Sarah Palin attends Alfalfa Club Dinner - Video

Even though the Alfalfa Club Dinner was reportedly closed to the media, someone forgot to tell this New Media maven, who posted this video at a YouTube channel called nxrisetaker2003 but which is really about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, shown walking into the event in this video. It's reported that Palin attended the Alfalfa Club Dinner specifically because President Barack Obama was there.

I don't yet know if Palin managed to talk with Obama. directly, but stay tuned.

As for Palin's new political action committee, it has a new website called Sarahpac.com, and has this message:

Dedicated to building America's future, supporting fresh ideas and candidates who share our vision for reform and innovation.

SarahPAC believes America's best days are ahead. Our country, founded on conservative principles and the fight for freedom, must confront the challenges of the 21st century with integrity, innovation, and determination.
SarahPAC believes energy independence is a cornerstone of the economic security and progress that every American family wants and deserves.

SarahPAC believes the Republican Party is at the threshold of an historic renaissance that will build a better future for all. Health care, education, and reform of government are among our key goals. Join us today!

But other than that message and a page to donate, there's a bio about Palin, and that's it. If one's going to give money to a PAC, the website has to be more substantial than this. Take MoveOn.org as an example. That site has pages explaining its current campaigns. You know where your money is going. With SarahPac, the only person that seems to collect money is...Sarah Palin.

Maybe that's the idea.

Kofi Annan on The Need For Understanding In The Global Economic Crisis

Former UN head Kofi Annan is sorely missed and this speech is one reason why. Here's Kofi Annan his the nail on the head when he says that people see trillions going to big companies and rich people and lose confidence in Government. He talks about the global economic crisis at the Davos Forum with clarity and with care.

Mayor Bloomberg paints grim economic picture for New York City 2009 budget

More at NY Daily News: “Mayor Bloomberg's bad-news budget tries to plug a $4 billion hole with less than $2 billion worth of spending cuts and new sales taxes - and counts on unions, Albany and the federal govermment to come up with the rest.
He proposed a $43.4 billion budget Friday for the fiscal year starting July 1, up $123 million from the year before - one that slices deep into the pockets of city residents and the ranks of city workers.
"Are we going to go through some difficult times? I don't think there's any question about that. But we have a plan to balance our budget," Bloomberg said. "It is serious, but I think it is manageable."”

MADAM OF EMPEROR'S CLUB VIP SENTENCED TO 6 MONTHS IN JAIL - New York Post

More at New York Post: “She was the property of her overbearing partner, and the madam who helped run the prostitution ring that brought down Gov. Eliot Spitzer has the tattoo to prove it.

Cecil "Katie" Suwal was sentenced yesterday to six months in jail for her role in operating the Emperors Club VIP that serviced the notorious "Client 9," but not before her lawyer said she was controlled by her Svengali-like boss who branded her in the most humiliating of places.

"Her strategically placed tattoo eliminated any doubt," said her lawyer, Alberto Ebanks, as he made quote marks in the air. "Property of Mark Brener."”

Michael Steele Is The New Chairman Of The Republican Party

Michael Steele just broke a barrier that I frankly thought I'd never see: he today became the first Black chairman of the Republican Party. That's amazing and it speaks to the better angels within the Republican National Committee and the totally watershed-level path of social change America is on, starting with the election of Barack Obama as the first African American president, then the stirring inauguration of President Obama, and now the selection of Michael Steele as RNC Chairman.

Who is Michael Steele?

Steele was Liutenant Governor of the State of Maryland from 2003 to 2007. Steele's also well-known as a regular contributor to several political news programs. And Steele ran for several offices, most notably for Senator of Maryland where he reportedly bussed in homeless people to distribute information flyers. Steele lost that race to Ben Cardin.

Steele has been a Republican since he was a small boy, and he's received backing from such conservatives as Karl Rove and former-VP Dick Cheney.

Steele has an uphill battle in repairing the Republican Party, but he's been able to destroy the idea that the RNC was the "White Southern" party just by his election. In my view his election actually makes the party more attractive to Women, who not only were his greatest supporters but who share the same "outsider" status in the RNC.

I think now the Republican Party has a split between the moderates, led by Steele and the wingnuts, led by Rush Limbaugh. It's going to be an interesting year.

Obama Security Poor, Alarms Some VIP Donors - washingtonpost.com

More at washingtonpost.com: “Downtown Washington resembled a militarized zone last week for the inauguration of President Barack Obama, but some major contributors who had direct contact with Obama said they were surprised to find what they viewed as porous security surrounding the president-elect and vice president-elect.”

-- This is an outrage, to say the least! For someone as important and as targeted by White Supremacist and some Black Nationalist groups and persons as Barack Obama to be the focus of poor security efforts is a scandal that should lead to someone's firing before its too late.

Pfizer, Caterpillar and Home Depot Layoff 40,000 Today

More at Huff Post: “WASHINGTON — The recession is killing jobs at an alarming pace, with tens of thousands of new layoffs announced Monday by some of the biggest names in American business _ Pfizer, Caterpillar and Home Depot.

More pink slips, pay freezes and other hits are expected to slam workers in the months ahead as companies desperately look for ways to survive.

"We're just seeing the tip of the iceberg _ the big firms," said Rebecca Braeu, economist at John Hancock Financial Services. "There's certainly other firms beneath them that will lay off workers as quickly or even quicker."

Looking ahead, economists predicted a net loss of at least 2 million jobs _ possibly more _ this year even if President Barack Obama's $825 billion package of increased government spending and tax cuts is enacted. Last year, the economy lost a net 2.6 million jobs, the most since 1945, though the labor force has grown significantly since then.

The unemployment rate, now at a 16-year high of 7.2 percent, could hit 10 percent or higher later this year or early next year, under some analysts' projections.”

-- And how many people do we need to have jobless before we call this a Depression?

President Obama reverses Bush abortion-funds policy

More at Yahoo! News: “WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama on Friday struck down the Bush administration's ban on giving federal money to international groups that perform abortions or provide abortion information — an inflammatory policy that has bounced in and out of law for the past quarter-century. Obama's executive order, the latest in an aggressive first week reversing contentious Bush policies, was warmly welcomed by liberal groups and denounced by abortion rights foes.”

Tony West Appointed Assistant Attorney General By President Obama

Tony West, who you've frequently seen if you're a visitor to the Oakland Focus Blog , and my YouTube channel Zennie62 , was appointed Assistant Attorney General by President Barack Obama.

Congratulations, Tony!

I just interviewed Tony, who became a friend during the campaign, on November 12th here and in a talk where one can learn more about the man and his vast background (for example, he's worked in some way for six presidents and now seven) who was just appointed on Friday of this week:



But that was not the first time I talked with Tony. Here's the other videos:

This one last year at the California State Democratic Convention:



And this one when then-Senator Obama visited San Francisco for a large fundraising event:

Joe Scarborough: Obama's Speech Best Since JFK in 1960

I literally ran into Joe Scarborough, the host of MSNBC's Morning Joe as I was walking into the lobby of a hotel for the sole purpose of warming up from the cold weather after President Barack Obama's great Inauguration acceptance speech. Joe was good enough to share his view of that speech with me, saying that it was the best one since John F. Kennedy's speech in 1960.

President Obama To Create Office Of Urban Policy

From President Barack Obama

The Obama White House website includes the following paragraph: “Create a White House Office on Urban Policy: President Obama and Vice President Biden will create a White House Office of Urban Policy to develop a strategy for metropolitan America and to ensure that all federal dollars targeted to urban areas are effectively spent on the highest-impact programs. The Director of Urban Policy will report directly to the president and coordinate all federal urban programs.”

As of this writing just who will serve is the role of The Director of Urban Policy is anyone's guess. I think Lennar's Director of Urban Land Kofi Bonner is the best choice to be President Barack Obama's Director of Urban Policy. He could hit the ground running.

Inauguration Is Climax to Two Years Of Increasing Security Around Obama - washingtonpost.com

More at washingtonpost.com: “As jubilant Democrats nominated Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) for president in a Denver convention hall in late August, the U.S. Secret Service in Washington placed its largest ever order for bulletproof glass.

The service requested about 5 tons of "transparent armor," laminated with four layers of virtually unbreakable plastic to resist chemicals, flames and multiple gunshots. When Obama is sworn in as the nation's 44th president Tuesday, the ballistic shield will provide a final layer of safety in a massive exercise in presidential security, the culmination of two years of a steady ratcheting up of the protection around Obama to a level unseen for any of his predecessors.”

Poll Finds Faith in Obama, Mixed With Patience - NYTimes.com

More at NYTimes.com: “President-elect Barack Obama is riding a powerful wave of optimism into the White House, with Americans confident he can turn the economy around but prepared to give him years to deal with the crush of problems he faces starting Tuesday, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll.”

BART SHOOTING: Ron Dellums, Oakland Mayor Speaks at Protest

In the aftermath of the late-night arrest of BART Officer Johannes Mehserle, a planned Oakland City Hall-based protest went ahead as scheduled Sunday but with a less-angry energy than existed last week, when over 100 people were arrested and many downtown Oakland buildings were damaged in a night of rampaging protests against both Officer Mehserle's actions and the overall response of BART and elected officials.


In today's event, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums took the microphone and really talked to the crowd about how their voice led to change. Then I talked with Mayor Dellums about his call for change and if that would lead to reforms within the Oakland Police Department.

Here's the video:

Zennie Abraham Takes On CNN's Ali Velshi On Economic Stimulus

For me this was a ton of fun to do. But it's even better when someone takes time to let folks know you did a great job. Such was the case with the CNN iReport and CNN.com, who contacted me regarding my question for CNN's Ali Velshi on what he thought of giving $3,500 to each American taxpayer under $100,000.

Here's the video:



This is what CNN iReport's Rachel8 wrote:

Would you go head-to-head with CNN's top economic expert on an economic stimulus plan? How about live on the air?

Fearless iReport superstar Zennie Abraham did. After submitting an iReport suggesting a taxpayer stimulus package, he discussed his plan with CNN chief business correspondent Ali Velshi on CNN.com/live. Velshi said the plan -- which calls for a $3,500 stimulus check to those making less than $100,000 a year -- was not targeted enough to work. But Zennie courageously defended his idea.

"I disagree, with all due respect," he said to Velshi. "$3,500, particularly for college students or their parents, can help pay for their housing. For a person who's older, that could help pay their mortgage. ...You have to have time for the other aspects of President Obama's programs to work. The idea with this proposal is to buy time for those programs to kick in. I'm not saying that this is a cure-all. It works as part of a package."

And, after hearing the explanation, Velshi started to agree.

"In that context, I can understand that. If we are creating jobs, and we are helping people out with their mortgages, as an added extra, that could work," he said.

Nicely done, Zennie! You really held your own

.

Thanks Rachel! It was a lot of fun and I hope I get the chance to do something like that, again.

BART Meeting on Oakland Shooting Sunday Jan 11 2 PM to 4 PM

I was just informed today, Saturday evening January 10th, 2009, that BART is holding a "community meeting" on Sunday, January 11th, which is tommorrow, from 2 PM to 4 PM at 101 Eighth Street, the Joseph P. Bort MetroCenter in Oakland, off Lake Merritt BART. More at Oakland Focus Blog.

NBC TODAY SHOW STICKS IT TO ANN COULTER - New York Post

More at the New York Post: “CONTROVERSIAL conservative Ann Coulter blew a gasket yesterday when the "Today" show abruptly canceled an appearance on the day her new book about the Obamas comes out.

The cancellation sparked reports that she had been "banned for life" from NBC and its two cable news networks.

Officially, NBC said that Coulter was bumped from the morning show because of "breaking news."

Behind the scenes, "Today" sources said they needed to make time for former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's mission to the Middle East and President-elect Barack Obama's new plan for an economic stimulus package.”

-- YEAH! And she's angry? So what? That's what she gets for building a career by saying and writing outlandish and tasteless words about people just because their politics are different from hers.

Those days are over -- I hope! Let Ann whine. I love it.

Barack Obama taps Leon Panetta to run CIA

More at chicagotribune.com: “WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama has selected Leon Panetta, a former congressman with little experience on intelligence matters, to serve as the next director of the CIA, according to Democratic officials familiar with the decision.

The selection puts the prominent Democrat in charge of an agency that has been at the center of a storm of criticism in recent years, ranging from intelligence failures leading up to the Sept. 11 attacks to the aggressive tactics that were embraced in its aftermath.

Panetta, who was chief of staff to President Clinton, is regarded as a bright political operative and highly capable manager. But if confirmed by the Senate, he would be among the few directors in agency history with no prior experience at one of the nation's spy services.
”

-- Or was this a trial balloon to see how Senator Diane Feinstein would react? Whatever the case, she was not happy to have learned the news via the New York Times.

Roland Burris Ego On Display In Washington D.C.

More at chicagotribune.com: “WASHINGTON - Roland Burris and Democratic Party leaders headed toward a symbolic showdown at the door of the U.S. Senate on Tuesday as the former Illinois attorney general presses his claim to a disputed seat.

Burris said in an interview Monday evening that he intends to try to walk onto the Senate floor to be sworn in with incoming senators when the Senate convenes Tuesday despite declarations from party leaders that they will prevent the 71-year-old, longtime politician from entering the legislative body's ornate chamber.

The imagery of authorities stopping a graying African-American man at the threshold of political power promises to be a moment of high drama in a controversy that has joined the complicated politics of race with the sensational corruption scandal swirling around Gov. Rod Blagojevich. The governor, undeterred by criminal charges that he sought to sell the Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama, picked Burris last week.”

-- I can't understand the ego of a man like Roland Burris, who knows damn well he's not going to be confirmed or accepted by the Senate and is just opening up a major can of worms. Burris can't be that stupid, which leads me to think something else is up. What, I don't know.

What bothers me even more is that Burris seems to be doing it in the face of his "good friend" as he put it President-Elect Barack Obama. If he were Obama's good friend, he'd have elected not to be Blagojevich's designated selection. Something's afoot.

Choked-up Obama leaves Chicago - Chicago Breaking News

More at Chicago Breaking News: “Like many Americans, Barack Obama spent today getting things organized so he could head back to work after an extended holiday vacation.

But the president-elect's departure from Chicago's Midway Airport for a flight to Andrews Air Force Base brought with it some emotion, as he left behind an empty home and the city most associated with his historic political rise.

"I gotta say I choked up a little bit leaving my house today," he told reporters aboard a military aircraft that transported him to Washington.”