Democratic Chatter 2-8-2009

George Wenschhof Bio

President Barack Obama continues to sell his Stimulus Plan - Yesterday morning, it was the focus of his weekly address to the nation and later in the day a email with a video from him was sent to his multi-million supporter list.

In an effort to get back on track with his message on the Stimulus Plan, he will travel to cities in several states this week and talk directly with voters. The schedule has him in Elkhart, Indiana on Monday, Ft. Myers, Florida on Tuesday and Springfield, Illinois on Thursday.

The Senate vote is expected on Tuesday with the reconciliation bill between the House and the Senate expected to take about a week before the bill is presented to the President for signature. The NY Times has a good read on the difference in the House and Senate versions here.

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Stabilizing the U.S. banking system is still a major priority - in addition, to the stimulus bill, the remaining 350 Billion of the (TARP) Troubled Assets Relief Plan must restore confidence in banks across the country. Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner was set to detail his plans tomorrow, but has not delayed his speech until Tuesday. The Washington Post has a good read on the options available to help the banking system here.

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Vice-President Joe Biden continues European trip - after delivering his speech yesterday in Munich, Germany, the Vice-President met privately with Russia deputy prime minister Sergie Ivanov and the President of Georgia. Ivanov signaled the Russians were pleased with the new tone from Washington and what was said by Biden in his speech. At issue, is the U.S. missile defense shield the Bush administration had intended to deploy in Poland and other European countries. CNN.com has more here.

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Governor Kathlees Sebelius (D-Kan.) is being considered for Secretary of HHS - she was an early supporter of Barack Obama. Also, under consideration for the position left vacant when Tom Daschle withdrew, is Governor Phil Bredesen (D-Tenn.). You can read more here.

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