CHICAGO: NOV 26 TH,
With the financial crisis looming as a priority of his term, U.S. President-elect Barack Obama sought to put his imprint on efforts to stem the turmoil as he introduced his economic team on Monday, nominating Timothy F. Geithner as Treasury Secretary and Lawrence H. Summers to head the White House Economic Council.
By naming a team deeply experienced in dealing with financial crises — Mr. Geithner was involved over the weekend in the efforts to stabilise Citigroup — Mr. Obama underscored his determination to assure Americans and foreign investors that he would aggressively step into a leadership vacuum in Washington during the transition.
Moreover, by pledging that his economic team would begin work “today” on recommendations to help middle-class families as well as the financial markets, he sought to convey an impression of continuity and coordination, so that his administration can “hit the ground running.”
Mr. Obama also announced that he had chosen Christina D. Romer to head his Council of Economic Advisers and Melody Barnes as Director of his White House Domestic Policy Council. Ms. Romer is an economics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, while Ms. Barnes is a long-time aide to Senator Edward M. Kennedy.
The recent economic news, capped by the Citigroup effort, “has made it even more clear that we are facing an economic crisis of historic proportions,” said Mr. Obama at a news conference. He listed the drop in new home purchases, the surge in unemployment claims to an 18-year high and the likelihood of up to a million further job losses in the coming year. “While we can’t underestimate the challenges we face,” he said, adding: “We also can’t underestimate our capacity to overcome them to summon that spirit of determination and optimism that has always defined us, and move forward in a new direction to create new jobs, reform our financial system, and fuel long-term economic growth.”Injecting confidence
Mr. Obama said that the struggling automobile industry could not be allowed “simply to vanish,” but that the companies should not get “a blank cheque” from taxpayers. And he said he was “surprised” that the auto companies’ chief executives were not better prepared with specific recovery proposals in their appearances last week on Capitol Hill. And he all but promised that the tax cuts pushed through Congress by President George W. Bush would be repealed, or at least not renewed when they expire in 2010.
In an effort to inject confidence into the quavering financial markets, Mr. Obama made certain that his first formal Cabinet announcement dealt with the economy, not, as is often the case with national security or diplomacy. In announcing the nominations of Mr. Geithner, president of the Federal Reserve Bank in New York, and Mr. Summers, a Harvard economist, Mr. Obama sent a signal that he was set to pursue aggressive, yet centrist policies, in crafting moves to help jumpstart the economy. The televised news conference, which came shortly after Mr. Bush made brief remarks at the Treasury Department with Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., created a stark image of the transfer of power that is under way in Washington. Mr. Obama and his new team arrived in a room of dozens of reporters, while Mr. Bush stood nearly alone on the steps of the Treasury Department. — New York Times News Service
By naming a team deeply experienced in dealing with financial crises — Mr. Geithner was involved over the weekend in the efforts to stabilise Citigroup — Mr. Obama underscored his determination to assure Americans and foreign investors that he would aggressively step into a leadership vacuum in Washington during the transition.
Moreover, by pledging that his economic team would begin work “today” on recommendations to help middle-class families as well as the financial markets, he sought to convey an impression of continuity and coordination, so that his administration can “hit the ground running.”
Mr. Obama also announced that he had chosen Christina D. Romer to head his Council of Economic Advisers and Melody Barnes as Director of his White House Domestic Policy Council. Ms. Romer is an economics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, while Ms. Barnes is a long-time aide to Senator Edward M. Kennedy.
The recent economic news, capped by the Citigroup effort, “has made it even more clear that we are facing an economic crisis of historic proportions,” said Mr. Obama at a news conference. He listed the drop in new home purchases, the surge in unemployment claims to an 18-year high and the likelihood of up to a million further job losses in the coming year. “While we can’t underestimate the challenges we face,” he said, adding: “We also can’t underestimate our capacity to overcome them to summon that spirit of determination and optimism that has always defined us, and move forward in a new direction to create new jobs, reform our financial system, and fuel long-term economic growth.”Injecting confidence
Mr. Obama said that the struggling automobile industry could not be allowed “simply to vanish,” but that the companies should not get “a blank cheque” from taxpayers. And he said he was “surprised” that the auto companies’ chief executives were not better prepared with specific recovery proposals in their appearances last week on Capitol Hill. And he all but promised that the tax cuts pushed through Congress by President George W. Bush would be repealed, or at least not renewed when they expire in 2010.
In an effort to inject confidence into the quavering financial markets, Mr. Obama made certain that his first formal Cabinet announcement dealt with the economy, not, as is often the case with national security or diplomacy. In announcing the nominations of Mr. Geithner, president of the Federal Reserve Bank in New York, and Mr. Summers, a Harvard economist, Mr. Obama sent a signal that he was set to pursue aggressive, yet centrist policies, in crafting moves to help jumpstart the economy. The televised news conference, which came shortly after Mr. Bush made brief remarks at the Treasury Department with Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., created a stark image of the transfer of power that is under way in Washington. Mr. Obama and his new team arrived in a room of dozens of reporters, while Mr. Bush stood nearly alone on the steps of the Treasury Department. — New York Times News Service
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