Pasadena Chamber of Commerce

I was part of a delegation of Los Angeles area business and political leaders who traveled to D.C. last week to meet with congressional and administration aides and their bosses.

It was a fascinating trip, and a sobering one, too.

Fascinating:

Hearing Barbara Boxer tell two hundred people that, if the stimulus doesn’t work, the federal government will try something else until they hit on what does work. Hearing Dianne Feinstein talking over breakfast about the culture of combativeness that seems the norm in Washington. Then hearing her discuss incentivizing a green economy to the benefit of California; ensuring that stimulus funds help small business locally; and how Congress wants to help working people keep their homes and jobs.

Sobering: Hearing Lawrence (he prefers Larry) Summers, the head of President Obama’s National Economic Council, tells us the recession is grim, very grim, and that stimulus efforts will work, but not immediately. Summers is very smart, focused on the problem but clearly not sure what will actually work. Restoring confidence is key, in his mind. He is optimistic that consumer spending rose, even if only by modest amounts, in January and February.

Having breakfast with a Commerce Department staffer from Detroit who relayed story after story of how dismal the economy, job prospects, consumer confidence and general outlook are in his hometown.  It is not good anywhere, but we are relatively well off in Pasadena, if you use Detroit as a measurement standard.

Being invited by Congressman Adam Schiff to sit in on a Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing with testimony by Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Mary Schapiro who talked about changes she’s instituting to ensure honesty and openness on Wall Street and how, over the past several years, the agency failed to protect the consumer by favoring Wall Street gamers.

Heartening: Congressman Schiff taking me aside to ask what is happening in Pasadena. He wanted to know if what he’s being told by the administration and those testifying before Congress is accurate. When I told him business people are scared and that commercial loans are difficult to find, let alone attain, he was very concerned and said that is not what banking executives have said at hearings on Capitol Hill. I do appreciate that our local Congressman wants to know what is happening back home.

Disappointing: No Obama sightings, but the weather was comfortable and Washington D.C. is a fascinating city (at least for a couple of days).

Even more disappointing: Parochialism is more pronounced across state lines than across party lines.

More details when I have had time to absorb everything I heard and have more time to post.

Paul