Correspondent, MSNBC
Correspondent for MSNBC and author of Revival: The Struggle for Survival Inside the Obama White House
PROFILE
Richard Wolffe
Guest
FROM Richard Wolffe
To the Point
Don't Ask Don't Tell Repeal Caps a Winning Lame-Duck Session for Obama Last week, it was the tax deal . This morning, it was repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell , as President Obama signed a campaign promise into law, cheered by a big crowd of gay rights leaders. Though the old policy will remain in effect pending the military's readiness to implement the repeal, Obama stressed, "We are not going to be dragging our feet to get this done." Richard Wolffe is a correspondent for MSNBC and author of Revival : The Struggle for Survival Inside the Obama White House.
To the Point
Beleaguered President Makes Surprise Trip to Afghanistan President Obama made a surprise visit to Afghanistan today, where he brought Holiday greetings to American troops at Baghram Air Force Base. He praised them for their success in pushing the Taliban out of their strongholds and affording more Afghans "a chance to build a more hopeful future." Richard Wolffe is author of Revival : The Struggle for Survival Inside the Obama White House. He also reports for MSNBC .
To the Point
Has START Stalled? The START Treaty was negotiated by George W. Bush to allow the US to monitor Russia's missile development, but it expired last December. President Obama negotiated a "follow-on" called New START , to continue inspections and also reduce the number of missiles on both sides. Senate ratification is supported by US military leaders, NATO allies and former Republican Secretaries of State James Baker and Henry Kissinger. The President calls it " a national security imperative " in the lame-duck session. But key Republican leaders are saying, " Not so fast ."
To the Point
Obama Courts Hillary Clinton On 60 Minutes yesterday, Barack Obama acknowledge his meeting with Hillary Clinton . While he declined to address say whether he wants her to be his secretary of state, few people think the President-elect would have allowed his meeting with Senator Clinton to become public knowledge if he weren't very serious about her appointment. Richard Wolffe is senior White House correspondent for Newsweek magazine.
To the Point
Should the GOP Find a New Look or Reinforce the Old One? With a week and a day until it's all over, John McCain and Barack Obama are making their closing arguments. Meantime, McCain's advisors have accused Sarah Palin of going "off message" and refusing to take advice. Palin sources say she's trying to "bust free" of political mismanagement. Divisions within a struggling campaign may be shedding light on a broader conflict over the future of the Republican Party . Does the GOP need reform to stay in touch with a changing America or is it time to recommit the Grand Old Party to undiluted conservatism?
To the Point
Obama Defends Talking to Rogue Nations In a speech to Israel's Knesset today, President Bush denounced those he described as believing "that we should negotiate with terrorists and radicals." The White House says Bush's comments were not an attack on Barack Obama , who has advocated negotiations with Iran and Syria. Obama and other Democrats think otherwise. The Democratic presidential candidate has e-mailed reporters saying the President used today's speech "to launch a false political attack." Richard Wolfe is senior White House Correspondent for Newsweek magazine.
Which Way, L.A.?
Hillary Loses Her Inevitability Hillary Clinton 's "inevitability" is old news as Barack Obama moves ahead in some polls and John Edwards just won't go away. The Democratic primary in South Carolina comes hot on the heels of the Iowa and Nevada caucuses and the primary votes in New Hampshire. In Orangeburg, South Carolina yesterday, Bill Clinton was asked what his wife's number one priority would be if she were elected. He said the first thing Hillary Clinton would do is send him and the first President Bush on a worldwide mission to repair the damage the current president has done to America's reputation. What happens as a fading front-runner resorts to damage control? Does she go on the attack or soften her image? Does she talk about issues or electability in November?
To the Point
Hillary Loses Her Inevitability Hillary Clinton 's "inevitability" is old news as Barack Obama moves ahead in some polls and John Edwards just won't go away. The Democratic primary in South Carolina comes hot on the heels of the Iowa and Nevada caucuses and the primary votes in New Hampshire. In Orangeburg, South Carolina yesterday, Bill Clinton was asked what his wife's number one priority would be if she were elected. He said the first thing Hillary Clinton would do is send him and the first President Bush on a worldwide mission to repair the damage the current president has done to America's reputation. What happens as a fading front-runner resorts to damage control? Does she go on the attack or soften her image? Does she talk about issues or electability in November?
To the Point
American Presidential Politics and Pakistan Illinois Senator Barack Obama made headlines in the US and across the world this week. As President, he said, he would launch military strikes in northwestern Pakistan under certain conditions. His Democratic opponents and Pakistan's government have denounced that idea, but for different reasons. With Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda rebuilding in that region, is it time to get tough with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf? We hear more about Musharraf's political troubles and his reliability as an American ally. Has tough action—in Pakistan as well as Afghanistan—already had unintended consequences, including demands by ethnic Pashtuns for their own country?
To the Point
Petraeus Briefs House before Vote on Iraq Spending Bill General David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, is scheduled to meet behind closed doors with the entire House of Representatives . The House is then scheduled to vote on a war-funding bill that contains the benchmarks and deadlines opposed by President Bush. Richard Wolffe is senior White House correspondent for Newsweek .
To the Point
Senate Approves Iraq War Bill with Timetable With the Senate about to vote on a deadline for withdrawing troops from Iraq, President Bush invited all Republicans in both houses to a White House briefing today to remind them that he expects troops to be fully funded. Shortly afterward--despite the President’s objection, the Senate passed the spending bill, including the non-binding deadlines. The vote was 51 to 47 . Richard Wolffe covers the White House for Newsweek .
To the Point
Iraq Study Time's Up With good ideas in short supply, the Bush White House accepted a Republican Congressman's proposal for a bi-partisan Iraq Study Group led by Republican James Baker and Democrat Lee Hamilton . With eight other members, they have visited Iraq and studied the options. Baker and Hamilton have recently posed for Men's Vogue magazine, tomorrow they'll be on the front page of almost every newspaper in the world, telling the White House and the rest of the world what they think.
To the Point
President Bush Maintains Tough Line on North Korea After the nuclear test on Sunday, President Bush says North Korea must "dismantle" weapons production, and that Japan, South Korea, China and Russia are part of a unified diplomatic effort. Speaking today at the White House, in referring to previous criticism over his administration's unilateral and often rigid approach to foreign policy, the President emphasized his flexibility in responding to new circumstances, although he did not elaborate.
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Bush Meets with Afghan President, Denies Iraq War Spurs Terrorism President Bush said today he has declassified the National Intelligence Estimate that reportedly said America has become less safe from terrorism than it was before the war in Iraq. Bush spoke at the White House after a meeting with Hamid Karzai, the President of Afghanistan.
Recommended
To the Point
Replacing Obamacare: Now you see it… now you don’t As the Senate deliberates replacing Obmacare, health coverage for millions of people is at stake. There've been no public hearings, and a draft measure won't be made public. Is the House version so unpopular that that Senate is hiding a version that looks much the same?
To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.
To the Point
Human Rights in the era of Donald Trump President Trump’s UN Ambassador, Nikki Haley, said today the US might pull out of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. Serious violators of human rights are members of the Council itself–and a US resignation could make things worse. Later on today’s show, now that he’s into his second term, comedian turned US Senator Al Franken is telling jokes again.