Day 17
Feb. 5, 2009
"Too often we have seen faith wielded as a tool to divide us from one another, as an excuse for prejudice and intolerance."
—President Obama, in remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington
"It's a broken process, and the President, as far as I'm concerned, has been AWOL in providing leadership."
—Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Senator, telling Fox News that he doesn't think Obama has done much to successfully guide the stimulus through the Senate
Obama uses his appearance at the National Prayer Breakfast to preach bipartisanship, saying he prays for "God's grace" to "fill the space between us." He also announces his creation of a White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, headed by Joshua DuBois, who ran his faith-based efforts during the campaign.
Meanwhile, some on the Hill continue to lose faith in the President's stimulus package, with GOP Senator Tom Coburn saying there's "stinky stuff" in the massive bill. Even the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats in the House threaten to walk away from the package unless more "wasteful spending" is cut.
Sad news also breaks with reports that 75-year-old Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is having surgery in New York for early-stage pancreatic cancer and will need to be hospitalized for up to 10 days.