In the Loop - Afflicting official Washington since 1993

Recent polls and criticism of Romney’s attack on Obama as kowtowing to anti-American Muslims can be overcome. The race is open and so is the Loop Contest to pick the winner.

By Al Kamen | 12:02 PM ET, 09/13/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Obama, Romney, polls, election, Muslims, Reagan, Bush, John McCain, Ed Rogers, Jimmy Carter, Iranian hostages, contest, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 04:25 PM ET, 09/11/2012

Latino voter enthusiasm lagging?

By Al Kamen

A recent poll finds that, despite both parties’ convention efforts, Latino voters don’t appear as enthusiastic as they were in 20008.

By Al Kamen | 04:25 PM ET, 09/11/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Latino vote, latinos, Romney, Obama, Republican Convention, Democratic Convention, polls, turnout, President Bush, Sen. McCain, Latino Decisions, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 11:49 AM ET, 09/11/2012

Obama or Romney? Predict the winner! (A Loop contest.)

By Al Kamen

It’s time for the traditional Loop contest to guess who’ll win the electoral and popular vote in November.

By Al Kamen | 11:49 AM ET, 09/11/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Obama, Romney, convention bounce, Dick Morris, Bill Clinton, David Axelrod, presidential race, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop, contest

Posted at 02:32 PM ET, 09/06/2012

Missile Defense Agency chief out? Not so fast

By Al Kamen

Don’t look for the Missile Defense Agency to get a new director any time soon.

By Al Kamen | 02:32 PM ET, 09/06/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Missile Defense Agency, Patrick O'Reilly, James Syring, Berlin, President Obama, Obama, Multinational Ballistic Defense Conference, Partnership for Public Service, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 07:00 AM ET, 08/14/2012

Did Romney ensure a great Olympics?

By Al Kamen

IN THE LOOP | Could Romney’s musing before the Games have pushed the Brits to do their best?

By Al Kamen | 07:00 AM ET, 08/14/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: British, Olympics, British Olympics, David Cameron, Boris Johnson, Olympic games, President Obama, medals, China, Russia, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 03:57 PM ET, 08/09/2012

Loop Quote of The Week

By Al Kamen

This week goes to Mitt Romney, lamenting that campaigns keep repeating claims long after they’ve been debunked by fact-checkers.

By Al Kamen | 03:57 PM ET, 08/09/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Mitt Romney, Barack Obama, campaign ads, welfare ad, Glenn Kessler, Pinocchio, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 03:14 PM ET, 08/09/2012

Biden: ‘a quote by any other name. . .’

By Al Kamen

Seems politicians often lay claim to good — or bad — prose.

By Al Kamen | 03:14 PM ET, 08/09/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Joe Biden, Neil Kinnock, plagiarism, Michael Dukakis, Democratic nominee, Jon Kyl, Michael Turner, Mary McGrory, House Armed Services Committee, Obama administration, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 01:46 PM ET, 08/07/2012

Obama campaign and the hemp connection

By Al Kamen

Hemp legalization advocates point out a scarf being sold on the campaign store is made of a cotton/hemp blend, though hemp can’t be grown in the United States.

By Al Kamen | 01:46 PM ET, 08/07/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Hemp, Marijuana, legalize, Obama: Obama campaign store, Monique Pean, scarf, china, Vote Hemp, Ron Wyden, Rand Paul, Ron Paul, Barney Frank, Dana Rohrabacher, Dr. Bronner, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 03:23 PM ET, 08/06/2012

Obama picks new Missile Defense Agency director

By Al Kamen

Fate of incumbent director Lt. Gen. Patrick O’Reilly is unclear.

By Al Kamen | 03:23 PM ET, 08/06/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: President Obama, Leon Panetta, Pentagon, Patrick O"Reilly, Missile Defense Agency, James D. Syring, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 12:12 PM ET, 08/01/2012

Judicial wannabes’ chances — slim to none

By Al Kamen

The climate these days is stacked against Obama judicial nominees getting confirmed.

By Al Kamen | 12:12 PM ET, 08/01/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Obama judges, judicial appointments, Bill Clinton, George Bush, Al Gore, Pat Leahy, Senate Judicarry Committee, judicial vacancies, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 01:31 PM ET, 07/31/2012

House approves streamlined Senate confirmation process

By Al Kamen

The House is expected to pass a measure to improve the clogged presidential appointee confirmation process by eliminating 169 jobs from requiring Senate approval.

By Al Kamen | 01:31 PM ET, 07/31/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Presidential appointments, Senate confirmation, confirmation process, Max Stier, Partnership for Public Service, Harry Reid, Mitch McConnell, Charles Schumer, Lamar Alexander, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop, Barack Obama

Posted at 01:44 PM ET, 07/19/2012

Romney and Obama thinking about transition

By Al Kamen

A new federal law kicks in right after the conventions to allow the government to provide earlier support for both candidates to work up a plan before settling, or resettling, into the Oval Office.

By Al Kamen | 01:44 PM ET, 07/19/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Romney, Obama, Bush, Clinton, transitions, planning, Clay Johnson, John Podesta, Ted Kaufman, 9/11, Presidential Transition Act, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 01:43 PM ET, 06/30/2012

White House ambassador nominee withdrawn after drunken-driving arrest

By Al Kamen

Washington lawyer and major Obama campaign contributor Timothy Broas was charged after a Senate committee approved his nomination.

By Al Kamen | 01:43 PM ET, 06/30/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Timothy Broas, Netherlands, ambassador, White House, President Obama, drunk driving, arrest, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the loop

Posted at 01:07 PM ET, 06/28/2012

Chief Justice Roberts votes for Obama, who didn’t vote for him

By Al Kamen

Sen. Barack Obama wanted to, but ultimately didn’t vote for John Roberts to be chief justice.

By Al Kamen | 01:07 PM ET, 06/28/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: supreme court ruling, supreme court, richard wolffe, john roberts, obama and roberts, supreme court health care ruling, supreme court decision today, supreme court health care, supreme court ruling, individual mandate, health care upheld, supreme court rulings, individual mandate upheld, health care tax, obamacare, supreme court opinion, supreme court, scotus healthcare, aca, supreme court upholds health care, health care ruling, obamacare decision, healthcare decision, roberts supreme court, supreme court opinion, health care ruling, affordable care act, supreme court health, supreme court decision, health care reform, scotus obamacare, obamacare decision, Richard Wolffe, Al Kamen, Glenn Kessler, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 12:06 PM ET, 06/26/2012

Obama vacation? Loop contest reminder

By Al Kamen

Don’t forget to enter the In the Loop contest to advise on the best vacation spot this summer for the Obamas.

By Al Kamen | 12:06 PM ET, 06/26/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: President Obama, Obama vacation, Martha's Vineyard, GOP convention, Bush, Clinton, Lake Erie, Cedar Point, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the loop

Posted at 04:59 PM ET, 06/12/2012

Obama nominates two for key appeals court

By Al Kamen

By Al Kamen | 04:59 PM ET, 06/12/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Obama, judges, appellate, Caitlin Hannigan, Sri Srinivasan, Patricia Wald, J. Harvie Wilkinson, Stephen Breyer, Sandra Day O'Connor

Posted at 11:17 AM ET, 05/18/2012

National Get Outdoors Day slims down

By Al Kamen

An event to get kids out to enjoy the great outdoors seems to have shrunk a lot this year.

By Al Kamen | 11:17 AM ET, 05/18/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Get Outdoors Day, Bush administration, Anacostia Park, Maryland's Eastern Shore, Michelle Obama, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 04:25 PM ET, 05/17/2012

Super Pac ad idea: easy as pie

By Al Kamen

Now we find out how the political admen always find the perfect people who happen to say the perfect things in those ads.

By Al Kamen | 04:25 PM ET, 05/17/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Fred Davis, ad campaign, Jeremiah Wright, Joe Ricketts, Mitt Romney, Obama, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, Inthe Loop

Posted at 08:25 PM ET, 05/14/2012

GSA conferences: the thrill is gone?

By Al Kamen

Acting GSA director Dan Tangherlini has killed 35 agency gatherings that had been scheduled for the rest of this year and cut agency attendance at its yearly expo from 940 last year to 357 this year.

By Al Kamen | 08:25 PM ET, 05/14/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: GSA, General Services Administration, Las Vegas, GSA conference, Obama, Obama administration, San Antonio, GSA expo, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 02:19 PM ET, 05/14/2012

Obama campaign fires up coal industry

By Al Kamen

The 2012 campaign Web site had neglected to give include coal as part of Obama’s “All of the above” energy policy. Now it does.

By Al Kamen | 02:19 PM ET, 05/14/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: President Obama, Obama website, Clean coal, coal industry, coal, felon, West Virgiinia, West Virginia primary, energy, fuel efficiency, campaign, Obama re-election 2012, Ben LaBolt, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 02:16 PM ET, 05/02/2012

Afghanistan on $1,605 a page

By Al Kamen

The Department of Defense’s 129-page, semiannual report on the Afghan war effort cost $207,000 to produce, the Pentagon estimates.

By Al Kamen | 02:16 PM ET, 05/02/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: President Obama, Afghanistan, partnership agreement, Hamid Karzai, Pentagon report, progress report, Department of Defense, Greg Jaffe, Taliban, Pakistant, India, Bob Gates, Pentagon, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 05:26 PM ET, 05/01/2012

Obama, Romney spar over Osama

By Al Kamen

The political bickering ratchets up over the significance of Obama’s approval of the raid that killed Osama bin-Laden.

By Al Kamen | 05:26 PM ET, 05/01/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Osama bin Laden, Osama, Mitt Romney, Obama, Jimmy Carter, Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, Bob Gates, Al Kamen, Im the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 03:06 PM ET, 04/30/2012

Senate stalls even GOP nominees

By Al Kamen

The completely dysfunctional Senate is holding up Republican nominees as well.

By Al Kamen | 03:06 PM ET, 04/30/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Senate, National Mediation Board, Federal Labor Relations Board, Obama, confirmations, Senate, Delta Airlines, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 01:28 PM ET, 04/27/2012

Senate confirms top Pentagon and Justice nominees

By Al Kamen

The Senate confirmed former Obama National Security Council chief of staff Mark Lippert as assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific affairs along with several other top picks.

By Al Kamen | 01:28 PM ET, 04/27/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Senate, Obama, nominees, confirmed, Ecuador, Defense Department, ambassadors, Agriculture Department, Bob Woodward, Obama's Wars, Adam Namm, Mark Lippert, Jim Jones, Michael E. Horowitz, Clinton, Bush, Kathryn Keneally, Michael Scuse, Deborah S. Delisle, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil, Hugo Chavez

Posted at 08:00 AM ET, 04/26/2012

Obama, Japan’s prime minister to meet

By Al Kamen

Next week’s meeting between President Obama and Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda should prove more productive than the last time a prime minister from Japan was in town.

By Al Kamen | 08:00 AM ET, 04/26/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Japan prime minister, Yoshihiko Noda, Obama, Senate Armed Service Committee, Yukio Hatoyama, Okinawa, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 12:23 PM ET, 04/19/2012

White House personnel moves

By Al Kamen

White House staff secretary Raj De moves to the National Security Agency. Associate White House counsel Douglas Kramer to replace him.

By Al Kamen | 12:23 PM ET, 04/19/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: President Obama, personnel, White House, National Security Agency, NSA, staff secretary, Raj De, Douglas Kramer, Justice Department, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 12:06 PM ET, 04/16/2012

Clinton to ambassadors: Don’t move!

By Al Kamen

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, citing a difficult political climate on the Hill, has told the 60 or so ambassadors to stay in their posts until a successor is confirmed. Could be a long time.

By Al Kamen | 12:06 PM ET, 04/16/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Hillary Clinton, ambassadors, confirmations, political ambassadors, foreign policy, Mitt Romney, Barack Obama, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 01:52 PM ET, 04/12/2012

DHS, FEMA, TSA flacks moving on

By Al Kamen

Considerable movement of late at the agencies that make you take off your shoes at airports, give you half a border fence and offer hazardous trailers for hurricane victims.

By Al Kamen | 01:52 PM ET, 04/12/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Hilary Rosen, Hillary Rosen, Greg Soule, Transportation Security Agency, TSA, Department of Homeland Security, FEMA, Brent Colburn, Obama re-election, Rachel Racusen, SDK Knickerbocker, Kristen Lee, Microsoft

Posted at 04:22 PM ET, 04/11/2012

Obama and Clinton off to Cartagena gabfest

By Al Kamen

More than 30 Western Hemisphere heads of government are meeting at the Sixth Summit of the Americas in Colombia.

By Al Kamen | 04:22 PM ET, 04/11/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Summit of the Americas, President Obama, Cartagena, Colombia, Hillary Clinton, The Texter, Hugo Chavez, Danny Ortega, Connie Mack, House Foreign Relations Committee, Marco Rubio, John Edwards, Edwards trial, Edwards mistress, Bildeberg Conference, John Kerry, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 02:21 PM ET, 04/11/2012

Bush: Don’t call them ‘rich’

By Al Kamen

George W. Bush reminds us the “so-called rich” are really hardworking “job creators.”

By Al Kamen | 02:21 PM ET, 04/11/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: George W. Bush, tax policy, taxes, job creators, class warfare, Obama class warfare, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 02:36 PM ET, 04/10/2012

Rick Santorum faces reality

By Al Kamen

The GOP presidential nomination race is over and, as we told you in mid-January, former governor Mitt Romney will face President Obama in the fall.

By Al Kamen | 02:36 PM ET, 04/10/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Rick Santorum, suspending, GOP, GOP race, President Obama, Mitt, Mitt Romney, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 05:02 PM ET, 04/09/2012

Obama, Biden and Snooki: Poets at heart

By Al Kamen

A new “modern poetry” anthology puts the oft-bizarre utterances by politicians and celebrities in poetry form. A fun read.

By Al Kamen | 05:02 PM ET, 04/09/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Charles Schumer, John Boehner, poetry, Anthology of Really Important Modern Poetry, Israel, Harry Reid, Kathryn Petras, Ross Petras, Silvio Berlusconi, Donald Trump, Newt Gingrich, Hugo Chavez, Ann Coulter, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 02:41 PM ET, 04/05/2012

Obama approval’s up — among liberals

By Al Kamen

Maybe some of what’s happening is that liberal Democrats are drifting back to the Democratic base

By Al Kamen | 02:41 PM ET, 04/05/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Mitt Romney, Barack Obama, presidential polls, CNN/ORC, CNN poll, Obama approval, Obama improved, Etch A Sketch, Ralph Nader, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 06:11 PM ET, 04/02/2012

Some Obama nominees missed the confirmation train

By Al Kamen

Most of the White House’s nominees were confirmed last week before the Senate recess. Some were left waiting for a vote.

By Al Kamen | 06:11 PM ET, 04/02/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Obama, Senate, nominees, confirmation, Mari Carmen Aponte, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 02:36 PM ET, 03/28/2012

Mitt Romney? Etch-a-what?

By Al Kamen

A new poll finds that, despite all the media hoopla, most people have never heard about the Romney Etch a Sketch flap and even fewer say it will effect their votes.

By Al Kamen | 02:36 PM ET, 03/28/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Etch A Sketch, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Pew Research Center, Pew, President Obama, Hillary Clinton, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 02:46 PM ET, 03/26/2012

Hot mikes through history: A treasury of gaffes

By Emily Heil

A compendium of political hot-mike moments.

By Emily Heil | 02:46 PM ET, 03/26/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: President Obama, Dmitry Medvedev,

Posted at 12:54 PM ET, 03/26/2012

Fire pushes State’s China team out of digs before Obama trip

By Al Kamen

A fire at a State Department building housing a number of bureaus and the China desk crimped operations just as Obama was planning to go to Asia.

By Al Kamen | 12:54 PM ET, 03/26/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: China, President Obama, Hu Jintao, State Department, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 01:47 PM ET, 03/22/2012

Karl Rove blasts Obama campaign video

By Al Kamen

The former Bush adviser blasts the campaign video for inaccuracies, but . . .

By Al Kamen | 01:47 PM ET, 03/22/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Karl Rove, Bill Clinton, Wall Street Journal, Osama bin Laden, Obama, Obama campaign documentary, Obama campaign film, Greg Sargent, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 05:25 PM ET, 03/21/2012

Obama nominees still frozen by GOP

By Al Kamen

Keeping up with nominations. . .

By Al Kamen | 05:25 PM ET, 03/21/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Nominations, Derek Chollet, Pentagon, Kathleen Hicks, President Obama, recess appointments, Wendy Spencer, National Corporation for National and Community Service, Jeb Bush, George W. Bush, Charlie Christ, Rick Scott, GOP holds

Posted at 04:33 PM ET, 03/20/2012

Robert Gates on Obama, leaks and more

By Al Kamen

Former defense secretary speaks at an awards ceremony about his years as secretary of defense in the Bush and Obama administrations.

By Al Kamen | 04:33 PM ET, 03/20/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Robert Gates, Bob Gates, Secretary of Defense, National Academy of Public Administration, Warren Buttett, Walter Reed, George Bush, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Madeleine Albright, Leon Panetta, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 11:09 AM ET, 03/15/2012

Brett McGurk to be next Iraq envoy?

By Al Kamen

A foreign policy adviser for Bush and Obama, Brett McGurk is said to be the leading candidate for ambassador to Iraq.

By Al Kamen | 11:09 AM ET, 03/15/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Iraq, Baghdad, ambassador, Brett McGurk, McGurk, Jim Jeffrey, Coalition Provisional Authority, President Bush, President Obama, National Security Council, White House, Nouri al-Maliki, Turkey, Senate, confirmation

Posted at 12:03 PM ET, 03/13/2012

Has Mitt Romney put Arizona in play for 2012?

By Al Kamen

GOP candidate Mitt Romney’s anti-immigrant rhetoric may put Arizona’s 11 electoral votes in play in a state where Latinos are about 20 percent of eligible voters.

By Al Kamen | 12:03 PM ET, 03/13/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Mitt Romney, Rush Limbaugh, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, John McCain, President Bush, Latinos, Arizona, Latino voters, Fox News, Pete Wilson, Kris Kobach, Richard Carmona, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop, Dream Act, Arizona battleground, Obama campaign

Posted at 12:38 PM ET, 03/01/2012

Ohio primary ‘semi-open’ to Democratic mischief

By Al Kamen

Turns out that, while the Republican National Committee listed Ohio’s Tuesday GOP primary as closed, it is only slightly more closed than the Michigan primary was.

By Al Kamen | 12:38 PM ET, 03/01/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Santorum, Romney, Obama, Michigan primary, Ohio primary, Daily Kos, Operation Hilarity, Democratic crossover vote, crossovers, Buckeye state, delegates, Democratic crossover, Ohio Republican Party, Chuck Todd

In the Loop: Obama