Quote of the Day 04.06.11

(CNSNews.com) – Emmy award-winning actor Alec Baldwin told CNSNews.com on Capitol Hill that he believes the financial crisis has "crippled" President Barack Obama, preventing him from doing any "new spending." Baldwin also said Obama has been doing "a lot" of "back-peddling" because he’s had to spend his whole first term "trying" to correct America’s course financially.

Following his appearance on Capitol Hill at a press conference with Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) about campaign finance reform, CNSNews.com asked Baldwin if President Obama has lived up to his expectations.

"Well, I mean, I think so because I think that when you come into office and you want to put your mark on things -- this is just my opinion, when you want to put your mark on things, you want to be able to spend. And what’s crippled Obama's administration, as far as I’m concerned, is the financial crisis and it’s prevented him from doing any new spending," said Baldwin, who publicly supported Obama in the 2008 Presidential election.

"He’s not able – if the country was as flush as it was under Bill Clinton and he had money -- these things cost money -- he could have made more of a mark," said Baldwin. "I think right now he’s had to do a lot of counter-punching; a lot of back peddling. He inherited this crisis from Bush and Paulson. He had to extend the TARP. I think it’s been very difficult for him to spend his whole first term trying to, you know, correct our course financially. I think a second term of Obama, we’ll see a lot more of what we want to see from him."

Baldwin was also at the Capitol on Tuesday for Arts Advocacy Day where he and actor Kevin Spacey lobbied members of Congress for continued federal funding of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The two actors were scheduled to testify before a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Tuesday but the hearing was cancelled so staff members could work on budget negotiations.

It really is a different planet for these folks...