January 4th, 2012
05:58 PM ET
Obama to talk about military draw down President Obama is scheduled to deliver remarks on the military's Defense Strategic Review at the Pentagon on Thursday. CNN Pentagon Correspondent Chris Lawrence reports that the review "sets forth potentially big changes in U.S. strategy, including the removing up to 4,000 troops from Europe and downsizing the overall ground forces even further." Read Chris Lawrence's complete story on CNN's Security Clearance blog.
January 4th, 2012
05:57 PM ET
Republicans furious over recess apppointmentsFrom CNN’s Ted Barrett and Kate Bolduan: Congressional Republicans were furious Wednesday after President Obama’s recess appointment of Richard Cordray to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, arguing the move was unconstitutional because the Senate has met every three or four days over the holiday period and therefore was not on a recess. “This is an extraordinary and entirely unprecedented power grab by President Obama,” complained House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, in a statement, saying it “would have a devastating effect on the checks and balances that are enshrined in our constitution.” “This recess appointment represents a sharp departure from a long-standing precedent that has limited the President to recess appointments only when the Senate is in a recess of 10 days or longer,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky. The intense GOP reaction to Cordray came before Obama also recess-appointed three members to the National Labor Relations Board, an agency under fire from Republicans who believe it is tilted in favor of labor unions. 
January 4th, 2012
03:41 PM ET
Obama campaign lays out Romney attack plan (CNN) - On a conference call just hours after a surprisingly tight finish in the Republican caucuses in Iowa on Tuesday, senior members of President Obama's reelection campaign assured reporters that their operation was built to take on whichever candidate arises out of the GOP nominating process. Yet both Campaign Manager Jim Messina and Senior Strategist David Axelrod reserved most of their time – and their harshest words – for caucus winner Mitt Romney. After ticking off their campaign's statistical accomplishments at the much-overshadowed Iowa Democratic caucuses held the same day – including attracting 25,000 caucus goers and signing up 7,500 volunteers – Messina argued that the Obama campaign's ground game in the Hawkeye State is as strong today as when the president won it back in 2008. "Republicans on the other hand tried to win the caucuses on the air," Axelrod said, referring to the large amount of money spent on television advertising in the run up to caucus day. "And after four years of constant effort and four million dollars spent by his allies to carpet bomb his nearest opponent, Mitt Romney received fewer votes and a smaller share of the vote [than in 2008]." Framing Romney’s narrow victory as a disappointment, Axelrod went on to preview the attack strategy that his operation plans to employ against the former Massachusetts governor should he win the nomination. 
January 4th, 2012
03:13 PM ET
Obama sidesteps Senate and appoints new consumer agency chief Shaker Heights, Ohio (CNN) - Positioning himself as the defender of the middle class and a protector of American consumers, President Obama raised the ire of Republicans Wednesday announcing his appointment of a new consumer protection bureau chief without waiting for Senate approval. "Now is not the time to play politics while people’s livelihoods are at stake," President Obama proclaimed at a campaign style rally in the pivotal swing state of Ohio. The president was joined on stage by former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray, Obama’s nominee to head up the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In a parliamentary maneuver which side stepped Senate approval, Mr. Obama made a recess appointment of Cordray to the position. "I'm gonna look for every opportunity to bridge the partisan divide and get things done," the president told a capacity crowd of some 1400 people in the suburban Cleveland Shaker Heights High School gymnasium. But he made no apology the action. It’s the latest move in the administration-led campaign called "We Can't Wait" which has moved initiatives forward using executive action and side-stepping what the White House has characterized as an obstructionist Congress. FULL POST  Richard Cordray, pictured here with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner at a press conference on December 1st.
January 4th, 2012
11:55 AM ET
Obama to name consumer chief bypassing CongressWASHINGTON (CNNMoney) - In a move that has angered Republicans, President Obama is expected on Wednesday to make a recess appointment of Richard Cordray to be the first director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, sidestepping the Senate confirmation process, a senior administration official tells CNN. The president is expected to make the official announcement at a 1:15 p.m. ET speech in Ohio, where Cordray served as attorney general. Last month, the Senate failed to muster enough votes to take up confirmation of Cordray to run the consumer bureau, with all but one Republican voting against the move. At the time, President Obama hinted that was considering such a recess appointment. News of the impending recess appointment spurred a flurry of angry statements from GOP leaders who have been trying to block a recess appointment for more than seven months. "President Obama, in an unprecedented move, has arrogantly circumvented the American people by 'recess' appointing Richard Cordray as director of the new CFPB," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in a statement. FULL POST  President Obama participates in the Democratic Iowa Caucuses via video teleconference on Tuesday night.
January 4th, 2012
09:26 AM ET
POTUS schedule for Wednesday, January 4, 2012 The day after the Iowa caucuses, President Obama will spend his Wednesday at a high school in Shaker Heights, Ohio (a suburb of Cleveland) to give what the White House calls an "economic-focused" speech. The White House confirmed this morning that he plans on making a recess appointment of Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The travel pool spotted Cordray on Air Force One with the president so we can assume they'll be side-by-side for today's event. Before the speech at 1:15p, President Obama will be stopping at one family's residence to have a discussion about the economy. The president will return to the White House later this afternoon. |
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