Obama Pitches Strict Regulations, Clinton Stresses Job Training in Dueling Economic Plans
March 27: Barack Obama speaks in the Great Hall of New York's Cooper Union school. (AP Photo)
The Democratic candidates offered competing plans to lift the sagging economy Thursday, with Barack Obama calling for taxpayer relief and tougher government regulations and Hillary Clinton calling for a sweeping government-backed job training program.
Clinton, speaking at a community college in Raleigh, N.C., bashed GOP nominee-in-waiting John McCain, saying the Arizona senator is unable to handle an economic emergency.
“The phone is ringing, and he would just let it ring and ring,” Clinton said, echoing the “3 a.m. phone call” TV ad she used earlier to suggest she was more qualified than Obama to handle a national security crisis. This time, she chastised McCain for opposing government intervention in the nation’s credit and mortgage crisis.
In her plan, she proposes $2.5 billion per year to help workers train for new jobs and improve skills for existing jobs.
“We may be competing in a new global economy, but our policies to equip American workers for the 21st century are stuck back in the 20th century,” she said.
Meanwhile, Obama said in New York City that the government must revive the economy by tightening regulations and reforming its own agencies to adjust to the realities of modern finance.
In a speech billed as a major address, the Illinois senator said most experts agree the U.S. economy is in a recession.
“To renew our economy — and to ensure that we are not doomed to repeat a cycle of bubble and bust again and again — we need to address not only the immediate crisis in the housing market; we also need to create a 21st century regulatory framework, and pursue a bold opportunity agenda for the American people,” Obama said.
“We do American business — and the American people — no favors when we turn a blind eye to excessive leverage and dangerous risks,” he added.
The presidential candidate spoke not far from Wall Street, hard hit by the mortgage meltdown and credit problems.
To fix the economy, Obama proposed relief for homeowners and an additional $30 billion stimulus package to address the nation’s economic woes. He also called for a $1,000 tax cut for “working families.” Working families received tax cuts under the 2001 and 2003 cuts proposed by President Bush and passed by Congress. Those are scheduled to expire in 2011.
“If we can extend a hand to banks on Wall Street, we can extend a hand to Americans who are struggling,” he said.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the almost candidate, introduced Obama but stopped short of an endorsement.
In bemoaning the nation’s economic woes, Obama too dismissed McCain’s approach as too hands-off.
On Tuesday, McCain derided government intervention to save and reward banks or small borrowers who behave irresponsibly. Obama said McCain’s plan “amounts to little more than watching this crisis happen.”
McCain fired back even before Obama took the stage, saying he has proposed reforms to prevent systemic risks and a repeat of the credit crisis.
“However, what is not necessary is a multi-billion dollar bailout for big banks and speculators, as Senators Clinton and Obama have proposed. There is a tendency for liberals to seek big government programs that sock it to American taxpayers while failing to solve the very real problems we face,” McCain said.
Obama said the next president should:
–Expand oversight to any institution that borrows from the government.
–Toughen capital requirements for complex financial instruments like mortgage securities.
–Streamline regulatory agencies to end overlap and competition among regulators.
Clinton is offering her own prescription for economic reforms. The Universal Worker Adjustment Assistance plan she pitched would help those who have lost jobs to get trained and find a new job. Her Preemptive Training Initiative would help workers who are on the verge of losing factory jobs that move overseas. The New York senator also calls for more Pell Grants to help people attend college while working.
Clinton’s camp hit Obama for his plan, saying he “announced a series of broad, vague principles while offering no new concrete solutions to provide Americans with greater confidence in the market or keep them in their homes.”
The political debate comes as a new government report shows the economy nearly sputtered out at the end of the year and is probably faring even worse amid continuing housing, credit and financial crises. Nonetheless, jobless numbers out Thursday showed a decline this week, though analysts said they expect more losses this year.
Obama was speaking at The Cooper Union from the podium used by presidential aspirant Abraham Lincoln in 1860 when he delivered his “Right Makes Might” address, which helped him win the Republican presidential nomination.
FOX News’ Shushannah Walshe and Aaron Bruns and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
I am sooooooo shocked and awed! What else to expect out of a Democrat’s mouth than government intervention in the private markets.
Here is a short and sweet review of Obamas speech:
The Goverment can solve all your problems.
Big bussiness is cant be trusted to pick themselves up.
And we have to make everything work smother.
Now if that speech had been any more blindingly cliche it would have burned out the cameras
I don’t want more government regulation. The government just needs to inforce what is on the books. We are a free market economy. When you try to tangle with that, that is when there are problems. People who had no business buying homes were buying homes with nothing down. That is what most of the rest of us call “rent.” I am not terribly sympathetic. On the other hand, people who had to borrow against the value of their homes for health care costs or rising education costs and got caught when the bottom came out, I do sympathize with.
This is not a hand out nation. My parents earned their home. I expect that we all value what we earn more than what we are “given.”
I appreciate you offered Obama’s proposal instead of ending at HRC “spin points”
I agree with McCain. This isn’t Government’s problem to fix. Fault lies with lenders and buyers! They got themselves into this mess, let them get themselves out of this mess. “Tough luck boys and girls - it sucks being you!”
I wonder how it was for Chris Mathews.
I agree with Obama. Sure he is for bigger government, but I think his long term propsects regardign the government are sound. The housing market crash has effected the economy overall and people saying let the housing market straighten itself out will only ensure more companies like Bears& Sterns either borrow more money from China or risk collapse.
NO, don’t start talking about Rev. Wright or Obama lies, etc. . . this is about the economy. Let’s stick to the issues and talk about the economy here, this IS NOT about the Rev Wright story.
Apparently Obama is proposing a bailout by the government of those that recklessly bought houses without consideration of a rule that almost every homeowner knows: buy a house that you can afford to pay the mortgage. His proposal, like a reckless Robin Hood would steal from the cautious and responsible homeowners to give to the irresponsible home buyers.
Obviously Obama and his financial advisers believe in redistribution of wealth. Perhaps they are closer to the ill fated Cuban economic model than they would like acknowledge. The alternative is that his proposal is plain demagoguery which is typical of the liberal democrats.
Barack Obama = SOCIALISM / KARL MARX I am in the pocess of investigating each candidate and am finishing up on Obama. He is wanting to “change” America supposingly for the better. From all his speeches and reports and investigation into this man and his pastor and their associations it all leads to THE GOVERNMENT TAKING OVER AND TELLING US AMERICANS WHAT AND HOW MUCH WE CAN HAVE OF OUR OWN MONEY AND FREEDOM. THIS IS WHAT SOCIALISM AND KARL MARX . My sister-in-law lived in Socialism which turned into Communism in her home country overseas, upon which her family still live. My sister-in-law stated that the Government agreed to pay for college, healthcare,medicines,dental, but after getting out of college you had to serve in the military for 2-5 years for the men. Women have to work in the medical field mental wards and hospitals. Her family have to rent out land from the government to grow food for the winter, because the government does not allow enough money to make it through the winter. Her father is driving an old straight shift 1950’s car. My sister-in-law remembers having a root canal done w/o pain meds or anesthesia because govenment will not pay for this. SOCIALISM TURNS INTO COMMUNISM AND THE GOVERNMENT GETS RICH OFF THE BACKS OF THE PEOPLE WITH NOTHING IN RETURN. PEOPLE, PLEASE INVESTIGATE THESE CANDIDATES, THE MEDIA IS HYPE, DON’T MAKE YOUR JUDGEMENT ON HYPE. BARACK OBAMA IS SOCIALISM
I will investigate Hillary next then Mccain. Whether you believe me or not is your choice, but I’ve done my homework. ONCE SOCIALISM STARTS IT ALWAYS TURNS INTO COMMUNISM and ONCE SOCIALISM STARTS THERE IS NO TURNING BACK
And… where does Obama plan to get the $30 billion from? I don’t agree with his plan for the economy, but I don’t agree with McCain’s either. Something needs to be done, but neither one of them have it right.