Once More with Feeling!

well, because chief justice john roberts fucked up yesterday... and because you know conspiracy theorists and hardcore republicans would question it for the next four years if not performed again......

president barack obama took the oath of office for the second time today.

as cnn reports (and because it's too late for me to write the whole story myself):

The second oath -- also administered by Roberts -- took place at 7:35 p.m. Wednesday in the White House's Map Room. Roberts asked Obama whether he was ready.

"I am, and we're going to do it very slowly," Obama replied.

The do-over was aimed at dispelling any confusion that might arise from Tuesday's take -- in which "faithfully" was said out of sequence -- and erase any question that Obama is legally the president.

However, per the Constitution, Obama became president at noon Tuesday without taking the oath.

"We believe that the oath of office was administered effectively and that the president was sworn in appropriately yesterday," White House counsel Greg Craig said Wednesday in a written statement.

"But the oath appears in the Constitution itself. And out of an abundance of caution, because there was one word out of sequence, Chief Justice Roberts administered the oath a second time," the statement read.

i'm certain no president in history has had to take the oath a second time within a day of taking it the first time.....

do you think obama having voted against roberts' confirmation for the supreme court had anything to do with it?

who knows? well, at least we have that out of the way....

onward and upward!

e.

Official Pre-Announcement Predictions

the nominations for the 81st Annual Academy Awards come out tomorrow.... so you know what that means, my lovelies? time for my official predictions!

and away we go........

Best Picture
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Spoiler: Doubt or The Wrestler

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, The Wrestler
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight
Gus van Sant, Milk

Spoiler: Well, Aronofsky would be the real spoiler and I think Ron Howard might be a more secure prediction for Frost/Nixon. But let’s have a little fun.

Best Actor
Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Spoiler: I would love to see Richard Jenkins nominated for The Visitor.

Best Actress
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kristen Scott Thomas, I’ve Loved You So Long
Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

Spoiler: Angelina Jolie replaces Thomas for The Changeling.

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin, Milk
Robert Downey, Jr., Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire

Spoiler: Either James Franco or Emile Hirsch for Milk. In fact, I can easily see Franco taking Patel’s spot.

Best Supporting Actress
Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
Kate Winslet, The Reader

Spoiler: It seems that this category may be the most up-in-the-air. I could easily see Amy Adams snag a nod for Doubt. But I also think a Slumdog groundswell could pull Frieda Pinto into a nod instead of DeWitt. DeWitt is the most vulnerable.

Other Possible Scenarios:
Okay...just to put some fear into everyone. Here are some possible scenarios that I could see happening but hope will not. Awardsdaily.com gave me the idea and some of these are from there:

The Dark Knight is left out of every major category except Best Supporting Actor. Instead, Eastwood and Torino slip in or even The Wrestler. Or that fourth nomination comes for Amy Adams from Doubt which pushes that film into a Best Picture/Director race.

Kate Winslet is seen as a lead in both her films and cancels herself out and receives a nomination for neither. (Please note: I'm predicting two nominations for her tomorrow.)

Slumdog receives NO acting nominations I see this as a strong possibility.

Also...if Revolutionary Road gains any traction, expect noms for Picture and Actor, Leonardo DiCaprio.

But these are all outside chances...and I remain true to my predictions... Knowing full well that I’ve made some dicey predictions just to make things fun, I fully expect to get a couple wrong.

But I do love this time of year.......

e.

Breaking News!

the new york times is reporting that caroline kennedy has withdrawn her name for consideration to replace the vacant senate seat left by now secretary of state, hillary clinton.

On Wednesday [Kennedy] called Gov. David A. Paterson, who will choose a successor to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. Her concerns about Senator Edward M. Kennedy’s deteriorating health (he was hospitalized after suffering a seizure during President Obama’s inaugural lunch on Tuesday ) prompted her decision to withdraw, this person said. Coping with her uncle’s condition was her most important priority, a situation not conducive to starting a high profile public job.

i assume this means the seat is almost assuredly AG andrew cuomo's to accept.

stay tuned.....

e.

p.s. did i mention hillary is secretary of state!?!?

she was confirmed today by the full senate in a vote of 94-2. senators vitter (R-louisiana) and demint (R-south carolina) were the only "nay" votes.

The Dress, At Last

so president barack obama and first lady michelle obama attended their first ball this evening, the neighborhood ball.

at 8:33pm, introduced by denzel washington and serenaded by beyonce singing etta james' "at last," the obama's kicked off a long night of inaugural balls.

and what has been the biggest question leading up to today's transition (i mean, beyond what type of dog the obamas will get)? what will michelle obama wear to the balls?

well, i'm, umm.... underwhelmed.

i dunno.... the dress isn't great. first off...it's white. i mean... i promised "IN COLOR!" and now.... it's kinda boring. and there are tiny things on it.. and just one shoulder... that shoulder strap almost wants to be a bjork swan song.

cnn reports:

The first lady was clad in a long white gown designed by up-and-coming designer Jason Wu. His design style combines modern lifestyle dressing and haute couture, according to his Web site.

but....judge for yourselves. what are your thoughts?

i mean... it's okay. but i was hoping for so much more.

i dunno? talk amongst yourselves....




e.

p.s. she still looks beautiful. what a stunning, strong woman. i can't wait to see her in action over the coming years.

For Those Wondering... II

if you've been watching closely all day.... you may wander what was in the white box with the red bow that the incoming first lady handed to the outgoing first lady first thing this morning.

well, the gift michelle obama handed to laura bush was a leather-bound journal and pen for mrs. bush to begin writing her memoirs in.

very nice.

also...just FYI. by the time obama finished delivering his inaugural address, the white house website underwent a change of its own:


e.

The Hat

don't ask me why... but i really feel like aretha franklin's hat deserves its very own post.

yes, i'm backtracking to the beginning of the festivities... but look at it!

i mean, don't get me wrong. the queen of soul knocked it out of the park (a baseball analogy for my baseball-lovin' readers) with her rendition of "my country 'tis of thee."

but she clearly picked out her best easter sunday hat for today's event.

my, my, my....

e.

The Dress

a very punchy chris matthews just reported via norah o'donnell via kelly o'donnell (a lot of irish over at msnbc) that michelle obama has still not yet picked out her inaugural gown for this evening.

and let's be honest.... as a fag: the dress is all a care about for the rest of the evening.

will bring a picture as soon as it's revealed and appears in a picture online i can snag.

and...in the tradition of the women (the original film, not the remake)....i may just bring the dress in full color!

e.