Topic: The White House

All Content

Decoder Wire Bob Woodward compares Benghazi with Watergate. Is he right? (+video)

The similarities: line-by-line edits of what to tell the public, says Bob Woodward, the media's authority on all things Watergate. Regarding the White House Benghazi edits, they show pressure 'in the system not to tell the truth' about what happened, he said Friday.
Obama pledges to halt military sexual abuse

On Thursday, Army Chief of Staff General Ray Odierno acknowledged the military is failing to stop sexual assaults. President Barack Obama vowed to leave no stone unturned to halt the abuse.
Robert Reich The problem with Obama's second term

President Obama is allowing the controversies that typically arise in a second term dominate his presidency because he has failed to define his core agenda. Is it a grand bargain on the budget deficit, gun control, jobs, or immigration reform? It's hard to tell.
Decoder Wire Why Benghazi talking points make US government seem like Dunder Mifflin (+video)

Let's put aside for a moment who did what to the talking points on Benghazi last September and focus just on the editing process, which could have come from an episode of 'The Office,' it seems.
Decoder Wire Why furor over IRS tea-party scandal won't subside, despite ouster

The removal of the acting IRS chief and Thursday's appointment of a new one will do little to quiet the storm over the tax agency's targeting of politically conservative nonprofit groups. What steps might?
Opinion Why are Obamacare supporters attacking job creators?

When seemingly organized Obamacare supporters attack small business leaders who express concern about the health-care law, job creators are no longer just uncertain about how their business will be impacted by the law. They are afraid – for their businesses and to speak out.
Global News Blog Good Reads: From Chinese dreams, to the Tsarnaevs, to a QWERTY challenger

This week's round-up of Good Reads includes a vague dream for the Chinese, the Boston bombers' connection to radical Islam, why Obama has been so slow to respond to Syria's civil war, levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere not seen since the Pliocene era, and a new keyboard configuration for mobile phones.
Benghazi emails: What do they reveal?

One email confirmed officials removed information about CIA warnings regarding an al Qaeda threat before the attacks in Benghazi, Libya in September 2012 from talking points the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations presented to the public. The administration released the emails in an effort to seem more transparent.
White House reaction to IRS scandal: Too little, too late?

President Barack Obama forced out the acting IRS commissioner on Wednesday in response to allegations the agency had inappropriately targeted conservative groups. Critics have said the IRS scandal is just one of a series of incidents where the Obama administration has avoided taking responsibility.
USA Update White House releases Benghazi e-mails. Will that quiet critics? (+video)

The White House has released 100 pages of e-mails related to its handling of the terrorist attack on a US diplomatic facility in Benghazi, Libya. They present a fuller picture of a chaotic situation, but are unlikely to quiet critics questioning the administration's 'talking points' at the time.
Decoder Wire Five ways the IRS scandal will change Washington (+video)

Whatever comes of the investigations into the IRS's targeting of conservative groups, the scandal promises to have broad repercussions in Washington, potentially through the 2014 midterms.
Opinion As North Korea heats up, South Korea and Japan should warm ties

Cooperation on missile defense between South Korea and Japan would help blunt threats from North Korea. But Japanese officials' recent insensitivity to Imperial Japan's painful role in World War II, including forcing South Koreans to become 'comfort women,' works against cooperation.
Obama's 'juice' squeezed by scandals?

The burst of controversy out of the IRS and Justice Department, in addition to lingering GOP pressure over Benghazi, has sidelined attention to President Obama's agenda.
Briefing IRS 101: Seven questions about the tea party scandal

The Internal Revenue Service is under the microscope now, as revelations have emerged that the agency wrongly targeted conservative groups seeking nonprofit status. Here’s an accounting of what has happened, along with the ramifications.
Will government probe of AP phone records cost Eric Holder his job?

Attorney General Eric Holder has alienated Republicans before. But the Justice Department's seizure of AP phone records is generating bipartisan concern.
Decoder Wire Are IRS, Benghazi flaps affecting Obama's standing with US public? (+video)

Republicans might have good reason to believe that President Obama will be affected more by the IRS scandal than by new revelations about the terror attack in Benghazi, Libya.
The New Economy Bloomberg snooping: Just looking at data can break the law

The Federal Reserve and the US Treasury are investigating whether Bloomberg reporters used the company's terminals to glean inappropriate information about officials' data use. Just viewing the information can be a felony, under federal law.
Why wind farms kill eagles with federal impunity

Oil companies are prosecuted when a bird drowns in a waste pit. But the Obama administration has never fined or prosecuted a wind-energy company for similar protected bird deaths. An estimated 573,000 birds are killed by US wind farms each year.
British PM Cameron visits Boston, offers condolences

British Prime Minister David Cameron, accompanied by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, visited the Boston Marathon bombings memorial on Tuesday morning to offer his condolences and discuss lessons that can be learned from the deadly bombings.
Officials seize AP's phone logs: What are they looking for?

The Associated Press is now in the news as well as covering it: Justice Department officials secretly obtained two months of telephone records from AP reporters and editors.
US and Britain cling to diplomacy as way forward on Syria (+video)

At the White House, the US and British leaders called talks with Russia 'very constructive,' but Obama cautioned that given 'what we’re seeing in Syria, it’s very hard to put things back together.'
Decoder Wire IRS tea party scandal: How bad for Obama? (+video)

President Obama himself has slammed the reported IRS actions regarding tea party and other conservative groups. But inevitably, Republicans will attempt to link the White House to this activity.
Terrorism & Security A flurry of diplomacy over Syria, but will it amount to progress?

There is concern over a Russian missile shipment to the Assad regime, but cautious optimism persists in some Western capitals over a planned international conference on Syria.
Robert Gates: Obama made right decisions night of Benghazi attack

Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates says those urging a military response the night of the Benghazi attack have 'a cartoonish impression of military capabilities.' Republicans in Congress want to grill former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as part of a special inquiry.
IRS apologizes. But has it told all about targeting tea party?

IRS apologizes for targeting tea party groups when they applied for tax-exempt status. But a draft of an inspector general's report suggests officials knew about the targeting as early as 2011.