He’s a member of the President’s economic advisory team (h/t mjm1 in the comments of my earlier post on the subject). According to the Peoria Journal-Star:
Caterpillar Inc. Chairman Jim Owens…on Friday was named to a team of economic advisers who will advise President Barack Obama on ways to boost the economy and help the country out of the recession.
Owens was one of 16 business leaders named to the Economic Recovery Advisory Board, which will be headed by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker. Owens and the others were introduced at a ceremony at the White House on Friday, after which Owens was able to speak with the president for a few minutes. It’s unknown what they spoke about.
Or it was unknown, until President Obama bragged to the AP today that Owens allegedly promised to rehire “some” laid off Caterpillar workers if the “stimulus” bill Obama so desperately wants is passed into law — a claim that made it into every top-of-the-hour news update I heard on the radio all day.
Convenient, isn’t it, that a member of Obama’s own economic board — though the AP is not identifying him as such (surprise!) — is allegedly endorsing his spending plan.
Speaking of that economic board: according to The American Spectator,
The 16-member Economic Recovery Advisory Board, which President Barack Obama announced late last week, was selected almost exclusively by Obama White House advisers, and features only two members that the board’s chairman, former Fed chief Paul Volcker, was allowed to pick.
More troubling: one of Obama’s personal selections has raised a red flag at the Department of Justice. Robert Wolf is chairman and chief executive of UBS Group Americas, an entity that, according to a DOJ source, is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation.
There’s nothing new under the sun, is there?
Steve Maley
Moe Lane
Dan McLaughlin
Neil Stevens
Volcker, yet another fool...
JLenardDetroit (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 5:24PM EST (link)allowing himself (think Gregg, Specter, Snowe, Collins, etc….) to be used in a sham Publicity stunt to front the Socialist agenda
Regards from NoMoTown (the MOTORlessCITY)
“Liberals, looking to do for? America what they’ve done for? Detroit! which is DESTROY IT!”
“I think, therefore I am Conservative”
“Conservative by choice, Republican by necessity”
“You can lead a Liberal to the Truth/Facts, but you cannot make them THINK!”
“Romney [No, not my first choice] does NOT have a MORMON problem. He has a, far too many Americans; these days; are MORONS problem!”
Follow @JLenardDetroit
(RS:Help) (JLD) (Hollyweird) (Brain-deads) (SPIN-cycle) (Obamaocare) (Party of kNOw) (Conservatism) (TEApeats) (respectful) (message) (Warning: Children Will Die!!)
Heil “O” Hell No Obamao is NOT MY PRESIDENT! “No U won’t”
I want “O” to FAIL (here, here, & whole Diary (Ofail) here, is why)
“The first Liberal was Satan” – a Rush caller (other Quotes)
Get ready for 8 years of Obama
NickDeringer (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 5:32PM EST (link)Obama made a slick PR move and Caterpillar and it is paying off. The media is making a huge deal out of the kid from McDonlads landing a new job (only for a day.
And Henrietta Hughes gets a little something from Santa Clause as well.
With apologies to all you PoliSi majors, politics is 95% show biz. Obama knows how to manipulate emotions and work the crowd. He is the master of the grand (but empty) gesture.
NickDeringer
It's not going to help him.
itrytobenice (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 5:51PM EST (link)Empty gestures can get you elected and can generate good press for a while, but sooner or later, the piper must be paid and Obama had better produce.
Proper grammar saves lives.
Let’s eat Grandma.
Let’s eat, Grandma.
Henrietta Hughes
Rapunzel46 Wednesday, February 11th at 10:00PM EST (link)angel was the wife of a Republican congressman who heard the story…. heaven bid Oprah or Barbra Streisand would dig into their pockets to help any of these people by sharing one of their many homes.
Obama = Jim Bakker
izoneguy (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 5:42PM EST (link)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Bakker
The point cannot be made often enough: Modern liberalism, as embodied in the Obama presidency, is the defender of the status quo. And the status quo is a road to economic ruin. Political forces cannot redistribute the wealth that the economic system does not produce.
Good Lord, how many advisors does the Prez need?
Praying (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 6:49PM EST (link)He has his cabinet, his czars, his special economic advisers… Nothing like advertising that you don’t have a clue what you are doing, and need five layers of advisers to instruct you…
No!!!11!1!!1!1! The Bilderbergers are coming
Hmmn, I think Obama missed the boat with his stimulus bill
civil truth (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 6:54PM EST (link)If he had been creative, for the cost of his stimulus bill, he could have hired about 60% of Americans as his advisors. That would have ensured him popular support for his programs and a landslide second term.
Instead, he provoked a polarizing fight.
The greatest evil…is conceived and ordered (moved, seconded, carried, and minuted) in clean, carpeted, warmed, and well-lighted offices, by quiet men with white collars and cut fingernails and smooth-shaven cheeks who do not need to raise their voice. Hence, naturally enough, my symbol for Hell is something like the bureaucracy of a police state or the offices of a thoroughly nasty business concern. -C.S. Lewis
http://www.gmsplace.com/
Umm, Lots?
barry915barry (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 6:57PM EST (link)Or was that a trick question? <>
Oops, it left out my ::snicker:: at the end. nt
barry915barry (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 6:59PM EST (link)Remember BO's "Roots"
centrist46 (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 7:27PM EST (link)And I don’t mean Kenya, Indonesia or Hawaii. I mean good ol Cook County ILLINOIS. Home of the Crook County Daley political machine and the nurturer of BO’s early political ambitions. So why should anyone be surprised when he appoints someone under investigation by the DOJ. If you lay down with the pigs, you are gonna get slopped. And now he is our president, ain’t we lucky?
Michael Schindel
Lobbyist:
jcheney Wednesday, February 11th at 7:58PM EST (link)lobby
Function:
verb
Inflected Form(s):
lob·bied; lob·by·ing
Date:
1837
intransitive verb : to conduct activities aimed at influencing public officials and especially members of a legislative body on legislation transitive verb
1: to promote (as a project) or secure the passage of (as legislation) by influencing public officials
2: to attempt to influence or sway (as a public official) toward a desired action
merriam-webster.com
Wasn't CAT
gardenstateeric (Diary) Wednesday, February 11th at 10:12PM EST (link)a big supporter of the Colombia free trade agreement? Has Obama been persuaded on that one? Anyone? Bueller?
It was a stupid story even before finding out he was a plant
bk (Diary) Thursday, February 12th at 8:33AM EST (link)Let’s see… He can lay off 1,000, get a few million in bailout bonanza bucks, hire 10 people back, and VOILA! he’s met his promise to rehire “some” laid-off workers.
Cat is restructruring. Those jobs won't be coming back to East Peoria.
Brian Hibbert (Diary) Thursday, February 12th at 8:47AM EST (link)It’s likely those jobs will go to a plant in Texas or Tennessee where they don’t have to deal with the UAW.
So they lay off 500 in East Peoria, and rehire them in Texas. I can’t say I blame them.
Also Owens has been a vocal critic of the protectionist clauses in the pork bill. I for one am glad he’s on the team of economic advisors. It helps to get on the inside if you want to influence policy.
Unfortunately, Obama has a pattern of “listening to” and “getting input from” people who disagree with him. Then ignoring them completely and doing what he pleases. That way he can claim to have “taken input from all sides before making a decision”.
It’s a tactic for disarming the opposition and it’s pretty effective.
Candidate for Trustee of Illinois Central College
Socialism doesn’t work. It looks nice on paper, but it’s been tried and it’s failed miserably every time (usually accompanied by widespread death and suffering).
Proud member of the V.R.W.C.
Take back our party!
Check out Unified Patriots