WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama worked hard to push his massive stimulus plan forward on Tuesday as the Senate continued the debate on the over 800 billion U.S. dollar spending bill.
U.S. President Barack Obama speaks to the media in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, February 2, 2009. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>
One day after expressing optimism that action on the
massive plan will be finalized soon, Obama Tuesday accepted interviews with all
five major U.S. television news outlets -- ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN and Fox News, a
move to seek public support.
There is "no magic bullet," he told Fox News, and
adding that he was working with Congress on the stimulus plan and "we are closer
to getting it right."
Also on Tuesday Obama named Republican Senator Judd
Gregg as the commerce secretary in another effort to build bipartisan
cooperation in his government.
Obama announced his choice for the key cabinet post
at a White House press conference, and urged the Senate to rapidly confirm the
nomination so Gregg could start to work on the boosting trade of the country
that is currently in the worst financial crisis since the 1930s.
"With the stakes this high, we cannot afford to get
trapped in the same old partisan gridlock," Obama said.
Gregg also echoed the president, noting "this is not
a time for partisanship" and "this is not a time when we should stand in our
ideological corners and shout at each other."
To seek the union for his massive stimulus plan,
Obama also spoke by phone with some GOP governors who are supporting the
economic recovery plan being considered by Congress.
White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs said Obama held
talks with Governors Charlie Crist of Florida, Arnold Schwarzenegger of
California, and Jodi Rell of Connecticut, who have signed a letter supporting a
recovery plan that they believe will "help them make it through tough budget
times."
Gibbs noted the plan will help governors avoid making
cuts in valuable services such as public safety.
"We hope to be able to get a bill to you in the next
couple of weeks so we can put America back to work and start digging ourselves
out of this deep hole that we're in," Obama told visiting Vermont Governor Jim
Douglas at White House Monday.
The Senate, which began debate on the stimulus plan
on Monday, continued the battle on Tuesday as Republicans sought to prevent the
massive stimulus bill from becoming a Democratic spending bill.
"We all agree that something must be done to
jump-start the economy, and this week we'll have the opportunity to debate ideas
to dramatically improve the bill passed by the House," Senate Minority Leader
Mitch McConnell said. "We agree with President Obama that we should trim things
out that don't put people back to work."
Obama has voiced repeatedly that the bill, aimed at
boosting employment, social spending and consumption, was necessary to recover
the ailing economy.
Congressional budget analysts said that the Senate
version would cost 884.5 billion dollars over 10 years, a significant increase
from the House 819 billion dollar version.
A Democratic source told reporters that there was a
consensus that when all possible additions or changes to the bill have been
decided, the total cost should not exceed 900 billion dollars.
The Senate measure includes 325 billion dollars in
tax breaks and 560 billion dollars in direct spending to spur the economy by
putting more money in the hands of consumers, encouraging businesses to save or
create jobs, and funding infrastructure projects to boost employment.
The House measure combines roughly 275 billion
dollars in temporary tax cuts for both individuals and businesses along with
about 544 billion dollars for job-creating investment projects, health industry
improvements, expanded aid for the poor and unemployed, and improving education.
The Senate measure would pump 694 billion dollars
into the economy by the end of fiscal 2010, or about 78 percent of the overall
cost of the bill, while the House version would only pump two-thirds of the
money by the end of 2010.
Some Republicans tried to propose additional income
tax cuts for middle-class workers.
The provision may be hard to pass in the
Democratic-controlled Senate, but the Republicans may garner more support for
efforts to strip out spending that they do not believe will generate jobs
quickly, said U.S. media.
Democrats, who have 58 of the 100 seats in the
Senate, will need at least two Republican votes in the Senate to avoid
procedural roadblocks which could stymie the measure.
"I count the votes. I know the reality. We need
Republican support to pass this measure, so we're trying to find" a balance that
will get that support, said Senator Richard Durbin.
Senate Majority leader Harry Reid said that he hopes
to complete debate by the end of the week.
That would give House and Senate negotiators a week
to reconcile the two measures before the Feb. 13 deadline set by Congressional
leaders for sending a final bill to Obama, according to the U.S.
media.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama
said Tuesday that the United States cannot send a protectionist message to the
rest of the world.
He cautioned Congress that any protectionist
provisions that could trigger a trade war should not be included in the final
version of the economic stimulus plan. Full story
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack
Obama on Tuesday nominated Republican Senator Judd Gregg as commerce secretary
in his cabinet.
If confirmed, Gregg, a senator from New Hampshire in
his third term, will become the third Republican Obama enrolled in his cabinet,
following Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Transportation Secretary Ray
LaHood. Full story
WASHINGTON, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- The
Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday approved
President Barack Obama's 819-billion-dollar economic stimulus plan, which melds
new spending and tax cuts to jump-start the economy.
The House measure combines roughly 275 billion
dollars in temporary tax cuts for both individuals and businesses along with
about 544 billion dollars for job-creating investment projects, health industry
improvements, expanded aid for the poor and unemployed, and improving
education. Full story
