Murrican
Nov 16th, 2008, 08:18 PM
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/11/16/obama.interview/index.html
Obama: Stimulating economy top priority
(CNN) -- President-elect Barack Obama said stimulating the economy is a top priority -- even if it means adding to the nation's growing deficit.
"I think what's interesting about the time that we're in right now is that you actually have a consensus among conservative Republican-leaning economists and liberal left-leaning economists. And the consensus is this: that we have to do whatever it takes to get this economy moving again, that we're gonna have to spend money now to stimulate the economy," Obama told CBS' "60 Minutes" in his first post-election interview which aired Sunday. "And that we shouldn't worry about the deficit next year or even the year after," he continued. "That short term, the most important thing is that we avoid a deepening recession."
He said his goals would be to restore consumer confidence and re-regulate the financial market. His first legislative goal is to pass an economic stimulus package. He added that the potential collapse of the auto industry would be "a disaster" amid today's economic crisis. "It's my belief that we need to provide assistance to the auto industry," Obama told veteran correspondent Steve Kroft. "But I think that it can't be a blank check."
The Senate is expected to vote this week on emergency loans to the auto industry, though the measure faces strong opposition from many Republicans. The bill would authorize loans to the auto industry from the Treasury Department's $700 billion fund to bail out the financial services industry.
"I will say that the challenges that we're confronting are enormous," he says. "And they're multiple. And so there are times during the course of a given a day where you think, 'Where do I start in terms of moving -- moving things forward?'
"And I think that part of this next two months is to really get a clear set of priorities, understanding we're not going be able to do everything at once, making sure the team is in place, and moving forward in a very deliberate way and sending a clear signal to the American people that we're going to be thinking about them and what they're going through."
Obama: Stimulating economy top priority
(CNN) -- President-elect Barack Obama said stimulating the economy is a top priority -- even if it means adding to the nation's growing deficit.
"I think what's interesting about the time that we're in right now is that you actually have a consensus among conservative Republican-leaning economists and liberal left-leaning economists. And the consensus is this: that we have to do whatever it takes to get this economy moving again, that we're gonna have to spend money now to stimulate the economy," Obama told CBS' "60 Minutes" in his first post-election interview which aired Sunday. "And that we shouldn't worry about the deficit next year or even the year after," he continued. "That short term, the most important thing is that we avoid a deepening recession."
He said his goals would be to restore consumer confidence and re-regulate the financial market. His first legislative goal is to pass an economic stimulus package. He added that the potential collapse of the auto industry would be "a disaster" amid today's economic crisis. "It's my belief that we need to provide assistance to the auto industry," Obama told veteran correspondent Steve Kroft. "But I think that it can't be a blank check."
The Senate is expected to vote this week on emergency loans to the auto industry, though the measure faces strong opposition from many Republicans. The bill would authorize loans to the auto industry from the Treasury Department's $700 billion fund to bail out the financial services industry.
"I will say that the challenges that we're confronting are enormous," he says. "And they're multiple. And so there are times during the course of a given a day where you think, 'Where do I start in terms of moving -- moving things forward?'
"And I think that part of this next two months is to really get a clear set of priorities, understanding we're not going be able to do everything at once, making sure the team is in place, and moving forward in a very deliberate way and sending a clear signal to the American people that we're going to be thinking about them and what they're going through."