President Obama's statement on the situation in Egypt

THE PRESIDENT:  Good evening, everybody.  My administration has been closely monitoring the situation in Egypt, and I know that we will be learning more tomorrow when day breaks.  As the situation continues to unfold, our first concern is preventing injury or loss of life.  So I want to be very clear in calling upon the Egyptian authorities to refrain from any violence against peaceful protestors. 

The people of Egypt have rights that are universal. That includes the right to peaceful assembly and association, the right to free speech, and the ability to determine their own destiny. These are human rights. And the United States will stand up for them everywhere.

 I also call upon the Egyptian government to reverse the actions that they’ve taken to....

Text of the Ohio Democrat's letter to supporters

Dear Friend

Though I would prefer to focus your attention on my work dealing with the profoundly important issues that face our nation, such as job creation, getting the economy back on track, and ending the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq -- it seems that some are more interested in discussing my personal dental issues. Given the degree of public interest you should know some details:

This injury required nearly two years, three dental surgeries, and a substantial amount of money to rectify.

The legal action you have heard about was filed due to the severity, expense and duration of the dental injury, the complications which followed and which still persist. I wanted to resolve this matter without filing a lawsuit. The events below involved numerous dental visits, more than are detailed in this summary. The dental injury set in motion a chain of dental and medical events.

When I bit into the olive pit, (unbeknown to me at the time), upon impact the tooth split in half,  vertically through the crown and the tooth, below the level of the bone. Externally there was no evidence of a break. This was not about aesthetics. The internal structure of the tooth was rendered nonrestorable. Although the pain was excruciating, I shook it off and I went right back to work.   

This tooth is a key tooth which anchored my upper bridgework. The injured tooth and the bone above it became infected. I took a course of antibiotics for the infection, had an adverse reaction to the antibiotics which caused me to have an intestinal obstruction and emergency medical intervention.

Later, my dentist referred me to a specialist who informed me that the damaged tooth had to be removed.  A third dentist removed the tooth and I was fitted for a temporary partial. I waited for the bone to heal. An implant was placed, but it failed. Many months later still a second implant succeeded.

My bridgework had to be completely reconfigured, a new partial was designed, so this injury did not affect only one tooth, but rather involved six (6) replacement teeth as well.    

A new crown with a new precision attachment was engineered and put in place. To clarify, no dental expenses were covered by any health plan, nor did I have dental insurance that covered the injury, which, until it was resolved, affected my ability to chew food properly.

The clamor for information about this incident requires that I provide at least this much information. I would have liked to provide such details sooner but did not want it said that I was trying the case in the media. So that is why I declined any interviews about the matter. The parties have exchanged information and after some investigation and discussion have resolved the matter for an amount all parties believe reflects the actual out-of-pocket expenses related to this incident.

The terms of the settlement are confidential; however, I feel that the defendants have responded fairly and reasonably. I don't want to have to make another dental visit for a very long time, and will be making no further comment on this matter.

Thank you very much.

/s/  Dennis

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Photo: Rep. Dennis Kucinich. Credit: Paul J. Richards / AFP/Getty Images

This was Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour's eighth and final State of the State address.

So he devotes it to two main themes: recounting what the state has accomplished in recent years, not least of which was its rapid economic growth and determined recovery from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. And, second, to warn legislators against blowing up the surpluses and rainy day fund they have constructed.

He also touted his state's major revision of tort laws seven years ago that has been the most successful in the nation.

Barbour's biography is here. His list of major policies and achievements is here.

The 63-year-old Republican's success in creating jobs and not raising taxes while leading a successful disaster-relief operation during a recession has attracted considerable political attention. In these remarks below Barbour does not hold back on his criticism  of numerous Obama administration policies, on energy, spending and taxes.

This has given rise to mounting speculation that the former chairman of the Republican National Committee is developing political plans to be active next year in GOP primaries and caucuses. Asked recently if he thought his Mississippi accent might be a drawback in a national political campaign, Barbour shrugged and said it's the only one he has.

Scroll to the bottom for access to the previous State of the State addresses previously published by The Ticket.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Thank you Speaker McCoy and Governor Bryant, and thanks to you in the Legislature for your warm welcome.

General Freeman is with us tonight. While we don’t have as many of our National Guard in....

News story Jan. 27, 2011--"Jay Carney to be Obama's new press secretary":

"WASHINGTON — Jay Carney, currently the spokesman for Vice President Joe Biden, will replace Robert Gibbs as President Obama's press secretary, according to White House sources."

Top of the Ticket column, Jan. 7, 2011--"Day One of Obama 2.0: The William Daley era":

"The next indicator [of any real change in Obama's political direction] will be the new press secretary. If that person is from outside the Obama-Biden circle, then [new chief of staff William] Daley really is in charge. If not, then not. And it's more of the same old Obama White House in reality."

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: White House (Biden, Jay Carney and Gibbs try not to pose for an official photographer following their leak about Carney's new assignment).

David Kato, an internationally-known gay rights activist, was murdered Wednesday following a Ugandan newspaper's publication of a long list of what it said were the country's "top" gays, along with their photographs and addresses.

Kato was found hammered to death in his home. Police suggested it was a robbery.

Others, apparently including President Obama, suspect otherwise.

Saying that he was speaking on behalf of the American people, Obama said, "LGBT rights are not special rights; they are human rights."

See the president's full statement below:

Statement by the President on the Killing of David Kato

I am deeply saddened to learn of the murder of David Kato. In Uganda, David showed tremendous courage in speaking out against hate. He was a powerful advocate for fairness and freedom. The United States mourns his murder, and we recommit ourselves to David’s work. 

At home and around the world, LGBT persons continue to be subjected to unconscionable bullying, discrimination, and hate. 

In the weeks preceding David Kato’s murder in Uganda, five members of the LGBT community in Honduras were also murdered. It is essential that the Governments of Uganda and Honduras investigate these killings and hold the perpetrators accountable.

LGBT rights are not special rights; they are human rights. My Administration will continue to strongly support human rights and assistance work on behalf of LGBT persons abroad. We do this because we recognize the threat faced by leaders like David Kato, and we share their commitment to advancing freedom, fairness and equality for all.     ####

Photos: Associated Press

Like many other governors confronting their legislatures and budget problems these days, Nevada's new chief executive Brian Sandoval (his official biography is here) faced cutting expenses.

"We find ourselves on the new terrain of a changed global economy," he told legislators the other night, "and the crossing is hard."

Taking office 27 days ago, the former attorney general and federal judge found a preexisting budget gap of $1.2 billion. And began adjusting. "I can tell you the process was as painful as it was necessary," he said. Although the problems are common to most states we've examined so far (scroll down for links to previously published state of the State messages), Nevada's solutions are unique.

The new governor outlines them below.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, Distinguished Members of the Legislature, Honorable Justices of the Supreme Court, Constitutional Officers. My Fellow Nevadans:

It is a special honor to be here for my first State of the State with so many new members of the Legislature. Nevada is fortunate to have these leaders take office when we are in such a time of need. Welcome, all of you.

Welcome, too, all of the many guests who have joined us here in the Assembly chamber. Kathleen and I are honored that you are willing to share this evening with us. Please also allow me to....

Writing a major political speech like Tuesday's Obama State of the Union Address is an extremely complex undertaking typically lasting weeks and involving contributions from dozens of people by the end of the prose assembly process when the elected official reads over a late draft and adds his or her own touches for spoken comfort.

We are told that President Obama had a direct hand in crafting the 6,200 or so words that millions watched on nationwide television with the members of Congress as applauding props in a joint session.

One final trick of good speechwriters is to make their written words sound like somebody else's with the vocabulary, cadence and tone of the boss. That's no easy task and one reason Obama's top speechwriter is paid the $172,000 maximum for presidential aides.

Among the numerous working drafts, the alterations and edits for delivery time, policy or political sensitivities, it's easy for nuances or key words to get dropped unnoticed from a speech as it typically goes from hand to hand.

And, of course, such addresses do not contain the kinds of source credits and detailed footnotes that a diligent Barack Obama would have required when he was elected the first black president of the esteemed Harvard Law Review exactly 21 years ago next week.

During his Tuesday evening address to a joint session of Congress Obama cited....

Fresh from his 62-minute State of the Union oration, President Obama flew out to Wisconsin today to wave and repeat his opening 2012 campaign message of investing instead of spending. If you don't know the difference, that's perfect.

Innovation is also a big theme of the Democrat nowadays. It's positive, optimistic and means he doesn't have to talk specific cuts, which he hopes to force House Republicans to do first and set themselves up as targets.

Obama spoke for only 17 minutes at Orion Energy Systems in Manitowoc, enough to praise innovation, winning the future and sucking it up in tough times, which Americans are good at, he said. And which they better be good at these days, he didn't say.

Of course the president, who's actually a Pittsburgh Steelers backer, made the obligatory...

Of all the major political events en route in coming weeks and months -- President Obama's budget, the Republicans' budget, the debt ceiling fight and the continuing budget resolution -- this State of the Union stuff is the least important.

Thanks to today's media saturation, appointment political events like such speeches to Congress, presidential news conferences and debates garner way too much attention beforehand. It's like good Kansas City BBQ: The anticipation is exquisite. It's great going down. But two days later you're hungry again.

So, a stipulation up front: Obama's 2011 State of the Union address, all 6,200+ words of it, won't matter a whit by Monday. We're chewing on it this morning. TV will have ....

Good evening, my name is Congresswoman Michele Bachmann from Minnesota's 6th District.

Two years ago, when Barack Obama became our President, unemployment was 7.8 percent and our national debt stood at what seemed like a staggering $10.6 trillion dollars.

We wondered whether the President would cut spending, reduce the deficit and implement real job-creating policies.

Unfortunately, the President's strategy for recovery was to spend a trillion dollars on a failed stimulus program, fueled by borrowed money.

The White House promised us that all the spending would keep unemployment under 8 percent.

Not only did that plan fail to deliver, but within three months the national jobless rate spiked to 9.4 percent. And sadly, it hasn't been lower for 20 straight months. While the government grew, we lost more than 2 million jobs.

Let me show you a chart.

Here are unemployment rates over the past ten years. In October 2001, our....

Response to the State of the Union by Rep. Paul Ryan, as provided by Republican Party leadership

Good evening. I’m Congressman Paul Ryan from Janesville, Wisconsin – and Chairman here at the House Budget Committee.

President Obama just addressed a Congressional chamber filled with many new faces. One face we did not see tonight was that of our friend and colleague, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona. We all miss Gabby and her cheerful spirit; and we are praying for her return to the House Chamber. 

Earlier this month, President Obama spoke movingly at a memorial event for the six people who died on that violent morning in Tucson. Still, there are no words that can lift the sorrow that now engulfs the families and friends of the fallen.

What we can do is assure them that the nation is praying for them; that, in the words of the Psalmist, the Lord heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds; and that over time grace will replace grief.

As Gabby continues to make encouraging progress, we must....

Prepared text of President Obama's State of the Union, as provided by the White House

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow Americans:

Tonight I want to begin by congratulating the men and women of the 112th Congress, as well as your new Speaker, John Boehner. And as we mark this occasion, we are also mindful of the empty chair in this Chamber, and pray for the health of our colleague – and our friend – Gabby Giffords.

It’s no secret that those of us here tonight have had our differences over the last two years. The debates have been contentious; we have fought fiercely for our beliefs. And that’s a good thing. That’s what a robust democracy demands. That’s what helps set us apart as a nation.

But there’s a reason the tragedy in Tucson gave us pause. Amid all the noise and passions and rancor of our public debate, Tucson reminded us that no matter who we are or where we come from, each of us is a part of something greater – something more consequential than party or political preference.

We are part of the American family. We believe that in a country where every race and faith and point of view can be found, we are still bound together as one people; that we share common hopes and a common creed; that the dreams of a little girl in Tucson are not so different than those of our own children, and that they all deserve the chance to be fulfilled.

That, too, is what sets us apart as a nation.

Now, by itself, this simple recognition won’t usher in a new era of cooperation. What comes of this moment is up to us. What comes of this moment will be determined not by whether we can sit together tonight, but whether we can work together tomorrow.

I believe we can. I believe we must. That’s what the people who sent us here expect of us. With....