Susan Crabtree
Articles by Susan Crabtree
Obama seeks trust to fund gas alternatives
On a day when a jump in gas prices helped end the stock market's two-week winning streak, President Obama said the U.S. must wean its cars and trucks entirely away from gasoline by the middle of the next decade. Published March 15, 2013
Obama tries to reassure Senate GOP on areas of common ground
President Obama rounded out his good-will tour with a third and final visit to Capitol Hill, telling Senate Republicans he would challenge Democrats on changes to entitlement programs if Republican members relent on raising taxes. Published March 14, 2013
Obama, Boehner offer new pope warm wishes and congratulations
President Obama offered the newly selected Pope Francis "warm wishes" and prayers from himself and the first lady as he begins his papacy in a time of transition for the Vatican. Published March 13, 2013
Obama: Meeting with House GOP was ‘useful’
President Obama hit both ends of the political spectrum Wednesday, spending the afternoon talking up areas of common ground with Republicans and the evening chatting up donors at a partisan fundraiser. Published March 13, 2013
Obama opens door to entitlement changes in grand bargain talks
President Obama opened the door to making significant changes to entitlement programs during a meeting Tuesday with Senate Democrats, though some among the lawmakers quickly warned that they would not go along with benefit cuts or a higher retirement age. Published March 12, 2013
White House: Paul Ryan’s budget math ‘doesn’t add up’
The White House dismissed GOP House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan's new budget plan that would cut spending by $4.6 trillion through 2023 and balance the nation's fiscal books, saying the "math doesn't add up" and the proposal would harm middle-class Americans. Published March 12, 2013
White House denies OFA is selling access to Obama
The White House is strenuously denying that Organizing for Action, President Obama's former re-election campaign that morphed into a nonprofit group, is selling access to the president despite the group's own coy implications and his cooperation with it. Published March 11, 2013
Media blackout: Obama censors more documents, citing national security
The U.S. government cited national security as its reason for censoring documents the public requested last year more often than at any other time in President Obama's time in office. Published March 11, 2013
Obama needles press, jokes about sequester at elite Gridiron dinner
President Obama used Washington's elite Gridiron dinner to bring some humor to some pretty tense topics — the sequester, the press and even his own economic team. Published March 10, 2013
Republicans denounce NYC terror trial for bin Laden son-in-law
Republicans are denouncing the Obama administration's decision to bring Osama bin Laden's son-in-law to New York for a civilian trial, arguing he belongs in military custody in Guantanamo Bay. Published March 8, 2013
Obama signs expanded Violence Against Women Act
President Obama signed into law an expanded Violence Against Women Act that gives gays more access to anti-domestic violence resources and grants more authority to American Indian courts. Published March 7, 2013
White House: Easter egg roll still on despite sequester cuts
The White House is moving forward with the White House Easter Egg Roll, despite closing its doors to all public tours because of the sequester spending cuts. Published March 7, 2013
Holder: No authority for drone strikes on non-combatant Americans
Attorney General Eric Holder has sent Sen. Rand Paul a letter expressly saying that the president does not have the authority to use drones to kill American on U.S. soil who are not enemy combatants. Published March 7, 2013
Breaking bread: Obama dines with Republican senators amid sequester gridlock
President Obama dined with several GOP senators Wednesday evening at Washington's Jefferson Hotel as both sides struggle to break through Washington's partisan gridlock. Published March 6, 2013
White House pushes for vote on contentious D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals nominee
Facing the stiffest Republican opposition to a judicial nominee in two years, the White House is pushing for a confirmation vote this week on Caitlin Halligan's appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. White House spokesman Jay Carney on Tuesday said Republican opponents to Ms. Halligan should back down and confirm her without delay. Published March 5, 2013
Liberals looking past Burwell’s Wal-Mart link
President Obama on Monday nominated Wal-Mart's Sylvia Mathews Burwell to head the Office of Management and Budget, a job which places her at the epicenter of the budget wars between the White House and Congress. Published March 4, 2013
Obama taps budget chief, two for climate-change roles
President Obama on Monday announced nominees for three administration posts likely to be in the thick of the environmental and budget wars of his second term. Published March 3, 2013
In middle of gun-control push, Obama pardons man on weapon conviction
Despite President Obama's push for greater gun control, he pardoned a Georgia man Friday who was convicted for possessing an unregistered firearm. Published March 1, 2013
DNC won’t repay Duke Energy for Charlotte convention costs
The Democratic National Committee has no plans to repay Duke Energy for an unprecedented $10 million line of credit it guaranteed to help the Democratic convention's local host committee put on President Obama's three-day nominating convention in Charlotte, N.C., last September. Published March 1, 2013
White House sequester warnings fall on deaf ears
President Obama's apocalyptic predictions of the harm that would come to the country if the latest round of budget cuts kick in late next week are starting to wear thin among an unlikely group: the White House press corps. Published February 22, 2013