Senior International Monetary Fund economist Olivier Blanchard endorsed (WSJ) President-elect Barack Obama’s economic stimulus plan, saying the size of the program “corresponds roughly to what we think is needed.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) expressed skepticism (Politico) over the stimulus package on Monday. McConnell said the bill should not be passed without “appropriate hearings to scrutinize how tax dollars are being spent.”
President-elect Barack Obama spoke with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice by phone Sunday to discuss the situation in Gaza (CNN).
Politico and the Wall Street Journal consider the potential impact of Israel’s strikes in Gaza on Obama’s plan for Middle East peace.
President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden announced the nomination of several additional members of their national security team on Tuesday. Former Clinton administration officials James Steinberg and Jacob Lew are Obama’s picks to serve as deputy secretaries of state under Hillary Clinton. Thomas Donilon is the nominee for deputy national security adviser, and Antony “Tony” Blinken is the nominee for national security adviser to Biden.
STIMULUS: Biden emphasized on Tuesday that the incoming Obama administration’s planned economic stimulus package will not include earmarks (WSJ).
President-elect Barack Obama announced his nomination of Rep. Ray LaHood (R-IL) to the post of transportation secretary on Friday at a Chicago press conference. LaHood, who has represented Illinois’ 18th congressional district since 1995, is the first Arab-American to be chosen for a seat in Obama’s cabinet.
LaHood discussed his views on energy security and other foreign policy issues with CFR.org at the Republican National Convention in September 2008:
“I think the American people are going to require Congress in a bipartisan way to solve this energy thing and it’s not just going to be drilling. It’s going to be getting the car manufacturers to make higher mileage cars, and to think outside of the box about the kind of cars we drive today and the kind of trucks we drive today. It’s solar, it’s nuclear, it’s wind, it’s a combination of all kinds of things that in a comprehensive way really looks at this problem that we have and right now the American people are telling every member of Congress ‘you all need to do something to help us.’ Drilling is just one aspect of it. We need a real comprehensive long-term approach to our energy. We’re hooked on oil and almost all of our oil comes from somewhere else.”
Click here to read more excerpts from CFR.org’s interview with LaHood.
“Today’
s actions are a necessary step to help avoid a collapse in our auto industry that would have devastating consequences for our economy and our workers. With the short-term assistance provided by this package, the auto companies must bring all their stakeholders together — including labor, dealers, creditors and suppliers — to make the hard choices necessary to achieve long-term viability. The auto companies must not squander this chance to reform bad management practices and begin the long-term restructuring that is absolutely required to save this critical industry and the millions of American jobs that depend on it,”
–President-elect Barack Obama, in a statement on Friday in response to President Bush’s announcement that the federal government will provide U.S. automakers with a $17.4 billion loan.
Former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk is reportedly President-elect Barack Obama’s choice for U.S. Trade Representative (AP). Kirk is currently a partner at Houston law and lobbying firm Vinson and Elkins.
INTELLIGENCE: Obama has selected retired Navy Adm. Dennis Blair (WashPost) for his administration’s director of national intelligence, according to congressional officials. Blair is former commander of the U.S. Pacific Command.
President-elect Barack Obama is expected to announce the nomination of Mary Schapiro (LAT) as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday. Schapiro is currently chief executive of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, a non-governmental securities regulating body.
USTR: Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA), who was reportedly a top contender for U.S. Trade Representative in the Obama administration, has turned down the position, according to a statement from his office.
The Bush administration has prepared more than a dozen memorandums (NYT) containing contingency plans to help President-elect Barack Obama deal with a variety of international crisis scenarios that could occur in his first days in office.
INTELLIGENCE: The Wall Street Journal looks at obstacles facing the Obama team in their search for senior intelligence officials.
President-elect Barack Obama’s newly announced energy and environmental leaders are not likely to lack for ideas for addressing energy and climate change concerns, given the public interest reflected on change.gov, the transition’s own website. A new feature of the site, Your Seat at the Table, allows organizations and members of the public to track the transition’s daily activities, and to leave comments and post policy ideas for Obama’s team.
One unconventional policy proposal that has been posted to the site involves harnessing solar power (PDF) created by orbiting satellites and transporting it for use back on earth. Such a program would likely cost billions and take years to implement, say some space experts. The plan, called Space Solar Power (SSP), hasn’t been endorsed by the new Obama energy picks, but the Wall Street Journal’s WashingtonWire reports that “some transition team members are known to look favorably on the general idea.”
The Boston-based Clean Air Task Force has also posted policy recommendations for the Obama team. The group urges Obama to focus on limiting pollutants other than carbon dioxide to stop climate change. It points to so-called “short-lived pollutants” such as black carbon, methane, and tropospheric ozone that also contribute to higher temperatures.
Proposals from other groups, including the New Mexico Sierra Club, the AFL-CIO, and the Consumer Energy Alliance, are also available for public viewing and reaction on the site.
For more on Obama’s energy and environmental team, click here.
A CFR Task Force Report outlines a strategy for confronting climate change.
This interactive CFR.org Crisis Guide take an in-depth look at the issue.
President-elect Barack Obama announced his nominees (Bloomberg) for energy secretary, Environmental Protection Agency chief, and head of the White House Council on Environmental Quality at a press conference in Chicago on Monday. The Los Angeles Times looks at reactions to the picks among scientists and environmental groups.
GLOBAL HEALTH: A report from the Washington-based nonprofit Institute of Medicine released Monday recommended that Obama double U.S. health aid to poor countries by 2012 and appoint a White House global health czar.
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