By GottaLaff
UPDATE:
Obama underscored the openness of his events today at the town hall: "Here's the deal on questions: First of all, we didn't screen anybody, so there's some people who like me in the audience, some people that don't, some people agree with me, some people who don't. It doesn't matter. We want to take questions from everybody"Compare that to Bush's sign-your-allegiance-to-me-in-blood-before-you-enter policy.
Original post:
Prez O is on the Tee Vee Machine right now, conducting a town hall meeting in Elkhart, Indiana. He got a very warm reception, and the first real applause line was:
"I intend to keep my promise."The next was:
"The American people rejected those ideas because they didn't work.... You sent us their to change things... to act quickly and boldly, and that's what I intend to do as the President of the United States of America."He went on to say, nobody's looking for a handout, people are looking to work.
I'll be updating. Keep refreshing.
Thank you, Prez O, for acknowledging that COBRA is too expensive. It's costing my family $20,000 a year.
He is pitching the various benefits and details of his recovery plan, which include health care, education, infrastructure, energy production, etc. Projects that put people to work, "the gift that keeps on giving." Creating infrastructure for jobs in the future, not just short term.
The plan, he says, is not perfect, but is the right size, scope, has the right priorities to jump start the economy.
He is not 100% certain that everything will work exactly as he hopes, but he says with complete confidence that delay will bring deepening disaster. "Doing nothing is not an option."
"I know you'll be doing your part, it's about time the government does its part, too."Time for questions for about 40 minutes. Boy girl boy girl, to be fair.
Q: When you allocate the money for Indiana, will it come directly to Elkhart, or around somewhere else?
A: We gotta get the bill passed, but also make sure the money is well spent. It has to get out quickly and wisely. We're setting up a board, Ds and Rs, to review how the money is spent. Point 2: We're setting up Recovery dot Gov that gives you a report on how the money is spent in your community. If you see a project isn't working, you can get on the site and give feedback. That will help track how it's spent. How it's used, etc. will depend on aspects of the plan. Some will go to the state gov't. (unemployment insurance, for example). Other projects (like transportation), they'd work directly with municipalities/communities as well as the state. Same with education. The key: Strong oversight and strong transparency. No earmarks. None.
Q: We need to trickle up, not down. The money should go to people whose homes were foreclosed on, for example. I hope you'll support the people who got you into office, we the people, not the fat cats. Put the money in our hands.
A: (his mic just went out) First, tax cuts: You're exactly right. I've been pushing that tax cuts go to working families. Next, the financial system: This plan in front of Congress is just one leg in the stool of recovery. The other thing is getting the banks stable and lending again. We want to set up a whole new mechanism to help you get credit, instead of pumping $ into Wall St., let it go to consumers. Taxpayers can't bail out banks who have made bad decisions, who use the $ for huge bonuses. So no bonuses until they pay taxpayers back. No corporate jets, junkets, etc. There has to be accountability.
Q: You've asked us to trust you, but your cabinet members aren't trustworthy. (she gets booed but he lets her talk)
A: I appointed hundreds of people, all outstanding. There are a couple who had problems before they came into my administration, with their taxes. That's a legitimate concern. Those at issue, I know them personally, and I made sure they were honest mistakes beforehand. If you're not going to appoint people who have never made a mistake, you'll have nobody. But having said that, I acknowledged publicly on every TV station. I made a mistake. I don't want to send the signal that there are two sets of rules. But, we've set up an unprecedented set of ethics rules in my White House. The highest standard EVER for lobbyists not working in my administration... Rs and Ds have acknowledged we set a high bar... not perfect, but changing Washington will take time. Hannity's opinion of me is not very high, but I'm always good for a beer.
Q: (from a local attorney) Green jobs... retooling this area... Are there provisions that address that?
A: Absolutely. We would double the production of alternative energy. 2: There's $ to develop new battery technology for cars and RVs to move into the next generation of plug-in hybrids. 3: Money for the weatherization of millions of homes across the country. There's a multiplier effect here... by doing that, the owner gets lower energy bills, people go back to work... train young people as apprentices for home construction... and you reduce energy costs nationally. This has been criticized as pork! They say, that's policy, not stimulus. But I say, if we spend billions to create jobs anyway, why not create them in clean energy that help over the long term? That's common sense to me. Especially in the midwest. The auto industry is so important here, if we don't use this crisis as an opportunity, we won't be able to compete with overseas automakers. This is an opportunity to retool. This is a BIG priority over the next few days. This is one of the best possible investments we can make.
Another area of criticism: We should improve information technology in the health care system. That will create jobs immediately, and it will put everyone's records in a computerized form that will reduce medical errors and costs. Critics say that's a social policy, not stimulus.
Q: Judges can madate a change for mortgages... will that pass? Foreclosure issues:
A: We have to give homeowners help. Foreclosures have gone up. It's both a cause and effect of the downturn. We'll unveil a series of plans to help foreclosure homeowners, but also those with devalued homes, so the mortgages are worth more than the loan, so refinancing is difficult. In a separate package: If you have more than one home and you go bankrupt, then the judge can modify the terms of your mortgage on those other homes. You'd still be able to protect those homes. BUT, if you're like most people who own ONE house... (I'm just borrowing the one in D.C., in the People's House... my house in on the south side of Chicago), under current law, you can't modify that mortgage if you're in bankruptcy. The judge is not authorized to modify the loan. That makes no sense, it forces people into foreclosure. Making some payments is better than none. That will be part of our housing package. It's another leg of the stool.
Q: (manufactures solar attic fans) I've been encouraged to go to China, I said no. We're running dream companies right now, keeping jobs here. We need a more friendly environment from the utility companies. I get no tax benefits for being green. There's no incentive.
A: 1: We need to pass a renewable energy standard to get the utilities to get 15-20% of energy from renewable sources. That will help the businesses count on a solid market. That sector will grow as a result. 2: We should provide tax credits/loan guarantees to renewable energy. 3: Work with utilities to do what some are doing in CA... The utility can make money on what they sell, and how much energy the customer saves. You sell the energy back that you don't use, so everyone is rewarded. 4: (this will take longer) Improve basic science, research, development.
The country that figures out how to make clean, cheaper energy will win the competition in the future. That should be us.
Q: What will you do about enticing companies to stay here in the U.S?
A: We have the most productive workers, best universities and colleges, the most dynamic economy, most innovative economy, so we can compete against anyone. But we have problems in investing in what keeps us competitive... Education is the key. We need to train our work force well. Create new labs, retrain our teachers, revamp our community colleges. The Senate version cut a lot of these education dollars, I'd like to see them restored.
Q: (9 years old) What will you do to help our schools?
A: I just started talking about that, but we need to rebuild them. And make sure to train new teachers, retrain existing ones. Reform how we do business in the schools. No Child Left Behind needs to be reworked. We can put as much money as we want in, but parents need to be involved, instill a sense of excellence in their kids. Young people like you will have to work a little harder.
.jpg)