Bush, Obama Camps at Odds on Rescue Plans

Growing tension between the Bush administration and its replacement is making the waters of the economic turmoil more uncertain, the Wall Street Journal reports. With the first half of the  $700 billion bailout fund nearly gone, the White House wants more input for Barack Obama on securing the next $350 billion; the Democrat is more focused on his own stimulus plan.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson wants Obama to back his plan for tapping the remaining bailout funds, since that will occur mainly under the next administration, but Obama’s camp is wary of appearing to rescue President Bush from his own mistakes. One sure thing is that such uncertainty adds to stock-market woes—a factor both sides say they’re mindful of.
(More Bush administration stories.)