Obama confident after good Dow days

In comments to business leaders that followed
another rally on Wall Street, President Obama voiced confidence Thursday that the economy will
rebound from a recession.

“I am very confident about our long-term prospects,” Obama told members of the Business Roundtable gathered at a hotel blocks from the White House.

{mosads}Obama said he was “highly optimistic” as long as the country takes care of long-term obligations on healthcare and energy that have drawn criticism from business groups, Republicans and some Democrats.

“Things are going to get better,” he said. “It’s going to require some patience.”

Obama finished his comments after a good day for markets. The Dow Jones Industrial jumped 240 points on Thursday, the third day in a row that average has rallied.

Obama said he does not put too much stock in the daily fluctuations of the market, and repeatedly counseled his office to be patient. He suggested people’s short attention spans can lead to market volatility, and said he hopes to put an end to an era of “short-term gratification.”

“I don’t think things are ever as good as we say or ever as bad as we say,” said Obama, who stressed that his focus “has to be on the long term.”

He said his government is working to restore confidence in a “systematic way,” and stressed that most banks will survive the financial crisis even if the economy stays bad for some time.

Obama unveiled a $3.6 trillion budget last week that seeks to set aside funds for reforming healthcare, and to launch a cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions in order to tackle climate change. The budget also included significant tax increases on most businesses and wealthier individuals and families.

On Thursday, however, Obama suggested some flexibility.

He said his healthcare reforms would be implemented over time, and that the same was true for his energy plan, which is centered on a cap-and-trade system for curbing carbon emissions. Under that plan, emission permits would be auctioned off, and companies could later trade those permits.

Companies believe an auction system would be an additional tax on business, and Obama was questioned about the system by an official from Weyerhaeuser.

Obama said the success of a cap-and-trade system would depend on businesses, and suggested a willingness to compromise if a system was so onerous people would not want to take part in it.

At the same time, Obama said the science on global warming is “overwhelming,” and he stressed that not doing anything on climate change would eventually also cost the country money.

Obama also said he was interested in reducing corporate taxes over time.

Obama’s budget did not propose a cut in the corporate rate, though such a reduction was included in tax legislation proposed by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) in the last Congress.