Chess on a really big board

President Obama’s political team is fanning out across the country in pursuit of an ambitious goal: raising $50 million to convert his re-election campaign into a powerhouse national advocacy network, a sum that would rank the new group as one of Washington’s biggest lobbying operations. But the rebooted campaign, known as Organizing for Action , has plunged the president and his aides into a campaign finance limbo with few clear rules, ample potential for influence-peddling, and no real precedent in national politics. In private meetings and phone calls, Mr. Obama’s aides have made clear that the new organization will rely heavily on a small number of deep-pocketed donors, not unlike the “super PACs” whose influence on political campaigns Mr. Obama once deplored. At least half of the group’s budget will come from a select group of donors who will each contribute or raise $500,000 or more, according to donors and strategists involved in the effort. Unlike a presidential … [Read more...] about Obama’s Backers Seek Big Donors to Press Agenda

More from our inbox: Lead in Baby Food ChatGPT, the Politician Send Legal Migrants to All the States How to Invest (Not in Crypto) To the Editor: Re “ Can Anything Be Done to Assuage Rural Rage? ,” by Paul Krugman (column, Jan. 27): Mr. Krugman’s piece on rural resentment illustrates, in its inadvertent condescension, the very reasons rural people resent big-city elites. Mr. Krugman details the reasons rural complaints about big government are wrong, noting, for example, that much more federal assistance and more investment funds go to many rural areas than come in through taxes. This misses the deeper issue: Human beings need to be needed, to feel that the work they do matters to the larger community. For decades now the jobs that help men to feel they are contributing something essential, such as coal mining, manufacturing and farming, have been disappearing. We’ve created an economy that cuts off access to meaningful work, and then told … [Read more...] about What’s Really Behind Rural Resentment?

See the article in its original context from December 7, 1986 Section Page Buy Reprints View on timesmachine TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. About the Archive This is a digitized version of an article from The Times’s print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. IT WOULD BE THE LAST TIME THE WHOLE family was together - Christmas 1979. In the Tudor stone mansion across the street from the Wichita Country Club, Mary Koch and her four sons celebrated the holiday in the spacious living room, scattered with photographs of the brothers as carefree boys. A large oil portrait of the late patriarch of the clan, Fred C. Koch, looked down from one wall. … [Read more...] about BROTHERS AT ODDS

One of the much looked music awards in the world, Grammy’s are here! The awards are handed over to music artists and musicians with impeccable singing and music composing skills in different categories. And the 65th annual Grammy Awards were handed out Sunday. Trevor Noah returned as host of the ceremony, which took place on Sunday at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The ceremony aired live from 8 -11:30 p.m. ET/5-8:30 p.m. PT on CBS and will be available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+. During the televised Grammys ceremony, presenters include Viola Davis, first lady Jill Biden, Dwayne Johnson, Cardi B, James Corden, Billy Crystal, Olivia Rodrigo and Shania Twain. The scheduled Grammys performers include Bad Bunny, Mary J. Blige, Brandi Carlile, Luke Combs, Steve Lacy, Lizzo, Kim Petras, Sam Smith and Harry Styles. In addition, Questlove curated the Hip Hop 50 tribute performance. Before the live broadcast, most of the winners in the 91 Grammy categories will be … [Read more...] about Grammys 2023 LIVE: Beyonce Wins 2 Awards; Taylor Swift Beats BTS, Bags Best Music Video

See the article in its original context from February 3, 1991 Section Page Buy Reprints View on timesmachine TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. About the Archive This is a digitized version of an article from The Times’s print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. Occasionally the digitization process introduces transcription errors or other problems; we are continuing to work to improve these archived versions. Rescue workers at Los Angeles International Airport searched today for bodies in the charred wreckage of a USAir passenger jet and a small commuter plane as Federal investigators began their effort to determine why a seemingly normal landing by the jet turned into a fiery runway crash with the smaller craft Friday night. The investigation was expected to be hampered by the fact that … [Read more...] about Pilots Dead, Many Missing In Fiery Los Angeles Crash

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 24 YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK — President Obama stood in a huge meadow here Saturday to heap praises on the National Park Service on its 100th anniversary year and to rail against climate change, but from the moment he opened his mouth it was clear something very personal had happened to him. Like millions before him, he had fallen in love with Yosemite. As he took the podium set up just beyond Sentinel Bridge, Obama stopped for a moment, tilted his head and took a deep breath. Behind him, both legs of the 2,425-foot-tall Yosemite Falls roared down the valley’s granite wall in all their springtime fullness, the sky was crystal blue, and flanking him on either side were massively tall pines and cedars. “How gorgeous is this day!” he burst out, beaming his … [Read more...] about Obama’s Yosemite family vacation brings call for preservation

The 2005 jailbreak incident in Bihar’s Jehanabad sent shockwaves through the entire country. The clash between the Naxalites and the police remains one of the defining moments of our country’s history. The incident has now inspired the latest series- Jehanabad - Of Love And War headlined by Rajeev Barnwal and Satyanshu Singh. Boasting off an ensemble cast, the series stars Ritwik Bhowmik, Parambrata Chatterjee, Harshita Gaur, Satyadeep Misra, Rajat Kapoor, Sonal Jha and Rajesh Jais among others. In an exclusive conversation with News18.com, Satyadeep, Ritwik and Harsheeta opened up about working for the show and their awareness of the events it is based on. The actors also opened up about people taking offence easily and whether they are concerned about that now their show is out in the open. How aware were you guys of the theme of Naxalism before coming on board for Jehanabad? Harshita: I was aware of it. But I wasn’t aware of the incident that happened in Jehanabad. And of … [Read more...] about Ritwik Bhowmik on Jehanabad: Everybody Making Movies Are Trying to Make Sure They Don’t Offend Anyone | Exclusive

The downing of a Chinese spy balloon on Saturday afternoon ended America’s fixation on the balloon’s days-long journey across United States airspace and provided “Saturday Night Live” with irresistibly topical subject matter for its opening sketch just a few hours later. This weekend’s “S.N.L.” broadcast, hosted by Pedro Pascal and featuring the musical guest Coldplay, started with a sendup of an MSNBC broadcast anchored by Chloe Fineman, playing the TV journalist Katy Tur. “Tonight, our long national nightmare is over,” Fineman said. “We got the balloon.” She introduced a Pentagon official played by Kenan Thompson, who explained how the balloon was eventually brought down. “The balloon was somehow able to get past our West Coast anti-balloon defense system, the Seattle Space Needle,” Thompson said. “But once it was here, we were able to keep an eye on it with our sophisticated tracking technology. Of going like this.” Here, Thompson simply looked up above him. … [Read more...] about ‘S.N.L.’ Gives Comic Voice to the Downed Chinese Spy Balloon

Across a large healthcare ecosystem, successful unification has to go beyond administrative elements to include larger efforts that foster an inclusive, educational and empowering environment — essentials that lead to a unified workforce and opportunities for individuality and clinical autonomy. These efforts can result in greater employee satisfaction and foster a more positive patient experience. They can also help a healthcare organization with a diverse portfolio of service-line offerings ensure that all of its team members feel unified, while being given the freedom to practice medicine or run business operations specific to them. 1. Create Collaborative Teams Collaboration may be the most significant way to unify your organization, and in a healthcare system, there are many opportunities to form collaborative teams that address best practices, safety and diversity, equality and inclusion efforts. These groups are vital to a healthcare organization with a broad geographic and … [Read more...] about How Unification in Healthcare Allows Physicians to Focus on Patient Care

A Missouri man is facing execution on Tuesday for the 2004 killings of his girlfriend and her three children. Leonard Taylor, 58, is scheduled to die by lethal injection on February 7. Police officers found the bodies of Angela Rowe, her 10-year-old daughter Alexus Conley, 6-year-old daughter AcQreya Conley, and 5-year-old son Tyrese Conley. All four were found shot inside their home in Jennings, Missouri, on December 3, 2004, after Rowe's relatives asked police to go to her home as they had not heard from her for several days. Taylor, Rowe's live-in boyfriend, who had a criminal record for drug and fraud-related offenses, was arrested in Kentucky a few days later. He was convicted in 2008, but maintains he was thousands of miles away at the time of the killings. In January, Taylor's attorney Kent Gipson sought a hearing on his client's innocence claim under a provision in Missouri law that allows a prosecutor to file a motion asking for a hearing before a judge if there is … [Read more...] about Who Is Leonard Taylor? Missouri to execute man over 2004 murders