Barack Obama Politics

President Barack Obama outlined an ambitious agenda in his 2013 State of the Union address, focusing on the economy as well as many other issues.

Obama called for raising the minimum wage, increasing spending on infrastructure, curbing climate change and passing new gun control legislation.

Obama State of the Union 2013

In what felt like a campaign speech, he repeated earlier calls for reducing the budget deficit through a mix of revenue increases, tax reform and spending cuts.

He also said he would support "modest reforms" in government programs including Medicare, as long as the wealthiest Americans contribute as well.

Obama pledged to reduce troop levels in Afghanistan by half over the next year, an acceleration of the effort to wind down America's longest war.

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The White House is still answering for "skeet-gate" and defending the release (and timing) of the photo of President Obama firing a gun in August 2012.

With Obama's much-publicized remarks on gun violence in Minnesota scheduled just days later, many felt the photo release was a cheap stunt.

"Why did the White House release the skeet shooting photos three days before this trip?" a reporter asked White House press secretary Jay Carney.

Carney said the WH received questions about Obama skeet shooting, "so we decided to tweet a photo of the president shooting at Camp David."

Technically, this is true.

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It was only a matter of time.

When the White House released the instantly infamous President Obama gun photo, surprised Americans collectively gasped ... then fired up Photoshop.

Whether they pretended O was insisting on a live Beyonce halftime show, literally blowing a hole in the Constitution, warring with Queen Elizabeth II of England, allying with Communists or pointing a rifle backwards out of incompetence, the web had a field day with this one.

Follow the jump to see a bunch of other Obama gun photo parodies:

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A photo of President Barack Obama skeet shooting at Camp David has been released following a claim last week that he engages in the activity regularly.

It is the only known photo of Obama with a gun, and also comes amid a White House-backed push for stronger gun control regulations in the U.S.

The photo shows Obama targeting clay pigeons at the presidential retreat last August, which he said he does "all the time" during stays at the compound.

The comment, in an interview last Sunday, was a response to a question of whether he had ever held a firearm. Obama told the New Republic:

"Not the girls, but oftentimes guests of mine go up there. I have a profound respect for the traditions of hunting that trace back in this country for generations."

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President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave a joint interview on 60 Minutes last night, exchanging praise and reflecting on the last five years.

It's been quite a ride since 2007.

Obama-Hillary Clinton 60 Minutes Interview (Part 1)

She was his chief rival for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, but on Sunday, the outgoing Secretary of State served as Obama’s chief cheerleader.

The feeling was very much mutual.

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Former Republican V.P. candidate Paul Ryan said Sunday on Meet the Press that the nation's fiscal crisis would be different right now under Hillary Clinton.

“Look, if we had a [Hillary] Clinton presidency, if we had Erskine Bowles as chief of staff ... I think we would have fixed this fiscal mess by now," Ryan said.

"[But] that’s not the kind of presidency we’re dealing with right now.”

Paul Ryan on Hillary Clinton

Bowles was chief of staff to former President Bill Clinton, and currently co-chairs the Campaign to Fix The Debt, a bipartisan deficit reduction effort.

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Barack Obama is an unabashed fan of the Chicago Bears and football in general.

But the Commander-in-Chief recognizes that changes may need to be made to the sport, considering studies that prove how its violent hits result in a rash of brain injuries and concussions.

In an interview with The New Republic, the President says changes may need to be made that may make football "a bit less exciting," but which will address the long-term health of its participants.

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A federal appeals court ruled that President Barack Obama violated the Constitution by appointing three members of the National Labor Relations Board.

He bypassed the Senate to install appointees during a Congressional recess, hardly unprecedented but still unconstitutional, according to the ruling.

The decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit is a win for Congressional Republicans and business groups critical of the labor board.

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It's been awhile since we heard from Ted Nugent.

The outspoken, gun-loving rock legend is at it again, railing against President Barack Obama via a recent interview with Guns (dot) com ... seriously.

Nugent, who met with the Secret Service in 2012 after basically threatening Obama, accuses him of being a communist sympathizer and worse. Watch:

Ted Nugent on Obama

“He is an evil, dangerous man who hates America and hates freedom, and we need to fix this as soon as possible,” he said at a gun trade show in Vegas.

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Sasha Obama let out a big yawn during her father's inaugural address today, making for a moment she will never, ever live down at home.

Kids will be kids.

Sasha Obama Yawn

During one pause by President Barack Obama, cameras cut to Sasha, sister Malia, and mother Michelle Obama; Sasha yawned for the whole U.S. to see.

One can sympathize with Sash. She'd been to church, attended Katy Perry's inauguration performance and witnessed a swearing-in ceremony in 24 hours.

She's also 11, and the speech - while stirring in rhetoric, moving in its evocation of American greatness, and inspiring in its grandeur - was a tad boring.

Sorry Barack.