Obama seeks more help for ailing auto industry

The Associated Press , Washington Wed, 11/12/2008 5:25 PM World World leaders hoping to meet President-elect Barack Obama at an economic summit in the U.S. capital this weekend will be disappointed. But as he works on forming his new government, Obama is finding it difficult to remain on the sidelines as Democrats in Congress line up in support of a financial bailout for the ailing U.S. auto industry. Obama has urged the Bush administration to do more to help U.S. automakers and aides said he raised the issue with President George W. Bush on Monday in their first face-to-face meeting at the Oval Office. Officials familiar with the conversation Monday said the president replied he was open to the idea. Obama does not plan to be in Washington or receive foreign visitors in Chicago over the weekend. He long ago ruled out attending this weekend's summit, saying the U.S. has only one president at a time, and it's still Bush. Before the election, Bush announced that the world's 20 largest industrialized nations and emerging economies would meet in Washington this Saturday. Obama's aides plan to keep tabs on - and possibly participate in - the summit where world powers hope to craft remedies to the global financial crisis. "We have one president at a time, and it's important that the president can speak for the United States at the summit," John Podesta, Obama's transition chief, told reporters Tuesday. Podesta, however, noted that Obama had urged such a summit during the presidential campaign. Leaders attending the G-20 meeting are certainly interested in Obama's economic stance. In phone calls last week, Obama accepted congratulations from leaders of countries including Canada, France, Italy, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Spain. The global financial crisis was among the topics he discussed with key U.S. allies. On Tuesday, he spoke with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil, Pope Benedict XVI, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India, King Abdullah II of Jordan and President Mwai Kibaki of Kenya, the homeland of Obama's father. The president-elect held his first news conference last Friday after he and Vice President-elect Joe Biden met privately with economic advisers. Obama's message: "We are facing the greatest economic challenge of our lifetime, and we're going to have to act swiftly to resolve it." A new Associated Press-GfK poll found nearly three quarters of Americans now saying they think Obama will make the changes needed to revive the struggling U.S. economy after his inauguration on Jan. 20. That's a greater percentage of people expressing confidence in the Obama's campaign message of hope and change than the 52 percent who actually voted for him a week ago. It includes 44 percent of Republicans - an indication that many people who did not pick him are caught up in the wave of optimism that has swept the country since the 47-year-old Illinois senator's groundbreaking election to the highest office in the country. On Tuesday, Obama huddled in private in Chicago with top advisers planning for the transfer of presidential power. He took a break only for a short public appearance to place a wreath at a memorial honoring fallen troops to mark the Veterans Day holiday. His aides say no Cabinet positions are to be announced this week, though White House staff positions may be filled later in the week. On Tuesday, Obama hired veteran Democrats Sam Nunn, a former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Warren Christopher, President Bill Clinton's first secretary of state, to head his transition teams at the Pentagon and State Department, senior government officials and others said. Aides to Obama said the president-elect raised the idea with Bush of an administration point person on autos with a portfolio aimed at improving the long-term health of the companies. Bush repeated his position, recently stated by staff, that he is open to helping automakers. Also, amid discussions over whether a new economic stimulus measure is needed, Obama focused on his desire for it while Bush stressed that his main priority for any post-election action out of Congress is passage of a free trade agreement with Colombia, said people familiar with the conversation between the two men. The sources declined to be named publicly because of the private nature of the talks. Reflecting the delicate dance of a meeting between outgoing and incoming presidents, Bush repeated his position that he is open to helping the automakers without making firm commitments. "In no way did the president suggest that there was a quid pro quo," said White House press secretary Dana Perino. But, she added, "he did talk about the merits of free trade." In September, Congress approved $25 billion in loans to automakers to help them retool plans to build more fuel-efficient vehicles, and thus become more competitive in the global marketplace. Though the administration is working to give automakers quick access to that money, it still would likely not come fast enough - or in big enough amounts - to satisfy the drowning companies. Over the weekend, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid asked the administration to consider expanding the $700 billion bailout for financial firms to include car companies. The administration has concluded automakers are not eligible under the main, stock-purchase part of the program. The debate comes as General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are burning through cash and bleeding jobs. Analysts are predicting that GM, in particular, might not last the year without a government bailout. The AP-GfK survey found that seven in 10 of those surveyed, or 72 percent, voice confidence the president-elect will make the changes needed to revive the stalling economy. Highlighting anew how the Iraq war has faded as a paramount public concern, only half of people said they wanted Obama to make a U.S. troop withdrawal a top focus upon taking office. Instead, 84 percent said strengthening the economy should be a top-tier priority. Eighty percent also named creating jobs as a No. 1 order of business. The AP-GfK poll was conducted Nov. 6-10 and involved cell and landlines telephone interviews with 1,001 adults. It has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.