Obama Transition: CAP's John Podesta Talks with ...

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/01/29/podesta-responds/#comments

ThinkProgress.org provided readers an opportunity to ask John Podesta questions pertaining to his service on the Obama transition team. You responded with great enthusiasm, offering more than 100 comments and questions.

John sat down with TP on January 28, 2009 for about 20 minutes. In that period of time, we were able to get to 8 of your questions. The first one I asked him was the top-rated question, as voted on by the ThinkProgress community. It was submitted by user curtisteff, and it read: Why is President Obama giving up so much to try to appease the conservatives?; Podesta offered this response: I think that if you look at the [economic recovery] bill thats making its way through the House and then will be taken up by the Senate this week and voted on and put on the Presidents desk by Presidents Day, what you see in there is the thrust that he laid down early on; really back in December and in January. I think he was willing to have a dialogue with Republicans. So far, that dialogue has been largely one in which its good-natured but the Republicans dont seem to really want to come to the table and talk seriously about what needs to be done for the country. So be it; thats their choice. But I think he did want to change the tone in Washington. He wanted to talk to people across the political spectrum. He wanted to open up the government to people from all perspectives around the country. Thats what WhiteHouse.gov is about. Thats what the transition change.gov ; was about, to try to solicit ideas from across the political spectrum to meet the big challenges. But I would not confuse that with an idea that hes compromising on his big goals of trying to deal with the very difficult economic circumstances we face and deal with the big challenges this country faces on energy, education, health care, and the other things.

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