We're Not the Only Ones Worried About the Census

To contact us Click HERE


Census Project presents the viewpoints about the decennial census and the American Community Survey (ACS) from various stakeholders.  A diverse group of stakeholders are involved including academic associations, public policy interest groups, retail and business organizations, and organizations representing ethnic and minority groups.

Recently the House voted not to fund the American Community Survey for 2013.  The Census Project  notes, "Currently, because of economic, fiscal and political challenges, the ongoing budgets to adequately fund planning for Census 2020 and the ACS’ ongoing work will be under a microscope in Congress."

The site includes fact sheets, issue briefs, letters, and other information.  A recent report, Eliminating America's Playbook, is a compilation of "scores of case studies and comments on why the ACS is one of the most useful tools the nation has to measure how its communities are doing each year."

Check it out!

Live At The Academy Awards: Michelle Obama Announces Oscar For 'Argo' As Best Picture

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First Lady tweets congratulations to Oscar-winning film...
Just after hosting the 2013 National Governors' Dinner on Sunday night at the White House, First Lady Michelle Obama filmed a live spot for the 2013 Academy Awards, announcing the Best Picture category from the White House.  Clad in the glittering Naeem Khan gown she wore for the dinner, Mrs. Obama was introduced for her surprise appearance on the global broadcast by the legendary Jack Nicholson, who was onstage in Hollywood.  Mrs. Obama stood in the Diplomatic Reception Room, where she held the envelope with the name of the winning film, Argo, directed by Ben Affleck. Nine films were in the running.  (Above, a White House photo)

"I am so honored to help introduce this year's nominees for best picture and to help celebrate the movies that lift our spirits, broaden our minds and transport us to places we have never imagined,"  Mrs. Obama said onscreen.

"These nine movies took us back in time and all around the world they made us laugh, they made us weep and they made us grip our armrests just a little tighter.  They taught us that love can endure against all odds and transform our lives in the most surprising ways, and they reminded us that we can overcome any obstacle if we dig deep enough and fight hard enough and find the courage to believe in ourselves," Mrs. Obama said.

"These lessons apply to all of us no matter who we are or what we look like or where we come from or who we love, but they are especially important for our young people, every day through engagement in the arts, our children learn to open their imaginations to dream just a little bigger and to strive every day to reach those dreams."

The First Lady's Communications Director, Kristina Schake, said in a statement that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences invited Mrs. Obama to be a presenter.

"The Academy Awards approached the First Lady about being a part of the ceremony," Schake said. 

"As a movie lover, she was honored to present the award and celebrate the artists who inspire us all--especially our young people--with their passion, skill and imagination," Schake said.



Above, Mrs. Obama as she appeared on the jumbo screen at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, with Nicholson at bottom left.  After her star-turn, the First Lady tweeted about how "thrilled" she was to participate in Hollywood's biggest night, and congratulated Argo. 

"It was a thrill to announce the #Oscars2013 best picture winner from the @WhiteHouse! Congratulations Argo! -mo," Mrs. Obama wrote on her @FLOTUS account. 

UPDATE:  Deadline Hollywood reports on the backstory of how Mrs. Obama made her cameo.  It was the brainchild of Lily Weinstein, daughter of film mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was a top-tier bundler for President Obama's re-election campaign, raising millions for the 2012 race.  Deadline noted:

"The idea of getting the First Lady on the show first came from Lily Weinstein, who mentioned it to her big Obama contributor dad Harvey, who suggested it to the Oscar producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron and Academy president Hawk Koch. The group flew to DC a week and a half ago to put the logistics together with the White House. The Oscar producers told Deadline’s Pete Hammond earlier this week that they “were being like the CIA” about a couple of surprises on the show, keeping things top secret. In towns like Hollywood and DC where people love to talk, they pulled it off. There was no indication on the show’s rundown and most of the people on the Oscars had no idea who the secret guest would be. “I knew we could do it and we did it,” Koch told Deadline tonight about keeping Obama’s name under wraps.

The First Lady was actually handed the envelope with the winner’s name in it by the head of PricewaterhouseCoopers at the White House." 

__End Update___

On Feb. 13, Mrs. Obama hosted an arts workshop at the White House for 80 middle and high school students that featured a screening of Oscar-nominated Beasts of The Southern Wild, which included the 9-year-old star, nominated actress Quvenzhané Wallis, who did not win this evening.  Mrs. Obama described the film as "beautiful, joyful and devastatingly honest."  Last November, the cast and crew of nominated Lincoln, including star Daniel Day-Lewis (Best Actor winner) and director Steven Spielberg, visited the White House to screen the film for President Obama and Mrs. Obama.

It was a thrill to announce the #Oscars2013 best picture winner from the @whitehouse! Congratulations Argo! -mo
— FLOTUS (@FLOTUS) February 25, 2013

Michelle Obama. Wow. #Oscars twitter.com/TheAcademy/sta…
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) February 25, 2013

Tuesday: Michelle Obama Announces New Let's Move! Project On 'Good Morning America'

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Chef Marcus Samulesson joins First Lady for a cooking demonstration...
It won't have as many eyeballs as her outing at the Oscars, but First Lady Michelle Obama will appear on ABC's Good Morning America on Tuesday, Feb. 26 as part of the third anniversary of the Let's Move! campaign.  Mrs. Obama and c0-anchor Robin Roberts will discuss healthy cooking for families, and acclaimed New York chef Marcus Samuelsson will join the First Lady for a cooking demonstration, said the network.  (Above, Mrs. Obama and Roberts)

Mrs. Obama will announce a new Let's Move! partnership "that makes finding healthy, reliable recipes easy for busy parents," the White House said.  
 
A cookbook author and TV personality, Samuelsson owns Harlem's Red Rooster restaurant, and in 2009 was a guest chef at the White House for President Obama's State Dinner for India.  He also joined Mrs. Obama in the Kids' Kitchen at the 2012 White House Easter Egg Roll, to demonstrate a healthy, kid-friendly recipe. (Above, cooking with Mrs. Obama)
 
On Wednesday, Mrs. Obama begins a three-state tour to celebrate the anniversary.  Her first stop is Clinton, Mississippi, where she will host a culinary competition between school chefs, joined by celebrity chef Rachael Ray.  It will be broadcast on Ray's ABC show on March 11.

The GMA interview is Mrs. Obama's first morning show interview, according to ABC, and was filmed when Mrs. Obama was in New York last Friday, where she appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and The Dr. Oz Show.  That show will air on Thursday, Feb. 28.

Mrs. Obama's anniversary tour takes her to events in Mississippi, Illinois, and Missouri to spotlight achievements for her childhood obesity initiative. 

CLICK HERE for links to all third anniversary posts.

*ABC photo at top; cooking photo by Eddie Gehman Kohan/Obama Foodorama

First Lady & Fallon's 'Mom Dancing' Video Gets More Than 4.4 Million Views...And Counting

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Mrs. Obama is more popular than Fallon's other video costars, including Justin Bieber and Tom Cruise...
First Lady Michelle Obama is helping Jimmy Fallon make history with their "Evolution of Mom Dancing" video, which debuted Friday night on his talk show to celebrate the third anniversary of the Let's Move! campaign.  As of Monday, the comic dance extravaganza has gotten 4,439,569 views on Fallon's Late Night YouTube channel.  That's millions more views than for other videos Fallon has released co-starring celebrities, including megawatt stars Justin Bieber, Tom Cruise, and Channing Tatum. And those view counts came over the course of weeks and months, not days.

Fallon tweeted his thanks to fans on Sunday when the two-plus-minute video with Mrs. Obama had gotten 2 million views.  That means that overnight to Monday, perhaps thanks in part to Mrs. Obama's surprise appearance at the Oscars on Sunday night, the video has gotten 2 million more views.

"2 million in 2 days!! Wow. Thanks! "Evolution of Mom Dancing" with Michelle Obama (@FLOTUS)," Fallon tweeted with a link to the video.

In contrast, the video clip of Mrs. Obama actually discussing the nuts and bolts of her childhood obesity campaign with Fallon on Friday night has gotten just 61,831 views.  

Fallon's video Jimmy Fallon vs. Justin Bieber, released in June of 2012, has since gotten 2,705,384 views on the Late Night YouTube channel.  Fallon's video Sticky balls With Channing Tatum, released on Jan. 31, has since gotten 122,686 views.  Fallon's video Water War With Tom Cruise, released in December 2012, has since gotten 286,223 views.

The only other Fallon video that's gotten close to the numbers of views for the dance video with Mrs. Obama is Fallon's video for "Slow Jamming the News" with President Obama.  That debuted in April 2012, and has since gotten 6,884,606 views on the Late Night channel.



The video Mrs. Obama and Fallon made for last year's Let's Move! anniversary, filmed at the White House and re-posted by Fallon on his YouTube channel on Feb. 18, has now had 195,966 views.  NBC had disabled the video for a number of months before Fallon reposted it ahead of Mrs. Obama's visit to his New York studio last Friday.

Fallon's "Evolution of Dad Dancing" video--the preamble to his sketch with Mrs. Obama--debuted on Father's Day last year, and has since had 1,050,568 views on his channel.

Mrs. Obama on Wednesday begins a three-state tour for the third anniversary of Let's Move!, with visits to Mississippi, Illinois, and Missouri.

CLICK HERE for all posts about the third anniversary.  CLICK HERE for all posts about the Obamas and Fallon.

2 million in 2 days!! Wow. Thanks! "Evolution of Mom Dancing" with Michelle Obama (@flotus) youtu.be/Hq-URl9F17Y #momdancing #letsmove
— jimmy fallon (@jimmyfallon) February 24, 2013

*Photo by Lloyd Bishop/NBC; video courtesy of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

Little Rock Arkansas Casinos

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NASA's Joke Goes Over Everyone's Head

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On Sunday this week, NASA posted details of a new mission involving the craft currently orbiting the planet Mercury called MESSENGER or "MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging."


The mission, PIA 15542, or "Mooning Mercury" to the layearthling, centers on a newly discovered natural satellite (moon) measuring 230 ft. across at a distance of about 8,890 miles above the planet.  The proposed name for this moon is Caduceus.

The very, very, very small moon, Caduceus.

The mission description goes on to say that rather than study this moon, as they might normally do, NASA had another plan.  It goes like this...

...The new plan is to use the remaining propellant to crash MESSENGER into Caduceus. "Our detailed analysis tells us that if we act now, and with the right trajectory, MESSENGER will impart just enough momentum to the moon to break it free of Mercury's gravity well and set it on an Earth-crossing trajectory suitable for recovery as a Mercury meteorite," said Panini.

...If Caduceus is successfully released from the pull of Mercury and placed on a course to reach Earth, we can expect the moon to arrive at Earth by 2014. "The risk to the public is reassuringly small", offers MESSENGER mission design lead Adam McJames. "We have designed a trajectory that will bring the moon to Earth at a remote location on the Wilkes Land ice sheet in Antarctica. This trajectory will avoid all population centers and will put the moon's impact site within reach for retrieval by the scientific staff at the U.S.-operated McMurdo Station."

In other words, something a little like the plot of the 1979 movie, "Meteor."


If you don't think about the odds of being able to map that trajectory so specifically across the minimum 48,000,000 miles between Earth and Mercury, this all sounds well and good, but NASA gives its joke away with in love of acronyms.

If successful, MESSENGER's extended extended MIN-C mission will mark the first instance of the documented arrival to Earth of material from the Mercury system. Moreover, it will serve as the basis for a new Discovery-class mission proposal currently in development by the Applied Psychics Laboratory for a Mercury lander mission for in situ X-ray analysis of surface composition. That mission is to be named the Hermean On-surface Analysis with X-rays.

That's right.  The mission's name is H.O.A.X.  At least when NASA makes a joke, they do it big.  Happy April Fool's Day.

* * * * 
In related news that is not so enjoyable, NASA has begun the process of decommissioning the Space Shuttles and their overall program.  President George W. Bush first called for the retirement of the shuttle program in January of 2004, in the aftermath of the shuttle Columbia accident and its disintegration over Texas during atmospheric re-entry.  In speaking about a new focus for NASA on the International Space Station, Bush said:

Excerpt of  President Bush's 2004 remarks to NASA, announcing the
retirement of the shuttle program.

The photoblog In Focus, from The Atlantic Monthly, has compiled a series of images from the dismantling and preparation for display of shuttles Discovery and Endeavor as well as of the launching pads, cargo bays, and propulsion systems.  It is good-bye, for now, to American manned spaceflight.

Click on these images to visit the In Focus set.

We're Not the Only Ones Worried About the Census

To contact us Click HERE


Census Project presents the viewpoints about the decennial census and the American Community Survey (ACS) from various stakeholders.  A diverse group of stakeholders are involved including academic associations, public policy interest groups, retail and business organizations, and organizations representing ethnic and minority groups.

Recently the House voted not to fund the American Community Survey for 2013.  The Census Project  notes, "Currently, because of economic, fiscal and political challenges, the ongoing budgets to adequately fund planning for Census 2020 and the ACS’ ongoing work will be under a microscope in Congress."

The site includes fact sheets, issue briefs, letters, and other information.  A recent report, Eliminating America's Playbook, is a compilation of "scores of case studies and comments on why the ACS is one of the most useful tools the nation has to measure how its communities are doing each year."

Check it out!

Tonight: First Lady Michelle Obama Appears On 'Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'

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Mrs. Obama will discuss third anniversary of Let's Move! campaign, ahead of three-state tour...
UPDATE: Links to all FLOTUS-Fallon posts
First Lady Michelle Obama is in New York City today, where she will film her first sit-down interview with Jimmy Fallon for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon to kick off her celebration of the third anniversary of the Let's Move! campaign. Fallon joined Mrs. Obama at the White House last year for a fitness challenge to celebrate the second anniversary.  The show will air this evening at 12:35 AM ET on NBC.  (Above, their potato sack race in the East Eoom last year) 

The interview is part of a TV blitz ahead of Mrs. Obama's three-state tour next week for the anniversary. While in New York today, Mrs. Obama will also film a segment with Robin Roberts about the anniversary and "a new Let’s Move! partnership that makes finding healthy, reliable recipes easy for busy parents," the White House has announced.  The interview will air on Good Morning America on Tuesday, February 26.

Joined by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Mrs. Obama is also taping an episode of The Dr. Oz Show.  She will "talk about how physical activity affects both children’s health and academic achievement," the White House said.  This episode will air on Thursday, February 28, the day Mrs. Obama and Secretary Duncan will make a major announcement about bringing physical activity back to schools during a third anniversary event in Chicago.

CLICK HERE for links to all posts about the third anniversary. CLICK HERE for links to all posts about the First Lady's second anniversary tour.

*White House photo by Chuck Kennedy

Sunday: President Obama, First Lady To Host 2013 Governors' Dinner

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First major formal affair of the second term...
President Obama and First Lady Obama will host the first black tie dinner of the second term when they welcome America's Governors to the White House this Sunday evening, Feb. 24.  The event is a presidential tradition when the state executives come to Washington for the annual winter meeting of the National Governors Association (NGA), and the First Couple have hosted the dinner each year since President Obama took office.  The guests are typically treated to a command performance by a famous vocal artist during a post-dinner reception.  (Above, the President and Mrs. Obama at the 2011 dinner, watching Gladys Knight perform)

Vice President Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden will also attend the dinner in the State Dining Room, Press Secretary Jay Carney announced on Friday.  There are 55 Governors in the NGA, and they will bring spouses or significant others. The event is closed to press except for toast remarks, and in past years has featured President Obama leading his guests in a rollicking Conga line across the East Room after dining on the White House version of surf & turf during the three-course feast.

"Tonight it’s about having some fun," President Obama said last year. "I want everybody to have a great time tonight." 

The steak-loving Obamas have served glorious Wagyu or dry-aged rib eye and a seafood accompaniment at each Governors' Dinner.  The 2012 menu starred rib eye and Maryland crab macaroni & cheese as the entree, and, of course, bounty from Mrs. Obama's Kitchen Garden.

Delaware Gov. Jack Markell  (D) is the current chair of the NGA, and will toast the President on Sunday.  But the White House is unlikely to announce which Governors are actually attending the dinner.  During President Obama's first term, the self-proclaimed "most transparent Administration in history" did not release official guest lists for the dinners, except for the first one in 2009.  

As of the election in November 2012, 32 of the Governors are Republican, 19 are Democratic, and the rest list themselves as independent or other. Seven are newly in office, including five from the continental US.  

The President and Vice President met with members of the Democratic Governors Association on Friday morning at the White House.  On Monday, they will meet with members of the NGA at the White House, according to Carney, and make remarks in the State Dining Room.  Mrs. Obama and Dr. Biden will also address the gathering.

Earth Wind & Fire (2009), Harry Connick, Jr. (2010) and Dianne Reeves (2012) have each headlined the dinners, in addition to Knight.  

Related: The 2011 Governors' Dinner; the 2010 Governors' Dinner; and the 2009 Governors' Dinner.

*Photo by Pete Souza/White House

Video: Michelle Obama & Jimmy Fallon Perform The "Evolution Of Mom Dancing"

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Let's Move!: First Lady & Fallon show parents how to dance with their kids...
In a video clip released ahead of her Let's Move!-themed Friday night appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, First Lady Michelle Obama and Jimmy Fallon perform the "Evolution of Mom Dancing."  Mrs. Obama and the comic, dressed in Mom drag, bump and shimmy in Fallon's New York studio as the audience cheers them on.  Mrs. Obama made headlines in 2011 when she showed off her moves to "The Dougie" at a middle school event, and she does the steps again, in addition to other dance moves.

The dance skit is "in honor of the First Lady's Let's Move! campaign and to encourage parents everywhere to get up and get moving with their kids," Fallon's announcer said before the comic and Mrs. Obama hit the stage.



The dance moves include "Go Shopping, Get Groceries;" the "Raise the Roof;" the "Hip Bump;" the "Happy Snapper;" the "Just the Hands Part of Single Ladies;" the "Where's Your Father? (Get Him Back Here!);" the "Reel It In;" the "Shake Your Hip Twice To The Same Side;" the "Pulp Fiction;" the "Oh My God, I Love This Song!;" the "Driving The Station Wagon" and more.

Mrs. Obama's visit to Fallon's show comes ahead of a three-state tour next week for the third anniversary of Let's Move!.  Earlier on Friday Mrs. Obama and Fallon had a Twitter smack-down.

CLICK HERE for links to all third anniversary posts.

*Video courtesy of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

NASA's Joke Goes Over Everyone's Head

To contact us Click HERE
On Sunday this week, NASA posted details of a new mission involving the craft currently orbiting the planet Mercury called MESSENGER or "MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging."


The mission, PIA 15542, or "Mooning Mercury" to the layearthling, centers on a newly discovered natural satellite (moon) measuring 230 ft. across at a distance of about 8,890 miles above the planet.  The proposed name for this moon is Caduceus.

The very, very, very small moon, Caduceus.

The mission description goes on to say that rather than study this moon, as they might normally do, NASA had another plan.  It goes like this...

...The new plan is to use the remaining propellant to crash MESSENGER into Caduceus. "Our detailed analysis tells us that if we act now, and with the right trajectory, MESSENGER will impart just enough momentum to the moon to break it free of Mercury's gravity well and set it on an Earth-crossing trajectory suitable for recovery as a Mercury meteorite," said Panini.

...If Caduceus is successfully released from the pull of Mercury and placed on a course to reach Earth, we can expect the moon to arrive at Earth by 2014. "The risk to the public is reassuringly small", offers MESSENGER mission design lead Adam McJames. "We have designed a trajectory that will bring the moon to Earth at a remote location on the Wilkes Land ice sheet in Antarctica. This trajectory will avoid all population centers and will put the moon's impact site within reach for retrieval by the scientific staff at the U.S.-operated McMurdo Station."

In other words, something a little like the plot of the 1979 movie, "Meteor."


If you don't think about the odds of being able to map that trajectory so specifically across the minimum 48,000,000 miles between Earth and Mercury, this all sounds well and good, but NASA gives its joke away with in love of acronyms.

If successful, MESSENGER's extended extended MIN-C mission will mark the first instance of the documented arrival to Earth of material from the Mercury system. Moreover, it will serve as the basis for a new Discovery-class mission proposal currently in development by the Applied Psychics Laboratory for a Mercury lander mission for in situ X-ray analysis of surface composition. That mission is to be named the Hermean On-surface Analysis with X-rays.

That's right.  The mission's name is H.O.A.X.  At least when NASA makes a joke, they do it big.  Happy April Fool's Day.

* * * * 
In related news that is not so enjoyable, NASA has begun the process of decommissioning the Space Shuttles and their overall program.  President George W. Bush first called for the retirement of the shuttle program in January of 2004, in the aftermath of the shuttle Columbia accident and its disintegration over Texas during atmospheric re-entry.  In speaking about a new focus for NASA on the International Space Station, Bush said:

Excerpt of  President Bush's 2004 remarks to NASA, announcing the
retirement of the shuttle program.

The photoblog In Focus, from The Atlantic Monthly, has compiled a series of images from the dismantling and preparation for display of shuttles Discovery and Endeavor as well as of the launching pads, cargo bays, and propulsion systems.  It is good-bye, for now, to American manned spaceflight.

Click on these images to visit the In Focus set.

We're Not the Only Ones Worried About the Census

To contact us Click HERE


Census Project presents the viewpoints about the decennial census and the American Community Survey (ACS) from various stakeholders.  A diverse group of stakeholders are involved including academic associations, public policy interest groups, retail and business organizations, and organizations representing ethnic and minority groups.

Recently the House voted not to fund the American Community Survey for 2013.  The Census Project  notes, "Currently, because of economic, fiscal and political challenges, the ongoing budgets to adequately fund planning for Census 2020 and the ACS’ ongoing work will be under a microscope in Congress."

The site includes fact sheets, issue briefs, letters, and other information.  A recent report, Eliminating America's Playbook, is a compilation of "scores of case studies and comments on why the ACS is one of the most useful tools the nation has to measure how its communities are doing each year."

Check it out!

Sunday: President Obama, First Lady To Host 2013 National Governors Association Dinner

To contact us Click HERE
First major formal affair of the second term...
President Obama and First Lady Obama will host the first black tie dinner of the second term when they welcome America's Governors to the White House this Sunday evening, Feb. 24.  The event is a presidential tradition when the state executives come to Washington for the annual winter meeting of the National Governors Association (NGA), and the First Couple have hosted the dinner each year since President Obama took office.  The guests are typically treated to a command performance by a famous vocal artist during a post-dinner reception.  (Above, the President and Mrs. Obama at the 2011 dinner, watching Gladys Knight perform)

Vice President Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden will also attend the dinner, Press Secretary Jay Carney announced on Friday.  There are 55 Governors in the NGA, and they will bring spouses or significant others to the dinner. The event is closed to press except for toast remarks, and in past years has featured President Obama leading his guests in a rollicking Conga line across the East Room after dining on the White House version of surf & turf during the three-course feast.

"Tonight it’s about having some fun," President Obama said last year. "I want everybody to have a great time tonight." 

The steak-loving Obamas have served glorious Wagyu or dry-aged rib eye and a seafood accompaniment at each Governors' Dinner.  The 2012 menu starred rib eye and Maryland crab macaroni & cheese as the entree, and, of course, bounty from Mrs. Obama's Kitchen Garden.

Delaware Gov. Jack Markell  (D) is the current chair of the NGA, and will toast the President on Sunday.  But the White House is unlikely to announce which Governors are actually attending the dinner.  During President Obama's first term, the self-proclaimed "most transparent Administration in history" did not release official guest lists for the dinners, except for the first one in 2009.  

As of the election in November 2012, 32 of the Governors are Republican, 19 are Democratic, and the rest list themselves as independent or other. Seven are newly in office, including five from the continental US.  

The President and Vice President met with members of the Democratic Governors Association on Friday morning at the White House.  On Monday, they will meet with members of the NGA at the White House, according to Carney, and make remarks in the State Dining Room.  Mrs. Obama and Dr. Biden will also address the gathering.

Earth Wind & Fire (2009), Harry Connick, Jr. (2010) and Dianne Reeves (2012) have each headlined the dinners, in addition to Knight.  

Related: The 2011 Governors' Dinner; the 2010 Governors' Dinner; and the 2009 Governors' Dinner.

*Photo by Pete Souza/White House

Twitter Smack Down: First Lady & Jimmy Fallon

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The comic throws down the gauntlet and asks First Lady for a re-do of their Let's Move! fitness challenge...
First Lady Michelle Obama and talk show host Jimmy Fallon ribbed each other on Twitter on Friday afternoon ahead of Mrs. Obama's scheduled appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon this evening to celebrate the third anniversary of her Let's Move! campaign. The comic threw down the gauntlet and proposed revisiting their Let's Move! fitness challenge from 2012--which Mrs. Obama won--and traded photos of their  competitive "game faces."  (Above)

"So honored to have @FLOTUS on the show tonight," Fallon tweeted.  "We’ve got to have a competition for her #LetsMove campaign and this time, I’m gonna win."

"I'll see you tonight @jimmyfallon.  Bring your game face! -mo," Mrs. Obama wrote on @FLOTUS.

Fallon responded with a photo of himself snarling, and tweeted "Here’s my game face. What’s yours?"  Mrs. Obama responded with her own photo, writing "Game on, Jimmy. See you soon! -mo."

Mrs. Obama traveled to New York on Friday to film her interview with Fallon and two other TV shows.  She heads out on a three-state tour for the anniversary next week, and will visit Illinois, Mississippi and Missouri.

On Thursday, Mrs. Obama exchanged tweets with Big Bird after the White House unveiled three new videos for the third anniversary. 

The Twitter exchange:

So honored to have @flotus on the show tonight. We’ve got to have a competition for her #LetsMove campaign and this time, I’m gonna win.
— jimmy fallon (@jimmyfallon) February 22, 2013

I’ll see you tonight @jimmyfallon. Bring your game face! -mo
— FLOTUS (@FLOTUS) February 22, 2013

.@flotus Here’s my game face. What’s yours? twitter.com/jimmyfallon/st…
— jimmy fallon (@jimmyfallon) February 22, 2013

.@jimmyfallon Game on, Jimmy. See you soon! -mo twitter.com/FLOTUS/status/…
— FLOTUS (@FLOTUS) February 22, 2013

Libety Bank Of Arkansas

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Being charged with driving while intoxicated, you will spend the libety bank of arkansas of your yellow pages or a lighthouse. While in Arkansas are among the libety bank of arkansas in the libety bank of arkansas to eat from. You can call and check with your credit card company to see great scenery and experience everything the libety bank of arkansas to prove any particular blood alcohol level was less than 30 days of community service. If you go to Belle of Hot Springs National Park System. Blacksmithing demonstrations, old time farming demonstrations and a host of other outdoor activities.

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NASA's Joke Goes Over Everyone's Head

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On Sunday this week, NASA posted details of a new mission involving the craft currently orbiting the planet Mercury called MESSENGER or "MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging."


The mission, PIA 15542, or "Mooning Mercury" to the layearthling, centers on a newly discovered natural satellite (moon) measuring 230 ft. across at a distance of about 8,890 miles above the planet.  The proposed name for this moon is Caduceus.

The very, very, very small moon, Caduceus.

The mission description goes on to say that rather than study this moon, as they might normally do, NASA had another plan.  It goes like this...

...The new plan is to use the remaining propellant to crash MESSENGER into Caduceus. "Our detailed analysis tells us that if we act now, and with the right trajectory, MESSENGER will impart just enough momentum to the moon to break it free of Mercury's gravity well and set it on an Earth-crossing trajectory suitable for recovery as a Mercury meteorite," said Panini.

...If Caduceus is successfully released from the pull of Mercury and placed on a course to reach Earth, we can expect the moon to arrive at Earth by 2014. "The risk to the public is reassuringly small", offers MESSENGER mission design lead Adam McJames. "We have designed a trajectory that will bring the moon to Earth at a remote location on the Wilkes Land ice sheet in Antarctica. This trajectory will avoid all population centers and will put the moon's impact site within reach for retrieval by the scientific staff at the U.S.-operated McMurdo Station."

In other words, something a little like the plot of the 1979 movie, "Meteor."


If you don't think about the odds of being able to map that trajectory so specifically across the minimum 48,000,000 miles between Earth and Mercury, this all sounds well and good, but NASA gives its joke away with in love of acronyms.

If successful, MESSENGER's extended extended MIN-C mission will mark the first instance of the documented arrival to Earth of material from the Mercury system. Moreover, it will serve as the basis for a new Discovery-class mission proposal currently in development by the Applied Psychics Laboratory for a Mercury lander mission for in situ X-ray analysis of surface composition. That mission is to be named the Hermean On-surface Analysis with X-rays.

That's right.  The mission's name is H.O.A.X.  At least when NASA makes a joke, they do it big.  Happy April Fool's Day.

* * * * 
In related news that is not so enjoyable, NASA has begun the process of decommissioning the Space Shuttles and their overall program.  President George W. Bush first called for the retirement of the shuttle program in January of 2004, in the aftermath of the shuttle Columbia accident and its disintegration over Texas during atmospheric re-entry.  In speaking about a new focus for NASA on the International Space Station, Bush said:

Excerpt of  President Bush's 2004 remarks to NASA, announcing the
retirement of the shuttle program.

The photoblog In Focus, from The Atlantic Monthly, has compiled a series of images from the dismantling and preparation for display of shuttles Discovery and Endeavor as well as of the launching pads, cargo bays, and propulsion systems.  It is good-bye, for now, to American manned spaceflight.

Click on these images to visit the In Focus set.

We're Not the Only Ones Worried About the Census

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Census Project presents the viewpoints about the decennial census and the American Community Survey (ACS) from various stakeholders.  A diverse group of stakeholders are involved including academic associations, public policy interest groups, retail and business organizations, and organizations representing ethnic and minority groups.

Recently the House voted not to fund the American Community Survey for 2013.  The Census Project  notes, "Currently, because of economic, fiscal and political challenges, the ongoing budgets to adequately fund planning for Census 2020 and the ACS’ ongoing work will be under a microscope in Congress."

The site includes fact sheets, issue briefs, letters, and other information.  A recent report, Eliminating America's Playbook, is a compilation of "scores of case studies and comments on why the ACS is one of the most useful tools the nation has to measure how its communities are doing each year."

Check it out!

Ticket Lottery For 2013 White House Easter Egg Roll Is Now Open

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President and First Lady Obama will welcome more than 35,000 guests to the 2013 White House Easter Egg Roll on April 1st, and the online lottery for free tickets opened this morning at 10:00 AM ET.  CLICK HERE TO APPLY. The lottery closes on Feb. 25 at 10:00 AM EST.  Children 13 and under and their families are invited to the Let's Move!-themed event, the 135th anniversary Roll.
 
Commemorative wooden eggs are also AVAILABLE FOR SALE HERE, but the 2013 design has not yet been unveiled.  The eggs are $7.99 each, or $29.99 for a set of five with one "special edition egg." Keepsake eggs from previous Rolls, like the ones above, are also available for collectors.

*Photo by Chuck Kennedy/White House

Big Bird Visits First Lady At The White House To Celebrate Let's Move! Third Anniversary

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Mrs. Obama and her fluffy friend promote healthy eating and physical activity in two new White House videos that will air on PBS stations across the nation...
President Obama got loads of political mileage from Big Bird during the race to retain the White House after GOP challenger Mitt Romney said he'd defund the beloved character and Sesame Street.  Perhaps in gratitude for the First Fan saving him from the chopping block, the fluffy fellow has joined First Lady Michelle Obama to celebrate the third anniversary of Let's Move!, and appears with her in two new White House videos released today that promote healthy eating and physical activity.

"The new PSAs feature Mrs. Obama and Big Bird in the White House showing kids how easy and delicious it is to eat healthy snacks like fruits and vegetables and demonstrating fun ways to get active like dancing and jumping," the White House said.

Mrs. Obama and Big Bird stand in the White House Kitchen and discuss "healthy, crunchy vegetables" as the best snacks to choose in the 30-second video "Healthy Eating Can Be Easy!"  In the second 30-second spot, "Let's Move! with Big Bird at the White House," the fluffster dances in the East Room as Mrs. Obama says "It's important to get your body moving every single day to keep your body healthy!"


"Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind the show, will distribute these PSAs to 320 PBS Stations, Sesame Workshop’s partner channels, as part of their Healthy Habits for Life Initiative," the White House said.  The PSAs will also posted on the Sesame Street and LetsMove.gov websites.


Mrs. Obama appeared on Sesame Street in 2010 with Big Bird and his fellow creatures to promote gardening. The First Lady begins a three-state tour next week for the third anniversary (THE SCHEDULE) and kicks her celebration off on Friday, Nov. 22, with a sit down interview  with child health activist Jimmy Fallon on his show Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, which airs on NBC at 12:35 PM ET.

*White House videos

Whole Foods Pulls Ad Using President Obama To Sell Chicken

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Store spokesman says "no disrespect" intended after neighbor protests and contacts media...
After a resident of an Upper West Side neighborhood in Manhattan expressed outrage about a Whole Foods advertisement that used an illustration of President Obama to promote a sale for organic chicken, the store has removed it, with a spokesman saying "There was no disrespect meant at all."

Outraged store neighbor Woody Henderson contacted NBC 4 New York to complain about what he perceived as a racial slur, and the outlet reported the story.  The sign appeared outside the doorway of the Whole Foods located on Columbus Avenue and 97th Street.  It was created by a staffer, a "store artist" who uses "a variety of pop culture imagery to promote sales and events," NBC 4 said.

The sign was removed "once it was brought to our attention by a shopper that it may be perceived as offensive," the Whole Foods spokesman said.

"There are certain things that have been used to put down black people," Henderson said.

The NBC 4 report:


View more videos at: http://nbcnewyork.com.