George Wenschhof Bio
President Barack Obama returns to the White House from Camp David this morning - later the president will discuss the energy independence part of his proposed budget. Increased funds will be provided for clean energy technologies. Tomorrow night at 8:00 PM ET, the president will address the nation during prime time. He is expected to address the A.I.G. bonuses and efforts being made to correct the dismal economy. Time.com has more here.
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Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner announces the latest bailout plan for Banks - this has been talked about for some time but the details were lacking on this proposed public-private partnership to purchase up to 1 trillion of troubled mortgages and related assets of banks. CNN.com has more here. Initially the Treasury would buy between 75-100 billion of bad debt and then auction the debt securities to the private sector. There is already hesitancy from the private sector due to the government attempting to limit executive pay so don't expect the private sector to be lining up to buy these bad debt securities.
Geithner has an Op-Ed which appeared in the Wall Street Journal today describing this program and the efforts to date of the Obama administration to stem the financial crisis. You can read his Op-Ed column here.
Perhaps the Obama administration has finally realized Geithner is not a good public relations man - Dr. Christina Romer, chair of the White House council of economic advisers is the one appearing on TV early today to push the program.
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Wall Street reacts favorably to Geithner's plan - at least for this morning. The Dow Jones is up 150 points after stocks in Asia and Europe gained on news of the latest U.S. government plan to aid troubled banks. Bloomberg.com has more here.
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For those of you who are MSNBC junkies - Chris Matthews and Keith Olberman have signed contracts through the 2012 campaign - this will ensure loyal viewers these political pundits will be discussing the first term of the Obama administration and the 2012 election. Politico.com has more here.
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On the foreign policy front, Obama spoke yesterday on "Sixty Minutes" of the need for a comprehensive strategy and exit plan for Afghanistan - he spoke of the need to improve the economy, further diplomacy with Pakistan and increase regional assistance in the effort. The exit strategy is important as this was absent in the planning when George W. Bush administration sent U.S. troops into Iraq. MSNBC.com has more here.
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Monday, March 23, 2009
Democratic Chatter 3-23-2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Sunday Morning "Talking Heads" Guests 3-15-2009
George Wenschhof Bio
Discussion of the ailing worldwide economy will be the focus of much of the discussion on Sunday morning and will continue to be so for some time. The Obama administration tried to give Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner some support as Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke and Lawrence Summers, the chair of the National Economic Council both gave public statements.
Geithner has been failing the public face test so look to see the Obama administration to continue to use others to be the public spokesman for the administration's efforts on reviving the economy. The good news is the Dow Jones gained over 700 points last week for the best weekly gain this year. The sobering news is the Dow is still at 50% of where it was 11/2 years ago.
Former Republican Vice President Richard Cheney will appear on CNN "State of the Union" with John King. Expect some discussion on allegations surfacing from NY Times reporter Seymour Hersch concerning "Hit Squads" operating out of the the Vice President's office during the George W. Bush administration.
Embattled chair of the Republican National Committee Michael Steele may receive some discussion. It appears with a two thirds vote of the members required to oust Mr. Steele, he will survive for a while longer in the position.
Below is the list of the Sunday morning "Talking Heads" political discussion shows with their scheduled guests. Remember to check your local listings for time and channel.
NBC "Meet The Press" - Dick Gregory will have Dr. Christina Romer who is chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. Also appearing is Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) The roundtable discussion will include David Frum, Katty Kay, Travis Smiley and Steve Liesman.
ABC "This Week" - George Stephanopoulos will interview Lawrence Summers who is chair of the National Economic Council. Also appearing is Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) The roundtable discussion will include George Will, Jim Ellis, Robert Kutter, and Frank Rich.
CBS "Face The Nation" - Bob Schieffer will also interview Lawrence Summers. NY Times Thomas Friedman is his other guest.
Fox News Sunday - Chris Wallace will have FDIC chairman Sheila Blair, Austan Goolsbee, Mark Zandi, Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Senator Bob Corker (R- Tenn.).
CNN "State of The Union" - John King will interview former Vice President Dick Cheney.
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