by Christi Parsons and James Janega
CHICAGO--Decrying a lack of "adult supervision" in American society, President-elect Barack Obama this morning vowed to try and clean up the worlds of politics and finance and called on others to take seriously their own responsibility to "operate honorably."
Part of the solution is looking for common ground, he said, as when he asked the evangelical conservative Rick Warren - with whom he differs on some key social issues - to give the invocation at his inauguration.
"We're not going to agree on every single issue," Obama said in a morning news conference. "What we have to do is create an atmosphere where we can disagree without being disagreeable, and focus on those things we hold in common."
People are feeling frustrated by a mentality governed by the principle that, as he put it, "Whatever is good for me, I do."
The homily came at the end of the formal announcement of three key members of his economic team, a panel he says he is charging with the mission of overhauling the financial regulatory system.
Obama named Mary Schapiro, current head of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, to serve as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. He appointed former Treasury official Gary Gensler to chair the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Georgetown law professor Dan Tarullo to serve as a governor on the Federal Reserve Board.
Obama blamed regulatory agencies and Congressional committees who failed to head off or minimize the current financial crisis, and pointed to the track records of his newest appointees as signs of the crackdown to come.
In response to questions from reporters, he also broadened his message to apply to a range of social institutions - and to individuals across the board.
"I think the American people right now are feeling frustrated. There's not a lot of adult supervision out there, whether it's in the political world or the financial world," Obama said.
He called for "a restoration of a sense of responsibility, that all of us have responsibilities to operate honorably," and the notions of "advocating not just for ourselves, but what's good for the country . . . .operating not just out of greed, but operating out of a sense for the common good."
With the appointments unveiled this morning, Obama has almost finished laying out his Cabinet and key advisory slate. He plans to have the task substantially complete before leaving for his Christmas holiday in Hawaii on Saturday.
Comments
Christi....great topic, but could've used more meat. I've seen longer articles here about dogs and bowling alleys than this short 4 paragraphs that you wrote. It's like a starving man only being allowed to smell the steak being cooked.
Posted by: Xcellentform | December 18, 2008 11:46 AM
At least we have a start in the right direction !! No more " fundamentally sound " or " a nation of whiners ", running things !! That bag of losers should have to pay a fine, according to their largess, they helped themselves to, since the Bush-Cheney reign of Error, began !!
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS, BRING THEM HOME, ALIVE, WHOLE. NOW.
Posted by: Don Fitzgerald, Chicago | December 18, 2008 11:55 AM
No Blagos! No Sterns! No Boniers! Jennifer Granholm is going to be a great Secretary of Labor!
Posted by: No Depression! | December 18, 2008 12:21 PM
Hey -- and we can sure believe Obama because he's done such a GOOD job standing up to corruption in Chicago. Look how he took on Todd Stroger! And Blago! And Daley!
Oh, that's right. He backed them all.
And we're supposed to believe he'll stand up to the entrenched powers of Washington? Please. I'm not that stupid.
Posted by: Beth | December 18, 2008 1:10 PM
Thanks Christi for the rewrite. There's hope for you guys yet!! LOL!
Posted by: Xcellentform | December 18, 2008 1:21 PM
Beth,
I want to give him the benefit of the doubt until he proves otherwise. So long as he does not elevate the self-interest of special interest lobbyists like those seeking to unionize employees without secret-ballot elections, I will take him at his word that his constituency consists of every individual American; not just the collectivist power brokers who sucked union employees dry in an attempt to buy easier revenue streams, that is, new dues and political contributions from the 93% of private employees not in unions.
Posted by: No Depression! | December 18, 2008 1:27 PM
Ooops! Never mind....
"Surprising Labor Selection
Ms. [Hilda] Solis's selection surprised labor watchers, but won quick praise. She sits on the board of American Rights at Work, an organization backed by a broad swath of unions that pushes workplace issues, especially legislation to ease union organizing.
"She is terrific," said former Rep. David Bonior, the head of the group and an Obama adviser on labor issues. He said Ms. Solis "will be a great champion for working people."
Still, she isn't the prominent figure that many unions had wanted. Mr. Bonior was an early front-runner but took his name out of the running. Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm declined the post this week, saying she did not want to give up the governorship at such a critical time.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122962497170718923.html
Posted by: No! Depression | December 18, 2008 2:54 PM
What the new Congress needs to do is extend the criminal statutes of limitation, add an extra 5 years.
It's about to run out on the earlier hanky panky of the Bush administration.
Posted by: ornery | December 19, 2008 11:12 PM