Entries for September 2009

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

In picking India as the guest nation for the Obama administration's first state visit, the president and first lady have done the easy work. Now come the tense, grueling chores of choosing a menu, floral arrangements, a gown for the first lady, and entertainers to cap the first couple's inaugural state dinner. And virtually all of that is on the shoulders of Michelle Obama.

By Nikki Schwab, Washington Whispers

In the hit TV show Mad Men, Betty Draper, played by January Jones, scowls at the idea of getting politically active and even curses candidate John F. Kennedy. In reality, Jones has jumped right into politics, spending yesterday and today in Washington talking up her favorite cause: sharks. Specifically, she is lobbying for legislation that would end shark finning, the practice of cutting off the animal's fins—often for use in shark fin soup—and discarding its carcass at sea.

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

Despite a rocky start, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele has mojo when it comes to raising money and finding new donors. "Fundraising has been his saving grace," says a party ally. The proof: When Steele started in February, the party received donations from an average of 328 new donors a day. Now it's 2,000 new donors a day, paying an average of $40.

By Nikki Schwab, Washington Whispers

Throughout his 20-year career as a documentary filmmaker, Michael Moore has often been criticized for oversimplifying complex topics and pulling at moviegoers' heartstrings. And according to Moore, he's guilty as charged. "I'm about winning right now," the filmmaker said today while addressing students at George Washington University. When a student asked if Capitalism: A Love Story, his new film that debuts Friday, oversimplified capitalism by labeling it "evil," Moore gave a hearty, "Yes." He went on to explain: "In my movie, if I tell you that there's a home foreclosed on every seven and a half seconds, you need to know that that's absolutely true. When Fox News says crazy things like, 'Obamacare is going to kill your grandmother,' that's how we're different."

Moore also reminded students that it's still just a movie, not a thesis or term paper. "All art is about appealing to emotion," he said.

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

Entertainer Pink brought her Funhouse Tour to the Washington area last night, but it was her advocacy for PETA and Michelle Obama's animal-friendly attitude that that won her cheers from the local crowd. Appearing at the Patriot Center in Northern Virginia, Pink paused to praise the first lady before launching into Dear Mr. President, her song critical of former President Bush.

"Let's get political for a second," Pink told the estimated 10,000 in the audience, according to a PETA spokesman. "Since we're near D.C., I have to give a shout-out to Michelle Obama, who has announced that she is officially fur free. I love an animal-lovin' first lady!"

By Nikki Schwab, Washington Whispers

Abraham Lincoln wasn't just honest. He was The Man! long before Shaq and others who claim that title. The recently reopened Ford's Theatre Museum reveals that among the artifacts it may display is a Lincoln inaugural medallion etched with these words: "Thou Art The Man." Gloria Swift, museum curator, says, "Every time I hear the current phraseology of that, I'm always thinking of that coin, and I'm like, oh, yeah, let me tell you, it goes way back."

By Nikki Schwab, Washington Whispers

Just call Steven Chu the Secretary of Saving Energy. The energy boss spent some of his vacation researching ways to conserve electricity. "I spent four or five days on vacation this summer looking into ways to decrease energy use in my home," says Chu. "So far, we've saved roughly $100 a month." Hoping his obsession spreads, he's considering pilot programs to show homeowners how to cut energy and save money. One suggestion is a real-time electric bill, which would allow customers to see exactly how they are saving or wasting electricity in their homes. "If there's a sudden increase, it tells you what went wrong, and if there's a huge load, you can tell your son or daughter to turn off the video game," Chu says. "So you see a real time display."

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

Earlier this month, Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, voiced his support for allowing women on submarines, and now he's facing a challenge from a group eager to keep women off the boats that stay some six months under the ocean's surface. The Center for Military Readiness says that there is a bigger issue at stake: Bad air on subs—not the proximity to nuclear materials—could cause birth defects for women sailors' children. "The problem is not nuclear power, it is the air, which is constantly recycled in the undersea environment. Carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide levels in the air are safe for adults but a high-risk cause of birth defects in unborn children—particularly in the early weeks of gestation when a woman may not even know she is pregnant," CMR's Elaine Donnelly said in a statement today. "By thoughtlessly pushing for co-ed submarines, apparently to please military and civilian feminists, Admiral Mullen has demonstrated an appalling unawareness of the health hazards involved, and a callous disregard for quality-of-life hardships that are difficult enough for sailors in the Silent Service."

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

At the CIA, winning the prized Trailblazer Medal is like getting into the Spook Hall of Fame. And our spies over there tell us that CIA Director Leon Panetta gave out two last Friday, the agency's 62nd birthday. One went to a current secret techie who was recognized for building "amazing tools he and his teams brought online." The other was to the late John Guilsher, a 52-year vet of the agency and Russia pro, who recruited Soviet scientist Adolf Tolkachev at the height of the Cold War. Secrets from Tolkachev helped influence U.S. military planning. At the ceremony, Panetta said that Guilsher was "a rare combination of careful planner and audacious operator. He was practical yet imaginative. An expert at detecting and evading surveillance. And a master of disguise—even if it meant adding a dash of garlic and vodka to his clothes."

By Paul Bedard, Washington Whispers

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and his political team are busy pushing President Obama's agenda and building a legacy to run for re-election. And now a former Bushie is offering up some free advice that could make the 2012 election a whole lot easier for Obama. When you get a chance, says former George W. Bush pollster Matthew Dowd, go mine presidential libraries for cheat sheets on how predecessors ran their re-election campaigns. "One of the things we were concerned about is the difference in running a re-election when you hold the White House—when you are a president running for re-election—as opposed to somebody coming in," Dowd tells our Suzi Parker. Speaking recently at the Clinton School of Public Service in Little Rock, Ark., he revealed that the idea to see how other presidents handled re-elections came from Bush Chief of Staff Andy Card and political adviser Karl Rove. "They didn't want anybody to know about this," he said, which is why he was tasked to do the research and report back the best tips.

By Alex Kingsbury, Washington Whispers

Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero was in for a rude shock if he thought the same privacy conventions that shield the children of public figures in his home country would extend to the United States. Zapatero brought his wife and two daughters along on his trip to New York for the opening session of the United Nations General Assembly, and on Wednesday he and his family posed for a photograph with President Obama at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The photo caused a huge stir in Spain because the public had never before seen an image of its leader's children, ages 13 and 16, who appeared in the photograph sporting slightly gothic attire.