President-elect Obama Subtlety Taking the Reigns of US Economic Policy

In his regular press conferences behind the very Presidential-looking "Office of the President-Elect" podium Obama quietly is absorbing the Presidency. Despite being 11 weeks away from inauguration and still two weeks away from officially being declared President-elect by the convening of the Electoral College, he is undeniably taking the reigns of US economic policy.

From his first post-election press conference to his third he has been methodically laying out a framework, carefully guided by an army of economic advisers. However, his influence and current impact are obviously deeper than giving speeches.

Leaks from the Obama transition team revealed his efforts as early as his personal meeting with President Bush. In this meeting, the tour of the White House turned into lobbying for assistance to the crumbling auto industry.

In his Monday press conference, announcing New York Federal Reserve President Tim Geithner as Treasury Secretary-select, Obama seems to foretell pending economic stimulus, "beyond any immediate actions we may take, we need a recovery plan for both Wall Street and Main Street, a plan that stabilizes our financial system and gets credit flowing again..."

Sure enough, the very next day the US Treasury and Federal Reserve announced an enormous $800 billion stimulus package--targeted at getting credit flowing to Main Street. Even more telling was the fact that the New York Federal Reserve will be the administrator of the program. There is every indication thatGeithner and Obama were fully involved in creating the new program.

Obama's influence and direct involvement is sure to grow as he inserts his team directly into the fabric of US economic policy, made clear in his most recent press statement--"I've asked my economic team to develop recommendations for this plan, and to consult with Congress, the current administration and the Federal Reserve on immediate economic developments over the next two months. I've requested that they brief me on these matters on a daily basis."

This is proving to be a unique time in our economic history as well as an unprecedented active Presidential transition.