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<p>Not surprisingly, all eyes have been on Barack Obama during his 9-day family respite in Martha's Vineyard this week.</p>

Speaking at a plant in North Carolina about the tough economic times, PBO claimed that "what drives me every day as I walk down to the Oval Office" is the need to find jobs and economic security for everyone. But Obama opened his speech by bragging that "I have a better plane" than when he visited the same plant three years ago as a presidential candidate. Later, in explaining that he had brought the Council on Jobs and Competitiveness with him to North Carolina, Obama boasted "I travel with a bigger entourage" than he did as a candidate. View video...

Imagine a Republican president, giving a speech on tough economic times in which he claimed that the plight of Americans who are hurting is what is on his mind every day as he walks to the Oval Office. Imagine that same Republican president, in that same speech, bragging that he has "a better plane" and "a bigger entourage" than when he was a candidate. Now imagine the howls from the MSM about such president's vainglory and insensitivity. President Obama gave just such a speech today.

The leader of the free world may be coming to Williamsburg for some rest and relaxation if Congress is able to come to agreement on the budget. President Obama and the First Family are planning to visit the area this weekend in what the White House described Wednesday as a "long-planned family trip to Colonial Williamsburg." But the trip might get grounded if a government shutdown can't be averted by Republicans and Democrats in Congress. On Thursday morning, the Federal Aviation Administration established a no-fly zone over Williamsburg that will be in place from Friday through Monday. Jessica Wharton, spokeswoman...

An uncritical one line report in Mike Allen's 'Playbook' column at Politico this morning says:"PRESIDENT OBAMA is taping his NCAA picks today, and they’ll be revealed tomorrow on ESPN."With our top Asian ally Japan facing an economic meltdown on top of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear plant crises--an economic meltdown that is already affecting the U.S. and global economies; with the Middle East in flames; with the U.S. government on the verge of bankruptcy; with the U.S. still involved in two wars, Barack Obama is focused on being the cool guy with the jocks in school by being filmed picking...

President Obama will focus his speech at a memorial service in Tucson on Wednesday evening on the victims of the attack and on the idea of service to the country, avoiding any overt commentary on the debate over violence and the nation’s political culture. Instead, Mr. Obama, who was still working with his speechwriters on his remarks on Tuesday, will call for unity among Americans, while trying to honor the victims, including their service to government, as an example to all Americans. He will share the anecdotes about the victims that he has learned during private phone calls to the...

EXCERPTS "At the start of 2011, we’re still just emerging from a once-in-a-lifetime recession that’s taken a terrible toll on millions of families," Obama said. "We all have friends and neighbors trying to get their lives back on track." (snip) "In a few days, a new Congress will form, with one house controlled by Democrats, and one house controlled by Republicans – who now have a shared responsibility to move this country forward," Obama said. "And here’s what I want you to know: I’m willing to work with anyone of either party who’s got a good idea and the commitment...

"The president is making phone calls saying 'this is the end' of his presidency if he doesn't get this bad deal," Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon) told CNN. "I don't feel that way. I think this is potentially the end of his possibility of getting reelected if he gets this deal," DeFazio added.

"I don't think about Sarah Palin," President Barack Obama tells Barbara Walters in a White House interview. Obama said he is concentrating on being "the best possible president" rather than the 2012 election, ABC News said in a preview of the conversation. "Obviously Sarah Palin has a strong base of support in the Republican Party, and I respect those skills," he said. "But I spend most of my time right now on how I can be the best possible president. And my attitude has always been from the day I started this job that if I do a good job...

(Reuters) - If President Barack Obama is not yet convinced that his international star power has faded, his next round of transatlantic summitry should clear up any lingering doubts. Coming off a marathon Asia trip where Obama often found himself rebuffed by fellow world leaders, he will head to Europe this week where the agenda will be clouded by a growing divide over economic strategy and a sense of neglect among traditional U.S. allies.His challenge is to reassure European partners that, despite political weakness at home and embarrassing setbacks abroad, he remains committed to better cooperation on issues ranging from...

Live coverage on India TV.NDTV-Mumbai

New Delhi, November 1, 2010: Not an inch of the ITC Maurya Sheraton will be without surveillance when US President Barack Obama arrives for a two – night stay. The luxury hotel is swarming with Delhi Police commandos a week before he checks in with wife Michelle. Obama arrives for a Nov 7 – 9 stay at the Presidential Suite of the south – west Delhi hotel and security is visibly tight even though police and hotel staff refuse to divulge details. Police commandos in combat gear have been stationed in Mercedes vans. Also fortifying the hotel are private guards...

HONOLULU (BNO NEWS) -- President Barack Obama and his family will be returning to the island of Hawaii to spend Christmas, according to a news report on early Saturday. The Honolulu-based Star-Advertiser reported, citing three unidentified sources, that Obama would return to Hawaii in December. It would be Obama's third year on Hawaii in a row during Christmas. Last year, the First Family spent 11 days at their vacation home in Kailua. The Star-Advertiser did not report how long Obama would stay this year. Obama was born in Hawaii.

Michelle Obama hits New York today — and the fashion world is aflutter. The First Lady is coming to town to attend a private Democratic fund-raiser at Donna Karan’s Upper West Side apartment, where she will mingle and chat with many of th

President Obama said Monday that his daughters could not get the same level of education from D.C. public schools that they receive at the elite private school they attend. Obama, following a path chosen by some of his predecessors in the White House, chose to enroll his daughters Malia and Sasha in the Sidwell Friends School soon after he won the 2008 presidential election. In an appearance Monday morning on NBC's "Today" show, Obama was asked by a woman in a television audience whether a public school in his home city could measure up to the standards of his children's...

The Normandy School Board voted unanimously Friday to name its new elementary school in Pine Lawn after President Barack Obama. "If you put all politics aside, he exemplifies the American dream," said School Board President Cozy Marks. "You can be whatever you want to be and whatever you put your mind to and work for, and that's what we want our students to keep in mind and strive for." Marks said Obama's name was submitted by students to a special board committee overseeing the new school project. The district had asked for name suggestions from all members of the school...

Yesterday, White House sources confirmed that President Obama will deliver another back-to-school address aimed at all of the nation’s children. That’s right, the president will make September 14 the second-annual Obama Day at your local school! You might recall last year’s Obama Day, for which the U.S. Department of Education put out teaching guides that gave parents across the country reasonable cause to fear a day of liberal politics and celebrating President Obama. You might also remember the divisive national uproar that precipitated, which ultimately culminated in a relatively staid — but nonetheless campaign-esque — speech, not to mention a...

Obama says he ignored Beck rally He seemed intent on casting himself as above the political fray, saying he had more important work to do than to engage in the back and forth of the political “silly season.” For example, Obama said he did not watch any of Fox News Channel host Glenn Beck’s “Restoring Honor” rally Saturday on the National Mall. “It’s not surprising that somebody like a Mr. Beck is able to stir up a certain portion of the country. That's been true throughout our history,” he said. But “I’m making decisions that are not necessarily good for...