Yesterday on Meet the Press President-elect Barack Obama promised to make the White House a symbol of everyday Americans during his presidency. He explained: "Part of what we want to do is to open up the White House and remind people this is the people's house." Obama plans to invite artists and scientists on a regular basis, in an attempt to inspire national character.

Some other highlights from Obama's interview include:

  • On culture: [I'm] "thinking about the diversity of our culture and inviting jazz musicians and classical musicians and poetry readings in the White House so that once again we appreciate this incredible tapestry that's America."
  • On the economy: The recession “is a big problem, and it’s going to get worse. . . The key for us is making sure that we jump-start that economy in a way that doesn't just deal with the short term, doesn't just create jobs immediately, but also puts us on a glide path for long-term sustainable economic growth, and that's why I spoke in my radio address on Saturday about the importance of investing in the largest infrastructure program, in roads and bridges and other traditional infrastructure since the building of the Federal Highway System in the 1950s."

To find out what Obama had to say about education and Iran, read more.

  • On education: "Yes, we're going to have an education policy; yes, we're going to be putting more money into school construction. But ultimately we want to talk about parents reading to their kids. We want to invite kids from local schools into the White House."
  • On Iran: "We need to ratchet up tough but direct diplomacy with Iran, making very clear to them that their development of nuclear weapons would be unacceptable . . . and present a set of carrots and sticks in changing their calculus about how they want to operate. In terms of carrots, I think that we can provide economic incentives that would be helpful to a country that, despite being a net oil producer, is under enormous strain, huge inflation, a lot of unemployment problems there."

Does anything from President-elect Obama's latest interview surprise you?
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