"A Time for Change: The Obama Agenda"-A Sit Down With Obama Advisor Gov. Deval Patrick
Monday, January 19, 2009DARREN GERSH: We started with Franklin Roosevelt and you might be interested in a comparison with how the stock market did then and how it might do under Obama. But first, some words with Obama adviser and friend, Deval Patrick, governor of Massachusetts. I spoke with Governor Patrick earlier and I asked him about the recovery plan and about Obama's leadership style. We began with Martin Luther King Day and why the new president is honoring it as a national day of service.
GOV. DEVAL PATRICK, (D) MASSACHUSETTS: Well, Darren, first of all, thank you for having me. I think it's enormously important not just to the president but to the country, is that his campaign, his leadership, has been very much about civic engagement, about people who have checked out or who have -- who have never participated to check back in, and see their stake in their own civic and political future. And I think that bringing service is completely -- and a call to service is completely consistent with that. I will also say that Dr. King would have responded, I think, to this gesture, this notion that a community that is strong is one where people see a stake not just in their own dreams and their own struggles but in their neighbors' as well. And at a time like this with the economy so fragile and so many people uncertain or displaced, the notion of looking out for and caring about the havoc that's being wreaked on our neighbors, making that a personal kind of investment I think is enormously important.
GERSH: It's interesting. You talked about the president-elect's leadership style in reaching out to people. He has been very aggressive in using the Internet and using new tools to have a direct conversation with people. I'm wondering, is that an important part of this strategy to get out of this economic crisis we're in?
PATRICK: I think it's a part of his strategy to build a stronger democracy. It's something that was very much a part of my own campaign and the way we govern here in Massachusetts. I think you are seeing examples of that in other parts of the country and of course, Barack Obama took it national in many respects. I think, Darren, you know, one of the big challenges in the transition will be keeping that grassroots network alive and engaged as we govern, not just to campaign but as we govern and as we encourage that sense of service and engagement beyond government itself, but in civic life.
GERSH: Let me ask you about economic life, though. We have a massive recovery plan that's on the way. Be specific. What does that mean for Massachusetts, a state that has a shortfall of over $1 billion and what do you think it will mean to the nation economically?
PATRICK: Well, of course, Darren, we don't know all of the elements of the stimulus package yet. I have been working on trying to make sure that education is properly looked after, so that those of us and I think it's true of many states, that have invested in education reform and improvement over the years aren't having to lose ground during the recession. So, I can't tell you exactly yet what our share will be, but I think that it's important that the package be bold, that it be significant so that it has both a philosophical as well as a -- psychological I guess is what I mean, as well as an economic impact. The notion of investing in programs where the demand goes up because the economy is weak like Medicaid and food stamps and unemployment insurance, investing in education and using this occasion to rebuild our infrastructure, roads, rails, bridges, broadband, the electric grid and so forth, is a job creation initiative and enormously important right now. We're looking forward to partnering not just in the development of the package, but the implementation of it as well.
GERSH: You mentioned psychology. Let me ask you about that briefly. The administration is making a big push to get these bailout funds, the second half of them. Are you hearing from bankers in your state that they want this money, that they're not lending and that they need this money and do they think is will be effective?
PATRICK: Well, I'll tell you, you know, our own state chartered banks here in Massachusetts are very, very strong. The community banks and so forth, which were not involved in some of the riskier investments and schemes and so forth that have so impaired the balance sheets of the big institutions. Some of the big institutions I think are also interested in those funds, but I think that the Federal government is going to have to put more emphasis on actually taking that money and then putting it out into the marketplace in the form of working capital loans and mortgages and so forth because the credit market has seized up. And we need the credit market to be open, to be rational and responsible, but also to have -- to be accessible to people, in order for the economy to start moving again.
GERSH: And finally, Governor Patrick, it's just an amazing day. Here we are, Martin Luther King Day, Barack Obama is about to be sworn in. What do you think about the state of Dr. King's dream? What do you think of this moment we're in?
PATRICK: There's no doubt, Darren, but that we're closer to it. I think that one of the challenges we have always faced in this country, at least in the last 30 or 40 years, is striking the balance between acknowledging the extraordinary progress that we have made in this country since Dr. King made his claim on the American conscience and also at the same time facing up to how much work is left to do. Achievement gaps, violence still in urban communities, a hopelessness in so many quarters that is still a part of the work to do. But there's no doubt in my mind and I think in the minds of most Americans, African-Americans and others, that we are a lot closer to Dr. King's dream today than we have ever been before.
GERSH: A very hopeful day. Thank you very much for your time. My guest tonight, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick.
