All Blog Posts from Political Hotsheet

American presidents often face their greatest speaking challenges when called upon to serve as consoler-in-chief to a nation grieving a collective loss.

But national calamities also give U.S. leaders an unequaled chance to inspire and provide solace.

Remember President Reagan's evening address to the nation on the day America suffered through the Challenger disaster that claimed the lives of 7 astronauts:

"Today is a day for mourning and remembering. Nancy and I are pained to the core by the tragedy of the shuttle Challenger. We know we share this pain with all of the people of our country. This is truly a national loss."

That speech is remembered as one of Ronald Reagan's finest and most moving – especially its ending.

"The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for the journey and waved goodbye and 'slipped the surly bonds of earth' to 'touch the face of God.'"

In 1995, President Clinton found himself in a similar situation, trying to comfort the nation after the worst episode of terrorism to hit the U.S. to that time: the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City.

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Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) has sent the Internet into a tizzy since interrupting President Obama's Wednesday night address to Congress, accusing the president of lying.

The congressman's Web site crashed due to exceptionally high traffic and asked visitors to "Please come back shortly."

"Joe Wilson" was the most searched phrase on Google on Wednesday, and "Joe Wilson South Carolina" was the third-most searched phrase.

While Democrats have used Wilson's outburst to raise money online for his electoral opponent, conservatives are taking to the Web to support Wilson's message. The conservative online publication the Palmetto Scoop and the conservative T-shirt company Made In Multiples are holding a contest to give away T-shirts that read "I’m With Joe Wilson! America's Congressman."

Meanwhile, a snarky Web site called JoeWilsonIsYourPreexistingCondition has popped up, with some pseudo-serious jabs at the congressman, such as "Joe Wilson yells while adults are talking," mixed in with ridiculous claims like, "Joe Wilson stole your newspaper." The Web site hurls insults at Wilson and provides a link to a fundraising page for his electoral opponent.

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Politics Today is CBSNews.com's inside look at the key stories driving the day in Politics, written by CBS News Political Director Steve Chaggaris:

There was no question that President Obama's much-anticipated speech to a Joint Session of Congress last night had its share of fireworks. From a re-energized president to an unprecedented heckle from Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., the night had the feel of a campaign speech with a sprinkle of the summer's town meeting tension.

The big question, however: did the president's speech work? Are Democrats now unified? Will moderate Republicans jump on board? Are Americans' concerns quelled and are their questions answered? Did Americans even watch or is there a sort of health care reform fatigue?

Only time will tell.

Overnight, the pundits and the partisans weighed in. Today and over the weekend, Congress will have their say. Mr. Obama delivers another speech on health care in Washington D.C. today. The Nielsen TV ratings will be out later to answer the question of whether people tuned in. And the real indicator of success or failure lies in the next round of detailed polling.


WHAT HE SAID: "President Obama, offering some concessions to Republicans and yielding some of his own ground on healthcare, maintained tonight that a 'public option' of government-run insurance is only one option open to debate in the weeks ahead," reports the Los Angeles Times' Mark Silva.

"Insisting that lawmakers approve an overhaul of healthcare debated for decades by the end of this year, the president told a joint session of Congress in a nationally televised address that 'the time for games has passed....Now is the season for action.'...

"The president, while maintaining that some elements of his proposal were essential, made a pitch for his public option offering government-run healthcare for those who cannot find private coverage, but stopped short of demanding a plan imperiled in the Senate.

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White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters on Air Force One this morning that President Obama has not yet put the finishing touches on his planned address this evening to a joint session of Congress.

"He's still working on it," Gibbs said. "…he came back from Camp David Monday with many handwritten pages of notes that he gave to the speechwriters. He got another draft incorporating more edits last night, and worked on it with the speechwriters before he left this morning. So my sense is he'll be tinkering with this some this afternoon, but my sense is this thing will be locked sometime this afternoon."

Gibbs also spoke of Mr. Obama's "main goals" in the address, which he said are "to speak clearly to the American people about what's in health care reform; for those that are fortunate to have insurance, to demonstrate for them that his plan will bring them security and stability; and for those that don't have health insurance, that we'll provide an affordable way for them to get accessible insurance."

In an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" today, the president blamed himself for leaving "too much ambiguity out there" on his health care plan, reports CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller.

Mr. Obama said ambiguity in his plan allowed "opponents of reform to come in and to fill up the airwaves with a lot of nonsense."

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Although President Obama spoke at the AFL-CIO's annual Labor Day picnic — "America's biggest," the president said — and was broadcast on the cable news channels, some of his remarks might have directed at one senator.

While Mr. Obama is expected to address a joint session of Congress Wednesday to lay out his plan to reform the nation's health-care system, the president said Monday he hoped for "a marketplace" for health insurance that would "continue to hold down costs."

"I continue to believe that a public option within that basket of insurance choices will help," Mr. Obama said.

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Conservative pundits have been raising objections over President Barack Obama's planned speech to the nation's students on Tuesday in which he will encourage children to stay and excel in school.

Critics believe the president will use that speech to promote his political agenda, rather than simply inspire them to excel in class, and some school officials have said they will not let students watch it. Some parents have said they are considering keeping their kids out of school that day.

Florida Republican Party chair Jim Greer went so far as to accuse the president of trying to "indoctrinate America's children to his socialist agenda," and right-wing commentator Michelle Malkin accused the left of using kids in public schools as "guinea pigs and as junior lobbyists for their social liberal agenda."

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the remarks reflected "silly season" in Washington, and reminded reporters that two Republican presidents have likewise given speeches to students: Ronald Reagan in 1988 and George H.W. Bush in 1991.

What did Presidents Reagan and Bush say? That America was created by and for religious people, convicts would celebrate gun bans, and the media doesn't tell you the whole story about an adminstration's successes.

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Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, a Republican seen as a potential 2012 presidential candidate, on Friday criticized President Obama's planned speech to schoolchildren, calling it "disruptive" for schools.

"At a minimum it's disruptive, number two, it's uninvited and number three, if people would like to hear his message they can, on a voluntary basis, go to YouTube or some other source and get it," he told reporters at the Minnesota state fair, according to CNN. "I don't think he needs to force it upon the nation's school children."

The president will speak about the importance of working hard and staying in school, according to the White House. He will not address policy or political issues. Some school districts, citing logistical concerns as the school year gets underway, are opting not to show the speech.

There has also been ideological opposition to the address, inflamed by an initial recommendation from the Department of Education that students write a letter to themselves on how they could help the president. That recommendation has since been removed and other language in the guidelines was also changed.

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White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said this morning that criticism of the president's planned speech to American students reflects "silly season" and compared school districts that won't show the speech to those that "won't let you read Huckleberry Finn."

"I think we've reached a little bit of the silly season when the President of the United States can't tell kids in school to study hard and stay in school," Gibbs said at a gaggle with reporters, according to CBS News White House Correspondent Mark Knoller.

Some conservatives are considering keeping their kids out of school when President Obama gives the speech out of fears that Mr. Obama is trying, in the words of Florida Republican Party chair Jim Greer, to "indoctrinate America's children to his socialist agenda."

Conservative commentator Michelle Malkin, echoing that argument, said this: "The left has always used kids in public schools as guinea pigs and as junior lobbyists for their social liberal agenda."

The Obama administration says the address is focused exclusively encouraging children to stay and excel in school, not policy or political issues.

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Next Tuesday at noon, President Obama will be delivering what the White House is billing as "a national address to the students of America."

"During this special address, the president will speak directly to the nation’s children and youth about persisting and succeeding in school," according to Education Secretary Arne Duncan. "The president will challenge students to work hard, set educational goals, and take responsibility for their learning."

The Department of Education encouraged teachers to build lesson plans around the speech and offered "educators a menu of classroom activities…to help engage students in the address and stimulate classroom discussions about the importance of education."

The Department also recommended that students be asked to write a letter to themselves on "how to help the president."

All this did not sit well with Jim Greer, the chairman of the Florida Republican Party. Greer released a blistering statement earlier this week claiming that the president is trying to "indoctrinate America's children to his socialist agenda."

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In announcing his nomination this morning for U.S. Surgeon General, President Obama delivered his 200th speech since taking office.

The tally is based on a CBS News count of formal remarks, statements and addresses made by Mr. Obama starting with his Inaugural address on January 20. His news conferences and casual off-the-cuff remarks during photo ops were not counted as speeches, but his opening statements at Town Hall meetings and weekly radio/internet addresses were included.

An analysis of the 200 speeches reflects the issues on which he has placed the greatest importance.

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