worried about the prospects of facing a Republican primary in order to keep his seat next year.
Specter's move puts the Democrats one shy of a filibuster-proof Senate majority of 60 seats. Senate Democrats can reach the 60-seat mark if courts uphold Al Franken's disputed recount victory in Minnesota.
As if to prove the president's point, Specter voted against Obama's budget plan shortly before the news conference.
Asked if the GOP is in desperate straits, Obama said, "Politics in America changes very quick. And I'm a big believer that things are never as good as they seem and never as bad as they seem." Watch what Obama says about working with Republicans »
Obama has faced criticism from Republicans that he hasn't been reaching across the aisle. His budget moved through both chambers of Congress on Wednesday with no GOP support, and his economic stimulus plan passed with just three Republican votes from the Senate.
The president said he thinks the administration has taken steps to restore confidence in the American people, noting that "simply opposing our approach on every front is probably not a good political strategy."
In his first 100 days, he's been "sobered by the fact that change in Washington comes slow," said Obama. Watch Obama discuss what's surprised him in the first 100 days »
"That there is still a certain quotient of political posturing and bickering that takes place even when we're in the middle of really big crises," he said, adding that he'd like for everyone to say "let's take a time-out on some of the political games."
In a shift from his previous news conferences which were dominated by questions about the economy, Obama fielded multiple queries on the foreign policy front.
The president said a recent uptick in violence in Iraq won't affect his plan for a phased military withdrawal.
"Civilian deaths, incidents of bombings ... remain very low relative to what was going on last year," Obama said. "You haven't seen the kinds of huge spikes that you were seeing for a time. The political system is holding and functioning in Iraq."
Obama said more details need to be nailed down before U.S. troops leave Iraq -- including how oil revenues will be divided, what the powers of provincial governments there will be and the political relationships between minority Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites -- including the armed Sons of Iraq groups.
On Pakistan, the president said the United States has "huge national security interests in making sure that Pakistan is stable" and doesn't end up a "nuclear-armed militant state."
"I am gravely concerned about the situation in Pakistan, not because I think that they're immediately going to be overrun and the Taliban would take over in Pakistan. I'm more concerned that the civilian government there right now is very fragile and don't seem to have the capacity to deliver basic services," he said.
Obama also said Wednesday he is "very comfortable" with his decision to ban interrogation techniques like waterboarding, which he called torture. Watch what Obama says about torture »
The president called the practice a recruiting tool for terrorist groups like al Qaeda, citing World War II-era British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who also rejected such "enhanced interrogation" techniques.
"Churchill understood that if you start taking shortcuts, over time that corrodes what's best in a people," Obama said. "It corrodes the character of a country."
Asked about the previous administration, he said, "I think that whatever legal rationale were used, it was a mistake."
On the recent outbreaks of swine flu, Obama insisted his administration is "prepared to do whatever it takes to control the impact of the virus."
"I've asked every American to take the same steps you would take to prevent any other flu: Keep your hands washed; cover your mouth when you cough; stay home from work if you're sick; and keep your children home from school if they're sick," he said.
Obama downplayed the possibility of closing the border with Mexico as a way to control the virus, also known by its clinical name of H1N1. Watch as Obama warns Americans about the flu »
"It would be akin to closing the barn door after the horses are out," Obama said
The first cases of the virus were detected in Mexico, where health officials suspect swine flu in more than 150 other deaths and roughly 2,500 illnesses. Only 26 cases have so far been confirmed, including the seven fatal cases.
So far, the World Health Organization has reported 148 cases in nine countries.
Obama said the $1.5 billion he asked from Congress to help fight the outbreaks will help government health officials monitor and track the virus and replenish the supply of antiviral drugs.
On immigration, Obama said he wants to work with members of Congress, including former Republican presidential rival Sen. John McCain, to revive efforts to reform the system.
Obama said he hopes lawmakers will begin working on such reform legislation and expects the process to be under way within the year.
Both Obama and McCain supported an ultimately failed plan backed by then-President Bush that would have fined illegal immigrants living in the United States but provided a pathway to citizenship for some.
Obama's news conference came just hours after both chambers of Congress passed his $3.4 trillion budget resolution for fiscal year 2010.
The measure approves most of Obama's key spending priorities and sets the federal government in a new direction with major increases for energy, education and health care programs.
Obama said his budget begins to lay a "new foundation" that will strengthen the U.S. economy.
"But even as we clear away the wreckage of this recession, I've also said that we can't go back to an economy that is built on a pile of sand -- on inflated home prices and maxed-out credit cards; on overleveraged banks and outdated regulations that allowed the recklessness of a few to threaten the prosperity of all," he said.
The United States "will see a better day," but there's still a lot of work to do, he said.
"I want to thank the American people for their support and their patience during these trying times, and I look forward to working with you in the next hundred days, in the hundred days after that, all of the hundreds of days to follow, to make sure that this country is what it can be."
~ ~ ~
plez sez: 100 months ago, no one had heard of him. 100 weeks ago, he was a dark horse candidate. 100 days ago, he took the oath of office... and the world will never look at america the same again!
~ husband ~ father ~ son ~ brother ~ mentor ~ subdivision dweller ~ northern by birth ~ southern by choice ~ raised a black baptist, now guided by the spiritual ~ raised a kennedy democrat, now politically dead center (moderate) ~ raised in a Cadillac Coupe Deville, now hooked on an SUV ~ college educated and still a student of life ~ wild college frat boy and now a settled alumnus ~ intellectual yet fun-loving geek ~ technical and leading edge ~ corporate cog ~ consultant ~ college football saturday devotee ~ and a ramblin' gamblin' helluva engineer (GO JACKETS!) ~
This is my personal blog. The views expressed on these pages are mine; and they are in no way associated with the views of my employer, family, friends, or associates.
Six short months ago, I thought I'd written the last posts on the fading political career of Sarah Palin. 
The New York Times article about the recent near-unanimous decision concerning the Voting Rights Act of 1965:
WASHINGTON (CNN) – President Barack Obama on Saturday announced plans to nominate an African-American astronaut to fill NASA's administrator post.
All of the major news organizations are reporting the Supreme Court Justice David Souter - appointed by George H. W. Bush - has decided to step down the end of this current term, which ends in June. President Barack Obama will get to appoint his replacement.
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