Two presidents honor McCain at funeral as Trump heads to golf club

WASHINGTON, United States— Two ex-presidents from opposing parties united Saturday to honor US senator John McCain, in a momentous funeral that championed his aspirations of political comity but also rebuked the tribalism and division trafficked by Donald Trump.

As millions tuned in to the nationally televised memorial attended by the breadth of Washington powerbrokers, Trump himself was notably absent -- leaving the capital to head to his golf club in Virginia just when eulogies to McCain were being delivered.


And while Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama offered subtle swipes at the current commander in chief, McCain's daughter Meghan used the words of Trump's campaign slogan to deliver a searing, unmistakable rebuke.

"The America of John McCain has no need to be made great again because America was always great," she said, to extended applause.

As Bush and Obama praised McCain for repeatedly placing country over party or self, the stunning contrast between the unifying ceremony under the neo-Gothic arches of Washington National Cathedral and an outcast Trump only highlighted the astonishing state of US politics.

Hailing his friend as "an extraordinary man" who embodied what is best in America, Obama said McCain, who battled fiercely but respectfully in the political arena, "made us better presidents -- just as he made the Senate better, just as he made the country better."

He was echoing similar sentiments expressed minutes earlier by Bush, who defeated McCain in a "hard fought" Republican primary battle in 2000, only to see that bitter rivalry melt away into a lasting friendship.

Same team

While Bush and Obama hail from different parties, their message Saturday was clear: US politics can and should rise to a higher level with the example set by McCain.

"We never doubted the other man's sincerity or the other man's patriotism -- or that when all was said and done, we were on the same team," Obama said of his rough but respectful campaign battles with McCain.

So much of today's politics, "our public discourse, can seem small and mean and petty, trafficking in bombast and insult," he added.

"It's a politics that pretends to be brave and tough but in fact is born of fear. John called on us to be bigger than that."

McCain's final public ceremony before his private burial Sunday at the US Naval Academy in nearby Annapolis, Maryland highlighted the warrior politician's call for healing.

"Perhaps above all John detested the abuse of power, could not abide bigots and swaggering despots," said Bush, as Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner sat in attendance.

Trump's Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly were also present.

But it was the gathering of heavyweights from both parties past and present that drew more attention, including Bill and Hillary Clinton; former vice presidents Al Gore, Dick Cheney and Joe Biden; and former secretaries of state Henry Kissinger, Madeleine Albright and John Kerry.

International dignitaries were also in attendance. On the guest list provided by funeral organizers was President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine, where McCain helped support opposition to Russian aggression, and Russian opposition figure Vladimir Kara-Murza.

Withering rebuke

McCain, who died last Saturday at age 81, has been lionized over the past week of emotional commemorations, including his congressional colleagues bestowing him the rare honor of lying in state in the US Capitol on Friday.

At the funeral, which McCain spent months organizing as he battled cancer, Meghan McCain delivered a tear-filled tribute to her father.

And while Trump's name was not mentioned during the ceremony, McCain's daughter drew a clear and damning distinction between her father and Trump's combative politics.

"We gather here to mourn the passing of American greatness -- the real thing, not cheap rhetoric from men who will never come near the sacrifice he gave so willingly," she said, criticizing "those who lived lives of comfort and privilege, while he suffered and served."

Earlier Saturday, the flag-draped casket of McCain, a prisoner of war in Vietnam for more than five years, was taken by honor guard from the US Capitol and placed in a black hearse.

It stopped at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial to allow his widow Cindy McCain to lay a wreath honoring all who died in the conflict.

She had been stoic throughout days of commemorations for her husband, but on Saturday during opera singer Renee Fleming's performance of the ballad "Danny Boy," she lay her head on son Jack's shoulder and wept.

"Today we lost our hero, our friend, our mentor, our father, our grandfather and our husband. Together we mourn and together we go on," she wrote on Twitter.

Aside from Trump, another notable figure not invited to the funeral was McCain's 2008 running mate Sarah Palin, who became associated with the far-right movement that in some ways nurtured white identity politics.

source: philstar.com

Obama unveils official portraits, jokes about his gray hair, Michelle’s ‘hotness’

WASHINGTON — Former U.S. President Barack Obama joked about his ears and gray hair and praised his wife Michelle Obama’s “hotness” at the unveiling of the couple’s official portraits at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery on Monday.

The Obamas selected artists Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald for the paintings, which take their place in the National Portrait Gallery’s collection of presidential portraits.

Wiley and Sherald were the first black artists ever commissioned to paint a president or first lady for the Smithsonian.

For Obama’s portrait by Wiley, the former president is depicted sitting in a brown chair with a backdrop of bright green leaves and colorful flowers. Sherald’s painting of Michelle Obama shows her sitting with one hand under her chin and the other draped across her lap, while wearing a long flowing dress decorated with geometric shapes.

Obama, the first African-American U.S. president, complimented Sherald for her portrait of Michelle.


“I want to thank you for so spectacularly capturing the grace and beauty and intelligence and charm and hotness of the woman that I love,” Obama said.

He quipped that Wiley, who painted his portrait, was at a disadvantage because his subject was “less becoming.”

“I tried to negotiate less gray hair and Kehinde’s artistic integrity would not allow him to do what I asked,” Obama said in tongue-in-cheek fashion. “I tried to negotiate smaller ears — struck out on that as well.”

New York Times art critic Holland Cotter said while he was impressed by Barack Obama’s unusual depiction, he was disappointed that the focus of Michelle Obama’s portrait appeared to be her dress.

“I was anticipating — hoping for — a bolder, more incisive image of the strong-voiced person I imagine this former first lady to be,” Cotter said in his review.

Most Twitter posts described the portraits as stunning, although a few criticized them as poorly executed.

“Behold the beauty of Barack and Michelle Obama’s official portrait,” tweeted @newyorknewart.

Michelle Obama said she hoped the portrait would have an impact on young girls of color in the years ahead.

“They will look up and they will see an image of someone who looks like them, hanging on the wall of this great American institution,” she said. “I know the kind of impact that will have on their lives, because I was one of those girls.”

The Portrait Gallery’s tradition of commissioning presidential portraits began with President George H.W. Bush. Other portraits were acquired as gifts, bought at auctions or through other means.

source: interaksyon.com

Trump signs executive order against Obamacare

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order aimed at limiting the "burden" of the Obamacare health law that the incoming US leader has vowed to repeal.

During the signing in the Oval Office, Trump's chief of staff Reince Priebus described the order as aimed at "minimizing the economic burden" of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, "pending repeal."

Doing away with Barack Obama's signature domestic achievement is a top priority for Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress and, since Trump's inauguration Friday, the White House.

In their view, Obamacare -- which aimed to ensure healthcare for the millions of Americans who are neither covered by public insurance, nor by their employers -- marked a costly drift toward socialized, European-style medical care.

Until lawmakers are able to repeal Obamacare, "it is imperative for the executive branch to... take all actions consistent with law to minimize the unwarranted economic and regulatory burdens of the Act, and prepare to afford the States more flexibility and control to create a more free and open healthcare market," the executive order said.

The order instructs the US health secretary and other departments and agencies to "exercise all authority and discretion available to them to waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay the implementation of any provision or requirement of the Act" that imposes a fiscal burden or other cost on a state, on consumers, on insurers or on a range of healthcare providers.

Trump has pledged to start undoing the divisive health law on his first day in office, while also declaring it inconceivable that poor Americans are locked out of coverage.

The president has said the law should be repealed and replaced "simultaneously," a stiff challenge given the complexity of America's vast health care system.

Obamacare added more than 20 million people onto insurance rolls, lowering the percentage of Americans without coverage from 16 percent in 2010 to 8.9 percent last year.

Republicans are pledging a repeal of Obamacare -- which has been blamed for sharply rising insurance premiums -- and rapid votes on a replacement bill in order to prevent gaps in coverage and reassure a restless insurance industry.

Only one third of the US population is covered by public insurance -- either Medicare, for those over age 65, or Medicaid for the poorest Americans.

Half of all Americans are insured through their employers, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, while about seven percent are covered through the so-called individual market, which serves those who are self-employed or are employees without coverage through work.

Obama's solution rested largely on requiring that everyone be insured, and providing federal subsidies to those who cannot afford coverage.

Republicans deemed the first requirement too coercive, and the latter too costly.

source: interaksyon.com

Evictions, sanctions as US strikes back at Russia over election hacks

HONOLULU/WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama ordered the expulsion of 35 Russian suspected spies and imposed sanctions on two Russian intelligence agencies over their involvement in hacking US political groups in the 2016 presidential election.

The measures, taken during the last days of Obama's presidency, mark a new post-Cold War low in US-Russian ties which have deteriorated over Ukraine and Syria.

Allegations by US intelligence agencies that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally directed efforts to intervene in the US election process by hacking mostly Democrats have made relations even worse.

"These actions follow repeated private and public warnings that we have issued to the Russian government, and are a necessary and appropriate response to efforts to harm US interests in violation of established international norms of behavior," Obama said in a statement from vacation in Hawaii.

It was not immediately clear whether President-elect Donald Trump, who has repeatedly praised Putin and nominated people seen as friendly toward Moscow to senior administration posts, would seek to roll back the measures once he takes office on January 20.

The Kremlin, which denounced the sanctions as unlawful and promised "adequate" retaliation, questioned whether Trump approved of the new sanctions. Moscow denies the hacking allegations.

US intelligence agencies say Russia was behind hacks into Democratic Party organizations and operatives ahead of the November 8 presidential election. US intelligence officials also say that the Russian cyberattacks were aimed at helping Trump, a Republican, defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Trump has rejected that conclusion and said on Wednesday that "we ought to get on with our lives," when asked about possible tough sanctions for the cyberattacks.

Should Trump seek to overturn Obama's measures, he would likely encounter wide bipartisan Congressional opposition.

US House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan, the top Republican in Congress, said Russia "has consistently sought to undermine" US interests and the sanctions were overdue.

Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham said they intended to lead effort in Congress to "impose stronger sanctions on Russia."

The actions on Thursday were the strongest response by the Obama administration to Russia's cyber activities, however, a senior administration official acknowledged that Trump could reverse them and allow Russian intelligence officials back into the United States once he takes office. He said that would be "inadvisable".

"We believe these steps are important because Russia is not going to stop," one official said. "We have every indication that they will interfere in democratic elections in other countries, including some of our European allies," the official said.

Persona non grata

Obama is seeking to deter Russia and other foreign governments from leveraging cyberattacks in the future to meddle in US politics, former officials and cyber security experts said.

Obama put sanctions on two Russian intelligence agencies, the GRU and the FSB, four GRU officers and three companies "that provided material support to the GRU’s cyber operations.

Obama said the State Department declared as "persona non grata" 35 Russian intelligence operatives and is closing two Russian compounds in New York and Maryland that were used by Russian personnel for "intelligence-related purposes". The State Department originally said the 35 were diplomats.

A senior US official told Reuters the expulsions would come from the Russian embassy in Washington and consulate in San Francisco. The Russian embassy declined to comment on the expulsions.

The Russians have 72 hours to leave the United States, the official said. Access to the two compounds will be denied to all Russian officials as of noon on Friday, the senior US official added.

"These actions were taken to respond to Russian harassment of American diplomats and actions by the diplomats that we have assessed to be not consistent with diplomatic practice," the official said.

The State Department has long complained that Russian security agents and traffic police have harassed US diplomats in Moscow, and US Secretary of State John Kerry has raised the issue with Putin and his foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov.

The US official declined to name the Russian diplomats who would be affected, although it is understood that Russia's ambassador to the United States, Sergei Kislyak, will not be one of those expelled.

The United States also released an analysis report by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security examining forensic evidence officials said linked the cyberattacks to computer systems used by Russian intelligence services.

The report largely corroborates the existing findings of private sector cyber firms that investigated the breach at the Democratic National Committee and elsewhere.

source: interaksyon.com

Obama urges Americans to chip in for 'Yolanda' survivors

WASHINGTON -- US President Barack Obama on Wednesday encouraged Americans to donate money to support aid for survivors of Super Typhoon “Yolanda” (Haiyan), which ripped through the Philippines, destroying life, property and infrastructure.

Obama bemoaned the "awful destruction" of the typhoon, one of the most powerful on record, and directed Americans to the White House website where they could link up with aid organizations working to alleviate the suffering.

"Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with the people of the Philippines as they mourn so many loved ones and neighbors lost in the awful destruction of Typhoon Haiyan," Obama said.

"The friendship between our two countries runs deep, and when our friends are in trouble, America helps," Obama said in a statement. "With so many families and communities in the Philippines in urgent need of food, water, shelter and medicine, even small contributions can make a big difference and help save lives."

US officials meanwhile voiced optimism that American assets, including cargo planes and versatile Osprey aircraft, would help bring help to victims still cut off by the storm.

The USS George Washington carrier and other Navy ships are steaming towards the ally and Washington has committed $20 million, roughly half for food and the rest to prevent diseases in the wake of the Typhoon.

"I would say we are cautiously optimistic that we are starting to turn a corner on some of the logistics challenges," a US official told reporters on a conference call.

The Philippines faced a daunting task after the typhoon struck last week, with supplies piling up at the small airport in the flattened city of Tacloban.

The official said relief workers were now able to get more aid out of the airport and that the opening of a land route has provided a significant boost by connecting to a port.

"We are cautiously optimistic that that will be a pretty significant game-changer," he said.

The initial effort was "a lot like trying to squeeze an orange through a straw. We are now getting more straws, if you will, and bigger straws," he said.

Another US official said "over 1,000" American troops could be on the ground by the end of the week, up from around 300.

The US Marines Corps said four MV-22 Ospreys have left the US Futenma base in Japan, expanding the number of Osprey aircraft involved in the emergency work to eight.

The Osprey can land and take off like a helicopter but fly at the speed of an airplane, covering four times the distance of a traditional chopper.

Eight MC-130 cargo aircraft, a variant of the Hercules plane, also were deployed to reinforce the relief operation for victims of Typhoon Haiyan, increasing the fleet of cargo planes to 12 to help with deliveries of food, water and other emergency items.

As of Tuesday, a team of US Marines already on the ground has delivered 129,000 pounds (nearly 60 metric tons) of relief supplies for the effort dubbed "Operation Damayan," or "Help in Time of Need."

The USS George Washington escorted by two cruisers and a destroyer comes with 11 helicopters as well as dozens of planes and the capacity to desalinate large volumes of water.

Another American destroyer and a supply ship were en route to the disaster zone and two amphibious ships, the USS Germantown and the USS Ashland, set off Tuesday from the port of Sasebo in southern Japan.

The Germantown and the Ashland are equipped with landing craft and amphibious vehicles, medical facilities and desalination systems.

Another amphibious ship, the USS Denver, remains on standby in Sasebo for deployment, a Navy official said.

According to UN estimates, 10,000 people may have died in the typhoon and nearly 10 million people -- or 10 percent of the Philippines' population -- have been affected.

source: interaksyon.com

Obama orders $85-billion spending cuts, blames Republicans

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama has reluctantly ordered an $85-billion austerity drive that could slow the US economy and slash jobs, after blaming Republicans for refusing to stop the "dumb" spending cuts.

Obama complied with his legal obligations and initiated the automatic, across-the-board cuts in domestic and defense spending Friday, following the failure of efforts to clinch a deal with Republicans on cutting the deficit.

The president signed an order bringing the arbitrary cuts into force, saying they should be made in "strict accordance" to US law, and a report by his Office of Management and Budget (OMB) detailing the cuts to each agency.

The measures could mean long lines at US border posts, reduced military readiness, cuts to special needs education programs, and will trim the resources of some emergency services, according to White House officials.

Obama had earlier blamed the austerity time bomb on Republicans, who refused to close tax loopholes for the rich and corporations combined with more targeted spending cuts, in his "balanced" approach to deficit reduction.

"I am not a dictator. I'm the president," Obama said, warning he could not force his Republican foes to "do the right thing," or make the Secret Service barricade Republicans leaders in a room until a deal is done.

"These cuts will hurt our economy, will cost us jobs and to set it right both sides need to be able to compromise," Obama said, before decrying the budget trimming as "dumb" and "unnecessary."

Only three months after winning re-election, and with the extent of his authority in Washington again constrained, Obama bemoaned his inability to do a "Jedi mind-meld" to get Republicans to change their minds, using imagery from Star Wars and Star Trek.

Obama was bound by law to initiate the automatic, indiscriminate cuts, which could wound the already fragile economy, cost a million jobs and harm military readiness, by the end of Friday.

The hit to military and domestic spending, known as the sequester, was never supposed to happen, but was rather a device seen as so punishing that rival lawmakers would be forced to find a better compromise to cut the deficit.

Both sides agree that the sequester is a blunt instrument to cut spending, as it does not distinguish between essential and wasteful programs -- in what Obama has branded a "meat-cleaver" approach.

New Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel warned that the sequester could endanger the military's capacity to conduct its missions.

"Let me make it clear that this uncertainty puts at risk our ability to effectively all of our missions," said Hagel. The Pentagon's budget is set to be slashed by roughly $46 billion.

The president appeared irritated but combative as he spoke to reporters after meeting with his chief foes -- House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell -- and allies Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and top House Democrat Nancy Pelosi in the Oval Office.

Boehner emerged from the talks to signal to reporters that Republicans would not budge on Obama's key demand for a deal that would raise tax revenues.

"Let's make it clear that the president got his tax hikes on January 1. This discussion about revenue in my view is over," Boehner said.

"It is about taking on the spending problem in Washington."

Even Obama's defeated election rival Mitt Romney got in on the action, slamming the president in a rare interview, complaining he was "blaming and pointing" at Republicans and not leading the country.

In the report to government agencies, the OMB said non-exempt defense programs would be cut by 13 percent this year and domestic programs would be sliced by nine percent.

In cash terms, reductions for the military amount to just over $42 billion, with a similar sum coming from non-defense related spending.

OMB Director Jeffrey Zients told Boehner in a letter accompanying the report that the cuts would be "deeply destructive to national security, domestic investments, and core government functions."

The political stalemate is likely to be prolonged, as the president's tactics are based on a strategy of pinning blame on Republicans for the pain of the sequester, which may take weeks to become evident.

The next point of leverage is likely a bill to fund government operations, which Congress must pass by March 27, or see the government shut down.

Both sides indicated that they would seek to avoid that scenario, meaning that the sequester cuts may remain in place -- unless a way can be found to make equal spending reductions that are less punitive.

Although the cuts trim domestic and defense spending, they do not touch entitlements -- social programs like Medicare health care for the elderly and pension schemes.

Many budget experts say that only cuts to those programs will be able to restore the prospect of long-term fiscal stability.

source: interaksyon.com

Obama sworn in for second term

President Obama was sworn in Sunday to a second term, during a subdued and private White House ceremony that precedes the pomp of Monday's public inauguration.

The president was surrounded by his immediate family and was sworn in by Chief Justice John Roberts on a bible belonging to the family of his wife, first lady Michelle Obama.








The first lady stood to the president's left and held the Robinson family bible as daughters Sasha and Malia stood beside her, inside the White House's Blue Room.

The oath took about two minutes and was administered shortly before noon.

Obama hugged his wife and said, "Thank you Sweetie," after the oath was administered.

He then hugged his daughters and told Sasha, "I did it."

Earlier in the day, Obama joined Vice President Biden, after he was sworn in, at Arlington National Cemetery for a wreath-laying ceremony on a crisp, sun-splashed January day.

Obama and Biden jointly placed a large wreath, adorned with red, white and blue ribbon, in front of Arlington's Tomb of the Unknowns. Placing their hands over their hearts, the two leaders stood solemnly as a bugle played "Taps."

Biden was surrounded by family and friends for his brief swearing-in at the Naval Observatory, his official residence in northwest Washington.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, appointed by Obama as the first Hispanic to serve on the Supreme Court, administered the oath of office to Biden, who placed his hand on a Bible his family has used since 1893.

"I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States," Biden said as he recited the oath.

Among the 120 guests on hand to witness the vice president's second swearing-in were Attorney General Eric Holder, departing Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and several Democratic lawmakers.

Sunday's subdued ceremonies are a function of the calendar and the Constitution, which says presidents automatically begin their new terms at noon on Jan. 20. Because that date fell this year on a Sunday -- a day on which inaugural ceremonies historically are not held -- organizers scheduled a second, public swearing-in for Monday.

A crowd of up to 800,000 people is expected to gather on the National Mall to witness that event, which will take place on the Capitol's red, white and blue bunting-draped west front. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who famously flubbed the oath of office that Obama took in 2009, was to swear the president in both days.

Once the celebrations are over, Obama will plunge into a second-term agenda still dominated by the economy, which slowly churned out of recession during his first four years in office. The president will also try to cement his legacy with sweeping domestic changes, pledging to achieve both an immigration overhaul and stricter gun laws despite opposition from a divided Congress.

But for one weekend at least, Washington was putting politics aside. Obama called the nation's inaugural traditions "a symbol of how our democracy works and how we peacefully transfer power."

"But it should also be an affirmation that we're all in this together," he said Saturday, as he opened a weekend of inaugural activities at a Washington elementary school.

The Blue Room is an oval space with majestic views of the South Lawn and the Washington Monument.

The room, named for the color of the drapes, upholstery and carpet, primarily has been a reception room as well as the site of the only presidential wedding in the White House, when President Grover Cleveland married Frances Folsum in 1886.

Obama and Biden were to address supporters Sunday evening at an inaugural reception.

The president planned to save his most expansive remarks for Monday's inaugural address to the crowd gathered on the Mall and millions more watching across the country and the world. Obama started working on the speech in early December and was still tinkering with it into the weekend, aides said.

The president's address will set the stage for the policy objectives he seeks to achieve in his second term, including speeding up the economic recovery, passing comprehensive immigration and gun control measures and ending the war in Afghanistan. Aides said Obama would save the specifics of those agenda items for his Feb. 12 State of the Union address.

The president launched a weekend of inaugural activities Saturday by heading up a National Day of Service. Along with his family, Obama helped hundreds of volunteers spruce up a Washington area elementary school.

Obama wore rubber gloves, picked up a paint brush and helped volunteers stain a bookshelf.

Obama added the service event to the inaugural schedule in 2009 and is hoping it becomes a tradition followed for future presidents.

Mrs. Obama, speaking to volunteers Sunday, espoused the importance of giving back in the midst of the weekend of pomp, circumstance and celebration.

"The reason why we're here, why we're standing here, why we're able to celebrate this weekend is because a lot of people worked hard and supported us, and we've got a job to do and this is a symbol of the kind of work that we need to be doing the next four years," Michelle Obama said at Burrville Elementary.

source: foxnews.com

Obama is - once again - TIME's 'Person of the Year'

NEW YORK - Time magazine on Wednesday named the recently re-elected US President Barack Obama as its person of the year for 2012 -- the second time it has accorded him this honor.

Obama now not only has a reelection as America's first black president and a Nobel peace prize under his belt, but he beat fancied runners-up, including brave Pakistani girls' rights activist Malala Yousafzai, to be enshrined again as Time's dominant personality of the year.

The venerable American news magazine put Obama on its cover, striking a thoughtful, statuesque pose, and said he deserved the accolade as "the symbol and in some ways the architect of this new America."

The magazine lauded Obama's campaigning prowess, noting he was the first president since Franklin Delano Roosevelt to win more than 50 percent of the vote in two straight elections and the first president since 1940 to be re-elected despite a jobless rate above 7.5 percent.

Obama beat Republican Mitt Romney soundly in November's election to win a second four-year term, despite presiding over a chronic economic slump.

"In 2012, he found and forged a new majority, turned weakness into opportunity and sought, amid great adversity, to create a more perfect union," said Time, which had named Obama person of the year back in 2008 when he became America's first black president.

The others considered for the weekly magazine's traditional annual honor were Apple CEO Tim Cook, atomic scientist Fabiola Gianotti, and Egypt's post-revolutionary President Mohamed Morsi.

But Obama swept to the head of the pack because of what Time said was his ability to grasp the demographic and social changes shifting the United States.

"The truth is," Obama told Time, "that we have steadily become a more diverse and tolerant country that embraces people's differences and respects people who are not like us. That's a profoundly good thing. That's one of the strengths of America."

source: interaksyon.com

First school shooting victims buried

Townspeople in Newtown, Conn., Monday began burying the 26 victims of last week's massacre at an elementary school -- two 6-year-old boys.

One eulogizer at Jack Pinto's funeral said the boy commanded attention as soon as he "arrived into this world," The New York Times reported.

"Who could ignore that beautiful energy, the sparkle in his eye, or that spirit that clearly said, 'I am here and I am something special'?" asked Mary Radatovich, a family friend.

Pinto and Noah Pozner were the first of the funerals for the victims of the slaughter inside the Sandy Hook Elementary School in which 20 children and six adults died, before shooter Adam Lanza killed himself Friday. Police said Lanza also killed his mother, Nancy Lanza, at the home they shared before he went to the school.

Police on Sunday officially confirmed Lanza, 20, was the killer in all 27 deaths before he shot himself.



Also Monday, investigators said it could be months before a complete account of the events up to and during the shooting spree on the school is available.

Connecticut State Police spokesman J. Paul Vance said investigators still had to talk to many witnesses, including two adults who wounded during the shooting at the school, as well as analyze the ammunition and details of the weapons.

When asked about reports that authorities were analyzing a computer hard drive taken from Lanza's home, Vance declined to comment, but said computer specialists were available if investigators needed them, the Times said.

Police said most of the shots Lanza fired were from a .223 Bushmaster semi-automatic rifle. Lanza had a 10-millimeter Glock and a 9-millimeter Sig Sauer. A shotgun was found in the car.

The guns were legally bought and registered by Lanza's mother, who sometimes took her son shooting ranges, law enforcement officials and the mother's friends said.

Because the school has been seized as a crime scene, Sandy Hook students will attend school at another facility in a nearby community, police said. It was unclear when, or if, the building would reopen.

Authorities also seized the Lanzas' home.

Vance said Monday the faculty and staff at Sandy Hook did all they could to protect the children, and that the emergency responders' arrival also saved lives.

"It broke our hearts when we could not save them all," he said.

At the White House, press secretary Jay Carney said Monday there is no single answer to the complex issue of gun violence.


"It's a complex problem that will require a complex solution. No single piece of legislation, no single action will fully address the problem," Carney said, repeating the gist of Obama's comments on the matter. "So I don't have a specific agenda to announce to you today. I would simply point you to what the president said last night about moving forward in coming weeks. And I would look for him to do that."

Repeatedly saying he had no specific policy outline, Carney said Obama supports reinstating the assault weapons ban that expired in 2004.

"I think that it's important to remember that this is about our gun laws and enforcing them, but it's also about a broader series of issues, including issues of mental health and education and -- and the like," Carney said.

"So the president's position on the assault weapons ban has not changed. He still supports its re-enactment," the spokesman said. "But, you know, you'll hear from him, I think, as he said last night, in the coming weeks to -- to speak more specifically about what he thinks we can do moving forward."

In Newtown, all schools in the district were to resume classes Tuesday except for Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Meanwhile, school buses brought students to Branchville Elementary School in Ridgefield, Conn., after police declared the school safe following a report of a man carrying what appeared to be a rifle along a road near the elementary school, The Ridgefield Press reported.

A modified lockdown at other schools in the area was lifted as well.

The Press said unconfirmed reports later indicated the man was going to work with an umbrella slung over his shoulder.

During a multifaith memorial service Sunday at Newtown High School, President Obama vowed to "use whatever power this office holds" to stop massacres like the one in the Connecticut community.

"No single law, no set of laws, can eliminate evil from the world -- but that can't be an excuse for inaction," Obama said. "Surely, we can do better than this."

source: upi.com

Obama and Romney meet for final debate as race tightens

BOCA RATON, Florida - President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney face off in front of the cameras for a final time on Monday as opinion polls show their battle for the White House has tightened to a dead heat.

With 15 days to go until the November 6 election, the two candidates turn to foreign policy for their third and last debate, which starts at 9 p.m. (0100 GMT on Tuesday).

The stakes are high, as the two candidates are tied at 46 percent each in the Reuters/Ipsos online daily tracking poll.

The debate will likely be the last time either candidate will be able to directly appeal to millions of voters - especially the roughly 20 percent who have yet to make up their minds or who could still switch their support.

Obama comes to this debate with several advantages. As sitting president, he has been deeply involved with national security and foreign affairs for the past three-and-a-half years. He can point to a number of successes on his watch, from the end of the Iraq war to the killing of Osama bin Laden.

But Romney will have many chances to steer the conversation back toward the sluggish US economy, a topic on which voters see him as more credible. He will also try to use unease about a nuclear Iran and turmoil in Libya to sow doubts about Obama's leadership at home and abroad.

Romney launched his candidacy with an accusation that Obama was not representing US interests aggressively enough, but after a decade of war voters have little appetite for further entanglements abroad. After a clumsy overseas trip in July, Romney will have to demonstrate to voters that he could ably represent the United States on the world stage.

"What he needs to do is get through this third debate by showing a close familiarity with the issues and a demeanor in foreign policy that is not threatening," said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University.

Presidential debates have not always been consequential, but this year they have had an impact.

Romney's strong performance in the first debate in Denver on October 3 helped him recover from a series of stumbles and wiped out Obama's advantage in opinion polls.

Obama fared better in their second encounter on October 16, but that has not helped him regain the lead.

The Obama campaign is now playing defense as it tries to limit Romney's gains in several of the battleground states that will decide the election.

Romney could have a hard time winning the White House if he does not carry Ohio. A new Quinnipiac/CBS poll shows Obama leading by 5 percentage points in the Midwestern state, but another by Suffolk University shows the two candidates tied there.

Last-chance debate

More than 60 million viewers watched each of their previous two debates, but the television audience this time could be smaller as it will air at the same time as high-profile baseball and football games.

Much of the exchange, which takes place at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida, will likely focus on the Middle East.

Campaigning in Canton, Ohio, on Monday, Vice President Joe Biden reminded voters of Obama's pledge to pull troops out of Afghanistan in the next two years and pointed out that Romney and his running mate Paul Ryan have made no such guarantees.

"They said, quote, it depends. Ladies and gentlemen, like everything with them, it depends," Biden said. "It depends on what day you find these guys."

At their second debate last week, the two presidential candidates clashed bitterly over Libya, a preview of what is to come on Monday evening. They argued over Obama's handling of the attack last month on the US consulate in Benghazi in which Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed.

The Obama administration first labeled the incident a spontaneous reaction to a video made in the United States that lampooned the Prophet Mohammad. Later, it said it was a terrorist assault on the anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks.

This shifting account, and the fact that Obama went on a campaign trip the day after the attack, has given Romney ammunition to use at Monday's debate.

"The statements were either misleading by intention or they were misleading by accident. Either way, though, he's got to get to the bottom of this," Romney adviser Dan Senor said on NBC's "Today" show.

Obama and his allies charge that Romney exploited the Benghazi attack for political points while officials were still accounting for the wellbeing of US diplomats.

Regarding foreign policy overall, Obama's allies accuse Romney of relying on generalities and platitudes.

"It is astonishing that Romney has run for president for six years and never once bothered to put forward a plan to end the war in Afghanistan, for example, or to formulate a policy to go after al Qaeda," US Senator John Kerry, the Democrats' 2004 presidential nominee, wrote in a memo released by the Obama campaign on Monday.

Romney has promised to tighten the screws over Iran's nuclear program and accused Obama of "leading from behind" as Syria's civil war expands. He also has faulted Obama for setting up a politically timed exit from the unpopular Afghanistan war, and accused him of failing to support Israel, an important ally in the Middle East.

The Republican challenger is likely to bring up a New York Times report from Saturday that said the United States and Iran had agreed in principle to hold bilateral negotiations to halt what Washington and its allies say is a plan by Tehran to develop nuclear weapons.

The 90-minute debate, moderated by Bob Schieffer of CBS, will be divided into six segments: America's role in the world; the war in Afghanistan; Israel and Iran; the changing Middle East; terrorism; and China's rise. (Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick, Mark Felsenthal and Susan Heavey)

source: interaksyon.com

Romney promises rising incomes for all

BOSTON, Oct. 6 (UPI) -- Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney said Saturday America "can't afford four more years like the last four years."

Romney, in his weekly podcast, cited an economic study that indicated middle-class families face a $4,000 tax increase to pay the interest on the debt President Obama has incurred during his first term, calling it a "very heavy, unacceptable burden for families who are already stretched too thin."

The self-described "severely conservative" former Massachusetts governor discounted the Labor Department's report Friday showing the unemployment rate, at 7.8 percent, was at the lowest point since Obama took office in January 2009.

"If not for all the people who have simply dropped out of the labor force, the real unemployment rate would be closer to 11 percent," Romney said.

"The results of President Obama's failed policies are staggering -- 23 million Americans are struggling for work, nearly one in six are living in poverty, and 47 million people are dependent on food stamps to feed themselves and their families.

"What we need is a real recovery -- and, unlike the president, that's exactly what I'm offering."

Romney said Obama's second-term plans include "more taxes, more borrowing and more spending."

"I will cut spending, restore our AAA credit rating and balance our budget within a decade," he said.

"The choice in this election is clear. Under President Obama, we will have a stagnant economy that fosters government dependency and chronically high unemployment. But if you elect me as president, we'll have pro-growth policies that foster upward mobility, strengthen the middle class, and lift people out of poverty."

source: upi.com

Obama fires back at Romney after losing debate

DENVER, Colorado - Barack Obama demanded truth from the "real Mitt Romney" on Thursday as aides promised a "hard look" at strategy after the president's listless performance in the first White House debate.

Passionate, cutting and engaged, in stark comparison to his debate showing, Obama told 12,000 cheering supporters at a chilly lakeside rally in Denver that the Romney who turned up to their first head-to-head clash on Wednesday night was an impostor who had covered up unpopular positions.

"I met this very spirited fellow who claimed to be Mitt Romney," Obama said. "It couldn't have been Mitt Romney because the real Mitt Romney has been running around the country for the last year, promising $5 trillion in tax cuts for the wealthy."

"The fellow on stage last night said he didn't know anything about that. The real Mitt Romney said we don't need any more teachers in our schools. The fellow on stage last night -- he loves teachers, can't get enough of them."

"If you want to be president, you owe the American people the truth," a fired-up Obama told supporters anxious not to see him fritter away his opinion poll lead with less than five weeks to go before election day.

The president's feisty appearance represented a clear effort to shift the news cycle away from his stinking debate reviews and stall Romney's bid to create a comeback narrative following his unexpectedly strong showing.

About 40 million people watched the debates on television, according to preliminary figures by Nielsen TV ratings service.

Obama seized on Romney's comment that he knew nothing about a tax break for companies that outsource jobs overseas, saying that if that was true then the multi-millionaire former venture capitalist needed a new accountant.

"He seems to be doing just fine with his current accountant," he said, poking fun at Romney's complex offshore tax arrangements, which Democrats highlight to press the case he is indifferent to middle-class struggles.

Obama also mocked Romney over his plan to cut government subsidies for the PBS television channel that produces famed early learning show "Sesame Street."

"Thank goodness somebody is finally getting tough on Big Bird, it is about time, we didn't know that Big Bird was driving the federal deficit."

Romney, meanwhile, basked in the plaudits for his performance as he addressed a fundraising event, saying Americans had seen two contrasting visions for the future on stage in Denver.

The Republican challenger made a surprise appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Colorado, thrilling hundreds of attendees as he stepped on stage to join his sons who were scheduled guests.

"I know this is going to be a close-fought battle," Romney said. "We need to win Colorado. You know what, if we do, we are going to win back the White House."

In his first public appearance since trumping Obama in the first of three one-on-one debates, the former Massachusetts governor pursued attacks on what he portrayed as the president's continuing expansion of government.

"I saw the president's vision as trickle-down government and I don't think that's what America believes in," Romney said. "I see instead a prosperity that comes through freedom."

Obama turned in a lethargic and sometimes irritable performance in Denver on Wednesday night, allowing a pumped-up Romney an opening in a White House race that had been trending away from the Republican after weeks of gaffes.

The president's campaign team signaled that they understood Obama's performance was below par and promised a rethink before the next clash in New York state in two weeks time.

Top strategist David Axelrod told reporters on a damage limitation conference call that Romney's performance was laced with untruths that the campaign would now push back on.

"We are going to take a hard look at this," Axelrod said. "I'm sure we will make adjustments."

Axelrod said Obama had taken a conscious decision not to get into a slugfest with Romney at the debate at the University of Denver because he believed that American voters deserved better.

"What the president wanted to avoid was a situation where you had two politicians up there insulting each other," he said, before comparing the Republican candidate to Charles Dickens's famous pickpocket.

"He is kind of a serial Artful Dodger. That makes it a more challenging kind of event," Axelrod said.

The question now is whether Romney's debate performance has changed the minds of enough wavering voters in key swing states to give the Republican challenger a real chance on November 6.

Opinion polls in the coming days will provide the first clues.

source: interaksyon.com

Jessica Sanchez, too young to vote but excited to perform at Democratic convention

"American Idol" Season 11 runner-up Jessica Sanchez said she may not be old enough to vote yet but that she was excited to perform on September 5, Wednesday (Thursday PHL time) during the 2012 Democratic National Convention in North Carolina.

On Twitter, Filipino-Mexican-American Sanchez said last week: “I might not be old enough to vote, but I'm so honored and excited to perform at @BarackObama's big party in Charlotte next week! #DNC2012!”

Sanchez turned 17 on August 4.

Sanchez will perform during the Democratic convention at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina.

United States President Barack Obama will be attending the convention to accept the Democratic nomination for President, the Dem Con site said.

The 2012 Democratic National Convention is a political event that consists of various performances and speeches from different Democratic candidates.

Sanchez will be performing on Day 2 of the convention to the mix of DJ Cassidy and jazz master Branford Marsalis who will be singing the American national anthem, Dem Con said.

The other performers include nine-time Grammy Award winner Mary J. Blige, alternative rock band Foo Fighters and funk-rock soul band Earth, Wind & Fire.

“This roster of performances only adds to the excitement building in Charlotte for the historic week ahead of us,” Los Angeles Mayor and 2012 Democratic National Convention Chairperson Los Antonio Villaraigosa.

“The tens of thousands who will attend Convention events in person, and all those tuning in across the country, should be ready for quite a show,” he added.

Performing at ‘home’

Meanwhile, Sanchez will be visiting the Philippines with the other Season 11 top 10 finalists on September 21 for their “American Idol World Tour.”

They will be performing at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.

On Twitter, some of the posts about the event said:

Kyla^Syrios.^_^: “Can’t wait to see Jessica Sanchez this coming September 21 :] Addicted to @JSanchezAI11”

aguilor karen :3: “September 18. Maroon 5. September 21. American Idol Finalists (Jessica Sanchez Batch) . MAGLAWAY na lang tayo. Huhuhuhuhu.”

Geiane Joy Tria: “Good eve :)) Jessica Sanchez is coming to Manila!!! Sept. 21 at the Araneta Coliseum for the AI World tour :D #nice” - VVP, GMA News

source: gmanetwork.com

Tokyo Disney Resort eases rules on same-sex weddings

TOKYO — Just days after U.S. President Barack Obama came out in favor of gay marriage, another supporter of same-sex unions has emerged in Japan: Mickey Mouse.

Despite their having no legal status, same-sex couples are able to hold fairytale wedding ceremonies at hotels inside the popular Tokyo Disney Resort, including at the Cinderella Castle, a company spokeswoman said Tuesday.

News of the unions came to light when Koyuki Higashi, 27, inquired about marrying her female partner at the resort.

A member of staff who answered the call said there would be no problem with their marrying, provided they dressed “like a man and a woman,” Higashi wrote on her blog.

The staff member explained a same-sex wedding would create “repercussions” among visitors to the park if both brides were wearing wedding dresses or both grooms wore tuxedoes, the blog added.

However, a few days later, the resort operator got back in touch to say their initial response had been wrong and gay couples were free to mix and match their attire.

“We have never refused an application for a same-sex wedding at hotels here,” a spokeswoman at Milial Resort Hotels, a subsidiary of Tokyo Disney Resort, told AFP on Tuesday.

“One of our staff members was mistaken when explaining about outfits for a same-sex wedding,” she said.

But she added gay and lesbian couples were not allowed to exchange marriage vows at the onsite chapel “because of Christian teaching.”

Higashi and her bride-to-be, identified on the blog only as Hiroko, have now visited Tokyo Disneyland, where they met Mickey Mouse to give him the good news.

“Mickey first looked surprised to hear that we are a ‘couple of girls,’” Higashi wrote. “But we said we were there to thank him because same-sex weddings can be held at the Disney Resort, and he celebrated with us.”

It is not known if Higashi and her partner will go ahead with a wedding at the Cinderella Castle, which costs 7.5 million yen.

Homosexuality in Japan is widely accepted but not openly discussed.

While gays and lesbians are unlikely to encounter outright hostility, there are few rights built into law for same-sex couples and there is little public debate on gay marriage.

source: japantoday.com

Newsweek stirs buzz with 'first gay president' cover

WASHINGTON — Newsweek made no apologies Monday for anointing Barack Obama as “the first gay president” on its cover this week, matching its rival Time in terms of online buzz.

It depicted Obama with an angelic rainbow halo just days after Obama became the first sitting president of the United States ever to come out in favor of same-sex marriage.

“Obama’s earned every stripe in this haloed rainbow,” said Tina Brown, editor of Newsweek and its online counterpart The Daily Beast, on her Twitter account (@TheTinaBeast).

White House press secretary Jay Carney, asked what Obama thought about the cover, said Monday: “I don’t know if he’s seen it and I haven’t spoken to him about it.”

Newsweek’s cover followed Time’s jaw-dropping cover photo of a Los Angeles mother nursing her three-year-old son aside the headline “Are you mom enough?” for a feature on so-called “attachment parenting.”

“I do understand why Time chose this picture because ... it did create such a media craze to get the dialogue talking,” the mother, Jamie Lynne Grumet, told NBC’s “Today” program.

Time claims a total print circulation of 3.3 million, just over double Newsweek’s 1.5 million—and both titles have been struggling to sustain their newsstand sales, which hinge in large part on a given cover’s impact.

Newsweek executive editor Justine Rosenthal, speaking in a video on its website, said the magazine had another cover story in the works, but ditched it “after Obama ‘came out,’ not to coin a phrase,” last Wednesday.

Several versions of the cover image were considered, including one with Obama “holding a married (same-sex) couple like a wedding cake,” she said.

The online edition of PR News, a public relations trade journal, noted how Newsweek had been trying to create a “#firstgaypresident” hashtag trend on Twitter—something that would send more traffic to its website.

“Rival publications trying to one-up each other with provocative covers is nothing new, but Newsweek’s Obama cover is too obvious a publicity-seeking ploy, and smells of desperation from old media,” it said.

It noted, however, that Time had sold more online subscriptions on the day its controversial cover appeared—just in time for Mother’s Day in the United States—than it had for the entire week before.

source: japantoday.com