Obama and the Economy

Economic Stimulus;
Obama likely to act fast

Quick passage of an economic stimulus package is high on Obama’s agenda, even more pressing for the moment than the tax package that he promoted repeatedly during his campaign.

Mortgages:
A pledge to aid homeowners
Obama has pledged to help hard-pressed homeowners, but he will have to move quickly to forestall a new wave of foreclosures.

Some in Congress favour direct mortgage relief, but others worry that the cost- on top of the bank bailout- would be too expensive.

Federal regulation;
Tighter reins on Wall Street
Obama called for reorganising the financial regulatory system months before the housing and credit crisis spiralled into an economic debacle. He outlined six principles, but offered few details.

Auto industry:
In Detroit, no cash, no credit, no time
The problems of the Detroit auto-makers are pressing.

General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler are rapidly running out of cash in the worst sales market for new vehicles in 15 years. Both GM and Ford are expected to announce billions of dollars more in losses for the third quarter on Friday, and the threat of bankruptcy will grow without some form of federal assistance.

Health care:
Overhauling of industry will have to wait
Democrats’ campaign rhetoric aside, few health care analysts expect the new president and Congress to undertake a sweeping overhaul of the health care industry any time soon.

Technology:
A cabinet voice for the shaping of policy
If the technology industry has its way in the Obama administration, it will get easier to hire more smart people from around the globe.

Tech companies have long argued that they need the best and brightest engineers if they are going to compete in the global economy. Obama has endorsed the industry’s call for raising the number of H-1B temporary work visas, which are available now to only 65,000 skilled foreign engineers each year. (The visas are all claimed within minutes.)

Trade:
Cooperation fades and protectionism rises
What consensus there was on international trade seemed to evaporate with the failure of world trade talks last summer? Indeed, with the world on the brink of a global recession, led by the United States and Europe, the fear of a rise in protectionism grows.