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A bipartisan Washington begins with Obama's judicial appointments

Partisan divisions have gotten the US nowhere.

The New Washington Tech Agenda

President-elect Barack Obama brings a decidedly different technology agenda to the White House than President Bush did eight years ago. Widely considered the most tech-savvy president ever elected, Obama sees an activist government – tinkering here, readjusting there and spending here, here and here – as the path to innovation and the future. - Since technology is the key to virtually all of President-elect Barack Obama's plans for sweeping changes in the direction of the country and the way Washington does business with its citizens, it is not surprising Obama brings a decidedly different technology agenda to the White House than Presi...

Metropolitan Washington Board Voluntary Reduction Of Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions In 8-County Region (AHN)

(AHN) - The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Board of Directors has announced it was taking what it called "unprecedented action" to voluntarily adopt "stringent goals for reducing the region's greenhouse gas emissions." - Thu, 13 Nov 2008 10:26:02 GMT

Winter Weather Advisory - Washington (Minnesota)

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE Issued At: 2008-11-11T09:33:00 Expired At: 2008-11-12T00:00:00 Issuing Weather Forecast Office Homepage: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/mpx/

43 meet 44: Mr Obama goes to Washington

When Barack Obama met George Bush for the first time four years ago, it proved an unhappy encounter. Matters were not helped at the start when a presidential aide squirted sanitiser on George Bush's hands before they shook.Yesterday, the 43rd US president met the man who will be the 44th at the White House again in very different circumstances. This time there was to be no sanitiser and none of the condescension that Obama complained of on the first occasion.Obama was at the White House as president-elect to discuss the transfer of power. He was there too as the fulfilment of the dream of Americans who lived through segregation and the 1960s civil rights movement.Like other African-Americans, he is deeply conscious of the White House's alternative history: built by slaves and staffed by slaves throughout its first 50 years and home of repeated racial slights and snubs that lasted into the 1970s.Obama had spoken beforehand of the potency of his presence on the hallowed grounds, and that was confirmed when the long-awaited image immediately went round the world. Speaking during the campaign, he contemplated further images that will help to suggest that America has entered a new era: his daughters, Malia and Sasha, careering round the White House and playing on its famous lawn.He flew to Washington yesterday morning from Chicago, where he had been since last week's election. A black stretch limousine was waiting for him at the capital's Reagan National airport, something he seldom rode in during the long election campaign, not wanting to be seen as presumptive. A further sign of the presidential trappings that will soon be part of his daily life was the motorcade.He and his wife, Michelle, arrived at the White House 14 minutes early. But Bush and his wife, Laura, had been tipped off and were waiting outside for them. Michelle shook hands first with the first lady, who was uncharacteristically flustered, greeting her with "good morning", though it was almost 2pm.Obama and Bush, determined to put on a show of goodwill, shook hands and gave all the appearance of bonhomie. The four posed for a picture, with Laura pausing briefly to check her colours - rust - against Michelle's bright red.After the fleeting stop for pictures, Obama put his hand on Bush's shoulder, a friendly gesture he also made four years ago, but which on that occasion, he joked, made the security men "uneasy".As presidents and presidents-elect before them had done, the two walked together for the cameras down the length of the colonnade into the Situation Room and the Oval Office, for an hour-long private chat.Afterwards, Obama's team put out a statement, echoed by the White House, saying the meeting had been "productive and friendly", thanking the Bushes for their "gracious hospitality".Meetings in the past between an outgoing and incoming president have amounted to little more than reminiscing, accompanied by a little advice on what to expect as US commander-in-chief. But Obama had promised beforehand it would be "substantive", and the two discussed a second economic stimulus package, which Bush opposes, help for the struggling car industry and for mortgage-holders, as well as Iraq and Afghanistan.As the two chatted in the Oval Office, Laura took Michelle on a tour of the White House living quarters, showing her the bedrooms the Kennedy children had occupied, as had her own daughters, Barbara and Jenna. Michelle, who flew to Washington before her husband to check out schools for her daughters, left the White House early. Obama was escorted out by Bush, the two walking down the path to the motorcade, with Bush pointing out various points of interest.At the airport, Obama had another hour-long meeting at the airport's Fire Station 301 with an unnamed figure. Bush's diary is becoming lighter and lighter as he heads towards retirement to his ranch in Crawford, Texas. He feels misunderstood and is bitter about the criticism he attracted on the campaign trail from Obama and John McCain.Dana Perino, the White House press secretary, provided a glimpse of his feelings at the morning briefing when she told journalists. "President Bush has been involved in politics since the mid-60s, when he watched his father run for Congress. Their whole political life has been about a rough and tumble campaign," she said."This president was not involved in the [2008] campaign, we studiously stayed out of it, even when it was very hard for us sometimes to let attacks go unanswered."The visit by Obama was tough for Bush, having to hand over to a Democrat, Obama's presence a flesh-and-blood repudiation by the electorate of Bush's legacy.What made it even tougher was that it came on the day that Obama recorded the most favourable ratings ever for an incoming president, 75%, while Bush finally broke all records, with the most unfavourable ratings ever, at 24% - lower than either Truman or Nixon.Obama White HouseGeorge BushBarack ObamaUnited Statesguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2008 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Washington postpones historic vote

FCC needs fewer options Kevin Martin, chair of the The Federal Communication Commission, has conceded that proposals on universal service and intercarrier compensation should receive public scrutiny before they're voted on, delaying the vote until December at least.?

Washington Post: Storm Exposed Disarray at the Top

Storm Exposed Disarray at the Top By Susan B. Glasser and Josh White Washington Post Staff Writers Sunday, September 4, 2005; Page A01 The killer hurricane and flood that devastated the Gulf Coast last week exposed fatal weaknesses in a federal disaster response system retooled after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, to handle just such a cataclysmic event. Despite four years

Washington's 'Lexus' Lanes Light on Luxury

High Occupancy Toll lanes, long derided as 'Lexus Lanes', may have to be re-dubbed. Statistics kept by the Washington State DOT on a new Hwy 167 HOT lane show that most users are not driving fancy luxury cars. read more

Washington D.C.'s Metro Given More Time to Pay Up

A major financier of Washington D.C.'s Metro system has agreed to give the transit system an extra 10 days to collect more than $40 million from the troubled system, complying with a judge's ruling that forcing Metro to pay could cause great harm. read more

Frustrated Over Delays On Grocery Permit, Washington Store May Shift To Sex Emporium (AHN)

(AHN) - Businessman Levi Bussanich, owner of an adult video store in Olympia, Washington, will expand his Desire Video into a sex emporium if city hall fails to give him permission to build a grocery store to be operated by WinCo Foods. - Fri, 31 Oct 2008 17:02:45 GMT