White House Correspondents Insider
Behind the scenes of one of the most powerful clubs in America.
From Rice’s desk to our eyes.
ABC News published the letter that Ambassador Rice sent to President Obama, which is avaliable here. She starts her letter off thanking the president.
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If you thought you liked Hillary Clinton before, you may not in 2016. So claims data guru Nate Silver today at FiveThiryEight where he examines the curious case of how everyone loves the soon-to-be-former secretary of state.
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The overall message from President Obama about the fate of his cabinet in the new term? Thanks.
Giving a few words prior to their meeting on-air, President Obama was thankful for the service of his current cabinet after a tough campaign.
No self-respecting Washingtonian doesn’t have an Ann Hand pin in their repertoire so it is with great excitement that we reveal her Inaugural pin which also benefits the USO. It is the 4th Inauguration pin she has made, and last year there was a real scramble in the final days to find one. Please notice Vice President Biden is on it as well. 2016 is on everyone’s mind. Haddad Media’s current favorite Ann Hand item is the flag bracelet. You can order both now at http://annhand.homestead.com/new.html
Come tomorrow, Gobbler and Cobbler can rest easy knowing their necks aren’t on the line for Thanksgiving dinner. The two presidential birds were both pardoned minutes ago by President Obama at a ceremony outside the White House’s Rose Garden.
For the third time in the history of the televised image, Vice President Joe Biden appeared on screen in a semi-fictional universe. While Leslie Knope may have the traditional reaction when it comes to being in the presence of VP Biden, we know it’s all in fun for the councilwoman from Pawnee, Indiana.
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Politico’s Caitlin McDevitt pulled together a master list for the correspondents weekend. Though many news organizations will not released their list in advance, here are some who like to let the world know who they are hanging out with this weekend.
“Celebrities expected at Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner include Hollywood legends George Clooney and Steven Spielberg, troubled starlet Lindsay Lohan, leading ladies Reese Witherspoon and Charlize Theron, plus hot up-and-comers Josh Hutcherson, Zooey Deschanel and Viola Davis. Some famous funny people are going, too, like Jimmy Kimmel, the evening’s headliner, and members of the “Modern Family” cast. Entertainers Stevie Wonder and Mary J. Blige are also on the guest list, in addition, of course, to President Barack Obama and a bevy of Washington journalists.
(PHOTOS: White House Correspondents’ Dinner guest list)
Not satisfied? There’s plenty more. Here’s a rundown of the big names we’ve heard so far, according to the media outlets that snatched them up:
ABC Sofia Vergara; Jesse Tyler Ferguson; Julie Bowen and Eric Stonestreet of “Modern Family”; Christa Miller and Bill Lawrence of “Cougar Town”; “Hunger Games” actress Elizabeth Banks; actor Paul Rudd; New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie; Obama’s senior campaign adviser David Axelrod; National Security Adviser Tom Donilon; Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno.
AFP Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage of “Mythbusters”; writer Colm Toibin; DNC Executive Director Patrick Gaspard.
Atlantic Media Actress Rosario Dawson; chef José Andrés; “Sex and the City” writer Darren Star; Stacey Snider, co-chairwoman and CEO of DreamWorks Studios; Nancy Ann DeParle, deputy chief of staff for policy at the White House.
American Urban Radio Networks Singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder.
CBS “Homeland” star Claire Danes; “The Good Wife” actress Christine Baranski; Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan; Lt. Gen. George J. Flynn; Raymond Kelly, commissioner of the New York City Police Department; actor Daniel Dae Kim; Sen. Amy Klobuchar; American foreign policy adviser and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice; Capt.”Sully” Sullenberger III; Rep. Allen West; Rep. Tim Scott.
CNN’s Piers Morgan Actress Goldie Hawn.
Fortune Actress Rashida Jones.
Fox’s Greta Van Susteren Actress Lindsay Lohan.
Huffington Post Actor Daniel Day-Lewis; actress Dakota Fanning; Anna Paquin; Stephen Moyer of “True Blood”; Darren Criss of “Glee”; Nasim Pedrad of “Saturday Night Live”; Attorney General Eric Holder; Georgetown Law student Sandra Fluke; Sen. Rand Paul; White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer.
The New Yorker “Portlandia” stars Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein; actor Jason Schwartzman; Aziz Ansari of “Parks and Recreation.”
Newsweek/The Daily Beast Actress Reese Witherspoon; “The Help” star Viola Davis; J.R. Martinez of “Dancing With the Stars”; Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano; Gen. David Petraeus; Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand; Sen. Susan Collins; Rep. Steny Hoyer; Rep. Carolyn Maloney; Ambassador Melanne Verveer; Gov. Jerry Brown; Washington attorney Bob Barnett.
NPR Ginnifer Goodwin and Josh Dallas of “Once Upon a Time”; R&B songstress Mary J. Blige; singer John Legend; model Chrissy Teigen; actor Colin Hanks; Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes; Kathryn Stockett, author of “The Help.”
People “Hunger Games” star Josh Hutcherson; actress Diane Keaton; William Levy of “Dancing With the Stars”; former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s daughter, Katherine; Sen. Olympia Snowe; White House chef and food policy director Sam Kass.
POLITICO Actress Charlize Theron; Eva Longoria of “Desperate Housewives”; Green Bay Packers star Charles Woodson; fashion designer and stylist Rachel Zoe; WME CEO Ari Emanuel; Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba; MPAA Chairman Chris Dodd; FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski; former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal; businessman and philanthropist Ronald S. Lauder; entrepreneur Aerin Lauder; DNCC’s Theo LeCompte; Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell; Obama campaign manager Jim Messina; filmmaker and journalist Perri Peltz; RNC Chairman Reince Priebus; Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt; entrepreneur Ivanka Trump; Sen. Mark Warner.
Time Actor George Clooney and his girlfriend Stacy Keibler; Defense Secretary Leon Panetta; director Steven Spielberg and his wife, actress Kate Capshaw.
Reuters Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of Health and Human Services; Glyn Davies, special envoy to North Korea; 46th Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr.; Mitt Romney’s top adviser Eric Fehrnstrom; Ambassador of France to U.S. François Delattre; Ambassador João Vale de Almeida.
USA Today Martha Stewart; TV host Kelly Ripa and her husband, actor Mark Consuelos; “The Big Bang Theory” actor Johnny Galecki; Kelli Garner of “Pan Am.”
The Washington Post Actor Pierce Brosnan; Adm. William H. McRaven.” Thank you Caitlin.
Put down that basket of candy and join President and Mrs. Obama and 30,000 people from all 50 states at the 134th annual White House Easter Egg Roll on Monday April 9.
Promoting health and wellness, this year’s theme is “Let’s Go, Let’s Play, Let’s Move!” to encourage kids to get up and move and lead healthier and more active lives.
Tickets have already been distributed, but you can watch all the action live at WhiteHouse.gov/live.
In addition to the actual Easter egg roll, you can catch Rachel Crow singing the National Anthem, actress Julianne Moore reading to the kids, chefs cooking healthy and yummy dishes, US Olympian gymnast Dominique Dawes and NFL Star Antwaan Randle El leading the kids in the Eggtivity Zone Obstacle Course, Charlie Brown, the Power Rangers and other costume characters and much more!
Here are some pictures from last year’s Easter Egg Roll.
One of the most famous White House moments without a president was Jackie Kennedy’s tour of the White House 50 years ago. She saw the potential for connecting with the American people and television network news divisions have been trying to replicate the upclose personal feel for the people who inhabit the White House eve rsince. Merrill Knox of FISHBOWL tells the story an interviews the CBS producer, “This week marks the 50th anniversary of Jackie Kennedy’s famous televised tour of a newly-restored White House, which was broadcast on three networks and drew 50 million viewers. The broadcast was produced by CBS producer Perry Wolff, who is now 90 years old. Scott Pelley caught up with Wolff last night on “Evening News”:
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/cbs-news-marks-50th-anniversary-of-jackie-kennedys-televised-white-house-tour_b112628
Vivek Kundra was America’s first Chief Information Officer assigned by President Obama to help the White House look forward and integrate new technologies for government. He reviewed government agencies and saved billions of dollars for the government and now he is taking all that knowledge to work globally at Salesforce. Here is what the New York Times Quentin Hardy wrote:
Jonathan Fickies/Bloomberg NewsSalesforce.com, best know for its sales, customer service and collaboration software for business, is raising its ambitions by aiming at the international businesses and sales to foreign governments that have been the mainstays of companies like I.B.M.
On Monday, the company named Vivek Kundra its executive vice president of emerging markets. Mr. Kundra was the country’s first chief information officer from March 2009 until August 2011. His job was to move the government’s computer infrastructure spending — $80 billion a year — toward cloud computing. Mr. Kundra has extensive experience in technology at several levels of government, and has been a frequent visitor to the technology industry’s conferences.
Mr. Kundra said in an interview that his work would consist of showing “how Salesforce can close the technology gap” between traditional business and the faster-moving industry typified by consumer applications like Facebook andTwitter. Governments, and many overseas businesses, he said, “are still focused on the old model.”
At present, nearly 68 percent of Salesforce’s revenue is from the United States and Canada. Another 18 percent is from Europe and the remaining 14 percent is from the Asia-Pacific region. Africa and the Middle East are not broken out as separate regions. I.B.M., by comparison, has selected Africa as one of its top growth markets.
Though his title indicates he will oversee development and sales in places Salesforce barely reaches, Mr. Kundra indicated he would use his experience and connections to reach out to governments everywhere.
“The developed nations are all facing challenges in terms of their financial health,” Mr. Kundra said. “They can look at their operating expenses and see Salesforce as a disruptor.” He said that Salesforce would present itself to developing nations as a provider of “new services,” like health care delivered over mobile networks. The overall strategy will be developed over the next few months, he said.
The main benefit of Mr. Kundra’s experience may be in cost savings, as well as project implementation. “When I was in the public sector, $26 billion of that $80 billion was in projects years behind schedule or not working,” Mr. Kundra said. “The cloud can save money. I’ve seen it first hand, whether in D.C. or in the federal government.”
Given his relatively short tenure in the federal government, the cost savings produced during his time there was not clear. Mr. Kundra has also worked in similar jobs for the State of Virginia and the District of Columbia, where the installation ofGoogle Apps, instead of traditional office productivity software, was said to have saved about 87 percent.
Mr. Kundra has also been an outspoken advocate of sharing government data with the public as a means of creating low-cost information and business software applications.
