by Frank James
"It is time to act. As the next president of the United States, I will."
That's how President-elect Barack Obama ends his weekly address today, a short speech in which he says that he has asked his economic team to draft a plan that would create 2.5 million jobs by the start of 2011 in an effort to give lift to an economy that has stalled.
This address indicates a subtle shift in Obama's strategy. Until now, his team has stuck with the "we only have one president at a time" theme.
But in this address, made with Obama sitting in front of a presidential backdrop that has much more of an Oval Office feel than the setting he used earlier this week, Obama says he's pleased Congress acted to pass the extension to unemployment insurance.
Of course, there was little doubt the Democratic-controlled Congress would pass the extension. What was in doubt was whether President Bush would sign it, which he did.
But Obama doesn't mention Bush at all. He's clearly trying to point the nation's attention forward, to say the future will be better when he is president, which isn't very far away. By conjuring the trappings of a presidential address, he's attempting to communicate that he's taken charge already, at least as much as he can.
Bush has lost his power to sway or inspire the nation. Everyone knows he's a short-time just filling out his term. Many have complained that there is a power vacuum in what feels like an interregnum
What Obama is clearly trying to communicate is that he may not be officially the president yet. So he can't sign legislation or execute the powers of commander-in-chief.
But he can assume the persuasive power of the presidency before he gets there. He's come to the realization that he doesn't have to be in the actual Oval Office to start using the bully pulpit.
So a nation looking for leadership, searching for emotional sustenance can now turn to him, even though he doesn't get the keys to the kingdom until Jan. 20.
Confidence is mostly about the future, do we expect it to be better than the present. Obama's message is, the future is now.
Comments
Obama "asks his economic team to draft a plan" to create "2.5 million" new jobs?
You mean he made all these campaign promises about creating jobs, but never had a plan?
You mean he's served in the senate 4 years, but never came up with a plan?
He could "act" now, by having his fellow Democrats introduce legislation in Congress. But he doesn't.
He could have introduced legislation to "create" jobs anytime in the last year, assuming that government is capable of creating any jobs. But he didn't.
What a joke.
Posted by: Obama forever! | November 22, 2008 9:00 AM
Let's assume he means net jobs - that is about 100,000 per month - not great job growth. He will basically re-add what has been lost this year - plus a little more. The key will be, how he "creates" these jobs - are they gov't sponsored "keep busy" jobs or are they created thru smart fisacl and tax incentives thru the private sector.
Posted by: Terry | November 22, 2008 9:35 AM
Thank you for posting this, Frank.
This is brilliant.
What bothers me, however is some of the misinformation from the Detroit financial press (suffering from Stockholm Syndrome?) about the bailout.
Even Michael Moore doesn't get it.
We must not let GM go under in what would certainly be the shortest bankruptcy ever seen. Why? Because all the SMALL COMPANIES AND ADJACENT INDUSTRIES WOULD CRASH THE ECONOMY RIGHT AS BARACK OBAMA TAKES OFFICE. (What the financial industry did to Dennis Kucinich while Mayor of Cleveland will seem mild compared to what they're getting ready to do to Barack Obama)..
The evil behavior was so overt as to be something straight out of Hollywood (arriving on private jets?) and, I believe, engineered to engender the recoil response of 'liberal' Democrats. Even Michael Moore was fooled by this.
Yes, long term, we need to get rid of Detroit management and put such strong incentives or rules upon the industry that they will:
a. be forced to resurrect the 160 mile between charge version of the electric car (ala Who Killed The Electric Car );
b. release all the patents their companies, subsidiaries, or executives have purchased in order to squelch true competition and innovation in the areas of transportation, energy generation and delivery;
c. Manufacture light rail and restore the Milwaukee Road (a series of dams provided electric power for trains from Chicago to the West Coast. The railroad was in the red. GM stacked their corporate board and made them convert to GM -made diesel engines.
I think there are ways to convert the manufacturing power in a clean, sustainable, union-job manner. But if we let ALL our factories go, and become a true basket case economy, we may not be able to re-achieve 'economic takeoff' AND restore our democracy at the same time.
I think Obama gets it.
I do not think our media does.
Not yet.
Posted by: Lisa Barr | November 22, 2008 9:44 AM
Now, if we can figure out a sensible way to have the present occupant of our White House, vacate the premises. He is, and has been, taking up space and depositing, all of his paychecks, though, he should be returning them. You know, taking money under false pretenses !! He hasn't earned a paycheck in 8 years, but, in a very morbid sort of way, it has been entertaining to watch such incompetence dance upon the stage !! Is there anyway that we can force President Bush and Secretary Paulson to fork over their paychecks and personal wealth, which I understand is considerable, towards the bailout of our entire economy !! Never have the infamous, and largely exaggerated, " Welfare King " or "Welfare Queen' so voraciously attacked our Treasury, as has the Corporations and the NeoCons, in the last 8 years !! These scoundrels and scallywags have shown many of our citizenry how to steal and get away with it !! Free trade, free market, capitalism, free enterprise, level playing field, rescue plans, risk management, what a collection of meaningless phrases and cliches!!? Intended to hoodwink, and bully, the taxpayer, into supporting the rankest kind of animal; the hypocrite, the cheat, the moocher !! Come on, America, I'm sure you could find a few superlatives that you can add to the list, which would be used to describe those miserable Americans that violated our trust and destroyed our children's futures !! That's the least we could do for them after all they have done to us, to our nation and economy !! Man, that President Bush was quite the leader, wasn't he !!???
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS, BRING THEM HOME, ALIVE AND WHOLE. NOW.
Posted by: Don Fitzgerald, Chicago | November 22, 2008 10:12 AM
What Obama does need to remember is he was right (for a change...) the first time: there IS only one president at a time and -- guess what! -- it's not him yet.
But his ego won't let him go into the background, where he should be. God help us all...
Posted by: sick of obama | November 22, 2008 1:04 PM
I do not know why conservatives have such a hard time comprehending what the situation is right now. There are no sources for lending, even to credit worthy customers. Right now tax incentives are worthless. Get with the times. You are living in the past. Until these credit default swaps are unwound we are going to be tied up in knots.
I find it infuriating that a conservative complains about 100,000 new job when that it 80% higher than what it has been during the average of the entire Bush administration.
Would I ever love to be back in the 90's and be able to redo the past 8 years but we have to live with the hand we are dealt with and the bulk of the country is not will to finance to growth of low paying service sector jobs that grow at a rate of less than 100K per month.
A bear market of this severity is telling anyone who is willing to listen that this economy has changed and the leaders of the next bull market will be different than the ones of the past. The tax cuts of the future will be given only to the job producers and those jobs will only come when this current crisis has resolved.
Posted by: Ron M | November 22, 2008 3:44 PM
Mr Obama gave President Bush an opportunity to act. Bush got the message that it was time to change and he has been a slug when it comes to action. The financial markets need someone to act, the recent move towards deflation was a wake up call to the president. Since Bush is a deer caught in the headlights someone needed to act. Obama's action in late January is better than no action at all. I am sure that Obama made his view on the economy to Bush and Bush chose to ignore that. So the markets fell.
Obama spoke up not because of his ego but because there is a leadership gap that was present in this country since the day Bush took office. Obama was doing the best that he could and the clueless conservatives who always have an excuse for why things went wrong on their watch blame Obama for acting like president when no one was before he acted. I presume the markets will like this. But if Bush does not get off his duff the markets will be back to the state of indigestion in a matter of weeks.
Posted by: Ron M | November 22, 2008 4:07 PM
To all you people who think Bush should just step aside (and I did not vote for Bush either time!) -- Guess what! Just because you don't like what Bush is doing does NOT mean Obama gets to take office sooner! I have read this over and over and it is absoltely ridiculous. All presidents get their terms, and Obama's starts on Jan. 20, and not a minute sooner.
Posted by: Liz | November 23, 2008 12:30 AM
Neither Obama nor any one here is saying Bush should step aside. But I see nothing wrong with complaining about Bush behaving like he is cataplectic.
Posted by: Ron M | November 23, 2008 1:52 PM
I don't remember in the past, a president-elect acting so pompous such as OB. Swamp, please make sure the seal of president-elect of America is always visible on his podium, lest you get unpleasant letters from his fans.
Posted by: eva | November 28, 2008 3:50 AM