Transcript of Obama, Pelosi Meeting

Print Pool Report #3
Verbatim transcript of Obama and Pelosi comments at the top of their meeting, courtesy of TV pooler Jamie Farnsworth:

PE Obama: The reason we are here today is because the people can't wait. We have an extraordinary economic challenge ahead of us. We are expecting a sobering job report at the end of the week. The speaker and her staff have been extraordinarily helpful in working with our team so we can shape an economic investment and recovery plan that will start to put people back to work. And I can't think of a better partner in building what is necessary to get this economy back on track than Speaker Nancy Pelosi who has just been an extraordinary advocate for working people all her life.

Pelosi: Thank you very much Mr. President Elect. It is a great honor and personal privilege to welcome you to the Speaker's office. Tomorrow we will start a new congress. We will hit the ground running on initiatives, some of which you have described and address some of the pain being felt by the American people. And then 2 weeks from tomorrow we will inaugurate a new President of the United States. As the PE indicated the construction is underway right now. At that time we hope to have signed into law legislation that will improve the lives of the American people. It's a very very exciting time. We pledge to work together in a bipartisan way. Great civility, great fiscal discipline. I know that if they (inaudible on my audio recorder...check tape) I congratulate the President Elect on his sense on the appointment to his cabinet the transition and for this inauguration.

*