Obama Readies Campaign-Style Approach To Sell Stimulus Package

Beset by criticism of an alleged ethical double standard over some of his Cabinet choices and an intensifying partisan debate over his economic recovery plan, Obama is attempting a return to the campaign-style approach and aggressiveness that echoes the toughest days of his battle with Hillary Clinton.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[tdubssurf]

It has been estimated that California could receive more than $25 billion (the Greater Los Angeles Area receiving around $6 billion) of the nearly $800 billion in aid, made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, or ARRA. More than $70 billion of the bill has been directed towards investment in renewable, and green technologies...

http://www.caivp.org/article/taxes/2009/2/24/california-gets-stimulatedor-does-it

[tbone99]

Looks like Obama wants to return to the trail - maybe he already has claustrophobia in that White's House.
Unfortunately he will be preaching to the choir, plus those who are celebrity worshippers.

[dems08]

The 'choir' as you put it, is Americans who

are out of work

have seen their retirement saving disappear

have lost their homes

are on the verge of losing their homes

are living month-to-month, or even day-to-day

[daveebo126]

On a slightly different topic, am I the only one that would like yto see Nancy Pelosi
removed from her position?
Maybe by someone who smiles a little less often.

[hortonhearsawho2]

Hemmorhoids, she ain't smiling....

[dems08]

Yup, you're it...

[Truby]

What is to sell? We all know we need to do something to move the economy forward but could it be that too much pork was added to this particular plan and so a hard sell is required. Scrap it and push back on Congress to come up with another one with less waste. Saddling future taxpayers with this debt is a bad idea. Did we not vote for change we could believe in, these seems like more of the same old same old.

[SpendBabySpend]

I agree..and wait until we see Tarp II. Why does Congress have to play games..Make it a stimulous bill, is that so hard? Then it would pass, with the people behind it..The smart American citizen, knows what's worth borrowing money for and whats not..Once the stimulous starts working, they'll be plenty of time to spend..later.Not now..

[hortonhearsawho2]

U try putting in a quarter of what the machine calls for and never get the soda to come out...go figure.

[dems08]

We only have THREE pubs votes in the Senate as it is.

We zero pub votes, NOTHING happens!

[VMA]

Truby...Give us examples of the pork. I personally haven't read the bill, but I've been hearing all about pork and really don't know what the pork is. I think the first pork has been removed. What's the new pork?

[hortonhearsawho2]

Rodents for dinner if they all don't hurry up....

[Truby]

Anything designated as long term included in this bill is pork. This is an economic stimulus bill and as such needs to focus on jump starting the economy now. Long term investment is needed in many of the areas represented by the amendments being adding to the bill but we the people would be better served if they were funded separately. If the money in the bill is not being spend directly on job growth, loan origination or foreclosure assistance then dump it. Building highways next year will not forestall job losses today. I would like to give more specific examples of other pork but the bill is not available for public viewing and by the time we get to see it, it will have a price tag of $20,000.00 for each and every single American.

[Nancy84]

Is there a way to find out just who added what to the original plan that the president put up?

[dems08]

I don't know of anyplace to go for an overall summary of additions and deletions.

I believe the only pubs who worked on Senate revisions were Snowe and Collins.

You just have to go to the 3 versions (House, Senate, and Senate compromise) and compare.

[pinkypeterson]

It is really too bad that Obama has to go do this because the repubs can't get with the program.
What a waste of time and money.

[swo68]

Who's being partisan? The people supporting this, or the people who aren't? The answer is both. Who's right and who's wrong? The answer is both.

[In A World]

The answer is the Republicans are wrong. What if you were an alien from another planet who just showed up on earth and can't tell the difference? Show that space alien the people suffering in the streets, jobless and homeless, then you tell that space alien who was in power during the last eight solar cycles. Space alien, being of superior intelligence and subscriber to the notion of objective reality and the laws of cause and effect, will conclude that the Republicans are wrong.

There is no relativism here. There is no equivalency between the two sides. The Democrats have accurately blamed the Republicans for the current crisis. This is a universal truth as set in stone as "2 + 2 = 4". The proof is all around us.

[themodernleader]

Deni. I have written repeatedly that the Banks should take care of ther own problems and that the Administration then establish a new. non-Fed regulated banking system under the taxpayers' ownership; that the banking industry must be decentralized. Monopolistic banks invite corruption and power enough to contort effective policy and regulation by the government.
The Stimulus Program should be wholly for job creation that in the near or long term creates value and wealth for the society, and it must be massive and phase in the employment of millions and millions over the next five years. Unemployed millions endangers the very existence of our democracy. Even Americans will not tolerate failed government for an extended period of time.
Furthermore, restrictions on mercantelistic trade must require that our trade with each international organization is in equilibrium, that is, exports and imports are equivalent over a period of several years.
Our naturally monopolistic functions such a utilities, airlines, railroads, banking and so on must be brought back into strict regulation and protection of the consumer.
Finally, draconian graduated taxes on the income and inheritance of the super rich must be immediately established to begin the process of bringing fiscal sanity to our present bankrupted governance.

[lorla]

Bill M oyers Journal has J ay R osen and G len G reenwald on talking about journalism. Great show.

[HarryTheHandsome]

Big Ears Barry's Deputy Attorney general worked as a lawyer for the po rn producers

...his job was to help eliminate the laws against ch ild po rn..

Do any of you cultists think this is defensible?

..this is your new president folks...but not mine

[street sense]

was he with the ACLU? My guess would be probably.
you are right, but we won't be hearing too much about it.

[senorlou]

Not yours. I remember yours. Yours was the other guy with the funny ears, but no brain. He inherited a peacetime surplus...well you know the rest.

[Girl28]

Oh my g.od, Harry the U.gly, has really shown me the light. I have been made aware of all of the evils of Obama and his administration! Praise J.esus! I AM Healed! I AM delivered!

Are you happy now Harry the F.ool? Is this the response that you've been waiting for? Will you go away now?

[hortonhearsawho2]

Black is beautiful , accept it bedsheeter...

[gladys46]

Okay old, white men stop telling our President what he can say and what he can wear ! Get lost !!

[AlaninElkGrove]

thanx for saying that!!!

[street sense]

How large of a number is a trillion?

If we go back to the year "0" and spend about $15.75 per SECOND, we'd be at $1 trillion today.
Or, we could go back to 0 and spend about $950 per minute.

Yes, things are bad right now. Not sure if they are worse than when Carter was in there, but really bad nevertheless. But when you think about the price tag, even after some things got cut, this is not something we can afford to get wrong.

[AlaninElkGrove]

having been in my 20's back then, this is FAR worse...

[StillIRise]

Agree.

[friskee1]

it's amazing how these people claim country first, but in the midst of a crisis like this, they'd rather send this country to hell in a hand basket than give up their precious ideology of reaganomics and "let the free markets correct itself" bs.

[Amalek]

Time to break out the pitchforks folks, and storm Wall Street.

[Rapid Ray]

The time for that was 3 years ago.

[cobobs]

Another trick from the conservative playbook: employ language craftsmen (and women) to frame issues. Avoid like the plague, polysyllabic officialese. What is the official name of the stimulus package again? Giving a long official title just hands the republicans the opportunity to label it with something crisp, emotive and easy to pronounce. Once a nice name has been given to your program, simultaneously prepare a nasty label for the detractors. That is the default game as designed by the republicans last 30 years, and it worked so well for them that they are not ready to give it up. If democrats are not ready to play this game better than its creators, Obama will be a replay of Clinton. The only difference, play the game on behalf of the people. Repubs play it against the people.

[dems08]

Stimulus bill = the Recovery Plan

Dems = the recovery proponents

Pubs = the recovery obstructionists

[MIVOTE]

I say Dems should reject the plan until it has the spending for states, education, food stamps and transportation put back in! Don't cave in to their tax whims. We've been there -- done that! We'll survive until we have what is best for the American people.