Bill Clinton: Some Right-Wingers Don’t Want Black President — But Would Be Opposing Obama If He Were White, Too
Appearing last night on Larry King Live, former President Bill Clinton weighed in on the question of whether racism has motivated opposition to President Obama, saying that Democrats ultimately have to win the health care debate on the merits. “I believe that some of the right-wing extremists which oppose President Obama are also racially prejudiced and would prefer not to have an African-American president,” said Clinton. “But I don’t believe that all the people who oppose him on health care – and all the conservatives – are racists. And I believe if he were white, every single person who opposes him now, would be opposing him then.”
Obama’s Day Ahead: Diplomacy
President Obama will deliver remarks at 9:15 a.m. ET, at U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s Climate Change Summit. He will meet at 10:30 a.m. ET with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and at 11 a.m. ET with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. He will then hold a trilateral meeting at 11:30 a.m. ET with Netanyahu and Abbas. At 1:15 p.m. ET, he will attend a lunch with Sub-Saharan African heads of state, and at 3:30 p.m. ET he will meet with President Hu of China AT 5:15 p.m. ET, he will speak at the Clinton Global Initiative, and at 7 p.m. ET he will attend Secretary General Ban’s Climate Change Summit Dinner.
Biden’s Day Ahead
Vice President Biden will travel at 12:30 p.m. ET to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners annual conference in National Harbor, Maryland, where he will deliver remarks. In the afternoon, Biden will travel to the United States Capitol, where he will participate in the official photo for the 111th Congress.
Massachusetts State Senate To Debate Appointment Bill
The Massachusetts state Senate will take up debate today on the bill to provide for a temporary appointment to Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat, which was already passed by the state House last week. If the Senate were to pass it today, it could be signed into law as soon as tomorrow, and an interim Senator could be appointed by the end of the week.
Boston Globe Endorses Dukakis For Interim Senator
The Boston Globe has published an editorial endorsing former Gov. Mike Dukakis to be appointed as interim Senator. “Dukakis, as a former Democratic presidential nominee, knows how politics works and can get his phone calls returned,” the Globe says. “He is far more likely to deliver tangible returns for Massachusetts residents than a career academic or anyone else who has never held elected office.”
Joe Wilson Passes $2 Million Mark Since Outburst
Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) has now raised over $2 million in less than two weeks since his infamous “You lie!” outburst during President Obama’s speech to Congress. Wilson’s Democratic opponent Rob Miller had raised $1.5 million as of Monday last week, but no further numbers have been released.
House Panel To Take Up Continuing Resolution
The Hill reports that the House Rules committee is set to consider a continuing resolution for funding the government, which would continue current spending levels when the current fiscal year ends on September 30: “None of the dozen bills for the 2010 fiscal year has been signed by the president. While the House has passed all of its bills, the Senate has passed just five. None has emerged from House-Senate conferences, which are scheduled to begin this week.”
Mark Foley: I Doubt I’ll Run For Office, But I’ll Work For Economic Sanity
Former Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL), who resigned his seat in 2006 due to lewd instant messages sent to former Congressional pages, said that he will continue to work for economic and political reforms — and didn’t completely rule out a future run for office. “I doubt I will re-enter the political arena as an office-seeker,” said Foley, “but I will use my experience and my voice to help others, to rally for economic sanity, to bring about real reforms on a local, state and even national level.”
