President Obama to urge banks to lend more

There's still a flutter of a heartbeat left in the American economy. Obama will put a stop to that. Reckless lending - cheap loose credit - is, more than anything, the root cause of the sudden, drastic collapse of our economy. Naturally, more loose, cheap credit is just what we need to, err, "fix" it. I hope you're paying attention to this, and I hope you're taking the necessary steps to hedge yourself against the coming collapse.

Politico -

President Barack Obama will meet with chief executives of major banks on Monday and is expected to urge them face-to-face to lend more money to help promote economic recovery, banking sources tell POLITICO.

A source familiar with the planning said invitations went out to CEOs last weekend for what will be a morning session at the White House.

The CEOs expect to hear from the president about why banks ought to be lending more, why they shouldn’t oppose his financial reform initiatives, and why they ought to hold the line on bonuses and compensation, the sources said.

The lending issue irks some in the industry. “The White House’s political people like [senior adviser David] Axelrod tell us to lend more,” said one banking official. “But the regulators are saying the exact opposite. They’re saying, ramp up your capital ratios, and if you see default risk on the horizon, cut back on lending.”

The White House’s Jen Psaki said: “The president is looking forward to meeting with members of the financial services industry on Monday to discuss our shared interest in economic recovery, the need to increase small business lending and the Administration’s plans for financial reform.”