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Barack Hussein Obama.

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On Wednesday, Judge Derrick Watson of the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii blocked the implementation of Donald Trumps revised travel ban nationwide. On Monday, former President Barack Obama arrived in Hawaii for his vacation. The nave might assume these facts are unrelated. The journalists and bloggers of right-wing media disagree.

Yes. Why indeed was Barack Obama vacationing in Hawaii, the place he was born, with his family as he has done many times before? And why would Judge Watson rule against an effort that the president himself described as a continuation of the plan several previous judges had already ruled against? These are important questionsquestions only a few brave outlets dared to broach. One was the Independent Journal Review, which on Thursday published an article by Kyle Becker titled Fmr President Obama Made Surprise Visit to Hawaii, Days Before Judge Issued Travel Ban Ruling. From IJR:

IJR soon pulled the article. IJR published an article that does not meet our editorial standards or represent IJRs vision or values, its statement read. We have retracted the story, and we deeply regret the error.

This was a move shocking not only in its implication that IJR has editorial standards, but also in its cowardice. As weve been told by conservative media for years, Barack Obama is a nefarious masterminda dark prince (imam?) trained in the black arts of cunning and deception. Theres surely no reason to abandon reasoned inquiries into his dastardly doings just because hes left office. We can be assured, after all, that other conservative outlets will be hot on his trail long after his death is faked by agents of the Muslim Brotherhood and hes spirited away to his secret birthplace in Mombasa, Kenya, where Saul Alinsky has been waiting in suspended animation for his beloved stepsons return. Why shouldnt IJR continue the pursuit?

Perhaps because this kind of thing has alienated some of its employees. Politico reported Thursday afternoon that congressional reporter Joe Perticone decided to leave the site after the storys publication and that others have lamented the sites shift toward more right-wing content. Becker, for his part, was cucked into emailing an apology to the staff for letting the company down.

I should have been more responsible and will exert utmost efforts to adhere to the highest journalistic standards I can, while taking into account audience readership pressures, he wrote. It was unwarranted to fuel baseless speculation, and there are no excuses.

Barack Obama, meanwhile, is somewhere on the big island cackling madly into the night as a crane lowers an original copy of the Constitution, stained with the blood of patriots, into a tank full of sharks.

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Right-Wing Journalists Ask the Big Questions: What Is Hawaii-Native Barack Obama Secretly Doing In Hawaii? - Slate Magazine (blog)

One of Barack Obama's fun traditions while he was in the White House was filling out March Madness brackets. And he's still continuing that tradition this year.

Obama's upset picks include Bucknell over West Virginia and Marquette over South Carolina. North Carolina, Duke, Arizona and Kansas will reach the Final Four, according to Obama, with the Tar Heels cutting down the net.

On the women's side, Obama pegs Connecticut to go all the way and defeat Notre Dame for the national championship.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump won't be filling out an NCAA Tournament bracket on ESPN this March, unlike predecessor Obama.

ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz says the network expressed its "interest to the White House in continuing the presidential bracket. They have respectfully declined."

Obama, a basketball fan, would join the network on-camera and make his March Madness picks for both the men's and women's brackets. Last year, he nailed a number of upsets most notably Hawaii knocking off fourth-seeded California in the opening round but he had Villanova, the eventual national champion, losing in the Elite Eight.

Trump did make a prediction on the Super Bowl, picking New England to win by eight points. He wasn't far off, as the Patriots rallied to beat the Falcons 34-28 in overtime.

White House spokeswoman Hope Hicks tellsThe Washington Postin an email, "We look forward to working with ESPN on another opportunity in the near future."

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More AP college basketball athttp://collegebasketball.ap.organdhttps://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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Barack-etology: Obama shares his March Madness picks - Lebanon Express

Then-President-elect Donald Trump and President Barack Obama (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)

On March 4, when the president of these United States hopped on Twitter and tweeted a series of tweets claiming that former President Barack Obama had wiretapped his home in New York Citys Trump Tower when he was running for president, the media was in shock.

Shortly after the claim, and because TrumPutin is too dumb to realize that in order for his home to have been wiretapped, other federal agencies would have had to be complicit, FBI Director James Comey asked the Justice Department to issue a public statement rejecting the presidents tweets.

To be clear, the president tweeted this:

I dont know how those series of tweets could be misinterpreted or misunderstood, but that is what he White House now wants us to believe. Even though everyone from House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) to Attorney General Jeff Sessions has strongly denied TrumPutins claim that the former president wiretapped TrumPutins high-rise, Sean Spicy Facts Spicer and even the president himself are claiming that his explosive accusations werent just a flat-out lie.

Wiretap covers a lot of different things, Trump told Fox News Tucker Carlson in an interview Wednesday, CNN reports.

Umm, no, the fuck, it doesnt. Wiretapping covers wiretappingyet the president would like to play semantics after tweeting that Obama committed a criminal act. Spicy Facts is even mimicking bunny ears with his hands to note that the president used quotes around the word wiretapping because it was actually meant to imply broad surveillance.

Spicy Facts using bunny fingers is even funnier when you remember that he was an actual White House bunny.

But because its impossible for any of the folks at the White House to own up to their shit, we have to keep listening to crazy-ass conspiracy theories. I mean, Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway is out here talking about microwaves becoming cameras and shit, and no one seems to be able to call out the president on what hes done. News folks have been noting that the White House, which not only doubled down on the claim that Obama had wiretapped Trump Tower but even called for an investigation into the claim, is now walking back its earlier accusations.

Well, isnt it nice to live in Trump World, where you arent accountable or held accountable for anything you say or do? Even though Obama doesnt care about anything coming from that putrid White House, so Im sure he isnt looking for an apology. He didnt care about TrumPutin then and he surely doesnt care about him now. Youve seen the photos of him in his buttery leather and mom jeans. Hes out here living his best life while the White House is imploding under the weight of TrumPutins alternative facts.

Although we all know that the wiretaps, had there ever been any, in Trump Tower would have revealed TrumPutin playing with his alphabet blocks on the floor while sucking on his baba, we might also have discovered that Steve Bannon really does wear the Bane mask when he isnt around company and that Spicy Facts does wear the bunny costume when he gets to dress down. But there werent any fucking wiretaps, and it would be great if we could all stop acting like the emperor isnt butt-ass naked and call the man what he is: a megalomaniacal lying windbag.

And if thats too much, then Im fine with just calling him a liar. At least thats the truth.

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President TrumPutin Lied on Obama; So Why Isn't Anyone Saying it? - The Root

Former President Barack Obama seems to be enjoying his time since leaving the White House, but Hillary Clinton's loss has left the Democratic Party and progressives in general without a leader -- putting closer scrutiny on what role the popular former president will play in the future of American politics.

While only the closest members of Obama's inner circle understand what such a return to politics will look like, some say he is taking notes from his wife, Michelle Obama.

According to Vox, which interviewed six current and former Obama aides, the former president plans to take relatively neutral political steps moving forward. He'll channel his wife's approach to the role of first lady as his model, focusing primarily on nonpartisan solutions to America's issues.

RELATED: The Obamas post-presidency

16 PHOTOS

The Obamas post-presidency

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NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: (EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE) The 44th President of The United States Barack Obama, poses backstage at The Roundabout Theatre Company's production of 'Arthur Miller's The Price' on Broadway at The American Airlines Theatre on February 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic)

Former U.S. President Barack Obama sits on a boat during a kite surfing outing with British businessman Richard Branson during his holiday on Branson's Moskito island, in the British Virgin Islands, in a picture handed out by Virgin on February 7, 2017. Jack Brockway/Virgin Handout via REUTERS FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY

THIS IMAGE IS BINNED Former U.S. President Barack Obama tries his hand at kite surfing during a holiday with British businessman Richard Branson on his island Moskito, in the British Virgin Islands, in a picture handed out by Virgin on February 7, 2017. Jack Brockway/Virgin Handout via REUTERS FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY

Former U.S. President Barack Obama and British businessman Richard Branson sit on a boat during Obama's holiday on Branson's Moskito island, in the British Virgin Islands, in a picture handed out by Virgin on February 7, 2017. Jack Brockway/Virgin Handout via REUTERS FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 08: Malia Obama is seen arriving at The Weinstein Company on February 8, 2017 in New York, New York. (Photo by Alessio Botticelli/GC Images)

UNSPCIFIED, BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS - FEBRUARY 1: In this undated image Former President Barack Obama takes a break from learning to kitesurf at Richard Branson's Necker Island retreat on February 1, 2017 in the British Virgin Islands. Former President Obama and his wife Michelle have been on an extended vacation since leaving office on January 20. (Photo by Jack Brockway/Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: Malia Obama is seen walking in Soho on February 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Raymond Hall/GC Images)

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: Malia Obama is seen walking in Soho on February 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Raymond Hall/GC Images)

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: (EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE) Director Terry Kinney and The 44th President of The United States Barack Obama chat backstage at The Roundabout Theatre Company's production of 'Arthur Miller's The Price' on Broadway at The American Airlines Theatre on February 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic)

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: (EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE) (L-R) Malia Obama, The 44th President of The United States Barack Obama, Danny DeVito, Mark Ruffalo, Jessica Hecht and Tony Shalhoub pose backstage at The Roundabout Theatre Company's production of 'Arthur Miller's The Price' on Broadway at The American Airlines Theatre on February 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic)

NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 24: Malia Ann Obama is seen out in Manhattan with friend on February 24, 2017 in New York, New York. (Photo by Josiah Kamau/BuzzFoto via Getty Images)

NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 24: Malia Ann Obama is seen out in Manhattan with friend on February 24, 2017 in New York, New York. (Photo by Josiah Kamau/BuzzFoto via Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 24: Malia Obama seen out in Manhattan on February 24, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Robert Kamau/GC Images)

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 10: Michelle Obama leaves Upland restaurant on March 10, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 10: Barack Obama leaves Upland restaurant on March 10, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

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Most former presidents in recent history have transitioned from one of the most political positions in the world into post-political role. Bill Clinton and both Bushes stepped out of the limelight and quietly focused on relatively noncontroversial charitable efforts. They also typically refrain from speaking ill of their successors, regardless of party -- a favor that is typically returned.

SEE ALSO: President Trump deviates from presidential code

Recent reports suggest that Obama directed his administration to be as helpful as possible in aiding then president-elect Trump and his team with the transition to help ensure a smooth transfer of power.

Obama stayed relatively quiet even when Trump claimed he had Trump Tower wiretapped during the 2016 campaign, having an aide release a statement, but otherwise removing himself from the political fray.

But as the former president begins to wield his post-presidential influence to help solve problems facing the nation and the world, he is expected to lean on techniques Michelle used during her time as first lady.

SEE ALSO: Illinois' attempt to honor Barack Obama met with death threats

Michelle Obama was typically popular, but faced her fair share of critics when she became first lady. Over the years, she worked to improve education for girls and generate nutrition programs. She developed her initiatives without billions in federal funding and without having to win a Senate majority.

But not everyone believes Obama's approach will be non-political.

RELATED: 44 iconic photos of Barack Obama's presidency

43 PHOTOS

44 iconic photos of Barack Obama's presidency

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Barack Obama takes a moment to reflect before walking on stage to take the oath of office.

Photo Credit: The White House

Barack Obama and the First Lady share a tender moment during the Inaugural Ball on Jan. 20, 2009.

Photo Credit: The White House

Obama enters the Oval Office on the first day of his presidency.

Photo Credit: The White House

President Obama reads a letter left in his desk by George W. Bush, a White House tradition welcoming the new President.

Photo Credit: The White House

Obama tours the grounds of his new home for the next 8 years.

Photo Credit: The White House

Barack Obama meets with senior advisors in his third week as president.

Photo Credit: The White House

President Obama settles in for his first flight aboard Air Force One.

Photo Credit: The White House

The 44thPresident of the United States gives his first State of the Union address on February 24, 2009.

Photo Credit: The White House

Mr. & Mrs. Obama walk hand in hand towards the helicopter that will take them on their first trip to Camp David.

Photo Credit: The White House

Michelle Obama shakes hands with Queen Elizabeth at the Buckingham palace during their trip for the G20 summit.

Photo Credit: The White House

POTUS shows some love for his troops while visiting Camp Victory in Iraq on April 7, 2009.

Photo Credit: The White House

The Obamas share a laugh while eating a snack after an event.

Photo Credit: The White House

Obama and Biden take in some fresh air with some golf on the White House green.

Photo Credit: The White House

President Obama explores the Pyramids of Giza during a trip to Egypt on June 4, 2009.

Photo Credit: The White House

POTUS walks through his first G8 Summit in Italy.

Photo Credit: The White House

Barack Obama takes in the beauty of the Grand Canyon.

Photo Credit: The White House

President Obama enjoys himself during an interview with David Letterman on Sept 21, 2009.

Photo Credit: The White House

The Obama's welcome children to enjoyHalloween fun at the White House.

Photo Credit: The White House

President Obama and the First Lady take their first portrait in front of the official White House Christmas tree.

Obama sits in his personalized chair during a meeting.

Photo Credit: The White House

The Obama's bust a move during the Governors' Ball.

Photo Credit: The White House

Obama takes a moment to catch up on some important documents while on the go.

Photo credit: The White House

The President takes calls at all hours leading up to the vote on healthcare reform.

Photo credit: The White House

Obama and Biden applaud the passing of the Affordable Care Act.

Photo Credit: The White House

White House Photographer Pete Souza had this to say about capturing this photo: "The sun was setting as the Presidential motorcade arrived back at Miami International Airport. I ran to get in front of Air Force One so I could use the beautiful sky as the background when the President boarded the plane."

Photo Credit: The White House

The Obamas lip-sync to a group of acappella singers during a holiday visit.

Photo Credit: The White House

A rare moment in the Situation Room of the White House.

Photo Credit: The White House

The President greets soldiers after a surprise all night flight to Afghanistan.

Photo Credit: The White House

The Obama family admires Rio's infamous Christ the Redeemer statue while In Brazil on March 20, 2011.

Photo Credit: The White House

Barack Obama approaches the Marine One helicopter.

Photo Credit: The White House

President Obama watches the screen like a hawk during the real time mission to capture Osama bin Laden.

Photo Credit: The White House

The White House photographer Pete Souza writes"The President was ready to announce the news about the mission against Osama bin Laden and was putting the finishing touches on his statement in the Outer Oval Office. As he did so, the networks broke in with bulletins confirming that bin Laden had been killed and a photograph of him appeared on the television screen in the background near the Vice President and Press Secretary Jay Carney."

Photo Credit: The White House

Souza says "One of the most memorable moments of the year was when the President hugged Rep. Gabrielle Giffords as he walked onto the floor of the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol to deliver his annual State of the Union address."

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Obama takes notes from Michelle Obama's time as first lady for political plans post-presidency - AOL

The leaders of the House Intelligence Committee said Wednesday that they had seen no evidence to support President Donald Trumps claim that he was wiretapped by President Obama before he took office.

We dont have any evidence that that took place," Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said at a news conference with Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the panel.

I have seen no evidence that supports the claim that President Trump made, Schiff said.

In a series of tweets a few weekends ago, Trump accused President Barack Obama of wiretapping him and he urged Congress to investigate the claim.

FBI Director James Comey will testify before the committee at a public hearing Monday and will be questioned about Trump's claim, the lawmakers said.

The panel is conducting an investigation into Russias interference in the 2016 presidential campaign, including whether the FBI and intelligence agencies collected information into contacts between Trump associates and Russian government officials.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., on Wednesday threatened to subpoena Comey for information about whether the agency received a federal warrant to conduct surveillance on Trump, his campaign or his Manhattan headquarters.

If the FBI does not provide an answer, Graham said, Congress would need to establish a special House-Senate committee to examine Russias influence on the 2016 election.

Original post:
House leaders dispute Trump's claim Obama wiretapped him; Comey to testify - Chicago Tribune