To extensive and largely favorable media coverage, President Obama yesterday outlined his housing relief plan at a high school in Mesa, Arizona. The story led all three network newscasts last night, and is featured on the front pages of newspapers across the country. The AP calls the plan "a $75 billion lifeline to millions of Americans on the brink of foreclosure." The CBS Evening News said Obama "is throwing a lifeline to millions of homeowners struggling to pay their mortgages or at risk of outright foreclosure." NBC Nightly News reported, "The basic goal of the plan is to help homeowners who owe more than their house is worth, need to refinance, but can't get a new loan."
Similarly, CNN's The Situation Room reported, "Reaching into his doctor's bag, the President pulled out some medicine that he says will help cure the ailing housing market." The East Valley Tribune notes Obama delivered his "24-minute speech at Mesa's Dobson High School Wednesday morning," and the Arizona Republic says "Obama delivered hope Wednesday to millions of uneasy homeowners in Arizona and around the country," hoping "to instill confidence in economically anxious Americans." The Wall Street Journal says on its front page that the plan amounts to "the most significant move to aid homeowners since the housing crisis began." The Washington Times titles its story "Obama's Homeowner Aid Swells To $275 Billion," noting the plan is "far more expensive than the $50 billion the administration initially suggested." Similar reporting can be found at The Politico, the New York Times, the Arizona Republic, the Chicago Tribune, the Christian Science Monitor, the Financial Times, the New York Daily News, and AFP.
The Wall Street Journal reports the plan "received the expected response on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, with Republicans wary of the scope of the proposal and Democrats heralding its ambition." The Hill reports "a number of Democrats issued statements support Obama's plan, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who signaled she would move on cramdown legislation." USA Today and the Washington Post also report the political reaction.
Newspaper opinion pieces also tend to break along predictable lines. The Washington Post (2/19, says in an editorial that in "tailoring his plan to those deemed most deserving and capable, Mr. Obama necessarily reduced its potential impact." Whereas, the Wall Street Journal says, "By investing in failure, the Administration will also prolong the housing downturn and make financing a home purchase more difficult for future borrowers." The New York Times says it is "a good start, but given the dire state of the economy, we fear it still may not be enough."
Meanwhile, the New York Times notes that "a trend is emerging in...Obama's out-of-the-gate travel itinerary: Top billing has been given to states that turned from red to blue in the fall." On 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Jeff Zeleny of the New York Times said, "It was striking that, A, the president was in Arizona to announce this, which is a state that Democrats have had their eyes on for a long time."
Government Doubles Commitment To Fannie, Freddie The Washington Post reports that as part of the President's foreclosure relief plan, the Federal Government on Wednesday "doubled its commitment to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, promising to reimburse the companies for up to $400 billion in losses on their investments in mortgage loans." Fox News Special Report reported critics of the President's mortgage relief plan "denounce the return of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac."
President Obama this week will meet with members of his auto industry task force as the White House warned the carmakers that there would be limits to what they could expect from the federal government. The Detroit Free Press reports the White House "warned late Wednesday that aid for any industry was not a 'bottomless pit.'" White House spokesman Robert Gibbs "told reporters on Air Force One that Obama had already been briefed on parts of the plans, and that the Treasury Department was exploring the details of the plans with the automakers." NBC Nightly News, the only network newscast to report on the Detroit automakers last night, sent "Digital Journalist Mara Schiavocampo...to Detroit to get the view from those whose lives revolve around the car business."
CNN's The Situation Room reported some analysts who "track the industry say the turnaround plans laid out by the automakers stop just short of declaring failure." The Washington Post says "the ball is now the Obama administration's court. The president's task force is reviewing the automakers' restructuring plans this week and must decide whether to provide further help to the companies."
Another Washington Post piece notes "car industry analysts and economists say the broad economic stimulus bill signed this week by...Obama offers little to revive the stalled new-car market in the United States, potentially complicating federal plans to rescue Detroit automakers." The Washington Times says the Administration "has a fundamental choice: make a commitment like other countries to invest in the nation's auto industry to keep it viable or not. ... While the companies made impassioned pitches for more rescue money, some wonder whether Americans are not on the edge of what experts are calling 'bailout fatigue' as the government has already stuck a hand out to the US banking industry, with little stipulation on how to use the money."
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Asked in a Rolling Stone interview if she foresees "a scenario in which senior members of the Bush administration are actually prosecuted," Pelosi said, "I think so. The American people deserve answers. Where we are now, in terms of prosecution of White House staff, is that we have charged them with contempt of Congress. We're talking about Harriet Miers, Josh Bolten and Karl Rove." Asked about high-level officials such as former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the "people who authorized torture and greenlighted the kidnapping and rendition of innocent people," Pelosi said, "I didn't like their policies, which is why we needed to win the election - to get them out of power. But I don't know what the evidence is against them on any specific charge."
On 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Rolling Stone's Tim Dickinson said, "Well, she sort of started out trying to do this Obama two step, where you say, no one's above the law, but we need to look forward. But by the end of our conversation, she was really endorsing the sort of truth and reconciliation commission approach that's been put forth by both Leahy in the Senate and by Conyers in the House. ... I think she really did get ahead of the President on that front."
On its "Global News" blog, the Christian Science Monitor reports that the "confirmation Wednesday that Pakistan allowed the CIA to build a secret airbase in southern Pakistan to launch drone attacks inside Pakistani territory has lifted the lid on what had become an open secret in official circles." It notes that the Times of London reports today that "the Shamsi airbase is located in a remote region in Pakistan's southwestern province of Baluchistan" and is "within reach of militants in Baluchistan, southern Afghanistan and in Pakistan's northern tribal areas." The Times and Pakistan's The News note "that the base can be viewed on Google Earth."
Fox News also reports the story on its website citing the Times of London, and, in its "Inside The Ring" column, the Washington Times also reports on criticism of Sen. Dianne Feinstein for revealing Pakistani support of the bases during testimony from DNI Dennis Blair last week.
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Reports from a variety of media indicate that Illinois Sen. Roland Burris is losing support among key members of his own party. NBC Nightly News, the only network newscast to report the story, said last night Sen. Roland Burris "is on the defensive and for good reason." The Chicago Tribune notes Burris' Illinois colleague, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, said yesterday, "At this point, his future in the Senate seat is in question." In Nevada, Majority Leader Harry Reid "said he would withhold judgment until a perjury review by the county prosecutor in Springfield and a preliminary inquiry by the Senate Ethics Committee in Washington."
Under the headline "Dems Abandon Burris," The Politico reports the senator "is rapidly losing any political support he once had among colleagues, with Democrats from the statehouse to the White House raising questions about his entanglements with" former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. With the AP focusing on Durbin's comments, The Hill reports "Rep. Phil Hare (D-Ill.) has called on...Burris...to resign, becoming the first member of Congress to call on the appointee to give up his seat." The Washington Post reports "Laura Washington, a DePaul University professor and Chicago Sun-Times columnist, said that many African American politicians in Chicago have abandoned Burris, despite their early support when the Senate initially refused to seat him."
Under the headline "Senate Not Likely To Oust Roland Burris Anytime Soon," however, the Los Angeles Times says "the Senate rarely expels its own members. ... It takes a vote of two-thirds of the senators to oust a member, and the last senators to be formally expelled were charged with supporting the rebels during the Civil War." Roll Call reports Burris "has canceled his public appearances Thursday but hopes to resume his listening tour of the state Friday."
The Chicago Sun-Times reports Burris "grew emphatic in his defense," and The Hill notes that Burris "said that while he will cooperate with any investigation, he will be limiting his contacts with the media, which he said has worsened the situation through 'spin and sensationalism.'" USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, AP, and AFP run similar accounts of Burris' defense.
The New York Times notes that "at Mr. Burris's speech before the City Club, some audience members defended him," but "others said they were appalled by what they saw as Mr. Burris's initial efforts to portray himself as utterly unconnected to Mr. Blagojevich."
Following yesterday's editorials in the Chicago Tribune and Washington Post, which called on Burris to resign, this morning's New York Times editorializes that the Illinois senator "should consider resigning for the good of his state, if that's still an applicable standard in the toxic mess spawned by" Blagojevich. The Chicago Tribune, meanwhile, says in an editorial that "Burris needs to, oh, spend more time with his family, or tend more closely to his business. Whatever excuse he chooses."
The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that yesterday in the Minnesota Senate recount trial, attorneys for Norm Coleman (R) "reacted to a pair of adverse rulings by accusing the judges hearing the suit of creating 'a legal quagmire' and a 'fatal inconsistency' by refusing to consider some rejected absentee ballots that resemble others that have already been counted", though the Bemidji Pioneer adds that the judges "said they will not rethink a Friday ruling that blocked some rejected absentee ballots from being considered for counting." The Politico says that "state political and legal analysts" says "it would take a miracle" for Coleman to win the race at this point.
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The AP reports that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) "must pay back taxes on nearly $18,000 in expenses she charged the state for living in her [Wasilla] home outside Anchorage instead of at the state capital, officials said Wednesday. A review of state policy and Internal Revenue Service tax laws determined the per diem payments should be treated as income, Department of Administration Commissioner Annette Kreitzer said." The Anchorage Daily News adds that Palin's "office wouldn't say this week how much she owes in back taxes for meal money, or whether she intends to continue to receive the per diem allowance."
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports Rep. Roy Blunt (R) is expected to announce today that he will run for the state's open Senate seat, setting up a clash between two of the biggest political families in the state Blunt's son Matt was the previous governor, and he is expected to face Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan (D), whose mother was a Senator and whose father was governor.
The Albany (GA) Herald reports that Georgia Sen. Johnny Isakson (R) yesterday announced his reelection bid, touting "his work on energy independence and" calling "for his co-workers in Congress to fix the cause of our current economic sickness, not just the symptoms."
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Jay Leno: "Hey, the market went up three points today, so the stimulus package is working. Yeah! It's a miracle!"
Jay Leno: "Yesterday, President Obama signed the stimulus bill in Denver, Colorado. He picked Denver because our debt is now a mile high."
David Letterman: "America's auto makers have asked the government -- Remember when" America's auto makers "flew into Washington in their private jets and said, 'We're busted. We'd like several hundred billion dollars.' Well, they're coming back again. They're asking for $22 billion" in "additional...taxpayer money. ...I mean, these guys are like the world's most expensive brother-in-law, you know?"
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