Post Politics Hour

Don't want to miss out on the latest in politics? Start each day with The Post Politics Hour. Join in each weekday morning at 11 a.m. as a member of The Washington Post's team of White House and congressional reporters answers questions about the latest buzz in Washington and The Post's coverage of political news.

Washington Post White House reporter Michael A. Fletcher, was online Friday, Jan. 9 at 11 a.m. ET to take your questions about the latest transition and executive branch news.

A transcript follows.

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Archive: Post Politics Hour discussion transcripts

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Michael A. Fletcher: Good morning, everyone. Let's get started.

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North East, D.C.: Do you think leader Reid is permanently damaged by the Burris issue?

Or even possible just the last set of verbal spewing.

Michael A. Fletcher: I doubt it. The Burris saga will most likely quickly fade as an issue as Congress deals with the huge issues confronting the country, not the least of which is how to right the economy. Harry Reid is more likely to be remembered by what he does on that front.

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Political Visionary: How come I have not seen any reporting on Tom Daschle's fancy red round frames? There is a large segment of us who need fashion reporting to supplement our politics. Is Daschle the new Sarah Plain of political eyewear? Do you foresee a run on round red frames similar to the run on Palin's Japanese-style frames?

washingtonpost.com: Daschle With Glasses (Huffington Post)

Michael A. Fletcher: It sounds like we need to get fashion guru Robin Givhan on the case. I'm no expert here, but to me the glasses seem kind of bold to become a widely copied fashion statement.

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Fairfax, Va.: Is there some sort of bad blood between Obama and Howard Dean? The president-elect generally puts his own guy at the head of the national committee, so a second term there wasn't realistic. Dean allegedly would have liked to be HHS secretary, but considering Daschle is very interested in getting universal health care passed and is a major reason Obama managed to do so well in the campaign, he got the nod.

Michael A. Fletcher: There is no bad blood that I know of. During his announcement of Kaine's appointment yesterday, Obama offered praise for Dean's once-controversial 50-state strategy. I also think Obama likes the symbolism of having the Democratic Party run by a governor from Virginia, which in some ways is something made possible in part by Dean's work.

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Reston, Va.: One of the defenses Obama supporters have made for the Panetta selection was that he needed to find someone outside of the intelligence community...otherwise he would be selecting an advocate of torture.

I wonder what their reaction is to Obama tapping John Brennan as a top terrorism adviser.

Michael A. Fletcher: In the end, it seems that Obama chose to place Brennan in the counterterrorism role because the job does not require Senate confirmation, which would get into all of the controversy about the CIA's interrogation techniques. I imagine that the president-elect's supporters would say that Brennan complements others on the national security team. Beyond the taint of torture, one of the criticism's of the nation's intelligence apparatus is that it has overlapping agencies, and it seems that Obama is trying to tackle some of that.

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Cleveland: We have heard that a lot of things are first on the agenda: tax cuts, infrastructure, green energy investment, health care reform, Gaza, Guantanamo, reversing executive orders. Does Mr. Obama intend to clone himself to accomplish all of these things? What's really first?

Michael A. Fletcher: It seems that the stimulus--which has become a huge catch all that will address issues from health care to education to joblessness--will have to be the first first. But Gaza is pressing, and will most likely be the Secretary of State's top issue. Guantanamo is something the president-elect's legal team is trying to untangle right now, in trying to figure out where the prisoners could be sent. So Obama won't be cloning himself, but like all presidents, he will be testing the limits of multi-tasking.

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Salinas, Calif.: Hi Michael. What's the latest line on Leon Panetta gaining confirmation for head of CIA?

Michael A. Fletcher: It appears for now that the Obama people have smoothed over the initial objections. But we'll soon see if that holds.

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50 State Strategy: It worked to elect Dems from places like Idaho and Alabama...and to get the Georgia Senate race into a runoff...will Kaine's DNC continue to fund the 50-State Strategy?

Michael A. Fletcher: It seems so. If it is not a 50-state strategy, it will be something like it.

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Floris, Va.: Michael: This morning you and/or Mr.Shear wrote that George W. Bush said in 2001 "the stock market is causing worries, high energy prices are straining family budgets, and small business people have been directly affected by layoffs and slowing retail sales." While certainly prescient by eight years (snark) didn't Mr. Bush make that statement at a time when the unemployment rate was 4.2 percent (against 7.2 now) and a surplus economy versus the trillion plus deficit he's leaving to Mr. Obama? It's remarkable how far off the cliff we've fallen during the Bush years and I hope you'll point that out in future stories with an emphasis on the how and the why we've came to this painful juncture.

washingtonpost.com: Obama Cites Grim Economy At Start, as Past Presidents Have (Post, Jan. 9)

Michael A. Fletcher: The how and why is a complicated set of issues that the paper has been trying to address, in part, through stories about inadequate financial regulation and the rise of new, poorly understood financial instruments. But there is no mistaking that that the economy is in much worse shape now than after the tech bubble burst. The facts are sobering: real median income flat over eight years; A budget deficit projected to be at $1.2 trillion; 12 straight months of job losses. It is a set of circumstances the country's economy has not seen in a long time.

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Poplar Bluff, Mo.: Michael, will you cover the White House after January 20th or will you be assigned to cover the Congress or other topics. Thanks.

Michael A. Fletcher: I will be covering the White House. But that means I will often be working with reporters who cover Congress, national security, economics and other issues that make their way to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

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Rochester, N.Y.: Which scandal is the most perilous for Democrats: BurrisGate, BlagojevichGate, or RichardsonGate?

Michael A. Fletcher: It is hard to say that there is even a BurrisGate, and it remains to be seen where the Richardson investigation will end up. And while we have to say the same about Blagojevich, we do know that the list of allegations is long and very bad and he could be on the verge of impeachment. And that could have real consequences for Democrats as they try to hold on to the governor's seat and the President-elect's recently vacated Senate seat.

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Middle, America : Do you think Obama's inner circle, all wealthy, realizes the impact of Trillions for Billionaires and Corporations coupled with signaling he is going to cut Social Security and Medicare?

Is there not a sense of the absolute outrage that mainstream America feels toward Wall Street, Greenwich, and the Bos-NY-Wash legal and banking corridor (or perhaps tunnel would be better)? It grows each day.

Michael A. Fletcher: I think they do understand how unhappy many people are with the bailout, even if the bailout may have stabilized a financial system that was badly listing. Our David Cho had a story today saying that the transition team is working to broaden the scope of teh financial rescue program to target more of the money to Main Street. As for entitlements, I think there is widespread recognition that something has to be done to control the growth in the cost of those programs. But given political reality, I doubt that will result in a flat-out "cut" in the programs. Among other things, you may see higher income people putting more in the Social Security pot.

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Inside the Beltway: Michael,

Do you think the Democrats will be able to stop squabbling and get their act together to actually pass some of the stuff Obama is proposing?

Michael A. Fletcher: I think a huge stimulus plan will be passed, but it seems that some of the emerging details may be adjusted, slowing the timetable. Already, it has slipped to mid-February, and economists warn that for stimulus to break the negative cycle the economy is falling into action has to happen sooner, not later. So it seems that it is not a question of if, but of when and exactly what.

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Cleveland Park, Washington, D.C.: With all of the controversy over Dr. Gupta's qualifications, how many past Surgeons General have been members of the Commissioned Corps?

Michael A. Fletcher: Interesting question, but I do not know the answer right now. A similar question might be: how many surgeon generals do we remember, and why? Or, what is the top mission of the surgeon general in 2009? Those answers would probably point to a surgeon general having some kind of ease in the media glare, which seems to be Dr. Gupta's top credential, even more than his medical background.

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Atlanta: From you: The facts are sobering: real median income flat over eight years;

But that's a red herring. Our standard of living is MUCH higher. How many people have flat screen TVs? How much bigger are our homes? How much lower are prices for clothing/cell phones/so many other things (until very recently -- food...and now, it's still pretty darn cheap, considering).

So seriously -- who cares if we're earning the same...when we have a higher standard of living -- of course, we were borrowing for that...so had we not -- and had the GOVERNMENT not been borrowing so much -- we might be MUCH better off, even if incomes don't rise (Why do they need to? Doesn't that only cause inflation?).

Michael A. Fletcher: You're right about much of that, but the glitch is that not everything is cheaper. And much of what has gotten more expensive over the past eight years can be termed the essentials of life: homes (until recently, at least), health care and higher education are three things whose costs have grown substantially over the past eight years. So more income would help there. And, make no mistake, incomes have spiraled for those in the very top tier of earners,creating to a wage disparity not seen since the 1920s. So real income growth is something we should care about.

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Wilmington, N.C.: Yesterday, I was listening to Bill O'Reilly on the radio. He told me, in no uncertain terms, the mainstream media on the economy beat were just waiting until Jan. 20 to instantly pivot 180 degrees and begin reporting on the successful comeback of the U.S. economy. Needless to say, I immediately thought of you. So, is he right? Are you busted? Why is this man such a significant part of our political discourse and not a complete laughingstock?

Michael A. Fletcher: I wonder what he would say about today's job numbers, showing that the nation shed more than a half million jobs in December alone? The press did not make that up.

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Michael A. Fletcher: Time's up. Gotta run. Thanks for the questions.

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