Scott Horsley

Obama Begins European Trip: G-8 Summit Then Stop In Berlin

Scott Horsley — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 07:26:00 +0000

President Obama is in Northern Ireland Monday — the first stop on a three-day European visit that includes a G-8 summit meeting and a side trip to Berlin.

The president begins his tour with a speech in Belfast, celebrating Northern Ireland's peace process and urging young people in the country to keep it moving forward.

Later, Obama joins leaders of other industrial countries at a remote golf resort in County Fermanagh for talks on Syria, trade and the global economy.

The G-8 leaders have a working dinner Monday night, and Syria is likely to dominate the discussion.

How Rock 'N' Roll Can Explain The U.S. Economy

Scott Horsley — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 09:24:00 +0000

White House economic adviser Alan Krueger took some ribbing from his boss this week. President Obama noted that Krueger will soon be leaving Washington to go back to his old job, teaching economics at Princeton.

"And now that Alan has some free time, he can return to another burning passion of his: 'Rockanomics,' the economics of rock and roll," the president said.

Obama Urges Congress Not To 'Block' Immigration Bill

Scott Horsley — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 09:05:00 +0000

Transcript

LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. I'm Linda Wertheimer.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And I'm Renee Montagne. The U.S. Senate has opened debate on a sweeping immigration bill. And President Obama says it's the best chance in years to fix what he calls a broken immigration system. The measure took a step forward yesterday when a big, bipartisan majority of senators voted to take up the bill.

Susan Rice To Take Over As National Security Adviser

Scott Horsley — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 10:50:00 +0000

Transcript

LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST:

This is MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Linda Wertheimer.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And I'm Renee Montagne.

When President Obama meets with the president of China tomorrow, he will have his National Security adviser at his side. Tom Donilon set the stage for this summit during a trip to Beijing last week. Now he's stepping down.

NPR's Scott Horsley has this look at his legacy and the woman Obama has tapped to replace him.

SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE: Tom Donilon keeps a relatively low profile in Washington. He rarely shows up on the evening news.

Obama's D.C. Court Nominations Heat Up Battle With Senate

Scott Horsley — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 21:38:00 +0000

President Obama fired a warning shot Tuesday in the battle over Senate confirmations: He nominated three new judges to the powerful federal appeals court in Washington, and he challenged Senate Republicans not to stand in their way.

Obama complained about procedural roadblocks that have tied up many of his previous nominees — sometimes for years.

But Republicans are looking to sidestep the confirmation fight by downsizing the appeals court itself.

Obama To Challenge GOP With 3 Federal Appeals Court Picks

Scott Horsley — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 10:11:00 +0000
Transcript
RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:
President Obama will nominate three new judges this morning to the powerful Federal Appeals Court in Washington D.C. The announcement is expected to come in the White House Rose Garden, and as NPR's Scott Horsley reports, there could be a few thorns.
SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE: On their face, none of the nominees is particularly controversial. Patricia Millett is a veteran appellate lawyer who worked in both the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations.

Obama To Press Congress On Student Loan Rates

Scott Horsley — Fri, 31 May 2013 07:23:00 +0000
President Obama surrounded himself with college students at the White House on Friday and warned that the cost of student loans is about to go up.
Interest rates on government-backed college loans are set to double July 1 — unless Congress agrees on a fix before then. Obama has threatened to veto a House-passed bill that would let the cost of student loans go up and down with the market.
If the alarm bells over rising student loan rates sound familiar, that's because the same thing happened last year.

White House Economic Advisers To Leave

Scott Horsley — Wed, 29 May 2013 09:24:00 +0000
Transcript
RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:
One of President Obama's top economic advisers is leaving the White House later this year, to return to his teaching job at Princeton.

Unclear Laws May Have Contributed to Tax-Exempt Controversy

Scott Horsley — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:28:00 +0000
Transcript
DAVID GREENE, HOST:
Let's turn to another story for now: The acting head of the IRS has resigned, but is still facing questions about the agency. Lawmakers continue their probe into the federal tax agency targeting Tea Party groups seeking tax exemption.
Late last week, the House Ways and Means Committee demanded answers from top IRS officials to find out why the agency singled out conservative groups for scrutiny. Well, now, the Senate Finance Committee gets its chance to grill the outgoing commissioner.

White House Addresses Benghazi Emails, IRS Audits

Scott Horsley — Wed, 15 May 2013 21:57:00 +0000
Transcript
MELISSA BLOCK, BYLINE: This is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Melissa Block.
AUDIE CORNISH, BYLINE: And I'm Audie Cornish.
The Obama administration is doing some intensive damage control this evening. Tonight, the president announced that the acting commissioner of the IRS, Steven Miller, is being pushed out over heightened scrutiny given to Tea Party groups and other conservative organizations.
Earlier today, the White House also released 100 pages of emails in hopes of quieting a lingering controversy over last year's deadly attack at the U.S.