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Politics : THE WHITE HOUSE -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: pompsander who wrote (18488)	3/19/2008 3:41:27 PM
From: jlallen	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25737

That's the problem with politics today...every miscue is analyzed and dissected way beyond any rational equivalence... J.

To: pompsander who wrote (18488)	3/20/2008 11:24:34 AM
From: DuckTapeSunroof	Respond to of 25737

Q&A with Obama \| Bank bailouts, N.C. chances Sen. Barack Obama talked about banks, North Carolina's economy, NASCAR and even his NCAA brackets during an interview Wednesday with Observer reporters Jim Morrill and Tonya Jameson. Here's an edited transcript. Posted on Wed, Mar. 19, 2008 charlotte.com Q: As you know, Charlotte is a banking center. What should the federal government do if one of the major banks begins to have trouble or seems to be in danger of failing? Obama: We have to look at it on a case-by-case basis. We want to encourage the financial markets to regain confidence and pump more liquidity into the system. I think there are going to be some losses that have to be taken for some bad decisions. You know, the banks, when they were making sky-high profits, were happy with government non-intervention. You can't just have government intervention to bail you out. And so people are going to have to take some hits for bad investment decisions that they made. On the other hand. I think it's very important for us not only to insure liquidity, but also to think about how can we create a regulatory environment where we don't duplicate some of these problems in the future. Q: How can Democrats win North Carolina in November when you couldn't do it in 2004 with a North Carolinian (John Edwards) on the ticket? Obama: Things have changed over the last 3 1/2 years. I think people here in North Carolina are a lot more disenchanted with the direction that the Republicans have taken this country, not only on foreign policy, but also domestically. The economy is in a shambles. And I think people recognize we need a fundamental break from the last 7 1/2 years. John McCain on both foreign and domestic policy, is essentially arguing for more of the same. And if we can offer a clear contrast, I think that the people of North Carolina may surprise you. Q: North Carolina has lost thousands of manufacturing jobs. What would you say to people trapped in a changing economy? Obama: Look, some of those jobs are just not coming back. So the question is, No. 1, how do we make sure more jobs don't leave? And that means setting up trade agreements ... so that U.S. workers can compete on a even playing field. It's then important to learn where the new jobs are going to come from. Part of it will be infrastructure -- we have to rebuild our roads, our bridges. A lot of people who have been laid off from construction could be re-employed in rebuilding our infrastructure, and that includes also newer infrastructure -- things like broadband lines that can help stitch rural communities into the Internet. We have an enormous opportunity around `green technology' and `green jobs.' If we cap the emission of greenhouse gases that can generate billions of dollars that we in turn are investing in solar and wind and biodiesel, we can put people back to work building windmills. Q: A lot of young people say they're not sure they will even vote, that their votes don't count. How do you and the Democrats counter that with what happened in Florida and with the role that superdelegates might play in the nomination? Obama: The truth is young people have counted throughout this election. We had a remarkable turnout in Iowa, in New Hampshire, in South Carolina. The youth vote has consistently outpaced anything that we've seen in the last decade, two decades, three decades. And the reason is because we're inviting them to get involved, not just to vote, but also to get active. We want people to organize. We want them on the streets, knocking on doors, making phone calls, bringing to the campaign the issues they care most deeply about. A lot of the reason young people aren't involved is because they're an afterthought. Q: Charlotte just opened a new light-rail line. How do you feel about federal support for mass transit? Obama: I'm a strong supporter, as part of our broader energy strategy. You know, if we are designing cities, and urban communities and suburban communities around two-hour commutes, then we are destined to continue down the course of climate change. And mass transit not only is far more environmentally sound, but with oil prices sky high, and not likely to go down significantly, because of increased demand by China and India, it gives individuals much more of an incentive to look at trains and mass transit as an alternative. Q: Have you done your bracket yet? Obama: I'm doing it right now. Q: Who's going to win? Obama: Well I'm in North Carolina right now ... Q: Come on, don't just be politically correct! Obama: Well, I have to say, uh, Hansbrough's looking tough. That's a big boy, there. So I've got to fill it out, I've got to do a little bracketology before I make a final decision. Q: Who's your favorite NASCAR driver? Obama: You know I have not met any of these guys. Jeff Gordon seems like a pretty impressive guy. And so I've followed his career. But I can't say that I've been watching a lot of NASCAR lately. I haven't been watching anything lately. That's the biggest problem putting together my bracket. I haven't seen any games. It's all guesswork.