Sunday Morning "Talking Heads" Guests 3-22-2009

George Wenschhof Bio

Each week further into his first term as president, Barack Obama moves closer to owning the economic crisis facing Americans. The phrase, "this is the economic mess I inherited from the previous Republican George W. Bush administration", is not one that can be used with effectiveness much longer.

While yet to unfold international and domestic issues will help to define President Obama's first term in office, the economy and the Obama administration's efforts to stabilize and improve it will ultimately be how Obama will be remembered by the voters and history.

So, it is not a surprise the guests on Sunday Morning "Talking Heads" will again focus on the economy. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will not appear which is probably a good thing for the Obama administration. He stumbled badly getting out of the gate when he mangled an attempt to describe changes he was instituting in the second half of the 700 billion bailout bill. Now, it has been disclosed it was him who informed Senator Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) to included the provision in the 787 billion Stimulus bill allowing A.I.G. to pay bonuses. All indications are he is not a good public relations person so do not look for many televised appearances in the near future. Geithner remains the Cabinet member with the highest probability to be removed.

This Sunday morning, Dr. Christina Romer, chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers will again be the face of the administration when discussing the economy. She had her maiden appearance on NBC "Meet The Press" last week and did ok. Although she did not come across as a rocket scientist, she remained cheerful and did not allow tough questions to rattle her. As a Democratic acquaintance of mine said, she reminded her of a grade school teacher. This is a huge improvement over Geithner so it is no wonder she is back this Sunday. She will appear on "Fox News Sunday" and CNN "State of the Union".

The incredible debt that is being added to the already astronomical national debt will surely receive discussion. The current debt is 11 Trillion and deficit spending the remainder of this year and the proposed 1.75 trillion deficit in the president's first budget will bring the debt to over 14 trillion by the end of fiscal year 2010. We have not added the 1 to 1.2 Trillion the Federal Reserve plans to spend on Treasury and Mortgage Bonds. While interest rates are low, inflation is likely to enter into the picture which will further exacerbate the economic problem.

Below is the list of the Sunday Morning "Talking Heads" with their scheduled guests. Remember to check your local listings for time and channel.

NBC "Meet The Press" - Dick Gregory will interview Governors Ed Rendell (D-Pa.) and Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-Calf.) along with NY City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (Ind.). The three of them met with President Obama on Friday to discuss the Stimulus Bill. Specifically, infrastructure and job creation. The three elected officials have coined a phrase "Building America's Future". Also appearing in a roundtable discussion will be Tom Brokaw and Carol Burnett.

ABC "This Week" - George Stephanopoulos will have Senators Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), Representative Mike Pence (R-Ind.) and Jared Bernstein, the chief economist for Vice President Joe Biden. I often have wondered why Biden needs his own economist - maybe we will find out. The roundtable discussion will include George Will, Donna Brazile, Betsy Stark and Robert Reich.

CBS "Face The Nation" - Bob Schieffer will interview Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.), Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) and Austan Goolsbee-White House Council of Economic Advisers.

Fox News Sunday - Chris Wallace has Dr. Christina Romer, chair of the WH Council of Economic Advisers, Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL), and Representative Charles Rangel (D-NY).

CNN "State of the Union" - John King also interviews Dr. Romer - let's see is she can maintain that cheerful disposition after two appearances this morning. Also appearing will be Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH). Steve Croft also discusses his interview with President Obama that will appear on CBS "Sixty Minutes" Sunday evening.

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