Andrew Harnik / The Washington Times / Landov

Political Pictures of the Week, Jan. 28-Feb. 3

TIME’s photo editors bring you the best pictures of the past week from the Beltway and beyond.

Obama Struggles to Keep Pace with the Middle East Mess

Jim Young / Reuters

Listening to the commentary, you might think President Obama’s speech on Thursday was an important moment in Middle East history. It is a “hugely important speech,” said Wolf Blitzer on CNN in the run-up; Obama to “Reset” Middle East policy, declared U.S. News. But in the coming months, the speech is more likely to look [...]

Lessons from Andrew

As McCain and Palin make their way down to Mississippi today they would do well to remember George H. W. Bush’s response to Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Most people remember Bush botching the job, prompting one outraged local official to ask “Where’s the cavalry?” But at the time Bush’s first trip to the Miami area [...]

PUMAs Without Claws…

I know a rock-ribbed Republican operative who was a key Reagan sergeant back during the heated Reagan – Ford primary in 1976. He is still so mad that the Mississippi delegation switched to Ford that he promises physical violence should he ever by chance run into the guy who chaired that delegation. No doubt, these [...]

Re: Bill Clinton’s Convention Role

Moline, Illinois In a press conference on the tarmac before leaving for Kansas City, Obama just batted down stories that there’s any dissention between himself and the Clintons. “She could not have been more clear today, she could not have been more clear in the course of the last several months,” Obama said. “President Clinton [...]

Clinton to Campaign for Obama

Amid reports that the Clintons’ are none-too-keen on Obama right now, the campaign announced that Hillary will campaign for Obama in Nevada this Friday and Florida later in the month. These will be the first public events Clinton will do for Obama since their Unity, New Hampshire rally. Clinton, who will be in south Florida [...]

Obama Asks Donors to Raise Money For Clinton

Barack Obama asked his finance committee this afternoon to help Senator Hillary Clinton retire her debt. On a conference call that lasted about 45 minutes Obama made a personal plea to his top donors, telling them he considered it a personal imperative now that Democrats are all “one big family,” a donor who was on [...]

Pelosi On Clinton

At a Christian Science Monitor breakfast this morning Nancy Pelosi was asked about sexism in the Democratic primaries. The highest-ranking woman to ever win U.S. public office seemed a little taken aback. “Is there sexism? Probably so. Is it responsible for the defeat? I really wouldn’t have the scientific knowledge – all of the information [...]

Clinton NOT Seeking VP Slot

This just out from the Clinton campaign: Response to VP Inquiries While Senator Clinton has made clear throughout this process that she will do whatever she can to elect a Democrat to the White House, she is not seeking the vice presidency, and no one speaks for her but her.  The choice here is Senator [...]

Baruch Dispatch

New York A round up of Clinton’s speech last night at Baruch College.