100 DAYS

What Next for Obama?

Stimulus could cost president his domestic agenda.

President Obama scored his first solid victory since taking office this week in pushing his stimulus plan through Congress, but his broader agenda might be in danger of falling to the wayside as a result. While Obama has not abandoned plans for an overhaul of America's healthcare system or comprehensive climate change legislation, the surprisingly strong opposition to his stimulus package—only three Republican senators supported it and no House Republicans—could be a sign of further obstacles down the road. Congress might become even more intractable after Obama spends political capital on his next battle: passing whatever bailout plan Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner finally settles on. Some are worried that the immediate economic crisis may make earlier campaign promises impossible to achieve in his first term. "The president hasn't done as good a job of preparing the nation for the tradeoffs necessary to reconcile the hope agenda with the fear agenda," a former Clinton aide told The New York Times. "I'd be surprised if a Congress still reeling from sticker shock in terms of the stimulus and the financial rescue are willing to pony up for a full-bore reform of the health system."