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Read a CNN producer's account of meeting the Salahis years ago.

Washington (CNN) - I confess, I've met Tareq and Michaele Salahi.

I met them a number of years ago. Yes, at a Washington party - I don't think they were crashing that time, as they've been accused of crashing a White House state dinner in November.

Then it was a reception for a well-known Italian designer-type, one in which people put on the one item they own by that label, one that I'm a little embarrassed to admit to have attended.

At first, they seemed like a normal couple, but minutes into our conversation it became clear to me that there was something a little different about the pair.

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Reuters photographer Kevin LaMarque suffered a minor injury when a tent fell and left a gash in his forehead.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Reporters traveling with the President of the United States may be surrounded by some of the tightest security on the planet, but White House reporting can still be downright hazardous sometimes, sort of.

Case in point: as the White House travel pool raced around New York City on Wednesday following President Obama during his visit to the United Nations, Reuters photographer Kevin LaMarque suffered a minor injury when a tent fell and left a gash in his forehead.

The photographer received immediate medical attention from U.S. Secret Service agents, and was later examined by White House doctors. Invisible stitches were applied, as was a SpongeBob SquarePants band-aid.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - Michael Strautmanis knew the Obamas before they were the Obamas.

While working as a paralegal for a large law firm in Chicago, Illinois, he met the then-Michelle Robinson and her fiancé, Barack Obama.

Strautmanis, 40, looked to the Obamas as both friends and role models. He and his wife got married the same year as the Obamas and followed their path into law.

Since then, Strautmanis has volunteered for Obama's U.S. Senate campaign, worked as a staffer in his Senate office and now serves as White House chief of staff for the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs.

Through his years with Obama, he didn't imagine he'd follow him to the White House.

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WHITE HOUSE (CNN) - President Obama's international popularity isn't just evident when he travels internationally. On Tuesday, the Chilean press forgot protocol - and journalistic objectivity - while in the Oval Office Tuesday, asking asked Obama to pose for a photo with the group.

An unidentified female Chilean press member asked Obama, "Can you take a photo with Chilean press, please?" Many of her colleagues enthusiastically seconded her request.

President Obama, who was meeting with Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, agreed to the photo, and suggested the group go outside to the Rose Garden for the picture. The U.S. press pool recorded the event and later watched in amazement as the foreign press pushed their way outside to the Rose Garden. A comical scrum ensued as the eager foreign pool struggled to get closer to Obama for the impromptu photo op.

President Obama had President Bachelet stand next to him while the rest of the Chilean reporters surrounded the pair and posed.

Styx's Tommy Shaw at the White House briefing room Monday.

WHITE HOUSE (CNN) - It's a smaller stage than they're use to standing on but the band Styx stopped by the White House briefing room Monday and posed for pictures behind the podium as well as with reporters who are fans of the group.

A small crowd of journo-groupies trailed the group as they had a look at the briefing room and other press work spaces while meeting with reporters, producers, and photojournalists.

The band, with hits including Mr. Roboto and Come Sail Away, is in town for a show in the DC area but stopped by the White House Monday to get a quick tour.

President Obama says he wants ‘a health care bill’ for Father’s Day.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – It's unlikely President Obama will get his Father's Day present wish by Sunday – but that didn't stop him from asking.

The president hosted his yearly Fatherhood event Friday at the White House followed by a backyard barbecue on the South Lawn of the White House.

During the barbecue portion of Friday's events, Obama was asked what he wanted for Father's Day. His response? "A health care bill."

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GREEN BAY, Wisconsin (CNN) - How do you get away with skipping classes on your last day of school?

Make sure you get your hands on a presidential pardon.

President Barack Obama held a town hall meeting on Thursday in Green Bay, Wisconsin to discuss his health care agenda - but he also took a little time to write an all-important "get out of school" note.

A young girl named Kennedy attended the town hall with her father, who was called on to ask a question.

Her father, John Corpus, started his query saying he hoped his daughter wouldn't get into trouble for missing the last day of school.

"Do you need me to write a note?" Obama asked.

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Obama picked Kobe Bryant and the Lakers to beat Orlando in six games.

(CNN) – As he departed the White House Tuesday evening for his five day trip to the Middle East and Europe, President Barack Obama made a quick prediction:

“Lakers in six, I think," the president said when asked by a reporter for Bloomberg News who he thought would prevail in the NBA finals - beginning Thursday and pitting the Los Angeles Lakers against the Orlando Magic.

Fans of both teams can take heart. The president correctly predicted the NCAA Basketball champion in March (The University of North Carolina), but falsely predicted the Lakers would win the NBA finals last year, also in six games. (Instead, it was the Boston Celtics who won in six.) Read the rest of this entry »

Pierce Brosnan arrives at the White House.

WHITE HOUSE (CNN) - A few of the world's streets are unquestionably sterling venues for celebrity watching: Rodeo Drive. Broadway.

And - at least since January - Pennsylvania Avenue.

On Tuesday, Pierce Brosnan, was the latest star seen walking through the West Wing doors. An inquiry to the White House Press office as to why the actor was visiting was not immediately answered. The former James Bond star's visit to the White House follows stops by several other famous guests, including Brad Pitt, George Clooney, singer Usher, and Tiger Woods.

California third grader Ethan Lopez told the president Thursday that many teachers at his school had been let go because of budget cuts.

LOS ANGELES (CNN) - For a brief moment Thursday, President Obama wasn't the star of his own town hall meeting in Los Angeles.

Ethan Lopez, an eight year old third grader asked the final question during a townhall meeting, pointing out that 25 of his teachers had already received "pink slips" due to budget cuts. Lopez then displayed a file full of letters he had for the president.

Watch: 'Our school is in big trouble,' Lopez says.

Obama quickly turned the tables and asked the young Ethan if he enjoyed school.

"Yes," replied Ethan

Obama then asked if Ethan knew what he wanted to be when he grew up.

"A cop," Ethan quickly answered.

Which delighted the many uniformed police and fire officers standing nearby and the entire crowd who came for the town hall.

President Obama is known as an avid exerciser who religiously works out 45 minutes a day and regularly plays basketball.

LOS ANGELES, CA (CNN) – Hitting the gym while on the road as a White House producer isn't the most fun thing for me to do, but with the time change east coast-west coast I was awake before my alarm and thought I'd get a workout in.

Bleary-eyed trying to work up a sweat, I turned and saw a very big secret service agent standing in the corner. That's when I suddenly realized that President Obama himself had quietly come into the gym and has started his workout on the treadmill right in front of me.

Wearing his trademark workout outfit-a black cap, black track pants, and a gray t-shirt, he warmed up with a walk while reading the newspaper and listening to his iPod. He soon started running in earnest, ditching the paper, along with the black baseball cap he sported when he arrived.

Fearing the shame of quitting my routine early while in front of the President of the United States of America, I huffed and puffed through my cardio work out while he ran on the treadmill. I also struggled to do a couple of extra sets with weights just in case "anyone" was watching.

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WASHINGTON (CNN) – The White House reacted to February’s jobs loss report Friday with an announcement by Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis that the administration would be directing $3.5 billion to states to fund education and jobs counseling for unemployed Americans.

“Today we learned that our economy lost another 651,000 jobs in the month of February, bringing the unemployment rate to 8.1 percent. 4.4 million Americans have now lost their jobs since this recession began last year, and there are now nearly 3 million Americans who have been unemployed for more than six months.

This data does not just represent abstract statistics, but the struggles of millions of Americans who do not know how they will pay the bills, or pay the mortgage, or raise their families. They are the central focus of this Administration’s economic policies, and why we are moving swiftly and aggressively to jumpstart job creation and grow our economy once more.

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Obama heads to Ohio today.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - President Barack Obama headed to Columbus, Ohio on Friday to attend a graduation ceremony for 25 police cadets.

Obama has repeatedly pledged to save or create 3.5 million jobs with his economic stimulus plan. The soon-to-be graduates of the Columbus Division of Police were recently told they would be laid off due to budget cuts in the city - but the mayor of the city announced that with money from the economic stimulus package, the jobs would be safe through at least the end of the year, and the White House says those jobs were saved because of the president's economic stimulus plan.

The presidential visit comes on the heels of the February jobs report, which reported 651,000 jobs had been lost. The unemployment rate now stands at 8.1 percent, its highest level since December 1983.

The president and Attorney General Eric Holder are expected to speak to the graduation class mid-day Friday.

With former presidential rival Sen. John McCain and other congressional critics of government waste by his side, President Barack Obama changed another Bush-era policy Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – With former presidential rival Sen. John McCain and other congressional critics of government waste by his side, President Barack Obama changed another Bush-era policy Wednesday, announcing a plan to change how the government awards private sector contracts.

“It’s time for a government that only invests in what works,” Obama said when calling for new spending guidelines. “And what’s encouraging is that there is broad, bipartisan consensus on behalf of reform.”

Obama reserved special criticism for defense contractors, saying that the majority of the waste “comes from influence peddling and indefensible no-bid contracts that have cost American taxpayers billions of dollars in Iraq."

Under the new directive, Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag will work with officials in the cabinet and across the federal government to come up with a new set of regulations to govern the process by this September that are intended to open it up to independent contractors and prevent waste and fraud - changes the White House predicted would save as much as $40 billion per year.

Cohen said Obama made the right move.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Former Secretary of Defense William Cohen told CNN President Obama’s decision to reach out to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was the right one.

His comments Tuesday came as the administration continued to deny reports a letter from Obama to Medvedev - which Cohen said seemed to have been “prematurely leaked” - contained any offer to end U.S. plans for a missile defense system if Russia agreed to help keep Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

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Prime Minister Gordon Brown and President Obama met in the Oval Office on Tuesday.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – One day after the stock market fell to its worst showing in more than a decade, President Obama suggested the current situation offered great investment opportunities for some Americans.

Watch: Obama, Brown discuss the economy

“What you’re now seeing is profit and earning ratios are starting to get to the point where buying stocks is a potentially good deal, if you’ve got a long-term perspective on it,” Obama told reporters Tuesday.

The president and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, visiting Obama in the White House for the first time, took questions in the Oval Office.

Obama dismissed doubts over his plans to reform the banking system. “Well, let me say this: I'm absolutely confident that they will work,” he said. “And I'm absolutely confident that credit is going to be flowing again, that businesses are going to start seeing opportunities for investment, they're going to start hiring again, people are going to be put back to work.

“What I'm looking at is not the day-to-day gyrations of the stock market, but the long-term ability for the United States and the entire world economy to regain its footing. And, you know, the stock market is sort of like a tracking poll in politics. It bobs up and down day to day, and if you spend all your time worrying about that, then you're probably going to get the long-term strategy wrong.

Both leaders also stressed the “special relationship” between the U.S. and Great Britain, and even discussed the possibility of a tennis match, reportedly Brown’s sport of choice.

“I don’t think I could ever compete with you at basketball,” said Brown. “Perhaps tennis.”

This is the second meeting President Obama has hosted with a world leader at the White House since taking office. He met with Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso in February.

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Daily Show Correspondent John Oliver made an appearance at the White House Tuesday..

WHITE HOUSE (CNN) - The White House briefing room is getting a visit from the Daily Show Wednesday. Correspondent John Oliver is speaking with White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs and several members of the press corps at the White House for an upcoming segment for the Comedy Central show.

No word on when the segment will air.

Fifty-one percent of those included in a Gallup survey conducted Friday and Saturday and released Monday said passing an economic stimulus plan of some kind was critically important.

WHITE HOUSE (CNN) – Speaking to journalists aboard Air Force One Tuesday, President Obama continued to make the case his top aides have pressed this week: that public support for his stimulus proposal is far stronger than many reports have reflected. "I think if you took a look at the Gallup poll yesterday, the American people don't need convincing,” he said.

Fifty-one percent of those included in that Gallup survey conducted Friday and Saturday and released Monday said passing an economic stimulus plan of some kind was critically important. Another 29 percent said it was important, though not critical. In the same poll, those surveyed gave far higher marks to Obama’s handling of the economy than they did to Republican critics of his plan.

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Obama answered questions from 13 reporters Monday night during the hour-long press conference.

WHITE HOUSE (CNN) – White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Tuesday that President Obama enjoyed his first prime time news conference Monday evening — and plans to stick with a campaign promise to hold them regularly in the future.

Obama answered questions from 13 reporters Monday night during the hour-long press conference.

Gibbs also confirmed that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi visited Obama at the White House Tuesday morning and formally invited Obama to speak before a joint session of Congress February 24, and the President accepted that invitation.