White House Visitors Logs Show Boldface Names, Clout-Wielding D.C. Players
EmailThe White House visitors' logs released Friday afternoon represent just those names about whom inquiries had been made at Whitehouse.gov.
Within the narrow construct of those 481 names released, one can catch glimpses of the world of celebrity — George Clooney! Oprah! Denzel! Brad Pitt! Serena Williams! — and also weigh the clout of various movers and shakers in D.C.
The big winner in the latter group: labor leader Andy Stern of the Service Employees International Union, who visited the White House 19 times. Five of those visits were with President Obama.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka visited seven times. Power-lobbyists Tony and Heather Podesta visited four times and three times, respectively, according to the records. Center for American Progress president John Podesta, who headed the Obama transition, visited at least 12 times. Other frequent visitors included former National Organization for Women President Kim Gandy and former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D.
Other names on the list: the Rev. Al Sharpton, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, and former Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean.
Wall Street players have had a lot of interest in Mr. Obama's doings, and visitors have included JPMorgan Chase's Jamie Dimon, Goldman Sachs' Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sachs' Gary Cohn, Citigroup's Vikram Pandit, and the former chief executive of AIG, Maurice Greenberg. Edward Yingling of the American Bankers Association, Scott Talbott of the Financial Services Roundtable, and Timothy Ryan of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association also visited.
So have George Soros, Bill Gates, Alan Greenspan, the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., Exxon Mobil's Rex Tillerson, Chevron's David O’Reilly, and General Electric's Jeffrey Immelt, who sits on the president's Economic Recovery Advisory Board.
Former Vice President Al Gore has visited four times, though the logs do not indicate that he visited with President Obama.
-jpt
Sen. DeMint: GOP Race Could Go Until Convention 
Obama Avoids Questions on Contraception Rule
Just what you would expect right? If there is no comparison between this and other President’s visitors list it’s not news it’s just a who do you like or who do I like list? Give me a list of other President’s visitors so I have some way of comparison then we can see if there is something news worthy within your story..
Posted by: HoosierDONK | October 31, 2009, 9:53 am 9:53 am
Hoosier,
Tat’s just it.
Remember the transparency pledge? It was because the Bush Administration WASN’T. They wouldn’t release records like this. So we’ll never know who visited, and we’ll never have anything to compare it to. Cheney sued to keep his visitor logs — and most of his vice-presidential papers — out of the national archives because, he claimed, he’s not part of the executive branch, but rather the legislative one.
In the meantime, conservative organizations will have a field day, trying to turn this list into something evil, knowing all the while there’s no similar list with which to compare it.
Frustrating, isn’t it?
Posted by: Karen Page | October 31, 2009, 10:05 am 10:05 am
Here we go again with Bush this, Bush that…
I can bet the house Bush didn’t have Malik Shabazz at the house.
Posted by: mjishernameo | October 31, 2009, 10:10 am 10:10 am
Lobbyists won’t have a job in Obama’s white house… but they will have an open door policy.
Posted by: supernads | October 31, 2009, 10:14 am 10:14 am
Transparency?
I got news for all you this was not what Obama promised. Rather than release the entire logs as promised during the election for transparency. Obama is only releasing the names of those who are asked for. So if you don’t know that someone visited then how will you know their name? What this list shows are those names that were asked for, and I must say it’s a very obvious list of names to ask for. Nothing unexpected at all in these names. That said, I always worry no matter the party in power about the names I don’t know.
Transparency, Until we hold Obama’s feet to the fire and make him do what he promised to do; until then it’s just a game at the Obama White House.
Posted by: thetruth | October 31, 2009, 10:38 am 10:38 am
Total transparency is not possible, and any fool who thinks so is simply a fool.
Posted by: Rob | October 31, 2009, 10:45 am 10:45 am
We were lied to and then sold out.
Posted by: George | October 31, 2009, 10:49 am 10:49 am
The Supreme Court should step in and site the Republic Party in the white house for treason. They are distroying this nation.
Posted by: Robert Sheard | October 31, 2009, 10:51 am 10:51 am
Obama didn’t have Shabazz at the White House either. Another rumor which the conservatives spread because it “Feels Right.” (to quote Rush)
Posted by: TonyJ | October 31, 2009, 10:54 am 10:54 am
The Supreme Court should step in and site the Democratic Party AND the Republican Party in the White House for treason They are destroying this nation.
Posted by: Indie | October 31, 2009, 11:00 am 11:00 am
Good for the Obama administration for releasing these logs. The Bush administration refused to release their logs to hide who was visiting the house.
Posted by: Robert | October 31, 2009, 11:05 am 11:05 am
Where’s the jobs? Instead of entertaining, the president should working with small businesses to help create jobs instead of the UNOINS!
Posted by: Mississippi | October 31, 2009, 11:12 am 11:12 am
Just what kind of visitor to the White House should there be? Of course the press is picking out only those names recognizable to the general population, they make headlines.
Show us Cheney’s damned records… Oh sorry, that’s privileged and possibly damaging information.
Posted by: D H | October 31, 2009, 11:20 am 11:20 am
Robert, I direct your attention to the first line of the story:
“The White House visitors’ logs released Friday afternoon represent just those names about whom inquiries had been made at Whitehouse.gov.”
If no one asked about a particular person, they aren’t listed. For (a completely made-up)example, if no one asked about Fidel Castro, the WH wouldn’t see fit to include the fact that Fidel Castro visited in their “visitor log” release. This is a very selective listing of some folks that visited the White House.
As for VP Cheney’s visitor log, I assume it will be housed in the National Archives and released to the public in due course, based on prevailing archival laws, presidential perogative, and Freedom of Information Act requests.
If you want to know how to access documents at the National Archive, Sandy Berger might be able to help – he has a very intimate knowledge of how to get your hands on documents there,a nd various ways to “take them home for further examination.”
Posted by: ken | October 31, 2009, 11:32 am 11:32 am
Re: “Obama didn’t have Shabazz at the white house. another rumor which the conservatives spread”
I beg to differ. Malik Shabazz is listed as a visitor. Are we now being asked to not believe this document? Wake up. Shabazz was a guest of Obama. Clear and simple. End of story. Not fabricated by “rush”…..its documented by the White House.
That’s some Strong Kool-aide you “left wingers” drink.
Posted by: mjishernameo | October 31, 2009, 12:14 pm 12:14 pm
This is Actually from the White House. Maybe you should stop drinking the right wing Kool-Aid, “Clear and Simple.”
Or at least have your research go beyond talk shows.
“In September, requests were submitted for the names of some famous or controversial figures (for example Michael Jordan, William Ayers, Michael Moore, Jeremiah Wright, Robert Kelly (“R. Kelly”), and Malik Shabazz). The well-known individuals with those names never actually came to the White House.”
Posted by: tonyj | October 31, 2009, 12:33 pm 12:33 pm
No tonyj, you’re apparently the one of the few still high on Kool Aid. The list is only of those names where previous inquiries were made. Even the White House will admit to that when pressed. Come back down and try to pull yourself together …
Posted by: OIFVet@USC | October 31, 2009, 1:39 pm 1:39 pm
Riiiight….
That was a DIFFERENT Malik Shabazz….riiiight. lol.
It’s right out of Jones town. Now drink the Kool aide and lay down.
Posted by: mjishernameo | October 31, 2009, 2:04 pm 2:04 pm
Still waiting for the records of the Bush Administration’s visitors?
Posted by: thebob.bob | October 31, 2009, 2:08 pm 2:08 pm
Ahh, high on the Kool-Aid. I guess you’re right and I should stop drinking it. Maybe you guys can show me how.
Although, from your posts, it sounds as though you drank an awful lot during the last administration and continue to drink it.
So lets agree to stop drinking the Kool-Aid together.
Posted by: tonyj | October 31, 2009, 2:49 pm 2:49 pm
Big surprise. The well connected visiting the White House. Who is
doing the lobbying for regular people?
Posted by: wis134 | October 31, 2009, 2:53 pm 2:53 pm
lets agree to stop drinking the Kool-Aid together.
Posted by: tonyj | Oct 31, 2009 2:49:41 PM
I actually think many here (the teabots) drink heavily “spiced” tea. Ha!!
Posted by: Olivia | October 31, 2009, 5:05 pm 5:05 pm
==============================
Why is it the lame-stream media fails to report that the anti-American radicals, Rev. Wright and Bill Ayers, were visiting Obama.
==============================
And those are the names Obama was willing to release – image the names he doesn’t want to release. Talk about transparency
Posted by: N Waff | October 31, 2009, 7:22 pm 7:22 pm
where is the complete list
Posted by: holly | October 31, 2009, 9:17 pm 9:17 pm
Jake,
Why no mention of Jeremiah Wright or William Ayers? Don’t tell me you believe that they weren’t “the same” ones. I mean, are you just (guffaw) taking Gibbs’ word for it (uncontrollable laughter…).
Posted by: tanarg | November 1, 2009, 12:33 am 12:33 am
middle initial of william ayers on wh visitors list is different from radical william ayers. a mistake or is their “another” william ayers out there?? find out Tapper….isn’t that journalism 101???
Posted by: massachusetts | November 1, 2009, 6:59 am 6:59 am
And get this….there are several visits by this William Ayers imposter…AND he happens to have the same middle initial.
Folks, I expect Obamas friends to visit. Mine visit me…
But the ease with which this president lies is just unfathomable. His automatic response is to LIE HIS WAY OUT OF A PROBLEM….Rather than say, yeah, my friends visit me…That would have been the way a normal, ethical person would handle it. And ya know what, I would respect that.
He is a person we cannot trust.
Posted by: mjishernameo | November 1, 2009, 7:26 am 7:26 am
BUT BUSH in 3….2…..1……
Posted by: mjishernameo | November 1, 2009, 7:27 am 7:27 am
Actually, “Stop blaming Bush” and “So what if Bush did it?” are both ranked #4 on the Big List of Most Popular Right Wing Buzzwords, Catchphrases and Talking Points. The top three spots go to…
3) Arrogant
2) Elitist
1) Socialist
Posted by: WWW | November 1, 2009, 10:39 am 10:39 am
The Obama Administration is so transparent that it took The Freedom of Information Act to get this list to the public.
Posted by: bailey | November 1, 2009, 10:42 am 10:42 am
The list of Wall Street and bankers is very, very interesting.
It started with Bush appointing Paulson and it’s continued and even amplified under Obama.
The media could regain America’s respect if it would turn out the thieves who are using government favoritism to rob the middle class. We need the help of an independent media because all indications are that both political parties are culpable.
Posted by: Terry | November 1, 2009, 8:03 pm 8:03 pm
Why no mention of Obama’s mentor, the good Rev. Wright visiting.
Remeber the the guy he described as “family”?
Wright just gave a speech overseas calling America “Land of the greed, home of the slave”.
Hopen Change…brought to you by George Soros…(another visitor).
Posted by: Lincoln | November 2, 2009, 6:43 pm 6:43 pm