My Brother's Keeper

President Barack Obama introduced the most important initiative of his presidency today when he hosted an array of esteemed businessmen, political power brokers and other individuals of influence at the White House for the announcement of "My Brother's Keeper" which will focus on foundations and business leaders donating up to $200 million over a 5 year period to target minority youth of color.

Let's be honest, while esteemed writes like Jason Whitlock and Michael Wilbon debate over the relevance of the N-Word and how the NFL polices it's use, minority youth of color is the black communities achilles heel and future.  While The Affordable Health Care Act is The President's signature legislation, being the first black president and initiating programs to positively impact the young black male would impact his legacy in a more meaningful way.

A gathering that attracts Colin Powell, Bill O'Reilly, Rev. Al Sharpton and Magic Johnson is meaningful for more than a nice photo op and networking.

Is National Healthcare On Life Support?

Yesterday a Florida judge ruled that the individual mandate of President Barack Obama's healthcare reform was unconstitutional, dealing a major blow to national healthcare going forward in the future. It will be interesting to see how hard the White House fights this decision, but it looks like the Supreme Court will make the ultimate decision. If our President is politically savvy, he would begin compromise meetings immediately, since national healthcare has been his signature accomplishment. Having the Supreme Court ultimately decide that it's not going to work would be a devastating blow to President Obama's reelection efforts.

Obama's State of the Union!

President Barack Obama delivered his State of the Union address amidst the usual interruptions of clapping to recognize every statement that was made by the President. President Obama is keenly optimistic that the economy is stabilizing for the better, which may be news to individuals who are losing their jobs daily. The President hit all of the typical points in his speech, however, if he's not able to work with his Republican counterparts the speech will just be political rhetoric.

Republicans want to decrease spending and repeal the health care bill. President Obama asked Congress to work with him to improve the health care bill. Only time will tell if common sense will override political agendas to get the country moving in the right direction.

Barack Seeking Support!

When President Barack Obama hastily paraded former president Bill Clinton out for a press briefing on Friday, it gave a hint of desperation for all of the criticism that President Obama has received for agreeing to extend the Bush tax cuts that have been in effect for 10 years. Democrats have berated the President for caving in to Republican pressure.

President Obama did what makes political sense at a time when the economy is still in turmoil. Getting Bill Clinton to c0-sign on the measure should give him some credibility with the American people, something he's been searching for since he took office nearly 2 years ago.

Velma Hart Now Looking For A Job!

Velma Hart, the woman who famously addressed President Obama at a September town hall meeting has lost her job as a chief financial officer for the non-profit organization Am Vets. Her job loss was a part of the organization's efforts to cut expenses. She gained national attention when she told the President the following:

"Quite frankly, I'm exhausted. Exhausted of defending you, defending your administration, defending the man for change I voted for, and deeply disappointed with where we are right now. And quite frankly, Mr. President, I need you to answer honestly, Is this my new reality?"

With Hart's national notoriety and talent she probably won't be unemployed for long, but her job loss is just another example that the economy is still struggling to recover despite what some economic pundits may state. The gainfully employed should not take their situations for granted, because employers have no emotion when deciding who gets to keep their job. It's all about business.

A New Normal!

President Obama appeared on "60 Minutes" last night to discuss his emotional stability after the political "shellacking" that he took last Tuesday. Very interesting interview to say the least and The President vows to work with Republicans to prevent gridlock in policy making. One thing that the President said that stuck with me is that we may be in a "new normal" in terms of the economic structure of our country and employment. President Obama stated that he hopes that the new normal isn't company's doing more with less, satisfied that they will still make the same profits while expecting more from employees, which will prevent job creation.

The reality is that we're probably in a "new normal" from a employment perspective. Politics is often a dirty business, but business' look at bottom line numbers in terms of profits. The President can impact many things, however he can't force company's to hire when the company is operating efficiently and making desired profits. This philosophy puts most company's in the mode of simply replacing workers that they have to replace.

"It Feels Bad"

President Barack Obama had the tough job of meeting the press yesterday after taking the political beating of his life the night before. Democrats lost the House of Representatives, barely kept the Senate, and lost major swing states to elected Republican governors. The President took the hit stating that "It Feels Bad" that the policies that he's pushed in 2 years have been rejected by the electorate.

I've hoped that Obama would not be a one term president, but after Tuesday night, he's facing a major uphill battle to regain the presidency in 2012. His only hope now is to quickly turn around the economy and get unemployment in the 7-8% range. The crazy thing is that President Obama hasn't done a horrible job in my opinion, but perception is reality and reality hit him over the head Tuesday. How he responds will be interesting, but I suggest he place a call to the master politician, Bill Clinton. Clinton's demise was predicted after 1994 mid terms, but he moved to the center on policy and survived to serve another term.

Obama's Change!

Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News writes a good article about what President Barack Obama is facing in 2 weeks when his real change will take place in the mid-term elections. Obama and the Democrats are about to have their clocks cleaned because people simple aren't buying the change that our President promised two years ago. Obama is traveling the country vigorously campaigning for his party, surely knowing that in 2 weeks he will be faced with the challenge of convincing an electorate that he deserves to keep his own job.

The President Campaigning Vigorously!

Despite low poll numbers and the perception that he's the worst President in our history, President Barack Obama has been campaigning vigorously throughout the country in hopes of duplicating Democratic voter turnout from two years ago when he was elected. Republicans are looking at victories throughout the country if poll numbers are any indication. It's interesting that Republican candidates are leading in polls regardless of the candidate's personal or financial issues. The resurgent tea party has been an unstoppable locomotive in terms of raising issues that are personal to conservative voters, and changed the political landscape from where it was 2 years ago.

President Obama has failed to get his message out in a clear and concise manner. The few clips that I've seen while he's been on the trail show him being reactionary to criticism. He appears more like a candidate than the President of the United States. It'll be interesting to see if he can get his previous mojo back. It's probably too late for the November elections, but our President needs to go back to his past successes and simply become more presidential.

Props To Bush?

President Barack Obama addressed the nation last night to inform all of us that the war in Iraq is over. The President who did oppose the surge in Iraq, admitted that although he and former president George W. Bush had opposing views on the war that Bush had a commitment to overall success in supprting the surge.

Conservatives are focused on the fact that President Obama opposed the surge, but he finished what was started which has lead to ultimate success in Iraq.

Mr. President You Can't Comment On Everything!

President Barack Obama is a very smart man, but it's becoming clearer that he's simply not politically savvy. He continues to have an opinion on anything and everything when he doesn't have to say a word. His opinion regarding the Ground Zero mosque was stated in a speech Friday night that came out of nowhere, and has created another firestorm.

President Obama doesn't have to state his opinion on everything as his statements are often divisive which brings unnecessary attention to himself. I'm sure his intentions are good, but unfortunately he's not helping himself or his party.

President Obama Hoops It Up For The Troops!

President Barack Obama hooped it up with a contingent of active and retired NBA stars along with UConn's Maya Moore yesterday entertaining wounded soldiers, and participants of a Washington mentoring program. Retired stars Bill Russell, Earvin Johnson and Alonzo Mourning joined LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony Kobe Bryant along with other stars to help culminate President Obama's birthday week.

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Roy Barnes Ignores Obama Visit!

President Barack Obama made a visit to Atlanta yesterday to speak in front of a group of disabled veterans and raise money for the Democratic party. More interesting is the fact that present Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue greeted the president at the airport, but present Democratic nominee for governor Roy Barnes was nowhere to be found, campaigning in the southern part of the state. Barnes clearly felt that he had nothing to gain by greeting the president, and that perhaps he even feels that President Obama is a liability.

A lot has changed for our president in the last year and a half. The euphoria that he once generated has been replaced by second guessing and skepticism. He's putting his presidential face on, but he needs to regain the trust of the American people and his party in order to change his fortunes.

Viewing A Bad Move!

President Barack Obama will be making an appearance on "The View" tomorrow instead of addressing The Boy Scouts of America's 100th Anniversary. President Obama needs positive press, but I don't think that visiting Barbara Walters and company will do the trick.

Obama is looking increasingly detached from the realities of economic hardship and providing the message of "change" to the country. While he needs positive press, we probably need to see less of him talking about "change" and more implementation of policies that will positively impact change for our country.

Shirley Sherrod Offered Job Back!

Shirley Sherrod continued to make news yesterday in a good way, when USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and White House spokesman Robert Gibbs apologized for the rush to judgement that took place when she was asked to resign Monday because of a speech that she gave months ago that gave a hint of possible racist views. The segment of the speech, which was brilliantly edited was telling a story of her ultimately assisting a Georgia family in keeping their farm and preventing them from going into bankruptcy.

Sherrod, who was also offered a new job, has been vindicated but has not decided if she should accept the job offer. This whole story should be a case study on racism, politics and the media in our country. The rush to judgement on a assumed racist statement before knowing the facts is ridiculous. The political slant with the White House's involvement is still unknown, and the media's dictating of forced resignation is comical. It's amazing that the White House doesn't have a backbone. Being the first black president doesn't mean a thing if you don't stand for something.

Shirley Sherrod is to be commended for not backing down and calling out everyone involved to save her good name including the White House.

Did The White House Force Shirley Sherrod Out?

Shirley Sherrod, a federal agriculture official states that she was forced by the White House to resign her position after video surfaced of a speech she gave to the NAACP stating that she didn't give her full support to a white couple she was assisting to save their farm from forclosure. The initial video, which was heavily edited didn't allow her to tell the entire story that she ultimately helped the couple save their farm. The couple, Eloise and Roger Spooner state that Sherrod kept them out of bankruptcy and is a friend for life according to a story in the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Obviously there can't be double standards when it comes to race based remarks by public officials. However, if the White House forced the resignation of Ms. Sherrod, it may have been a bit hasty. Sherrod is obviously not going away quietly as she was on CNN aggressively defending herself yesterday. In her defense, the NAACP which initially chastised the remarks, backed off and apologized to Sherrod after viewing the entire speech. Perhaps Sherrod ultimately would've lost her job, but she never had a chance to defend herself, which just doesn't seem fair.

Does McChrystal Have To Go?

President Obama now has to deal with another public relations and administration nightmare after his top commander in Afghanistan Army General Stanley McChrystal made disparaging comments in a Rolling Stones Magazine article about the president and his staff including V.P. Joe Biden. McChrystal is scheduled to meet with the president today to discuss the situation and reports are that he's already offered his resignation. McChrystal aide, Duncan Boothby has already resigned over the furor as he's the one who apparently arranged the article.

The war in Afghanistan has been plagued with problems, but President Obama may not have a choice but to fire McChrystal simply for insubordination. If he doesn't fire him, he will look weak, but that could come at a cost if the person replacing McChrystal doesn't have success in Afghanistan.

Will Rahm Be Gone By The End of The Year?

There is heavy speculation that White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel may be gone by the end of the year according to the Telegraph.co.uk. Factors that may lead to Emanuel's exit range from conflicting styles with President Obama's inner circle, to running for mayor if his home town in Chicago. If Emanuel does exit, the president will have concluded the usual growing pains of a first term administration. The wear and tear of the job is wearing on President Obama, but if he can get through this year without any additional hiccups, things should begin to smooth out for him.

Is President Obama Tough Enough!

President Barack Obama is being hammered right now during this BP oil fiasco. Even supporters of the President from Spike Lee to James Carville have criticized the Commander and Chief on what appears to be his lax handling of the crisis. When pictures began to appear last week of oil soaked birds, the perceived effects of the oil spill became a reality. Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News writes about how it's time for the president to hammer BP.

President Obama was elected to run our country, but his handling of the BP oil spill is raising red flags. New reports of the oil spill being fully fixed by late summer isn't acceptable. The President does need to get tougher with the company and restore the confidence in the people of our country that we showed him when we elected him as President.

"Obama Threw Me Under The Bus!"

Rev. Jeremiah Wright states in a letter obtained by the Associated Press that President Barack Obama and his administration no longer to will respond to him according to FoxNews. In strongly worded language, he states the following:

"No one in the Obama administration will respond to me, listen to me, talk to me or read anything that I write to them. I am 'toxic' in terms of the Obama administration."

"I am 'radioactive,' Sir. When Obama threw me under the bus, he threw me under the bus literally!" he wrote. "Any advice that I offer is going to be taken as something to be avoided. Please understand that!"

It would be interesting to get President Obama's response to Wright's assertions, but the White House is very quiet.