Advisers: Obama to use sales skills

WASHINGTON, Feb. 14 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama plans to travel and campaign more to pressure Republicans in Congress rather than trying to win their loyalty, sources say.

Now that a mammoth, $787 billion economic stimulus bill has been approved virtually without Republican support, White House advisers have determined that Capitol Hill horse-trading with GOP opponents wasn't successful and that Obama should instead tap his immense popularity and public salesmanship skills to push legislation in the future, the Washington publication Politico reported Saturday.

"We've got to get him out of that White House," a unnamed top White House adviser said, listing "some very valuable lessons" learned from the stimulus fight. "He's happier, he's better, he's more effective. The inside game is important, but it's actually not where the success of his presidency is going to come."

Obama plans to use the tactic in upcoming pushes to pass New Deal-style plans to rescue struggling homeowners and rewrite regulations on the financial markets, plus a budget proposal that lays the groundwork for sweeping healthcare reform, Politico said.