All Blog Posts from Political Hotsheet

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) said the key issue with the czars appointed by President Obama is that there is “a lack of oversight” in their decisions as well as the hiring process.

“Constitutionally I can’t argue that czars are unconstitutional on their face, but I believe that an appointed official someone who has gone through confirmation needs to take the responsibility for someone” whose selection was done to "circumvent" the vetting process, King said on “Washington Unplugged” Wednesday.

Washington lawyer Lee Casey admitted that giving someone the title of czar “certainly may be a way to getting someone into an administration who otherwise would be controversial.”

“The real key is what kind of actual legal authority does this individual exercise?” Casey said.

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Republican Rep. Peter King announced today that he will not challenge Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand for her seat in 2010.

The Long Island representative said in a prepared statement, the New York Daily News reports, that he could not raise the money to effectively compete against Gillibrand.

"Senator Gillibrand generates neither strong support nor opposition," his statement reportedly said. "This makes it virtually impossible for me to raise the campaign funds I would need to overcome the built-in Democratic registration advantage and the countless millions of dollars which the Democrats will make available to Senator Gillibrand."

King said that a well-financed candidate could beat Gillibrand, who was appointed this year by Gov. David Paterson to fill Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's vacant Senate seat.

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Cash4Gold.com – the company that ran a super bowl ad in which "TV Personality" Ed McMahon and "Famous Rap Star" MC Hammer urged viewers to "send your unwanted gold for cash" – today announced that President Obama could get as much as $25,000 if he sends the company the gold necklace he was given as a gift by Saudi King Abdullah.

"Assuming the necklace and medallion are crafted of solid 18K gold, the company estimates that the Order of Merit contains as much as $25,000 worth of gold," the company said in a press release.

The company acknowledged, however, that it may not be a wise move for the president to mail in the necklace – known as the the King Abdul Aziz Order of Merit – to be melted down.

"Considering that the piece confers Saudi Arabia’s highest honor on President Obama, and that it was bestowed personally by the King on the President as part of an historic and widely reported Presidential visit, the symbolic value of the piece most likely surpasses its melt value," the release noted.

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The head of the American Civil Liberties Union argued today that a release of the military torture photos is an "essential" step to reaffirm American credibility.

"When we're talking about 2,000 photos that talk about abuse or torture under American custody, we're not talking about a few rogue apples," executive director Anthony Romero said on CBS News' Face The Nation. "We're not talking about a few rogue soldiers. We're talking about decisions made at the highest levels of our government. And the only way to deal with that would be to have an investigations and prosecutions to ensure accountability."

Romero added that, "the release of the photos, the release of the documents, the release of the memos that we have been arguing in court for six years is an essential part of ensuring that our government gets back on track.”

Congressman Peter King (R-N.Y.) argued that the photos should be kept classified.

"They serve absolutely no purpose and it is absolutely wrong to say [abuse of detainees] was approved at the highest levels of government," he said. "To somehow think that, by floating all these pictures out here, somehow we're going to find that somebody at a high level was involved ... is absolutely wrong."

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Representative Peter King (R-N.Y.) said that by opposing military tribunals at Guantanamo Bay and by advocating for the release of photographs of torture committed upon detainees, the American Civil Liberties Union is "tearing down the United States," during a heated debate with the ACLU's executive director, on Face the Nation Sunday.

King admitted that "in every war there are going to be abuses," but added that he is not sure "what purpose the ACLU serves in constantly tearing down the United States, constantly attacking our government."

In response, ACLU executive director Anthony Romero said that he thinks President Obama is "being ill-informed" when making the decision not to release pictures depicting detainee abuse — photos a court had declared must be released, and which Mr. Obama had previously said he would allow.

Romero said despite the White House's attempt to revamp the tribunal system created under President Bush, that "there is no way to resurrect" the trial system at Guantanamo, which he called a "debacle of justice."

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President Obama met with Jordan's King Abdullah today at the White House, and the main topic of discussion undoubtedly was the Mideast Peace process.

Following the meeting, Mr. Obama once again declared that he is committed to a two-state solution, with Israelis and Palestinians living side by side. The president urged all involved to "step back from the abyss" and make hard choices for peace.

"My hope would be that, over the next several months, that you start seeing gestures of good faith on all sides," he added. "We will be doing everything we can to encourage those confidence- building measures to take place."

As has often been the case recently, Iran eventually took center stage in the discussion. A reporter asked Mr. Obama about comments Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made yesterday at a United Nations sponsored conference on racism when called Israel "most cruel and repressive racist regime."

Mr. Obama called the comments "appalling and objectionable."

"There's no doubt that the kind of rhetoric that you saw from Ahmadinejad is not helpful," he added. "In fact, it is harmful, not just with respect to the possibility of U.S.-Iranian relations, but I think it actually undermines Iranians' position as the world as a whole."

The U.S. was not represented at the conference in Switzerland, but many countries' representatives publicly walked out when the comments were made.

The president also reiterated, however, that he is "serious about engagement" with Iran.

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Today, on his 92nd day in office, President Obama will hold a one-on-one meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan at the White House.

In the afternoon, Mr. Obama will present the Commander in Chief's trophy to the Naval Academy football team in the Rose Garden.

Mr. Obama and Vice President Biden will also meet with Senator Kennedy and former President Clinton in the Oval Office in the afternoon to discuss their shared commitment to national service. Mr. Obama will then travel to The SEED School of Washington where he will deliver remarks on national service. He will then sign the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act.

Following the signing, Mr. Obama and the first lady will participate in a service activity in Washington.

Here is the full schedule as released by the White House (all times Eastern):

9:00AM: President Obama receives Presidential Daily Briefing

10:00AM: President Obama meets one-on-one with King Abdullah of Jordan

10:30AM: President Obama holds expanded meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan

11:45AM: President Obama receives Economic Daily Briefing

12:15PM: President Obama meets with senior advisers

2:00PM: President Obama presents Commander in Chief’s trophy to the Naval Academy football team

2:45PM: President Obama and Vice President Biden meet with Senator Kennedy and former President Clinton to discuss national service

4:00PM: President Obama delivers remarks and signs the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act

President Obama placed phone calls to three foreign leaders and the Secretary General of the United Nations this afternoon, according to the White House.

The president called Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Saudi Arabian King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, United Kingdom Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

In his conversation with Harper, the president reiterated his commitment to make his first foreign visit a trip to Canada. The president asked Abdullah for support in halting weapons smuggling into Gaza and stressed the importance of a healthy U.S.-Saudi relationship.

President Obama talked to Brown about the importance of focusing on the war in Afghanistan, and voiced support to Ban the for UN’s assistance mission in Iraq.

The full White House accounting of the conversations is below.

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As the daughter of Camelot bids for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, New York Republicans launched a full-out attack on the potential appointee on CBS' Face The Nation this morning.

"We've seen the Senate sort of become a House of Lords," Rep. Tom Reynolds, R-N.Y., former chairman of the NRCC, told Bob Schieffer. "We are seeing a seat-warmer in Delaware, a seat-seller in Illinois, and we are making seat cushions in New York for sort of an aristocrat, royalty and entitlement coming in here."

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