POTUS NOTES
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Dems are growing overconfident, says Plouffe
The man who oversaw President Obama's historic campaign clashes with Bush architect Karl Rove over whether the president is really practicing bipartisanship, but allows that some in his party are getting too big for their britches.
Obama and Biden go to Arlington burger joint
The president and vice president went off campus for their weekly lunch on Tuesday, taking a trip to Ray's Hell Burger in Arlington.
Going dark for a few days
POTUS Notes will be dark for the rest of the week, but back in action on Monday, May 4. In the meantime, read this article.
Saudi prince says Taliban leader could be U.S. ally
Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal on Sunday recommended that the Obama administration work with a top Taliban leader who is behind suicide attacks in Afghanistan and was the likely target of a U.S. missile strike just last fall.
Mideast peace depends on Obama, Saudi prince says
Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal said Sunday evening that if President Obama devotes himself to Middle East peace he will be able to overcome the obstacles presented by a new hardline Israeli government.
Larry Summers falls asleep while Obama talks
The president's top financial adviser apparently has to catch some shut eye whenever he can, even if the president is talking and TV cameras are rolling.
Interrogators said they would do 'whatever it takes'
One thing in those Justice Department memos that has so far escaped much notice is something that interrogators were allowed to tell detainees.
Is Robert Gibbs doing too much?
Robert Gibbs is a unique White House creature, with more authority over messaging and more access to the president than perhaps anyone else who's ever held the position.
A new trend: The "BlackBerry break"
The New America Foundation is now introducing "BlackBerry breaks" into its conference and seminars.
Gibbs: Pay no attention to what Rahm said
The White House press secretary had a hard time Tuesday explaining an apparent about-face by President Obama on whether Bush administration lawyers should be prosecuted for writing legal memos authorizing "enhanced interrogation techniques" that some consider to have been torture.
Bush lawyers won't be targeted, Rahm says
President Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, said Sunday that the attorneys who wrote the legal memos justifying the Bush administration's "enhanced interrogation techniques" should not be prosecuted.
Putting the 'torture memos' in context
Not much attention has been paid so far to the role that the memos play in the broader legal landscape. Here's an attempt to explain it.
Obama's tax cut claim based on population growth
President Obama today said he has cut taxes for more American workers than any U.S. president in history. A former spokesman for President Bush says this is probably true -- but only because the number of workers has grown.
Obama's cornucopia of tax credits
While a tax protest goes on outside the White House, the Obama administration is aiming to avoid the "tax and spend" label on Tax Day with a long list of tax credits and refunds they've enacted. Take a look at the list.
Former staffer sees pre-Obama roots to DHS report
"As much as I want to say it was politically fueled, I'm pretty certain that it wasn't," the former DHS staffer said.
