Calling the economic team

Obama set to meet with key advisers amid bleak reports

Secret Service agents flanked President-elect Barack Obama as he arrived for meetings in Chicago. At the White House, President Bush, with wife Laura, thanked his staff after urging swift and smooth dealings with Obama's aides. (Charles Dharapak/Associated Press)

WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama, signaling that the ailing economy will top his agenda, will convene an influential council of economic advisers today - his first public appearance since his historic election as the nation's first African-American commander in chief.

Focusing on the issue most important to voters, Obama will hold his first press conference as the incoming 44th president after meeting in Chicago with a roster of economic heavyweights, including billionaire investor Warren Buffett, former Harvard University president and treasury secretary Lawrence Summers, former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, government leaders, and corporate CEOs.

The meeting will come amid what is expected to be more grim reports from the Department of Labor today that employers cut hundreds of thousands more jobs last month, another skid in the stock market, and a report out yesterday that consumer spending fell 3.1 percent in the third quarter, its first decline in 17 years.

The transfer of power to Obama accelerated yesterday when he received his first classified daily briefing from top intelligence officials, named Rahm Emanuel, a tough Illinois congressman and close confidant, as his chief of staff, and arranged to meet with President Bush at the White House.

Addressing his Cabinet and staff on the South Lawn of the White House yesterday morning, Bush urged them to bring Obama's transition team up to speed as quickly and as professionally as possible, part of what he called an "unprecedented effort" to make sure the executive branch "is prepared to execute its responsibilities at all times."

Bush, who became teary when thanking his staff, said it's imperative that the transition of power to Obama is as smooth as possible because national security is at stake and the new administration will need to make critical decisions quickly. "I look forward to discussing those issues with the president-elect early next week," he added.

On Monday, President Bush will personally brief Obama on issues including the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and the Wall Street rescue package, while Michelle Obama and Laura Bush tour the White House and discuss the duties of the first lady.

Once Obama takes office in January, Emanuel, a former high-level White House staffer under President Clinton, will be the liaison between the White House and Congress as well as Obama's principal gatekeeper and staff disciplinarian. Emanuel has a reputation as a disciplined partisan fighter widely regarded as the architect behind the Democrats reclaiming the majority in the US House in the 2006 elections.

"I announce this appointment first because the chief of staff is central to the ability of a president and administration to accomplish an agenda," Obama, who is not expected to name any Cabinet members this week, said in a statement. "And no one I know is better at getting things done than Rahm Emanuel."

The choice of Emanuel drew strong reaction on Capitol Hill. "He is the perfect choice. He knows the Hill, he knows substance, he knows politics, and most importantly, he can get the job done," said Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat.

But House GOP leader John Boehner of Ohio called Emanuel "an ironic choice for a president-elect who has promised to change Washington, make politics more civil, and govern from the center."

Alan Rubin, a former senior member of Clinton's staff, said Republicans shouldn't worry that Emanuel will run roughshod over them because Democrats almost certainly won't have enough votes in the Senate to keep GOP lawmakers from using procedural tactics to stall legislation - and Emanuel might have enough problems managing his own party's expectations.

"He'll be as fair to the Republicans as to the Democrats because he knows he'll need them to get legislation passed," Rubin said.

Emanuel, himself, reached across the aisle in his statement accepting the job. "I want to say a special word about my Republican colleagues, who serve with dignity, decency, and a deep sense of patriotism," he said. "We often disagree, but I respect their motives. Now is a time for unity."

Rubin said Obama's actions so far have clearly indicated that economy is the top priority when he takes office. Even the appointment of Emanuel - who worked as an investment banker before returning to politics - could influence Obama's economic policy.

The president-elect's meeting and remarks on the economy today are "going to be critical," said Rubin, who also served in the Pentagon under former Defense Secretary William Perry. "In the last two days, the stock market has lost almost 1,000 points. What we're focused on is how will our new administration fix this. If this weren't his first priority, it would be a major problem."

While worried about the economy, which could determine how and when he deals with his domestic priorities, Obama also is looking to what he calls a "new dawn of American leadership" abroad.

He asked to receive national intelligence briefings this spring, earlier than is customary for presidential candidates and before he officially became the Democratic nominee, according to intelligence officials.

By June, he began receiving regular briefings from CIA officials, a courtesy that was also extended to his Republican rival, John McCain, according to a spokesman for the Director of National Intelligence.

State Department officials say Obama's aides have already reached out to them informally to learn about key issues, such as Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The transition "really is different this time," said one State Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak about the issue. "It really is starting earlier. It feels like we are talking about really looking at the issues, turning them on their ear and trying to figure out what to do about them."

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has assigned 24 staff members and 5,300 square feet of office space to help with the transition.

State Department staffers have also produced five briefing books for Obama's foreign policy team with background information and candid assessments of upcoming global challenges.

Obama called Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert yesterday, according to a statement from the Israeli press office. The two men discussed the long-standing friendship between the US and Israel and the need to advance the Middle East peace process.

Obama's office said he also returned congratulatory calls to thank the leaders of Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and the United Kingdom.