Yesterday's news outlets emphasized the apparent good will between President Bush and President-elect Obama during their meeting. The White House described the discussions as "constructive, relaxed, and friendly." Twenty-four hours later, however, things have changed. AFP notes that yesterday's New York Times "cited unnamed sources as saying the president may agree to new funding for troubled US automakers and a new economic stimulus package if Democrats pass a Colombia free trade pact which is stalled in Congress." The CBS Evening News detected "signs of possible bad blood between the Bush and Obama camps." Fox News' Special Report reported, "What started out as a courtesy call has developed into a controversy. ... White House aides were fuming over the Obama camp's description of the private Oval Office meeting Monday. Leaks to several reporters made for front page headlines characterizing...Obama as urging...Bush to help struggling automakers and...Bush replying that he might consider it if Democrats dropped their opposition to a Colombia free trade agreement the administration supports. Senior White House aides told Fox the leaks were 'flat wrong' and 'disappointing,' saying the private meeting should have remained private."
Roll Call, in a story headlined "Obama Camp Looks To Avoid Bush Rift," says "the White House today heatedly denied that the statement was made, and Bush administration officials are said to be unhappy that details of the conversation were leaked -- seemingly by the Obama camp." Yesterday's Washington Post, in its print edition, "cited a senior Obama aide as the source, but by this afternoon the Web site version was quoting knowledgeable sources." CNN's The Situation Room reported, "We are told by both sides, there was no explicit tit for tat. The Financial Times notes White House press secretary Dana Perino "acknowledged trade was discussed during the meeting...but denied that any 'quid pro quo' was offered." ABC World News also said "Obama's team spent some of the day in a dispute with the White House over details of yesterdays meeting."
The Washington Times quotes John Podesta, "who is overseeing the Obama transition," as saying that "while the topic of Colombia came up, there was no quid pro quo in the conversation. ... The president did not try to link the issue of Colombia to an economic recovery package." Podesta "called White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten on Tuesday to discuss a leak from within the Obama camp that gave details of a conversation between Mr. Obama and Mr. Bush." The Detroit News also notes Podesta said the Columbia Free Trade Agreement "should be dealt with on its own merits." The Financial Times and The Hill run similar reports.
Bush "Very Pleased" CNN's The Situation Room yesterday aired CNN's Heidi Collins' "exclusive interview" with President Bush. Bush, describing his meeting with Obama, was shown saying, "To the extent he asked my advice, and he may want to ask it again, and the best way to make sure he feels comfortable asking it again is for me not to tell you in the first place what I advised him. We had a very private conversation. It was relaxed. It was interesting to watch a person who is getting ready to assume the office of the President. ... He didn't need my advice about supporting the military. He knows he must do that. We had a good conversation. I was very pleased."
Obama Wants Detroit Reform Point Person According to The Politico, Obama "wants a high-profile point person to oversee reforms in the ailing auto industry, according to members of Obama's transition team." His transition team says Obama "suggested to...Bush...that aid to the auto industry could be coupled with the appointment of 'someone in charge of the auto issue who would have the authority' to push for reforms. The details came from a more extended readout of the White House meeting provided Tuesday." The Wall Street Journal, meanwhile, reports Obama has "ordered his transition team to look at ways to aid the car industry even before his inauguration."
In what the New York Times is calling Congressional Democrats' "one last showdown with President Bush," NBC Nightly News reported "Capitol Hill is ready to step up with billions in financial aid. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will present Congress with a financial bailout aimed at keeping the Big Three from stalling." According to the CBS Evening News, "Everyone agrees the clock is ticking for Detroit and the casualties are already mounting." ABC World News reported that the bailout "could cost taxpayers up to $75 billion." However, added ABC, "letting a big automaker fail could cost the American economy $175 billion in lost income and taxes the first year alone."
The Washington Post reports the House "will convene next week to vote on a plan to provide emergency cash to the nation's battered automobile industry," but "a federal bailout for Detroit faces an uphill battle in the Senate and an uncertain fate at the White House." Pelosi "did not spell out details of the proposal" but said House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank will "work with lawmakers in both chambers to craft the measure." Bloomberg News reports Pelosi said "any aid to the automakers would come with conditions. She didn't specify the level of assistance she supports, but said it should come from the $700 billion Congress authorized the Treasury to use to help stabilize the financial services industry." The AP says Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid "also supports help for the industry, and he issued a statement saying Democrats were 'determined to pass legislation that will save the jobs of millions' as part of a postelection session."
The Detroit Free Press reports Michigan Sen. Carl Levin "said the amendment to the $700 billion financial industry bailout would specify $25 billion in loans to help automakers survive the economic downturn." While the "request for an additional $25 billion for health care costs of retirees is not in Levin's draft, the UAW said it would continue to press for those loans as well." USA Today and The Washington Times run similar stories. Fox News' Special Report reported that "when asked what would happen if one of the US Automakers filed for chapter 11 and then reorganized, top Democrats worried aloud about a possible liquidation and said that approach would give management an advantage over labor, something they will not permit." On its front page, the Washington Post reports, "As General Motors burns through cash, edging its way toward possible financial collapse, a growing number of analysts have said bankruptcy might be inevitable." The Post adds that "without a loan, GM is in danger of running out of cash. It is going through $2.3 billion a month, up from $1 billion a month earlier this year."
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On ABC World News, George Stephanopoulos said, "No final decisions have been made" by President-elect Obama, but "he's hearing from private sector economists and some members of his economic advisory team that Congress should consider, and he should sign a far broader package than anyone has discussed yet to date, instead of $300 billion, which had been the upper limit, they're now talking about $500 billion, which is three to four percent of GDP." The package would include "infrastructure, roads and bridges, tax cuts, investments of so-called green jobs, alternative energy, unemployment extensions, and other aid to state and local governments. The big question is, how do you get this stimulus without making it permanent spending that increases the deficit over the long-term?"
Obama Economic Plan Inspires Confidence The AP reports, "Seven in 10, or 72 percent, voice confidence the president-elect will make the changes needed to revive the stalling economy, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll released Tuesday. Underscoring how widely the public is counting on its new leader, 44 percent of Republicans joined nearly all Democrats and most independents in expressing that belief." The CBS Evening News reported that a CBS News poll "says 71% of Americans feel optimistic about the next four years with Mr. Obama as president. Only 17% are pessimistic. 78% have at least some confidence that he will make right decisions about the economy."
The Washington Post reports on its front page, "The nation's top two intelligence officers expect to be replaced by President-elect Barack Obama early in his administration." The Post adds "a number of influential congressional Democrats oppose keeping Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell and CIA Director Michael V. Hayden in their posts because both have publicly supported controversial Bush administration policies on interrogation and telephone surveillance. One Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee said there is a 'consensus' view on the matter."
Anti-War Democrats Want Gates Out The Politico reports, "Arms control advocates and anti-war activists are ratcheting up pressure on President-elect Barack Obama to dump Defense Secretary Robert Gates and replace him with a more strident anti-war voice. Nominating Gates to stay, 'would be a violation of the mandate for change that Obama says he represents,' said Medea Benjamin, cofounder of the anti-war group CodePink." The Politico adds that these activists say "a better bipartisan fit for Obama, they say, is Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), who brings out what they like about Gates his ability to deal with Russia, Iran and Syria without the direct link to Bush's policies."
The Washington Post reports, "The Obama administration will launch a review of the classified files of the approximately 250 detainees at Guantanamo Bay immediately after taking office, as part of an intensive effort to close the US prison in Cuba." AFP quotes Obama transition co-chair John Podesta as saying, "Senator Obama has said that he intends to close the facility at Guantanamo, that's a complicated matter. ... It's under review." The Financial Times reports that the ACLU "has called on him to act," as has Human Rights Watch.
NBC Nightly News reported, "The Obama team announced a plan" Tuesday "to extend some of the campaign's rules on lobbyists to the transition effort itself. Federal lobbyists will be barred from contributing to the transition, lobbying while working for the transition and trying to influence the future Administration on any issues they work on while employed by the Obama transition team."
The announcement is receiving overwhelmingly positive media coverage this morning. The Washington Post reports, "Obama campaigned as an anti-Washington candidate, and the leader of his presidential transition team made it clear that the president-elect would seek to build on that theme over the next two months." USA Today refers to "strict new ethics rules," and quotes Obama transition co-chair John Podesta calling them "the strictest ethics rules ever applied." The Politico says Obama is "carrying over the anti-lobbying tenets that defined the campaign," while McClatchy says that with the move, Obama is "following through on a campaign pledge to reduce the influence of special interests on policymaking." The Hill quotes Norm Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute saying, "As much as anything, this ethics policy is a statement about the tone and tenor of the Obama administration. It is a good sign."
The New York Times, however, reports "the new rules do seem to leave some wiggle room. Aides to Mr. Obama, who declared during the campaign that lobbyists would not 'find a job in my White House,' said the guidelines allowed for lobbyists to work on the transition in areas where they have not done any lobbying." Moreover, "the rules apply to lobbyists who must register with the federal government; many people who work for lobbying firms or in other areas of the influence business in Washington do not have to register, because they do not personally lobby federal officials on specific issues." The Wall Street Journal also notes Podesta also said the "policy hasn't been set on the fund that will help raise money for Mr. Obama's inauguration events."
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In an appearance on the Tonight Show last night, Sen. John McCain said Gov. Sarah Palin was a boon to his campaign, despite a number of harsh anonymous stories allegedly from his campaign staff. McCain said, "I'm so proud of her and I'm very grateful she agreed to run with me. She inspired people, she still does," adding, "I couldn't be happier with Sarah Palin." The Politico adds, "In keeping with the Veteran's Day creed of remaining a 'good soldier,' McCain refused to place any blame for his loss on Palin and offered several familiar refrains about his running mate and the campaign." The Washington Post reports, "Asked by host Jay Leno about criticism of Palin by unnamed McCain campaign aides, McCain suggested that such carping amounted to sour grapes from people claiming to be campaign insiders. 'I think I have at least a thousand, quote, "top advisers,"' he said." The New York Post reports that McCain "took full responsibility for the campaign's failure, saying, 'The one thing Americans don't want is a sore loser.'"
The New York Times says McCain also "praised President-elect Barack Obama as inspiring 'millions of young people' and echoed the call for unity from his concession speech: 'Now it's time for America to join together and support the man who was just elected president.'"
NBC Nightly News reported last night that Republican governors are meeting in Miami "to debate what went wrong and who will lead them out of the wilderness," and at the event will be a number of potential 2012 candidates, including "rising stars" like Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, along with "former candidates Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee, now hosting a talk show." The Washington Times reports from Miami that Gov. Sarah Palin "is one of the Republican governors gathering here to plot a way back to the White House and a congressional majority - and to search for a national party face to spar with the incoming Obama administration."
Following two cycles of significant losses, a battle is brewing that will determine who will run the Republican National Committee going forward. The Louisville Courier-Journal reports this morning that the current chairman, Robert Duncan, is undecided on whether to seek to hold on to the job, saying "he will talk to the committee's 168 members before deciding whether to seek another term, and he wouldn't give a time frame for his decision." A number of potential candidates are emerging. The Washington Times reports a "behind-the-scenes battle" has started between former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele. The Times adds, "Neither man will acknowledge his interest in the post, but Republicans close to each are burning up the phone lines and firing off e-mails to fellow party members in an effort to oust" Duncan. The Tennessean, meanwhile, reports today that former Sen. Fred Thompson "seems to be seriously considering a run," which "would make the former actor (the) public face of the GOP."
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According to The Politico, the Federal Election Commission "is unlikely to conduct a potentially embarrassing audit of how Barack Obama raised and spent his presidential campaign's record-shattering windfall, despite allegations of questionable donations and accounting that had the McCain campaign crying foul. Adding insult to injury for Republicans: The FEC is obligated to complete a rigorous audit of McCain's campaign coffers, which will take months, if not years, and cost McCain millions of dollars to defend."
With a runoff election set for December 2 in the Georgia Senate contest between Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R) and challenger Jim Martin (D), national figures from both parties are moving in to do battle. USA Today reports this morning that Sen. John McCain "is scheduled to visit Georgia on Thursday to campaign for" Chambliss, "and Sarah Palin may not be far behind." Meanwhile, Martin "has asked" Obama "to campaign for him, Martin spokesman Matt Canter said." Even if Obama can't make it, the AP reports, "Aides who worked in Barack Obama's presidential campaign are heading to Georgia to" aid Martin, adding, "The sources, speaking only on condition of anonymity on a matter of campaign strategy, said about 100 Obama field operatives will help with Martin's grass roots turnout in the three weeks left."
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Jay Leno: "President Bush and Barack Obama had their big meeting yesterday. And to tell you the truth, they found with all their differences, they had one thing in common. Neither one of them trust the Clintons."
Jay Leno: "There's a new rumor that Hillary Clinton may end up Secretary of State, which means she would have to spend the next four years traveling all around the world, to which Bill said, 'Yes!'"
Jay Leno: "Speaking of young blood, we are very excited. Senator John McCain on the show tonight. And I thought this was very nice. He blew off an interview with Katie Couric to be here."
David Letterman: "Today is Veterans Day. John McCain laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Plumber."
David Letterman: "John McCain is great, by the way. He's back at his full-time job, yelling at people who park in front of his house."
Jimmy Kimmel: "Obama said his favorite part of the tour was when the President showed him the secret dial under his desk that he uses to control the price of gasoline."
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