Paulson focuses on tax relief in address
Before reacting to this morning's rate cut, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson addressed President Bush's stimulus plan for the U.S. economy. Dan Grech reports Paulson's main concern is the Democratic Congress.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson addresses members of U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Jan 22, 2008. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
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Scott Jagow: Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had to react to the Fed's decision live on television this morning. He was giving a speech in Washington about the president's plans for stimulating the economy when he was told about the rate cut.
Henry Paulson: Let me say to you I think it's very constructive, and what I think it shows to this country and the rest of the world is that our central bank is nimble and is able to move quickly to respond to market conditions.
Now for more on what Paulson had to say about the stimulus plan, here's Marketplace's Dan Grech.
Dan Grech: Paulson gave his speech at 8 a.m., before U.S. stock markets opened. He didn't directly address widespread fears that U.S. markets will follow big drops in Asia and Europe. He did open with a perhaps veiled reference to the rough days ahead:
Paulson: It's good to be here for an early start to what will be a busy and I hope a productive week.
Paulson focused his comments on the temporary, broad-based tax relief in President Bush's proposed stimulus package.
Paulson: We know from experience that both immediate tax relief and incentives for businesses to invest are effective in creating growth and jobs in the short term.
He said the main stumbling block will be the Democratically controlled Congress.
Paulson: I look forward to engaging intensely with the Congress to get money into our economy quickly.
Stock markets around the world are down on doubts that President Bush's plan will do enough to revive the U.S. economy.
I'm Dan Grech for Marketplace.
