Subject: Re: draft briefing memo for your review
From: "Chris Lu" <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Sat, 4 Oct 2008 14:02:18 -0500

703-309-4720

----- Original Message -----
From: John Podesta <[email-masked]>
To: Chris Lu
Sent: Sat Oct 04 13:50:07 2008
Subject: Re: draft briefing memo for your review

what # are you at?

On Sat, Oct 4, 2008 at 2:07 PM, Chris Lu <[email-masked]> wrote:
> Weekly Transition Memo for Senators Obama and Biden
>
>
>
> From:    Transition Advisory Board and Staff
>
> Date:     October 3, 2008
>
>
>
> This week, the transition board, staff, and working group chairs met for six
> hours in D.C.  We will meet again next Friday.
>
>
>
> I.             Policy Groups
>
>
>
> At the meeting, each of the policy working groups presented drafts of their
> strategic option papers.  Here is a brief summary of how the groups are
> approaching their work:
>
>
>
> Economy – The group is focusing its work on several key areas:  1) the
> structure of another stimulus package; 2) the growing budget deficit and
> national debt; 3) additional actions that need to be taken regarding the
> capital markets; 4) international economic issues, such as trade and Chinese
> currency manipulation; and 5) consumer finance.  The work of this group will
> help inform the difficult decisions that will need to be made regarding the
> spending and tax proposals made during the campaign.
>
>
>
> National security – The group is writing five-page policy papers on a number
> of different subjects, such as Iraq, Iran, proliferation, North Korea,
> Darfur, and legal issues, such as the closing of Guantanamo.  The group is
> also looking at previous transitions to put together a timeline of events
> that will confront the President-Elect during the 77-day transition period.
>
>
>
> Energy – The group has laid out a series of key objectives for the
> transition and the first 100 days of the new administration:  1) developing
> a communications strategy to educate/mobilize the public about the
> potentially catastrophic nature of our energy problems; 2) determining the
> proper way for the federal government to manage the energy/climate issue; 3)
> pursuing energy policy through legislative actions (e.g., cap and trade
> bill) and executive authority (e.g., EPA's power to regulate CO2 from
> vehicles and power plants); and 4) returning the U.S. to international
> climate negotiations and engaging countries like China in cutting their
> emissions.
>
>
>
> Health – The group is looking at decisions facing the new administration:
> 1) should Congress be asked to hold off on introducing health reform
> legislation; 2) should executive actions bypass or precipitate legislation;
> and 3) should engaging the public on health care reform be a top priority
> before the inauguration.  The group is also examining how the
> President-Elect should reach out to key policy makers, private sector
> leaders, and advocates, and what key health issues need to be further
> explored by the incoming policy team.
>
>
>
> Education – The group is focusing on three areas:  1) expanding access to
> high-quality, early childhood education programs; 2) promoting top-quality
> teachers in all schools; and 3) strengthening the pipeline to and through
> college.  The group is also examining the reauthorization of NCLB and the
> high costs of the campaign's education proposals (in particular, the $4,000
> education tax credit).
>
>
>
> Immigration – The group is examining how to put together a strategy for
> passing comprehensive legislation in the first 18 months.  Some of the key
> decisions being examined are:  1) should the total number of
> labor/employment visas be increased; 2) by how much should overall
> immigration be increased; 3) what should be the eligibility criteria for
> legalization; and 4) should we allow short-term legislative changes (e.g.,
> expansion of H1B program and employer verification) or insist that reform be
> done in a comprehensive manner.
>
>
>
> Technology, Innovation, and Government Reform – The group has develop a
> series of initiatives for the first 100 days to:  1) improve transparency by
> opening government operations to the public through the Internet; 2) make
> government more responsive by creating opportunities for active citizen
> participation to inform decision making; 3) improve the effectiveness and
> efficiency of government by drawing on private sector innovations to realize
> cost-savings and enhance government opportunities; 4) renew the nation's
> commitment to science, technology, and innovation; and 5) encourage civic
> participation and engage the public in the idea of "shared governance."  The
> group has also laid out a proposal for how to organize the government to
> manage this innovation agenda.
>
>
>
> II.           Personnel
>
>
>
> The personnel working group continues to gather additional names for
> cabinet, subcabinet, and senior White House positions.  Currently, there are
> 800 names in the system.  "Public vetting" – searches through public records
> – is being done on 140 people by a team of 60 outside lawyers.  A process is
> being designed to conduct more detailed "private vetting" of potential
> nominees.  The goal is to have the top 100 positions names by the
> Inauguration Day.
>
>
>
> A related project under way is cataloguing all of the promises that have
> been made during the campaign regarding the creation of new executive
> offices or positions.
>
>
>
> III.       Vice Presidential Transition
>
>
>
> The VP working group has reached out to the Mondale and Gore staffs to
> better understand the functioning of their offices.  The VP team is working
> to create a paper flow process in the White House to ensure that the Vice
> President and his staff are properly informed about and consulted on major
> decisions.  Also, Biden representatives have been added to the other
> transition working groups.
>
>
>
> IV.       Miscellaneous
>
>
>
> We have hired a full-time security officer who has submitted 35 names for
> interim security clearances.  Before Election Day, we expect to submit up to
> 100 names of people who will require classified briefings or need to review
> classified documents.
>
>
>
> We have signed a contract to develop a transition website with Blue State
> Digital, which is the vendor that manages the campaign website.  The website
> will be up and running on the morning of November 5 and will allow the
> public to submit their resumes.
>
>
>
>
>
> -----------------------------------------------------------
>
> Chris Lu
>
> [email-masked]
>
> (312) 505-4864 (cell)
>
>
>
>