Obama in His Own Words

8 Random Items for 1/8/2009 #4

My recent criticisms aside, it looks to me like President-Elect Obama gets it and best of all, he can articulate it like few others. That "it" is the problems facing our economy and the stimulus package that will begin the long recovery. Here are a few words from his speech today courtesy of SusanG at Daily Kos ...

There is no doubt that the cost of this plan will be considerable. It will certainly add to the budget deficit in the short-term. But equally certain are the consequences of doing too little or nothing at all, for that will lead to an even greater deficit of jobs, incomes, and confidence in our economy. It is true that we cannot depend on government alone to create jobs or long-term growth, but at this particular moment, only government can provide the short-term boost necessary to lift us from a recession this deep and severe. Only government can break the vicious cycles that are crippling our economy ...

It is time to set a new course for this economy, and that change must begin now. We should have an open and honest discussion about this recovery plan in the days ahead, but I urge Congress to move as quickly as possible on behalf of the American people. For every day we wait or point fingers or drag our feet, more Americans will lose their jobs. More families will lose their savings. More dreams will be deferred and denied. And our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse.

Shades of The New Deal, no?

I don't want to hear any whining about how this is socialism and such. Much like FDR, Barack Obama will have to save capitalism itself in our country. The conservatives should get down on their hands and knees and thank him.