English subtitles for clip: File:6-8-09- White House Press Briefing.webm

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Mr. Gibbs:
Good afternoon.

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Before we do our regularly
scheduled programming --

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I'll do this after Jared --
I've got an announcement before

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we do our regular questions.

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But before we get
started Jared Bernstein,

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the Vice President's
chief economist,

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will walk us through the roadmap
to recovery that the President

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and the Vice President
spoke about today.

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He'll take a few of your
questions and then back to me.

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Jared.

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Mr. Bernstein:
Thank you, Robert.

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This is different, I usually
face you one at a time.

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The President and the Vice
President today outlined the

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roadmap to recovery, which
spotlights some of the ways

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we're going to accelerate
implementation of the American

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Recovery and Reinvestment Act
during its second 100 days.

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While there are some hopeful
signs that the pace of the

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downturn has diminished, the
nation's economy's yet to recover.

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You heard the President this
morning acknowledge that we

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remain in the midst
of a deep recession.

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Most importantly from the
perspective of working families,

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the nation's employers are
still shedding jobs on net.

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As we've said many times, when
the private sector economy is

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under-performing there's a
critical role for the government

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to play in temporarily
picking up the slack.

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The Recovery Act does that
through a uniquely broad set of

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provisions designed to create or
save millions of jobs over the

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life of the bill.

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We've talked about that
extensively over the first

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hundred days.

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Thus far over that period we've created or saved over 150,000

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jobs, cut taxes for 95%
of working families,

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increased unemployment
benefits for laid-off workers,

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provided fiscal
stabilization relief --

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that's particularly important,
given states' fiscal conditions

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-- to 26 states, made funds available for over 4,000

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transportation projects, projects that put people back to work.

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In fact, we've obligated an
average of over a billion

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dollars per day in
Recovery Act funds,

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and we've done so with a level
of oversight and accountability

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I don't believe any of us have
ever seen before at any level of government.

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In the second 100 days we plan
to accelerate these activities

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in ways I'll
describe in a moment.

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Our goal is to create or save 600,000 jobs over this next period.

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And now that we have laid the
groundwork over the first 100

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days, we can accelerate the
implementation over the second.

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It's important to remember while
the Recovery Act is an integral

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part of our plan -- one that spurs new demand and puts people

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back to work during these hardest hit times --

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it is but one part of our plan.

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It's one pillar.

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The financial stabilization
plan, the housing plan,

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financial regulatory reform, a
budget that makes historical

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investments in energy,
health care and education,

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while cutting the deficit in
half over our first term,

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remain other central pillars
of our economic plan.

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Now, at this point I'd like to
briefly run through 10 new major

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projects that will define
the next three months of the

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Recovery Act underway
across the United States.

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This also reveals how we're
addressing the economic

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downturns throughout all
regions of the country's --

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in every state and
all the territories.

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It's a pervasive
recession geographically,

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and the Recovery Act is equally
pervasive geographically.

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Now is a test of whether this
system is truly idiot-proof.

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And there we go -- I don't think we've ever used this here

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before, so making history.

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The Press:
Was that paper a stimulus --

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(laughter)

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Mr. Gibbs:
We cut newspapers.

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(laughter)

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The Press:
Ooh.

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The Press:
Harsh.

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The Press:
Robert, in all seriousness, isn't there one behind there

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that we could have
popped open --

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Mr. Gibbs:
You want to move over
here so you can see that?

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The Press:
I mean, I have a
print-out version of it.

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Mr. Gibbs:
I was going to say,
you can use my --

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The Press:
That'll be great.

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Mr. Bernstein:
The first line, actually combines all of the activity

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from the next 10 slides,
the 10 programs I'm going to

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articulate, and you get a sense
I think from all those little

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dots across the nation how
geographically extensive this is.

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The act -- so now we're going to go one through one by these 10

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different pieces of -- parts of the plan we'll be ramping up and

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implementing over the
next hundred days.

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The act enables over 1,100
health centers in 50 states and

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eight territories
to provide extended,

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expanded service to approximately 300,000 patients

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of these health centers.

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The Health and Human Services
program will create jobs and

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support health center efforts
to improve access to quality,

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comprehensive, and
affordable care.

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I view this as particularly
important in a climate where job

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loss also means the loss of
health insurance coverage

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through the job for so many
hundreds of thousands of workers.

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We'll begin work on
rehabilitation and improvement

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projects at 98 airports and
over 1,500 highway locations

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throughout the country.

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These projects include runway
construction at selected

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airports to increase capacity,
interstate repaving projects to

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reduce bottlenecks
and congestion.

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And by the way, I think this
aspect of the plan is important

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in the sense that the plan
ramps up, as you're seeing,

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as we're discussing, over the
summer and then towards the end

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of next year the plan ramps
down; it's a two-year plan.

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And in order to maintain the
fiscal responsibility that's so

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important to this President
and to our budget,

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the plan needs to get into
and out of the system.

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But investments like these will
continue to boost the quality of

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the nation's infrastructure and
promote productive activity

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throughout our economy
after the plan is over.

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Over the second hundred days we'll fund 135,000 education

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jobs, including teachers, principals and support staff.

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The recovery funds will help to
keep outstanding teachers in

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America's schools and help
with necessary reforms to

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ensure that every child
can receive a complete and

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competitive education.

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Now, this, by the way, is
one dimension of the --

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we talk a lot about
jobs created or saved --

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this is an area where
you see jobs saved,

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in many cases because of very
tight and constrained state

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fiscal budgets, the help that
the plan provides enables states

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and municipalities to
avoid layoffs of workers,

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be they teachers,
firefighters, police,

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and saving those jobs is
critical to the provision of

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these essential services.

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The plan over the next hundred
days begins improvement at 90

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veterans' medical
centers across 38 states.

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It's going to help upgrade
existing veterans' medical

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centers to increase the quality
of the facilities to deliver the

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kind of care our
soldiers deserve.

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This is one that is
particularly dear to my boss,

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the Vice President.

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The plan will hire or keep over
the next 100 days on the job

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approximately 5,000 law
enforcement officers.

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These funds are going to be used
to hire new officers while also

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retaining our veteran force.

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Start 200 new waste and water
systems in rural America.

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Another dimension of this plan
is to go beyond simply urban and

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suburban localities and to
reach into rural America.

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These projects will replace
outdated water mains and build

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waste-water treatment facilities
for small communities.

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This one I thought was
particularly germane given

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summer vacation season: Begin
work on 107 national parks.

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Through these projects we'll
preserve the national park

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system, a true
American treasure,

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and launch long
overdue projects.

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Begin or accelerate cleanup work
at 20 super-fund sites from the

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national priority list.

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Super-fund work will boost
local economies by creating and

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maintaining jobs, while also
protecting human health and the environment.

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Critical piece here: to create
125,000 summer youth jobs,

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very much part of the
summer agenda here.

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Empowering our young people
through meaningful summer

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employment, so keep
them off the streets,

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provide them with
valuable work experience.

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Many of these plans have a very
good track record in setting

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folks up for better careers when
they become adults in the labor force.

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Initiate 2,300 construction and
rehabilitation projects at 359

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military facilities
across the nation.

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Department of Defense projects
will improve personnel living

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quarters and install green
technologies throughout the

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country for the United
States military.

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Today we also launched
whitehouse.gov/recovery,

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a new Web page that allows the
public to follow the progress on

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the road to recovery
in their communities,

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and hear from folks whose lives
are being influenced by the

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Recovery Act.

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Thank you all.

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I'll turn things
back to Mr. Gibbs.

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Mr. Gibbs:
Jake, do you have a --

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The Press:
Yes.

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In January you and Dr. Romer
issued your recommendation for

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the stimulus.

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It turned out to be
rather optimistic,

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I think it's fair to say.

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You said without the stimulus,
the unemployment rate would be

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just over 8%.

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Obviously it's 9.4%.

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How do you explain that, and
have you factored in whatever

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overly optimistic view you had
then when you talk about 600,000 jobs now?

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Mr. Bernstein:
The answer to the second
part of your question is yes,

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and I'll elaborate
then in a second.

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On the first part
of the question,

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when we made our
initial estimates,

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that was before we had
fourth-quarter results on GDP,

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which we later found out was
contracting on an annual rate of

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6%, far worse than we
expected at that time.

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To elaborate a bit on the
second part of your question,

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the important thing to
realize is that our estimate,

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whether it's 600,000 jobs over
the second hundred days or 3.5

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million jobs over
the life of the plan,

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that's the difference between
what we believe would occur in

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the job market in the absence of
this plan and what we actually

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observe in the job market.

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In the absence of the -- were this plan not to be implemented

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as I've described and as Dr. Romer and I articulated back

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then, in the
absence of the plan,

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job losses would have been deeper from whatever level they started.

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Job losses would
have been deeper,

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the unemployment rate would
have been, by our estimate,

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by the end of next year would
have been between 1.5 and 2

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points higher than
it otherwise will be.

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So those estimates that we are
touting today and the estimates

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that you hear us talk about,
that's the difference between

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what would have happened
to the job market,

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the unemployment rate were
this plan not in effect,

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and the actual outcomes of jobs.

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And that gap, that difference
between actual and the

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expectation, absent the plan,
that's where the estimates come from.

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The Press:
Jared, can you give us a little better accounting on the 150,000

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jobs that have been
created or saved?

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And you guys -- it's a number I now have heard a couple of times.

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What is the accounting on that?

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Mr. Bernstein:
Just as I described.

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We know how fast the
plan is spending out.

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We know which sectors --
and it's actually --

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if you go back to the
Romer-Bernstein report,

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you'll see that we actually
have estimates by sector,

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by industry, but also
by energy, construction,

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and infrastructure, tax cuts --

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The Press:
So the 150,000 are just based on these estimates so far on what

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you guys projected out of how
this money would be spent?

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Mr. Bernstein:
Correct.

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The Press:
So we don't know
exactly -- so you guys --

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Mr. Bernstein:
The 150,000 jobs is -- it comes precisely out of the methodology

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I was just describing;
that is, we have --

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we know spend-out, we know
the types of spend-out,

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so therefore we can assign
multipliers to different parts

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of the plan.

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For example, tax cuts generate a
smaller multiplier than direct

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government spending.

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Once you know the spend-out and
the type of spending that you're

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engaged in, then you can derive
an estimate of how many jobs you

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believe you created relative to
what would have occurred in the

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job market were you not
doing that spending.

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00:13:35,834 --> 00:13:38,804
And let me just make one
other point about this.

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00:13:38,800 --> 00:13:42,230
This is -- I want to be
very clear about this --

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00:13:42,233 --> 00:13:45,963
this is a absolute tried and
true economic methodology.

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00:13:45,967 --> 00:13:50,667
In fact, there's simply no
other way to make this kind of estimate.

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00:13:50,667 --> 00:13:54,297
You have to have an estimate of
what would have occurred in the

243
00:13:54,300 --> 00:14:01,170
absence of your stimulus plan in
order to come up with the jobs

244
00:14:01,166 --> 00:14:03,396
that you've created or saved.

245
00:14:03,400 --> 00:14:06,070
Every macro model, whether it's
Federal Reserve or private

246
00:14:06,066 --> 00:14:10,096
forecasters, engages in
these kinds of exercises.

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00:14:10,100 --> 00:14:12,200
The Press:
Can I get an estimate also -- you said that you've spent about

248
00:14:12,200 --> 00:14:14,070
a billion dollars a
day, so obviously --

249
00:14:14,066 --> 00:14:16,366
minus $800 billion, there's
about $700 billion left to be

250
00:14:16,367 --> 00:14:17,697
spent of the stimulus.

251
00:14:17,700 --> 00:14:20,530
Is that a fair --
assume that it's --

252
00:14:20,533 --> 00:14:23,803
Mr. Bernstein:
Just to be precise, it's actually a matter of obligating

253
00:14:23,800 --> 00:14:28,300
about a billion dollars per
day and we're up to about $135

254
00:14:28,300 --> 00:14:30,270
billion in terms of obligations.

255
00:14:30,266 --> 00:14:31,696
The Press:
Obligated, not
necessarily spent yet.

256
00:14:31,700 --> 00:14:32,830
Mr. Bernstein:
Correct.

257
00:14:32,834 --> 00:14:34,304
Spend-out is closer
to $44 billion.

258
00:14:34,300 --> 00:14:37,030
The Press:
How much this summer are
you obligating now for this

259
00:14:37,033 --> 00:14:38,363
specific 600,000 --

260
00:14:38,367 --> 00:14:40,997
Mr. Bernstein:
We're unable to make that estimate at this point.

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00:14:41,000 --> 00:14:44,530
The Press:
Those summer jobs, that 125,000, are you counting that towards

262
00:14:44,533 --> 00:14:47,863
the 600,000 jobs that you're
going to be saving or creating?

263
00:14:47,867 --> 00:14:48,937
Mr. Bernstein:
Yes.

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00:14:48,934 --> 00:14:49,964
The Press:
Okay.

265
00:14:49,967 --> 00:14:51,297
Are you also going to be
counting that towards the 3.5

266
00:14:51,300 --> 00:14:53,600
total goal?

267
00:14:53,600 --> 00:15:01,970
Mr. Bernstein:
That is -- yes, the 3.5 is an estimate of jobs created or

268
00:15:01,967 --> 00:15:05,537
saved by the end of next year.

269
00:15:05,533 --> 00:15:08,533
The Press:
What you're obviously acknowledging are temporary jobs

270
00:15:08,533 --> 00:15:10,763
over the summer, which will last
three months of the summer --

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00:15:10,767 --> 00:15:12,697
Mr. Bernstein:
Oh, it's a good
question, you're right.

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00:15:12,700 --> 00:15:14,430
The Press:
-- how that's getting
counted in the 3.5.

273
00:15:14,433 --> 00:15:15,403
Mr. Bernstein:
Thank you.

274
00:15:15,400 --> 00:15:16,430
That's a good question.

275
00:15:16,433 --> 00:15:20,433
The 3.5 million jobs are what
economists call full-time

276
00:15:20,433 --> 00:15:21,503
equivalent jobs.

277
00:15:21,500 --> 00:15:26,200
So those 125,000 would
not count as a full 125.

278
00:15:26,200 --> 00:15:29,230
Two part-time jobs count as
one full-time equivalent job.

279
00:15:29,233 --> 00:15:31,703
The Press:
Okay, but you are including
that in the 600,000 number that

280
00:15:31,700 --> 00:15:35,270
you're saying that this accelerated spending will --

281
00:15:35,266 --> 00:15:37,466
Mr. Bernstein:
But not as 125.

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00:15:37,467 --> 00:15:42,237
They would have -- it's 600,000 FTEs -- full-time equivalent --

283
00:15:42,233 --> 00:15:44,263
so they would be in there, but
they would be part of that.

284
00:15:44,266 --> 00:15:46,036
The Press:
Jared, when you say "accelerated,"

285
00:15:46,033 --> 00:15:48,933
are you talking -- are you saying accelerated from the pace

286
00:15:48,934 --> 00:15:53,334
of the first hundred days, or accelerated from your expected

287
00:15:53,333 --> 00:15:58,963
pace when the Recovery
Plan was passed?

288
00:15:58,967 --> 00:16:02,467
Mr. Bernstein:
The former, accelerated
from the first hundred days.

289
00:16:02,467 --> 00:16:08,737
We had a -- our plan was to get the foundation in place over the

290
00:16:08,734 --> 00:16:13,404
first hundred days in terms of
getting contracts in the door,

291
00:16:13,400 --> 00:16:16,000
evaluating those contracts,
putting in the kinds of

292
00:16:16,000 --> 00:16:18,830
oversight and accountability
conditions that are so critical,

293
00:16:18,834 --> 00:16:20,634
getting the website
up and running,

294
00:16:20,633 --> 00:16:27,163
starting to receive and approve
state applications for fiscal stabilization.

295
00:16:27,166 --> 00:16:30,336
We've laid that foundation and
our expectation is we would ramp

296
00:16:30,333 --> 00:16:32,903
the plan up during the
second hundred days,

297
00:16:32,900 --> 00:16:35,970
but first we have to make sure
we have the first hundred days

298
00:16:35,967 --> 00:16:38,937
in place and that's gone
well from our perspective.

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00:16:38,934 --> 00:16:41,204
The Press:
I want to make sure
I understand this.

300
00:16:41,200 --> 00:16:43,170
So you're actually on schedule.

301
00:16:43,166 --> 00:16:47,766
You're not changing
the schedule spend-out?

302
00:16:47,767 --> 00:16:53,537
Mr. Bernstein:
The schedule, I would say we're slightly ahead of schedule,

303
00:16:53,533 --> 00:16:56,563
that we are -- that the acceleration that we're seeing

304
00:16:56,567 --> 00:16:59,597
in the second hundred days is a little better than we expected

305
00:16:59,600 --> 00:17:00,900
when we first sat down.

306
00:17:00,900 --> 00:17:02,630
But we certainly were
expecting a ramp-up.

307
00:17:02,633 --> 00:17:04,063
The Press:
So there was always supposed
to be an acceleration;

308
00:17:04,066 --> 00:17:05,236
this isn't new --

309
00:17:05,233 --> 00:17:06,703
Mr. Bernstein:
Yes.

310
00:17:06,700 --> 00:17:09,770
The Press:
On the unemployment rate, you said that without the stimulus

311
00:17:09,767 --> 00:17:13,437
package you would expect it to
be 1.5 to 2 percentage points

312
00:17:13,433 --> 00:17:16,433
higher by the end of next year.

313
00:17:16,433 --> 00:17:19,133
What is it that -- I mean,
what is your forecast for the

314
00:17:19,133 --> 00:17:20,663
unemployment rate by
the end of next year,

315
00:17:20,667 --> 00:17:22,737
and what would it have been without the stimulus package?

316
00:17:22,734 --> 00:17:24,804
Mr. Bernstein:
That's a fair question, but I'm not going to get ahead of --

317
00:17:24,800 --> 00:17:28,430
we actually have a process in
the White House wherein we

318
00:17:28,433 --> 00:17:32,203
release our next forecast I
think sometime by the end of the summer.

319
00:17:32,200 --> 00:17:34,400
The Press:
Jared, getting back
to Jake's question.

320
00:17:34,400 --> 00:17:37,000
When you put together the report
in January you projected with

321
00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:41,300
the stimulus an unemployment
rate of about 8% right now.

322
00:17:41,300 --> 00:17:44,100
It's a percentage and a half
point higher than that.

323
00:17:44,100 --> 00:17:46,670
Why did that happen, and what
should the country conclude from

324
00:17:46,667 --> 00:17:50,037
the inability to be able to
properly calculate in January,

325
00:17:50,033 --> 00:17:52,003
whatever it is that happened in
the economy that made you miss

326
00:17:52,000 --> 00:17:53,700
the mark by 1.5
percentage points?

327
00:17:53,700 --> 00:17:56,130
Mr. Bernstein:
Well, first of all, let's be very clear about this point.

328
00:17:56,133 --> 00:17:59,833
Our forecast at that time was
right in the middle of every

329
00:17:59,834 --> 00:18:02,864
other forecast, and in fact, if
we had had a forecast that was

330
00:18:02,867 --> 00:18:06,867
much worse than that, we
would have been an outlier.

331
00:18:06,867 --> 00:18:09,597
We also would have been
correct, it turned out.

332
00:18:09,600 --> 00:18:18,670
But the point is that the
contraction of the economy in

333
00:18:18,667 --> 00:18:22,637
the fourth quarter -- you should recall back then that was --

334
00:18:22,633 --> 00:18:26,263
the magnitude of that
contraction was far larger than

335
00:18:26,266 --> 00:18:28,096
was expected.

336
00:18:28,100 --> 00:18:32,030
And so at the time our
forecast seemed reasonable.

337
00:18:32,033 --> 00:18:35,263
Now, looking back, it was
clearly too optimistic.

338
00:18:35,266 --> 00:18:37,066
What I will say, though, and
I don't want to lose sight of

339
00:18:37,066 --> 00:18:43,366
this, is that the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act,

340
00:18:43,367 --> 00:18:49,767
in our view, according
to our analysis,

341
00:18:49,767 --> 00:18:54,037
will lead to an unemployment
rate by the end of next year of

342
00:18:54,033 --> 00:18:58,863
1.5 to 2 points lower than
would otherwise be the case.

343
00:18:58,867 --> 00:19:02,767
And that is the direct result
of the kinds of programs and

344
00:19:02,767 --> 00:19:04,797
projects we're
talking about today,

345
00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:08,730
putting literally millions of
people back to work who in the

346
00:19:08,734 --> 00:19:12,934
absence of this program would
not be gainfully employed.

347
00:19:12,934 --> 00:19:15,704
The Press:
Do you think the unemployment rate has peaked already?

348
00:19:15,700 --> 00:19:16,770
Mr. Bernstein:
No, I don't.

349
00:19:16,767 --> 00:19:18,567
The Press:
When do you think it will
peak and at what level?

350
00:19:18,567 --> 00:19:21,137
Mr. Bernstein:
I'm not going to
speculate on that.

351
00:19:21,133 --> 00:19:23,903
I think that's better
to wait for the --

352
00:19:23,900 --> 00:19:25,930
The Press:
You speculated in January.

353
00:19:25,934 --> 00:19:29,634
The Press:
Yes, you speculated before.

354
00:19:29,633 --> 00:19:33,033
Mr. Bernstein:
We have a process by which
we release these forecasts.

355
00:19:33,033 --> 00:19:36,463
It would be disruptive to the
process for me to get out here

356
00:19:36,467 --> 00:19:38,197
and just sort of
share my speculation.

357
00:19:38,200 --> 00:19:41,930
The budget director will be
releasing those in late summer.

358
00:19:41,934 --> 00:19:45,704
Mr. Gibbs:
But let's understand -- I
know I'm not an economist,

359
00:19:45,700 --> 00:19:48,600
but we have said and I think I've said each and every month

360
00:19:48,600 --> 00:19:51,830
that we've been in here
that we expected many,

361
00:19:51,834 --> 00:19:58,864
many months of continued
job loss in the hundreds of thousands.

362
00:19:58,867 --> 00:20:05,437
The reason that this wasn't
a $787 billion hundred-day

363
00:20:05,433 --> 00:20:09,333
economic recovery plan, why it's
a two-year recovery plan is

364
00:20:09,333 --> 00:20:12,863
because we never expected this
all to be solved in a hundred days.

365
00:20:12,867 --> 00:20:13,737
Right?

366
00:20:13,734 --> 00:20:17,504
That's why the spend-out
is over a two-year plan.

367
00:20:17,500 --> 00:20:21,200
The obligation that
we all talked about,

368
00:20:21,200 --> 00:20:26,770
that Jared talked about in
terms of over $135 billion --

369
00:20:26,767 --> 00:20:29,837
I've seen some of the
reporting today, it is --

370
00:20:29,834 --> 00:20:35,334
this notion that we thought
somehow a hundred and some days

371
00:20:35,333 --> 00:20:40,333
into the stimulus plan being
law that our economy would be

372
00:20:40,333 --> 00:20:43,533
completely turned around is
certainly not predicated on

373
00:20:43,533 --> 00:20:47,633
anything that we've talked about
in here each and every day since

374
00:20:47,633 --> 00:20:49,663
the administration began.

375
00:20:49,667 --> 00:20:52,337
The Press:
Jared, you guys said that
at end of the 3rd quarter,

376
00:20:52,333 --> 00:20:54,103
I mean in that report,
that that was --

377
00:20:54,100 --> 00:20:56,970
Mr. Gibbs:
But again, I think it's important to understand --

378
00:20:56,967 --> 00:21:00,997
and remember the type of
questions that I got the day

379
00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:04,530
that the growth number came out
that showed economic contraction

380
00:21:04,533 --> 00:21:09,933
that quarter, as
Jared said, down -6%.

381
00:21:09,934 --> 00:21:20,064
Remember the rate of job decline
in December and January changed dramatically.

382
00:21:20,066 --> 00:21:24,796
Something was happening in the
economy in that time period and

383
00:21:24,800 --> 00:21:29,430
in those months
that caused it to --

384
00:21:29,433 --> 00:21:34,333
in a sense, caused the
acceleration of the deterioration.

385
00:21:34,333 --> 00:21:36,663
But I think the point that
Jared is trying to make here is,

386
00:21:36,667 --> 00:21:41,437
understand regardless of where
that curve in the downturn was,

387
00:21:41,433 --> 00:21:47,703
or differently the curve in
where the job percentage number was --

388
00:21:47,700 --> 00:21:48,970
Mr. Bernstein:
The unemployment --

389
00:21:48,967 --> 00:21:51,837
Mr. Gibbs:
-- right -- you're still
talking about -- as Jared said,

390
00:21:51,834 --> 00:21:56,064
you can shift that curve up
to assume where we are now,

391
00:21:56,066 --> 00:22:00,666
but the plan was always predicated to have that number

392
00:22:00,667 --> 00:22:06,297
be, as Jared said, 1.5 to 2
percentage points less than in

393
00:22:06,300 --> 00:22:09,270
the absence of a recovery plan.

394
00:22:09,266 --> 00:22:12,266
The Press:
So you're saying the 3.5 -- that is just not going to change.

395
00:22:12,266 --> 00:22:15,136
This plan, no matter what,
because of the way you're

396
00:22:15,133 --> 00:22:18,733
statistically modeling this,
it will be a minimum of 3.5

397
00:22:18,734 --> 00:22:22,464
million, because there have been
estimates that say 2.2 million.

398
00:22:22,467 --> 00:22:23,197
Mr. Bernstein:
Let me be clear.

399
00:22:23,200 --> 00:22:25,700
No, no, let me be clear.

400
00:22:25,700 --> 00:22:28,470
Every economic estimate has a
confidence interval around it.

401
00:22:28,467 --> 00:22:32,067
And one of the things we're
doing, as time goes on,

402
00:22:32,066 --> 00:22:34,466
and you'll see quarterly reports
from the Council of Economic

403
00:22:34,467 --> 00:22:40,397
Advisors on this, we have
real-time data that we add and

404
00:22:40,400 --> 00:22:46,530
factor into our estimates where
recipients of Recovery Act

405
00:22:46,533 --> 00:22:48,763
dollars report job
creation to us.

406
00:22:48,767 --> 00:22:50,367
Now, let me just say --

407
00:22:50,367 --> 00:22:51,897
The Press:
The 150,000 jobs --

408
00:22:51,900 --> 00:22:55,130
Mr. Bernstein:
The response to
that is often, well,

409
00:22:55,133 --> 00:22:57,433
why don't you just count
those and stop there?

410
00:22:57,433 --> 00:23:02,563
But of course that's just one
piece of the job creation pie.

411
00:23:02,567 --> 00:23:06,037
That's the jobs created directly
through government spending

412
00:23:06,033 --> 00:23:07,333
through contracts --

413
00:23:07,333 --> 00:23:09,263
we like to fix roads and
repair bridges and so on.

414
00:23:09,266 --> 00:23:12,266
You don't get those
jobs through --

415
00:23:12,266 --> 00:23:14,096
you're not counting
the tax cuts,

416
00:23:14,100 --> 00:23:15,370
the jobs created
through the tax cuts.

417
00:23:15,367 --> 00:23:17,367
You're not counting the
multiplier-effect jobs for

418
00:23:17,367 --> 00:23:19,297
people who, on those
direct spending,

419
00:23:19,300 --> 00:23:22,530
go out to the lunch counter and
create extra demand that would

420
00:23:22,533 --> 00:23:25,533
not have otherwise
have been there.

421
00:23:25,533 --> 00:23:27,363
Mr. Gibbs:
And I think you -- look, the Vice President had a good

422
00:23:27,367 --> 00:23:30,297
example today: window makers.

423
00:23:30,300 --> 00:23:32,600
This is a fairly, I
think, good example,

424
00:23:32,600 --> 00:23:35,900
because there is a tax credit
for energy-efficient windows

425
00:23:35,900 --> 00:23:42,100
that a taxpayer would use and
apply for in next year's taxes.

426
00:23:42,100 --> 00:23:49,970
So there are going to be -- window makers are producing in

427
00:23:49,967 --> 00:23:55,197
anticipation of the tax credit causing, as Jared talked about,

428
00:23:55,200 --> 00:23:57,500
an economic multiplier effect.

429
00:23:57,500 --> 00:24:01,370
Window producers are
making more windows.

430
00:24:01,367 --> 00:24:03,837
Somebody decides they're going
to change the windows in their

431
00:24:03,834 --> 00:24:06,734
house to take advantage of the
tax credit that will show up on

432
00:24:06,734 --> 00:24:08,104
next year's taxes.

433
00:24:08,100 --> 00:24:09,970
So there's a whole
host of changes --

434
00:24:09,967 --> 00:24:11,237
The Press:
Jared, can you
give us a split --

435
00:24:11,233 --> 00:24:14,033
The Press:
-- most of the jobs, the 150, were saved or most were created

436
00:24:14,033 --> 00:24:15,163
in that first hundred days?

437
00:24:15,166 --> 00:24:16,666
Mr. Bernstein:
I can't give you
a split on that.

438
00:24:16,667 --> 00:24:18,137
The Press:
A rough split at all?

439
00:24:18,133 --> 00:24:19,803
I mean, is there any way
-- it's your accounting,

440
00:24:19,800 --> 00:24:22,700
it's your number, you came up with it through modeling or

441
00:24:22,700 --> 00:24:24,500
through some other mechanism.

442
00:24:24,500 --> 00:24:26,200
Clearly, some states have
received money and that's

443
00:24:26,200 --> 00:24:28,130
patched up their
budget deficits.

444
00:24:28,133 --> 00:24:29,833
That's helped them
keep some people on --

445
00:24:29,834 --> 00:24:32,064
Mr. Bernstein:
I just don't want to
try to -- you know,

446
00:24:32,066 --> 00:24:34,696
pretend to be able to give you a level of accuracy on that split

447
00:24:34,700 --> 00:24:35,900
that we simply consider --

448
00:24:35,900 --> 00:24:39,500
The Press:
When are you going to be able
to go beyond saying there's a

449
00:24:39,500 --> 00:24:42,470
mathematical formula or a tested
methodology that gets this

450
00:24:42,467 --> 00:24:46,467
number, and actually go back and
look and say, we were right,

451
00:24:46,467 --> 00:24:49,097
it was that number of jobs;
or, we were grossly wrong?

452
00:24:49,100 --> 00:24:51,430
Mr. Bernstein:
I think I should refer --
to answer that question,

453
00:24:51,433 --> 00:24:56,933
let me refer you to two papers that I think, I believe --

454
00:24:56,934 --> 00:25:01,104
I hope -- take you through
this kind of methodology,

455
00:25:01,100 --> 00:25:03,870
this sort of an estimate
in what's supposed to be

456
00:25:03,867 --> 00:25:05,437
reader-friendly language.

457
00:25:05,433 --> 00:25:12,463
They're both on recoveryact.gov
and one of them is a more

458
00:25:12,467 --> 00:25:15,697
recent, and I think perhaps the
more helpful one is the more

459
00:25:15,700 --> 00:25:17,570
recent one by the Council
of Economic Advisers,

460
00:25:17,567 --> 00:25:19,897
precisely on how
we're counting jobs.

461
00:25:19,900 --> 00:25:21,670
The Press:
But at some point you're going to be able to actually add them

462
00:25:21,667 --> 00:25:23,497
up and actually
look at them, right?

463
00:25:23,500 --> 00:25:26,370
When will you get to that point,
you can get beyond just using a

464
00:25:26,367 --> 00:25:27,967
mathematical model?

465
00:25:27,967 --> 00:25:29,837
Mr. Bernstein:
Well, every quarter, and
you're going to see these --

466
00:25:29,834 --> 00:25:30,964
The Press:
When will it be?

467
00:25:30,967 --> 00:25:33,267
Mr. Bernstein:
-- every quarter and you're going to see actually under the

468
00:25:33,266 --> 00:25:37,136
act, the Council of Economic Advisors has the obligation to

469
00:25:37,133 --> 00:25:41,763
report job growth quarterly.

470
00:25:41,767 --> 00:25:44,797
And as I was just explaining,
part of that calculation

471
00:25:44,800 --> 00:25:50,130
involves contract recipients
telling us the jobs they created.

472
00:25:50,133 --> 00:25:52,933
But part of it is also
going to be jobs saved.

473
00:25:52,934 --> 00:25:57,934
I mentioned the 150,000
schoolteachers across the land

474
00:25:57,934 --> 00:26:02,404
as part of the second
hundred days --

475
00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:04,630
teachers, principals,
and support staff --

476
00:26:04,633 --> 00:26:06,133
those are jobs saved.

477
00:26:06,133 --> 00:26:10,403
So that's not something you're
going to get from a contractor

478
00:26:10,400 --> 00:26:12,330
who says, I just
added five people.

479
00:26:12,333 --> 00:26:15,033
That's something you're going
to get by comparing the actual

480
00:26:15,033 --> 00:26:19,603
outcome relative to an expected
outcome in the absence of your investments.

481
00:26:19,600 --> 00:26:24,470
The Press:
Go to that split, to follow
up on Chip's question,

482
00:26:24,467 --> 00:26:26,667
how much in the estimate of
the 3.5 million is going to be

483
00:26:26,667 --> 00:26:30,497
direct government contract jobs,
and how much is going to be --

484
00:26:30,500 --> 00:26:33,100
Mr. Bernstein:
That I know the answer to
but I don't have it with me.

485
00:26:33,100 --> 00:26:35,700
It's actually in the
Romer-Bernstein report,

486
00:26:35,700 --> 00:26:37,370
precisely that question.

487
00:26:37,367 --> 00:26:39,397
The Press:
Is that where the 2.2 --
because I've seen that number --

488
00:26:39,400 --> 00:26:43,900
Mr. Bernstein:
I want to say it's something like 60/40 direct-indirect,

489
00:26:43,900 --> 00:26:46,800
but don't -- go to the
report; it's right there.

490
00:26:46,800 --> 00:26:47,570
Mr. Gibbs:
Thanks, Jared.

491
00:26:47,567 --> 00:26:48,767
The Press:
Can I just ask one
other question?

492
00:26:48,767 --> 00:26:50,697
On the website, on
the new website,

493
00:26:50,700 --> 00:26:52,770
is this going to be a
cheerleader rah-rah thing or do

494
00:26:52,767 --> 00:26:55,167
you get a whole
slew of people --

495
00:26:55,166 --> 00:26:57,636
you said you're going
to hear from people.

496
00:26:57,633 --> 00:26:58,933
If you get a lot of people
calling in and saying, hey,

497
00:26:58,934 --> 00:27:00,404
I'm not getting the job that I
thought I was going to get out

498
00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:01,870
of this -- will
they be on there too,

499
00:27:01,867 --> 00:27:03,837
or is it only going to
be positive assessments?

500
00:27:03,834 --> 00:27:05,664
Mr. Gibbs:
Chip, I assume as soon as you file that story they'll upload

501
00:27:05,667 --> 00:27:07,067
it up onto the website.

502
00:27:07,066 --> 00:27:08,266
(laughter)

503
00:27:08,266 --> 00:27:13,836
Thank you.

504
00:27:13,834 --> 00:27:23,364
All right, let me do one quick
announcement before we start.

505
00:27:23,367 --> 00:27:27,167
President Obama will meet
President Lee of South Korea at

506
00:27:27,166 --> 00:27:30,366
the White House on
Tuesday, June 16.

507
00:27:30,367 --> 00:27:32,667
President Obama extended the
invitation at their last meeting

508
00:27:32,667 --> 00:27:36,667
in London on April 2nd
during the G20 summit.

509
00:27:36,667 --> 00:27:39,667
The Republic of Korea is a close
friend and a key ally of the

510
00:27:39,667 --> 00:27:42,897
United States and the President
looks forward to exploring ways

511
00:27:42,900 --> 00:27:45,870
in which the two countries can
strengthen cooperation on the

512
00:27:45,867 --> 00:27:49,367
regional and global challenges
of the 21st century.

513
00:27:49,367 --> 00:27:52,437
The two leaders will confer on
North Korea and will consult on

514
00:27:52,433 --> 00:27:57,003
a range of bilateral
and other issues.

515
00:27:57,000 --> 00:27:58,130
Yes, sir.

516
00:27:58,133 --> 00:27:59,563
The Press:
Thanks, Robert.

517
00:27:59,567 --> 00:28:02,767
Having listened to all that, I'm
still trying to figure out one

518
00:28:02,767 --> 00:28:04,067
key point here.

519
00:28:04,066 --> 00:28:06,966
We knew from the White House
weeks ago that the White House

520
00:28:06,967 --> 00:28:10,797
thought the stimulus would create or save 600,000 jobs this summer.

521
00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:13,330
We knew there was going to be
a ramp up, an acceleration,

522
00:28:13,333 --> 00:28:15,163
and Jared just
confirmed that, too.

523
00:28:15,166 --> 00:28:20,536
So what is the point of this big
splash today with the President

524
00:28:20,533 --> 00:28:23,703
and the Vice President, and we
just had that detailed briefing.

525
00:28:23,700 --> 00:28:25,130
Does the White
House think that --

526
00:28:25,133 --> 00:28:27,433
do you think that
you're off message?

527
00:28:27,433 --> 00:28:29,303
Do you think that people are
losing confidence in the stimulus?

528
00:28:29,300 --> 00:28:30,730
Why are you doing this?

529
00:28:30,734 --> 00:28:36,104
Mr. Gibbs:
No, I think part of it, Ben,
is to outline the exact details

530
00:28:36,100 --> 00:28:40,600
with which Jared just walked you
through the 10 slides to talk

531
00:28:40,600 --> 00:28:51,170
about the projects that we are
going to see created and what's

532
00:28:51,166 --> 00:28:55,166
going to be taking part in
the next hundred days and the

533
00:28:55,166 --> 00:28:56,836
history of the Recovery Act.

534
00:28:56,834 --> 00:29:00,404
But I think it's a little
incongruent to say --

535
00:29:00,400 --> 00:29:04,270
it's hard to ask
if we planned this.

536
00:29:04,266 --> 00:29:08,736
If all this stuff was planned,
how can it be in response to criticism?

537
00:29:08,734 --> 00:29:09,964
The Press:
No, I'm not suggesting --

538
00:29:09,967 --> 00:29:13,967
Mr. Gibbs:
Are you inferring that on the 136th day or so we would have

539
00:29:13,967 --> 00:29:17,097
inferred criticism and then --
I don't know if it's 136; my

540
00:29:17,100 --> 00:29:18,630
pardons to Mark, I just guessed.

541
00:29:18,633 --> 00:29:20,363
The Press:
No, there was no part in
my question that talked

542
00:29:20,367 --> 00:29:21,667
about criticism.

543
00:29:21,667 --> 00:29:23,567
I'm just trying to
figure out what the --

544
00:29:23,567 --> 00:29:25,097
Mr. Gibbs:
I think the latter part
of that question --

545
00:29:25,100 --> 00:29:28,200
The Press:
No, what the strategy is
when you talk about --

546
00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:29,830
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, the strategy
is to outline --

547
00:29:29,834 --> 00:29:32,664
the President always talked
about ensuring that people

548
00:29:32,667 --> 00:29:35,967
understood where we were on the
road to economic recovery and

549
00:29:35,967 --> 00:29:38,737
the steps that this
administration was going to take

550
00:29:38,734 --> 00:29:42,234
in order to improve the economic
outlook of this country.

551
00:29:42,233 --> 00:29:46,103
And I think you heard the
President talk about today,

552
00:29:46,100 --> 00:29:49,670
and others in the administration
talk about on Friday,

553
00:29:49,667 --> 00:29:55,237
that we have seen the fewest
number of lost jobs in about an

554
00:29:55,233 --> 00:29:57,933
eight-month period.

555
00:29:57,934 --> 00:30:04,404
And while the number was less
than what was estimated,

556
00:30:04,400 --> 00:30:09,170
the Vice President said on
Friday and the President said

557
00:30:09,166 --> 00:30:16,996
again today that less
bad is not good enough.

558
00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:21,930
These are the steps that the
administration is outlining to

559
00:30:21,934 --> 00:30:25,534
ensure that the steps to
recovery are taking place.

560
00:30:25,533 --> 00:30:27,833
And some of the figures
that Jared talked about,

561
00:30:27,834 --> 00:30:32,334
in the bill there's about
$499 billion in spending,

562
00:30:32,333 --> 00:30:38,333
and as he talked about over
$135 billion of that has been obligated.

563
00:30:38,333 --> 00:30:44,633
What's not included in the
obligation number is some of the tax stuff.

564
00:30:44,633 --> 00:30:50,163
And this is part of the
President's continuing to

565
00:30:50,166 --> 00:30:52,566
discuss the steps that we're
taking with the American people.

566
00:30:52,567 --> 00:30:53,637
The Press:
I have a follow on.

567
00:30:53,633 --> 00:30:57,733
As you know, part of the effort
is not just to implement the

568
00:30:57,734 --> 00:31:00,734
Recovery Act successfully but to
show the American people that

569
00:31:00,734 --> 00:31:01,964
it's working.

570
00:31:01,967 --> 00:31:05,167
You do have critics who are
saying that either the money

571
00:31:05,166 --> 00:31:10,436
isn't being spent well or that
today's event is a repackaging.

572
00:31:10,433 --> 00:31:14,603
My question is, do you feel that
the White House is winning that

573
00:31:14,600 --> 00:31:19,600
battle, the battle for the
message with the American people?

574
00:31:19,600 --> 00:31:22,530
Mr. Gibbs:
I think the American people are not worried about the message

575
00:31:22,533 --> 00:31:24,763
battle that's going
on in Washington;

576
00:31:24,767 --> 00:31:28,437
they're worried about whether or
not we're taking concrete steps

577
00:31:28,433 --> 00:31:32,363
to fix our economy, to
improve it for the future,

578
00:31:32,367 --> 00:31:35,437
to save and create jobs now.

579
00:31:35,433 --> 00:31:38,803
I can assure you they're not
worried about a bunch of back

580
00:31:38,800 --> 00:31:41,370
and forth spin.

581
00:31:41,367 --> 00:31:43,997
They're concerned rightly about
the steps that we're taking to

582
00:31:44,000 --> 00:31:45,530
improve it.

583
00:31:45,533 --> 00:31:51,333
And I think that's exactly what
the President outlined today.

584
00:31:51,333 --> 00:31:52,363
Yes, sir.

585
00:31:52,367 --> 00:31:54,467
The Press:
I had two questions
related to North Korea.

586
00:31:54,467 --> 00:31:58,267
First, about the journalists
that have been imprisoned,

587
00:31:58,266 --> 00:32:02,496
is there any indication that
North Korea intends to use these

588
00:32:02,500 --> 00:32:08,300
women as a bargaining chip in
the nuclear standoff issue --

589
00:32:08,300 --> 00:32:16,800
Mr. Gibbs:
This is not -- I think their detainment is not something that

590
00:32:16,800 --> 00:32:21,400
we've linked to other issues and we hope the North Koreans don't

591
00:32:21,400 --> 00:32:23,600
do that either.

592
00:32:23,600 --> 00:32:28,530
I think this is a humanitarian
issue and these women are

593
00:32:28,533 --> 00:32:30,603
innocent and should be
released to their family.

594
00:32:30,600 --> 00:32:36,100
And the administration is
working to see that happen.

595
00:32:36,100 --> 00:32:39,070
The Press:
So there's been no sign so far that they've been trying to link

596
00:32:39,066 --> 00:32:40,366
the two issues?

597
00:32:40,367 --> 00:32:41,937
Mr. Gibbs:
Not that I'm aware of.

598
00:32:41,934 --> 00:32:43,764
The Press:
Anything on -- the second question has to do with

599
00:32:43,767 --> 00:32:46,997
Secretary Clinton's statement that the U.S. was considering

600
00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:51,570
putting North Korea back on the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

601
00:32:51,567 --> 00:32:53,497
I just wondered where are
things in that process?

602
00:32:53,500 --> 00:32:56,630
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I think it's important
to look at the question that

603
00:32:56,633 --> 00:32:59,833
Secretary Clinton
got, which was --

604
00:32:59,834 --> 00:33:04,064
was asked about a letter from
senators about this topic,

605
00:33:04,066 --> 00:33:07,696
and obviously she's
received the letter.

606
00:33:07,700 --> 00:33:14,530
We are working and continue to
work with Congress to consider

607
00:33:14,533 --> 00:33:19,663
any and all ideas related to
dealing with the situation with

608
00:33:19,667 --> 00:33:21,767
North Korea.

609
00:33:21,767 --> 00:33:26,367
Obviously, the statute is
clear and lays out a series of

610
00:33:26,367 --> 00:33:31,567
requirements, as she
noted in the interview.

611
00:33:31,567 --> 00:33:38,597
And I think obviously the main
focus for us is on what steps

612
00:33:38,600 --> 00:33:43,930
internationally can be taken
and that we're working on in

613
00:33:43,934 --> 00:33:45,664
response to the North Koreans.

614
00:33:45,667 --> 00:33:51,697
And I would say, lastly, this
is also a very big issue about

615
00:33:51,700 --> 00:33:53,730
their actions.

616
00:33:53,734 --> 00:33:56,404
There are, and I've
said this, I think,

617
00:33:56,400 --> 00:33:59,170
probably each and every day
in here that we've done this,

618
00:33:59,166 --> 00:34:03,296
the actions that they've taken
have further isolated themselves

619
00:34:03,300 --> 00:34:06,430
from the world.

620
00:34:06,433 --> 00:34:09,403
They're the ones that are
stepping away from their own

621
00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:11,200
rights and responsibilities.

622
00:34:11,200 --> 00:34:13,400
I would also underscore that
the responsibilities and the

623
00:34:13,400 --> 00:34:18,700
accountability that they
have do not necessarily --

624
00:34:18,700 --> 00:34:23,100
don't fall under necessarily the
provisions of the law that she

625
00:34:23,100 --> 00:34:24,130
was talking about.

626
00:34:24,133 --> 00:34:27,133
We were talking about U.N. Security Council resolutions and

627
00:34:27,133 --> 00:34:30,663
agreements that they've made
as part of the negotiating team.

628
00:34:30,667 --> 00:34:31,497
Yes, sir.

629
00:34:31,500 --> 00:34:32,670
The Press:
A couple questions.

630
00:34:32,667 --> 00:34:39,667
One, last week -- I assume you weren't here in D.C. for this --

631
00:34:39,667 --> 00:34:40,897
Mr. Gibbs:
I think I saw you in France.

632
00:34:40,900 --> 00:34:41,730
The Press:
Yes.

633
00:34:41,734 --> 00:34:42,604
(laughter)

634
00:34:42,600 --> 00:34:44,130
It was lovely.

635
00:34:44,133 --> 00:34:46,903
The Commissioner of the Bureau
of Labor Statistics testified

636
00:34:46,900 --> 00:34:51,200
before Congress, and he was
asked about the 450,000 claim.

637
00:34:51,200 --> 00:34:52,100
Can you substantiate --

638
00:34:52,100 --> 00:34:53,170
Mr. Gibbs:
The 450?

639
00:34:53,166 --> 00:34:54,196
The Press:
150.

640
00:34:54,200 --> 00:34:56,170
The Press:
The 150,000 job claim.

641
00:34:56,166 --> 00:34:57,366
Mr. Gibbs:
Okay.

642
00:34:57,367 --> 00:34:59,597
The Press:
And he was asked if he
could substantiate the claim,

643
00:34:59,600 --> 00:35:02,270
and he called the Bureau of
Labor Statistics Commissioner,

644
00:35:02,266 --> 00:35:04,896
who said, no, that would be a
very difficult thing for anybody

645
00:35:04,900 --> 00:35:06,400
to substantiate.

646
00:35:06,400 --> 00:35:09,430
He was asked again, "So you're
saying you can't verify that

647
00:35:09,433 --> 00:35:12,133
the administration's policies
have created an additional

648
00:35:12,133 --> 00:35:13,303
150,000 jobs?"

649
00:35:13,300 --> 00:35:16,370
They said, no, we're
busy just counting jobs.

650
00:35:16,367 --> 00:35:18,397
Is it fair for the
administration to use this

651
00:35:18,400 --> 00:35:22,630
statistic like 150,000 jobs
saved or created when the

652
00:35:22,633 --> 00:35:25,663
Commissioner of the Bureau of
Labor Statistics does not stand

653
00:35:25,667 --> 00:35:26,697
by the number?

654
00:35:26,700 --> 00:35:30,470
Mr. Gibbs:
I would point you to what Jared talked about in the two reports

655
00:35:30,467 --> 00:35:32,137
that are on the Internet.

656
00:35:32,133 --> 00:35:33,903
I do think it's fair.

657
00:35:33,900 --> 00:35:38,930
And I haven't seen the report,
having been overseas, but yes,

658
00:35:38,934 --> 00:35:40,504
we continue to think it's fair.

659
00:35:40,500 --> 00:35:42,430
The Press:
Okay, and the other
question I had is,

660
00:35:42,433 --> 00:35:45,063
ABC interviewed
Lakhdar Boumediene,

661
00:35:45,066 --> 00:35:50,496
the former Guantanamo detainee
who is now free in France.

662
00:35:50,500 --> 00:35:53,800
He spent seven and a
half years in Guantanamo,

663
00:35:53,800 --> 00:35:56,330
or almost all of them at
that time in Guantanamo,

664
00:35:56,333 --> 00:36:01,803
and he is considering suing the
United States government for that time.

665
00:36:01,800 --> 00:36:05,770
Does the Obama administration
think that people who have been

666
00:36:05,767 --> 00:36:09,497
freed from Guantanamo
deserve any compensation?

667
00:36:09,500 --> 00:36:14,730
Mr. Gibbs:
I would have to ask somebody
at NSC what that involves.

668
00:36:14,734 --> 00:36:18,264
I don't think that's been part
of any of the discussions that

669
00:36:18,266 --> 00:36:21,236
have taken place here as it
relates to the many issues

670
00:36:21,233 --> 00:36:24,703
around the closure
of Guantanamo.

671
00:36:24,700 --> 00:36:25,470
Yes, ma'am.

672
00:36:25,467 --> 00:36:28,297
The Press:
Back on North Korea, has President Obama or anybody in

673
00:36:28,300 --> 00:36:32,630
the administration been in touch
with former Vice President Gore

674
00:36:32,633 --> 00:36:35,703
about possibly taking a role in
helping to try to secure the

675
00:36:35,700 --> 00:36:36,670
release of --

676
00:36:36,667 --> 00:36:37,567
Mr. Gibbs:
I can check.

677
00:36:37,567 --> 00:36:44,267
I've seen, certainly,
discussion about --

678
00:36:44,266 --> 00:36:47,796
news reports, I should say,
about different people that may

679
00:36:47,800 --> 00:36:51,000
or may not go, but I don't have
anything to add to what I've

680
00:36:51,000 --> 00:36:52,530
seen in the news.

681
00:36:52,533 --> 00:36:54,963
The Press:
Has President Obama talked to -- on a different topic now --

682
00:36:54,967 --> 00:36:56,237
Judge Sotomayor?

683
00:36:56,233 --> 00:36:57,563
How is she doing?

684
00:36:57,567 --> 00:36:59,437
Mr. Gibbs:
I don't think he
has talked to her.

685
00:36:59,433 --> 00:37:07,333
I know that she, as a result
of, I think, a trip --

686
00:37:07,333 --> 00:37:13,833
a tripping at LaGuardia, broke
a small bone in her ankle.

687
00:37:13,834 --> 00:37:19,204
She flew to D.C. I think it was
looked at when she got here and

688
00:37:19,200 --> 00:37:23,470
she was advised to go get
x-rays, which she did.

689
00:37:23,467 --> 00:37:28,797
I think she spent a couple of
hours getting a cast and is,

690
00:37:28,800 --> 00:37:31,430
the last time I saw
video up on Capitol Hill,

691
00:37:31,433 --> 00:37:36,463
continuing to meet with senators
as part of her meetings

692
00:37:36,467 --> 00:37:38,067
surrounding her nomination.

693
00:37:38,066 --> 00:37:42,836
I think she has six meetings
scheduled today and she'll make

694
00:37:42,834 --> 00:37:45,704
all six of those meetings.

695
00:37:45,700 --> 00:37:47,030
The Press:
You're not going
to sign the cast?

696
00:37:47,033 --> 00:37:47,963
(laughter)

697
00:37:47,967 --> 00:37:48,937
Mr. Gibbs:
I'm sorry?

698
00:37:48,934 --> 00:37:50,334
The Press:
You're not going
to sign the cast?

699
00:37:50,333 --> 00:37:52,503
Mr. Gibbs:
If she comes by maybe we will.

700
00:37:52,500 --> 00:37:54,130
The Press:
She gets 70 signatures
on the cast.

701
00:37:54,133 --> 00:37:56,463
(laughter)

702
00:37:56,467 --> 00:37:58,997
Mr. Gibbs:
Maybe we should get
senators to sign the --

703
00:37:59,000 --> 00:38:00,070
Yes, ma'am.

704
00:38:00,066 --> 00:38:01,466
The Press:
Now that the
President's speech --

705
00:38:01,467 --> 00:38:02,637
Mr. Gibbs:
He's reading the --

706
00:38:02,633 --> 00:38:06,533
The Press:
his definitive speech
on the Middle East,

707
00:38:06,533 --> 00:38:08,403
what's his follow-up to it?

708
00:38:08,400 --> 00:38:13,470
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, look, Helen, I think we said this throughout the past

709
00:38:13,467 --> 00:38:17,197
several days, I don't look at
the President's outreach as

710
00:38:17,200 --> 00:38:22,000
having started in the speech and
it's not going to end as part of that speech.

711
00:38:22,000 --> 00:38:26,270
I think going all the way back
to the very beginning of the

712
00:38:26,266 --> 00:38:31,996
administration and ensuring that
this administration was involved

713
00:38:32,000 --> 00:38:36,800
early on in the Middle
East peace process,

714
00:38:36,800 --> 00:38:42,000
the President talked about that
as being a high priority --

715
00:38:42,000 --> 00:38:46,970
interviews that he's done, his
speech to the parliament in

716
00:38:46,967 --> 00:38:50,697
Turkey and a town hall meeting
there, as well as that speech.

717
00:38:50,700 --> 00:38:55,330
And I think he outlined a
series of things that the

718
00:38:55,333 --> 00:38:58,963
administration will focus
on in terms of democracy.

719
00:38:58,967 --> 00:38:59,967
I think --

720
00:38:59,967 --> 00:39:01,497
The Press:
I'm not talking about speeches.

721
00:39:01,500 --> 00:39:03,200
What's his next step?

722
00:39:03,200 --> 00:39:06,570
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, let me finish and
I'll give you some action.

723
00:39:06,567 --> 00:39:11,337
Obviously the President is
continuing to work on the peace

724
00:39:11,333 --> 00:39:14,703
process -- and we'll have some readouts probably a little bit

725
00:39:14,700 --> 00:39:19,770
later for you today
on some of that.

726
00:39:19,767 --> 00:39:21,597
The President,
again as I've said,

727
00:39:21,600 --> 00:39:25,330
will be engaged in dealing
with the parties there,

728
00:39:25,333 --> 00:39:29,503
obviously working on the Iranian
issue as it relates to their

729
00:39:29,500 --> 00:39:30,670
nuclear program.

730
00:39:30,667 --> 00:39:33,967
So I think there are a number
of things that are ongoing,

731
00:39:33,967 --> 00:39:38,537
and I think the President is
also, I think it is safe to say,

732
00:39:38,533 --> 00:39:46,563
heartened by the turnout in
Lebanon and the results that

733
00:39:46,567 --> 00:39:52,097
demonstrate a win for democracy
and a win for a sovereign and

734
00:39:52,100 --> 00:39:53,630
independent Lebanon.

735
00:39:53,633 --> 00:39:54,463
Chip.

736
00:39:54,467 --> 00:39:57,097
The Press:
If I could get back to
something Jared was asked about,

737
00:39:57,100 --> 00:39:59,770
the idea that you're
accelerating the pace now.

738
00:39:59,767 --> 00:40:02,097
I think that just
gives the people --

739
00:40:02,100 --> 00:40:06,300
it automatically implied that,
well, it must be bogged down.

740
00:40:06,300 --> 00:40:10,470
Can you verify that this is not
in response to this program

741
00:40:10,467 --> 00:40:11,697
bogging down?

742
00:40:11,700 --> 00:40:14,800
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, again, I'd
go back to the --

743
00:40:14,800 --> 00:40:17,730
if the acceleration was planned,
then how can it be bogged down?

744
00:40:17,734 --> 00:40:19,064
The Press:
But when was it planned?

745
00:40:19,066 --> 00:40:21,166
I mean, was this --

746
00:40:21,166 --> 00:40:24,696
Mr. Gibbs:
Chip, obviously spending $787 billion over a two-year period

747
00:40:24,700 --> 00:40:31,370
of time takes some groundwork
to be laid in order to begin to

748
00:40:31,367 --> 00:40:35,237
move that money from
individual departments --

749
00:40:35,233 --> 00:40:39,803
obviously it took some time to
get the legislation passed.

750
00:40:39,800 --> 00:40:44,070
But we don't feel that in any
way the recovery is bogged down.

751
00:40:44,066 --> 00:40:46,566
I think you heard -- or the recovery efforts are bogged down.

752
00:40:46,567 --> 00:40:51,237
I think you heard Jared say that
by his estimation he believed we

753
00:40:51,233 --> 00:40:54,233
were slightly ahead of
where we were going to be;

754
00:40:54,233 --> 00:40:59,803
$135 billion of $499 billion in
spending has been obligated.

755
00:40:59,800 --> 00:41:03,930
Beginning April 1st, 95% of working Americans saw an

756
00:41:03,934 --> 00:41:05,264
increase in their paycheck.

757
00:41:05,266 --> 00:41:08,096
They'll see that at a sustained
level as part of the Make Work

758
00:41:08,100 --> 00:41:12,700
Pay tax cut happen over
the course of two years.

759
00:41:12,700 --> 00:41:18,970
So this is a sustained effort
over the course of two years to

760
00:41:18,967 --> 00:41:22,337
jumpstart the economy, to make
critical investments in many of

761
00:41:22,333 --> 00:41:28,633
the projects that Jared
pointed out, and to create --

762
00:41:28,633 --> 00:41:32,433
to both spur short term job savings and job creation as well

763
00:41:32,433 --> 00:41:34,303
as to begin to lay the
foundation for long-term

764
00:41:34,300 --> 00:41:35,830
economic growth.

765
00:41:35,834 --> 00:41:39,564
The Press:
In the session in there
today the President said,

766
00:41:39,567 --> 00:41:41,767
knock on wood, there hasn't
been the combatant --

767
00:41:41,767 --> 00:41:43,997
been the kind of scandals
here that some predicted.

768
00:41:44,000 --> 00:41:47,600
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, look, and I think in many ways that's because you want to

769
00:41:47,600 --> 00:41:51,470
lay the foundation for how this
money is going to move out;

770
00:41:51,467 --> 00:41:55,337
ensure that you
have steps in place,

771
00:41:55,333 --> 00:41:59,603
protocols in place to deal with
an evaluation of contracts and

772
00:41:59,600 --> 00:42:02,430
moving this money to the
places that need them.

773
00:42:02,433 --> 00:42:05,933
I think this is -- the notion that the first day of the bill

774
00:42:05,934 --> 00:42:09,634
passage we were going to move $787 billion out certainly

775
00:42:09,633 --> 00:42:11,233
wasn't ever the case.

776
00:42:11,233 --> 00:42:14,363
In fact, you guys asked me about
the spend-out rate as part of

777
00:42:14,367 --> 00:42:15,697
the lead-up to the debate.

778
00:42:15,700 --> 00:42:21,200
So the notion that this is going
to be done as a phase certainly

779
00:42:21,200 --> 00:42:22,970
wasn't a surprise to
you several months ago.

780
00:42:22,967 --> 00:42:27,667
The Press:
Is there a sense that the effort to make sure there isn't fraud,

781
00:42:27,667 --> 00:42:32,137
waste, scandals -- is there a sense that that is slowing down

782
00:42:32,133 --> 00:42:33,603
getting money out
the door and how --

783
00:42:33,600 --> 00:42:35,330
Mr. Gibbs:
No, I don't think so.

784
00:42:35,333 --> 00:42:37,263
I don't think we see
it as slowing it down,

785
00:42:37,266 --> 00:42:39,796
but I think it's important -- and the President underscored

786
00:42:39,800 --> 00:42:43,930
this well back into December in meetings with the economic team,

787
00:42:43,934 --> 00:42:47,864
which was it was
important to ensure that --

788
00:42:47,867 --> 00:42:50,637
and you saw this throughout both the debate on the bill and the

789
00:42:50,633 --> 00:42:54,903
early implementation of the bill that the President was very

790
00:42:54,900 --> 00:42:58,330
concerned and rightly concerned that we do this in a way that

791
00:42:58,333 --> 00:43:01,303
gives the American people confidence about the way this

792
00:43:01,300 --> 00:43:02,970
money is being spent.

793
00:43:02,967 --> 00:43:05,997
It's crucially important
that we lay in, like I said,

794
00:43:06,000 --> 00:43:10,000
the steps and the protocols that
are necessary to happen in order

795
00:43:10,000 --> 00:43:15,230
to ensure that this is done
both as quickly as possible,

796
00:43:15,233 --> 00:43:18,563
but is done without the waste
and abuse that sometimes can be

797
00:43:18,567 --> 00:43:20,997
associated with
these types of deals.

798
00:43:21,000 --> 00:43:22,830
The Press:
Just a few follow-ups.

799
00:43:22,834 --> 00:43:26,064
The 150,000 job figure, should
we be identifying that as a

800
00:43:26,066 --> 00:43:29,536
projection, since it seems
like Jared himself --

801
00:43:29,533 --> 00:43:32,603
there is no hard evidence
yet of this number, correct?

802
00:43:32,600 --> 00:43:35,770
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I think, again, I would point you back to his answer

803
00:43:35,767 --> 00:43:38,997
about the reports and the
economic formulation --

804
00:43:39,000 --> 00:43:40,630
The Press:
But he said it was based on multipliers and an economic

805
00:43:40,633 --> 00:43:43,463
formula and that we don't have
the facts yet of how many hard jobs.

806
00:43:43,467 --> 00:43:47,197
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, again, Chuck, I think -- and I hate to paraphrase what

807
00:43:47,200 --> 00:43:53,730
Jared said, but again, if I move you money because you have a

808
00:43:53,734 --> 00:43:57,164
window business, just like
the example I was using,

809
00:43:57,166 --> 00:44:01,496
or some economic stimulus,
you are going to --

810
00:44:01,500 --> 00:44:03,970
you're going to buy supplies
from somebody else who is going

811
00:44:03,967 --> 00:44:04,937
to create --

812
00:44:04,934 --> 00:44:06,104
The Press:
But you don't know if that's going to create one job

813
00:44:06,100 --> 00:44:07,070
or two jobs --

814
00:44:07,066 --> 00:44:08,096
Mr. Gibbs:
No, but --

815
00:44:08,100 --> 00:44:09,270
The Press:
You don't know that
it's going to --

816
00:44:09,266 --> 00:44:10,566
so it's a projection.

817
00:44:10,567 --> 00:44:12,097
Mr. Gibbs:
Based on a tried and
true, as he said,

818
00:44:12,100 --> 00:44:15,300
economic formula
on how to do that.

819
00:44:15,300 --> 00:44:16,270
Projections are --

820
00:44:16,266 --> 00:44:17,596
The Press:
Jobs trickling down
the window pane --

821
00:44:17,600 --> 00:44:20,470
I mean, why is that not
trickle-down economics when you

822
00:44:20,467 --> 00:44:23,237
guys are talking about
tax cuts and how --

823
00:44:23,233 --> 00:44:25,603
Mr. Gibbs:
Are you suggesting that the multiplier effect of job

824
00:44:25,600 --> 00:44:27,970
creation is part of
trickle-down economics?

825
00:44:27,967 --> 00:44:29,567
The Press:
I'm suggesting that
you guys are saying --

826
00:44:29,567 --> 00:44:30,997
The Press:
Sure, they're jobs --

827
00:44:31,000 --> 00:44:34,570
Mr. Gibbs:
Point out for me how, if somebody builds a windmill --

828
00:44:34,567 --> 00:44:35,967
right -- and needs --

829
00:44:35,967 --> 00:44:37,737
The Press:
You guys are saying
that unmeasured jobs --

830
00:44:37,734 --> 00:44:40,064
and they're out there -- and you're saying it's a result of tax cuts.

831
00:44:40,066 --> 00:44:43,936
Mr. Gibbs:
No -- in the example of
window panes, absolutely.

832
00:44:43,934 --> 00:44:46,134
But what I'm talking about -- you don't make window panes out

833
00:44:46,133 --> 00:44:48,263
of papier-mâchÊ, right?

834
00:44:48,266 --> 00:44:49,466
You're going to have
to buy aluminum;

835
00:44:49,467 --> 00:44:51,167
you're going to
have to buy glass.

836
00:44:51,166 --> 00:44:53,536
Does the production of aluminum
and glass for the purchase of

837
00:44:53,533 --> 00:44:56,963
making windows in order to
increase the production so that

838
00:44:56,967 --> 00:45:00,437
the tax credit can be fully
taken advantage of --

839
00:45:00,433 --> 00:45:01,733
are window producers doing that?

840
00:45:01,734 --> 00:45:02,634
Yes.

841
00:45:02,633 --> 00:45:07,333
Is the sale of aluminum for
windows and glass creating jobs?

842
00:45:07,333 --> 00:45:09,863
Ask some of the readers of
Bloomberg when they make

843
00:45:09,867 --> 00:45:12,237
investments in resources --

844
00:45:12,233 --> 00:45:15,303
The Press:
But you're not going to provide numbers on total jobs that have

845
00:45:15,300 --> 00:45:18,700
been created or saved through
this window pane example.

846
00:45:18,700 --> 00:45:21,670
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, again, there's multipliers and there are formulas,

847
00:45:21,667 --> 00:45:25,597
as Jared talked about, in order
to make determinations as to

848
00:45:25,600 --> 00:45:26,900
what that number is.

849
00:45:26,900 --> 00:45:28,630
The Press:
Well, it did sound like you are going to provide a hard number

850
00:45:28,633 --> 00:45:30,203
on direct government contracts.

851
00:45:30,200 --> 00:45:32,130
Every quarter we will
get a hard number.

852
00:45:32,133 --> 00:45:34,903
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I think that's what Jared talked about as part of the

853
00:45:34,900 --> 00:45:36,470
obligation of those reports.

854
00:45:36,467 --> 00:45:37,737
The Press:
So far we have none, because there hasn't been any --

855
00:45:37,734 --> 00:45:38,834
Mr. Gibbs:
Right.

856
00:45:38,834 --> 00:45:42,564
But again, I think, just to build off your examples, Hans,

857
00:45:42,567 --> 00:45:47,137
you can't build a
windmill out of nothing.

858
00:45:47,133 --> 00:45:50,233
You can't build a wind
turbine out of nothing.

859
00:45:50,233 --> 00:45:53,933
The purchase of resources to
build a wind turbine so that a

860
00:45:53,934 --> 00:45:57,664
wind company can take advantage
of a tax credit is a multiplier

861
00:45:57,667 --> 00:46:01,267
effect that creates jobs based
on the purchase of resources to

862
00:46:01,266 --> 00:46:03,496
construct that turbine -- right?

863
00:46:03,500 --> 00:46:05,200
The Press:
Will you concede that
the wind is free?

864
00:46:05,200 --> 00:46:07,200
(laughter)

865
00:46:07,200 --> 00:46:08,770
Mr. Gibbs:
I will concede that
the wind is free.

866
00:46:08,767 --> 00:46:10,867
And some of it is blowing
hot in my direction.

867
00:46:10,867 --> 00:46:11,937
The Press:
Ooh!

868
00:46:11,934 --> 00:46:16,004
(laughter)

869
00:46:16,000 --> 00:46:18,600
The Press:
There are a lot of numbers
being thrown around here,

870
00:46:18,600 --> 00:46:21,370
and you guys are
claiming credit for --

871
00:46:21,367 --> 00:46:24,097
earlier, you claimed credit for summer jobs that won't be there

872
00:46:24,100 --> 00:46:25,130
in three years --

873
00:46:25,133 --> 00:46:26,063
Mr. Gibbs:
No, no, no --

874
00:46:26,066 --> 00:46:28,366
The Press:
-- and that will be --

875
00:46:28,367 --> 00:46:31,497
Mr. Gibbs:
Hans, I appreciate you asking -- you should ask as many questions

876
00:46:31,500 --> 00:46:34,830
as you want, but if Jared gives you an answer about how two

877
00:46:34,834 --> 00:46:38,104
part-time jobs equals one
full-time employment job,

878
00:46:38,100 --> 00:46:41,130
don't act like the question
didn't get answered, because --

879
00:46:41,133 --> 00:46:42,303
The Press:
I'm not.

880
00:46:42,300 --> 00:46:43,800
Mr. Gibbs:
-- and he's not
trying to say that --

881
00:46:43,800 --> 00:46:46,900
he didn't tell you that 125,000
was immediately being factored in.

882
00:46:46,900 --> 00:46:49,500
He gave you the formula for
part-time and full-time jobs.

883
00:46:49,500 --> 00:46:51,570
The Press:
I'm not saying -- I'm just
-- I guess what you --

884
00:46:51,567 --> 00:46:54,197
would you then concede that that
job won't be there in three

885
00:46:54,200 --> 00:46:55,630
years when the stimulus --

886
00:46:55,633 --> 00:46:58,763
Mr. Gibbs:
Will I concede that a summer
job won't be there in the fall?

887
00:46:58,767 --> 00:47:00,397
Yes, I will concede that.

888
00:47:00,400 --> 00:47:03,630
The Press:
You guys are counting
this towards the 3.5.

889
00:47:03,633 --> 00:47:06,363
Mr. Gibbs:
I think Jared
answered your question.

890
00:47:06,367 --> 00:47:08,537
Send a transcript to --

891
00:47:08,533 --> 00:47:10,303
The Press:
Following up on the North
Korea question, you said,

892
00:47:10,300 --> 00:47:13,200
we hope that North
Korea doesn't use --

893
00:47:13,200 --> 00:47:16,500
attempt to use the journalists
as leverage in the nuclear situation.

894
00:47:16,500 --> 00:47:18,030
Does that mean
that's a red line,

895
00:47:18,033 --> 00:47:21,303
if they attempt to do
this, then -- I mean --

896
00:47:21,300 --> 00:47:26,670
Mr. Gibbs:
I think it's important
not for me to get into --

897
00:47:26,667 --> 00:47:29,297
I'm not part of the
negotiating team up here.

898
00:47:29,300 --> 00:47:31,800
The Press:
Lebanon, you said you
were heartened by turnout.

899
00:47:31,800 --> 00:47:33,770
I've heard some whispers that
some believe that maybe the

900
00:47:33,767 --> 00:47:37,067
President's speech on
Thursday could help things.

901
00:47:37,066 --> 00:47:39,996
Is that the way you guys see
it, that the President's speech

902
00:47:40,000 --> 00:47:41,600
might have had some
influence in Lebanon?

903
00:47:41,600 --> 00:47:44,330
Mr. Gibbs:
I will say this, I think the President was pretty clear in

904
00:47:44,333 --> 00:47:49,163
Cairo about the
importance of elections.

905
00:47:49,166 --> 00:47:53,466
I think people can be heartened
that turnout far exceeded the

906
00:47:53,467 --> 00:47:57,767
last election;
again, that those --

907
00:47:57,767 --> 00:48:03,797
there was a shared commitment to
democracy and a sovereign and

908
00:48:03,800 --> 00:48:04,930
independent Lebanon.

909
00:48:04,934 --> 00:48:07,064
I think that's
certainly important.

910
00:48:07,066 --> 00:48:10,896
I think if you look at most
predictions about the election,

911
00:48:10,900 --> 00:48:13,630
leading up to the actual
election having taken place,

912
00:48:13,633 --> 00:48:19,903
most people believed that the
March 14 coalition was not

913
00:48:19,900 --> 00:48:21,300
going to be successful.

914
00:48:21,300 --> 00:48:24,870
I would say that I don't think
the President was one of those people.

915
00:48:24,867 --> 00:48:29,837
And I think just as the
President talked about in Cairo,

916
00:48:29,834 --> 00:48:33,734
the Lebanese people are more
interested in a government that

917
00:48:33,734 --> 00:48:40,434
builds things up rather than one
whose main job is to tear things down.

918
00:48:40,433 --> 00:48:43,133
The Press:
Should Iran's elections
this week be viewed in that

919
00:48:43,133 --> 00:48:45,033
same prism?

920
00:48:45,033 --> 00:48:47,203
If so, do you think that the
speech will have some influence there?

921
00:48:47,200 --> 00:48:53,630
Mr. Gibbs:
I don't -- I think
it's hard to --

922
00:48:53,633 --> 00:48:55,333
let me also say this.

923
00:48:55,333 --> 00:48:58,163
As I said, the President
talked about the importance of elections.

924
00:48:58,166 --> 00:49:00,936
The importance of elections
can't simply be measured by the

925
00:49:00,934 --> 00:49:03,634
fact that you have an election.

926
00:49:03,633 --> 00:49:07,163
The importance is not simply
on the fact that you have an

927
00:49:07,166 --> 00:49:10,196
election; the
importance is on what --

928
00:49:10,200 --> 00:49:12,200
of the actions of which
that government takes.

929
00:49:12,200 --> 00:49:14,000
So let's not get
ahead of where we are.

930
00:49:14,000 --> 00:49:17,400
The Press:
Well, we had it with Hamas.

931
00:49:17,400 --> 00:49:22,530
They had a fair election and
you cut off the relations immediately.

932
00:49:22,533 --> 00:49:27,603
Mr. Gibbs:
As I believe the government said they were going to do if Hamas

933
00:49:27,600 --> 00:49:29,430
was elected.

934
00:49:29,433 --> 00:49:31,363
The Press:
No, that isn't true.

935
00:49:31,367 --> 00:49:33,997
They didn't say
that; they did it.

936
00:49:34,000 --> 00:49:37,300
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, again, I think pretty clearly the previous --

937
00:49:37,300 --> 00:49:40,370
I mean, again, I find myself in
the uncomfortable position of

938
00:49:40,367 --> 00:49:42,467
being the Bush
administration spokesperson.

939
00:49:42,467 --> 00:49:45,697
I think it was pretty clear that
if you go back and look at what

940
00:49:45,700 --> 00:49:53,130
was going to happen to U.S. aid were Hamas to win in those elections --

941
00:49:53,133 --> 00:49:55,003
The Press:
So we don't believe
in fair elections?

942
00:49:55,000 --> 00:49:58,370
Mr. Gibbs:
No, no, no, again,
Helen, I think you --

943
00:49:58,367 --> 00:50:00,637
before I can even answer, you
continue to ratchet the bar up.

944
00:50:00,633 --> 00:50:03,763
I think if you look at exactly
what was said prior to the

945
00:50:03,767 --> 00:50:06,997
election and what was
implemented as a direct

946
00:50:07,000 --> 00:50:09,770
relationship to that result,
you'll see that that was --

947
00:50:09,767 --> 00:50:11,267
The Press:
But isn't that
blackmail, really?

948
00:50:11,266 --> 00:50:12,666
What did we do on Lebanon?

949
00:50:12,667 --> 00:50:15,997
Did we -- the Vice President went there and sort of said,

950
00:50:16,000 --> 00:50:18,900
if you vote this
way then it won't --

951
00:50:18,900 --> 00:50:22,800
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I can't say that
people around the world don't

952
00:50:22,800 --> 00:50:26,300
listen to news.

953
00:50:26,300 --> 00:50:27,200
Yes, sir.

954
00:50:27,200 --> 00:50:29,430
The Press:
The most concrete achievement that came out of the London

955
00:50:29,433 --> 00:50:35,103
summit or the G20 was greatly
increased lending authority by

956
00:50:35,100 --> 00:50:37,530
the International Monetary Fund.

957
00:50:37,533 --> 00:50:42,233
The U.S. portion of that is now hung up in Congress because

958
00:50:42,233 --> 00:50:47,433
Republicans are calling it a global bailout and won't vote on

959
00:50:47,433 --> 00:50:52,063
a war spending bill that
has that IMF money in it.

960
00:50:52,066 --> 00:50:55,636
What does the White House
want to do to unstick this?

961
00:50:55,633 --> 00:51:00,533
And are you willing to have the
IMF money separated from the war

962
00:51:00,533 --> 00:51:03,633
spending and see if you
can get it passed that way?

963
00:51:03,633 --> 00:51:07,233
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I think the administration believes that we can work with

964
00:51:07,233 --> 00:51:12,533
Congress to ensure the necessary
and important funding is there

965
00:51:12,533 --> 00:51:17,063
for our missions in
Afghanistan and Iraq;

966
00:51:17,066 --> 00:51:20,066
that money and funding will be
there for the important and

967
00:51:20,066 --> 00:51:24,066
critical needs of what is
being done in Pakistan,

968
00:51:24,066 --> 00:51:28,236
as well as the commitments
that were made internationally

969
00:51:28,233 --> 00:51:31,463
relating to the IMF.

970
00:51:31,467 --> 00:51:34,967
I think this is a process that
is ongoing and we're going to

971
00:51:34,967 --> 00:51:37,167
work with Congress to ensure
that we get all of those

972
00:51:37,166 --> 00:51:38,436
priorities passed.

973
00:51:38,433 --> 00:51:40,803
The Press:
And are you confident that when the President goes to the G8

974
00:51:40,800 --> 00:51:44,630
summit in just four weeks, he's
going to be able to have that

975
00:51:44,633 --> 00:51:46,033
money in hand?

976
00:51:46,033 --> 00:51:47,933
Mr. Gibbs:
That's what we're
working on right now.

977
00:51:47,934 --> 00:51:49,234
Yes, sir.

978
00:51:49,233 --> 00:51:52,263
The Press:
Robert, does the President believe his health care --

979
00:51:52,266 --> 00:51:56,366
the health care plan he wants
from Congress is in trouble?

980
00:51:56,367 --> 00:51:57,497
Mr. Gibbs:
No.

981
00:51:57,500 --> 00:52:01,900
The Press:
Is he stepping up his efforts
to get it done by August?

982
00:52:01,900 --> 00:52:06,870
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I think the President is going to spend a decent amount

983
00:52:06,867 --> 00:52:11,397
of time over the next few weeks
and months working on the

984
00:52:11,400 --> 00:52:16,000
priorities that he laid out, one
of the most important of which

985
00:52:16,000 --> 00:52:16,900
is health care.

986
00:52:16,900 --> 00:52:19,470
I think that is
definitely very true.

987
00:52:19,467 --> 00:52:22,967
The Press:
Is that the subject of the
town meeting on Thursday?

988
00:52:22,967 --> 00:52:24,967
Mr. Gibbs:
Yes.

989
00:52:24,967 --> 00:52:25,837
The Press:
I have two questions.

990
00:52:25,834 --> 00:52:26,804
Jared --

991
00:52:26,800 --> 00:52:27,700
Mr. Gibbs:
Two more?

992
00:52:27,700 --> 00:52:28,570
(laughter)

993
00:52:28,567 --> 00:52:29,637
Speaking of the
multiplier effect --

994
00:52:29,633 --> 00:52:30,533
(laughter)

995
00:52:30,533 --> 00:52:31,633
Go ahead.

996
00:52:31,633 --> 00:52:34,303
The Press:
Jared -- Kenneth
Bernstein for pay czar,

997
00:52:34,300 --> 00:52:35,530
do you have anything on that?

998
00:52:35,533 --> 00:52:36,433
Mr. Gibbs:
No.

999
00:52:36,433 --> 00:52:37,363
The Press:
Okay.

1000
00:52:37,367 --> 00:52:39,037
So we're in the second
phase of the stimulus now,

1001
00:52:39,033 --> 00:52:41,063
the first phase was the 100 day.

1002
00:52:41,066 --> 00:52:44,436
How many more phases do we have
and will the burn rate continue

1003
00:52:44,433 --> 00:52:46,933
to accelerate or increase,
or will it decrease?

1004
00:52:46,934 --> 00:52:50,404
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, again, we -- I think we talked about over the course of

1005
00:52:50,400 --> 00:52:57,930
two fiscal years, so through roughly September 30, 2010 --

1006
00:52:57,934 --> 00:53:03,504
about 70% of the money, I
think, was the final figure.

1007
00:53:03,500 --> 00:53:08,730
About 70% of that $787 billion will be spent through that

1008
00:53:08,734 --> 00:53:12,564
two-year fiscal period.

1009
00:53:12,567 --> 00:53:16,167
The Press:
All right, I'll
just come back to it.

1010
00:53:16,166 --> 00:53:17,266
The Press:
When?

1011
00:53:17,266 --> 00:53:18,496
The Press:
I'll get back to you, Robert.

1012
00:53:18,500 --> 00:53:21,130
The Press:
While you're asking.

1013
00:53:21,133 --> 00:53:26,803
The Press:
Why does the government
need a compensation czar?

1014
00:53:26,800 --> 00:53:30,530
Mr. Gibbs:
I'm not going to get ahead
of personnel announcements.

1015
00:53:30,533 --> 00:53:34,603
The Press:
So at this point it doesn't, until we're told it does.

1016
00:53:34,600 --> 00:53:36,070
Mr. Gibbs:
Something like that, yes.

1017
00:53:36,066 --> 00:53:37,636
The Press:
Very good.

1018
00:53:37,633 --> 00:53:40,703
You mentioned the saved jobs
relate to states in budget

1019
00:53:40,700 --> 00:53:45,800
crisis that have been at least
temporarily rescued by recovery dollars.

1020
00:53:45,800 --> 00:53:48,800
According to estimates put
together by the state budget

1021
00:53:48,800 --> 00:53:51,170
officers, for the
next two years,

1022
00:53:51,166 --> 00:53:55,366
states are already booking $230
billion in projected deficits.

1023
00:53:55,367 --> 00:53:57,937
The Recovery Act is going
to provide for them,

1024
00:53:57,934 --> 00:54:00,164
if I understand the estimates,
about $100 billion,

1025
00:54:00,166 --> 00:54:02,466
leaving a $130 billion gap.

1026
00:54:02,467 --> 00:54:05,797
How concerned is the
administration about this gap

1027
00:54:05,800 --> 00:54:08,870
that's already on the books and
whatever jobs it has been able

1028
00:54:08,867 --> 00:54:12,297
to temporarily save, not being
able to save in the future?

1029
00:54:12,300 --> 00:54:15,170
And what policy response
is made after that --

1030
00:54:15,166 --> 00:54:18,336
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, look, I think, Major, the most important policy response

1031
00:54:18,333 --> 00:54:21,103
we can have is the one
that we're in the midst of

1032
00:54:21,100 --> 00:54:24,700
implementing now, and that is to
get the economy moving again.

1033
00:54:24,700 --> 00:54:31,030
Obviously tax receipts for
states are going to be

1034
00:54:31,033 --> 00:54:34,203
determined by the health and
well-being of the economy that

1035
00:54:34,200 --> 00:54:35,230
we have today.

1036
00:54:35,233 --> 00:54:38,563
The President is working to
ensure that we get it moving as

1037
00:54:38,567 --> 00:54:41,837
quickly as we can, and hopefully
we can put a different

1038
00:54:41,834 --> 00:54:43,734
trajectory on some
of those numbers.

1039
00:54:43,734 --> 00:54:45,034
The Press:
So that'll be the
principal response,

1040
00:54:45,033 --> 00:54:49,703
not a third or second -- depending on how people count it -- stimulus?

1041
00:54:49,700 --> 00:54:50,770
Mr. Gibbs:
A third?

1042
00:54:50,767 --> 00:54:53,167
The Press:
Well, people -- some
people count the first --

1043
00:54:53,166 --> 00:54:55,336
there was a Bush stimulus, and
then you guys came along --

1044
00:54:55,333 --> 00:54:57,333
that would be the second --
in the course of the recession.

1045
00:54:57,333 --> 00:54:59,063
Mr. Gibbs:
Oh, I see, in terms
of economic --

1046
00:54:59,066 --> 00:55:00,166
The Press:
I'm not subscribing
to you two --

1047
00:55:00,166 --> 00:55:01,436
one that you didn't
already know about.

1048
00:55:01,433 --> 00:55:03,033
Mr. Gibbs:
-- in terms of -- I was
going to say, you've --

1049
00:55:03,033 --> 00:55:04,333
I know I was out last
week, but I had no idea.

1050
00:55:04,333 --> 00:55:05,763
(laughter)

1051
00:55:05,767 --> 00:55:10,537
Again, at this point, our focus
far and away is ensuring that

1052
00:55:10,533 --> 00:55:14,103
the implementation of this
legislation is done in both a

1053
00:55:14,100 --> 00:55:23,630
timely fashion but also one that
ensures that it is done in a way

1054
00:55:23,633 --> 00:55:26,403
that is not wasteful.

1055
00:55:26,400 --> 00:55:28,570
The Press:
Speaking of while you were
away, the Senate questionnaire

1056
00:55:28,567 --> 00:55:32,797
revealed that at least four
times, possibly five times,

1057
00:55:32,800 --> 00:55:37,000
Judge Sotomayor used a variation
of the idea that a Latina could

1058
00:55:37,000 --> 00:55:39,800
come to a better or more
informed conclusion than a white

1059
00:55:39,800 --> 00:55:42,000
male about some various aspect.

1060
00:55:42,000 --> 00:55:43,800
The White House has said that
was a poor choice of words in

1061
00:55:43,800 --> 00:55:44,670
one instance.

1062
00:55:44,667 --> 00:55:47,367
I'm wondering if it's willing to
say it's a poor choice of words

1063
00:55:47,367 --> 00:55:48,467
in multiple incidents.

1064
00:55:48,467 --> 00:55:54,097
And if so, does that poor choice
of words denote a pattern of her

1065
00:55:54,100 --> 00:55:56,970
thinking that is somehow
troubling to the White House,

1066
00:55:56,967 --> 00:55:59,867
as it is to the critics?

1067
00:55:59,867 --> 00:56:08,337
Mr. Gibbs:
I think if you -- as we
have said here many times,

1068
00:56:08,333 --> 00:56:11,703
the overall theme of her comments were that her

1069
00:56:11,700 --> 00:56:17,070
experiences matter, just as they did for and just as they have

1070
00:56:17,066 --> 00:56:19,966
for, in the quotes of Judge
Sandra Day O'Connor --

1071
00:56:19,967 --> 00:56:24,037
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor,
Justice Ginsburg, Justice Alito.

1072
00:56:24,033 --> 00:56:32,663
I think Judge Sotomayor has said
in her visits that the speech

1073
00:56:32,667 --> 00:56:36,237
that you're referring to
was a poor choice of words.

1074
00:56:36,233 --> 00:56:37,163
But that --

1075
00:56:37,166 --> 00:56:39,596
The Press:
He's actually referring to
five or six different speeches.

1076
00:56:39,600 --> 00:56:40,830
The Press:
Four or five.

1077
00:56:40,834 --> 00:56:42,034
Mr. Gibbs:
Right, but I --

1078
00:56:42,033 --> 00:56:43,603
The Press:
And I'm wondering, if it
was poor choice of words,

1079
00:56:43,600 --> 00:56:45,430
it would suggest,
if it was said once,

1080
00:56:45,433 --> 00:56:47,063
it might have been an error.

1081
00:56:47,066 --> 00:56:49,896
If it was said multiple
times, it was part of a --

1082
00:56:49,900 --> 00:56:51,570
an approach or a pattern.

1083
00:56:51,567 --> 00:56:53,197
Mr. Gibbs:
I think if you go back and
look at each of the instances,

1084
00:56:53,200 --> 00:56:56,400
I think the overall theme is
that experiences and background

1085
00:56:56,400 --> 00:57:01,370
matter, and that what we've
talked about in 2001 was a poor

1086
00:57:01,367 --> 00:57:02,637
choice of words.

1087
00:57:02,633 --> 00:57:05,103
The Press:
The confirmation is not about the overall but it's about the

1088
00:57:05,100 --> 00:57:08,100
specific meaning of specific
words and specific utterances.

1089
00:57:08,100 --> 00:57:09,700
And since we have
a pattern here now,

1090
00:57:09,700 --> 00:57:12,030
I'm just wondering why critics
would not be valid in saying

1091
00:57:12,033 --> 00:57:15,663
there appears to be a pattern
here that may be inconsistent

1092
00:57:15,667 --> 00:57:16,597
with application --

1093
00:57:16,600 --> 00:57:19,530
Mr. Gibbs:
Except, Major, what people -- what your unnamed critics don't

1094
00:57:19,533 --> 00:57:25,703
seem to subscribe to is any pattern that is in the hundreds

1095
00:57:25,700 --> 00:57:28,030
of opinions that she's written.

1096
00:57:28,033 --> 00:57:30,403
The Press:
So the pattern there trumps the pattern of the words, is that --

1097
00:57:30,400 --> 00:57:32,530
Mr. Gibbs:
I think if you want
to know what a --

1098
00:57:32,533 --> 00:57:36,003
how a judge is going to rule,
I'm under the impression that

1099
00:57:36,000 --> 00:57:40,400
how they've ruled is a good
indication of how they're going

1100
00:57:40,400 --> 00:57:43,130
to do, and what
they're going to --

1101
00:57:43,133 --> 00:57:45,333
the notion that
she's talked about,

1102
00:57:45,333 --> 00:57:51,033
the impartiality of how
she looks at these issues,

1103
00:57:51,033 --> 00:57:55,063
and I think that's been borne
out by much news reporting over

1104
00:57:55,066 --> 00:57:59,136
the past many days of
the way in which she --

1105
00:57:59,133 --> 00:58:01,533
The Press:
So study the opinions,
not the speeches.

1106
00:58:01,533 --> 00:58:08,263
Mr. Gibbs:
I think we would expect friend and foe alike to judge her on

1107
00:58:08,266 --> 00:58:09,866
her full body of work.

1108
00:58:09,867 --> 00:58:11,497
The Press:
Robert, can I follow on that?

1109
00:58:11,500 --> 00:58:14,870
The Press:
How much of this back-and-forth about Sotomayor's words do you

1110
00:58:14,867 --> 00:58:18,697
think is really a question about
the value of diversity and sort

1111
00:58:18,700 --> 00:58:21,830
of the debate about affirmative
action sort of cloaked in

1112
00:58:21,834 --> 00:58:23,334
something else?

1113
00:58:23,333 --> 00:58:28,033
Mr. Gibbs:
You know, look, I think it would be not a good thing for me to

1114
00:58:28,033 --> 00:58:33,733
infer what or why certain people
who are seemingly opposed to her

1115
00:58:33,734 --> 00:58:36,904
nomination characterize
it different ways.

1116
00:58:36,900 --> 00:58:43,470
I've said I think it's important
that we watch the use of what we

1117
00:58:43,467 --> 00:58:47,397
say, but other than
that, I can't --

1118
00:58:47,400 --> 00:58:52,000
and I wouldn't begin to
peer into the motivations.

1119
00:58:52,000 --> 00:58:55,330
The Press:
Robert, the President said today that he would suggest people who

1120
00:58:55,333 --> 00:58:58,233
don't believe the Recovery Act
is working talk to some of the

1121
00:58:58,233 --> 00:59:02,233
companies who have hired back
workers that they would have laid off.

1122
00:59:02,233 --> 00:59:05,403
Is the White House keeping
a list of those companies somewhere?

1123
00:59:05,400 --> 00:59:07,900
Are you going to post
that on recovery.gov?

1124
00:59:07,900 --> 00:59:10,030
Mr. Gibbs:
I don't know if the news articles that denote people

1125
00:59:10,033 --> 00:59:13,033
saying that are going to be
put up on the website or not.

1126
00:59:13,033 --> 00:59:16,633
The Press:
But I guess what I'm
wondering is, do we know what --

1127
00:59:16,633 --> 00:59:18,763
how many such companies
there are, and --

1128
00:59:18,767 --> 00:59:23,367
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, again, I've read in
a number of publications,

1129
00:59:23,367 --> 00:59:25,367
some of whom occupy
seats in this room,

1130
00:59:25,367 --> 00:59:29,367
that people have hired
some people back --

1131
00:59:29,367 --> 00:59:30,737
The Press:
You're not keeping a list?

1132
00:59:30,734 --> 00:59:32,534
Mr. Gibbs:
I don't have a list with me, no.

1133
00:59:32,533 --> 00:59:34,263
I don't --

1134
00:59:34,266 --> 00:59:38,066
I assume there are people who are writing down what they see

1135
00:59:38,066 --> 00:59:41,496
in the newspaper -- as we said there are quarterly reports on

1136
00:59:41,500 --> 00:59:45,430
the direct impacts
of this, but again,

1137
00:59:45,433 --> 00:59:49,303
I think if you read a
fair number of articles,

1138
00:59:49,300 --> 00:59:56,500
as I'm sure most people here do, they understand and see clean

1139
00:59:56,500 --> 01:00:01,170
energy companies talk about their increased investment.

1140
01:00:01,166 --> 01:00:06,266
I think you see -- there was an article over the weekend of tax

1141
01:00:06,266 --> 01:00:11,696
incentives on clean-energy buses that have allowed companies to

1142
01:00:11,700 --> 01:00:15,370
keep the employees that they had on to ensure that they can meet

1143
01:00:15,367 --> 01:00:16,697
the growing demand.

1144
01:00:16,700 --> 01:00:19,330
The Press:
And just a matter
of housekeeping.

1145
01:00:19,333 --> 01:00:22,033
I don't think I've
seen a week ahead.

1146
01:00:22,033 --> 01:00:23,203
Maybe I missed it.

1147
01:00:23,200 --> 01:00:24,170
Can you talk to us --

1148
01:00:24,166 --> 01:00:25,536
Mr. Gibbs:
You haven't, and I
don't have it, and --

1149
01:00:25,533 --> 01:00:27,063
The Press:
-- about what else the
President is doing this week,

1150
01:00:27,066 --> 01:00:28,666
besides going to Green Bay?

1151
01:00:28,667 --> 01:00:30,637
The Press:
Particularly tomorrow?

1152
01:00:30,633 --> 01:00:32,633
Mr. Gibbs:
I will endeavor to
get a week ahead.

1153
01:00:32,633 --> 01:00:35,433
We did not do it before
I came out here today.

1154
01:00:35,433 --> 01:00:37,933
The Press:
And any more detail on
the Green Bay visit?

1155
01:00:37,934 --> 01:00:41,164
Will he be -- he's talked a lot in the past about people who

1156
01:00:41,166 --> 01:00:43,696
need health care, but he seems to be now trying to make an

1157
01:00:43,700 --> 01:00:47,670
economic case and a case that some hospitals have delivered

1158
01:00:47,667 --> 01:00:50,437
health care, say, more efficiently and in a low-cost way.

1159
01:00:50,433 --> 01:00:52,063
Will that be the
emphasis in Green Bay?

1160
01:00:52,066 --> 01:00:53,766
Mr. Gibbs:
I don't know that that will
be the specific emphasis,

1161
01:00:53,767 --> 01:00:55,667
but I think the President has
always talked about health care

1162
01:00:55,667 --> 01:00:59,097
as a very concrete
matter of economics.

1163
01:00:59,100 --> 01:01:01,830
The rising cost of health care
certainly is for families and

1164
01:01:01,834 --> 01:01:03,204
small businesses.

1165
01:01:03,200 --> 01:01:05,930
But I think also
think, in order to --

1166
01:01:05,934 --> 01:01:07,634
well, to go back to
the Recovery Act,

1167
01:01:07,633 --> 01:01:11,663
certainly the delivery of health
care in a more economical and

1168
01:01:11,667 --> 01:01:17,597
efficient way through
investments in health IT and

1169
01:01:17,600 --> 01:01:23,070
computer technology as a
delivery is something that the

1170
01:01:23,066 --> 01:01:26,336
President I think will
at least touch upon.

1171
01:01:26,333 --> 01:01:29,203
Whether or not it's the
focus, I'm not sure.

1172
01:01:29,200 --> 01:01:33,170
But again, I think when we're
talking about health care writ

1173
01:01:33,166 --> 01:01:40,596
large, there are -- there isn't one thing or only one thing that

1174
01:01:40,600 --> 01:01:41,870
you can focus on.

1175
01:01:41,867 --> 01:01:45,337
Obviously there are the
incredible proliferation of

1176
01:01:45,333 --> 01:01:48,433
costs, as I've said, for
families and small businesses,

1177
01:01:48,433 --> 01:01:52,603
but also, how are we going to
change the way and make the

1178
01:01:52,600 --> 01:01:55,770
delivery of health care more
efficient so that a country that

1179
01:01:55,767 --> 01:01:59,567
spends more per capita on health
care doesn't find itself lagging

1180
01:01:59,567 --> 01:02:01,197
in the ways that it does.

1181
01:02:01,200 --> 01:02:03,270
The Press:
Do we know what the
venue is in Green Bay?

1182
01:02:03,266 --> 01:02:05,496
Mr. Gibbs:
I don't have it.

1183
01:02:05,500 --> 01:02:07,330
I think the advisory,
if it hasn't gone out,

1184
01:02:07,333 --> 01:02:09,333
is in the process
of getting out.

1185
01:02:09,333 --> 01:02:10,363
The Press:
Town hall?

1186
01:02:10,367 --> 01:02:11,397
Mr. Gibbs:
Yes.

1187
01:02:11,400 --> 01:02:12,470
But I don't know which building.

1188
01:02:12,467 --> 01:02:16,337
The Press:
Robert, when you and the President said that Sotomayor's

1189
01:02:16,333 --> 01:02:19,733
-- used a poor choice of words,
were you aware of the other

1190
01:02:19,734 --> 01:02:23,634
times she had made similar
utterances, or only that one,

1191
01:02:23,633 --> 01:02:25,803
the Berkeley speech?

1192
01:02:25,800 --> 01:02:28,570
Mr. Gibbs:
Mara, I got to tell you, a lot of life in here blurs together,

1193
01:02:28,567 --> 01:02:31,897
so I don't entirely
recall what --

1194
01:02:31,900 --> 01:02:33,300
all that I have been briefed on.

1195
01:02:33,300 --> 01:02:35,000
The Press:
At the time, people were focusing on one speech,

1196
01:02:35,000 --> 01:02:36,870
but I'm just wondering if you
were aware that she'd said it

1197
01:02:36,867 --> 01:02:38,067
more than once.

1198
01:02:38,066 --> 01:02:40,196
Mr. Gibbs:
In all honesty, I
honestly don't remember.

1199
01:02:40,200 --> 01:02:42,870
The Press:
Just to follow up on that, now that you are aware that she said

1200
01:02:42,867 --> 01:02:46,767
it more than once, do you think
they all were poor choices of words?

1201
01:02:46,767 --> 01:02:49,197
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I think I answered that question just a few minutes ago.

1202
01:02:49,200 --> 01:02:51,200
The Press:
Well, no, you said that
we should look at the

1203
01:02:51,200 --> 01:02:52,200
whole context.

1204
01:02:52,200 --> 01:02:54,200
I'm wondering, just in
terms of these statements,

1205
01:02:54,200 --> 01:02:57,530
do you think they were all -- she regrets saying them in that way?

1206
01:02:57,533 --> 01:03:00,303
Mr. Gibbs:
Again, I think I've
-- I think I've said,

1207
01:03:00,300 --> 01:03:04,130
I think the President said, and I think she said this was a poor

1208
01:03:04,133 --> 01:03:05,663
choice of words.

1209
01:03:05,667 --> 01:03:06,637
Yes, sir.

1210
01:03:06,633 --> 01:03:09,663
The Press:
I wanted to get your response to Republicans who say that with a

1211
01:03:09,667 --> 01:03:13,197
trillion-dollar deficit and $11
trillion debt, that we should --

1212
01:03:13,200 --> 01:03:15,730
if the economy is beginning
to show green sprouts,

1213
01:03:15,734 --> 01:03:18,164
we should take some of the
stimulus money and not spend it

1214
01:03:18,166 --> 01:03:19,466
and reduce the deficit.

1215
01:03:19,467 --> 01:03:22,167
But I also wanted to go back to
what Ben and Chip were getting

1216
01:03:22,166 --> 01:03:25,436
at about the momentum
thing, I guess.

1217
01:03:25,433 --> 01:03:29,563
Regardless of the reason for
why you did this event today,

1218
01:03:29,567 --> 01:03:33,767
do you feel like with the
too-optimistic projection,

1219
01:03:33,767 --> 01:03:35,337
the disputes about these --

1220
01:03:35,333 --> 01:03:37,733
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, let me take
these one at a time.

1221
01:03:37,734 --> 01:03:39,604
Understand that --

1222
01:03:39,600 --> 01:03:41,400
The Press:
Which one are you
going to take, then?

1223
01:03:41,400 --> 01:03:43,530
Mr. Gibbs:
The one you -- the one I
just interrupted you on.

1224
01:03:43,533 --> 01:03:44,563
The Press:
Well, I'm not done.

1225
01:03:44,567 --> 01:03:45,397
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, I know you're not.

1226
01:03:45,400 --> 01:03:46,500
(laughter)

1227
01:03:46,500 --> 01:03:48,170
But I want to do
these one by one.

1228
01:03:48,166 --> 01:03:50,836
The notion that a report was
prepared based on the best

1229
01:03:50,834 --> 01:03:54,404
available economic
data that was had,

1230
01:03:54,400 --> 01:03:59,670
and that a severe downturn in
fourth-quarter growth and a job

1231
01:03:59,667 --> 01:04:04,167
loss that was far greater
than anybody had expected,

1232
01:04:04,166 --> 01:04:09,536
both in December and January, I
don't find surprising that the

1233
01:04:09,533 --> 01:04:14,363
overall number is different
than it was when we sat here in December.

1234
01:04:14,367 --> 01:04:17,737
It certainly wasn't when you all
asked me in January and February

1235
01:04:17,734 --> 01:04:20,464
about those statistics.

1236
01:04:20,467 --> 01:04:24,897
Again, these numbers change,
just as you all ask me if we think --

1237
01:04:24,900 --> 01:04:27,900
if you think we're on
the road to recovery,

1238
01:04:27,900 --> 01:04:32,070
just as you all ask me if the
economy has bottomed out, right?

1239
01:04:32,066 --> 01:04:36,366
So I think it's -- if you're asking me if in December you can

1240
01:04:36,367 --> 01:04:39,667
make all the accurate projections in terms of what the

1241
01:04:39,667 --> 01:04:41,867
numbers are going to look like in February without having the

1242
01:04:41,867 --> 01:04:44,637
data for January, I'd say
that's pretty hard to do.

1243
01:04:44,633 --> 01:04:47,033
The Press:
Okay, but you're taking questions from us and heat from

1244
01:04:47,033 --> 01:04:50,933
critics about the jobs that
are being created or saved,

1245
01:04:50,934 --> 01:04:52,964
and there's a new Gallup poll
I don't think which has been

1246
01:04:52,967 --> 01:04:55,967
mentioned yet today about -- it shows that the President's

1247
01:04:55,967 --> 01:04:59,137
numbers on the
economy are slipping.

1248
01:04:59,133 --> 01:05:03,433
I think the disapproval rating
on the economy has gone up 12

1249
01:05:03,433 --> 01:05:05,203
points since February.

1250
01:05:05,200 --> 01:05:07,330
Do you think that there's a
danger here of a credibility

1251
01:05:07,333 --> 01:05:10,063
deficit developing on the issue
of the economy in particular?

1252
01:05:10,066 --> 01:05:15,536
Mr. Gibbs:
Again, this is -- we're focused on the implementation of the

1253
01:05:15,533 --> 01:05:17,763
recovery plan.

1254
01:05:17,767 --> 01:05:20,937
We're not focused on
the latest polling.

1255
01:05:20,934 --> 01:05:24,204
The Press:
Can you just respond to Republicans who say that we

1256
01:05:24,200 --> 01:05:27,230
should take some of the stimulus
money and not spend it if the

1257
01:05:27,233 --> 01:05:29,963
economy is starting to
show signs of progress?

1258
01:05:29,967 --> 01:05:31,967
Mr. Gibbs:
Well, is that what
they're saying?

1259
01:05:31,967 --> 01:05:34,537
Do they think the economy is
showing signs of progress?

1260
01:05:34,533 --> 01:05:37,533
The Press:
Jim DeMint said that if
there is recovery happening,

1261
01:05:37,533 --> 01:05:40,203
if we're coming out of
the worst of things,

1262
01:05:40,200 --> 01:05:42,300
as the President said I
think two weeks ago, then --

1263
01:05:42,300 --> 01:05:44,870
Mr. Gibbs:
I'll do this.

1264
01:05:44,867 --> 01:05:47,297
I'll answer that tomorrow if
you'll get me the answer as to

1265
01:05:47,300 --> 01:05:51,270
whether you think Senator DeMint
is seeing an improvement in the economy.

1266
01:05:51,266 --> 01:05:52,596
Thanks, guys.