The Washington Post has cancelled a service it planned on providing to offer lobbyists face time with Obama Administration officials for a fee. Here’s what the legendary paper would’ve done for the price:

For $25,000 to $250,000, The Washington Post is offering lobbyists and association executives off the record, non-confrontational access to “those powerful few” — Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and the paper’s own reporters and editors.

The astonishing offer is detailed in a flier circulated Wednesday to a health-care lobbyist, who provided it to a reporter because the lobbyist said he feels it’s a conflict for the paper to charge for access to, as the flier says, its “health care reporting and editorial staff.”

The offer—which essentially turns a news organization into a facilitator for private lobbyist-official encounters—is a new sign of the lengths to which news organizations will go to find revenue at a time when most newspapers are struggling for survival.

Just how brazen was this flier in offering the paper’s pimping services?

“Underwriting Opportunity: An evening with the right people can alter the debate,” says the one-page flier. “Underwrite and participate in this intimate and exclusive Washington Post Salon, an off-the-record dinner and discussion at the home of CEO and Publisher Katharine Weymouth … Bring your organization’s CEO or executive director literally to the table. Interact with key Obama Administration and Congressional leaders …

“Spirited? Yes. Confrontational? No. The relaxed setting in the home of Katharine Weymouth assures it.["]

Wow. Spirited and relaxed bought time with high-ranking government officials. Lovely.

Following public and even media pressure, the paper has decided not to go ahead with the program. Apparently the response wasn’t as pleasant as the publisher had hoped, as Weymouth is distancing herself from the flier and idea altogether.

Washington Post Publisher Katharine Weymouth today canceled plans for a series of policy dinners at her home after learning that marketing fliers offered lobbyists access to Obama administration officials, members of Congress and Post journalists in exchange for payments as high as $250,000.

“Absolutely, I’m disappointed,” Weymouth, the chief executive of Washington Post Media, said in an interview. “This should never have happened. The fliers got out and weren’t vetted. They didn’t represent at all what we were attempting to do. We’re not going to do any dinners that would impugn the integrity of the newsroom.”

Moments earlier, Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli said in a separate interview that he was “appalled” by the plan and had insisted before the cancellation that the newsroom would not participate.

“It suggests that access to Washington Post journalists was available for purchase,” Brauchli said. The proposal “promises we would suspend our usual skeptical questioning because it appears to offer, in exchange for sponsorships, the good name of The Washington Post.”

“suggests”? No, it basically comes out and shouts that WaPo journalists were available for purchase.

Via Hot Air.

Just wow. Gibbs says that “some people” in other countries probably like their single-payer system, just as many people in this country like the system we possess. President Obama’s point was to play-up the magnificence of socialized health care, not to point out that everyone has their own preferences. And apparently his own spokesman can’t name a country where such a system works.

I’d embed the video, but that option doesn’t appear to exist. So you’ll have to head over to Real Clear Politics.

Networks are now reporting that the suspect in the Holocaust Museum shooting is 89-year-old James von Brunn. Let me tell you, there’s a treasure trove of information for Brunn on the internet.

First of all, he’s entirely convinced that Jews control the media and America’s money source. In the same article, he denies that Hitler ever gassed the Jews and says that the dictator’s biggest mistake was not doing so.

Second, here’s a profile matching his description on Wikipedia. Brunn claims he attempted to arrest the “Federal Resrve (sic) Board of Governors” for treason. He writes that he was tried and convicted in a “kangaroo” court in Washington, was sentenced to federal prison, and that his conviction was “confirmed by a racially motivated Appeals Court”. He served 6.5 years in prison. From his page:

Von Brunn champions Western Culture,and the practice of Eugenics. He states that Marxism-Multiculturalism-Judaism is the Enemy of Mankind.citing Talmudic quotes to “Kill the Best Gentiles !”

Third, here’s his personal website. A sample of his writings on that page:

Here are 350pp of FACTS condensing libraries of information about the Talmud, Democracy, Marx, Genetics, Money, Aryans, Negroes, Khazars, The Holy Bible, Treason, Mass-media, Mendelism, Race, the “Holocaust” and a host of suppressed “bigoted” subjects, all supported by quotations from many of history’s greatest personages. Learn who is responsible for the millions of Aryan crosses covering the world’s battlefields. Why our sons and daughters died bravely but in vain. Learn why the “browning of America will alter everything in society from politics and education to industry, values and culture.” (TIME 4-9-90).

This carefully documented treatise exposes the JEWS and explains what you must do to protect your White family. Kill the Best Gentiles! Is a must for every concerned parent and a manual for every student of World History.

Finally, there’s this. Brunn appears to be as anti-neoconservative as he is antisemitic. Fox is reporting that Brunn had an exchange with novelist Tom Clancy a few years ago, in which Brunn called Colin Powell a certain derogatory term. Clancy reportedly responded by a term of his own to describe Brunn.

Update: Brunn was arrested in 1981 after he walked into the Federal Reserve building with a satchell containing a bomb and carrying a shotgun, angry over interest rates and what he viewed as the Jews controlling the money supply. He was arrested and sentenced to 6.5 years in prison.

Newt Gingrich is drawing attention for comments on his Twitter feed that Judge Sonia Sotomayor, Obama’s nominee for the Supreme Court, is a racist who should withdraw. His criticism focuses on her comments regarding the race of judges and the outcome of cases:

“I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life,” said Judge Sotomayor, who is now considered to be near the top of President Obama’s list of potential Supreme Court nominees.

Many liberals have trouble believing that a minority could possibly be a racist. After all, they’re not a white man capable of keeping a black/Latina woman down, right? They come to this conclusion while supporting affirmative action — a policy that makes the basic assumption that minorities need to government to interfere in order for them to compete with and win against non-minority competitors.

The assumption is wrong. As we witnessed with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, minorities can be just as racist as any white individual. And Sotomayer is one of those racists. She has stated her belief that Latina women reach a better conclusion on cases than a white male, simply because they’re Latina women and on no other grounds. She believes that judges should take into account their experience as a woman or “person of color” when making decisions. As Gingrich says (in Twitter speak):

Imagine a judicial nominee said “my experience as a white man makes me better than a Latina woman” new racism is no better than old racism…

White man racist nominee would be forced to withdraw. Latina woman racist should also withdraw.

Forced to withdraw? He’d be run out of town, roundly condemned, and you’d hear heads at the NAACP and ACLU exploding from your living room. Yet Sotomayer makes racist comments and her life struggles are celebrated, the GOP is condemned for even thinking of criticizing her, and, in all likelihood, she’ll be quickly confirmed to the highest court. Apparently racism is acceptable as long as it’s targeted at the white male.

North Korea has launched a long-range rocket, South Korea and Japan have confirmed to international wire services. Reports indicate that the rocket flew over Japanese territory. (Scroll for Updates)

Update: Early reports indicate that there was indeed a satellite on board. That’s not confirmed by any government official, so grain of salt right now. Something to keep in mind here though: Even if it was a satellite, the move is still an impressive and provocative feet.

The United Nations Security Council had demanded that no ballistic missile go up from North Korea. The DPRK has now launched what appears to be a three-stage rocket capable of hitting American territory.

Update: North Korea has notified international authorities that it has indeed launched the missile. There is no indication as to whether it is still in flight or failed.

Update: The U.S. State Department has confirmed the launch. A spokesman says, “We look on this as a provocative act.”

Major Update: More…

The rocket flew over Japan and landed in the Pacific Ocean, the Japanese broadcaster NHK said, citing its government.

Japan has requested an emergency United Nations Security Council session. It has to be approved by Mexico’s mission to the United Nations.

Update: The United Nations Security Council emergency meeting has been set for 3PM.

(Cross-posted from Global Briefing. Sorry for the delay. News found via Hot Air.)

Over 651,000 jobs were lost in February, the Bureau of Labor Stastics announced this morning. Approximately 8.1% of our workforce is, well, out of work.

The nation’s unemployment rate rose to 8.1 percent in February, the Labor Department reported this morning, adding another grim indicator to an economic picture already darkened this week.

More than 650,000 people lost their jobs last month, pushing the unemployment rate up from 7.6 percent in January.

The jobless rate stood at its highest point since 1983.

The expectation of another reported increase in unemployment already was sending stock futures lower this morning in advance of trading on the final day of a week in which key indices had reached their lowest levels in more than a decade.

The Dow is down another 78 points since yesterday’s abortion of a close.

Remember the woman who told Obama of her plight at his pro-stimulus rally yesterday? The same rally where supporters chanted his campaign slogan? Well, apparently a kind woman was watching the rally on television and decided to help the homeless Henrietta Hughes. More specifically, the wife of State Representative Nicholas Thompson (R-Fort Myers) decided to help.

Barring any major story political or otherwise that simply demands commentary, I’ll likely be absent from blogging for at least the next few days. A few things in my life may require my undivided attention. Thanks for your understanding.

Beg pardon, but is there not a recession going on with hundreds of thousands of people losing their jobs by the month? Have taxpayers not spent trillions bailing out private institutions? Is this really the time to spend the most amount ever spent on swearing-in a president who wants to spend even more once in office?

President Barack Obama’s inauguration next week is set to be the most expensive ever, predicted to reach over $150m (£102m). This dwarfs the $42.3m spent on George Bush’s inauguration in 2005 and the $33m spent on Bill Clinton’s in 1993.

Huh. It dwarfs the amount spent on Bush in 2005, huh? That’s funny, because the left did nothing but complain about the cost to swear-in the president in that year. For example:

Jan 20, 2005 | In Sunday’s New York Times, John Tierney examined the delicate balancing act administrations face when throwing a lavish inauguration celebration against the backdrop of unsettling world events. Tierney wrote that inaugurations “become even trickier during times of war, particularly when television images of dancers in black tie can be instantly juxtaposed with soldiers in body armor.”…

This week’s inauguration story came ready with two interesting news angles: the huge cost (in contrast with the dire situation in Iraq) and the unprecedented security. And in both cases, the political press corps, as has been its habit under the Bush administration, showed little interest in prying. In the days and weeks leading up to the event, the press has largely treated inauguration criticism as partisan and silly, making sure to give Bush backers lots of time and room to defend the unmatched pomp and circumstance.

Lavish inauguration celebrations? Check. Huge costs and unprecedented security? Check. A war in Iraq in the background? Check. Unsettling work events? Check and check. And yet I’ve missed the overwhelming outrage from the left over the most expensive inauguration ever taking place while troops are dying and Americans are losing jobs. Interesting.

For more on the double-standard, check out Scott at Flopping Aces. The media took plenty of time in 2005 to assess how the money spent to swear-in Dubya could’ve been spent better. I’m sure you could’ve helped more than a few Americans with $150 million, huh?

Via HAH.

Respectful as is expected, but absent the usual clapping and cheering one comes to expect. Sometimes silence can be louder than words.

President-elect Obama stopped by the Marine Corps base in Hawaii Kaneche Bay where servicemen and -women were eating Christmas dinner in Kailua Thursday evening.

“Just wanted to say hi, hey guys,” Obama said as he walked into the Anderson dining hall which was decked out in Christmas decorations.

The diners represented seven military units — Marine and Navy — some of whom were joined by their families for Christmas dinner.

As Obama entered the room, it was absent of the regular fanfare of cheering and clapping. The diners were polite, staying seated at their respective tables and waited for the president-elect to come to them to stand up.

ABC News says that the President-elect didn’t eat with the uniformed men and women. He visited for an hour then had dinner at the $9 million beach home that he’s renting for the holidays.