Robert Gibbs

“ I think our focus is ensuring that that money gets out there as quickly as possible so that we can get our economy turned around again.
Obviously the statistics in the last few days, the unemployment numbers late last week were yet another sobering reminder of the many economic challenges that we face. The President understood that throughout the transition and the reason why he pushed aggressively for a stimulus plan that he thinks will get this economy moving again. ”

“ No, I think most people that have seen budgets go from here to there are not surprised that different individuals with competing interests look at and see different parts of a budget -- some things they like and some things they don't like -- whether it's Democrats or Republicans. ”

“ Much as I've said one solution to the credit crisis isn't likely to solve all of our economic challenges, the President I think strongly believes and, quite frankly, I think the American people understand that our challenges have accumulated largely because for many, many years we've put off making some of those tough decisions. ”

“ The President believes, and I think many -- I've certainly -- certainly many in Congress have discussed the notion of putting us on that path to fiscal responsibility, of making sure we're not wasting the taxpayers' money. And the President assembled a budget that makes a lot of tough choices that affect different parts of and different regions of the country, and understands that not everybody will agree with the individual tough choices. ”

“ In 2008, the government increased its cultural and religious repression in Tibetan areas, and that we believe that substantive dialogue with the Dalai Lama's representatives that makes progress in bringing about solutions to longstanding issues is the best way to achieve true and lasting stability in Tibet. ”

“ But again -- I mean, we -- I talked about this yesterday, and, you know, I think it bears repeating, and that is, if you look at -- if we look at sort of how our economy grew in the first sort of seven or eight years in this decade, I think most economists would at least now go back and tell you that a lot of our "growth" was fueled by questionable mortgage-lending practices and mounds of credit card debt. ”

“ Well, I mean, obviously there are -- there continue to be, throughout Iraq, security challenges. I think as the President enumerated in the speech that he gave at Camp Lejeune that our government and certainly our military remain strongly committed to ensuring peace and security in Iraq; continued training to give the Iraqis the opportunity and the responsibility for their own security; and that the President will continue to evaluate our policy in Iraq. ”

“ That's why it's not easy to go out and enumerate some of the things that the President did in his education plan, or as the administration has done on health care and energy, but the President understands it's the right thing to do to move our economy forward.
[REPORTER] : The President, Robert, said that -- early this year -- that he intended to lay out a new framework for regulating Wall Street and the financial markets by the time of the G20. ”

“ Well, I think that what the President's speech outlined today was an expansion of performance pay that the President talked about during the campaign and spoke about in front of town hall meetings and the NEA; included in that is also certification. But the President believes that school systems can work with teachers and parents to come up with a system that rewards our best teachers with more pay for their excellence in the classroom. ”

“ But I think the American people can be assured that the President has put forward a plan that will cut in half the budget deficit in four years and, as I said, make those necessary and needed investments. ”

“ Does this mean -- is it a (inaudible) acknowledgment that the President needs to be talking every day about the economy -- yesterday, by not talking to the economy, he's gotten people a little nervous, or is there a sense that the President needs to be more public about the economy, even more often than he is? ”

“ It is the single most important -- this is backed up by data -- the single most important factor in determining the outcome of the education of a student. It's not their parents' background, it's not their income. ”

“ Obviously any change is going to take time. The President has started that process with members of Congress -- my 50 days tend to blur together, I can't remember if it was last week or the week before. But the President remains committed as he did throughout the campaign to ensuring that we have a regulatory framework that meets our 21st century economic system. ”

“ It's who the person is standing up in front of that classroom each and every day instructing our children that improves their test scores, that improves their reading and math and enables them to achieve the educational level that they have to, to compete and be successful in our society. ”

“ He supports the pay for performance, and I think a grand expansion of those ideas across a number of school districts was one of the many things -- including early childhood education, changes in data and innovation -- that I think lay out the strong foundation for an educational reform agenda that the President believes will ultimately lead to increased economic growth. ”

“ Mark Malloch-Brown, the U.K.'s representative for the G20, said -- told reporters that the United States and the British want to make a significant gesture against protectionism at the ministers meeting next week, and may have some kind of aid package or finance package for the poorest of the poor countries that are just being hammered by the fall in imports from the richer countries. ”

“ Robert, there are some reports that House Democrats got a briefing with some economists and a couple of them were predicting now that the stimulus will not save or create 3.5 million jobs, it will be more like 2.5 million jobs. ”

“ And I think that's -- I think the overall speech today lays out a fairly ambitious plan for education reform, and I think the President, through the stimulus plan and the budget, looks to accomplish a lot of that.
[REPORTER] : Robert, thanks. What is the President's view of this resolution on Tibet that's working its way through the House, which accuses China of repression? And does he agree, or what does he think about the Dalai Lama's comments that China has created hell in Tibet? ”