Barack Fights Back

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright February 6, 2009
All Rights Reserved.                    

          Knocked off of stride since the inauguration, President Barack Obama regained his balance, pushed back against his critics and rediscovered why he’s president:  His superlative communication skills.  After a series of setbacks with Cabinet picks, Barack refocused on the task at hand, getting his $920 billion economic recovery plan passed in the U.S. Senate.  His former GOP colleagues in the Senate, led by his rival Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), sought to assert control over Barack’s new stimulus plan.  Barack remembered for whom voters cast their votes on Nov. 4.  “I reject these theories, and so did the American people when they went to the polls in November and voted resoundingly for change,” said Barack, resisting GOP attempts to sabotage his plan.  GOP opposition centered on some minor Democratic excesses, funding family planning clinics, health care, arts, etc.

            Republicans know who won the election.  They don’t have to be reminded as the best argument for going along with the program.  Cash-strapped Republican governors, mayors and local officials, sweating it out due to depressed economic times, are lobbying U.S. senators more than anything coming from the White House.  Barack has no worries about getting the lion’s share of  his recovery plan.  Playing the game, the White House needs to spread around the credit in the spirit of bipartisanship, trimming some of the fat out of the proposal.  “The recession might linger for years.  Our economy will lose 5 million 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,” Barack wrote in the Washinton Post, heaping pressure on Senate Republicans.  Plenty of arm-twisting already comes from GOP governors.

            Allowing the GOP its two cents helps spread the risk should the plan not create the expected turnaround.  Washington is all about assigning credit and blame.  Having more Republican input can only help Barack escape the heat if the bailout takes more time than promised.  Despite GOP grandstanding, there’s plenty of support for President Obama’s plan, less some of the wasteful spending.  “It’s time to fix housing first,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), touting the new tax break giving $19 billion worth of tax breaks to homeowners, up to $15,000 worth of tax credit to first-time homebuyers.  Barack’s plan also includes mortgage default relief, stopping the nation’s runaway foreclosure problem from sabotaging the economy.  January’s unemployment report should also propel Barack’s plan into passage by next week.  Opposition seems to be losing steam.

            Barack’s economic plan, while not perfect, provides the kind of government intervention needed to accelerate the end of the economic downturn.  While doom-and-gloom predictions give the plan little hope, it increases the chances of positive outcome.  GOP senators have emphasized business and individual tax cuts over the bill’s spending provisions.  Most politically neutral economists agree that a combination of government spending and tax cuts provides the best balance for economic recovery.  Barack’s newly approved Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner promised to detail Feb. 9 his plan to get credit market moving again.  Obama’s stimulus plan attempts to offset current job losses, create new industries and jobs and deal aggressively with the housing sector, currently under siege because of the economic downturn.  Dealing with housing should help the overall economy.

            Geithner’s new plan, worked out with Federal Reserved Chairman Ben Bernanke, attempts to reassure the banking community that the government intends prevent economic armageddon.  Geithner will have to ride herd on the banking industry to assure banks receiving bailout funds won’t hoard money.  He plans to nationalize banks incapable to of functioning independently, much the same way the Federal Deposit Insurance Coroproation takes over insolvent financial institutions.  Pressure is mounting on GOP senators to fish-or-cut-bait.  They can’t continue to stall-and-delay without risking further political damage.  “The time for talk is over.  The time for action is now,” said Barack, inviting the GOP to finalize their recommendations to his bailout plan.  Despite a string setbacks in the last two weeks, Barack looks poised to nail down his recovery plan.

            Seizing the moment, Obama showed the same fire for his economic plan that won him the White House Nov. 4.  Despite some twists-and-turns, he’s back on top selling his recovery program.  GOP opposition in the Senate appears weakening, in part due to relentless pressure from cash-strapped GOP senators.  With many state budgets in shambles, governors have cup-in-hand waiting for Barack’s generosity.  Armed with more concessions in spending, new tax cuts and the housing tax credit, Barack can close the deal for his economic stimulus plan.  Despite the grumbling, he has the backing and blessings of GOP governors, municipal, county and state governments all looking now for federal help.  Together with Geithner’s plan to be announced February 9, Barack has the wind at his back to win approval.  A little more diplomacy and patience should get it done next week.

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news.  He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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