The President began a very busy public day by receiving his daily briefings at 9:00 AM He then left for the Department of Transportation,. There the President announced the release of the first of the money of the stimulas package for transportation projects. The President made it clear the challenges that the economy faces when he state "I want to begin with some plain talk: The economy's performance in the last quarter of 2008 was the worst in over 25 years. And, frankly, the first quarter of this year holds out little promise for better returns".
Complete Speech

The President then met with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. After the meeting before a public lunch the President and the Prime Minister took questions from the press. The President responded to one question by making it clear that the special relationship that has existed between the United States and Great Britain will remain undiminished. He also responded to a question that related to an article in the morning NYT Obama Offered Deal to Russia in Secret Letter the article stated that Obama offered a quid pro- the Russians helping to stop the Iranians from obtaining WMD in return the United States would cancel its plans to deploy anti-missile missiles in Eastern Europe. President Obama confirmed the essence of the story while putting a slightly different spin on it. Full Text After meeting with the press the President and the Prime Minister had a working lunch in the Old Family Dining Room.

The President continued his very busy public day with a visit the Department of Interior to commemorate the 160th anniversary of the Department. In his speech he announced that he was recending the Bush era regulation that waived the scientific review process that had been required to remove a species from the Endangered Species Act. The announcement was greeted with cheers. Full Text

The President rounded out his day with meetings with a delegation from the Boy Scouts of America and with a meeting with Secretary of Defense Brown.