My beloved Tom Hanks appeared this morning on the Joe-what's-his-name and Mika-what's-her-name show, to promote his new mini-series "The Pacific". Mika just couldn't contain her excitement over the possibility of catching a very big fish, Hollywood-A-List-Liberal-Disappointed-Obama-Supporter. She forgot only one thing:

This is Thomas Jeffrey Hanks!! He saved Private Ryan! He survived 4 years on a Deserted Island, talking only to a volleyball! He cracked the Da Vinci Code! He brought Apollo 13 crew safely back from space! He's the owner of Bubba Gump Shrimps! And above all, he did a whole bunch of movies with Meg Ryan, and his career did not went to the toilet!!!

So Mika really thought she had any chance to trick him. He smacked her down faster than you can say "Brzezinski", and for the rest of the interview just gave them a lesson in history, common sense and Liberalism. That was utterly refreshing, and to show my gratitude, i hereby give Tom Hanks permission to do one more movie with Meg Ryan:

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Health Care Reform:

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Yesterday the president stopped by a meeting with CEOs of the nation's largest health insurance companies, and asked them to justify their stunning insurance rate increases. He brought a letter he received from Natoma Canfield of Medina, Ohio, which he read to the insurance executives (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza): "Dear President Obama, I am 50 years old. I was diagnosed with carcinoma 16 years ago, and following my divorce 12 years ago I became self-employed. After my COBRA benefits ran out, I was able to find costly but affordable health insurance. As a responsible individual, I've struggled to maintain my individual coverage and have increased my deductible and out-of-pocket limits in an attempt to control my costs and keep my health insurance. "Last year, 2009, my insurance premium was increased over 25 percent, even though I increased my deductible and out-of-pocket to the highest limits available. I paid out over $6,075.24 in premiums, $2,415.26 for medical care, $225 in co-pays, and $1,500 for prescriptions. I never reached my deductible of $2,500, so the insurance company only paid out a total of $935.32 to my providers. "I must repeat, in 2009, my insurance company received $6,075.24 in premiums and paid out only $935.32. Incredibly, I have been notified that my premium for the next year -- for next year, 2010, has been increased over 40 percent to $8,496.24. This is the same insurance company I've been with for over 11 cancer-free years. "I need your health reform bill to help me. I simply can no longer afford to pay for my health care costs. Thanks to this incredible premium increase demanded by my insurance company, January will be my last month of insurance. "I live in the house my mother and father built in 1958, and I am so afraid of the possibility I might lost this family heirloom as a result of being forced to drop my health care insurance."



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President Obama's special video message to OFA members:

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And, here's the story of Laura Klitzka who's been mention during Obama's speech on Wednesday:

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Young Voters' Approval Of Obama Historically High A new analysis from Gallup finds that as President Obama's ratings have gone up and down, one constant has remained: A sharply disproportionate level of support among younger voters, with an age gap that simply didn't happen with his two predecessors. Gallup's data was compiled by analyzing the average approval ratings for Bill Clinton and George W. Bush during their administrations, and comparing these numbers to the Obama administration so far. The numbers were broken down among four age groups: 18-29, 30-49, 50-64, and 65+. Bill Clinton's numbers actually showed no great variation, with a high of 57% among the 18-29 group, and 54% among the 50-64 cohort. George W. Bush showed some slight variation, with a low of 46% among the 18-29 group and a high of 52% with the 30-49 group. Among Obama, though, the high is 66% among the 18-29 group, with a low of 51% among the 65+ group.

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$600 million awarded today to 191 new Recovery Act transit projects! WASHINGTON – Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced funding for 191 new Recovery Act transit projects in 42 states and Puerto Rico that will help transform the nation’s infrastructure and support thousands of jobs across the country. In making the over $600 million in new awards, the Federal Transit Administration met an aggressive deadline to award 100 percent of its Recovery Act transit formula dollars by March 5. Since President Obama signed the Recovery Act in February 2009, the FTA has awarded 881 grants totaling $7.5 billion. So far, Recovery Act funds have supported the purchase of nearly 12,000 buses, vans and rail vehicles, the construction or renovation of more than 850 transit facilities, and the performance of more than $620 million in preventive maintenance, which has helped to save transit service and jobs, and enhance service reliability. (Complete list of all projects can be found in the link).

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16 first-round finalists in the Race to the Top competition New York, Florida and Pennsylvania are among the 16 first-round finalists in the federal grant competition known as Race to the Top, in which states compete for a share of $4 billion in school improvement money, the federal Department of Education said Thursday.

The other first-round finalists are Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Tennessee. The first-round winners will be announced on April 1. Forty states and the District of Columbia submitted proposals... ...Many analysts had identified Florida and Louisiana as strong contenders. Florida has one of the most advanced student-data tracking systems in the country, as well as a system that rates schools like report cards, A through F. Louisiana was an obvious contender, partly because scores of charter schools opened in New Orleans after the city’s school system was devastated by Hurricane Katrina. President Obama last month requested an additional $1.3 billion to extend the competition into a third round next year.

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Obama looking to give new life to immigration reform Despite steep odds, the White House has discussed prospects for reviving a major overhaul of the nation's immigration laws, a commitment that President Obama has postponed once already. Obama took up the issue privately with his staff Monday in a bid to advance a bill through Congress before lawmakers become too distracted by approaching midterm elections... ...Immigration is a delicate issue for the White House. After promising to revamp in his first year of office what many see as a fractured system, Obama risks angering a growing, politically potent Latino constituency if he defers the goal until 2011. But with the healthcare debate still unresolved, Democrats are wary of plunging into another polarizing issue. "Right now we have a little problem with the 'Chicken Little' mentality: The sky is falling and consequently we can't do anything," Rep. Raul M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) said in an interview. Republicans are unlikely to cooperate. On Capitol Hill, Republicans said that partisan tensions had only gotten worse since Obama signaled this week that he would push forward with a healthcare bill, whether he could get GOP votes or not.

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Earlier today the president visited OPower, an Arlington, VA company that developers energy efficiency software, and is very successful and hiring people. He also talked about the new unemployment numbers:

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President Barack Obama greets employees of OPOWER before delivering remarks on clean energy jobs as he visits OPOWER company March 5, 2010 in Arlington, Virginia. (Olivier Douliery/Abaca Press/MCT)

President Barack Obama gets some information from employees of OPOWER before delivering remarks on clean energy jobs as he visits OPOWER company March 5, 2010 in Arlington, Virginia. (Olivier Douliery/Abaca Press/MCT)

President Barack Obama meets employees as Daniel Yates, right, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of OPOWER, a smart grid and energy efficiency software company that works with utility companies to help customers use less energy, looks on before he speaks about clean energy and job creation, Friday, March 5, 2010, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) President Barack Obama stands Daniel Yates, Chief Executive Officer and Founder of OPOWER. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

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The President signed the bipartisan Travel Promotion Act, in the Oval Office. March 4, 2010.

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Couple of Michelle Obama items:

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Michelle Obama visits Brinkley Middle School in Jackson, MS to talk about healthy eating and her Let's Move campaign, a nationwide effort to raise a healthier generation of kids.

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U.S. first lady Michelle Obama (C) and US Soccer Foundation President and CEO Ed Foster-Simeon (R) participate with local school kids in a youth soccer clinic March 5, 2010 in Washington, DC. The clinic is to promote the national fight against childhood obesity and in support for the first lady's 'Let's Move!' campaign that encourage children to get 60 minutes of active play each day.(Getty Images)



U.S. first lady Michelle Obama participates in a youth soccer clinic with Luis Sanchez (C), a fourth grader of Barnard Elementary School in Washington, and Washington Freedom Soccer Team mascot Glory (R)March 5, 2010 in Washington, DC (Getty Images)



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Finally, Bo pictures. Yea, i know. Have a good weekend, everybody.

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U.S. President Barack Obama's family dog Bo waits for the president on March 5, 2010 in Washington, DC (Getty Images)



School children visiting the White House stop and look through a door in the Palm Room of the White House after spotting Bo, March 2, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)



Bo sniffs the hand of a Military Aide as a motorcade waits to take President Barack Obama to an event, March 1, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)



Children pet Bo as First Lady Michelle Obama greets visitors touring the White House during a surprise visit in the Blue Room on the anniversary of the inauguration, January 20, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)



Bo in the doorway of in the Oval Office, September 14, 2009. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)



Bo plays in the blowing snow on the South Lawn of the White House during a blizzard, February 10, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

