Free Republic

Who comes up with these headlines. Plain propoganda. Did I miss something, when did Obama originally cut the deficit?

Dennis Whitfield of the American Conservative Union has sent out a press release on today’s embarrassing Mike Allen story that alleges a pay-for-play proposal between the conservative group and FedEx. "" “An article containing a false headline has been published by Capitol Hill newspaper Politico today regarding an issue with expansion of the National Labor Relations Board. This article concerns two letters; one issued by ACU and another issued by a separate organization. Mr. David Keene’s name was on a letter prepared by another organization. This was a personal decision on his part and he was not representing ACU at...

John Cook of the gossip website Gawker discovered that the White House press elite partied down with President Obama on ahem, Independence Day: Reporters from roughly 30 television networks, newspapers, magazines, and web sites celebrated the Fourth of July with Barack Obama at the White House last weekend. Why didn't you know that? Because they were sworn to secrecy. We reported yesterday that Politico's Mike Allen was spotted milling about as a guest at the White House's "backyard bash" by the pool reporter, who was allowed into the event for 40 minutes and kept in a pen before being...

Reporters from roughly 30 television networks, newspapers, magazines, and web sites celebrated the Fourth of July with Barack Obama at the White House last weekend. Why didn't you know that? Because they were sworn to secrecy. We reported yesterday that Politico's Mike Allen was spotted milling about as a guest at the White House's "backyard bash" by the pool reporter, who was allowed into the event for 40 minutes and kept in a pen before being ushered out. When Allen quoted from the pool report in his Playbook column the next day, he deleted a reference to his own name...

White House Press Corps Spent the Fourth of July Hanging Out With Obama, Off the Record By John Cook, 12:44 PM on Thu Jul 9 2009, 1,046 views (Edit, to draft, Top, Slurp) Copy this whole post to another site Slurp cancel select site advertising consumerist deadspin defamer fleshbot gay fleshbot gawker gizmodo idolator io9 jalopnik jezebel kotaku lifehacker valleywag artists gawkershop Reporters from more than 30 television networks, newspapers, magazines, and web sites celebrated the Fourth of July with Barack Obama at the White House last weekend. Why didn't you know that? Because they were sworn to secrecy. We...

WaPo cancels lobbyist eventBy: Mike Allen and Michael Calderone July 2, 2009 08:04 AM EST Washington Post publisher Katharine Weymouth said today she was canceling plans for an exclusive "salon" at her home where for as much as $250,000, the Post offered lobbyists and association executives off-the-record access to "those powerful few" — Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and even the paper’s own reporters and editors. The astonishing offer was detailed in a flier circulated Wednesday to a health care lobbyist, who provided it to a reporter because the lobbyist said he felt it was a conflict for...

Washington Post publisher Katharine Weymouth said today she was cancelling plans for an exclusive "salon" at her home where for as much as $250,000, the Post offered lobbyists and association executives off-the-record access to "those powerful few" — Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and even the paper’s own reporters and editors. The astonishing offer was detailed in a flier circulated Wednesday to a health care lobbyist, who provided it to a reporter because the lobbyist said he felt it was a conflict for the paper to charge for access to, as the flier says, its “health care reporting and...

Washington Post Publisher and Chief Executive Officer Katharine Weymouth said today she was cancelling plans for an exclusive "salon" at her home where, for as much as $250,000, the Post offered lobbyists and association executives off-the-record, nonconfrontational access to "those powerful few": Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and even the paper’s own reporters and editors.

The Washington Post has long prided itself on its access to the capital's elite. Now, it appears, the paper is willing to sell that access. In a flier circulated to Beltway lobbyists, the Post touted a "salon" program which gives "exclusive access" to "Obama administration officials, Congress members, business leaders, advocacy leaders and other select minds" for between $25,000 and $250,000. (View an image of the flier.) White House officials said privately Thursday that the administration had no idea that the Post was peddling access to its officials. The first event, entitled "Health-Care Reform: Better or Worse for Americans" is...

The Washington Post is marketing to institutional executives and lobbyists dinners with congressmen, Obama officials and its own reporters, according to Politico.com. The "salons" will be held at the home of CEO and Publisher Katharine Weymouth. Price for access ranges from $25,000 to $250,000, according to the flier. So much for the role of watchdog. At least now, there is no excuse for doubting everything you read. The new service was made known to the general public by a health-care lobbyist offended by the policy. The flier baldly said the dinners would provide access to the paper's “health care reporting...

It was fast. Very fast. At 8.04am, Politico's Mike Allen publishes an article: "For $25,000 to $250,000, The Washington Post is offering lobbyists and association executives off-the-record, nonconfrontational access to "those powerful few" -- Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and the paper's own reporters and editors." At 10.33am, Washington Post editor Marcus Brauchli sends out an email:

WashPost sells access, $25,000+ By: Mike Allen July 2, 2009 08:04 AM EST For $25,000 to $250,000, The Washington Post is offering lobbyists and association executives off the record, non-confrontational access to "those powerful few" — Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and the paper’s own reporters and editors. The astonishing offer is detailed in a flier circulated Wednesday to a health-care lobbyist, who provided it to a reporter because the lobbyist said he feels it’s a conflict for the paper to charge for access to, as the flier says, its “health care reporting and editorial staff." The offer—which essentially...

I don’t know what Mike Allen thought he was getting himself into here, but after this he’d be well advised not to go throwing stones at anyone else for coming off badly in interviews. The clip’s long but the first 3:45 is intro and can be safely skipped if you watched the MSNBC vid this morning. Enjoy. CLICK ON ABOVE LINK AND LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ( start at the 3:45 mark) FOR THE CONFRONTATION ( Mike Allen was SCHOOLED here ).

Is a new Mika Brzezinski emerging: a more fair-’n-balanced one? Signs point to yes. Yesterday on Morning Joe, as noted here, Joe Scarborough described the members of the White House press corps as being “in love” with Pres. Obama to the extent that at the big dinner this past Saturday night that PBO attended, they were like “a bunch of teenage girls waiting for a Bay City Rollers concert, waiting to scream at the top of their [lungs].” Not merely did Mika agree, she added another tasty morsel to the stew, revealing that behind the scenes, the TV production crew–big...

It's a sad Saturday morning for Washington's extended family. Fox News reported this morning that Tony Snow, who valiantly battled a merciless colon cancer in the public eye, passed early this morning. He was 53. Snow brought humor and vigor to the podium as President Bush's press secretary after a career at Fox News that had made Tony one of the nation's most famous conservatives. On White House trips, he was a red-state rock star, with throngs of admirers lining up for a handshake or an autograph. Fox said he died at Georgetown University Hospital at about 2 a.m. He...

Gramm calls slowdown 'mental' By: Mike Allen July 10, 2008 10:01 AM EST Former senator Phil Gramm, a top economic adviser to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), referred to the economic slowdown as "a mental recession," and referred to the United States as “a nation of whiners.” The comments, in an interview with The Washington Times, could hurt the campaign’s efforts to convince working-class Americans that McCain feels their pain. Democrats immediately condemned the remarks as “callous,” and quickly began working to gain widespread attention for them. The Democratic National Committee issued a statement titled: “Out of Touch Much, Phil.”

The McCain campaign will release its first ad of the general election today, a spot called "Safe" that features Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) talking to the camera about his war heroism and judgment on national security. That theme gives a hint of the McCain campaign's planned positive message, in addition to its plans to hit Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) as inexperienced. A campaign official calls the ad "the first shot in John McCain’s major general election ad campaign." In the ad, McCain says: "Only a fool or a fraud talks tough or romantically about war. ... I was shot down...

It's turning into quite the morning for, uh, outing double-standards in the media. First was my item mentioning that Bob Herbert of the NYT had accused Hillary Clinton of "opening a trap door" under Obama. Readers are invited to imagine the PC outrage if a conservative had expressed the desire to do the same to the Illinois senator. Now comes Mike Allen of the Politico. In his Playbook column of this morning, Allen offers this quote from Jann Wenner's over-the-top endorsement of Obama in Rolling Stone: We have a deeply divided nation . . . A new president must heal...

Rush Limbaugh, who has been critical of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), embraced him Thursday now that they have a common enemy: The New York Times. Limbaugh and other conservative commentators rushed to defend McCain on Thursday against a potentially damaging article in The New York Times, embracing a maverick they have often attacked. "You're surprised that Page Six-type gossip is on the front page of The New York Times?" Limbaugh asked as he began his radio show. "Where have you been? How in the world can anybody be surprised?" Limbaugh said earlier in an e-mail to Politico that the Times...

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, whose campaign for the Republican presidential nomination has suffered a cascade of setbacks, decided Sunday night to make a surprise return to California for a rally less than 12 hours before the Super Tuesday polls open, campaign officials said. The trip reflects a last-minute effort by Romney to slow the momentum enjoyed by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who's coming off a big win in Florida. Romney is trying to do just well enough Tuesday to give conservatives the time and incentive to mobilize against McCain, who has always had tense relations with party activists. McCain...