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Obama Addresses Congress, "We Will Recover"
By
Jen Chung
Published Feb 24, 2009
Modified Feb 24, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published Feb 24, 2009
Modified Feb 24, 2009
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President Barack Obama addressed Congress, proclaiming that the "day of reckoning has arrived" and the country must take action—but also emphasizing that there is hope, "While our economy may be weakened and our confidence shaken, though we are living through difficult and uncertain times, tonight I want every American to know this. We will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than before."
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You can read the speech here—he specifically called out companies receiving federal money—"we intend to hold these banks fully accountable for the assistance they receive, and this time, they will have to clearly demonstrate how taxpayer dollars result in more lending for the American taxpayer. This time, CEOs won’t be able to use taxpayer money to pad their paychecks or buy fancy drapes or disappear on a private jet. Those days are over." And he mentioned that "nobody messes with Joe"—referring to how Vice President Biden will head the oversight effort of the stimulus package.
The NY Times reports, "In his first address to a joint session of Congress, Mr. Obama mixed an acknowledgment of the depth of the economic problems with a Reaganesque exhortation to American resilience and an expansive agenda with a pledge to begin paring down a soaring budget deficit." The Washington Post noted, "Though he was optimistic, Obama mostly avoided flights of lofty rhetoric. He offered specific, sometimes wonkish explanations of how credit markets work, how the budget should be reformed and how the country can renew its commitment to renewable energy." Inside the chamber, politicians were all a-Twitter and even asking for autographs.
In the GOP response, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal called the federal stimulus package "irresponsible," and added, "The way to lead is not to raise taxes and put more money and power in hands of Washington politicians." (Here's transcript; video below.) Jindal offers how his state recovered after Hurricane Katrina as how the country can recover; over at Politico, Princeton professor Melissa Harris-Lacewell writes, "Am I watching the GOP response or a Saturday Night Live skit?"
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Still, a CBS News/NY Times survey done before Obama's address found that his approval rating was 63%, with the President "benefitting from remarkably high levels of optimism and confidence among Americans about his leadership, providing him with substantial political clout as he confronts the nation’s economic challenges and opposition from nearly all Republicans in Congress."
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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