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President Obama walks with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Colonie Town supervisor Paula Mahan to greet well-wishers upon arrival at Albany International Airport
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President Obama tours the SUNY-Albany Nano-Tech Complex flooded in yellow light with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Chris Borst
More pics in a while
President Obama chats with Col. Mike Minihan while making his way to board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. the President is heading to Albany to visit the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering’s Albany NanoTech Complex at the State University of New York and to speak on the economy.
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Coming up:
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AP: U.S. companies in March posted the highest number of job openings in nearly four years, a sign that hiring could strengthen in the coming months after slowing this spring.
The Labor Department said Tuesday that employers advertised 3.74 million job openings in March. That’s up from a revised 3.57 million in February. The March figure was the highest since July 2008, just before the financial crisis erupted that fall.
The increase in job openings suggests that weaker hiring gains in March and April could be temporary. It usually takes one to three months for employers to fill openings…..
More here
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Steve Benen: ‘With a polarized Congress already on the defensive, President Obama on Tuesday will outline a five-point “to do” list for lawmakers that packages job creation and mortgage relief ideas he has proposed before, administration officials say.
Mr. Obama will present the election-year list during a visit to a university science complex in Albany. The components of his challenge to Congress – and to the Republican-led House in particular – will be a feature of his appearances throughout the spring, aides said.’
…. Will Congress approve the list? Well, no, probably not. While these fairly non-controversial ideas might have been easy to pass in previous years, Republican filibusters and GOP control of the House probably makes any kind of economic legislation impossible. It’s not even clear if Republican lawmakers want the economy to improve before the election.
Then why bother? I suspect the point is to show the president presenting mainstream economic ideas that would have traditionally enjoyed bipartisan support, while a do-nothing Republican Congress sits on its hands…..
More here
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…. with St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Lance Berkman after welcoming the team to the White House to honor their 2011 World Series victory, Jan. 17
….. greeting neighbors outside the home of William and Endia Eason in Cleveland, Ohio, Jan. 4
…. during the flight on Marine One to Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill., Jan. 11
….. greeting Tuskeegee Airmen in the East Garden Room of the White House prior to a screening of the film “Red Tails” in the Family Theater, Jan. 13
….. watching a performance backstage with iCarly cast members prior to an iCarly screening at Hayfield Secondary School in Alexandria, Va., Jan. 13
Jan. 27
… boarding Marine One for departure from Cambridge-Dorchester Airport in Cambridge, Md., Jan. 27
First Lady Michelle Obama participates in a potato sack race with Jimmy Fallon in the East Room of the White House, Jan. 25
…. signing items for Make-A-Wish child Rafael Mullet during a visit in the Oval Office, Jan. 25
….. with students at Parklawn Elementary School in Alexandria, Va., Jan. 25
…. hugging Rep. Gabrielle Giffords before delivering the State of the Union address, Jan. 24
How did I miss these, they were posted on Flickr a week ago 
More photos here
…. greeting Beth Hamilton, principal of Medina Elementary School
President Obama greets school children from Medina Elementary School after attending a fundraiser
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Charles P. Pierce (Esquire): Why Does Everybody Hate Mitt? …. I’ve cast my memory back as far as I can, and I cannot recall a major politician of either party who causes so many members of his party to spit (metaphorically, one hopes) at the simple mention of his name. And this is not a recent phenomenon. One of the few insights worthy of anyone’s time in that horrible Game Change book was the fact that, by the end of the 2008 presidential cycle, all of the other Republican candidates had come to despise Willard. (John McCain was apoplectic on the subject, even by McCain’s standards, which are considerable.) This now has seemed to transfer itself to the Republican electorate in general. Nobody likes this guy…..
On the surface, this elemental loathing seems disproportionate, even if you take into account how much of the GOP’s Jesus-jammin’ base distrusts the extended coven into which Romney was born …. Willard is something of a foof who spends all his time falling a few yards short of sincerity. He speaks a form of trust-fund English that can be off-putting. He is as utterly unprincipled as a politician can be, and he’s about as trustworthy as a puff adder… all Romney’s done is change his position on a whole host of issues, and talk like the guy who’s come to repossess the family farm…..
More here
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President Obama, flanked by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, in the Roosevelt Room, Nov 28
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WH: Over the weekend, a report by the Associated Press detailed how the Affordable Care Act is dramatically reducing drug costs for seniors who hit the prescription drug coverage gap known as the donut hole. This year, seniors are benefiting from a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs in the donut hole. And the discount and other provisions in the law are saving money for seniors. As the AP reported:
The average beneficiary who falls into the coverage gap would have spent $1,504 this year on prescriptions. But thanks to discounts and other provisions in President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul law, that cost fell to $901…
…. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, seniors will receive bigger discounts in the years ahead. By 2020, the donut hole will be closed completely.
And even if you don’t hit the donut hole, there’s still good news for beneficiaries with Medicare Part D. Prescription drug premiums will not rise next year, and thanks to health reform, seniors can get preventive services like mammograms and other cancer screenings for free.
More here
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Caught ya M4O!
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Chat away 
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Hey, that photo looks familiar:
Chat away – I’ll be back later
