Obama Names Top Economic Officials

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Obama Wants Stimulus Approved 'Right Away'

President-elect Barack Obama pledged Monday to honor the commitments the outgoing Bush administration has made to rescue financial markets and urged the incoming Congress to pass a major stimulus package "right away."

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"We have made these kinds of decisions in the past, made one last night, and if need be we're going to make these kinds of decisions to safeguard our financial system in the future," Bush said after returning from Lima, Peru, his last scheduled overseas trip as president.

Obama would not say whether he agrees with Democrats in Congress who are calling for the government to pump as much as $700 billion into the economy. But he repeatedly emphasized the need for quick and transparent action, saying: "If we do not act swiftly and boldly, most experts now believe that we could lose millions of jobs next year."

The words contrasted sharply with the cautious approach Obama took two weeks ago, when he stood in the same room in the Chicago Hilton and said: "The United States has only one government and one president at a time. And until January 20th of next year, that government is the current administration."

Yesterday, he was more decisive. "We have to put people back to work," Obama said. "Not only do I want this stimulus package to deal with the immediate crisis, I want it also to lay the groundwork for long-term, sustained economic growth."

Today, Obama is expected to name Peter R. Orszag, the head of the Congressional Budget Office, to lead the White House Office of Management and Budget. Aides said he will also discuss reeling in the federal budget deficit once the economy returns to health through spending cuts and holding down the cost of health care. That focus is meant to reassure Democratic deficit hawks in Congress, whose votes will be needed to approve a stimulus package.

"To make the investments we need, we'll have to scour our federal budget, line by line, and make meaningful cuts and sacrifices as well," Obama said yesterday, hinting at his plans for today's news conference.

Last week, Obama aide Jason Furman met with House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer (Md.) and other moderate Democrats to discuss the gloomy budget outlook. "Any stimulus package has to have a strong mechanism to develop a plan to reduce the debt once the economy has stabilized," said Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

Obama said he will appoint Melody C. Barnes, a former top aide to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), as director of the Domestic Policy Council, which advises the president on domestic policy and helps coordinate strategy across federal agencies. Heather A. Higginbottom, who was a top adviser to Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), will be her deputy.

During his campaign, Obama vowed to raise taxes on couples making more than $250,000 a year, and he said yesterday that he has not decided whether to try to repeal the Bush administration's tax cuts for wealthier Americans or to allow those cuts to expire in 2010. He reiterated, however, that "the very wealthiest among us will pay a little bit more."

He also said Detroit automobile executives must make a stronger case before they receive billions of dollars from the federal government. He called the auto industry "resistant to change" and said government help is for making automakers more competitive in a global economy, "not just kicking the can down the road."

"I was surprised that they did not have a better-thought-out proposal when they arrived in Congress," Obama said. "I think Congress did the right thing, which is to say, 'You guys need to come up with a plan and come back before you're getting any taxpayer money.' " Obama said he will seek to convey a sense of clarity and strength to the financial markets, something he believes has sometimes been missing from the Bush administration's approach.

"That doesn't mean that there aren't going to be adjustments over the course of weeks or months to respond to changing situations," Obama said, "but I think part of what we've seen is confusion on the part of the markets sometimes in terms of what the overall direction might be."

Slevin reported from Chicago. Staff writers Dan Eggen and Lori Montgomery contributed to this report.