Following President Trump and the Trump Administration for the Official 4 year (1461 day) Elected Term, focusing on the sitting President's use of Executive Orders, Memoranda and Executive Decisions. We are the original 1461 - all the others are imitating us
President Barack Obama has made an attempt to open a line of communication between the United States and Iran. He opened the video by offering his "very best wishes" to all people about the world celebrating Nowruz, or "New Day", the Iranian new years.
He spoke to the Iranian people about shared hope and of common dreams. Expressing the understanding of the differences between our peoples and the change in US policy that calls for mutual respect and understanding between the international communities, the United States and Iran.
He spoke directly to the Iranian Leaders about the serious differences that grew over time between the leadership of our two nations. He went on to speak of the commitment that the Obama administration has to the development of diplomacy between the Iranian leadership and the rest of the international communities leadership.
How well will this be accepted by the Iranian people and the Leadership of Iran?
How well will this be received by the people of the United States after nearly 30 years of open hostility between the two nations?
What do you think?
Is this a good move or another false step by an inexperienced politician in high power?
The full text of the Presidents speech is below the video
Last week, I spent a few days in California, talking with ordinary Americans in town halls and in the places where they work. We talked about their struggles, and we talked about their hopes. At the end of the day, these men and women weren’t as concerned with the news of the day in Washington as they were about the very real and very serious challenges their families face every day: whether they’ll have a job and a paycheck to count on; whether they’ll be able to pay their medical bills or afford college tuition; whether they’ll be able to leave their children a world that’s safer and more prosperous than the one we have now.
Those are the concerns I heard about in California. They are the concerns I’ve heard about in letters from people throughout this country for the last two years. And they are the concerns addressed in the budget I sent to Congress last month.
With the magnitude of the challenges we face, I don’t just view this budget as numbers on a page or a laundry list of programs. It’s an economic blueprint for our future – a vision of America where growth is not based on real estate bubbles or overleveraged banks, but on a firm foundation of investments in energy, education, and health care that will lead to a real and lasting prosperity.
These investments are not a wish list of priorities that I picked out of thin air – they are a central part of a comprehensive strategy to grow this economy by attacking the very problems that have dragged it down for too long: the high cost of health care and our dependence on foreign oil; our education deficit and our fiscal deficit.
Now, as the House and the Senate take up this budget next week, the specific details and dollar amounts in this budget will undoubtedly change. That’s a normal and healthy part of the process.
But when all is said and done, I expect a budget that meets four basic principles:
First, it must reduce our dependence on dangerous foreign oil and finally put this nation on a path to a clean, renewable energy future. There is no longer a doubt that the jobs and industries of tomorrow will involve harnessing renewable sources of energy. The only question is whether America will lead that future. I believe we can and we will, and that’s why we’ve proposed a budget that makes clean energy the profitable kind of energy, while investing in technologies like wind power and solar power; advanced biofuels, clean coal, and fuel-efficient cars and trucks that can be built right here in America.
Second, this budget must renew our nation’s commitment to a complete and competitive education for every American child. In this global economy, we know the countries that out-educate us today will out-compete us tomorrow, and we know that our students are already falling behind their counterparts in places like China. That is why we have proposed investments in childhood education programs that work; in high standards and accountability for our schools; in rewards for teachers who succeed; and in affordable college education for anyone who wants to go. It is time to demand excellence from our schools so that we can finally prepare our workforce for a 21st century economy.
Third, we need a budget that makes a serious investment in health care reform – reform that will bring down costs, ensure quality, and guarantee people their choice of doctors and hospitals. Right now, there are millions of Americans who are just one illness or medical emergency away from bankruptcy. There are businesses that have been forced to close their doors or ship jobs overseas because they can’t afford insurance. Medicare costs are consuming our federal budget. Medicaid is overwhelming our state budgets. So to those who say we have to choose between health care reform and fiscal discipline, I say that making investments now that will dramatically lower health care costs for everyone won’t add to our budget deficit in the long-term – it is one of the best ways to reduce it.
Finally, this budget must reduce that deficit even further. With the fiscal mess we’ve inherited and the cost of this financial crisis, I’ve proposed a budget that cuts our deficit in half by the end of my first term. That’s why we are scouring every corner of the budget and have proposed $2 trillion in deficit reductions over the next decade. In total, our budget would bring discretionary spending for domestic programs as a share of the economy to its lowest level in nearly half a century. And we will continue making these tough choices in the months and years ahead so that as our economy recovers, we do what we must to bring this deficit down.
I will be discussing each of these principles next week, as Congress takes up the important work of debating this budget. I realize there are those who say these plans are too ambitious to enact. To that I say that the challenges we face are too large to ignore. I didn’t come here to pass on our problems to the next President or the next generation – I came here to solve them.
The American people sent us here to get things done, and at this moment of great challenge, they are watching and waiting for us to lead. Let’s show them that we are equal to the task before us, and let’s pass a budget that puts this nation on the road to lasting prosperity.
In this weekly address, President Barack Obama announced that in the coming week, he will highlight the core principles of his budget: cutting the deficit in half by the end of his first term and making investments in long-delayed priorities like energy independence, education and health care reform. Making progress on these critical issues will end the bubble-bust cycle of the past and jumpstart our economy in the short term while laying the groundwork for America’s long-term prosperity.
Full Text of the Speech
Saturday, March 21, 2009Washington, DC
Last week, I spent a few days in California, talking with ordinary Americans in town halls and in the places where they work. We talked about their struggles, and we talked about their hopes. At the end of the day, these men and women weren’t as concerned with the news of the day in Washington as they were about the very real and very serious challenges their families face every day: whether they’ll have a job and a paycheck to count on; whether they’ll be able to pay their medical bills or afford college tuition; whether they’ll be able to leave their children a world that’s safer and more prosperous than the one we have now.
Those are the concerns I heard about in California. They are the concerns I’ve heard about in letters from people throughout this country for the last two years. And they are the concerns addressed in the budget I sent to Congress last month.
With the magnitude of the challenges we face, I don’t just view this budget as numbers on a page or a laundry list of programs. It’s an economic blueprint for our future – a vision of America where growth is not based on real estate bubbles or overleveraged banks, but on a firm foundation of investments in energy, education, and health care that will lead to a real and lasting prosperity.
These investments are not a wish list of priorities that I picked out of thin air – they are a central part of a comprehensive strategy to grow this economy by attacking the very problems that have dragged it down for too long: the high cost of health care and our dependence on foreign oil; our education deficit and our fiscal deficit.
Now, as the House and the Senate take up this budget next week, the specific details and dollar amounts in this budget will undoubtedly change. That’s a normal and healthy part of the process.
But when all is said and done, I expect a budget that meets four basic principles:
First, it must reduce our dependence on dangerous foreign oil and finally put this nation on a path to a clean, renewable energy future. There is no longer a doubt that the jobs and industries of tomorrow will involve harnessing renewable sources of energy. The only question is whether America will lead that future. I believe we can and we will, and that’s why we’ve proposed a budget that makes clean energy the profitable kind of energy, while investing in technologies like wind power and solar power; advanced biofuels, clean coal, and fuel-efficient cars and trucks that can be built right here in America.
Second, this budget must renew our nation’s commitment to a complete and competitive education for every American child. In this global economy, we know the countries that out-educate us today will out-compete us tomorrow, and we know that our students are already falling behind their counterparts in places like China. That is why we have proposed investments in childhood education programs that work; in high standards and accountability for our schools; in rewards for teachers who succeed; and in affordable college education for anyone who wants to go. It is time to demand excellence from our schools so that we can finally prepare our workforce for a 21st century economy.
Third, we need a budget that makes a serious investment in health care reform – reform that will bring down costs, ensure quality, and guarantee people their choice of doctors and hospitals. Right now, there are millions of Americans who are just one illness or medical emergency away from bankruptcy. There are businesses that have been forced to close their doors or ship jobs overseas because they can’t afford insurance. Medicare costs are consuming our federal budget. Medicaid is overwhelming our state budgets. So to those who say we have to choose between health care reform and fiscal discipline, I say that making investments now that will dramatically lower health care costs for everyone won’t add to our budget deficit in the long-term – it is one of the best ways to reduce it.
Finally, this budget must reduce that deficit even further. With the fiscal mess we’ve inherited and the cost of this financial crisis, I’ve proposed a budget that cuts our deficit in half by the end of my first term. That’s why we are scouring every corner of the budget and have proposed $2 trillion in deficit reductions over the next decade. In total, our budget would bring discretionary spending for domestic programs as a share of the economy to its lowest level in nearly half a century. And we will continue making these tough choices in the months and years ahead so that as our economy recovers, we do what we must to bring this deficit down.
I will be discussing each of these principles next week, as Congress takes up the important work of debating this budget. I realize there are those who say these plans are too ambitious to enact. To that I say that the challenges we face are too large to ignore. I didn’t come here to pass on our problems to the next President or the next generation – I came here to solve them.
The American people sent us here to get things done, and at this moment of great challenge, they are watching and waiting for us to lead. Let’s show them that we are equal to the task before us, and let’s pass a budget that puts this nation on the road to lasting prosperity.
Well we have been working to get the weekly WTF on a roll all it's own but have hit a few snags over the past few weeks.
In an effort to overcome these snags we have approached and asked another satirical political blogger Dr. Dave to get involved with the project, and we are happy to report that he has decided to join the team.
Both Dr. Dave and TMX will be working the WTF column from here out.
We will also be adding a new post each week where you all can add your Weekly WTF Nominations for review. This should make it less difficult to submit suggestions (yes I actually received emails telling me that they couldn't figure out how to submit a White House Total Fail - which made me laugh because they could find my e-mail but couldn't figure out where to post)
These two changes should give the section a new lease on life.
As we expected President Obama has submitted an apology for the Special Olympics reference he made last night while on the Late Show with Jay Leno.
the President was talking with Jay Leno during his segment in last nights broadcast of the prerecorded program about how he had been practicing his game at the White House's bowling alley. He expresses that he was still unhappy with his score of 129.
Then he remarked: "It was like the Special Olympics or something."
The audience laughed, and the White House staff cringed.
President Obama called Tim Shriver, the chairman of the Special Olympics, while he was in route back to Washington aboard Air Force One to say he was sorry for his comment before the taped program had even aired on Thursday night.
During an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" Tim Shriver spoke about the conversation he had with President Obama the night before, saying "He expressed his disappointment and he apologized in a way that was very moving. He expressed that he did not intend to humiliate this population," Mr Shriver went on to say "He, I think importantly, said he was ready to have some of our athletes over to the White House to bowl or to play basketball, or help him improve his score."
After the President's exhibition of his bowling skills in Altoona, Pa. during the campaign, where he bowled a 37, he might do well getting some pointers.
Yesterday, President Barack Obama announced that he would be making available $2.4 billion in funding for America's manufacturers to work on the difficult task of producing next generation Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles and the advanced battery components that will make these vehicles run.
The funding is designed to create tens of thousands of U.S. jobs and help move the US toward bringing an end to the high demand and dependency on foreign oil.
Americans who decide to purchase these Plug-in Hybrid vehicles can claim a tax credit of up to $7,500.
"This investment will not only reduce our dependence on foreign oil, it will put Americans back to work," President Obama said. "It positions American manufacturers on the cutting edge of innovation and solving our energy challenges." according to the official White House press release.
the President’s goal is to put one million plug-in hybrid vehicles on the road by 2015.
Last night, President Barack Obama became the first sitting President in history to appear on the Tonight Show.
His visit was the latest in a string of attempts to win support for his current attempts at correcting the US economy and to appear openly in front of the American citizens in an effort to maintain his public face.
Some people are actually upset that he is attempting to maintain such a public position in his political life.
I can recall many former Presidents being belittled for not being open and accessible.
At least he is attempting to maintain the accessibility for the common citizens.
Just in case you weren't up late enough to watch the show last night - the video of President Obama's segment is below.
What are your thoughts on last nights appearance?
Did the President's remark about the Special Olympics bother you?
Do you feel that he owes a public apology to the Special Olympics and the people who work with the program and those who take part in the games?
Personally, I would expect he will offer a public apology for the remark today.
Full Text of the President Barack Obama Segment on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno
Jay Leno: The 44th President of the United States, please welcome President Barack Obama. (Applause.)
President Barack Obama: Thank you. (Applause.)
Jay Leno: Good to see you.
President Barack Obama: It is good to see you and –- (applause.) Thank you. Let me just say, I think Kevin looks good in a suit. (Laughter.)
Kevin: Thank you, sir.
President Barack Obama: He looks a little like Secret Service. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: He does, doesn't he? Yes. And you're the only guy who can get him to wear it. (Laughter.)
Now, you know, it's funny, because the last time you were here, you walked in, you had your jacket on your finger and you had the two guys with you.
President Barack Obama: Right.
Jay Leno: And that was it. Big change?
President Barack Obama: You know, I was mentioning earlier, we landed yesterday and then –- this is an example of life in the bubble. We landed at the fairground down in Costa Mesa. And I see the fairground where I think we're having this town hall and I said, well, why don't we walk over there? Secret Service says, no, sir, it's 750 yards. (Laughter.)
So I was trying to calculate –- well, that's like a five-minute walk? "Yes, sir. Sorry." (Laughter.)
Now, they let me walk on the way back. But, you know, the doctor is behind me with the defibrillator. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Wow.
President Barack Obama: Michelle jokes about how our motorcade –- you know, we've got the ambulance and then the caboose and then the dog sled. (Laughter.) The submarine. (Laughter.) There's a whole bunch of stuff going on.
Jay Leno: Now it's only, what, 59 days now, right?
President Barack Obama: Yes, 59 days.
Jay Leno: And so much scrutiny. Is it fair to judge so quickly? I mean –-
President Barack Obama: Well, look, we are going through a difficult time. I welcome the challenge. You know, I ran for President because I thought we needed big changes. I do think in Washington it's a little bit like "American Idol," except everybody is Simon Cowell. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Wow. Wow. That's rough. (Applause.)
President Barack Obama: Everybody's got an opinion. But that's part of what makes for a democracy. You know, it's contentious and people are hitting back.
I do think, though, that the American people are all in a place where they understand it took us a while to get into this mess, it's going to take a while for us to get out of it. And if they have confidence that I'm making steps to deal with issues like health care and energy and education, that matter deeply to their daily lives, then I think they're going to give us some time. (Applause.)
Jay Leno: Let me ask you about this. I know you are angry –- because, you know, doing what I do, you kind of study body language a little bit. And you looked very angry about these bonuses. Actually, stunned.
President Barack Obama: Stunned. "Stunned" is the word.
Jay Leno: Tell people what happened. I know people have been over it, just –-
President Barack Obama: Well, look, here's what happened. You've got a company, AIG, which used to be just a regular, old insurance company. Then they insured a whole bunch of stuff and they were very profitable and it was a good, solid company.
Then they decided –- some smart person decided, let's put a hedge fund on top of the insurance company and let's sell these derivative products to banks all around the world –- which are basically guarantees or insurance policies on all these sub-prime mortgages.
And this smart person said, you know, none of these things are going to go bust; this sub-prime thing, it's a great deal, you can make a lot of profit. So they sold a whole bunch of them –- billions and billions of dollars. And what happened is, is that when people started going bust on sub-prime mortgages you had $30 worth of debt on every dollar worth of mortgage –- and the whole house of cards just started falling down.
So the problem with AIG was that it owed so much and was tangled up with so many banks and institutions that if you had allowed it to just liquidate, to go into bankruptcy, it could have brought the whole financial system down. So it was the right thing to do to intervene in AIG.
Now, the question is, who in their right mind, when your company is going bust, decides we're going to be paying a whole bunch of bonuses to people? And that, I think, speaks to a broader culture that existed on Wall Street, where I think people just had this general attitude of entitlement, where, we must be the best and the brightest, we deserve $10 million or $50 million or $100 million dollar payouts –-
Jay Leno: Right.
President Barack Obama: And, you know, the immediate bonuses that went to AIG are a problem. But the larger problem is we've got to get back to an attitude where people know enough is enough, and people have a sense of responsibility and they understand that their actions are going to have an impact on everybody. And if we can get back to those values that built America, then I think we're going to be okay. (Applause.)
Jay Leno: Well, you know, it’s interesting, when you said -– it's, like, I had to laugh the other day when the CEO of AIG said, okay, I've asked them to give half the bonuses back. Now, if you rob a bank and you go into court –- (laughter) –- and you go, Your Honor, I'm going to give you half the money back. (Laughter.) And they seem stunned that we’re not jumping at this wonderful offer.
President Barack Obama: Well, you know, the only place I think that might work is in Hollywood. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Let me ask you this. Now, I heard them say, well, one of the problems is it's contractual and if we don't pay these bonuses, well, they can sue us. All the time people say, so sue me.
President Barack Obama: So sue me, right.
Jay Leno: I mean, the federal government is in debt a trillion dollars. We're broke -- sue us. Sue me. (Laughter and applause.)
President Barack Obama: In fairness, I think that part of the calculation they were making was the way the contracts were written said, if you don't pay us immediately, then we can claim three times as much as we were owed under the bonuses. And so they were making a legal calculation, and their legal judgment was not necessarily wrong.
But there's a moral and an ethical aspect to this, as well. And I think that's what has gotten everybody so fired up. The main thing –- we’re going to do everything we can to see if we can get these bonuses back. But I think the most important thing that we can do is make sure that we put in a bunch of financial regulatory mechanisms to prevent companies like an AIG holding the rest of us hostage. Because that's –- that's the real problem.
The problem is not just what's happened over the last six months. The problem is what was happening for years, where people were able to take huge, excessive risks with other people's money, putting the entire financial system at risk –- and there were no checks, there were no balances, there was nobody overseeing the process.
And so what we're going to be moving very aggressively on –- even as we try to fix the current mess –- is make sure that before somebody makes a bad bet you say, hold on, you can't do that.
Jay Leno: Well, here's something that kind of scared me. Today they passed this thing that says we're going to tax 90 percent of these bonuses. And the part that scares me is, I mean, you're a good guy –- if the government decides they don't like a guy, all of a sudden, hey, we’re going to tax you and then, boom, and it passes. I mean, that seems a little scary as a taxpayer, they can just decide –- you want to take a break and answer that when we come back? Okay, hold that answer.
President Barack Obama: I will. I've got a good answer, too. (Applause.)
***Commercial Break***
Jay Leno: Welcome back. We are talking with President Barack Obama.
Before the break I mentioned that they had just passed this new bill which will tax them 90 percent -- and I said it was frightening to me as an American that Congress, whoever, could decide, I don't like that group, let's pass a law and tax them at 90 percent.
President Barack Obama: Well, look, I understand Congress' frustrations, and they're responding to, I think, everybody's anger. But I think that the best way to handle this is to make sure that you've closed the door before the horse gets out of the barn. And what happened here was the money has already gone out and people are scrambling to try to find ways to get back at them.
The change I'd like to see in terms of tax policy is that we have a system, going back to where we were back in the 1990s, where you and I who are doing pretty well pay a little bit more to pay for health care, to pay for energy, to make sure that kids can go to college who aren't as fortunate as our -- as my kids might be. Those are the kinds of measured steps that we can take. But the important thing over the next several months is making sure that we don't lurch from thing to thing, but we try to make steady progress, build a foundation for long-term economic growth. That's what I think the American people expect. (Applause.)
Jay Leno: I just read today about Merrill Lynch. They handed out $3.6 billion -- it's not even million anymore, it's billions in bonuses. I know it would make me feel good -- shouldn't somebody go to jail? (Laughter and applause.) I say that because I watch those people in New York, even people who had lost everything -- when Bernard Madoff went to jail, at least they felt they got something.
President Barack Obama: Right. They got some satisfaction. Here's the dirty little secret, though. Most of the stuff that got us into trouble was perfectly legal. And that is a sign of how much we've got to change our laws -- right? We were talking earlier about credit cards, and it's legal to charge somebody 30 percent on their credit card, and charge fees and so forth that people don't always know what they're getting into. So the answer is to deal with those laws in a way that gives the average consumer a break.
When you buy a toaster, if it explodes in your face there's a law that says your toasters need to be safe. But when you get a credit card, or you get a mortgage, there's no law on the books that says if that explodes in your face financially, somehow you're going to be protected.
So this is -- the need for getting back to some common sense regulations -- there's nothing wrong with innovation in the financial markets. We want people to be successful; we want people to be able to make a profit. Banks are critical to our economy and we want credit to flow again. But we just want to make sure that there's enough regulatory common sense in place that ordinary Americans aren't taken advantage of, and taxpayers, after the fact, aren't taken advantage of. (Applause.)
Jay Leno: Yes -- because when I was a kid, we would -- banks or credit cards would lend you money so you would pay it back. Now they lend you money so you can't pay it back. (Laughter.) It's like we were talking before, I mentioned we all saw A Wonderful Life -- Mr. Potter, the meanest man -- remember he owned the whole town? You know what he charged on a mortgage? Two percent. (Laughter.)
President Barack Obama: He's like Mother Teresa now. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Like Mother Teresa now. (Laughter.) He makes VISA look like ohhhh --
President Barack Obama: Well, and part of what happened over the last 15, 20 years is that so much money was made in finance that about 40 percent, I think, of our overall growth, our overall economic growth was in the financial sector. Well, now what we're finding out is a lot of that growth wasn't real. It was paper money, paper profits on the books, but it could be easily wiped out.
And what we need is steady growth; we need young people, instead of -- a smart kid coming out of school, instead of wanting to be an investment banker, we need them to decide they want to be an engineer, they want to be a scientist, they want to be a doctor or a teacher. And if we're rewarding those kinds of things that actually contribute to making things and making people's lives better, that's going to put our economy on solid footing. We won't have this kind of bubble-and-bust economy that we've gotten so caught up in for the last several years.
Jay Leno: Now, Treasury Secretary Geithner, he seems to be taking a little bit of heat here. How is he holding up with this? He seems like a smart guy --
President Barack Obama: He is a smart guy and he's a calm and steady guy. I don't think people fully appreciate the plate that was handed him. This guy has not just a banking crisis; he's got the worst recession since the Great Depression, he's got an auto industry on -- that has been on the verge of collapse. We've got to figure out how to coordinate with other countries internationally. He's got to deal with me; he's got to deal with Congress. And he's doing it with grace and good humor. And he understands that he's on the hot seat, but I actually think that he is taking the right steps, and we're going to have our economy back on the move.
Jay Leno: Now, see, I love that it's all his problem. (Laughter.)
President Barack Obama: No, no, no --
Jay Leno: -- I mean, when he came in you probably said, hey, this is not a problem. Now, it's, hey, you got this, you got that, hey, good luck. (Laughter.)
President Barack Obama: No, no, but this is the point that I made, I think two days ago, when somebody asked, well, do you have confidence in Tim Geithner. I said, look, I'm the President, so ultimately all this stuff is my responsibility. If I'm not giving him the tools that he needs to make sure that we're moving things forward, then people need to look at me.
On the AIG thing, all these contracts were written well before I took office, but ultimately I'm now the guy who's responsible to fix it. And one of the things that I'm trying to break is a pattern in Washington where everybody is always looking for somebody else to blame. And I think Geithner is doing an outstanding job. I think that we have a big mess on our hands. It's not going to be solved immediately, but it is going to get solved. And the key thing is for everybody just to stay focused on doing the job instead of trying to figure out who you can pass blame on to.
Jay Leno: Well, when will the money -- this money was given out to the banks. I would have thought by this time it would have sort of trickled down to Main Street, to people wanting to get loans -- I mean, it all went out there months and months ago. Where is it?
President Barack Obama: Well, what's happening is a lot of these banks are keeping it in the bank because their balance sheets had gotten so bad that they decided, you know what, for us to stay solvent we need to maintain certain capital ratios; we've got to have a certain amount of capital in the bank -- and they haven't started lending it yet. And that's why what we've got to do -- right now what we're doing is essentially doing a diagnostic test -- trying to use some auto language here so you -- (laughter) -- we're doing a diagnostic on each of the banks, figuring out what are their capital levels? Can they sustain lending? And then I think we're going to separate out -- those banks that are in good shape, we're going to say to them, all right, you're on your own; go start lending again. Those banks that still have problems, we'll do a little more intervention to try to clean some of those toxic assets off their books.
But I actually have confidence that we'll get that done. In the meantime, we're taking a lot of steps to, for example, opening up -- open up separate credit lines outside of banks for small businesses so that they can get credit -- because there are a lot of small businesses out here who are just barely hanging on. Their credit lines are starting to be cut. We're trying to set up a scrutinized market for student loans and auto loans outside of the banking system. So there are other ways of getting credit flowing again.
But that's why we've got to solve the banking problem and we've got to solve issues like health care, energy, and education that will put us on a pathway for long-term economic growth.
Jay Leno: We're going to take a break. When we come back I want to ask you what we can do -- (applause) -- all right, we'll take a break. We'll be right back.
***Commercial Break***
Jay Leno: Welcome back. Talking with President Barack Obama. So I was going to ask you before we went to the break. So you have –- obviously we have a lot of people with a few dollars -- couple of hundred, couple of thousand -- but there's millions of them. Okay, obviously that's a tremendous financial forest. What should they do? Put their money in the bank? Should they be spending money? Should they hide it under their mattress?
President Barack Obama: Look, first of all, everybody should have complete confidence in the banks. They're deposits are protected. They shouldn't be putting it in their mattresses. I will leave it up to others to provide individual, personal financial advice.
But I will say this, that if you're working right now, obviously you've got to be prudent and you've got to recognize that the economy has been in a tough way. But, you know, we’ve still got kids who are going to need a coat for winter or a computer for school. You know, that young family is still going to at some point need to buy a house. And right now cars, for example, we know that typically you need about 14 million cars for this population –- and right now only 9 million are being sold every year. So at some point those inventories are going to run down and people are going to start buying cars again.
So, you know, what people should not do is forget that what has built America has always been a faith and a confidence in the future. And our future is bright if we take some smart steps right now. And that's what we're working on in Washington. And I think if everybody stays focused on getting through these tough times, the future is going to be very bright for all of us.
Jay Leno: Now, you mentioned cars a minute ago. You went to the electric car, you went to look at some batteries today.
President Barack Obama: I did. It's spectacular what is being down now with plug-in hybrids, where not only are you getting the hybrid technology, but now you can plug it in at home in your garage. And potentially we could see cars getting 150 miles to a gallon of gas.
And when you get home you could potentially sell the energy in your car back into the grid, back to your utility and get money.
So we’re going to be investing billions of dollars in research and development around these technologies. I know that you were mentioning you've got a hydrogen car –-
Jay Leno: I've got the GM hydrogen car. That's a whole new --
President Barack Obama: That's a whole new level of technology. That's what's going to create the auto industry of the future. That's where we're going to win back manufacturing. But right now we’re behind. These batteries are being made in Japan –- just like wind power is being made in Europe. We need to bring that here, and that's part of what my budget and part of what our Recovery Act is all about.
Jay Leno: Let me ask you some personal things. Now, how cool is it to fly in Air Force One? (Laughter.)
President Barack Obama: Now, let me tell you, I personally think it's pretty cool. Especially because they give you, you know, the jacket with the seal on it. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Oh, yeah. See, I still get the little wings when I fly.
President Barack Obama: So you have the jacket. I will tell you, though, Malia and Sasha, my daughters, they're just not as impressed. The first time we went on Marine One -– right, you've got the Marines in front and they're saluting you. And we go up and we're passing the Washington Monument, circling around on the way to Camp David –- and Sasha looks over and she says, "Are those Starbursts?" (Laughter.) There's, like, the candy in the little canister. (Laughter.) That's –- "Can we have some?" (Laughter.)
So they're splitting up the Starbursts and we're flying over the Lincoln Memorial. So they got a whole 'nother level of cool. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Now, are they going to put a basketball –- I imagine the bowling alley has been just burned and closed down.
President Barack Obama: No, no. I have been practicing all –- (laughter.)
Jay Leno: Really? Really?
President Barack Obama: I bowled a 129. (Laughter and applause.)
Jay Leno: No, that's very good. Yes. That's very good, Mr. President.
President Barack Obama: It's like -- it was like Special Olympics, or something. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: No, that's very good.
President Barack Obama: No, listen, I'm making progress on the bowling, yes.
Jay Leno: And how about, are you going to put in a basketball court?
President Barack Obama: Oh, yes. Yes. Well, we have a basketball court already at Camp David. We just had a little rim that was inadequate –- (laughter) –- at the White House. But there are tennis courts, so we’re going to just get those –- you know, those rims that you can roll in and out. And then we’ll just put them on either –-
Jay Leno: Let me ask you, when people –- Mr. President, would you like to play? Yes, I would. Do they throw the game? Come on. (Laughter and applause.)
President Barack Obama: I don’t see why they would throw the game -- except for all those Secret Service guys with guns around. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Yes, exactly.
President Barack Obama: I will say that I don't think I get the hard fouls that I used to. Usually I don't –-
Jay Leno: Yes, Reggie goes, ohhh, I missed, ohhh. (Laughter.)
President Barack Obama: Reggie doesn't do that. This is Reggie Love, my assistant. He played for Duke, very competitive guy. He doesn't let me win because, as he pointed out, if you lose to Obama you never hear the end of it. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: See, there you go. Now, have you picked a final four?
President Barack Obama: I did.
Jay Leno: Okay. How about your final one, who do you got?
President Barack Obama: I got North Carolina Tar Heels. (Applause.)
Jay Leno: North Carolina.
President Barack Obama: I think I got –- I got a hard time from Reggie, because he played at Duke, and you know, Coach K, being competitive, I think was a little –- you know, pushed back a little bit today. And I understand that. That's what you want. You want everybody to be competitive. I think these are all great teams.
Jay Leno: Like, do you look at the whole picture when you do that? For example, isn’t that a swing state? (Laughter and applause.) I'm just saying, are you looking at the whole picture when you pick?
President Barack Obama: I mean, the fact that teams from North Carolina, Indiana, Iowa, all seem to do well in my bracket –- (laughter) –- I think is a complete coincidence. Absolutely.
Jay Leno: All right, one last question. Now, when is the dog coming? I keep hearing about the dog. It seems to me –- when was the dog supposed to be there by? I thought it was, like, as soon as --
President Barack Obama: Listen, this is Washington –- (laughter) –- that was a campaign promise. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Oh, wow. Wow. Man. (Laughter and applause.)
President Barack Obama: I'm teasing. The dog will be there shortly. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: How soon?
President Barack Obama: We have actually sort of been laying the groundwork here. We’ve got a trip, I've got to go to the NATO summit. When we get back, dog will be in place.
Jay Leno: Wow. And it's, what, a Portuguese water head? (Laughter.) What is it, what kind of dog is it?
President Barack Obama: It's not that. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: It's not that.
President Barack Obama: It's not a "water head." (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Whatever they are, I don't know what they are.
President Barack Obama: That sounds like a scary dog. (Laughter.) Sort of dripping around the house. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: I don't know what it is.
President Barack Obama: No, no. We're going to get a dog that is –- that I think the girls will have a great time –- I think I'm going to have a lot of fun with it. You know, they say if you want a friend in Washington, get a dog. (Laughter.)
Jay Leno: Exactly. Mr. President, I must say, this has been one of the best nights of my life. Thank you very much, sir.
The Labor Department announced that the number of New jobless claims declined by more than expected to 646,000 for the week ending March 14th. The expected New Jobless claims had been estimated at 652,000 new claims. The prior week's initial Jobless claims ending March 7th totaled 658,000.
That is a reduction by 12,000 overall initial claims on the week.
While the decrease in the filing of initial claims for unemployment is good news, the overall position is still grim.
The number of people who remained on unemployment after filing an initial claim and drawing there first week of aid rose dramatically by 185,000 in the week ending March 7th. The total settled at 5.47 million unemployed claims. A sharp increase from the 5.29 million continued claims from the previous week.
The amount of people remaining in the system beyond there first weeks claim is the highest on record and has pushed the insured unemployment rate up-to 4.1 %, the highest since June 1983.
Today's gains were made as the Federal Reserve said after its policy meeting it will buy long-term US Treasuries in a push to revive the recession-hit economy. The Federal Reserve announced that they intend to purchase up to $300 billion of longer-term Treasury securities over the next six months "to help improve conditions in private credit markets."
Edward Liddy spent time on Capitol Hill today testifying before the U.S. House Financial Services Capital Markets Subcommittee.
Edward Liddy is the current Chairman and CEO of AIG (American International Group), having accepted the position in September of last year for an annual salary of $1.00.
Mr. Liddy said today during questioning, that he felt it would be unlikely that AIG will require the use of the $30 Billion that is currently allocated for the firms use. Mr. Liddy went further to say that the insurance giant would effectively wind down operations over the next four years, and that the remaining business units would more than likely operate under new or modified names as the name AIG has been severely dragged through the mud and disgraced.
President Obama hosted Taoiseach Brian Cowen at the White House in honor of St. Patrick's day. It was the first time Brian Cowen had met with President Obama.
President Obama also made the announcement of his intention to nominate Daniel Rooney as the US Ambassador to Ireland.
President Obama said, "I am honored and grateful that such a dedicated and accomplished individual has agreed to serve as the representative of the United States to the Irish people. Dan Rooney is an unwavering supporter of Irish peace, culture, and education, and I have every confidence that he and Secretary Clinton will ensure America’s continued close and unique partnership with Ireland in the years ahead."
Dan Rooney is the Chairman of the Pittsburgh Steelers, the winners of Super Bowl XLIII. Rooney was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
In stark contrast to the common consensus of a bleak out look for new home manufacturing, new home construction jumped 22.2% in the month of February with the North East leading the charge.
That is far better than expected performance for the housing industry.
Permits for new construction also rose by 3%
Does this mean we are out of the woods as far as the housing crisis is concerned?
No, we still have many foreclosed properties on the market and many existing homes that are still on the market, but it does mean that manufacturing may be starting to right itself.
We and they knew it was bound to happen sooner or later.
Today the final printed edition of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer rolled out to News stands. No one would buy the failing paper since Hearst Corp decided to off load them after a $14 Million loss last year.
Newspapers that have made there way to our doorsteps for years are now starting to succumb to the reality that they are for the most part an unprofitable venture. A bygone relic of Americana and are being placed on the shelf of antiquities along side the telegraph machines of the past.
Many people the world over feel a sense of remorse for the loss of these dinosaurs of the industrial age. The romance that has been held for the sight, the smell and even the feel of the news in ones home on a crisp Sunday morning. The memories of youthful days spent in dad’s study or about the breakfast table reading the Sunday comic section from the home town paper. The sound of the snap of pages as they were turned and folded.
Now, we are faced with the loss of that intimacy with the news.
There is a new twist on the old story however.
Companies like Comcast – who owns Hearst Corp have decided they are going to take many of these News Papers and move them to an online only platform. Once they are there, they are going to start to charge you to read them.
They are planning to charge per article, not per publication.
They couldn’t figure out how to make money in print, so now they are going to reduce staff dramatically, cut overhead and manufacturing costs and increase consumer costs?
I think they may do better if they started charging a subscription fee rather than a reader fee. If your weekly subscription to have a home delivered copy of the paper was $5 or $10 than your weekly internet subscription fee should be $2.50 or $5 since there overhead will be slashed by better than 50% as they downsize operations.
Let me explain a little bit more:
Hearst Corp will cut out about 145 newsroom jobs at the Post-Intelligencer when they go digital. That will leave the online only Newspaper with about 20 reporters and editors in total. That means they are removing over 87% of the work force. Now remove the machine maintenance and operation expenses, inks, paper and even delivery costs and expenses from the cost of the papers operations.
After all of that, I might actually consider a $1 week subscription fee to high for full access. 50 cents a week or is that still too high? A dime a week may be too high.
How many of you would actually pay on a per article basis to read your news?
Why not just turn on the television or radio and listen to C-Span.
President Barack Obama pledges help for American small business in an effort to invigorate the US Economy. Increasing the New Capitol Provision for write offs to $250,000 and a 5 year carry back on losses in an effort to increase the small business operational cash flow.
This is also the speech that President Barack Obama states that he is "choked up with anger" over the AIG bonuses. The AIG portion of the speech starts around the 12 minute mark in the time line.
Incentives to Invest in Manufacturing Plants and Equipment by Allowing Small Businesses to Write Off Up to $250,000 of Investment.
The Recovery Act allows small businesses to immediately write off up to $250,000 of qualified investment in 2009, providing an immediate tax incentive to invest and create jobs.
Establishing a Five-Year Carry-back Provision to Increase Tax Refunds for Small Businesses.
The IRS will issue guidance for a provision in the Recovery Act that allows businesses with gross receipts of up to $15 million to "carry back" their losses for up to five years, effectively allowing them a rebate on taxes paid in previous years.
The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that this measure will increase liquidity for small businesses by $4.7 billion by September 30, 2009.
It seems to be a recurring theme at AIG (American International Group) who in all there wisdom have decided to pay out bonuses that were promised to there employee's in the very department that caused there massive problems.
Millions in bonuses at that.
They are stating that they need to pay these bonuses out to retain the highly skilled and knowledgeable staff that can help get them out of the mess they are in. They also have stated that they are bound to pay these bonuses as they were agreed upon prior to the US Government stepping in and handing them bailout money. They feel that refusing to pay out these bonuses at this time would open them up to lawsuits.
I would think in light of the current problems and investments made by the American Government at the taxpayers expense that they would have more than enough recourse to forgo any bonuses. After All many Americans and people from around the world have been told that we are going to be forgoing bonuses, raises and in some cases employee's have incurred pay and hour decreases and even lost jobs and in many casses these reductions or losses are not due to poor job performance but poor economic performance.
President Barack Obama is steaming right along with the rest of the American taxpayers on this one. 80% of AIG's outstanding stock is effectivly owned by the taxpayers as part of the bailout package for AIG.
US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner contacted AIG’s Chairman and CEO Edward Liddy on Wednesday over the bonuses but in the end was informed that for the most part AIG's "hands are tied."
Too big to fail?
Then they should be broken up into manageable divisions and separated from each other.
Should we as American taxpayers feel sorry for the people at AIG?
Former Vice President Dick Cheney has decided that his opinion should be voiced and his opinion is that he believes President Obama's terrorism-fighting policies are making Americans less safe. I am sure he must feel that there are also many Americans that would love to go hunting with him.
You know, with that in mind we should offer to send him on an all expenses paid hunting trip and see how many other political leaders from perhaps Iran and North Korea would like to join him for a weekend trip to Montana.
Cheney has stated that the Bush administration programs involving suspected terrorists and intelligence gathering about possible future attacks were critical to keeping the U.S. safe.
Obama has ordered the closing of the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba, and banned methods of interrogation that Bush had approved for suspected terrorists.
I don't know about you, but I actually feel a little safer thinking that Bush 43 and Cheney are long gone.
We have 1,407 days to go with this administration.
So far we have heard huge plans, watched absurd amounts of money being injected into an economy that has yet to show signs of slowing it's decent into the abyss, foreign powers questioning there investments, and grade school mistakes that more experienced political figures might not have made.
But even after all of that, I am still happy that at least we don't have McCain and Palin in office.
The bitterness of the opposition still lingers on as one would expect.
Fox News has shifted there attention to a Bush era terminology of "wars" on everything declaring that Obama's is embroiled in a "war" over his economic agenda. The Republicans still remain focused on wars. No matter what they are with, at least it is a war! Even Warren Buffett said last week that the country is in an "economic war," likening the crisis to the Pearl Harbor attacks.
The Obama administrations financial advisers hit the airwaves this morning to further sell the President's budget proposal and to defend his responses to the crisis thus far.
They also attempted to increase the President's attempts to build confidence in the US economic turnaround.
They are on the hard sell.
It will not be an easy sell especially since they face the current "Party of No" opposition, but at the end of the day, it is the public that needs to buy what the administration is selling not the GOP.
