Obama Links Better Economy To Stimulus

By: Brian Montopoli
Topics: Economy

(AP)

Updated 2:02 p.m. ET

President Obama said Friday afternoon that new figures showing the Gross Domestic Product contracted at a much lower rate in the second quarter than it did at the start of the year illustrate that the "in the last few months, the economy has done measurably better than we had thought."

The president attributed the improved situation to his nearly $800 billion economic stimulus package, saying progress is "directly attributable to the Recovery Act."

He argued that "important steps that we've taken over the last six months have helped us put the brakes on the recession."

"Now, I realize that none of this is much comfort to those Americans who are still out of work and struggling to make ends meet," the president acknowledged. "And when we receive our monthly jobs report next week, it's likely to show that we're still continuing to lose far too many jobs."

But he stressed that "today's GDP is an important sign that the economy is headed in the right direction."

Republicans have attacked the stimulus package as wasteful and ineffective, and the White House seized on the new figures to buttress its argument that the massive spending bill is having its intended effect.

In an effort to underscore that argument, the president also noted that new figures show "that the recession we faced when I took office was even deeper than anyone thought at the time. It told us how close we were to the edge." The government had previously calculated that the economy had grown 1.1 percent in 2008 but today revised that number down to 0.4 percent.

The president said he is "guardedly optimistic" about the state of the economy, though he noted that a recovery "won't happen overnight." He said the new figures show that business investment is stabilizing, which he indicated will lead to renewed hiring and, eventually, a feeling among Americans that a true recovery is at hand.

"As I've said before, it took us many more months to fully dig ourselves out of a recession that we now know was even deeper than anyone thought, but I will continue to work every single day and take every step that's necessary to make sure that happens," he said.

Added the president: "I want to make sure that all the Americans out there who are still struggling because they're out of work or not having enough work know that this administration will not rest until the movement that we're seeing on the business side starts translating into jobs for those people and -- and their families."

In his comments Friday afternoon, the president also lauded members of the House for working to expand the so-called "Cash For Clunkers" program, which he said "succeeded well beyond out expectations and all expectations." Read more on that story here>.

Brian Montopoli
Brian Montopoli is the senior political reporter at CBSNews.com.
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by pasmalltown August 2, 2009 8:44 AM EDT: The energy generated in this post indicates that the economy is a burning issue, always has been and probably will continue to be. And I must admit I did not read the entire contents of all the comments as time would not permit me, but it seems to me that one fact remains - I haven't "heard the fat lady sing" on Obama's performance (it ain't over til it's over), and "the future ain't here yet", it seems to be premature to be negative about Obama's role in fixing the economy - Perhaps those that are, are "wishing" things will go downhill from here?

Another thing is sure, the fat lady has sung on Bush's performance, and it wasn't pretty. You can speculate all you like, place blame on the "other guy", but most Americans are not better off now than they were after Clinton left office.; Reply to this comment


by John_Merritt August 1, 2009 3:31 PM EDT: I am usually a fairly 'wordy' poster, but today I am just reading all the posts on EVERY major news stations. Not making any comments, but the one observation I am making: We as a nation of people are imploding.

Freedom always comes at a cost. This period in history may be OUR Waterloo.; Reply to this comment


by grabandgo August 1, 2009 12:08 PM EDT: he talks like he is still campaigning....the economy is still very very bad.
all the money he is giving out will cause our taxes to go above 50% of our salaries!; Reply to this comment

by Dave_P6 August 1, 2009 11:35 AM EDT

Got news for you, deficit comes from Bush. Obama's trying to recue the economy with a long term plan to bring down the deficit.

Down Jones up over 9000. Housing market starting to do well again. Reports show recession is coming to a close. I'd call these good signs.

Reply to this comment


by cydygitt1 August 1, 2009 12:37 PM EDT: Yep....the DOW has gained 15% since Jan. 20th, 2009, and had its best July since 1989.

Compare that to the DOW LOSS of 26% during the 8 miserable years of bushworld, where the bankers, mortgage brokers and wall street elite raided America's wealth through their endless GREED and the military/industrial complex grew happy with endless WARS for OIL.

by steveherb1 August 1, 2009 10:56 AM EDT

Unemployment rate is in exact alignment with Great Depression. Peak of unempoloyment was at the end of 1932 at 25% I'm no fortune teller but the end of 2012 is on its way and it aint gonna be pretty.

Reply to this comment


by cydygitt1 August 1, 2009 11:38 AM EDT: Give it a rest with the republiCON 'gloom and doom' scenario, since employment always lags in every recovery, much like the first bushevik recession of 2001. The recession began in March 2001 and ended in Nov. 2001, after the longest economic expansion in our history for a full 10 years. It was another 18 months, May 2003, that unemployment finally started easing with a few new jobs that were not offshored to "Chindia." That was a relatively mild recession compared to this bush/cheney Great Recession of 2007-2009, and it still was basically the first recession recovery since WWII that was jobless, even after the moronic GOP congresscritters passed the 2003 "jobs and growth" package that gave the wealthiest Americans billions of dollars to promote growth in "Chindia," and offshore millions of local jobs!

by grabandgo August 1, 2009 10:08 AM EDT

You don't think he is going to stand there and tell us how bad it really is do you?
Unemployment is still going up.
Taxes will be over 50% when we have to pay back all this debt he has created.
Middle class America will never be out of debt and he wants it that way.

Reply to this comment


by cydygitt1 August 1, 2009 12:54 PM EDT: Oh yeah.....and the bush monkey couldn't even admit to the bush/cheney Great Recession until Dec. 2008, when it started in Dec. 2007 -- a full year before and average Americans had already been feeling the PAIN for quite some time!

BTW, don't forget the national debt TRIPLED under "ronnie the rat" raygun, and DOUBLED under the $5 Trillion bush monkey to $10.7 Trillion, due to the very failed "trickle-down" economic lunacy of the CONStipated CONServitard morons!

Why didn't you "born again" fiscally responsible republiCONS say anything during those times as Americans were burried with DEBT, and as the National Debt has continued to increase an average of $3.83 billion per day since September 28, 2007?


by tbbaot August 1, 2009 9:55 AM EDT: Obama must be trying to set the stage for a career in comedy when he leaves the White House in 2012; Reply to this comment


by hungry1968-16 August 1, 2009 8:52 AM EDT: by lorinkundert August 1, 2009 3:55 AM EDT
If you believe that, you probably voted for Obama. Simply put a trillion dollars thrown into the economy is called dilution, the value of the dollar becomes less, eventually that will catch up soner than you think.

How is "encouraging people to buy cars", diluting the dollar?!?

The federal reserve under Bush, ELIMINATED the key federal interest rate by reducing it down to ZERO.

Now THAT devalued our dollar, and made all of the foreign currencies around the world soar in value.; Reply to this comment

by megawhy August 1, 2009 6:22 AM EDT

I really think Barack Obama is stupid. Wait, I will link my not cutting my grass to reduction of Global Warming, which in turn has positively affected the economy. Thank goodness we are saved. Where is my teleprompter!

Reply to this comment


by woeisme1 August 1, 2009 8:10 AM EDT: Your post is contradictory. You stated that, "I really think" and yet in the same sentence call President Obama stupid (which he is'nt). Then you rant on about global warming, the economy and telepromters.

In what part of that post were you thinking?


by lorinkundert August 1, 2009 3:55 AM EDT: If you believe that, you probably voted for Obama. Simply put a trillion dollars thrown into the economy is called dilution, the value of the dollar becomes less, eventually that will catch up soner than you think.; Reply to this comment