Obama tells governors he seeks partnership

When President-elect Barack Obama strode into Congress Hall yesterday beneath a bust of Benjamin Franklin, 48 governors rose and applauded - underscoring the unusual degree to which Obama has assumed the trappings of national leadership amid the economic crisis.

Speaking at the start of the kind of session usually convened by sitting presidents, Obama told the governors he wanted them to help "draft and shape" a multibillion-dollar stimulus plan that also would aid states struggling with deficits as demands rise on social safety-net programs.

"We are not going to be hampered by ideology in trying to get this country back on track," Obama said. "We want to figure out what works." He pledged a true partnership with states, saying he would not allow his administration to "get infected with Washington-itis."

Obama, joined by Vice President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr., has said he hopes Congress will have economic-recovery legislation ready for him to sign soon after he takes office Jan. 20. Aides say the cost could reach $700 billion over two years, on top of a similar amount already committed to prop up financial institutions.

As part of the package, governors have asked for more federal help paying for health care for the poor and disabled, extending unemployment insurance, and expanding access to food stamps, along with up to $136 billion worth of infrastructure projects such as road and bridge repairs to create jobs.

The governors were seated at semicircular rows of desks on a raised platform in Congress Hall, arranged according to the date their states entered the union.

From 1790 to 1800, the hall at Chestnut and Sixth Streets on Independence Mall served as the U.S. Capitol, with the Senate meeting upstairs and the House in the larger downstairs chamber where yesterday's conference took place.

"I've got to shake everybody's hand, so please be patient," Obama announced as he entered the room, drawing laughter. He proceeded to do so.

Obama and Biden left after the nearly two-hour meeting, which several governors described as productive.

Gov. Rendell, host of the gathering as chairman of the National Governors Association, said Obama was supportive of the governors' requests but did not make any hard commitments. Participants discussed general principles rather than specific dollar amounts during the meeting, he said.

"We're very confident we're going to get help - what the amount is, what final shape it's going to take, I don't think anybody knows," Rendell said.

Gov. Corzine said he envisioned a package that could top $700 billion over two years, including a "not unreasonable" infrastructure component of as much as $400 billion.

"There are a number of us that believe whatever 'large' is, make it larger," Corzine said.

Not all the governors were on board with huge amounts of new spending. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the former Republican vice presidential candidate, cautioned against piling up a larger federal deficit.

"If much of the economic problem that we are facing today is too much debt, then incurring more debt will not necessarily solve all these problems," Palin said. "That's just a very fundamental, basic principle that has got to be recognized and adhered to in terms of finding solutions."

Palin, who praised Obama for taking a bipartisan approach, said the government should cut business taxes to help companies prosper and hire more workers.

Another Republican governor, Mark Sanford of South Carolina, said, "We've been told over a number of months that this stimulus or that stimulus will turn the economy around, and they haven't worked."

Corzine said that with businesses and consumers cutting back on spending, government must step in to stimulate the nation's economy. He noted Obama's observations that Japan "leaked" money into its economy during the recession of the 1990s and was slow to recover, while Sweden's "quick and heavy" infusion of cash led to a rapid turnaround.

"Not doing something bold and forceful now could lead to a very long and drawn-out recession," said Corzine, a former Goldman Sachs chief executive officer and the NGA's economic development chair.

North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley, a Democrat, said Obama recognized the danger of deficits but also states' dire needs.

"Essentially, he feels like this: Yeah, we spent too much over the past eight years, we have too much debt, but it is going to take some more expenditures over the next year or two in order to make sure that we take care of our citizens and we keep up with our infrastructure needs," Easley said.

NGA officials said they had no record of a president-elect having met with the nation's governors before, and most incoming presidents maintain a lower profile than Obama has. He has weighed in several times on economic issues, with the stock market staging a rally after back-to-back economic news conferences last week.

The meeting drew 48 of the 59 invited governors and governors-elect, including those from U.S. territories. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, was among those present, along with rising GOP stars such as Govs. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota.

Several governors praised Obama for being willing to listen to them at the meeting. Easley said the president-elect frequently used the word

partner

. Schwarzenegger said Obama's "intellectual curiosity" was evident.

"He was interested . . . to see how the federal government and the states can learn together and also to learn from the states," Schwarzenegger said, "because the states are the laboratories for the federal government."

President-elect

Barack Obama plans to name New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson today as his choice for commerce secretary, adding another former presidential campaign rival to his cabinet, Democratic officials said.

Obama has moved

quickly to fill out his cabinet; he has named more than half of it in the month since his election.

Richardson will join

Obama at a news conference in Chicago today, the Democratic officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the announcement has not been made.

Richardson, 61,

is one

of the nation's most prominent Hispanic politicians. He served under President Bill Clinton as energy secretary and U.N. ambassador.

- Associated Press