President Obama nominated Richard Cordray, a former Ohio attorney general and state lawmaker, to run the nascent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Sunday. The announcement comes just four days before the CFPB, set up in …
White House
Obama Fails to Budge Arab Opinion
The economy and the budget may be consuming Barack Obama’s presidency, but don’t forget that his candidacy was largely–perhaps even mostly–about foreign policy. At the core of Obama’s rationale for running in 2008 was his promise to restore America’s international strength, and diminish the threat of terrorism, by withdrawing our …
Obama vs. Cantor: Tempers Flare as Debt-Ceiling Negotiations Take a Dramatic Turn
President Obama and House majority leader Eric Cantor engaged in a high-stakes test of wills during Wednesday’s debt-ceiling negotiations at the White House, trading dramatic ultimatums in the most intense round of talks yet. …
Don’t Mess With the Stimulus! It Had All Your Creamed Spinach and More
Oh, Joe, it is on! You can trash-talk me or my family or even my questionable taste in basketball teams. But how dare you take a backhanded swipe at my dearly beloved stimulus? You know, the poor thing has no one to defend it but me. And me again. And yet again. So, its infrastructure spending was too “rushed,” and sent cash to the …
In the ArenaViewpoint
Eat Your Creamed Spinach
The President was masterful, and prohibitively Cheshire catty, in his debt-ceiling press conference Monday morning. He was in the position he likes best: way above both parties, asking sacrifices from all, the grownup in a roomful of Congressional infants. He almost seemed to be enjoying himself, which is nice–he deserves a little …
With Clock Ticking, Washington Debt Talks Move Beyond a Grand Bargain
President Obama and congressional leaders met again on Sunday night for 75 minutes at the White House as they tried to hash out an agreement on a deficit reduction deal tied to the impending deadline to raise the federal debt …
No Grand Bargain: Boehner Walks Away From Big Deficit Deal
After days of hype in Washington, House Speaker John Boehner threw cold water on the prospect of a grand bargain on deficit reduction Saturday night, effectively scaling back negotiations on a deal tied to the effort to raise the …
Obama More Pessimistic on the Economy, But Not Pessimistic Enough
“Headwinds” from the first half of 2011 are holding back the recovery, President Obama and his advisers argued on Friday, reacting to an undeniably abysmal June jobs report. While Obama didn’t dismiss the discouraging data as a “bump in the road to recovery” as he did in May, the White House is trying to blame transitory factors such as …
There’s Big Talk in Washington of a Deficit Deal. Can the Center Hold?
Though President Obama and House Speaker Boehner have yet to outline a single idea or, so far as we know, commit to anything, both Democrats and Republicans have begun attacking a so-called “grand bargain” for deficit …
Nancy Pelosi Wants a Little Respect (But That’s Not All She Wants)
The protagonists in the debt-limit dealing are obviously President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, the golfing buddies and party leaders. The Senate’s 60-vote threshold for legislation—and the potential for random …
Behind One of These Three Doors Is a Debt Ceiling Deal
Washington these days feels like a 1960s game show. Our lucky contestants, House Speaker John Boehner and President Barack Obama, are on the stage in front of three doors, listening intently to the audience cheer before they …
On Libya, a Split in Congress Means an Obama Win
The Obama administration continues its effort to outmaneuver Congress on the ongoing mission in Libya this week. On Tuesday afternoon the Senate will hold a cloture vote on the bill approved last week 14-5 by the Foreign Relations committee. It’s a narrow bill that authorizes Obama’s Libya war for a year.
Administration and …
Tim Geithner Owns the Economy, Too
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, the last remaining principal from President Obama’s original economic team, apparently may step down once the debt ceiling gets sorted out. The obvious point to make about Geithner is that …