So with that, let me take a few questions. I"ll start with Jim Kuhnhenn of AP.Q New jobless numbers today back in the States. You're on a pace to face the voters with the highest unemployment rate of any postwar President. And doesn't that make you significantly vulnerable to a Republican who might run on a message of change? And if I may add, given that you have just witnessed the difficulties of averting economic problems beyond your control, what state do you think the economy will be in when you face reelection next year?PRESIDENT OBAMA: Jim, I have to tell you the least of my concerns at the moment is the politics of a year from now. I"m worried about putting people back to work right now, because those folks are hurting and the U.S. economy is underperforming. And so everything that we're doing here in the -- here at the G20 mirrors our efforts back home -- that is, how do we boost growth; how do we shrink our deficits in a way that doesn't slow the recovery right now; how do we make sure that our workers are getting the skills and the training they need to compete in a global economy. And not only does the American Jobs Act answer some of the needs for jobs now, but it will also lay the foundation for future growth through investments in infrastructure, for example.So my hope is, is that the folks back home, including those in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives, when they look at today’s job numbers -- which were positive but indicate once again that the economy is growing way too slow -- that they think twice before they vote “no” again on the only proposal out there right now that independent economists say would actually make a dent in unemployment right now. There’s no excuse for inaction. That’s true globally; it’s certainly true back home as well. And I’m going to keep on pushing it regardless of what the politics are.Chuck Todd.Q Thank you, Mr. President. Clearly, there was some sort of dispute between you and the European leaders about how to fund this bailout. And you, in your remarks, emphasized the fact that TARP was done with U.S. funds, that there wasn’t any international involvement here. Are you confident now that the European leaders are going to own this firewall or bailout fund themselves, not looking for handouts from other countries, and that they will do what they have to do?And the second part of my question is, how hard was it to convince these folks to do stimulus（刺激） measures when your own stimulus measure -- you’ve mentioned it twice now -- is not going anywhere right now on Capitol Hill?PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, first of all, we didn’t have a long conversation about stimulus measures, so that was maybe two or three G20s ago. We had a discussion about what steps could be taken to continue to spur economic growth. And that may not always involve government spending. For example, the rebalancing agenda that I talked about is one way in which we can make a big difference in spurring on global demand. It requires some adjustments, some changes in behavior on the part of countries. But it doesn’t necessarily involve classic fiscal stimulus.It wasn’t a dispute with the Europeans. I think the Europeans agree with us that it is important to send a clear signal that the European project is alive and well, and that they are committed to the euro, and that they are committed to resolving this crisis. And I think if you talk to European leaders, they are the first ones to say that that begins with European leaders arriving at a common course of action.So essentially, what we’ve seen is all the elements for dealing with the crisis put in place, and we think those are the right elements. The first is having a solution to the specific problem of Greece. And although the actions of Papandreou and the referendum（公民投票） issue over the last couple of days I think got a lot of people nervous, the truth is, is that the general approach -- which involved a voluntary reduction on the part of those who hold the Greeks’ debt, reducing the obligations of the Greek government -- Greece continuing with reforms and structural change, that’s the right recipe. It just has to be carried out. And I was encouraged by the fact that despite all the turmoil in Greece, even the opposition leader in Greece indicated that it’s important to move forward on the proposal.The second component is recapitalization of Europe’s banks. And they have identified that need and they are resourcing that need. And that I think is going to be critical to further instill confidence in the markets.And the third part of it is creating this firewall, essentially sending a signal to the markets that Europe is going to stand behind the euro. And all the details, the structure, how it operates, are still being worked out among the European leaders. What we were able to do was to give them some ideas, some options in terms of how they would put that together.And what we’ve said is -- and I’m speaking now for the whole of the G20 -- what we’ve said is the international community is going to stand ready to assist and make sure that the overall global economy is cushioned by the gyrations（旋转，回转） in the market and the shocks that arise as Europe is working these issues through. And so they’re going to have a strong partner in us. But European leaders understand that ultimately what the markets are looking for is a strong signal from Europe that they’re standing behind the euro.Q So you’re discouraging them from looking for money -- outside money?PRESIDENT OBAMA: No, what we were saying is that -- and this is reflected in the communiqué -- that, for example, creating additional tools for the IMF is an important component of providing markets overall confidence in global growth and stability, but that is a supplement to the work that is being done here in Europe.And based on my conversations with President Sarkozy, Chancellor Merkel, and all the other European leaders, I believe they have that strong commitment to the euro and the European project.
|
|
