In the Loop - Afflicting official Washington since 1993

A new federal law kicks in right after the conventions to allow the government to provide earlier support for both candidates to work up a plan before settling, or resettling, into the Oval Office.

By Al Kamen | 01:44 PM ET, 07/19/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Romney, Obama, Bush, Clinton, transitions, planning, Clay Johnson, John Podesta, Ted Kaufman, 9/11, Presidential Transition Act, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 03:12 PM ET, 07/18/2012

Hillary Clinton’s miles: In the Loop gets one Pinocchio

By Al Kamen

Washington Post Fact Checker columnist finds fault in an item on Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s travels.

By Al Kamen | 03:12 PM ET, 07/18/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Hillary Clinton, Condoleezza Rice, miles traveled, days, State Department, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 05:44 PM ET, 07/17/2012

Hillary Rodham Clinton’s travel logs

By Al Kamen

The secretary of state is No. 1 in terms of countries visited and days on the road.

By Al Kamen | 05:44 PM ET, 07/17/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Hillary Clinton, Condoleezza Rice, Madeleine Albright, travel, miles traveled, days on the road, countries visited, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 02:28 PM ET, 07/12/2012

Bill Clinton’s summer reading fave

By Al Kamen

Our former colleague E. J. Dionne’s new book gets high marks from the former president.

By Al Kamen | 02:28 PM ET, 07/12/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Bill Clinton, Clinton Global Initiative, E.J. Dionne, Ashley Judd, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 12:06 PM ET, 06/26/2012

Obama vacation? Loop contest reminder

By Al Kamen

Don’t forget to enter the In the Loop contest to advise on the best vacation spot this summer for the Obamas.

By Al Kamen | 12:06 PM ET, 06/26/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: President Obama, Obama vacation, Martha's Vineyard, GOP convention, Bush, Clinton, Lake Erie, Cedar Point, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the loop

Posted at 01:11 PM ET, 06/25/2012

CATCHING UP WITH . . . Webb Hubbell

By Al Kamen

The Loop checks in to see how the former associate U.S. attorney general is doing.

By Al Kamen | 01:11 PM ET, 06/25/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Webb Hubbell, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Kenneth Starr: Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 02:22 PM ET, 06/18/2012

Colin Powell: ‘Not. . . hiding in a bunker.’

By Al Kamen

By Al Kamen | 02:22 PM ET, 06/18/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Colin Powell, Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, Hillary Clinton, "It worked for me", George Kennan, State Department, William Rogers, New York Times, Washington post, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 01:21 PM ET, 05/22/2012

9/11 Memorial still short of funds

By Al Kamen

The Shanksville, Pa., memorial to those on Flight 93 whose bravery saved the Capitol on 9/11 is still looking to raise $8 million from private donors.

By Al Kamen | 01:21 PM ET, 05/22/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: World Trade Center, memorial, 9/11, Pentagon, Shanksville, Flight 93, funding, fundraiser, Clinton, Bush, Boehner, Newseum, National Park Foundation, National Park Service, contributions, Congress, Capitol, Alamo, Thermopylae, Al Qaeda, Capitol visitors center, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 12:23 PM ET, 05/10/2012

Davitt McAteer on the hot seat again?

By Al Kamen

Federal investigator believes the former federal mine safety chief mishandled federal grant money.

By Al Kamen | 12:23 PM ET, 05/10/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Mine Safety and Health Administration, J. Davitt McAteer, Clinton administration, mine safety, Wheeling Jesuit University, NASA, search warrant, Stephen Jory, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 05:26 PM ET, 05/01/2012

Obama, Romney spar over Osama

By Al Kamen

The political bickering ratchets up over the significance of Obama’s approval of the raid that killed Osama bin-Laden.

By Al Kamen | 05:26 PM ET, 05/01/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Osama bin Laden, Osama, Mitt Romney, Obama, Jimmy Carter, Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, Bob Gates, Al Kamen, Im the Loop, Emily Heil

Posted at 01:28 PM ET, 04/27/2012

Senate confirms top Pentagon and Justice nominees

By Al Kamen

The Senate confirmed former Obama National Security Council chief of staff Mark Lippert as assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific affairs along with several other top picks.

By Al Kamen | 01:28 PM ET, 04/27/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Senate, Obama, nominees, confirmed, Ecuador, Defense Department, ambassadors, Agriculture Department, Bob Woodward, Obama's Wars, Adam Namm, Mark Lippert, Jim Jones, Michael E. Horowitz, Clinton, Bush, Kathryn Keneally, Michael Scuse, Deborah S. Delisle, Al Kamen, In the Loop, Emily Heil, Hugo Chavez

Posted at 12:06 PM ET, 04/16/2012

Clinton to ambassadors: Don’t move!

By Al Kamen

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, citing a difficult political climate on the Hill, has told the 60 or so ambassadors to stay in their posts until a successor is confirmed. Could be a long time.

By Al Kamen | 12:06 PM ET, 04/16/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Hillary Clinton, ambassadors, confirmations, political ambassadors, foreign policy, Mitt Romney, Barack Obama, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 04:22 PM ET, 04/11/2012

Obama and Clinton off to Cartagena gabfest

By Al Kamen

More than 30 Western Hemisphere heads of government are meeting at the Sixth Summit of the Americas in Colombia.

By Al Kamen | 04:22 PM ET, 04/11/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Summit of the Americas, President Obama, Cartagena, Colombia, Hillary Clinton, The Texter, Hugo Chavez, Danny Ortega, Connie Mack, House Foreign Relations Committee, Marco Rubio, John Edwards, Edwards trial, Edwards mistress, Bildeberg Conference, John Kerry, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 01:03 PM ET, 04/05/2012

Burma aide says Suu Kyi win a shocker

By Al Kamen

A Burmese presidential adviser says the landslide victory of pro-democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi surprised the ruling party.

By Al Kamen | 01:03 PM ET, 04/05/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi, elections, landslide victory, Aung San, George Washington, Nelson Mandela, Hillary Clinton, Clinton 2008 campaign, Mark Penn, Loop Campaign Guru of the Week Award, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop

Posted at 12:46 PM ET, 04/03/2012

Obama ‘soon’ to pick ambassador to Burma

By Al Kamen

The weekend’s huge election victory of democracy champion and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi opens the door for a new ambassador to Burma.

By Al Kamen | 12:46 PM ET, 04/03/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Aung San Suu Kyi, Suu Kyi, Burma, Rangoon, Hillary Clinton, Luc Besson, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, Melanne Verveer, Kurt Campbell, Derek Mitchell, Motion Picture Association of America, In the Loop

Posted at 02:36 PM ET, 03/28/2012

Mitt Romney? Etch-a-what?

By Al Kamen

A new poll finds that, despite all the media hoopla, most people have never heard about the Romney Etch a Sketch flap and even fewer say it will effect their votes.

By Al Kamen | 02:36 PM ET, 03/28/2012 | Permalink | Comments ( 0)
Tags: Etch A Sketch, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich, Pew Research Center, Pew, President Obama, Hillary Clinton, Al Kamen, Emily Heil, In the Loop