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The president is expected to issue a call to action on global warming in a commencement address Saturday at the University of California, Irvine. Earlier this month, he announced a contentious plan to cut pollution from power plants. While in Orange County, Obama also raised money for the Democratic National Committee at a closed-door fundraiser at the Laguna Beach home of Getty oil heiress Anne Earhart. About 25 people paid up to $32,400 to participate in a roundtable discussion with the president. He's spending the rest of the Father's Day weekend on vacation at the Rancho Mirage home of White...

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — President Barack Obama said denying climate change is like arguing the moon is made of cheese, as he issued a call to action on global warming to Saturday's graduates of the University of California, Irvine.

Obama says borrowed lines not a big deal By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer 15 minutes ago Sen. Barack Obama said Monday that he probably should have given his friend — the governor of Massachusetts — credit for using his lines over the weekend. Howard Wolfson, a spokesman for Hillary Rodham Clinton accused Obama of plagiarizing Gov. Deval Patrick. Wolfson said that raises questions about the premise of Obama's candidacy — his rhetorical skills. Obama, D-Ill., says that's going too far. He says he really doesn't think it's a big deal to use Patrick's words because they share ideas all...

Des Moines, Iowa (AP) -- Iowa could make or break a Democratic candidate on Thursday. The question is, who? While the state has long played a key role in choosing the Democratic presidential nominee, it has unparalleled influence this year, even after several larger states moved up their contests to try and muscle in. Those efforts have done little more than compress the calendar into a five-week sprint that ends with the multistate primary Feb. 5 — strengthening Iowa's position as the leadoff caucus state rather than diminishing it. Even New Hampshire, which holds the first primary of the season,...

Democratic presidential candidates stood united Thursday night against the Supreme Court and its historic ruling rolling back a half-century of school desegregation laws. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said the conservative court "turned the clock back" on history. Sen. Barack Obama, the only black candidate in the eight-person field, spoke of civil rights leaders who fought for Brown v. Board of Education and other precedents curbed by the High Court. "If it were not for them," he said, "I would not be standing here." The 90-minute debate was the third gathering of the Democratic hopefuls in a presidential campaign that has...

Twenty-eight years after his first campaign, George W. Bush is waging his last. If the polls are right, the president could wind up experiencing the sting of defeat for the first time since that 1978 race. Most of the winning campaigns in between have been close, and Bush's victories have hinged in part on his flair for retail politicking that allows him to make personal connections with voters. But the war in Iraq has driven Bush's popularity down to a point where he has had to avoid major public events and instead has appeared almost exclusively with party elites. Still,...

STOCKTON, Calif. (AP) - President Bush tried to focus voters on the fight against terror Tuesday and away from the ethics questions that are making the Republican election campaign difficult this year. Bush racheted up his charges against Democrats during a fundraising tour of California, flatly accusing his political opponents of being soft on terror, but could not avoid the scandals that are dogging the GOP. He was campaigning for two incumbents who were benefactors of corrupt lobbyist Jack Abramoff and was drawn into defending the House speaker from calls for his resignation over a sex scandal on Capitol Hill....

WASHINGTON - Quoting repeatedly from Osama bin Laden, President Bush said Tuesday that pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq would fulfill the terrorist leader's wishes and propel him into a more powerful global threat in the mold of Adolf Hitler. With two months until an Election Day that hinges largely on national security, Bush laid out bin Laden's vision in detail, including new revelations from previously unreported documents. Voters were never more united behind the president than in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks, and his speech was designed to convince Americans that the threat has not faded five...

ST. HELENA, Calif. -- Unable to drive down high oil prices, President Bush is spending Earth Day promoting futuristic hydrogen fuel technology as a way to wean Americans from gas-guzzling vehicles. After a bike ride near his Napa Valley resort Saturday morning, Bush planned to visit the California Fuel Cell Partnership in West Sacramento for a tour and speech on his energy plan. The plan does not include any measures that would reduce gas prices in the short term, the White House acknowledges. But with Republicans worried that the increasing cost to drive could hurt them in the voting booth...

Waco, Texas -- President Bush used the upcoming income tax-filing deadline and his weekly radio address to promote tax-cut proposals and set up an election-year debate with Democrats over the issue. In the broadcast Saturday, Bush urged Congress to permanently extend tax cuts that he pushed into law during his first term, which are set to expire in coming years. "Some Democrats in Washington are insisting that we let that happen, or even repeal the tax cuts now," Bush said as he spent the weekend at his Texas ranch. "In either case, that would weaken our economy and would leave...

WASHINGTON -- President Bush marked the anniversary of the Iraq war Sunday by touting the efforts to build democracy there and avoiding any mention of the daily violence that rages three years after he ordered an invasion. The president didn't utter the word "war." "We are implementing a strategy that will lead to victory in Iraq," the president assured a public that is increasingly skeptical that he has a plan to end the fighting after the deaths of more than 2,300 U.S. troops. Administration officials repeated the mantra that progress continues toward building a unified Iraqi government and nation. "Now...

<p>WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot and injured a man during a weekend quail hunting trip in Texas, his spokeswoman said Sunday.</p> <p>Harry Whittington, 78, was "alert and doing fine" after Cheney sprayed Whittington with shotgun pellets on Saturday at the Armstrong Ranch in south Texas, said property owner Katharine Armstrong.</p>

WASHINGTON -- The White House is refusing to reveal details of tainted lobbyist Jack Abramoff's visits with President Bush's staff. Abramoff had "a few staff-level meetings" at the Bush White House, presidential spokesman Scott McClellan said Tuesday. But he would not say with whom Abramoff met, which interests he was representing or how he got access to the White House. Since Abramoff pleaded guilty two weeks ago to conspiracy, mail fraud and tax evasion charges in an influence-peddling scandal, McClellan has told reporters he was checking into Abramoff's meetings. "I'm making sure that I have a thorough report back to...

ABOARD AIR FORCE II - Vice President Dick Cheney didn't suffer for comfort on the cavernous cargo plane that he rode into Iraq and Afghanistan this week.The Air Force loaded the plane with the "silver bullet," a mobile home in the sky strapped down in the middle of the belly. The accommodations included sleeping and working quarters that protected him from the noise and cold of the cargo hold during a more than five-hour flight into Baghdad.The rest of his traveling party was not so lucky. Cheney's senior staff and junior aides were assigned to a cramped three rows of...

Facing tough questions from battle-weary troops, Vice President Dick Cheney on Sunday cited signs of progress in Iraq and signaled that force changes could come in 2006. Cheney rode the wave of last week's parliamentary elections during a 10-hour surprise visit to Iraq that aimed to highlight progress at a time when Americans question the mission. Military commanders and top government officials offered glowing reports, but the rank-and-file troops Cheney met did not seem to share their enthusiasm. "From our perspective, we don't see much as far as gains," said Marine Cpl. Bradley Warren, the first to question Cheney in...

MAR DEL PLATA, Argentina - President Bush on Friday worked to smooth the United States' troubled image in Latin America, commending Argentina's efforts to improve its damaged economy. "The economy has changed in quite dramatic fashions thanks to the wise decisions you have made," Bush told Argentina President Nestor Kirchner. While not directly offering U.S. help as Argentina seeks to reach a new financial settlement with the International Monetary Fund, Bush expressed his support. "His record is such now that he can take his case to the IMF with a much stronger hand," Bush said. Bush spoke on the first...

NEDRA PICKLER Associated Press First woman White House head chef hired http://www.cleveland.com/newsflash/politics/index.ssf?/base/politics-5/1124028652274710.xml&storylist=washington Sunday, August 14, 2005 AP's NEDRA PICKLER in the Cleveland Plain Dealer Kitchen duties may have traditionally been viewed as women's work, but not at the White House. Until now: Cristeta Comerford has been named executive chief. Ride With Armstrong Among Bush's Plans http://www.ajc.com/news/content/shared-gen/ap/US_President_And_White_House_Advisers/Bush_Biking.html Sunday, August 14, 2005 AP's NEDRA PICKLER in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution President Bush is getting plenty of bike time during his ranch vacation and next weekend he even gets to hit the trails with seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. Protesters Outside, Bush...

After weeks of Republicans questioning Sen. John Kerry's military service and fitness to be commander in chief, Democrats are employing the same tactics against President Bush. The presidential nominee on Wednesday assailed the president's handling of the war in Iraq, the economy, health care and other issues, accusing the Republican incumbent of breaking his promises and sending the nation in the wrong direction. Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee made fresh allegations that Bush was AWOL for duty in the National Guard during the Vietnam War and a new independent group is airing an aid making the same point.

 DISCLAIMER: This is from a liberal source but still very funny. She is an awful reporter with a funny name. Rush Limbaugh has ridiculed her coverage. She is so awful, she has written tons of incompetent stuff about George Bush too. She has fan sites on the internet.   ______________________________________________  Nit Picklering AP reporter Nedra Pickler is known as being a stickler for detail in her presidential-campaign coverage. Too bad she gets so many things wrong.By Matthew YglesiasWeb Exclusive: 1.20.04Print Friendly | Email Article A Dec. 10 wire story took a look at a recent Democratic debate and concluded that Democrats "sometimes leave...