Katy Perry claims President Barack Obama's inaugural ball was the best party she's ever been to

Barack and Michelle Obama at the inaugural ball

The 'Firework' singer and her boyfriend John Mayer were among a number of stars - including Kerry Washington, Alicia Keys and her husband Swizz Beatz, Eva Longoria and Ashley Judd - to welcome in the US leader's second term in office at the White House in Washington D.C. on Monday and she was hugely impressed with the lavish celebration.

She tweeted: "Just left the White House. All other parties from here on out will be judged unless they take place at the White House."

Kelly Clarkson - who had earlier performed at the event, singing My Country, 'Tis of Thee' - was impressed with the president's wife, Michelle's, party starting abilities.

She tweeted: "Just partied at the White House .... I kid you not, Michelle Obama stood up and got the party started .... seriously cool First Lady :) (sic)"

Producer-and-rapper will.i.am spoke of his pride at being invited to the ball, tweeting: "I took my mama to the white house & every step I took I wanted to cry ... I'm so proud of our past (sic)."

Party guests were entertained by DJ Cassidy, and Eric Benet and Janelle Monae, who both sang.

Before she performed, Jennifer Hudson tweeted: "Right now the President and First Lady will dance to Al Green's 'Let's Stay Together' to be performed by ... ME!!! Yes! Amazing night! (sic)"

Justin Bieber has overtaken Lady Gaga as the most followed person on Twitter

Justin Bieber tops Twitter

The 'Beauty and a Beat' singer has amassed over four thousand more followers than the 'Edge of Glory' hit maker, bringing his total to 33,331,355 and counting compared to Gaga's 33,327,342 on the social networking site.

Gaga had held the title for almost three years since overtaking Britney Spears in 2010.

The 'Born This Way' star was also the first Twitter user to cross the 10 million followers threshold, and broke her own record by becoming the first user to cross 20 million followers and then 30 million.

Gaga previously tweeted about Justin's growing Twitter following, saying: "So proud of @justinbieber and all the Beliebers! I'm only happy to see your fans growing in size, you all deserve it! Monsters support you!"

Both singers have prominent fan bases on the website, with Justin's fans nicknamed 'Beliebers', and Gaga's branded 'Little Monsters'.

Fellow pop stars Katy Perry and Rihanna, as well as American President Barack Obama, make up the top five most followed people on Twitter.

The 10 most followed Twitter accounts:

1. Justin Bieber (@justinbieber)
2. Lady Gaga (@ladygaga)
3. Katy Perry (@katyperry)
4. Rihanna (@rihanna)
5. Barack Obama (@BarackObama)
6. Britney Spears (@britneyspears)
7. Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13)
8. YouTube (@YouTube)
9. Shakira (@shakira)
10. Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian)

The American President Barack Obama thinks Anne Hathaway "was the best thing" in 'The Dark Knight Rises'

Barack Obama and Anne Hathaway

He spoke about the film during a campaign fundraiser at producer Harvey Weinstein's Connecticut home.

The political leader said that Anne was "spectacular" in the film.

He said: "I got a chance to see 'Batman', and she was the best thing in it. That's just my personal opinion."

Anne, who laughed at Obama's flattery, was in attendance as one of the evening's co-hosts, along with Joanne Woodward, Aaron Sorkin and Weinstein.

Also at the $35,800-per-plate dinner was Jerry Springer and American Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.

Anne recently said getting her hair cut short for 'Les Miserables' was "scarier" than jumping off buildings.

The 29-year-old actress got her tresses trimmed for her role of Fantine in Tom Hooper's forthcoming big-screen adaptation, and she admits it was "terrifying" compared to some of the stunts she has to do in her portrayal of Catwoman in 'The Dark Knight Rises'.

She said: "It was terrifying. I didn't expect it because in this film ['The Dark Knight Rises'], I do backflips out of windows, I jump off of buildings, I do all sorts of scary things but nothing was as scary as cutting my hair off."

Barack Obama’s daughter blends in at One Direction gig - Dad weighs in on snaps of Malia

Malia Obama

There are times when it’s got to be tough being a teenaged kid of the president of the United States.

Malia Obama, the 14-year-old first child of President Obama, tried to blend into the crowd at a One Direction concert in Virginia last week, but the media got wind of her appearance and started snapping photos of her and her Secret Service handlers.

Mom and Dad obviously heard that Malia’s appearance was making news, and several media outlets, including the Huffington Post, deleted the story from their websites.

The HuffPo in particular acted fast in pulling the story that Malia is a One Direction fan – 1D, as the mega-band is known to their fans, features an Irish 19-year-old from Westmeath, Niall Horan.

“Within hours, the entire (Malia) post was scrubbed from the site without explanation, and the post’s URL was hastily changed to direct users to the site’s celebrity section,” the Daily Caller website reported.
Another popular site, Buzzfeed, also altered its concert coverage.  One minute the headline was “Malia Obama Goes to the One Direction Concert with the Secret Service.”  But a day later the story and headline was changed to “Secret Service Agent Does Not Appear to Enjoy One Direction Concert,” without any mention of Malia at the show at all.

The Obamas are naturally very protective of their two girls.  Though they’ve been showered with advantages most kids can only dream of, it’s easy to feel a bit sorry for the Obama kids when all they want to do is be anonymous and enjoy some music just like the rest of their friends.

“From the beginning of the administration, the White House has asked news outlets not to report on or photograph the Obama children when they are not with their parents and there is no vital news interest,” Kristina Schake, communications director for Michelle Obama, told Politico.

Horan, meanwhile, is taking America by storm with his other four 1D bandmates. Every show across the country is sold out, including the three that they played in New York and New Jersey last weekend, and teen girls all over are going berserk.

“Oh my god..new jersey ,that blew our minds..you were sooo loud.. we cannot believe that just happened..mental is an understatement …i cannot believe is goin on in my life right now.. i just came off stage to 16,100 people..what the hell,” Horan, 18, tweeted after the New Jersey show on Friday night.

Hard to believe these guys were unknowns a few months ago here. Now they’re the hottest act in the country, hanging out at movie premieres with the likes of Will Smith and attracting mobs of smitten girls wherever they go.

Their American Dream sure has come true, and then some!

Stacy Keibler was a cheerleader at a basketball game between US President Barack Obama and George Clooney

George Clooney and Barack Obama

The former WWE star admitted that she got actively involved in the sports match when her boyfriend, Clooney, hosted a star-studded fundraising dinner in Los Angeles on Thursday.

Following the event, which raked in $15million for Obama's re-election campaign, actor Tobey Maguire joined the pair for the playoff.

She told People: "I was a cheerleader on the side. George and Obama were on the same team, so they both [won]. It made it easy."

Stacy also said it was "an honor" to have organized a fundraising event for the American leader.

She added: "To have the President at our house was such an unbelievable honor. I would say that there is such an energy and a presence, and I felt almost speechless."

Obama is expected to attend a benefit thrown by actress Eva Longoria and entertainer Ricky Martin in New York City on Monday (May 14).

'Glee' co-creator Ryan Murphy has also said that he will host a dinner for the politician who recently announced his support of gay marriage.

Jenni "JWoww" Farley has blasted Bristol Palin for her criticism of US President Barack Obama's stance on gay marriage

After the 21-year-old daughter of Sarah Palin wrote a blog post about 50-year-old Obama's support of same-sex marriage, JWoww blasted the politician's child via Twitter.

The 26-year-old 'Jersey Shore' star wrote: "Bristol should keep her uneducated, ignorant mouth shut. If you're living in the past you wouldn't have a kid without marriage. Hypocrite. It's 2012!

"My best friend will get married one day and not just have civil union with his man. Stop hating people."

During his interview with ABC News' Robin Roberts, Obama explained how his daughters inspired him to think more seriously about the topic.

He said: "Malia and Sasha, they have friends whose parents are same-sex couples. There have been times where Michelle and I have been sitting around the dinner table and we're talking about their friends and their parents and Malia and Sasha, it wouldn't dawn on them that somehow their friends' parents would be treated differently.

"It doesn't make sense to them, and frankly, that's the kind of thing that prompts a change in perspective."

Bristol argued: "Sometimes dads should lead their family in the right ways of thinking. In this case, it would've been nice if the President would've been an actual leader and helped shape their thoughts instead of merely reflecting what many teenagers think after one too many episodes of 'Glee'."

Lady Gaga, Ellen DeGeneres & Jane Lynch commend Obama on his support of gay marriage

Lady Gaga & President Obama

President Obama's endorsement of gay marriage led to a massive response on twitter with many gay and lesbian stars as well as LGBT campaigners posting their thanks.

Talk show host Ellen DeGeneres tweeted: "Thank you President @BarackObama for your beautiful and brave words. I'm overwhelmed."

While Chris Colfer retweeted Ellen's comment and added his own words of praise.

His 'Glee' colleague Jane Lynch said: "Pretty darn happy today. Thanks Mr President, for supporting the dignity of my family and so many others!"

'Born This Way' singer Lady GaGa added: "Obama, congratulations on being the first sitting President to support marriage equality. Feels like the future, and not the past. #NoFear"


The US President revealed in an interview on Wednesday that he had changed his mind about same-sex couples legally committing.

In an interview with ABC News he said: "There have been times where Michelle and I have been sitting around the dinner table and we're talking about their friends and their parents and Malia and Sasha, it wouldn't dawn on them that somehow their friends' parents would be treated differently.

"It doesn't make sense to them and frankly, that's the kind of thing that prompts a change in perspective."

President Barack Obama expressed concern for the wellbeing of Whitney Houston’s daughter

President Obama sends condolences to Houston's family

TMZ.com reports that a rep for the White House revealed that the president’s “thoughts and prayers” are with the 18-year-old. Bobbi Kristina was stretchered to hospital on Sunday, the day after her mother died, while staying at the same hotel. She is said to be “hysterical, exhausted and inconsolable”. Family members reportedly fear that she may be suicidal.

White House press secretary Jay Carney issued a statement to press, saying: “Obama’s thoughts and prayers are with Whitney Houston’s family, especially her daughter.”

He added: “It’s a tragedy to lose somebody so talented at such a young age.”
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Houston was found dead by her bodyguard in the bathtub of her luxury hotel suite at the Beverly Hilton. An autopsy has been completed and sources suggest her death was a result of misadventure, due to a combination of alcohol and other prescription drugs she had taken.

According to RadarOnline.com, the Beverly Hills Police Department has requested the Coroner's Office withhold the results until they have completed their investigations.

Matt Damon slams Barack Obama for not having enough 'balls'

Matt Damon & Barack Obama ((Courtesy of NY DailyNews/Alexander Tamargo/Getty Images; Bloomberg)

The 'We Bought The 'We Bought The 'We Bought A Zoo' actor was a huge supporter of Obama in the run-up to him winning the US presidency election in November 2008 but says he's been disappointed in how he has run the country.

He told America's ELLE magazine: "I've talked to a lot of people who worked for Obama at the grassroots level. One of them said to me, 'Never again. I will never be fooled again by a politician.' You know, a one-term president with some balls who actually got stuff done would have been, in the long run of the country, much better."

However, Matt says he does have some sympathy with Obama because he has a lot to deal with, including ongoing negotiations over the country's debt ceiling.

He said. "I don't know what you do in the face of that kind of intransigence. So, my heart does go out to the president. He is dealing with a lot."

This is not the first time Matt has criticised Obama and the decisions he has made over the past three years.

He recently said: "I really think he misinterpreted his mandate. A friend of mine said to me the other day, I thought it was a great line, 'I no longer hope for audacity.' He's doubled down on a lot of things, going back to education ... the idea that we're testing kids and we're tying teachers' salaries to how kids are performing on tests, that kind of mechanized thinking has nothing to do with higher order. We're training them, not teaching them."

Scarlett Johansson’s only Christmas wish is for President Barack Obama to be re-elected in 2012

Scarlett Johansson and President Barack Obama

The actress is a big supporter of the current resident of the White House and is hoping the American public vote the Democrat leader into office for a second term next year.

Speaking at the New York premiere of her latest movie ‘We Bought a Zoo’ on Monday night, she said: “I hope 2012 brings a re-election for President Obama. And this year I've learned a lot about patience and tolerance."

Scarlett – who was joined by her co-star Matt Damon at the screening - has no grandiose plans for the festive season, but she is looking forward to a well-deserved rest after a busy and also challenging 2011.
She told HollywoodLife.com: “Sleeping, I'm going to be sleeping through the holidays. I'm looking forward to a long winter's nap!”

The 27-year-old screen beauty’s divorce from husband Ryan Reynolds was finalised in July and she also suffered embarrassment when nude photos she had taken and sent to her ex-husband were accessed from her cell phone and posted online.
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Despite her tribulations, Scarlett insists one positive thing has been learning just how many people care about her.

In an interview on the ‘Today Show’, she said: “I've been really fortunate. I've found that I had, even in times of crisis, a lot of love around me, and people have come out of all different dark corners to support me. That's been a really beautiful thing.”