COVERITLIVE.COM

10:07

John Marelius - Good morning. Since last we chatted, Barack Obama made his first visit to California as president. The AIG bonus controversy shows no signs of abating and the Obama administration this morning is asking Congress for more authority to regulate large financial companies. So on to your comments and questions.

10:08

SignOnLiveChatModerator - John, how would you rate Obama's visit. One of your colleagues said he thought the visit went extremely well. What was your take?

10:11

John Marelius - I thought it was successful. His two town hall meetings were more substantive than such things usually are. During the campaign, what he called town hall meetings were usually nothing more than long speeches with time for only a few questions. This time, he took a lot of questions. Of course, there was the minor "special olympics" flub during the Jay Leno show, but when presidents try to mix governing with entertainment, things like that are going to happen from time to time.

10:14

SignOnLiveChatModerator - While in L.A. he appeared on Leno. It was the first time a president has ever appeared on a talk show while in office. What was the strategy behind that visit, and did it hold any risks for Obama?

10:17

John Marelius - It's fairly common for presidents to appear on the Sunday morning interview shows or, as Obama did on Sunday, 60 Minutes. But it was the first time a sitting president had ever appeared on one of the late-night comedy shows. And as the lines continue to blur, I'm sure it won't be the last time. I think the strategy behind it is he is trying out many avenues of communication with the American people beyond the traditional Washington speeches and press conferences. The risk, as I alluded to in the previous answer, is that when politicians try to be comedians they can misfire.

10:20

SignOnLiveChatModerator - The furor over AIG does not seem to be abating. However, companies have given huge bonuses for years without hardly any notice from the public. Do you think this uproar signals a change in how Americans view corporations, executive compensation and bonuses?

10:22

John Marelius - It's not just AIG. It's all of the turmoil in the banking and financial industries that we've been seeing for months. I did a story on public attitudes about these massive bailouts and economic stimulus package and found that there is now huge mistrust of both the government and business. In the past, when trust in government was low, people had confidence in business as an alternative. Now they don't trust anybody.

10:30

SignOnLiveChatModerator - For those who would like to read Marelius' story, visit here: http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/feb/08/1n8support231614-americans-have-doubts-about-plan-/

10:34

[Comment From Jim Sawyer]
How is the Governor's Race in 2010 taking shape?

10:38

John Marelius -

At the moment, Jim, it's a pretty large cast of characters. I'll start with the Republicans. Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, former eBay CEO Meg Whitman and Tom Campbell, a former congressman, state senator and finance director in the Schwarzenegger administration are in. What's unusual is that all three are moderate Republicans from the Silicon Valley. Poizner and Whitman have boatloads of personal money. The only Democrats who have announced their candidacies are Lt. Gov. John Garamendi and San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. Attorney General Jerry Brown is likely to run and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa may as well. Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell has said he wants to run, but doubts he can raise enough money to be competitive. Hovering over the whole thing is U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein who most people feel would blow away the entire Democratic field if she gets in. I doubt if she will, but who knows?

10:38

[Comment From ECMOM]
Comment to the moderator, your question is off the mark, The people are angry because AIG NEEDED money not to go under and yet they still payed out the huge retention bonuses with what the people see as their money. If AIG needed money to stay afloat then we help, but to turn around and pay out HUGE bonuses is apalling. Those taking the bonuses should have seen the writing on the wall and postponed receiving the bonuses until AIG was back on track.

10:43

SignOnLiveChatModerator - To read Marelius' story about gubernatorial hopefuls, go here: http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/feb/15/1n15gov224926-rivals-are-lining-now-run-state-11/

10:44

SignOnLiveChatModerator - Thanks for the comment ECMOM.

11:00

[Comment From BFD]
back to your question about the bonuses, what was with all the outrage by congress? they approved the bonuses... were they asleep at the wheel? covering their rear ends? grandstanding? it was disgusting they way they berated ed liddy, a guy working for a buck a year... sheesh

11:00

John Marelius - Grandstanding and rear-covering isn't exactly unheard of in Congress.

11:01

John Marelius - It looks like we're out of time for this week. We'll be back next Tueday at 10:00. Thanks for chatting.

11:01

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