Let’s Make a Deal?
EmailAt his Oval Office meeting with President Bush yesterday, President-elect Obama pushed an economic stimulus package and aid to the auto industry.
The outgoing president suggested those programs could more easily become law if congressional Democrats dropped their opposition to a free trade deal with Colombia, as first reported by the New York Times.
No deal was struck.
On "This Week" Sunday, George Stephanopoulos asked incoming White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel about such an idea.
STEPHANOPOULOS: "Let’s move on to the stimulus plan. President-elect Obama said he wants that to happen sooner rather than later. The White House has certainly signaled its reluctance, but they’ve also signaled that, perhaps, if Congress attached the Columbia Free Trade Agreement to a stimulus package, then the president could sign on this year. Is that something — is that a trade worth taking?"
EMANUEL: "Look, first of all, as President-elect Obama said on Friday, when the unemployment numbers came out, you have 10 million Americans who are without work. Earlier in the week, you had a steep drop-off in retail sales. The American people, right now, need help, economically. You have a package there that — economic recovery act that deals with extending unemployment insurance, and given Friday’s numbers, that’s essential; aid and assistance to states to provide health care to those who are losing it. You don’t link those essential needs to some other trade deal.
"What you have to deal with is what’s immediate here, and the lame duck is for immediate things that are important. That’s what should be the focus, right now. There’s an economic recovery package in front of the Congress. Washington should get it done. I think the economic news, as the president-elect has said this week, both retail sales and unemployment, indicate we have a crisis here. There’s not time to waste. Let’s get on with helping the American people."
- jpt
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that is right, for once, let’ get on with helping the hard working Ameican People.
the hard working American people are the ones who keep this country ticking over.
do what you can for the Hard working American People.
it is about time.
Posted by: What? | November 11, 2008, 7:42 am 7:42 am
Sounds like Mo’ Bush, for sure. In an attempt to put another band-aid on our economical problems he’ll sell out our moral values toward human rights (i.e., labor issues in Colombia). Good for Barack. Perhaps from his conversation with Nancy Reagan he learned to “Just say NO”.
Posted by: BarackWeCan | November 11, 2008, 7:58 am 7:58 am
We’ll never recover our economy over the long term if we have to keep competing with countries that have a policy of killing union organizers and keeping their workforce in chains.
These trade deals were supposed to have labor and environmental safeguards, but they are always disregarded. On top of that, we are wasting billions in military aid to countries like this, which further suppresses their labor force, putting downward pressure on wages here.
Its like we’re paying for our own oppression.
Posted by: Flash Override | November 11, 2008, 8:27 am 8:27 am
Barackwecan’t, The blocking of Cfta is a US big labor payback by tne NObamas. Let’s use that “change” to thumb our nose at one of our allies in the Drug war and in South America? There are no moral values issues here, Those are ancient history more smoke and mirrors from the “Agent of Change”
Posted by: Jackson | November 11, 2008, 8:34 am 8:34 am
jpt,
I thought you deleted links by others trying to steer people to their sites?
some are just on here to bait others.
Posted by: What? | November 11, 2008, 9:05 am 9:05 am
Timing is everything, and regrettably this smacks of Obama’s Michigan voters paybacks demands. The unions and muslims in Michigan voted 90% for Obama and now are holding Dems hostage for a federal hand-out. Obama needs to show his backbone to say NO instead of lobbying on their behalf. The Detroit auto industry has mismanaged for years. Its union employees are overpaid comparatively to other manufacturers. For years, GM led the way to produce gas-guzzler SUVs – which Obama owns – and fought off the return to regulations to improve gas mileage, which increased dependency on foreign energy. Now GM claims it can’t make it past the end of the year, duh- if they were looking at the books, they should have known this fact more than 6 months ago. GM has an overage of managers who are ineffective. GM needs to take their bailout requests to their Michigan state congress, and stay far away from the federal level intervention tactics. Meanwhile, Michigan Governor decided in early November to request $150M for small business growth, and apparently still has no clue of the impending GM claims to disaster. The Michigan Governor, who became a US citizen in 1980 is considered a potential candidate for Obama to appoint to Supreme Court. Thankfully our President Bush has an MBA from Harvard and can easily see thru this lobbyist ploy and pathetic timing. Bush is correct – just say NO!
Taxpayers retort in typical John Stossel form, “Give me a Break!”
Posted by: DNCtoRewardMichiganVoters | November 11, 2008, 9:23 am 9:23 am
I am a Michigander, neither muslim nor union. I have a Masters degree and voted for Barack Obama because I believe him to be a visionary, one who can walk the talk. Yes, timing is everything…so why rush through a trade agreement with Columbia (with questionable human rights record) in order to give american people relief. In case you haven’t been paying attention, many industries are suffering, restaurants are closing, small businesses, someone has to get off their duff and do something about it. Hopefully the old politics of getting a needed bill through by requiring a tacked on component be approved are OVER! John McCain had the right idea…you may not always agree with the man in charge, but he is your president (elect), and we should all be working together to try and restore the greatness of this nation rather than pointing fingers and blame.
Posted by: Proud2bAmerican | November 11, 2008, 10:37 am 10:37 am
2 months ago, folks were up-in-arms about whether to prop up the financial system. The pendulum swung between – “do we let it crash?” and “let those greedy bankers fail!”. While the media and general population gave each other wedgies and wrung their hands, congress trumpeted their successful passage of a rescue bill! (loaded with pork…ahem). They also handed $25 billion in loan guarantees to the auto industry to ‘re-tool and get more competitive.’ Now we’re supposed to give more?!?
I can stomach the financial rescue for 1 simple reason. There’s plenty of blame to share between banks, consumers, and gov’t. And the housing spiral affects everyone through market pricing and pressure.
But the automakers? Come on! Yes, they’re huge. Yes, they affect a lot of secondary industries. But, they chose to milk the wrong cow for YEARS. And all the consumers who bought that milk are just as guilty. Now that they realize the milk was poison and they don’t have any other cows, they want me to bail them out?
Fine, give them some money. But let’s be real about it. No more soft fleet emissions goals for 2050. We give you money – produce a truly efficient car by 2010…I mean sell it to the public for an acceptable price. Give them money to be competitive. Tell the UAW that we’re busting the unions if they don’t roll pay and benefits back to levels paid in the ‘rest of America’ No more cadillac healthcare for line workers and retirees baked into the price of the vehicle. Do this now. The auto industry – from CEO’s to workers to UAW – have this slanted view of entitlement. Not on my tax dime. You’re no different from the oil companies – except maybe less astute from a business perspective.
Posted by: FishMonger | November 11, 2008, 1:04 pm 1:04 pm
Why should Bush even consider ‘blackmailing’ Obama in an attempt to enhance his lousy legacy rather than simply doing ‘the right thing’? This action would only serve to reiterate Bush’s lack of leadership because he would allow automakers, America’s backbone, to fail. If that’s his intent, say it publicly. Instead, Bush is pushing CAFTA, which in no way would help America, or Obama in achieving his goal of job ‘creation’ here in the U.S. Why should Obama squander his hard-won political capital to enhance the Bush legacy through a CAFTA deal that he doesn’t want in the first place?
Moreover after learning that [having already receiving rescue funds] AIG has been caught [AGAIN] at another high-end resort enjoying their “company meeting”[?] while at the same time requesting another handout of $125B of “rescue / bailout” funds, what does it take to RENDER all their future requests NUL AND VOID? They claim they need these funds to keep from failing, but under these circumstances, it’s just WRONG TO TAXPAYERS and it REPRESENTS REASON FOR US to demand IMMEDIATE transparency for’ every transaction made by Paulson’ in an attempt to ELIMINATE this costly and troubling behavior.
I realize time is of the essence for the automakers, but just like the airline industry which failed, it still managed to find a way back from bankruptcy and failure. We have two months before Obama is inaugurated and he would be of greater assistance to the big three when his congress could rush to enact ‘his’ agenda if he choses to help the automakers. Until then, let them deal with their own problems.
Posted by: Don'tGiveUpYourPoliticalCapitalForBush | November 11, 2008, 1:26 pm 1:26 pm
This is unreal…no, I take that back…this is par for the course for the criminal Bush. I cannot believe that he had the audacity of stupidity (well, yes I can) to present something this eggregiously self-serving to an incoming president who cares so much about the people and would never, ever stoop to making shoddy deals to get what he knows the people need.
Bush is working the wrong side of the aisle, and if he’s not careful, he’ll be behind bars after he’s out. Actually…I hope he continues…more fan to the flame of getting the Bush/Cheney gang arrested, indicted, convicted, and JAILED for high crimes against humanity!
Posted by: NanFan | November 11, 2008, 1:31 pm 1:31 pm
Jake- the White House is denying that any such “deal” was offered by Bush. John Podesta also denies there was any attempt to link a trade deal to the other issues.
Posted by: MayBee | November 11, 2008, 6:21 pm 6:21 pm