Congress
President Obama Urges Congress To Get Debt Ceiling Deal Done Before Deadline, Like His Daughters Do Their Homework (VIDEO)
In his first press conference since March, President Obama urged Congressional leaders to come together to reach a deal on the debt ceiling in advance of the looming August 2 deadline. Speaking live at an event carried by all the major networks, Obama argued that the game of political brinksmanship being played was harmful to the economy and downright irresponsible. Adding a dose of humor to the proceedings, he used his young daughters' homework habits as an example of what he'd like to see from Congress."That's not how responsible families act," Obama said. "Malia and Sasha generally finish their homework a day ahead of time. Malia's 13, Sasha's 10. It is impressive. They don't wait until the night before, they're not pulling all-nighters."
"You know, Congress can do the same thing," he continued. "If you know you've got to do something, just do it." Now, some might say that international economics are slightly more complicated than Algebra I, but he's got a good point anyway.
Stephen Colbert to Testify in Front of Congress ... In Character?
When Stephen Colbert testifies in a congressional hearing about immigration on Friday, he won't be appearing as Stephen Colbert, regular citizen. Instead, he'll appear as Stephen Colbert, TV character -- that is, if The Daily Caller's anonymous "Republican source" is to be believed. The hearing, called Protecting America's Harvest, will focus on immigration issues relating to a group called United Farm Workers, which works to legalize the illegal immigrants working in American farms. A spokeswoman for the House Judiciary Committee told TDC that the hearing is a "serious issue . . . this is not a TV stunt."
The Healthcare Summit Needed Gregory House
Yesterday, the leaders of America gathered in Washington, D.C. for a health care summit. It was an effort to gnash out the differences between the proponents for a comprehensive health care bill and those who think the current proposed legislation is a waste of paper. We're not weighing in on the debate, other than to say it's a damn serious subject and one that needs solutions, not rhetoric.But as a television production, the health care summit was a snoozefest. Whether you like any of the political personalities involved, it didn't change the fact that while Chris Matthews was giddy about the political theater, it was dreary TV.
What You Missed Last Night: Colbert "defends" Barney Frank
What You Missed Last Night: Scoldplay
In other words, politics really suck.
Don't count on Fox giving up Glee for Obama
The only way Fox will air President Obama's prime time address next Wednesday will be if he joins the glee club. No, seriously, if the Prez could sing or dance with the kids at McKinley High School on the new Fox series, Glee, he'd have a better chance of getting air time than he does as the Commander in Chief. Fox is not expected to show President Obama's address to Congress. Fox has already shown an unwillingness to interrupt prime time for President Obama. Back in March, the network chose not to air a press conference. To be honest, Obama has been on TV a lot more than President George W. Bush. All that prime time real estate is expensive, and the networks have squawked about how often Obama has requested the air time.
The chair recognizes Senator Winfrey of Illinois
Governor Blagojevich is nuts. Blame it on his flimsy grasp of reality or his hard-hat like haircut, the current (for how long, who knows) governor of Illinois is not quite there. How do we know this? Well, rather than appearing at his own impeachment trial he's decided to let the good citizens of the U.S. know that he's being railroaded by his own government via various media outlets.
The other determining factor on his nuttiness...he was considering naming Oprah Winfrey as Barack Obama's replacement to the U.S. Senate. Now, while Oprah is a respectable personality who has done much good for people around the globe, she is in no way qualified to become a U.S. Senator. I know that some of you Oprahites would heartily disagree with this, but even you know, deep down inside, that giving Oprah a Senate seat would not be a good idea.
And, frankly, I think Oprah would agree with you.
Christopher Guest to direct ABC comedy pilot
Christopher Guest has agreed to direct the pilot for The Thick of It, a comedy being created for ABC by Arrested Development creator Mitch Hurwitz. The show is being adapted for an American audience from the popular British comedy by the same name. In Britain, it was about a member of Parliament who had to deal with inept politicians, a prime minister and other silly minions. I can only guess that the American version will take place in Congress?According to his IMDB bio, Guest hasn't done much directing for television lately. He seems to stick to the "mockumentary" (he hates that word) movie genre that's heavy on improv, such as Best in Show and Waiting for Guffman.
Congress salutes America Ferrera

The temptation to make the headline "America salutes America" was great, but I resisted. Congresswoman Hilda L. Solis took the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday to salute America Ferrera for her Golden Globe win and for "breaking down barriers for Latinos in prime-time television...I commend America and everyone involved in Ugly Betty for helping break down stereotypes and provide a role model for young Latinas." (Heck, she deserves praise for being one of the only non-Brits to snag an award. It was a regular Anglophile-o-rama at the Globes on Monday.)
Solis' own work in "breaking down barriers" isn't too shabby either. She was the first Latina elected to the California State Senate, and she is serving her third Congressional term. She was also the first Latina to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. Maybe giving Betty this nod will win her a guest spot on the show where she can come and convince Betty to give up the frivolous world of fashion for a turn at politics.
The Daily Show: January 9, 2007
"Global War on Terror" (dun dun dun!): The Taliban has regrouped in Afghanistan, it seems. And there's also some al-Qaeda business going on in Somalia, so "we're back in Somalia, a country so poor, its charity ads run in Ethiopia."As for terrorism-related goings-on in the States, Barack Obama hasn't been having much luck with his name. People keep botching it up accidentally (I'm tempted to put quotation marks around that) to connect it to Osama and stressing his middle name, Hussein. Correspondent Aasif Mandvi talked about the issue... His "My Cock Taintstain Osama" joke didn't get a very positive response... I was surprised! Daily Show audiences always love the word "taintstain"!
The Daily Show: December 11, 2006
"Indie Rock": The Seminole tribe are taking over the Hard Rock Cafe chain. Fun Fact: Smallpox jokes are still too soon... Apparently. Fun Fact 2: Korn (or... Maize) fans are still alive and well."That's All Folks!": The 109th Congress is finished! Hurrahs all around in the Daily Show crowd. I liked the little montage at the end (Katherine Harris: Still haunts the dreams of children). The bit with Lincoln Chafee, the night's guest, was a special treat.
The Daily Show/The Colbert Report: November 7, 2006
After seeing Comedy Central's as for this Daily Show/Colbert Report "Midterm Midtacular" mash-up , I expected a lot more integration. Aside from the obvious change in content, this special wasn't all that, um, special. It was just like the usual Stewart/Colbert block, but with one or two more check-ins. No breaking news. No balloon drops. No t-shirt giveaways. Ehh.Congress weighs in on Dog the Bounty Hunter case
While Duane "Dog" Chapman awaits trial to decide if he'll be tried in Mexico after his recent arrest for illegal detention of convicted rapist and Max Factor heir Andrew Luster, twenty-nine members of Congress have asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to deny the Mexican government's extradition request to have Chapman sent there for trial. Chapman, along with his son Leland and partner Tim Chapman, were arrested by Mexican authorities for illegal detention after capturing Luster in 2003. The three posted bail but never returned for their court date. Bounty hunting is illegal in Mexico, and Chapman refused to relinquish Luster to the Mexican authorities. Plans to have Chapman extradited to Mexico were put in motion only a few days before the statute of limitations was set to expire.
Former Apprentice contestant is running for Congress
You knew this was going to happen eventually; one of the rejected contestants from The Apprentice is now running for Congress. Raj Peter Bhakta, a "fired" season two participant, is the Republican candidate in Pennsylvania's 13th district, and he's using some grandiose methods to discuss his platform. For instance, this article mentions that earlier this week he marched an elephant and a six-piece mariachi band across the Rio Grande in Texas to demonstrate how easy it is for illegal immigrants to come into the country (suffice to say, Bhakta wants a fence along the U.S.-Mexico border).Those of you who remember the bow-tie-clad Bhakta from the Tump-fest already know he had a bit of the showman in him; he wore colorful suits and walked around with a cane on the show, and in one episode tried to get a date from tennis babe Anna Kournikova (he lost the challenge she proposed, and he had to run around Arthur Ashe Stadium in his underwear with his team firing tennis balls at him).
Oh, and because I'm nothing but fair, here's the website for Raj's opponent, incumbent Democrat Allyson Schwartz.
Real Time With Bill Maher preview - VIDEO
Tonight's episode of HBO's Real Time With Bill Maher will air live from Washington, D.C. His guests will be National security expert Richard Clarke, Robin Williams, MSNBC's Chris Matthews, Florida Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and Senator Lincoln Chafee. We know they'll touch on all of the topics in the news this week (the war in Iraq, Mark Foley, next month's elections), but Maher ends the show with a special D.C.-centric set of "New Rules," his very funny (but often wise) series of observations about, well, just about everything. Check out a special preview video of Maher's D.C. rules after the jump.My favorite line, about certain Republicans: "I know it's D.C. and I know it's hard out there for a blimp, but it's time to come to grips with the fact that there's only one woman in town who finds you two attractive, and she's banging Carville."
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