Barack Obama spoke with President George W Bush about the urgency for aid to US automakers at a private White House meeting, aides to the president-elect said.
During Monday's meeting, which both sides described as “friendly,” the two men also discussed the nation's housing crisis and the need for a second economic stimulus package.
Obama and Bush spoke about the “broad health of the auto industry,” Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters traveling on the president-elect's plane to Chicago after the meeting. “They talked extensively about both the economic situation as well as foreign policy.”
At the same time, Obama signaled he was in no rush to assume responsibility for dealing with the financial crisis.
Speaking on a phone in front of reporters aboard his plane, Obama was overheard saying he won't be “spending too much time in Washington over the next several weeks.” Obama spokeswoman Jen Psaki said he won't attend the international summit on the global economic crisis that Bush has called November 14 and 15 in Washington.
Before departing, Obama had a private meeting at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport that aides refused to give any details about. He also placed calls, including one to Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana, a senior Republican voice on foreign policy and national security, Gibbs said.
Auto Industry: Figuring out how to keep the US auto industry afloat if action isn't taken before the end of the year is one of the more pressing economic issues Obama will face. General Motors Corp, the biggest US automaker, reported a $4.2 billion third-quarter operating loss last week and warned it may run short of operating cash by the end of June. Ford Motor Co reported a $2.98 billion loss for the quarter.
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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and members of Michigan's congressional delegation are urging Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to use part of the $700 billion financial-markets rescue package passed last month to aid automakers. Bush spokeswoman Dana Perino signaled that the administration wants aid to the auto industry passed as a separate measure.
Democratic Senator Carl Levin of Michigan said in an interview that if the Treasury Department can't be persuaded to act under existing law then Congress may include automaker assistance as part of economic stimulus session during a so- called lame-duck session later this month.
“If they don't agree that the current language is flexible enough,” Levin said, “we should try an amendment during the lame-duck session and attach it to the stimulus package. If the stimulus package looks like it would be vetoed, then we would have to get this done separately.”
Stimulus Legislation: Democratic leaders in Congress are considering two stimulus measures, one during their session this month and another after Obama takes office and the next Congress, with a bigger Democratic majority, is sworn in.
Obama has endorsed both steps, though Gibbs played down the prospects of getting legislation to boost the economy finished before the end of this year.
“It's important to bear in mind that Congress was wrestling with issues like an economic recovery programme prior to the election and didn't come to a conclusion,” he said. If Congress doesn't act, “it will be the first priority” for Obama when he takes office January 20.
The International Monetary Fund last week predicted the economies of the US, Japan and euro region will simultaneously contract in 2009 for the first time since World War II.
Summit
Gibbs said that while Obama won't be meeting with foreign leaders at the Washington meeting of the Group of 20 nations this weekend, some aides or advisers may be present at the summit.
Obama's team also is reviewing the Bush administration's executive orders and other administrative measure with an eye to reversing policies put in place over the last eight years.
Both Perino and Obama transition spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter described the Oval Office meeting as “friendly.”
“The first thing that the president-elect said to me afterward was he found the president to be extremely gracious with his time and with his invitation today,” Gibbs said.
Bush has won praise for developing an extensive transition process, including getting security clearances under way for Obama's team and ordering executive office personnel to cooperate with the president-elect's staff.
“The Bush administration is trying to have a very professional and smooth transfer of power,” said University of Vermont professor John P Burke, who has written books about presidential transitions.
Bush and first lady Laura Bush greeted Obama and his wife, Michelle, at the South Portico of the White House. Off to the side, Obama could see the presidential putting green and the tennis court that will soon be his to use.
Hundreds of people lined up on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House for Obama's arrival and his departure. Mixed in the crowd were some anti-war protesters.
“I wanted to see something historical in the works,” said Pamela Sumah, a 24-year-old law student from Laurel, Maryland, who said she voted for Obama
Laura Bush gave Michelle Obama a tour of the second and third floor of the residence. They then repaired to the West Sitting Hall, where they discussed raising daughters in the White House, according to Cutter.
The Bushes also showed the Obamas the living quarters, including the Lincoln Bedroom, and the rooms for the Obamas' two daughters, Sasha, 7, and Malia, 10.
The Obamas also are shopping for a school for their daughters. They now attend the private University of Chicago Laboratory School. The couple hasn't indicated which schools they are looking at.