It’s the year of the Dragon!

I’m 3 for 3 now. No surprise Gingrich beat Romney in South Carolina – and it was a BEATING 41% to 27%. ‘Nice Newt’ showed up for his victory speech, at first, complimented all his GOP rivals. But then – went after President Obama, and asked everybody to go to his web site to give him some money.
He says he doesn’t have the money of “some” candidates but that ideas and people can defeat big money . Of course he attacked the elites in Washington and in the news media. There was more – that we’ve heard before – and that we’ll no doubt hear again. Two debates in Florida next week.
As for the other candidates: Ron Paul came in last place in South Carolina but you’d never know it. He gave a barn burner speech on all his favorite issues – we’ve got to get rid of the Federal Reserve System – go back to money based on gold and silver, we’ve got to get our military out of foreign countries and bring them home and let them spend money here, government’s got to get out of health care, housing education, because it just makes them more expensive….blah blah blah He says he is a man on a mission, with a message and the way to get it across is with delegates – so, Paul’s in the race to stay.
Then Mitt – he congratulated Gingrich, then went on to attack the President, went on to call himself successful, went on to say he’s going to go on.
Wash, Rinse, Repeat in Florida.

He can REALLY SING – Who KNEW? President Obama was at a fundraiser at the Apollo Theatre and gave the people their money’s worth. He sang a bit of Al Green with Al was in the audience.

I played this again and again – he is just too cool.

Courtesy of the White House

The First Lady of the United States: many call her FLOTUS or MO (her twitter handle) or the beautiful wife of the President.  Happy Birthday to the first wife, mother and all around great lady!

The nation knew somebody really different was headed for the White House when Michelle Obama walked onto the stage the night her husband was nominated for President. She was smashing – in red and black.  No doubt about a first class fashionista – with DANGLING EARRINGS! And she’s gone on, as First Lady, making Best Dressed Lists and all the best magazine covers. And she mixes it up: Calvin Klein, Isabel Toledo, Narcisco Rodriguez – and then maybe something from the GAP or J. Crew. She keeps it fun and funky and we love it!

 Happy Birthday to Michelle Obama – the woman who has it all – and even more!

I’ll never forget the day we took this picture.  I had to spend an entire day with Ali for some story. The average person would be excited; not me. In fact, I was a bit bummed. (crazy, I know.) You have to understand I was a HUGE George Foreman fan. So I thought I was somehow betraying George (ha!) Well – the more time I spent with the Ali – the more I fell for him and by the end of the day – I was in love (as you can see from the size of my smile.)  

 Muhammad Ali is 70 years old today. And the champ still has a mind that can ‘”loat like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” Although suffering from Parkinson’s disease, he still talks about getting back in the gym. But the brutal blows in the ring have left Ali physically fragile. But he’s still remarkable, he was able to help negotiate the recent release from Iran of three American hikers, who stumbled into trouble, and Iranian prison, on a day of recreation.

There was a huge birthday party for Ali over the weekend at the Muhammad Ali Center, in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. Hundreds cheered the sight of the champ, who raised his hand in greeting, as he stood on a balcony.  There will be more parties – including one at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, next month.

I have to laugh when I think of how much he bragged about his pretty face – it was and still is beautiful. Every time I see him I now, I give him a big smile. But it’s much more that makes him a legend – he’s known for his love of people, generosity and kindness outside the ring, and killer instincts inside the ropes.

He’s fought the good fight, finished a brilliant career, and kept his faith in God and fellow humans.  Today – the world celebrates a birthday for a champ, The Champ, in every sense of the word.

“I have a dream today…” They are THE words we remember today as we celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. But, as songs, and plays, speeches, art exhibits, and volunteer good-works of every kind go on across the nation in King’s honor, stop and think a moment:  we may have a great gospel singer to thank for the most memorable parts of King’s famous speech at the March on Washington. On the hot summer day in 1963, the end of the famous protest was at hand, and about a quarter of a million people  listened to the final speaker, Dr. King, as he delivered a prepared text of eloquence and beauty on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, to the crowd on the Mall. Gospel great, Mahalia Jackson, was in the crowd. She cried out: “Tell them about the dream, Martin!’.  And King left the prepared text behind, and began to deliver his vision of a world where people of every creed and color could enjoy all rights equally – and join hands to sing the old spiritual words: “Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, I’m free at last.” There were other organizers of that March on Washington.  But we don’t think of them.  There were other speakers at that March on Washington.  But their words don’t ring down through history as do King’s. He was a Baptist preacher and he spoke his vision from the pulpit to the world.   He was a Christian, but took his inspiration from Ghandi for the non-violent creed he believed in and practiced.  He was gently critical of Malcolm X, who believed violence was justified in the drive for racial equality and wanted nothing to do with the white man.  It is said the two met only once, for about a minute, on the steps of the Capitol, where both had come to hear  debate on the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which passed. He was a husband and father of four children. Born and raised in the Deep South where the laws of segregation were designed to block him, a young black man, from every significant opportunity, as well as restaurants, drinking fountains and the like. But he was born to a spiritual and accomplished family and he did not disappoint.  His grandfather and father had been pastors at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, and King followed in their footsteps.  But the path he took was different.  His mission, equal rights for all Americans, led him to jail, over and over again, to beatings, to attacks on his home, to water cannon and police dogs and the Nobel Peace Prize.  He had a PhD from Boston University and a college degree from Morehouse, a predominantly black college in Atlanta that’s one of the nation’s premiere institutions.  He wrote five books and countless articles .He knew history.  And he made history. The Civil War supposedly had brought an end to slavery for black Americans in the United States. But, 100 years later, Martin Luther King Junior saw so much work left to do.  And he did it.   As a husband, and a father of four, Dr. King had a future he wanted for the world, and for his own family. In Birmingham – King and other leaders met  with the violence of billy clubs, angry officers, snarling dogs, beatings and arrests. The scenes were televised, shocked the nation, and made King much more famous.  He sent the world his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” and began helping to plan the March on Washington.  That’s where he would stand, at the Lincoln Memorial, to make his famous speech.

King has his own monument now, not far from where he spoke on that famous day.  He stands, arms crossed, looking outward, 30 feet tall, so tall visitors can gather below in his shadow, in a kind of spiritual embrace.  The smooth granite statue emerges from more rough hewn rock.  The sculptor’s theme was that King would seem that “stone of hope”   from “a mountain of despair” – ideas taken from The Dream speech.

Quotes from King surround the complex. One of them will be changed. Sculptor and architect shortened King’s comparison of himself to a ‘Drum Major for Justice”.  Critics point out that in the full quote, King was trying to tell people that if they insisted on praising him as a drum major – they must know he was doing it for the right things, not to show off.  He was not insisting on the title for himself. For many of us, the words he spoke the night before he died move the most.  “I have been to the mountaintop, I may not get there with you, but we, as a people, will get to the Promised Land.” The next day, on a balcony in Memphis, an assassin’s bullet took his life but not his legacy. He was in Memphis to help with a protest movement.  Which brings us to another quote from MLK:  ”Life’s most persistent question is – what are you going to do for others?” Today – this national holiday, is a national day of service and if you’re looking for a project, check MLKDay.gov.  You’ll find plenty there, courtesy of the Obama White House. The first black American president and family clapped, sang and swayed to Amazing Grace to honor King during a visit to Zion Baptist Church in D.C. yesterday.  And King family and friends were at the memorial laying a wreath – they’ll be back today.

Today’s the day we sing Stevie Wonder’s version of ‘Happy Birthday’, composed to push for the national holiday we have now.  It has its own unique melody – for The Dreamer and the dream millions hope and work to make more real with each new day.

I’m sitting in Mitt Romney’s press area waiting for the final numbers in New Hampshire. The former governor is predicted to win but now after a GOP dogfight with Romney torn apart. And Conservatives  are worried. Rush Limbaugh says fellow Republicans are using the language of the liberal left to hurt one of their own.  And this sentiment is widely echoed in electronic and print talk. But Ron Paul says he will not join in what he figures are cheap shots at Romney.  Paul figures Romney’s only guilty of committing capitalism and that is no sin in Paul’s eyes. Rick Santorum also said he won’t go along with the attacks either – because he (Santorum) believes in free market policy. The guys throwing dirt are Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry.  Perry compared Romney to a vulture because a firm he founded bought up struggling businesses, closed some and laid off workers.  And Gingrich is demanding to know how many jobs were lost. So it’s looking like Gingrich and Perry are not backing off. In fact, Gingrich has a new TV ad coming out designed to take on Romney as a pro-abortion candidate, which could really damage Romney in the South Carolina primary.  But some predictors say it may not matter much because the big bucks people in the GOP don’t want to help with a media buy that could wound the candidate that most people say is going to be the GOP nominee for sure. And it’s looking like it could be Mitt Romney.

Whooooa – Booooooos and lots of them. That’s what Rick Santorum got at a college campus in New Hampshire.  Pretty tough time for the guy who basically tied Romney in the Iowa Caucuses and is considered the political man of the moment. So – here’s what happened: Santorum was drawn into a debate about same sex marriage, which, of course he’s against. He tried reasoning with the young crowd – but it didn’t work. 
 
In other battles, Santorum’s been punching back at Gingrich - as Newt  tried portraying Santorum as a rather junior member of the Republican Revolution during the 90s.   Santorum said he’d been in on the action early, often and consistently.  And he dismissed Newt’s notion that Santorum just doesn’t have the kind of cash and organization it takes to go all the way in the presidential race.
 
Mitt Romney’s way ahead in New Hampshire – where primary voting is just five days away.  He took time out to visit South Carolina – next up in the game.  Now, Romney is not beloved by Tea Party folk – and there are many of them in South Carolina ready to give him the cold shoulder, although the state’s governor took a chance and endorsed him.  
Other candidates are doing the meetups in New Hampshire today and looking forward to two weekend debates – which could hurt or help them.  (Of course, Governor Rick Perry’s still taking his time out in Texas.) Romney’s the guy to get – he’s polling in the 40 percentages in New Hampshire.  Strategists  say everybody’s gonna try to weaken him, and make Romney a  frontrunner  with a bad cases of the slooooows as he heads into New Hampshire.  His challengers want to see Romney polling back down in the 20s, where we’re used to seeing him.
 
Back in D.C. – the new consumer watchdog went to work without apologies today – amid angry GOP threats of legal action against his appointment.  Richard Cordray’s appointment will put him in charge of policing payday lenders, mortgage brokers and private companies that offer student loans.  That’s along with banks and other financial institutions.
 
The big deal is that Obama put Cordray into office yesterday by appointment.  It’s a kick – butt , pretty slick move. Basically, Obama went around  GOP Senators who blocked the appointment weeks ago.  The President said he just couldn’t wait any longer to protect the American people.  Recess appointments are legal.  But is the Senate in recess? Well, every few days a few people go in and gavel the empty room to order, gavel out without doing any business.  It’s long been done that way, to keep a President  from making unwanted appointments on his own.  But Obama is calling that procedure a gimmick and calling the big time shots for his 2012 Campaign image.  The GOP and others threaten lawsuits. Fun times ahead

A new kind of U.S. military: leaner, meaner, less money …that’s what President Obama said when he made a rare appearance at the Pentagon. There will be billions of dollars in cuts and the structure and strategy for the military will change. Obama said the changes won’t hurt America’s military readiness.  The blueprint will be  submitted in the new budget going to Congress in coming weeks.
Pentagon chief Panetta spoke after the President.  He made it clear that the Army and Marine Corp will shrink.  And more money is likely to go to special forces, space and cyberspace, and drone systems.  Also, the strategy of being able to fight two ground wars at once is being phased  out.  The military will concentration on the Asia Pacific and the Mideast.
In New Hampshire – surprise GOP hopeful Rick Santorum said there should be no cuts to defense – the defense budget isn’t the problem – it’s social programs that need to be cut.

And there you go…

 So- it was hours after midnight (and I was long asleep) but my tireless TV colleagues got the word that  Mitt Romney won the Iowa Caucuses by 8 votes; a squeaker.  Rick Santorum, (the man I predicted to win) was right behind him.  
After rocketing to the top in Iowa, Santorum made a speech  that may make him born-again politically.  That is already a spiritual fact for  him.  But is his second place finish a reason to believe he could actually win in the other 49 states? Santorum started off  last night’s speech quoting Christian intellectual, C.S. Lewis, saying with words and a soulful expression, that he was thanking his best friend and lifemate, his wife, for her help on the campaign trail. Then – Santorum thanked  the grace of  God, for giving him the strength to get through his long slog in Iowa. Sure,  he added  in his politics and policies and what he wants to do if he makes it to the White House.  But it was when he talked about his family that you started to think he’s got this one over on Romney. Of course Romney looks perfectly presidential.  And when speaking publicly about health problems his wife has Romney and his wife Ann look deeply devoted.  But last night Santorum started talking about his baby daughter, Isabella, who couldn’t be with the campaign because she suffers from a disability that keeps her out of crowds.  He said his little girl, Bella, only had a one percent chance of living longer than a year.   And she’s three and a half years old now.  He said his daughter is ‘deeply embedded in his heart and the inspiration for motivating him to value every human life (translation: his anti abortion views are not just a political stance.) Hard not to be touched by that. Santorum also talked about his grandfather – a guy who decided to leave the land of  Mussolini for the freedom of the New World.  He talked about how his granddad got a job in Pennsylvania’s coal mines where he worked until he was 72 – bringing family over from the old country to start anew.  Santorum said he remembers looking at his grandpa’s hands as he lay in his casket – big hands, enormous hands…that had done so much.  Santorum said his grandad and his dad taught him the point is to work hard, work hard, work hard.  And that’s what he did in Iowa – covered the state. Have to say it was a touching moment.
When last night’s speech was over – Santorum had some new believers among the chattering class of punditry and likely among a lot of average Americans, too.  There was talk on CNN that Santorum was a blue-collar six pack type of Republican (rare) and Romney is more of a Chablis kind of guy. People were wondering aloud – does this Santorum really have a chance?  The talk was he is too conservative and too extreme in policy views.  But the guy won some hearts and minds,and that just seems like something almost impossible for Romney to do.
As for Romney, I heard that after Romney aides saw the Santorum speech, they made him take down the teleprompter presentation he had in mind and give his thoughts to the crowd from the heart, or the gut, or wherever it is that Romney doesn’t seem to be able to use to connect with people….(just can’t break out of that 25% ceiling of support).
Romney was very presidential, had the family with him, and congratulated his competitors on their results.  He quoted stanzas from “America the Beautiful’ to make his points that America is a land blessed by God and that he plans to restore it to a land of opportunity,not one of government handouts.

As far as the other candidates:  Coming in way back in the pack, Newt Gingrich was gracious about Rick Santorum.  Gingrich has been complaining bitterly about Romney negative ads and the superpac ads on behalf of Romney.  Gingrich, after calling Romney a liar earlier on Caucus Day, said on Caucus night  he wants to make it clear he isn’t going to run any negative ads, but he reserves the right to tell the truth about Romney’s record. Commentators seemed to feel Gingrich’s mood was a little off-balance, just a bit scary, not at his best, at the very least.  GOP Pundit Mary Matalin said Gingrich looked like his eyes were bulging out of his head.  You get the distinct feeling that the GOP is afraid of the damage Newt is going to do purely out of personal anger – not out of any real hope of winning the White House at this  point. On the other hand, Ron Paul was cheerful - introducing his wife and saying everybody should remember her because her picture’s on a cookbook (not sure I understood that).  He went on to say the U.S. needs to get out of the war business altogether , reform the fed, and go back to the gold standard in monetary policy. OK

 Most subdued of the evening was the Governor of Texas.  Rick Perry said it’s time for him to go home and reassess and see if he should go forward.  James Carville has absolutely no mercy for the Governor.   Earlier in the day he said Perry was way  out of his league and wasn’t ready to hit the killer pitcher coming his way in the big time. By Caucus night, Carville was saying Rick Perry was the worst presidential candidate in history.  Carville said Perry raised more money to less effect than anybody he could remember.  The expectations were the tough talking Texan would turn the primaries into a real shootumup.    Just hours before saying he’d head home to Texas, Perry said he would go on to campaign in South Carolina. I think he wants to put all of this in  rear view mirror. 
Michelle Bachnan surprised everybody by staying in the race.  Iowa’s her home state and she totally bombed – second to last place; a total rejection.  You’d never know it though.  Big smile. Happy face speech.  Maybe after a night’s sleep reality will have dawned with the morning sun.  Again – that James Carville’s got the funny.  Said on CNN yesterday that Michelle Bachman could keep going after the caucuses, but that she’d  be “running around like a chicken with her head cut off.”  Yes, we’ve said it before.  And it’s no original line.   Ancient cliche.  But  hits the nail on the head – to mix a metaphor.
Any way – New Hampshire’s next week.  We shall see.