President-elect Obama sounds like Candidate Obama.......and that's good!

Throughout time, voters have voted for candidates on the promises. Unfortunately, right after they are successful, candidates either forget or decide not to bother with the promises made. Those who voted for them become disillusioned, disappointed and lose even more faith in governance and government. National development becomes even more difficult because people just become detached.

Not so today.

President-elect Obama had his first press conference today. Yes, short but sweet. Yes, thoughtful answers to questions. But most importantly, he has remained on message. President-elect Obama sounds just like Candidate Obama and that's good!

In summary, he reiterated 5 priorities:

• getting a fiscal stimulus package in place - as previously mentioned and still urgently needed
  

• containment of the financial sector crisis to minimize the spread to other industries and globally

• special initiatives for long-term competitiveness of the auto industry
  

• an assessment of the bailout plan initiatives, and whether or not they are true to agreed bipartisan objectives

• getting started on the long term key priorities identified in the campaign

Importantly, he stressed what I will call "realism" and "practicality"

• Practical solutions are needed for meeting the challenges which are difficult.
  

• Recovery will take time but the American people are resilient and more than capable

• The election cycle was long and its time to put that behind us and focus even more on the needs of the people. It must be remembered that the American people need help.

• It's time to put aside partisanship and politics

The President-elect mentioned that a President can do much to restore confidence - a critical function in an era where crisis of confidence, perhaps more than anything else, nearly brought the economy to a grinding halt and will dictate to a large extent the speed of the recovery. When the President-elect has chosen in his first press conference to stay completely on message - to say all the things he no longer must say to appeal to voters but he does say because he means what he had been saying all along, this is perhaps the most tangible way to be credible, and to lead that restoration of confidence.

Well done, Mr. President-elect.