White House walks back threat of double-dip recession

[Enrique]

do they write scripts for these good cop bad cop routines? Do they rehearse?

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/12/giving-on-taxes-in-10-white-house-promises-fight-in-12/67880/

(...)

Goolsbee walked back comment by Larry Summers, an outgoing White House economic adviser, that failure by Congress to okay the tax deal could cause a "double-dip" recession.

Goolsbee said only that passing the bill would help the economy.

"I don't think we should get into the semantics how much it raises the probability of double-dip," he said.

(...)

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. Keep the pressure

[DJ13]

2. The threatening tone revealed their inner Cheney

Came across as a little too conservative, especially when there are a few pundits on the left already calling Obama Bush III for his way of always ending up on the conservative side of issues.

[ProSense]

3. Here is what Goolsbee said

Transcript

<...>

MR. GOOLSBEE: Well, look. I, I think that takes Larry's comment a little out of context. I think all private forecasters agree that--when they saw this package announced, you saw them step forward and say that it would significantly raise the growth rate of the United States in the coming year if we were to pass it and get the unemployment rate down and jobs created more than they thought before that. And if you let these tax cuts expire, which they will in 20 days if we do nothing, I think that would be a serious blow to the economy. Everybody agrees on that. So I, I don't think we should get into the semantics of whether it's what--how much it raises the probability of double dip. I think we should just recognize not acting is very bad for the economy, and acting would be good for the economy. That's why we should do it.

<...>

[Enrique]

5. and here's what Summers said

"give us our tax cuts or you'll be sorry!"

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/12/larry-summers-says-tax-cut-dea.html

"If they do not pass this in the next couple of weeks, it will materially increase the risk of the economy stalling out and that we would have a double-dip," Summers told reporters at a briefing at the White House on Wednesday afternoon.

[ProSense]

6. That's not

what he said:

"If they do not pass this in the next couple of weeks, it will materially increase the risk of the economy stalling out and that we would have a double-dip," Summers told reporters at a briefing at the White House on Wednesday afternoon.

[WiffenPoof]

4. I Had Actually Heard...

...that indicators are looking better.

-PLA

[ladjf]

7. The WH doesn't even have the courage to back their own strategy

mt