10 | February | 2011 | The only adult in the room

Hi guys,

1. First, call to action. OFA is doing grassroots training as we speak. Please go over to check it out, and see if you can join. The Republicans’ first primary debate is May 2. They started campaigning against President Obama on Jan 20, 2009. Every day any of us is not in campaign mode is one day we cede to Republicans. Let’s move!

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2. Today’s schedule:

9:20 AM	PBO departs the White House en route Andrews Air Force Base.
9:35 AM	PBO departs Andrews Air Force Base en route Marquette, Michigan.
10:00 AM
11:00 AM
11:40 AM	PBO arrives in Marquette, Michigan.
12:00 PM
1:00 PM
1:15 PM	PBO views the Northern Michigan University’s WiMAX demonstration.
1:30 PM	PBO delivers remarks on the National Wireless Initiative.
2:00 PM	VPB meets with police chiefs to discuss law enforcement issues.
3:00 PM	PBO departs Marquette, Michigan.
4:00 PM
4:30 PM	VPB meets with Rep. Emanuel Cleaver.
4:55 PM	PBO arrives at Andrews Air Force Base.
5:00 PM
5:10 PM	PBO arrives at the White House.

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3. No strings attached:

Obama lays out plan for wireless Internet expansion

Reuters) – President Barack Obama will outline his plan on Thursday for expanding high speed wireless Internet service to 98 percent of Americans while reducing the U.S. deficit by $9.6 billion over the next ten years.

During a trip to Marquette, Michigan — a politically important state that has been especially hard hit by the rough U.S. economy — the president will propose investing $5 billion into a fund that will ensure fast wireless technology is made available to rural areas across the country.

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4. further proof that the recovery act didn’t help. Here’s an eye opening map, showing the true impact of the recovery act on the unemployment rate.

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5. Help you can believe in, but not really hear about it:

$7.6 billion federal effort to help unemployed homeowners avoid foreclosure will soon be running in all 18 states sharing the funds

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6. All aboard:

California high-speed rail planners prepare to put out billions in contracts

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7. More doomed news:

Quinnipiac New Jersey Poll: PBO at 55%

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8. interesting story about complete trust between PBO and VPB:

Biden is Obama’s point man on almost everything

// snip

…”When your relationship is forged in crisis like that, you find out a lot about the other guy,” said top Obama adviser David Axelrod, who left the White House last month to plot the 2012 re-election campaign. Over the past two years, he said, Obama learned “what a faithful adviser and advocate Biden could be.”

Obama and Biden see each other nearly every day when they’re in town, often for three or four hours. Biden typically attends the president’s morning briefing, as well as economic huddles and meetings of the Cabinet and national-security teams. In Oval Office sessions, Biden typically sits in the wing chair next to the president. They share weekly lunches. They’ve also spent some time bonding over girls’ basketball, with Obama’s younger daughter and one of Biden’s granddaughters playing for the same team.

// much more

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9. The first lady celebrates Let’s Move! first anniversary:

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UPDATE:

Jobless claims drop to 2-1/2 year low

Reuters) – New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits dropped more than expected last week to touch their lowest point in 2-1/2 years, a government report showed on Thursday, offering assurance that the labor market was strengthening despite January’s poor jobs numbers.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 36,000 to a seasonally adjusted 383,000, the lowest since early July 2008, the Labor Department said.