    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [February 28, 2008]
    [Pages 297-298]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Briefing on the National Economy
    February 28, 2008

        I want to thank Madam Secretary for
    hosting this meeting with my economic team. We just had a briefing on
    what has become very obvious to the American people: that we're in a
    period of slowness. And it's also a period of uncertainty.
        We're optimistic about the long-term economic future of the country,
    but right now a lot of Americans are facing uncertain times. And we're
    acting on it.
        I want to thank the Members of Congress for quickly passing a
    economic growth package. And that means that there will

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    be $150 billion or more sent out to American consumers and incentives
    inherent in that to--for American businesses to invest.
        Now, the Secretary briefed us--
    Secretary Paulson--that we anticipate that the checks will start being
    sent in the second week of May. And that's going to be very positive
    news for our consumers. And it's a part of our active plan to help deal
    with these uncertain times.
        One way Congress, if they really want to make a substantial
    difference in creating certainty during uncertain times, is to make the
    tax cuts we passed permanent. You see, if you're somebody worried about
    three-dollar gasoline and you think your taxes may be going up in 2
    years, then it--the uncertain price of gasoline creates more uncertainty
    for you as you plan your future. And Congress needs to make these tax
    cuts permanent, and they need to think about the American consumer and
    the American family and the American small-business owner during these
    times of difficulty and make the tax cuts permanent, send a clear signal
    to the American people.
        Secondly, obviously, the housing issue is one that we're deeply
    concerned about. We want people being able to stay in their homes. We
    don't support legislation that will reward lenders--you know, that will
    bail out lenders--and we don't support legislation that will cause
    interest rates to go up, like the legislation in the Senate. What we do
    support is an aggressive plan, led by Secretary Paulson and Secretary Jackson, to help people stay in their homes, to help them refinance
    their mortgages, to help them make the financial adjustments necessary
    to help us through this difficult period of time.
        And so I want to thank you all for your briefing. I appreciate your
    concern about our fellow citizens. We share concerns about it. We want
    them doing well. And we believe that in the long term, we're going to do
    just fine. This is a resilient economy. We've got good, hard-working
    people in America. The entrepreneurial spirit is strong. And we'll make
    it through this period, just like we've made it through other periods of
    uncertainty during my Presidency. And each time, we came out stronger
    and better, and that's what's going to happen this time too.
        Thank you.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:41 a.m. at the Department of Labor.