By Michael Abramowitz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
5:43 PM
NEW YORK, Nov. 11 -- The White House pushed back Tuesday against reports that President Bush has conditioned his support for a new economic stimulus package on congressional backing for stalled free trade agreements.
"The president did not suggest a quid pro quo" during his meeting Monday with President-elect Barack Obama, White House press secretary Dana Perino told reporters traveling with Bush. That contradicted the comments of unidentified officials quoted in newspaper reports Tuesday morning about the meeting in the Oval Office.
But Perino did say Bush remains hopeful that Congress could pass long-delayed free trade deals with Colombia, Panama and South Korea. That could happen before he leaves office Jan. 20 only if Congress agrees to hold a lame-duck session to consider a new economic stimulus plan.
The co-chairman of Obama's transition team, John D. Podesta, also rejected reports that the passage of an economic stimulus plan or a package to help the auto industry was part of a proposed legislative exchange for the elimination of Democratic opposition to the Colombia free trade agreement.
"While the topic of Colombia came up, there was no quid pro quo," Podesta told reporters Tuesday. He added that relations between the White House and the Obama transition team have been "collegial" and "cooperative."
In an interview with CNN Tuesday, Bush declined to discuss specifics of his conversation with Obama Monday, including any advice he may have given. He said he would keep his advice confidential in case Obama wanted to ask for it again in the future.
Bush added: "He didn't need my advice about supporting the military. He knows he must do that."
Bush called his talks with Obama "very private" and "relaxed." He said one of the things that appeared to interest the president-elect during the White House tour Monday was how his two daughters would take to their new residence. Obama was keen to see where they would stay, Bush noted.
"Clearly, this guy is going to bring a great sense of family to the White House," he said.
In response to questions about the election, Bush said that although "my choice didn't win," he feels that Obama's ascent to the presidency marks a "historic moment for our country."
"It is good for our country that people have hope in the system and feel vested in the future," Bush said. "So President-elect Obama has a great opportunity, and I really do wish him all the best. I mean, I am just as American as he is American. And it is good for our country that the president succeeds, and so the transition that we're working with him on is a genuine effort to help him be able to deal with the pressures and the complicated issues of the presidency."
Lawmakers are looking for assurances from Bush that he would negotiate a broader spending package aimed at reviving the economy during such a session. For his part, Bush signaled his interest during his speech at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum here, as he recognized Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.) and other lawmakers in the crowd.
"Looking forward to that lame-duck session, aren't we?" Bush joked.
Perino told reporters that Bush spoke with Obama "about the merits of free trade in hopes that the next administration will recognize that not only is that good for our businesses -- especially if you want to create jobs, one of the best ways to do that is to open up new markets for our businesses and our entrepreneurs."
The White House and Democrats are maneuvering in advance of a possible lame-duck session that could focus in part on new aid for the struggling auto industry. Obama asked Bush on Monday to support immediate financial aid for auto companies, and Perino did not shut the door on that possibility.
Perino made clear the administration's view that the $700 billion rescue plan approved earlier this fall does not allow for financial assistance for businesses outside the financial industry. But she said the White House is open to considering suggestions for accelerating $25 billion in low-interest loans for the auto industry that have already been approved by Congress.
"We understand that they're going through a very difficult time," Perino said of the auto industry. "There's been business decisions they've made over the years that have led to this situation, but we have gone as far as we can with the authority Congress has given us in order to help industries. We rushed through those regulations to write the rules so that they could apply for those loans."
She added: " If they believe that that's not enough for them, they need to continue to work with Democrats, and then we'll see what they can come forward with." Bush is marking Veterans Day in New York City, where he helicoptered to the flight deck of the USS Intrepid, the aircraft carrier that is now a museum on the west side of Manhattan.
Joined by former astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Scott Carpenter and New York dignitaries such as Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), Bush helped rededicate the museum after a two-year, $120 million refurbishment. During a private tour, Bush got a close look at a TBM Avenger, the kind of bomber his father piloted when he was shot down in World War II.
Afterward, Bush was warmly received by a crowd filled with veterans and their families, and two of the speakers pointedly praised him for helping to prevent another terrorist attack in the United States during the past seven years.
Acknowledging one of those speakers, country singer John Rich of Texas, Bush said, "John, tell them we're coming home, and we're coming home with our heads held high." On the stage with Bush was Marine Lance Cpl. Matt Bradford, who lost both of his legs and his sight in Iraq and who previously met the president while a patient at Brooke Army Medical Center. When they last met, Bradford scaled a 35-foot rock wall, earning plaudits from the commander in chief.
"The war on terror has required courage; it has required resolve equal to what previous generations of Americans brought to the fields of Europe and the deep waters of the Pacific," Bush said. "And I'm proud to report to my fellow citizens, our armed forces, the armed forces of this generation, have showed up for the fight, and America is more secure for it."
Bush grew nostalgic during Tuesday's appearance, telling his audience that he is often asked what he will miss most when he leaves office in January.
"[My] first reaction is, I say, no traffic jams in New York," Bush said. "The truth of the matter is I will miss being the commander in chief of such a fabulous group of men and women -- those who wear the uniform of the United States military."
Washington Post staff writer William Branigin contributed to this article.
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