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Barack Obama Press Conference Discusses Stimulus Plan
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by Jon Azpiri | February 9, 2009 at 06:18 pm
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US President Barack Obama held his first primetime press conference on Monday night. The main topic of the night was his administration's proposed economic stimulus plan.
Obama's opening statement and answers to reporter's questions focused almost entirely on the stimulus package that he claims will create four million new jobs.
The President pointed out the need to do some something and used Japan as an example of what his administration is trying to avoid.
"We saw this happen in Japan in the 1990s, where they did not act boldly and swiftly enough and, as a consequence, they suffered what was called the lost decade, where essentially, for the entire '90s, they did not see any significant economic growth."
"This is not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill recession. We are going through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression," he said.
The President used another historic analogy to explain why the government should be involved in reviving the economy.
"You have some people, very sincere, who philosophically just think the government has no business interfering in the marketplace. And, in fact, there are several who've suggested that FDR was wrong to interfere back in the New Deal. They're fighting battles that I thought were resolved a pretty long time ago," he said.
The press conference took place a day before senators decide whether to pass their version of the stimulus bill. The House passed its version of the stimulus bill nearly two weeks ago. President Obama is hoping to sign the final bill early next week.
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