[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 44, Number 8 (Monday, March 3, 2008)]
[Page 298]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
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 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 
$3 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 needs 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.