When it comes to intelligence briefings, Obama isn’t even voting ‘present’
Marc Thiessen asks a good question in the Washington Post today: Why is President Obama skipping more than half of his daily intelligence meetings?
Writes Thiessen:
Clint Eastwood re-enacts a scene from the president's daily intelligence briefings. (AP Photo)
President Obama is touting his foreign policy experience on the campaign trail, but startling new statistics suggest that national security has not necessarily been the personal priority the president makes it out to be. It turns out that more than half the time, the commander in chief does not attend his daily intelligence meeting.
The Government Accountability Institute examined President Obama’s schedule from the day he took office until mid-June 2012, to see how often he attended his Presidential Daily Brief (PDB) — the meeting at which he is briefed on the most critical intelligence threats to the country. During his first 1,225 days in office, Obama attended his PDB just 536 times — or 43.8 percent of the time. During 2011 and the first half of 2012, his attendance became even less frequent — falling to just over 38 percent. By contrast, Obama’s predecessor, George W. Bush almost never missed his daily intelligence meeting.
Thiessen relays a comment by a spokesman for the National Security Council, who points out that Obama still receives the information from the briefing daily. But, as Thiessen points out, the administration has portrayed Obama’s participation in these meetings as evidence of his deep “exploration of foreign policy and intelligence issues.” That’s rather at odds with the reality that he skipped almost 700 of these meetings in three and a half years.
And, of course, we would like for our president to get into just such an exploration of these issues with his resident experts on foreign policy and intelligence. Thiessen cites former security officials who say the meetings are an important way for Obama and his security advisers to ask questions of one another. When the president isn’t there, that isn’t happening.
This is certainly of a piece with the reporting from Bob Woodward’s latest book that “gaps” in presidential leadership mean, at times, “no one is running Washington.”
Of course, attending these meetings would make it harder for the president to fulfill one of his other priorities in, ahem, unprecedented fashion.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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394 comments Add your comment
2 masters degrees
September 10th, 2012
4:18 pm
If you think that showing up to a standing meeting instead of reading the information is earth shattering you are probably a republican.
Bush school grades showed he was a C student! They probably needed to draw pictures on the board for him also.
on a side note.. Romney vetted Ryan by checking his taxes… and why are you repubs not finding that hypocritical… ohh I know.
Michael H. Smith
September 10th, 2012
4:23 pm
Oh the sanctimonious double standards crowd is all of the sudden finding something hypocritical?! More pot calling kettle black
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
4:24 pm
Romney vetted Ryan by checking his taxes… and why are you repubs not finding that hypocritical
——————
Perhaps because we don’t believe it’s any of our business.
You’re just ate up with hatred for people who are more successful than you, aren’t you?
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
September 10th, 2012
4:28 pm
WOW
two days before Apple is expected to announce the specifications, price and availability of the iPhone 5, JP Morgan released a short research note suggesting that iPhone 5 sales “could potentially add between 1/4 to 1/2%-point to fourth quarter annualized GDP growth.”
salon.com
That’s some serious weight to toss around.
curious
September 10th, 2012
4:29 pm
That’s what Al Capone said. My taxes are nobody’s business.
Auntie Christ
September 10th, 2012
4:32 pm
Rafe Hollister, suffering through Oblamer’s ineptocracy
September 10th, 2012
4:10 pm
“Auntie, hint, they never were objective. Long ago, we didn’t know any better, as the conservative side was never told. ”
***********************************************************
Again with the myth of the “liberal media,” like the Santa Claus and virgin birth a fairy tale that won’t die. Don’t know how old you are, but I am in my mid 60’s and began watching “Face the Nation,” and “Meet the Press,” when politicians and leaders from either party actually sweated under the grilling they received from the journalists when they tried to blow off a question, or voiced some statement contradicting an earlier position. Korea and Viet Nam were cheer led by the media, Whether MLK had ties to the Communists was questioned along with coverage of atrocities in Birmingham. It was only after Nixon raised the specter of “liberal media,” and his lawlessness later exposed did “liberal media” become a right wing/repub talking point. These days, if the media doesn’t give orly taitz the same coverage given to our President, we are told that that is “evidence” of media bias.
Michael H. Smith
September 10th, 2012
4:32 pm
The Democrats have declared war on God, Guns and Good fortune.
DebbieDoRight - A DoRight Woman
September 10th, 2012
4:35 pm
Kyle you’ve finally fallen off the wagon. Please give up drinking and start back to writing. I believe in you Kyle. You can DO it. Just take the pledge and remember to take it one day at a time!
PS: Please don’t be dissauded — it seems that 99% of the cons have started drinking and cussing too, (probably since Chevy didn’t fail and Obama got Osama); but i believe that even though you’re sorta whacked; you’re still one of the FEW cogent cons.
Please seek all the help and take all the time that you need.
Signed,
Your friend Debbie.
H.E. Pennypacker
September 10th, 2012
4:37 pm
Kyle,
Fair enough and I appreciate your well thought out response. I tend to not like to overlook any relevant data point in assessing the polls, but as long as your are consistent regarding Rasmussen. I was also looking at other data sources like Nate Silver’s handicapping of the outcome that has swung much more dramatically in recent days. Lastly, Neil Newhouse does not agree with your assessment of party enthusiasm as he just released a memo this morning contending that the GOP has an advantage in voter enthusiasm.
Also a point of clarification on the Chevy Volt. It is misleading to state that they are losing money on each incremental Volt they sell. What one is doing when they state as much is allocating a pro-rata share of the full up front costs that have been capitalized to develop the car. Since the car has been a big disappointment due to its high per unit cost, there are not many vehicles yet sold over which to allocate this big upfront figure so it is estimated that each car sold to date is assigned ~$50,000-$55,000 of these upfront costs.
If one were to look just at the construction of the car, the variable costs to manufacture and sell one additional car are below the sales price and hence generate operating profit to ever so slightly chip away at the large upfront investment.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
4:40 pm
I don’t recall the Toyota folks whining about the development costs of the Prius.
It’s kicking GM’s hind quarters.
Toyota built a product people actually wanted. The Prius is how free market capitalism works. The Volt is how crony corporations work.
Not Nate
September 10th, 2012
4:41 pm
Nate Silver picked Clinton then Gore then Kerry then Obama and now Obama again. Sometimes he’s right and sometimes he’s wrong but if you study the data closely a pattern will emerge.
@@
September 10th, 2012
4:42 pm
Geez! Maybe the left should’ve vetted Obama.
Did you hear?
A candidate for the White House has a new plan to take seniors out of traditional Medicare and put them at the mercy of private insurance plans. No, I’m not talking about Gov. Romney. The candidate whose would program ends Medicare as the affected seniors know it is President Obama.
On Friday, Obama’s Department of Health and Human Services announced that it was initiating a pilot program to shift up to 2 million of the poorest seniors from Medicare into private insurance plans administrated by the states. This might come as a great shock, since just the day before Obama told millions of watching Americans that they should never “have to spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies.”
From Bush III to Ryan II.
Does Obama have any ideas of his own?
Centrist
September 10th, 2012
4:43 pm
Cheesy posted “The debates aren’t exactly going to help Romney either.”
Are you a liberal journalist who has already written his review of the first debate?
DebbieDoRight - A DoRight Woman
September 10th, 2012
4:46 pm
auntie: Now his brethren at drudge, the daily caller, and pox can write that “it has been reported” that Obama “skips his intelligence briefings” and “is endangering the country” by his indifference.
Unfortunately, their spin just doesn’t add up (just like Ryan’s Budget); there’ve been so many dead A.Q.’s that someone was giving the order to ice them. And NO cons, it wasn’t Biden. Unlike Cheney, Biden knows his place as the VP.
brane: Wasn’t it W who required all his national security reports to be condensed to no more than 2 paragraphs?
Yeah! I forgot about that! It probably looked like this:
Bin Laden – Bad Guy.
Do We Know Where He Is? – No.
Are We Looking? – No.
Any Baseball News? – Yes. Rangers lost. Again.
H.E. Pennypacker
September 10th, 2012
4:46 pm
Sorry Barry, I should have been more clear, I was directing my response about the Chevy Volt to Kyle and not one of the trolls he is cursed with.
yuzeyurbrane
September 10th, 2012
4:47 pm
Kyle, I reread your article to see if I had misjudged its main point, which I took to be that by not attending security briefings every day, he was not really doing an important part of his job. So I commented based on that. Others were less polite, calling the point you were making “stupid”. Now, you say everyone misunderstood you. . . that your main point was that Obama people were puffing about his involvement in national security decisions. Like I said above, I reread your article and it appears that my original interpretation of its thrust was correct. I think you accurately summed it up in the article’s concluding paragraph:
“This is certainly of a piece with the reporting from Bob Woodward’s latest book that ‘gaps’ in presidential leadership mean, at times, ‘no one is running Washington.’ Of course, attending these meetings would make it harder for the president to fulfill one of his other priorities in, ahem, unprecedented fashion.”
If you want posters to remain on topic, it is your responsibility to state with clarity what the topic is. Clarity of expression is a major prerequisite of any type of journalism. While I find that you almost always express yourself quite well with clarity and articulately, it is obvious from the comments that in the future you have to do better than you did in this particular article.
killerj
September 10th, 2012
4:47 pm
Good one common sense,I agree 100%.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
4:48 pm
Sorry, H.E., but this blog is not about you. Folks here respond to whoever they wish, whenever they wish. If you don’t like that, start your own blog and write your own rules.
They BOTH suck
September 10th, 2012
4:49 pm
Lil Barry
Why would Toyota have whined? The Japanese government funded a good part of the R&D.
Just the facts
just sayn
As for the Volt, it may or may not make it, but I know in your quest to to be “fair and balanced” you would want all the information on the table
DebbieDoRight - A DoRight Woman
September 10th, 2012
4:50 pm
Psst @@ – Saw this below and figured out quickly that this is either a hachet job OR a colossal joke. Can’t figure out which:
It worked for President Bush’s Medicare Part D program, and Rep. Ryan relied on the same principle in creating his plan to keep Medicare solvent for all Americans. It’s telling that Obama-as-President embraces this Republican principle even as Obama-as-candidate attacks it.
=====
Medicare Part D is bankrupting Social Security! Anybody who can read a spreadsheet or a GAO report knows that!!
But, gotta give to them and you ; it was worth a try………..if anyone is dumb enough to believe it!
H.E. Pennypacker
September 10th, 2012
4:51 pm
Not Nate,
If you look up the Nate Silver to which I am referring you will see that he was born in 1978 and did not get into political predictions until 2007. As such he has only weighed in on one Presidential election and with one data point a trend does not make.
They BOTH suck
September 10th, 2012
4:54 pm
Barry
Perusing a few articles, I see some conflicting info on Prius. Ex CEO of Toyota North America said the government was involved. Other auto industry execs have said the same, but there are reports that said they didn’t.
They BOTH suck
September 10th, 2012
4:56 pm
H.E
I agree with lil Barry on the point regarding to responding to what is posted. As long as it is done within the stated rules, all posts are up for affirmation, scrutiny, ridicule, laughter, etc.
Michael H. Smith
September 10th, 2012
4:57 pm
The way these socialist libs are complaining and whining you must have really struck a nerve Kyle?
It’s supper time. I out of here.
H.E. Pennypacker
September 10th, 2012
5:01 pm
The Chevy Volt was already designed and built as a concept car in 2007 and was the baby of Bob Lutz, the conservative, global warming doubting former CEO of GM because he thought it would sell and make money, not as some crony save the earth statement. To go back and somehow lay this at the feet of President Obama to score political points seems amusing to me, but not surprising.
JDW
September 10th, 2012
5:01 pm
“all posts are up for affirmation, scrutiny, ridicule, laughter, etc.”
Indeed they are and LBB is a poster child for most of those sentiments, but clearly within his rights to show off his talents.
H.E. Pennypacker
September 10th, 2012
5:04 pm
TBS,
Agreed, and perhaps a poorly phrased and emotional reaction. My apologies Barry.
DebbieDoRight - A DoRight Woman
September 10th, 2012
5:04 pm
OMG! @@ is confused!! You quoted Obama as saying this (below):
We’ve got to get the job done there and that requires us to have enough troops so that we’re not just air-raiding villages and killing civilians, which is causing enormous pressure over there.”
But with one swipe of my google button THIS is what I found:
The ad uses a quote from Obama taken out of its context. In August 2007 at a New Hampshire campaign event, Obama was asked whether he would move U.S. troops from Iraq so they could be used elsewhere. More troops are needed in Afghanistan, Obama said: “We’ve got to get the job done there, and that requires us to have enough troops so that we’re not just air-raiding villages and killing civilians, which is causing enormous pressure over there.”
After Obama made that statement, the Associated Press produced a “fact check.” It concluded that “Western forces (in Afghanistan) have been killing civilians at a faster rate than the insurgents have been killing civilians
Wow @@! Either you have to learn to stand for something, (truth one help), or you’ll fall for ANYTHING!!
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:05 pm
The Japanese government funded a good part of the R&D.
————–
And American taxpayers fund a good part of the purchase price, in addition to funding the development, manufacturing, union thug labor, etc.
Prius: Kicking GM’s rear end.
Free market capitalism: Kicking Obozo/GM cronyism.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:11 pm
Chrysler exec retreats on comment about Prius subsidies
Chrysler Vice Chairman Jim Press said Wednesday that he “in no way” meant to suggest the Japanese government improperly subsidized development of batteries for Toyota’s popular Prius hybrid.
Through a Chrysler spokeswoman, Press said Wednesday night: “In no way was it intended to be a suggestion that Prius got all this money.”
The comment quoted in the magazine also would contradict Press’ answer at a congressional hearing a year ago. Then head of Toyota’s U.S. operations, he said, “No, sir,” when asked if the government had paid for Toyota’s hybrid development, and, “Yes, sir,” when asked if Toyota had paid for it all.
Toyota spokesman Paul Nolasco said Wednesday: “I can say 100% that Toyota received absolutely no support — no money, no grants — from the Japanese government for the development of the Prius.”
http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2008-04-02-toyota-prius-subisidies_N.htm
————————-
Prius: Teaching Obozo-style crony corporations a lesson in free market capitalism.
H.E. Pennypacker
September 10th, 2012
5:12 pm
Got to run, but I will depart with an unfortunate formula I have observed:
Lil’ Barry pre-existing political narrative + contravening facts = No change in pre-existing narrative.
They BOTH suck
September 10th, 2012
5:13 pm
Barry
If you wouldn’t be so up tight and looking to boost your low self esteem and self worth, you will see where I came back with another post about conflicting reports
I demand to see Cheesy Grits Birth Certificate- Long Form Please
September 10th, 2012
5:14 pm
Cheesy posted “The debates aren’t exactly going to help Romney either.”
Are you a liberal journalist who has already written his review of the first debate?
No im not.
But it is painfully obvious which man is gonna be better at speaking in public and better at debating.
Romney is as stiff as Obama is smooth.
@@
September 10th, 2012
5:15 pm
Debbie:
Not much difference really. He obviously thinks airstrikes create problems whether in Afghanistan or elsewhere.
If ‘ya wanna argue that he’s spreading the love all over the ME, I would agree.
I’ve got no problem with airstrikes…never did.
HECK! I’ve given credit to Obama for being a KILLING MACHINE.
Unfortunately, security issues are not a priority in today’s America.
It’s more about job security. His “pee shooter” ain’t gettin’ the job done.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:17 pm
They BOTH Suck: I saw your post. Seems a Chrysler exec testified under oath in front of Congress that Toyota received no subsidies. As this is going well off topic for several posts, I’ll refrain from further comment on it.
Skip
September 10th, 2012
5:17 pm
Drill here, drill now, drill forever. That sum up the con plan?
InAtl
September 10th, 2012
5:20 pm
Aquagirl says “Sitting there twice as often with your mind already made up is not. If you can’t tell the difference, look at the results. That might help you get it.”
Ah, condescending as always. But, of course, it’s just ad hominem and assumption on your part. Hardly worth posting since you don’t know anything about whether his mind was already made up.
Cherokee says: “You posting this nonsense as fact would be equivalent to some lib posting an article from Daily Kos and expecting you and the cons to accept it as fact.”
So are you disputing Obama’s attendance at the intelligence meetings? If the information is accurate on his lousy attendance, it doesn’t matter who points it out.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:22 pm
Yes, drilling for the oil and gas resources needed to fuel American industry and Americans’ lifestyle is the plan. Is there a problem with that?
Nyquila
September 10th, 2012
5:23 pm
A Florida motorcycle policeman was killed yesterday while working in an Obama campaign trip motorcade. Surely his family and friends are wondering what if…? What if the President had stayed home and done his job, like attending intel briefings.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:24 pm
Obozo fanboys and fangirls should most definitely NOT be posting about the importance of looking at the results!
gm
September 10th, 2012
5:28 pm
Kyle is such a Obama hater, 4 years ago we had code levels at all transportation station through out the USA, how son you ungrate ful Americans on the right forget, Obama has made thise country safe for the last 4 years by killing every terrorist out there.
Was Bush present when we were attack by 911 and 3500 Americans lost their lives? when it comes to protecting America this is not close, ”””””
gm
September 10th, 2012
5:34 pm
Do you ungrateful hypocrites on the right remember how scared Amercian people where waking thru the airport?
Thank you Obama for keeping this country safe no matter how these ungrateful right nut jobs will never give you your credit, these people can not even use there last President name,”””’
Auntie Christ
September 10th, 2012
5:35 pm
H.E. Pennypacker
September 10th, 2012
5:12 pm
Lil’ Barry pre-existing political narrative + contravening facts = No change in pre-existing narrative.
AND
They BOTH suck
September 10th, 2012
5:13 pm
If you wouldn’t be so up tight and looking to boost your low self esteem and self worth,
************************************************************
Spot on depictions of a very angry, somewhat disturbed individual, whose only reason for being is to lurk about this blog, usually being the first to comment, posting nothing of significance, just tired, senseless insults to the President of the US. Any good American worth their salt would resent these insults to the leader of the country, but the cons here, most of whom still long for the old confederacy and whose loyalty is to the CSA rather than the USA, encourage and applaud him/her/it.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:44 pm
Poor dear Auntie. Were you on the receiving end of one of my fact-based beatdowns, perhaps under a different sockpuppet?
What Americans represent is Obozo failing to lead, and instead doing all he can to weaken the economy, enslave the people, and destroy the military.
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:45 pm
Pardon me, “resent”…not “represent”
Stephenson Billings
September 10th, 2012
5:47 pm
Gotta love them unions (just a smattering of headlines):
Turn Down $400 Million Deal, 16% Pay Raise…
Have Highest Average Salary In Nation…
Average $76,000 per year before benefits…
SOME SCHOOLS OPEN — BUT JUST TO SERVE FREE MEALS…
400,000 STUDENTS UNLEASHED…
Cops Pour Onto Streets to Deal With ‘Unsupervised Kids’…
GODFATHER ‘DISAPPOINTED,’ VOWS TO END STRIKE…
Rahm’s kids’ school open; attend elite $25,000-a-year ‘lab’…
Stephenson Billings
September 10th, 2012
5:48 pm
And the kicker:
79% of Chicago 8th Graders ‘Not Proficient in Reading’…
Stephenson Billings
September 10th, 2012
5:50 pm
Obama Thugs Rough Up Gallup For Polls They Don’t Like
http://www.dickmorris.com/obama-thugs-rough-up-gallup-for-polls-they-dont-like/?utm_source=dmreports&utm_medium=dmreports&utm_campaign=dmreports
Lil' Barry Bailout - Vote American
September 10th, 2012
5:53 pm
Chicago public schools are proof that paying teachers more does absolutely nothing to improve education.
Stephenson Billings
September 10th, 2012
5:53 pm
At least they get it:
SEEKING GROWTH, UK TAKES AX TO BUSINESS REGULATION
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_BRITAIN_BUSINESS_REGULATION?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-09-10-07-33-17