Results tagged “obama”

GayCo, Chicago's home for gay and lesbian sketch comedy, delivers the laughs with its new show, The Audacity of Nope or How I Fell for a Pansy Scheme, which runs through Dec. 5 at Strawdog Theater. Written by the performers themselves, the show has enlivened recent events facing the LGBT community with loads of laughter that leave practically no stone unturned, including Iowans singing about ham balls and equality.

                     

It's time for another peek behind the curtain of the Obama White House in which we learn, among other things, that our President is more than likely a Star Wars nerd. First the lightsaber photo and now a photo with a stormtrooper and Chewbacca? We're digging it. As always, the photos come from the White House Flickr stream.

                            

The tumultuous first year for President Obama continues: G-20, health care, Chicago 2016's flop, the war in Afghanistan, and criticism for an award he didn't even ask for (Karl has more on that in a bit). We can imagine Obama has probably asked himself on more than one occasion recently, "Why did I want this job again?" [All photos via the White House Flickr stream]

And the funny thing is, the protesters are pro-gay. In reaction to news that President Obama will deliver the keynote address for LGBT org Human Right Campaign's fundraising gala Saturday, the Chicago-based Gay Liberation Network are planning to picket the event. They say "the time for talking is over" and want to see a little less conversation, a little more action on LGBT rights from the President.

Between health care and the failed Chicago 2016 Olympics bid, we knew the honeymoon was probably over for President Obama. Even SNL has turned on Obama as evidenced by last night's opening skit. Politics aside, we couldn't help but chuckle at the Chicago 2016 t-shirt joke.

The Obama administration has gone into spin control in regards to Obama's trip to Copenhagen to support Chicago 2016's failed Olympic bid and is using the classic, "Well, they told us it'd be fine" method. A report in this morning's Tribune reveals behind-the-scenes details describing the way in which the Chicago 2016 bid committee persuaded Obama to make his much-talked-about whirlwind trip to Copenhagen on behalf of the city's bid. Worried that the heated health care bill would head to the floor of either the House or Senate for debate with him in Europe, Obama was still hesitant to make the trip until a few days before he took off.

• So what happened at the IOC vote? Some say blame the USOC though an Australian IOC rep thinks an Asian alliance may have teamed up to help Tokyo and hurting Chicago's bid as a result.
• Obama had a subdued, respectful reaction to the results - did we expect anything else - but the question as to how much this will impact his legacy looms.
• It took three hours after Chicago's first round bounce for Mayor Daley to surface, but he did and he was straight-forward in his thoughts on the bid: "I'm disappointed but you go on with your life."

     

We're just a few scant hours away from learning who, exactly, will host the 2016 Summer Olympics and things are getting heated. An American source told CNN the battle between Rio and Chicago is "close as hell." Still, representatives for long-shots Tokyo and Madrid are also still going all out for the bid. Need a quick cram session so you can wow the coworkers around the water cooler with your 2016 bid knowledge before the big announcement? Then check out our candidate city profiles: Chicago; Tokyo; Madrid; and Rio.

It's not a big secret (at least in Chicago) who stands to win if the city gets to host the 2016 Summer Games. Billions of dollars in construction contracts, the real estate transactions, and the concession agreements will be up for grabs. And that's just the official, big dollar stuff. But what if Chicago doesn't get the Olympics? Who stands to lose? Aside from the political implications for Mayor Daley (and if you listen carefully, you can hear the knives being sharpened, just in case), President Barack Obama has certainly raised the stakes by heading to Denmark to lobby for his hometown.

It was too controversial for Walgreens to carry so now CVS is stepping up to fill the Obama Chia Pet void. The Sun-Times spoke to Joseph Enterprises Inc. president Joseph Pedott about the...gift? And he claims to have the support of the Commander-in-Chief himself.

This morning, the Obama administration confirmed what was reported last week and what we all knew, deep-down, was going to happen: Obama will make an appearance in Copenhagen ahead of the IOC vote for the 2016 Olympics. Every media outlet is reporting this morning on Obama's trip - and if you're expressing surprise at this announcement, let me know because I've got some magic beans to sell you - and it appears as if the trip will be a quick one. Obama will leave Thursday evening to arrive in Copenhagen just ahead of Friday's final bid presentation (Friday morning in Denmark) and be back Friday afternoon D.C. time. Mayor Daley left bright and early this morning for Denmark where some members of the Chicago 2016 team have been since last week.

Are we sure that's him and not just a cardboard cutout? [via the suave Sir Andrew Huff]

Crain's is reporting that President Obama will go to Copenhagen in October to lobby for Chicago 2016's bid. This comes as absolutely no surprise. Crain's cites a report by Olympic website Around the Rings which cites a source within the IOC as saying Obama is coming.

    

Come October 1, you'll notice fewer police cars near the Obama family's South Side home. the Chicago Police Department announced they would be ending their security details at the home after ongoing discussions with the Secret Service. However, spokesman Roderick Drew said the CPD will still have some sort of presence at the house. According to the Tribune, the CPD has spent $2.2 million (through July of this year) on the security detail at the house of which $1.5 million will be reimbursed.

Speaking of Obama, now he's hinting that he may got to Copenhagen after all to pimp Chicago's 2016 Olympic bid. This...is no surprise. What better way to help the bid about by a sudden reversal in plans and a dramatic entrance? The IOC would eat it up. We're not saying he's definitely going, we're just saying nothing would surprise us anymore.

President Barack Obama is on a whirlwind media tour this weekend to help promote his health care reform bill. Below is his appearance on NBC's Meet The Press, one of the many stops he made for this morning's news shows. He'll also be the lone guest tomorrow night on The Late Show with David Letterman.

While President Barack Obama hasn't confirmed his presence at the closing argument for Chicago's Olympic bid, he does have his two best women on the job. Valerie Jarrett, Obama's senior adviser, explained some of the strategies being used to secure Chicago's 2016 Olympic bid with the Tribune on Friday.

As it becomes more and more likely that President Obama won't be making that trip to Copenhagen in early October to support the Chicago 2016 bid, some have speculated his absence will hurt the bid's chances. Not so, according to IOC president Jacques Rogge, who said that appearances by heads of state are welcome but, "absolutely not a requirement of the IOC." [Tribune]

Mayor Daley's pilgrimage to the south lawn of the White House Wednesday appeared to clear up what has been the subject of much speculation of late: will Obama be going to Copenhagen? The answer: no. That's bad news for Mayor Daley; while it's still plausible that Chicago will get the games (or that the always politically shrewd Barack Obama will show up in Copenhagen anyway) without the American president, and potentially millions of federal dollars in security, logistics and infrastructure, Rio's bid is looking especially attractive.

              

We'll have more on today's event at the White House, supporting the 2016 Olympic bid, tomorrow, but for now, check out some photos from today's events. Mayor Daley introduced Michelle Obama who, in turn, introduced her husband, President Barack Obama. Below is a clip of Obama's speech.

It's a Twitter myth no more. TMZ has the audio of Obama's famed "jackass" call on Kanye.

                     

With all the talk of the Olympics and health care, what else has been going on in the Obama White House?

Last night, Kanye was scheduled to appear alongside Jay-Z and Rihanna on the premiere of Jay Leno's new show, but the host took the opportunity to bring Kanye out and talk to him about Sunday night's Taylor Swift Thunder Theft. Kanye's apology seemed as genuine as you can expect from him. And for the conspiracy theorists who still think it was staged, well...we can't blame you. We're suckers for conspiracy theories. The whole thing stinks to high heaven, but, as we pointed out yesterday, to pull off such a stunt would require a level of self-awareness on Kanye's part. So let's just blame Leno for slipping something into Kanye's drink on Sunday night.

While the Chicago 2016 team is fine sending the First Lady to Copenhagen in October instead of the President for the final Olympic pitch, they may get another high-profile boost from the city's other big name: Oprah. The Trib caught up with her in Toronto where she's promoting Precious at that city's annual film festival. When asked about her involvement, Oprah said, "There's some talk about it, and if I feel I can be useful there, then that's what I will do." Let the speculation begin.

A mash-up of Rep. Wilson's "YOU LIE!" moment during President Obama's speech was bound to happen. At least it was as awesome as this. It's all we could ask for on a Friday afternoon. [via]

It may not be Chicago-related, exactly, but we'd be remiss in not mentioning today's eighth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Here are some stories of local interest in relation to the anniversary.

• There's still some skepticism as to whether or not President Obama will make the trip to Copenhagen on the eve of the IOC's October 2nd vote for the 2016 Olympic games.
• Speaking of the Olympics, in the latest edition of one poll that measures where city's rank with their bids, Chicago is now second behind Rio.
• WBEZ talked to local Congressmen to see where they stand on health care reform in the wake of President Obama's speech last night.

          

Last night, President Obama addressed a joint-session of Congress and the American public to make his case for his health care reform plan, addressed controversies such as the "death panel" accusation, and mixed the usual Obama pragmatism with a bit more of a hard-line stance (the Sun-Times' Lynn Sweet called it "a magnificent balancing act"). You can watch the speech below in its entirety and read the full text here.

Sure, a lot of us were off for the three-day weekend but there was still stuff happening in this great city of ours. Here's what you might have missed:

• At his trial for the Brown's Chicken murders, a high school friend of James Degorski testified today that Degorski admitted committing the murders.
• An Aurora man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for acting as a lookout during a gang-related beating that resulted in the victim's death.
• Some local post offices are under review for possible closings.