President-elect Barack Obama Monday announced his top economic team, which will help him deal with an economy in serious crisis.
The first seven minutes of this video are excerpts from the future president’s press conference, as he announces his choice for Treasury Secretary, Tim Geithner, currently the head of the New York Federal Reserve.
Geithner has been closely involved in the government’s response to the mortgage and financial crisis, including engineering the $700 billion rescue bill to help failing financial institutions.
But Geithner, and another Obama pick, Larry Summers, were part of the Clinton administration that encouraged deregulation of Wall Street, which many economists blame for the current predicament.
Quotes
“We do not have a minute to waste. Right now, our economy is trapped in a vicious cycle: the turmoil on Wall Street means a new round of belt-tightening for families and businesses on Main Street, and as folks produce less and consume less, that just deepens the problems in our financial markets.” – President-elect Barack Obama
“Tim Geithner offers not just extensive experience shaping economic policy and managing financial markets; he also has an unparalleled understanding of our current economic crisis in all of its depth, complexity and urgency.” – Barack Obama
“There’s a consensus among across the political spectrum that we need a stimulus, and we have to make sure that the stimulus is significant enough that it really gives a jolt to the economy, that it is putting people back to work, that it is making investments, that it is restoring some confidence in the business community that, in fact, their products and services are going to have customers.” – Barack Obama
Warm Up Questions
1. How healthy is the American economy?
2. What is the president’s Cabinet? Can you name any members of the Bush Cabinet?
3. Why was the economy the top issue in the 2008 presidential campaign?
Discussion Questions
1. Why is the Treasury Secretary important?
2. Two of Obama’s picks, Tim Geithner and Larry Summers, were working in the government during a time when government policies encouraged risky investing and deregulation – which have led to the current crisis. Does it make sense to hire people who were involved in mistakes, or is it more important to hire advisers with a lot of experience?
3. One choice President-elect Obama has is to send another round of checks to Americans to help stimulate the economy. Do you think this will work? What would your family do with a few extra hundred dollars?
4. Who was the first Treasury Secretary? What do you know about him?
5. What was Alexander Hamilton’s economic philosophy? Do you think it is applicable to today’s economy?
Additional Resources