I'm at the White House today, covering the President's health care summit and attending the White House briefing. Robert Gibbs was just asked about the news today that GM's auditors warned they may not make it and GE may need bailout money. Gibbs was careful to not say much. They don't want to make news on financial meltdowns when they can avoid it. But he did say that people should not be surprised to see this news, given the still serious state of the economy.

 

It's an interesting balance this White House is trying to strike. For his first weeks, President Obama issued several "dire" (his word) warnings about the economy, so that voters would not expect too much turnaround,, too soon. But then his aides warned him he was a little too gloom and doom. So this week he perked up and even encouraged some bargain basement stock buying while we are still in the downturn. (Analysts noted that he actually got it right that day as a day trader. He encouraged buying at the end of a bad day -- Tuesday -- and then yesterday the market turned up. So anyone who bought stocks based on the President's recommendation had a good chance of turning a profit -- at least for 24 hours.)

 

At the heart of all this, of course, is what can the White House do to encourage consumer confidence? And should they? A big reason we're in this mess, as we all know, is too much consumption and not enough saving. But all the experts agree we need consumers to spend, spend, spend to get us out of this recession. A big reason the White House is reluctant to use tax cuts and rebates to stimulate the economy is their fear that people might actually behave responsibly and save the money or use it to pay down debt, rather than spend it. So what is the answer to unleashing spending RESPONSIBLY? I for one don't think anyone should take the lead on opening up their wallets and rushing to the mall just yet. (Trust me -- I'm usually the first one at the starting gate!) What do you think?

 

Let me know what you think.

 

Cheers from the White House briefing room (also known as a minimum security prison at a really prestigious address).

 

Rebecca

What happens if you suddenly have almost a trillion dollars to spend and you have to draw up a list of where to spend it? Today I spent the better part of my day trying to determine where exactly these billions will go in the District, Virginia and Maryland. Problem is -- even with long lists of "shovel ready" projects, state and local officials have plenty to hash out before they can finalize who gets what.

A safe bet? One local official I often turn to for insight to the government said any place the POTUS or Vice POTUS visited to sell the stimulus plan is a good bet to get government funding. So that means both the Fairfax County Parkway (Obama visit) and the Laurel MARC train station (Biden visit) are likely to get on the list. But today I visited the Laurel train station and discovered that even people in the community who like the train station aren't convinced it's repair work is the right way to stimulate the economy. And that's only a $2.9 million project. Imagine the second-guessing of the multi-million dollar projects that will get on the list in an effort to get people back to work.

How will the economists judge whether 3 million jobs ARE created or saved? Experts tell me it will be slightly random -- they will look at the current projections for job losses in the coming years as this recession plays out, then they will look at the actual losses. If the Obama White House beats the projections by 3 million, they win. But if they don't, the real second-guessing begin.

 

When Barack Obama won the White House, he told CNBC's John Harwood he won't be distracted by every news headline, but he will monitor how his policies impact the stock market. Well today would be a good day to take note. The market's verdict on Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's latest version of the financial bailout plan was a big thumbs down at the closing bell today. As I was monitoring the after the market reports, I called to check on my mom in Oklahoma City. She had just emerged from being locked in a bank vault while this afternoon's tornado was passing practically over her head. It seemed like the weather was representing the mood on Wall Street.

As we weather the Wall Street storms, I hope you'll tune in for our interview with CNN's Ali Velshi tonight. He's written a new book explaining the roots of the recession and how you can weather it. Since I used to work for CNN's business unit, it was fun for me to have on our air the man who has made financial news "Yul Brynner cool" with his shaved head and business acumen.

I took the opportunity to throw at Velshi some of the most vexing questions investors and consumers have today. Which WILL stimulate the economy more -- taxes or spending programs? How do you get through the market crash if you are facing retirement in the near future? Whose right -- Washington or Wall Street -- in the debate over capping corporate salaries? Take a look at his answers and see if you agree or disagree with Velshi's conclusions. And -- if you have your own "most vexing questions" -- send them to me! As a journalist, I've never assumed I knew all the right answers. But together we can ask the experts their informed opinions and decide for ourselves whether or not we agree.