CNN

FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:

Depending on which member of the Obama administration you ask - the recession may or may not be over.

There were mixed messages coming this weekend from some of the president's top economic aides.

Larry Summers, head of the National Economic Council, said: "Today, everybody agrees that the recession is over, and the question is what the pace of the expansion is going to be."

He pointed out the U.S. was losing 700,000 jobs a month when the president took office - and last month we lost 11,000 jobs. He says there should be job growth by spring.

But wait... When Christina Romer - head of the White House Council of Economic Advisers - was asked if the recession is over, she said: "Of course not. For the people on Main Street and throughout this country, they are still suffering." Romer says she won't say the recession is over until the unemployment rate is back to about five percent. Right now - it's at 10-percent.

The Obama administration is doing a balancing act here. On the one hand - they want to show optimism that the economy is recovering - after all, there is an election in November. But - they also want to appear sensitive to the difficult time that millions of Americans are still going through.

However, saying both these things at the same time is confusing.

Here’s my question to you: In light of mixed messages coming from the Obama administration, do you think the recession is over?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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White House communications director Anita Dunn has called Fox News an arm of the Republican Party.

FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:

The Obama White House may have started another war it can't win.

On yesterday's Sunday talk shows - Senior Adviser David Axelrod said of Fox News, "It's not really news. It's pushing a point of view.” And he asked that other news organizations not treat Fox like it's news.

The president's Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, also said Fox is "not a news organization so much as it has a perspective."

This all started when White House communications director Anita Dunn called Fox an arm of the Republican Party and said the Obama administration would treat the cable news network as they would an "opponent."

Dunn is now in a dust-up with Fox News' Glenn Beck, concerning a speech where she quoted Communist leader Mao Tse Tung. Beck calls that "insanity."

There is also a January video of Ms. Dunn where she talks about how the Obama campaign controlled the news media. She says they went around the "filter" of the news media and spoke directly to the American people. Actually, a lot of the time they did.

Fox News says the White House "continues to declare war" on them instead of focusing on critical issues like jobs, health care and two wars.

And they have a point. It could be said that bickering with Fox News is a waste of valuable time and energy that could be better spent solving the nation's myriad problems.

Here’s my question to you: Is it a good strategy for the White House to go after Fox News?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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From CNN's Jack Cafferty:

Despite all the lofty talk during the election about change, hope and ushering in a new era in Washington... most people don't think it's happened.

A new Gallup poll shows only 21% of Americans think the tone between Democrats and Republicans in our nation’s capital has gotten better.

A new Gallup poll shows only 21% of Americans think the tone and "level of civility" between Democrats and Republicans in our nation's capital has gotten better since President Obama came into office last month. 23% think things have gotten worse. More than half – 51%– say it's stayed the same.

The poll also found that Democrats are more likely to say the tone has improved, not surprising since they have one of their own in the White House, while Republicans are more likely to say it's gotten worse. Independents are about evenly split.

Last week's party-line vote in the House of Representatives on the economic stimulus package was the nation's first look at how Washington might operate during the Obama administration... and the partisanship looked a lot like what we saw under President Bush. This vote came despite the president's efforts at bipartisanship – a including a stop on Capitol Hill to meet with Republican leaders and hosting a bipartisan Super Bowl party at the White House. The New York Times reports that Republicans have been scoring invitations to the White House nearly as often as Democrats have. One Republican Congressman who attended the Super Bowl Party says such a meeting "humanizes and personalizes" your opponent and that it helps people put politics aside.

Here’s my question to you: What is your prescription for ending the bitter partisanship in Washington?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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Questions about tax issues have now clouded three nominations. (PHOTO CREDIT: JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

From CNN's Jack Cafferty:

President Obama says he "screwed up” when it came to the nomination of Tom Daschle as Health and Human Services Secretary. No kidding.

Daschle dropped out after days of questioning about more than $100,000 in unpaid taxes. President Obama says it's important for his administration to send a message that there aren't two sets of rules when it comes to paying taxes - for prominent people and for ordinary folks. That might prompt one to ask, "Then why do you keep nominating people who haven't paid their taxes for high ranking positions in your administration?"

Questions about tax issues have now clouded three nominations. Besides Daschle, another top appointee, Nancy Killefer, pulled her name from consideration as chief White House Performance officer – because of unpaid taxes for a household employee. And then, of course, there was Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. He was eventually confirmed by the Senate – but only after days of scrutiny and numerous public apologies. The man who will now oversee the IRS failed to pay tens of thousands of dollars in taxes himself.

None of this is good news for the Obama administration. It opens up the White House to a lot of criticism from Republicans and on newspaper editorial pages. They say President Obama preaches one thing – ethics, responsibility, etc. – but practices another. It also raises serious questions about the administration's vetting process. Who keeps submitting the names of tax cheats for high-powered jobs in Obama's administration?

Here’s my question to you: How does nominating three people who didn't pay their taxes affect President Obama's credibility?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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From CNN's Jack Cafferty:

It's been one week since Barack Obama became our 44th president, and a busy week it's been–signing executive orders, meeting with his teams of advisers on the economy, national security, Iraq and the Middle East. He's also been meeting with lawmakers from both parties trying to win support for his emergency stimulus package.

How's he doing so far?

In addition to getting his feet wet, the new President is learning some things along the way.

For example, the White House press room is where the press is, and if you don't want the press to ask you questions, don't go there.

If you're going to ban lobbyists from working for you, you have to ban the one that used to lobby for Raytheon from working in your Defense Department as well.

If you're going to close Guantanamo, you have to have a plan for what to do with the inmates there. A couple of them have turned up in recent al Qaeda videos.

You can't overturn President Bush's executive order banning abortion funding for charitable groups overseas without incurring the wrath of right-to-lifers in this country.

And picking a fight with the corpulent Oxycontin aficionado of right wing talk radio, Rush Limbaugh, will mobilize a bunch more on the conservative right and begin to down your approval ratings.

But the new President seems to be weathering the storm quite well. The latest Gallup Poll, taken over the weekend, gives him a 69% job approval rating.

Here’s my question to you: How would you rate President Obama's first week in office?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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From CNN's Jack Cafferty:

President Obama had hoped the political capital he won on the campaign trail would pay off in Washington and allow him to push through his emergency stimulus bill without too much hassle. But after less than a week in office he has run headlong into the partisan battles he promised to eliminate in the Nation's Capital.

Eric Holder is sworn in during his confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill on January 15, 2009. Holder's nomination to be the next Attorney General has been a source of contention between the President and many Republicans.

The new President is facing sharp resistance to his $825-billion stimulus package that the House is expected to consider on Wednesday. Questions about how the money will be spent stand in the way. Not that surprising when you consider the mystery of the $750-billion Wall Street bailout President Bush signed off on last year. We still don't know where a lot of that money went.

President Obama is pulling out all the stops to get everyone on the same page. He's meeting with his economic advisers, talking with lawmakers on Capitol Hill, and continues to tell the American people how bad things are and warn them to brace for things to get worse.

And it's not just the stimulus package the President is having problems with. Republicans are holding up the confirmation of his Attorney General, Eric Holder.

And they can't be thrilled that the new President is signing one executive order after another to undo the policies of his Republican predecessor.

These are all indications that this isn't going to be the smooth sailing President Obama had in mind.

Here’s my question to you: Is the spirit of bipartisanship already dead in Washington?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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From CNN's Jack Cafferty:

Senator Hillary Clinton intervened 6 times in government issues that directly affected companies or individuals who became donors to her husband's foundation, according to the Associated Press.

Should the Clinton Foundation's ties to foreigners affect Hillary Clinton's nomination?

This raises obvious questions about the potential for ethical conflicts that could arise in her official business as Secretary of State. Christopher Hitchens at Slate.com calls into question whether Hillary Clinton should have been nominated for the post at all.

The article points out that everyone around the world knows that you can get the former president's attention through his foundation. Not a problem in itself but when you factor in that he's the confidant to the would-be Secretary of State, someone she's sure to rely on since she has no foreign affairs track record of her own, it can become one.

The foundation has agreed to disclose its list of confidential clients and every year new donors from foreign states could be subject to the scrutiny of Obama administration lawyers.

Here’s my question to you: Should the foreign financial affairs of Bill Clinton's foundation be enough to prevent Sen. Hillary Clinton's confirmation as Secretary of State?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:

Timothy Geithner, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Obama's pick for Secretary of Treasury, hit a road block yesterday on his path to Washington to lead the nation through the current economic crisis.

Geithner's confirmation hearing is now rescheduled for after the inauguration.

His confirmation hearing turned into a closed door meeting between members of the Senate Finance Committee and the would-be Secretary. At issue, were Geithner's failure to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes while he worked at the International Monetary Fund and employing an immigrant housekeeper who had expired work papers for three months.

The President-elect and his aides chalked these problems up as honest mistakes. They were quick to point out that all back taxes, interest and penalties have been paid and filings were amended.

As Treasury Secretary, Geithner will ultimately oversee the IRS, so his tax mistakes conceivably could be an issue.

Some members of the committee said they still support Geithner, who's been widely praised for his experience. Others aren't willing to give him a pass just yet.

As for the housekeeper, she's married to an American and has her green card now.

Geithner's confirmation hearing is now rescheduled for next week, after the inauguration.

Here’s my question to you: Should Timothy Geithner's tax and housekeeper problems cost him the post of Secretary of Treasury?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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(PHOTO CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES)

FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:

President-elect Barack Obama met with Senator Hillary Clinton last week, and since then, a lot has been made about the possibility of Obama's former rival becoming his secretary of state.

The big question this week is what sort of problems Bill Clinton could cause in the vetting process of his wife. Since he left office, President Clinton has started a new career which involves some "complicated international business dealings." He also has a global foundation with a long list of donors who may not all agree with incoming President Obama's policies.

But the Clintons have been here before. If Hillary gets the "all clear" and is offered the job, the next question is: Should she take it?

After losing the democratic presidential nomination to Barack Obama, Clinton returned to her old job as the junior senator from New York. She's very popular with her constituents and could likely remain in the senate as long as she wants to, perhaps even becoming a senate leader. But if she takes the Secretary of State job, she will tie her career to the successes and failures of the Obama administration. If Obama stumbles, she likely would have an easier time making another run for the White House from the Senate.

Here’s my question to you: What is the proper role for Hillary Clinton in President Obama's administration?

Interested to know which ones made it on air?

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