Letters to the Editor

Steve Gitnik asks, I read your Wake Up every day and enjoy it greatly!!!! I
just have one question that has been bothering me for some time. When we
see the presidents schedule, like for todayhe has his daily briefing
at 10:00 a.m. and his next event is at 3 p.m. Does he just goof off between or
does he watch reruns of Judge Judy on cable TV?
Steve, great question! The schedule I publish in Wake Up To Politics almost
each and every morning is the President's public schedule - the one released
to the press. Since I am not an (official) member of the White House press
corps (or at least not yet), I actually don't get it directly, but piece it together
from the few different news sites that publish parts of it.
I have published the President's schedule since Day 1 of my political
newsletter - because I believe it is important for Americans to know what
their leaders are doing and focusing on, and I think it is a shame that so few
news organizations publish the schedule in its entirety (and that includes the
Obama White House website itself, which despite priding itself on its
transparency, never seems to have the schedule up). Anyways, this is the
public schedule. But even when President Obama is not in public, he is still
the President - a job that entails a number of duties separate from campaign
rallies and important meetings and sports team visits, but also meetings with
senior advisors throughout the day on a host of issues, three different
briefings from different agencies, Situation Room meetings, interviews,



Since 2011
Gabe Fleisher, Editor-in-Chief
wakeuptopolitics@gmail.com wakeuptopolitics.com
@WakeUp2Politics
THIS IS YOUR WAKE UP CALL
telephone calls with leaders in the U.S. and around the world, and
ceremonial duties such as bill signings, letters, and much, much more that
last until the wee hours of the morning.
And yes: President Obama does find time to watch some ESPN, too. The
jury's still out on his watching Judge Judy, though.
To give you a feel for the detail length of the actual minute-to--minute
Presidential schedule, the White House Historical Association has links to
see the "Presidential Daily Diaries" for Presidents Nixon through Clinton. Or
check out the PDF version of today's Wake Up to see President George
H.W. Bush's full schedule from October 24, 1989 - 25 years ago nearly to
the day. His work day went from 5:50 AM to 9:00 PM.






































Above are the six pages of Presidnet George H.W. Bushs full schedule from October 24, 1989 not released until
after he left office. His schedule that day included: a photo-op, an intelligence briefing, a national security briefing, a
conference call with the Pope, a staff meeting, a meeting and telephone call with a personal friend, a meeting with his wife
and Vice President, awarding the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching and meeting
with the recipients, a call with his son, a meeting with the President of the World Bank, a meeting with Republican lawmakers,
another staff meeting, an interview for the New York Times, a luncheon for Cabinet spouses, lunch with aides, a bill signing, a
meeting with the RNC chairman, an ambassador credentialing ceremony, another meeting with a different group of GOP
lawmakers, dinner with his wife and friends.
Im tired just writing that description a fraction of what the six pages include: just some of the events President Bush
did that day.
Interestingly, some familiar names appear on the schedule from that day, including:
Robert Gates (then Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs), who would later serve as Defense
Secretary in the second Bush and Obama Administrations
Jeb Bush (then in his capacity as son of the President), who would later be elected Governor of Florida, and is now
mulling a bid for President in 2016
Bob Dole, who would later run for President in 1994, and Bob Packwood, who would later resign from the Senate
after sexual harassment charges (both then U.S. Senators)
Thad Cochran, Richard Shelby, and Harry Reid, who remain in the U.S. Senate (the latter is now Senate Majority
Leader)
Sam Nunn (then a U.S. Senator), whose daughter is now running for Senate in Georgia
Newt Gingrich (then a U.S. Representative) , who would go onto serve as Speaker of the House and run for President
in 2012
Rob Portman (then Deputy Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs), now a U.S. Senator
Pope John Paul II, who would become one of the longest-serving Pontiffs in modern history before dying in 2005.
Don Young, who remains in the U.S. House and has been in the news recently for his controversial remarks on suicide

White House Watch

The Presidents Schedule At 10 AM, President Obama receives the
Presidential Daily Briefing.
At 1:35 PM, the President will meet with members of his public health and
national security team working on the Ebola response, before speaking on
Ebola from the East Room at 3:40 PM.
Bidens Day Vice President Joe Biden, and his wife Jill, will attend a
funeral service for the late Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee. Speakers
will include former WaPo CEO Don Graham; the Washington Posts Bob
Woodward; Carl Bernstein, a former Post reporter, who, with Woodward,
helped break the Watergate story; and Quinn Bradlee, son of Ben Bradlee
and Sally Quinn. The service will be held at 11 AM at the Washington
National Cathederal, and Post alumni and current reporters will be attending
in the hundreds; the public is invited.

Election Central

Surrogate Watch: Hillary Clinton in Iowa Former secretary of state
Hillary Clinton will be in the early presidential primary state of Iowa today,
but her sights will not be on 2016.
Clinton is in the Hawkeye State to speak at two rallies for Democratic
Senate nominee Bruce Braley. Clinton will headline a grassroots event at a
Cedar Rapids labor hall, and a rally at the RiverCenter in Davenport.
This is the potential 2016 presidential candidates second visit to Iowa since
losing the states 2008 caucuses six years ago. The first was last month,
when Hillary Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton,
appeared at the 37
th
annual Harkin Steak Fry, hosted by retiring Democratic
Sen. Tom Harkin, to support Braley and other Democratic candidates.
Besides the Steak Fry, this is Hillarys first campaign stop just for Braley
(and the Steak Fry was arguably more for 2016 anyway), and Bill hasnt
even come to Iowa once for the Senate candidate (although he will
Saturday). Why has this pair of super-surrogates stayed away from Iowa
until so late in the election cycle, even as they made multiple stops in
Arkansas, Kentucky, and many other states?
The Clinton machine is known for its premium on loyalty, and both Bill and
Hillary are known for holding long-standing grudges, throwing their
considerable political weight behind friends, and stopping anyone who once
opposed them at all costs.
In the Iowa caucuses, the endorsements of top Iowa elected officials are
always courted, and the Clinton, Obama, and Edwards campaigns all courted
Braleys in 2008, then a newly-elected congressman. Each of them attended
a Bruce, Blues, and BBQ fundraising dinner for him, in hopes of receiving
his backing. Braley eventually threw his support to John Edwards, and then
to Barack Obama, once the former was implicated in a sex scandal.
In short, the Clintons are ruthless, and Hillarys status as Braleys 08 third
choice, is likely the reason behind the power couples late entry into the
race.
A new poll released today from Quinnipiac University showed Rep. Bruce
Braley trailing Republican Joni Ernst, 49% to 45%. Ernst, who had a five-
point lead among likely voters, also led among independent voters, who
support the Republican 50% to 41%. Just 5% of likely voters remain
undecided.
Surrogate Watch: Mitt Romney in North Carolina 2012 Republican
presidential nominee Mitt Romney will be in Raleigh, North Carolina today,
attending a rally with Thom Tillis, the North Carolina House Speaker and
GOP nominee for U.S. Senate.
Romney, who won North Carolina in 2012, has surprisingly been a popular
surrogate for Republicans this election cycle, despite losing the general
election. Romneys campaigning this year has caused speculation that he
will run for the Presidency a third time in 2016, which he has denied at each
campaign stop.
Tillis is locked in a tight race with Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan; the race is
this election cycles most expensive, and the two are neck-in-neck, with
polls showing a statistical tie. A loss in the Tar Heel State will deal a large
blow to Democratic hopes of keeping the Senate majority, but is not a
required win for Republicans in their path to the Senate majority.
Fury in Ferguson

Reports: Ferguson Police Chief to Resign CNN reported Tuesday that
Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson would be resigning as early as next
week, in a plan that would put the St. Louis County police chief in charge of
the Ferguson police force.
Jackson, and the city he serves, drew national attention after a Ferguson
police officer killed unarmed teenager Michael Brown. Protests broke out in
the city after Browns death, and have continued in the following weeks;
Jackson and his police force have been the center of controversy, both over
the shooting of Brown, and the response to the protests. The U.S. Justice
Department is currently overseeing an investigation into the Ferguson police
departments practices in reacting to demonstrations.
City officials deny Jackson is being pushed out, or even planning to step
down. Mayor James Knowless III said, Hes stayed strong with us to this
point. Dont see that changing. Jackson himself responded to reports of his
stepping down by saying, Its absolutely not true. Nobody has asked me to
resign nor have I been fired. If I do resign, it will be my own choice.
A plan where the St. Louis County police chief takes over after Jackson
resigned could be a move by local officials to quell tensions, as the St. Louis
County grand jury is about to decide whether or not to bring charges against
Officer Darren Wilson for his shooting of Michael Brown.

Todays Tidbit

Congress can barely work together to name a post office. These two senators
were stranded on an island, and they managed to share coconut water.
Sounds like a nice daydream of congressional cooperation. Except its real,
and its airing at 10 PM Eastern tonight.
Thats right: Sens. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and Martin Heinrich (D-NM) had to
survive together for a week on the Eru island, and their adventures will be
airing on the Disovery Channels Rival Survival reality TV show.
The Discovery Channel described the show, which airs tonight: In Rival
Survival, our senatorial adversaries turned survival teammates are given a
modest choice of items from which they can select only three. Using only
these limited resources and their wits, the pair must work together as they
attempt to spear fish, build shelter and find enough water to survive for one
week. There is no natural source for fresh water on Eru, and what lives in
the ocean will be their major food source. This unusual pairing will leave
behind the daily life of congressional staff, senate hearings and committee
meetings to navigate the rigors of surviving on an isolated island with no
contact with the outside world to call upon for help.

Question of the Day

Todays Question Frances Folsom Cleveland Preston died on October 29,
1947. She was one of two presidential wives to remarry after their husbands
deaths: Who was the other?