As companies start to recover from the economic recession, President Obama promised to make government an ally. "We can, and we must, work together," he told the US Chamber of Commerce. "Whatever differences we may have, I know that all of us share a deep, abiding belief in this country, a belief in our people, a belief in the principles that have made America's economy the envy of the world." He then continued on to promise that his administration will "help lay the foundation for you to grow and innovate" while also pledging to devote new investment in infrastructure and education and a focus on removing "barriers that make it harder for you to compete - from the tax code to the regulatory system" (Dennis).
In an attempt to reconcile the differences between his administration and the US Chamber of Commerce, Obama walked the block to the Chamber headquarters. Once there, he joked "I'm in the interest of being more neighborly. Maybe we would have gotten off on a better foot if I had brought over a fruitcake when I first moved in. But I'm going to make up for it." The two groups got off on a bad start after the Chamber spent tens of millions of dollars fighting Obama's health-care bills, opposing key elements of the financial regulation law and helping to deliver the House majority to the Republicans last fall. In turn, Obama accused the group of using foreign money to fund ads attacking the Democrats, an allegation that they have said is a "threat to our democracy" (Dennis). He then presented a speech aimed at demonstrating that Obama is not anti-business, where he expressed his plan to create jobs by encouraging firms to use their cash on hand to "get in the game." He promised to make sales calls for American products and cut burdensome regulations. While setting a conciliatory tone before he sends the budget to the House next week, Obama urged companies to recognize their responsibilities to workers and consumers (Sweet).
