Obama to Sign Stimulus Bill On 'Day One'

While Barack Obama has often declared that "American has one president at a time," it has also become clear that our current president seems to simply be running out the clock when it comes to further economic tinkering. Perhaps in an effort to bridge the gap between the future and the here and now, Obama will hold a press conference today at noon (Liza will be live-blogging it) and he'll publicly finalize his incoming financial team. Of course, this new crew will be hard at work over the next few weeks, helping to hammer out a new (and improved?) stimulus package that will hit the newly-minted president's desk on, to use Hillary Clinton's term, day one. Via ABC:

Democratic sources tell ABC News that President-elect Obamas transition team is working with lawmakers on Caitol Hill so that on Obama's first day in office, Jan. 20, 2009, an economic stumulus package has passed both houses of Congress and is awaiting his signature.

It's a bold move, meant to show the country that Obama isn't "dithering" when it comes to trying to fix the economy. Of course, there are political risks:

Some Democratic officials cautioned that having such a pricey bill on President Obama's desk by Jan. 20 might be too ambitious a goal, especially in the Senate where Democrats do not have enough seats to prevent a Republican filibuster.

So, you see, while we may only have one president (and Treasury Secretary, etc., etc.) at a time, we do already have the first battle brewing between the GOP and future president. It could prove a perilous fight, however, for both sides. While Republicans may eagerly try to thwart a new large stimulus package in an attempt to reclaim their fiscally-conservative bona-fides, killing the first Obama-crafted legislation, especially a bill that targets the middle class, may not be the best foot forward. Likewise, should Obama fail to convince Congress to have a bill awaiting his John Handcock, he could begin his time in office with an embarrassing defeat. The question remains, who'll yield the right of way? I'll venture that Obama will have a bill waiting for him, though maybe not as expansive as he'd like. Your guesses?

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