Four-and-a-half months into his presidency, President Obama has not acted on his campaign promises on gay issues, writes Brian Montopoli, likely out of fear that doing so could hamper his ambitious agenda.
The Great Escape Is Over
Over the weekend two prisoners in Arkansas stole guard uniforms and were able to walk right out to freedom. The two wore the the uniforms and during a shift change they simply walked out of the prison. Sounded like a...
Obama's Republican Army sec'y: McHugh
by Mark Silva
President Barack Obama today nominated a longtime Republican congressman from New York state, Rep. John McHugh, to serve as secretary of the Army.
McHugh, 60, is a ninth-term member of the U.S. House from rural upstate New York, home to a legendary Army division, and the ranking Republican member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Subject to Senate confirmation, McHugh stands to become the second high-ranking Republican in the Obama-led Pentagon. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, whom Obama carried over from the Bush administration, is one of just two Republicans serving in the president's Cabinet.
The selection of McHugh also will set off an expected competitive contest for a special election to fill the 23rd District House seat from New York, a far-ranging district that spans from Lake Champlain to the St. Lawrence Seaway. The biggest city is Plattsburgh.
"I've thought long and hard as to what might sound original at this moment, but honestly, I don't have an original thought in my mind,'' McHugh said, standing by Obama's side at the White House. "I will do everything I possibly can to work with the Army leadership to provide you and Secretary Gates the broadest based, most accurate information as you go forward.''
The Army, Obama said, has borne a serious burden in the repeated deployment of forces to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The administration is investing in its expansion, he said.
McHugh's congressional district is home to the 10th Mountain Division of the Armythe "most deployed'' unit, the president noted today. McHugh has not served in the armed forces, but has served on the board of visitors at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
(Photo of President Barack Obama and Rep. John McHugh, nominee for secretary of the Army, by Brendan Smialowski / AFP / Getty Images.)
McHugh, the president said, has been "a champion of men and women in uniform....
"As secretary of the Army, he will ensure that our soldiers are trained and equipped to meet the challenges of the time,'' Obama said. " At the same time, John knows that we must reform the way the Army and the Pentagon does business... As secretary, he will help lead our efforts to save taxpayers billions of dollars, and equip our soldiers with the weapons they need.''
McHugh will bring "patriotism and pragmatism'' to the mission, Obama said.
For all the differences the parties have in Congress, McHugh said, "At the end of the day,... Republicans and Democrats alike have put aside those differences and worked for the common good'' when it comes to support of the military.
"I grew up in the shadows of Fort Drum,'' said McHugh, whose father served in the Army. "The Army's always had a special place in my heart.''
McHugh had a career in local and state government, working for the Watertown, N.Y., city manager and then for a state senator in Albany, before winning election to the New York Senate in 1984. He specialized in dairy issuesindeed, his congressional homepage still calls him "a champion of dairy farmers,'' protecting their price supports.
He first was elected to Congress in 1992. He serves as ranking minority member on a committee, Armed Services, that oversees the Pentagon's budget and policies. His district also is dependent on military spending. He has served on the House Select Committee on Intelligence.
Obama, who has vowed to reach across party lines, actually has placed relatively few Republicans in high-level positions.
Gates and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who had retired as a congressman from Peoria, Ill., are the two Republican Cabinet membersRepublican Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire at first accepted and then rejected Obama's appointment as Commerce secretary.
Obama recently named Jon Huntsman, the Republican governor of Utah, to serve as ambassador to China. He has experience in diplomatic posts and is fluent in Mandarin.
But the House's Republican caucus could stand to lose another seat without McHugh on the ballot. Obama carried McHugh's congressional district by a margin of 5 percentage points last yearafter former President George W. Bush carried the same district by 4 points at reelection in 2004. The governor of New York, David Paterson, must set a special election date to replace McHugh.
McHugh had easily won reelection to Congress after his initial overwhelming first victory in 1992. After Republicans gained control of the House in 1994, in his second term there he chaired a Government Reform subcommittee that ultimately led the overhaul of the U.S. Postal Service.
McHugh generally has been rated as a moderate on key votes in the House, according to the National Journal's rankings. He is a graduate of Utica College of Syracuse University, with a master's degree in public administration from the State University of New York at Albany.
Yemeni Dies At Guantanamo In Apparent Suicide
U.S. military officials say a Yemeni detainee at Guantanamo Bay has died of an "apparent suicide." The Joint Task Force that runs the U.S. prison in Cuba says guards found 31-year-old Muhammad Ahmad Abdallah Salih unresponsive and not breathing in his cell Monday night.
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