UNTIL JOE BIDEN IS SWORN IN AS
THE 46th PRESIDENT.
SAVANNAH AND HODA?
>> KRISTEN, THANK YOU.
>>> LET’S TURN TO CHUCK TODD.
WE WERE JOKING ABOUT BEING WHITE
HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS WHEN
PRESIDENT OBAMA CAME INTO
OFFICE, BUT I JUST WAS STRUCK BY
THAT, THINKING ABOUT THIS ALMOST
$2 TRILLION STIMULUS PLAN THAT
THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION IS
ALREADY TALKING ABOUT.
WHEN OBAMA CAME INTO OFFICE, IT
WAS $187 BILLION, AND WE THOUGHT
WE’D NEVER SEEN A NUMBER LIKE
THAT.
NOW, MORE THAN TWICE THAT.
HE’S ALSO MADE BIG PROMISES
ABOUT, YOU KNOW, HAVING 100
MILLION FOLKS VACCINATED IN THE
FIRST 100 DAYS.
SO HE HAS CUT OUT THE WORK FOR
HIMSELF, AND HE’S SET A VERY
AMBITIOUS AGENDA.
>> HE DID.
BUT, YOU KNOW, IT’S INTERESTING.
WHEN YOU LOOK BACK ON OUR YEARS
COVERING BARACK OBAMA, I THINK
THE BIGGEST TAKEAWAY IS, GET AS
MUCH AS YOU CAN DONE IN THE
FIRST YEAR.
RIGHT?
THROW AS MUCH AT CONGRESS AS YOU
CAN IN THE FIRST YEAR BECAUSE IT
JUST GETS HARDER, AS SOON AS THE
CALENDAR BECOMES AN EVEN NUMBER,
RIGHT?
YOU GET THE ELECTION YEAR.
THEN IT GETS HARDER IN YEAR
THREE.
IN THAT SENSE, I FEEL LIKE JOE
BIDEN, IN PROPOSING A LOT OF
EARLY LEGISLATION, THAT IS
POTENTIALLY PASSABLE, RIGHT?
LOOK, SOME LEGISLATION IS
DESIGNED TO -- YOU INTRODUCE IN
THE FIRST COUPLE DAYS, YOU’RE
TALKING TO CONSTITUENCY GROUP,
AND YOU KNOW IT IS A LONGER-TERM
GOAL.
MAYBE NOT THE FIRST THING YOU
WORK ON.
THE IMMIGRATION BILL, FOR
EXAMPLE, I THINK IS BOTH
SYMBOLIC HE IS DOING IT ON DAY
ONE, BUT THE FIRST PRIORITY IN
CONGRESS IS TO GET THE COVID
RELIEF BILL, RIGHT?
THAT, I THINK, IS THE, YOU KNOW,
ONE OF THE LESSONS I THINK ALL
OF THESE FORMER OBAMA AIDES,
INCLUDING SOON-TO-BE PRESIDENT
BIDEN TAKE AWAY FROM THE FIRST
YEAR, THEY DIDN’T GO BIG ENOUGH
ON THE ECONOMY.
I THINK IN HINDSIGHT, THERE’S A
LOT OF FOLKS WHO SAY, HEY, THEY
SHOULD -- YOU KNOW, THE $780
BILLION, IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN
OVER $1 TRILLION AT THAT TIME.
SO I DO THINK THERE’S SOME
IMPACT THERE.
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT
HIS PRESIDENCY HAS TO DO, I
THINK, FOR HIM TO HAVE A
SUCCESSFUL PRESIDENCY, IS
FULFILL THAT VACCINATION
PROMISE.
I THINK IF HE HITS THAT GOAL,
SAVANNAH, EVERYTHING ELSE
BECOMES MORE ACHIEVABLE.
>> YEAH.
IF YOU START TALKING ABOUT THAT
NUMBER OF PEOPLE VACCINATED,
THERE’S, OBVIOUSLY, GOING TO BE
THEN AN EFFECT IN TERMS OF THE
ECONOMY AND EVERYTHING ELSE
COMING TOGETHER.
IF YOU’RE ABLE TO DO IT.
THAT’S A BIG IF.
>> ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS --
>> BIGGER THAN WE THOUGHT.
I MEAN, THAT’S SOMETHING THAT, I
THINK, FRANKLY, THE BIDEN TEAM
IS NERVOUS.
THEY’RE STICKING BY THIS GOAL.
I THINK THEY THOUGHT IT WAS
EXTRAORDINARILY ACHIEVABLE A
MONTH AGO.
THE MORE THEY’VE LEARNED ABOUT
THE REALITY OF THE SITUATION
THEY’RE BEING LEFT, THE MORE
NERVOUS THEY ARE ABOUT THIS
GOAL.
>> REAL QUICK, CHUCK, ONE OF THE
FIRST THINGS THAT
PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN SAID HE
WAS GOING TO DO IS ISSUE A BUNCH
OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS, KIND OF
UNDOING SOME OF THE STUFF THAT
THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HAS
DONE.
SO WILL THAT BE HAPPENING, LIKE,
TODAY, WHEN HE GETS INTO OFFICE?
>> SOME HAPPENS TODAY.
IT’LL BE SOME OF THE FIRST
THINGS HE DOES, RESCINDING THE
SO-CALLED MUSLIM BAN.
THAT IS GONE.
GETTING BACK INTO THE PARIS
CLIMATE ACCORD.
SO, AGAIN, SOME SYMBOLIC THINGS
THAT ARE MEANINGFUL.
YOU KNOW, GETTING RID OF THE
TRAVEL BAN, THAT’S IMPACTFUL ON
PEOPLE’S LIVES.
OBVIOUSLY, RIGHT NOW TRAVEL IS
NOT EASY ANYWHERE AROUND THE
WORLD DUE TO THE PANDEMIC.
THOSE ARE SYMBOLIC.
BY THE WAY, YOU BROUGHT UP, I DO
THINK -- I DON’T WANT TO LET
THIS ONE FACT GO AWAY.
THE LAST EXECUTIVE ORDER THAT
PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS SIGNED, AT
LEAST THAT WE KNOW OF, IS ABOUT
AS CYNICAL AS THEY COME.
THEY ISSUED AN EXECUTIVE ORDER
COMING IN SAYING ANYBODY ON THE
WHITE HOUSE WOULD HAVE A BAN ON
BEING ABLE TO LOBBY AFTER THEY
LEFT.
HE RESCINDED THE EXECUTIVE ORDER
TODAY, HIS LAST DAY IN OFFICE.
ANYBODY THAT WORKED FOR HIM NOW
HAS NO SORT OF FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT RESTRICTION ON GOING
TO IMMEDIATELY WORK ON K-STREET
AND LOBBY.
A FACT I THOUGHT PEOPLE SHOULD
HEAR ABOUT.
DRAINING THE SWAMP, HE DIDN’T DO
IT.
HE RESCINDED THE EXECUTIVE ORDER
TODAY.
>> INTERESTING TO SEE IF
INCOMING PRESIDENT BIDEN WILL
PUT IT BACK IN PLACE.