The Bully Pulpit and economic recovery

[Sigaba]

Source is here.

The Action Americans Need

By Barack Obama
Thursday, February 5, 2009; A17

By now, it's clear to everyone that we have inherited an economic crisis as deep and dire as any since the days of the Great Depression. Millions of jobs that Americans relied on just a year ago are gone; millions more of the nest eggs families worked so hard to build have vanished. People everywhere are worried about what tomorrow will bring.

What Americans expect from Washington is action that matches the urgency they feel in their daily lives -- action that's swift, bold and wise enough for us to climb out of this crisis.

Because each day we wait to begin the work of turning our economy around, more people lose their jobs, their savings and their homes. And if nothing is done, this recession might linger for years. Our economy will lose 5 million more jobs. Unemployment will approach double digits. Our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse.

That's why I feel such a sense of urgency about the recovery plan before Congress. With it, we will create or save more than 3 million jobs over the next two years, provide immediate tax relief to 95 percent of American workers, ignite spending by businesses and consumers alike, and take steps to strengthen our country for years to come.

This plan is more than a prescription for short-term spending -- it's a strategy for America's long-term growth and opportunity in areas such as renewable energy, health care and education. And it's a strategy that will be implemented with unprecedented transparency and accountability, so Americans know where their tax dollars are going and how they are being spent.

In recent days, there have been misguided criticisms of this plan that echo the failed theories that helped lead us into this crisis -- the notion that tax cuts alone will solve all our problems; that we can meet our enormous tests with half-steps and piecemeal measures; that we can ignore fundamental challenges such as energy independence and the high cost of health care and still expect our economy and our country to thrive.

I reject these theories, and so did the American people when they went to the polls in November and voted resoundingly for change. They know that we have tried it those ways for too long. And because we have, our health-care costs still rise faster than inflation. Our dependence on foreign oil still threatens our economy and our security. Our children still study in schools that put them at a disadvantage. We've seen the tragic consequences when our bridges crumble and our levees fail.

Every day, our economy gets sicker -- and the time for a remedy that puts Americans back to work, jump-starts our economy and invests in lasting growth is now.

Now is the time to protect health insurance for the more than 8 million Americans at risk of losing their coverage and to computerize the health-care records of every American within five years, saving billions of dollars and countless lives in the process.

Now is the time to save billions by making 2 million homes and 75 percent of federal buildings more energy-efficient, and to double our capacity to generate alternative sources of energy within three years.

Now is the time to give our children every advantage they need to compete by upgrading 10,000 schools with state-of-the-art classrooms, libraries and labs; by training our teachers in math and science; and by bringing the dream of a college education within reach for millions of Americans.

And now is the time to create the jobs that remake America for the 21st century by rebuilding aging roads, bridges and levees; designing a smart electrical grid; and connecting every corner of the country to the information superhighway.

These are the actions Americans expect us to take without delay. They're patient enough to know that our economic recovery will be measured in years, not months. But they have no patience for the same old partisan gridlock that stands in the way of action while our economy continues to slide.

So we have a choice to make. We can once again let Washington's bad habits stand in the way of progress. Or we can pull together and say that in America, our destiny isn't written for us but by us. We can place good ideas ahead of old ideological battles, and a sense of purpose above the same narrow partisanship. We can act boldly to turn crisis into opportunity and, together, write the next great chapter in our history and meet the test of our time.

The writer is president of the United States.

I have never appreciated nor understood the president's habitual efforts to discourage and to derail honest political debate by labeling such discourse as "narrow partisanship" especially when he presents his political party's agenda for public policy as "good ideas ahead of old ideological battles."

[nmap]

Originally Posted by Sigaba

I have never appreciated nor understood the president's habitual efforts to discourage and to derail honest political debate by labeling such discourse as "narrow partisanship" especially when he presents his political party's agenda for public policy as "good ideas ahead of old ideological battles."

I suspect he has no interest in debate; rather, he wants to win. The question that nags at the back of the mind is how far he will go to win.

Is ACORN an organization that seeks debate and synthesis of optimal solutions? Or do they simply seek to advance their agenda?

Consider the following from the Wall Street Journal:

Therein lies the opportunity for President-elect Barack Obama. His plans for an activist government agenda are in many ways being given a boost by this crisis atmosphere and the nearly universal call for the government to do something fast to stimulate the economy.

This opportunity isn't lost on the new president and his team. "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste," Rahm Emanuel, Mr. Obama's new chief of staff, told a Wall Street Journal conference of top corporate chief executives this week.

He elaborated: "Things that we had postponed for too long, that were long-term, are now immediate and must be dealt with. This crisis provides the opportunity for us to do things that you could not do before."



LINK

[Paslode]

Trying to ram this package through and scaring people is nothing short of high pressure sales tactics just like when you buy that car. The salesman wants you to buy it now without taking the time to consider all your options. He might be trying to sell you options you don't need and you might find a better deal if you don't sign on the dotted line right now.

You always make informed and wise decisions when you take your time, and for whatever their motivation some don't want that to happen.

[Gypsy]

Originally Posted by nmap

"...... This crisis provides the opportunity for us to do things that you could not do before."

And there you have it.

[mcarey]

The example of leadership in this editorial by our CinC and his change so far, is to metophorically yell fire. This action of our newly minted cheif excutive distracts the people (and congress) from logical, reasoned and deliberate decision into a mass panic, rush to action and / or exit. I hope our CinC and his staff understand that panic guided from the top is a recipe for unintended consequence. If they truly have the peoples common good in mind, they may want to start tempering their comments and statements. I pray our fellow citizens recognize that crisis (real or imagined) can afford those in power the chance to make rapid change in the type of governence. The use of crisis, has always been the way forward for facist, socialist, marxist and other totalitarian regimes to gain power and absolute control. Our country has many citizens that do understand the constitutiion of our republic, but they are the minority. I for one will support our elected leaders, TO INCLUDE OUR NEW EXECUTIVE, until such time that they trample upon the Constitution of the United States and the rights of our states and people. I beleive our CinC is acting in a reckless manner with this rhetoric. I hope it is only to make limited ideologic changes and not change the type of governance and the opportunities we all have enjoyed (or bled for). The sheep are skitish and the sheepdogs need to be on guard.

[Box]

I dont understand, with an easy majority in both the house and the senate why is the POTUS having such a hard time leading his own party to victory in this ugly fight against partisan republican politicians that are just trying to destroy the country...

[afchic]

Originally Posted by Billy L-bach

I dont understand, with an easy majority in both the house and the senate why is the POTUS having such a hard time leading his own party to victory in this ugly fight against partisan republican politicians that are just trying to destroy the country...

Make no mistake, he has the votes to ram this through. The problem is that they are all Democratic Votes, and the POTUS in no way wants to sling this albatross across the neck of his party only, because when it fails, and it will, they will only have themselves to blame.

If he brings a few Republicans over to his side, then it becomes a "Bipartisan" stimulus package, hence when it fails he can say the Republicans were just as guilty as the Dems.

This is all about mid-term elections, in my mind. I hope the Republicans hold strong, because this thing is going to pass without them. Come mid-term elections the likes of Nancy Pelosi, Barny Frank and any number of other panic mongering democrats will be nowhere to be seen in any leadership position for the foreseeable future if no Republicans vote for this abomination.

[Sigaba]

Source is here. (What an odd URL...is the president planning on not addressing the DoE staff again?)

Remarks by the President to Department of Energy Staff


THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
__________________________________________________ _______________
For Immediate Release
February 5, 2009


REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT TO DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY STAFF

U.S. Department of Energy
Washington, D.C.

12:12 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you so much. Well, it is a thrill to be here. Thank you, Secretary Chu, for bringing your experience and expertise to this new role. And thanks to all of you who have done so much on behalf of the country each and every day here at the department. You know, your mission is so important, and it's only going to grow as we transform the ways we produce energy and use energy for the sake of our environment, for the sake of our security, and for the sake of our economy.

As we are meeting, in the halls of Congress just down the street from here, there's a debate going on about the plan I've proposed, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan.

This isn't some abstract debate. Last week, we learned that many of America's largest corporations are planning to lay off tens of thousands of workers. Today we learned that last week, the number of new unemployment claims jumped to 626,000. Tomorrow, we're expecting another dismal jobs report on top of the 2.6 million jobs that we lost last year. We've lost half a million jobs each month for the last two months.

Now, I believe that legislation of such magnitude as has been proposed deserves the scrutiny that it has received over the last month. I think that's a good thing. That's the way democracy is supposed to work. But these numbers that we're seeing are sending an unmistakable message -- and so are the American people. The time for talk is over. The time for action is now, because we know that if we do not act, a bad situation will become dramatically worse. Crisis could turn into catastrophe for families and businesses across the country.

And I refuse to let that happen. We can't delay and we can't go back to the same worn-out ideas that led us here in the first place. In the last few days, we've seen proposals arise from some in Congress that you may not have read but you'd be very familiar with because you've been hearing them for the last 10 years, maybe longer. They're rooted in the idea that tax cuts alone can solve all our problems; that government doesn't have a role to play; that half-measures and tinkering are somehow enough; that we can afford to ignore our most fundamental economic challenges -- the crushing cost of health care, the inadequate state of so many of our schools, our dangerous dependence on foreign oil.

So let me be clear: Those ideas have been tested, and they have failed. They've taken us from surpluses to an annual deficit of over a trillion dollars, and they've brought our economy to a halt. And that's precisely what the election we just had was all about. The American people have rendered their judgment. And now is the time to move forward, not back. Now is the time for action.

Just as past generations of Americans have done in trying times, we can and we must turn this moment of challenge into one of opportunity. The plan I've proposed has at its core a simple idea: Let's put Americans to work doing the work that America needs to be done.

This plan will save or create over 3 million jobs -- almost all of them in the private sector.

This plan will put people to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, our dangerous -- dangerously deficient dams and levees.

This plan will put people to work modernizing our health care system, not only saving us billions of dollars, but countless lives.

This plan will put people to work renovating more than 10,000 schools, giving millions of children the chance to learn in 21st century classrooms, libraries and labs -- and to all the scientists in the room today, you know what that means for America's future.

This plan will provide sensible tax relief for the struggling middle class, unemployment insurance and continuing health care coverage for those who've lost their jobs, and it will help prevent our states and local communities from laying off firefighters and teachers and police.

And finally, this plan will begin to end the tyranny of oil in our time.

After decades of dragging our feet, this plan will finally spark the creation of a clean energy industry that will create hundreds of thousands of jobs over the next few years, manufacturing wind turbines and solar cells, for example -- millions more after that. These jobs and these investments will double our capacity to generate renewable energy over the next few years.

We'll fund a better, smarter electricity grid and train workers to build it -- a grid that will help us ship wind and solar power from one end of this country to another. Think about it. The grid that powers the tools of modern life -- computers, appliances, even BlackBerrys -- (laughter) -- looks largely the same as it did half a century ago. Just these first steps towards modernizing the way we distribute electricity could reduce consumption by 2 to 4 percent.

We'll also lead a revolution in energy efficiency, modernizing more than 75 percent of federal buildings and improving the efficiency of more than 2 million American homes. This will not only create jobs, it will cut the federal energy bill by a third and save taxpayers $2 billion each year and save Americans billions of dollars more on their utility bills.

In fact, as part of this effort, today I've signed a presidential memorandum requesting that the Department of Energy set new efficiency standards for common household appliances. This will save consumers money, this will spur innovation, and this will conserve tremendous amounts of energy. We'll save through these simple steps over the next 30 years the amount of energy produced over a two-year period by all the coal-fired power plants in America.

And through investments in our mass transit system to boost capacity, in our roads to reduce congestion, and in technologies that will accelerate the development of innovations like plug-in hybrid vehicles, we'll be making a significant down payment on a cleaner and more energy independent future.

Now, I read the other day that critics of this plan ridiculed our notion that we should use part of the money to modernize the entire fleet of federal vehicles to take advantage of state of the art fuel efficiency. This is what they call pork. You know the truth. It will not only save the government significant money over time, it will not only create manufacturing jobs for folks who are making these cars, it will set a standard for private industry to match. And so when you hear these attacks deriding something of such obvious importance as this, you have to ask yourself -- are these folks serious? Is it any wonder that we haven't had a real energy policy in this country?

For the last few years, I've talked about these issues with Americans from one end of this country to another. And Washington may not be ready to get serious about energy independence, but I am. And so are you. And so are the American people.

Inaction is not an option that is acceptable to me and it's certainly not acceptable to the American people -- not on energy, not on the economy, not at this critical moment.

So I am calling on all the members of Congress -- Democrats and Republicans, House and Senate -- to rise to this moment. No plan is perfect. There have been constructive changes made to this one over the last several weeks. I would love to see additional improvements today. But the scale and the scope of this plan is the right one. Our approach to energy is the right one. It's what America needs right now, and we need to move forward today. We can't keep on having the same old arguments over and over again that lead us to the exact same spot -- where we are wasting previous energy, we're not creating jobs, we're failing to compete in the global economy, and we end up bickering at a time when the economy urgently needs action.

I thank all of you for being here, and I'm eager to work with Secretary Chu and all of you as we stand up to meet the challenges of this new century. That's what the American people are looking for. That's what I expect out of Congress. That's what I believe we can deliver to our children and our grandchildren in their future.

Thank you so much, everybody. I appreciate it. Thank you. (Applause.)

END 12:21 P.M. EST

IMHO, the president's word choice could be better. He seems to be saying that anyone who doesn't agree with him for what ever reason is simply wrong. As a former member of the U.S. Senate, he would have had first hand knowledge how things get done on the Hill (er, had he not spent so much of his time there campaigning for his next job). Each day, he reminds me more and more of President Carter but without Carter's intelligence or humility.

[Box]

so on the news this morning the comment is made "stimulus bill bogged down by partisan politics"...

...hows that work when you have all the votes you need on your team?


Somebody is lying.

[mcarey]

Democrats know that if they pass this package without Republicans they will take full blame if it fails to help economy. (My opinion it won't do anything of substance).

That said, the "Bully Pulpit" might want to try talking about the 92.4% of people that are employed and still have a paycheck each month.

Focus on the positive! It might result in a change in attitude that is necessary for any recovery.

[bandycpa]

Originally Posted by nmap

"You never want a serious crisis to go to waste," Rahm Emanuel, Mr. Obama's new chief of staff, told a Wall Street Journal conference of top corporate chief executives this week.

He elaborated: "Things that we had postponed for too long, that were long-term, are now immediate and must be dealt with. This crisis provides the opportunity for us to do things that you could not do before."

nmap,

Sounds like selfless service to me. Machiavelli would be proud.

I thought the politics of fear had been traded in for "change". Maybe the politics of fear is the change they were talking about.

Bandy

[Sigaba]

The transcript is here.

As I'm a traditionalist, I was dismayed that he didn't call on Helen Thomas first and that he completely blew off her follow up question.

Relatively speaking, I felt he was better at presenting his broad narrative of the economic crisis and how the stimulus bill can address it than at discussing specific components of the plan. I was hoping he would answer direct questions with direct answers rather than re-phrasing or re-stating points he'd already made.

Thankfully, he backed away slightly from his previous rhetoric in which he castigated broadly all opponents to the stimulus bill.

[nmap]

I doubt anyone really knows the details. Seriously.

HR1 is 647 pages of double spaced text. It is available LINK

Let us thumb deftly to page 125.

4 (6) $750,000,000 for a program of competitive
5 grants for worker training and placement in high
6 growth and emerging industry sectors: Provided,
7 That $500,000,000 shall be for research, labor ex
8 change and job training projects that prepare work
9 ers for careers in the energy efficiency and renew
10 able energy industries specified in section
11 171(e)(1)(B)(ii) of the WIA (as amended by the
12 Green Jobs Act of 2007): Provided further, That in
13 awarding grants from those funds not designated in
14 the preceding proviso, the Secretary of Labor shall
15 give priority to projects that prepare workers for ca
16 reers in the health care sector: Provided further,
17 That the provisions of section 1103 of this Act shall
18 not apply to this appropriation:
19 Provided, That the additional funds provided to States
20 under this heading are not subject to section 191(a) of
21 the WIA: Provided further, That notwithstanding section
22 1106 of this Act, there shall be no amount set aside from
23 the appropriations made in subsections (1) through (3)
24 under this heading and the amount set aside for sub-

Notice the internal references to the WIA.

The document has lots of these little parts, at least as nearly as I can tell. So we have a big document with interconnections with other big documents.

I suspect that no one could really, truly understand the details. Furthermore, I suspect no one does understand the entire act.

Therein lies a problem, in my opinion.

[Dozer523]

Originally Posted by nmap

I doubt anyone really knows the details. Seriously.

HR1 is 647 pages of double spaced text.

What a loser! President Bush got $700 Billion with a plan that was just three pages long. And then he completely changed it a week later. 647 pages of things that are actually planned, laid out in a manner that will require they have to get done. And reported on a web site accessable to every computer in the WWW, so that no matter how well some things go, the loyal opposition can ding him for the ones that won't go quite right (it is a statistical certainty). How rediculously inflexible.
Apparantly, Barry never learned the key to Great leadership. "Indecision is the key to flexability."

[nmap]

Originally Posted by Dozer523

And reported on a web site accessable to every computer in the WWW, so that no matter how well some things go, the loyal opposition can ding him for the ones that won't go quite right (it is a statistical certainty).

A statistical certainty, you say? So, you agree the bill is flawed from inception?