captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> welcome to "the journal" steere on dw-tv. i am in berlin. >> and i am steve at the business desk. >> president obama blames the democratic electoral losses on frustration. >> the federal reserve will be spending hundreds of billions of more dollars to boost the economy. >> and stepping up the security after a package with explosives was sent to the chancellor's office.

>> it is the day after in america with the midterm elections delivering the biggest shift in power in more than 60 years. the republicans are now firmly in control in the house of representatives and have made gains in the senate, as well. barack obama took responsibility. pledging to work with the newly empowered republicans. >> president obama faced the media after the american people delivered their devastating verdict on his policies. >> yesterday's vote confirmed what i have heard from folks all across america. people are frustrated. they are deeply frustrated with the pace of our economic recovery and the opportunities that they hope for their children and their grandchildren. they want jobs to come back faster. they want paychecks to go further, and they want the ability to give their children the same chances and opportunities that they have had

in life. >> obama says the only way forward lays an honest debate and bipartisan cooperation. the man expected to become the next speaker of the house signaled his readiness to work with the president. but john boehner made clear that the republicans intend to roll back a key obama policies, including health reform. >> i believe the health-care bill that was enacted by the current congress would kill jobs in america, where when the best health-care system in the world, and bankrupt our country -- where when the best health-care system in the world. -- ruin the best health-care system in the world. >> with each chamber of commerce in different hands, republicans and democrats will have no choice but to compromise if they want to avoid gridlock in washington. >> for some analysis, let's go

live to our representative standing by. is there a sense in the u.s. that this election was very much a referendum on barack obama and his policies? >> there is, and midterms are always a referendum on the president and his initiatives. a majority of the people would say they are against the big legislative passages that have been passed in the last two years, but it is more complicated. it is not that easy, and it is paradoxical, because if you ask people about what is in these packages, then they might be for it. for example, the health-care reform, where people than not are against it, but if they talk about poor children being able to be insured, they are for it back -- they are for that. they are looking for scapegoats, an outlet for their anger and their frustration, and that was expressed.

>> what about the tea party, max? will they now be playing a role on the national stage? do we see this being repealed, the health-care package? >> tea party candidates are all about getting the government back, we need to cut taxes, and we need to get rid of obama. that is what the tea party candidates are about, but the republican party is not made up entirely of the tea party candidates. in fact, the majority are not, so these candidates could be a greater problem for the republicans than the democrats, because it is clear that there is not going to be any common ground between the tea party candidates and the democrats, and republicans need to find some common ground between their regular cand and the tea party candidates, because if they do not come it will be gridlock next year. there has to be some kind of compromise. either way, the big legislative

passages of the last two years are most probably not going to be overhauled, because you need more than the majority in the house. you need a majority in the senate and probably even the presidency to do something like that, so the republicans have a choice between gridlock and the compromise. >> max, in washington. as ever, max, thank you very much. we have more on the political landscape in america coming up, but now we have the latest on the fed. >> on the heels of the midterm election, the fed is spending more, a lot more, buying billions in government bonds by the middle of next year. fed chairman ben bernanke hopes the latest round of quantitative easing will help bolster the struggling economy. in the first round of easing, $1.70 trillion worth of bonds were bought to foster economic recovery in the states. the central bank intends to keep interest rates low for an

extended period of time. shortly after the fed announcement but prior to the closing bell on wall street, i spoke to our correspondent at the new york stock exchange and asked him to tell us more about the central bank efforts to lift the u.s. economy. >> the federal reserve is helping wall street, giving them almost what they expected, helping the u.s. economy to get a little bit going again. when asked specifically what they are doing, the fed is buying billions of treasuries until the second quarter of 2011. they want to spend $75 billion per month, and they hope that that gets the economy. everybody has been waiting for that for a while. the numbers we got from washington are less than expected on the trading floor. some people told me and the expectations, $1 trillion. that is that the federal reserve would be able to spend, and they were also looking of up to $100

billion per month, so, surprisingly, even the stock market does a little less than expected. it is picking up pretty well today. we were down before the announcement, the dow jones down in trading. all in all, the vote on wall street is pretty calm. >> more business on the way, but now, it is back over to brian. >> here in germany, chancellor angela merkel called for air freight security to be tightened. there was a parcel that did not detonate that was sent to profits, but it did have the capacity to cause charm. it was allegedly from a left- wing guerrilla group in greece. >> chancellor merkel once air freight security to be tightened as soon as possible, and worldwide. just before the cabinet meeting, she thanked the staff at the chancellor's all ram, who yesterday identified a parcel

that was dangerous to her. police are comparing the construction of that parcel bomb with others built by leftist extremists in greece. >> we to athens to establish what the initial questioning of the suspects there may reveal about what happened here in germany. >> the bomb disposal experts disabled the device in a mailroom, but he recently discovered mail bombs from yemen found in england and to buy had been sent by air freight. eu countries want improved free to screening in place by december. -- free screening -- free at -- freight screening in place by december. >> that represents a huge security risk. >> they are trying to achieve higher standards, it is an urgent priority. >> the european commission has

unveiled plans to ban eu countries from exporting nuclear waste outside. at the moment, they can pay non eu countries to store the waste for them. one says he wants to put a stop to that. >> the aim is to oblige european union states to dispose of their nuclear waste in a responsible manner. unlike finland, most do not even have a plan for a permanent storage site. the eu energy commissioner wants them all to present such a plan by 2015. >> we need to act in a europe- wide coordinate manner and draw up feasible plans. europe must take the lead and set the standards in terms of safety, transparency, and time frame. >> the eu commission wants to ban the export of nuclear waste

outside the union, and environmentalists also want to see tougher rules, but they are not happy about certain proposed underground sites. >> the commission is ignoring questions, questions about how the rock and clay react, and we think they're going down a very dangerous road by pretending that these are the sole issue is. >> most member states are dragging their feet on the issue. of the 14 countries that use nuclear power, only finland, france, and sweden have so far committed themselves to establishing long-term nuclear waste repository is. >> back to steve now, and portugal is aiming to rein in their deficit spending. the portuguese parliament has passed a controversial austerity budget for 2011. the budget was approved with votes from the minority socialist government, which

needed the main party to abstain. the sd had announced in advance they would not vote. among other plants, it would cut public sector wages and salaries. in addition, the value added tax would go up to 23%. the government hopes that would reduce the deficits from over 7% this year to 4.6%. on to the automotive sector, shares of bmw fell wednesday in reaction to the third-quarter figures. they fell just a bit short of investors' expectations, but bmw did turn a profit of 847 million euros in the third quarter, representing a tenfold improvement over the same quarter last year. some german competitors are turning out even stronger figures, adding to a consensus that the crisis in the sector is over. >> bmw. those three letters are helping

the german car industry to get out of a crisis. for a while, hardly anyone wanted a new car, in sales were expected to be sluggish during the summer, but the german manufacturer has done better than expected. the first nine months of the year salma 600,000 in an increase in sales. -- of the year saw an increase of 600,000 in sales. things are back on track in the u.s., as well, sales increasing 7% compared to the same. last year, and the road ahead is looking smith, as well. the munich-based firm has increased its forecast, 10%. -- the road ahead is looking smoothe. >> german blue chips faded in the day and ended their recent winning streak. for more on the trading session,

we have this from frankfurt. >> the extra numbers from the car maker bmw are talking about watching the prices through the rearview mirror. the car maker was also able to raise its forecast for the rest of the year, but there was the start of profit-taking, which is not such a big surprise, because bmw shares rose this year so far. also, the market in general has been a rather weak. the uncertainties drove down the market in front of the decision. >> we can stay for a closer look at the numbers, and the dax is lower. the euro stoxx 50 closed at 2830, down by more, and the dow

finished the top of the hour up in positive territory. and on currency markets, the era trading at about $1.41. -- the euro trading. and competition from asian countries is increasing in the solar industry. they can fight for global market share while producing more cheaply, and demand in germany is slowing, that according to price waterhouse coopers. they could become takeover targets, but they do not expect major job losses in the near to medium term. back to brian. >> iceland is bracing for another potential volcanic eruption. this is on top of the most active volcano. so far, there have been no signs of underground tremors.

millions of air travelers were grounded from around the world. to some soccer news, in the champions league right now, a victory to assure the variance a place in the quarter finals. to make matters worse, a dispute has erupted between the president of one club and the head coach. >> the coach in front of the glass, the president behind it, but is more than just glass that separates these two men. what has been accused of being a poor communicators. >> i am very disappointed, very disappointed that my president has said something like this about me. i think communication is one of the things that i do best. >> he also said he failed to

make use of one striker and a midfielder. at 40 million euros, they are their most expensive acquisitions. >> i wanted to keep the option open for these players. they have played five games, and that got us 13 points. so that contradicts what he is saying. >> the chairman moved in to mediate between the squabble and officials. he later posted a statement on line. at the end of the conversation, they should hands and agreed to continue working together and sharing responsibility for the good of the team. that may not be enough to resolve tensions. it will take a good performance in the champions league for them to put their squabbles permanently behind them. >> and the score at the moment

for that game is 0-2. we will fill you in on the final result later on tonight. stay with me. in one minute, i will be back with more on the new political landscape in the united states of america. stay with us. >> sustainable protection for the earth. new ideas for slowing climate change. they are coming from all over the world. a major special series on global 3000. pioneers for clean energy and climate protection projects. global 3000, on dw-tv. >> when i organize a party, it is a real party, because there

is no rubbish hanging about. andy you know what? the great thing is, you already know her name. >> welcome back. the democratic party in the united states has not suffered such extensive losses in a congressional election since 1948. the vote is being viewed as a stinging criticism of president barack obama and his policies. unlike the elections in 2008, many independent voters opted to support the republicans this time, and they will be expecting political performance. >> president obama had a press conference the day after the midterm election, it was a sobering affair, talking about the consequences for his party, concentrating on the way forward

after the losses to the democrats. >> we just had a tough election. we will have another in 2012. i am not so naive to think that everyone will put politics aside until then, but i do hope to make progress on the very serious problems facing us right now. and that is going to require all of us, including me, to work harder at building consensus. >> but that could be a difficult task. obama has been trying to pass a controversial climate protection bill through congress, so far without success. now, his efforts are all but guaranteed to fail. many republicans do not believe global warming is a fact. the president is also likely to clash with republicans over how to tackle the economic downturn, the high unemployment rate, in the huge budget deficit. -- and the huge budget deficit. obama spend billions on stimulus, a policy that

republicans feel is misguided. >> i am here to say that our new majority is prepared to do things differently, to take a new approach that has not been tried in washington before by either party. it starts with cutting spending instead of increasing it. >> the republicans will try to reverse the health-care reform. they may not succeed, but they may be able to delay it by blocking the necessary funds. one thing is for certain. the huge challenges the president faces in his own country are likely to divert his attention away from foreign affairs. all in all, the election results are disappointing, but they are not catastrophic. the obama predecessors, clinton and reagan, also lost their majorities two years in, but it did not stop either of them from being elected to a second term. >> for some analysis, we spoke with someone from the german council on foreign relations and asked, given the possibility of

legislative gridlock, just how much leeway does president obama have in terms of pushing through his reform agenda? >> given this result, he certainly has less, anyway, but he is not in as real a gridlock that we would understand it in europe. the american system is different. it was not easy for mr. obama to convince the members of his own party, the democrats, to follow him. it will be more difficult to convince republicans and certainly those belonging to the tea party movement, but in the end, he is in a situation that many of his predecessors have been in, as well, mr. reagan, in particular, so it is not new. there is a pendulum swinging back, away from the party, moving it towards the opposition party. >> for many, it is a referendum on the first two years of obama. what does he need to do differently now?

>> understandably, there is disappointment, both in the united states and even nationally. we should not forget how unbelievably big expectations were when obama came into office, given the ongoing economic crisis worldwide, so he could not do all of the wonders people would like to see him do, but, on the other hand, there is a lot of disappointment in the american society, especially about the economic situation of the country. optimism is declining rapidly in the united states. these are all challenges for obama to meet in the next few years before the reelection. >> the world that the tea party politicians have played -- the role? >> first of all, they will have to meet the challenge of being forced to integrate their own activities. that is something substantially different from just organizing public events in american cities. secondly, the tea party movement

is not new, as such. it has gotten a lot of public attention recently, but it will be a major challenge for the republican party, first of all, and not much for president obama. there is not much connection between the tea party movement and him politically. for the republicans, that will be a major challenge. >> what results will this election have in terms of foreign policy? >> well, there have been rumors going on all day and night that given the chance that there might be gridlock, obama might turn to foreign policy. i am not sure. in my assessment, he would be ill-advised to do so. the lesson last night is that you win elections at home and not abroad, and he should concentrate on international issues, he certainly would have a choice to bring back american soldiers from afghanistan, certainly iraq, but all of the other issues do not really catch up with what american people want. they want jobs. they want the economy to

flourish, and this is where he should put his major attention. >> thank you so very much. >> europeans have been following the elections very closely. what have the reaction's been to the results? and what does this mean for the transatlantic relations? we went to several places for more, including brussels and berlin -- we went there. >> the euphoria of barack obama as many thousands turned out to welcome him. that is fading. germans look to obama to change the american stance on climate change, but little has happened, and it seems after these elections, little can be expected. more will be done to promote the u.s. economy, and that could mean that german exporters find it harder to grow their american business, at least in the short term. if he has things tougher at home, the president will concentrate more on foreign issues, some say, and when it really matters, he will find

consensus with the republicans. >> britain has traditionally been the staunchest of u.s. allies. nonetheless, the reaction has been somewhat muted. it is not long since the conservatives regained power year, and the british are worried about the biggest american concern, the economy. >> britain and america are deeply connected politically but also economically. many commentators focus on economic issues, and there are clear divisions when it comes to dealing with the financial crisis. in britain, the state is being shrunk. president obama has criticized that in the past. now, he will be under increased pressure from republicans to do the same. the british government might welcome such exchange, but most importantly, they want to the american economy to pick up again, one way or another, and the fear is for a paralyzed u.s. government that will not be able

to make that happen. >> in brussels, the news of the democrats; poor showing in the polls was met with mixed feelings. earlier this year, there was disappointment when obama cancelled on an e-u.s. summit. still, the american presidenthu. >> obama has always been very popular in europe. that is why many in brussels question the results of the u.s. midterm elections. politically, could he use clout in international politics? at the same time, u.s. and europe administration is looking at the global financial recovery. the u.s. wants to fuel economic upswings with more deficit. things could still become a bit clearer. president obama has been expected to jump this -- joined

the summit with the e.u. leadership later this month. >> that is our "in debt" on the new political landscape. stay with us. -- that is our "in depth."

the first u.s. woman president. from michelle in chile to angela in germany and ellen swearing in was held on the grounds of the capitol, which just a few years ago was a battle zone in presidents and heads of states? well, according to a new cbs poll, a phenomminally hig number of americans say the would vote for a qualified woman running for president. 92%. indeed, many believe the united states has alreadyge

period of time have held presidential policy. so, is america now ready for u.s. president who say woman? >> we'll ask the author of the widely read and intriguing book, about the wives of american presidents, all of them titled rating the first lady's. john benjamin roberts th second. if. for such a small if i live to a hundred. if social security isn't enough.

if my heart gets broken. if she says yes. we believe if should never hold you back. if should be managed with a plan that builds on what you already have. together we can create a personal safety net, a launching pad, for all those brilliant ifs in the middle of life. you can call on our expertise and get guarantees for the if in life. after all, we're metlife. one-on-one is brought to you isy month. why don't we have a woman president in the unite states? why haven't we had one? >> i think the answer to that is simply that american women may not be ready for it. a majority of the voters ar fee may president we would probably have one. i'm being a little bit flip. the thuth is we are not a and women have not really focused on politics unti the last couple of decades so we haven't developed a

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she was the daughter of a w partner of his and whe the man died he ended adopting her as it was >> yes president at the time. she grew up and he did. but he carried out theronce crey >> was she a loving wife? >> they were in love all th way through to his death >> he event died of -- was he ill during the presidency >> he was. hoo he had cancer and had to jaw removed. >> how was that undertaken? made for him to goo was set up on a y oa friend and he was secretl taken to this yacht.ev informed he had cancer or the operation had happene

engineer all that? >> she d conceal it >> was he disfigured? >> no. prosthetic jaw that functionfely >> not bad in those days. >> pretty extraordinari considering this is 1899. >> how is iha37 place back edition of the book. by mary links on she was quite corrupt was she no >>he w a piece of work she was extremely corrupt >> in what respect? >> money >> she was spendahol thsaay that amelda markose bought shoes, marry lincoln would by clothes, in one period about 3 months of glorfs. spending and in great debt

as a result of that. >> was she suffering from any neurological disorde psychotic condition? >> delusionons of grandier. she believed she was destined to marry a she hatwo suitors, steven doug andlas abraham lincoln who were rivals. >> was she faith ful to lincoln. >> as far as anyone knows. she appears to have been so en rappatured with the idea of becoming m. esent which is the way she liked to be referred to and ofte signed her name. >> you haven't reassigned reagan's position. is that under the basis o >> yes >> they are constantly updating the poles? >> they do updatehe pl. they don't update it academics? >> this is an expt ll >> you know that academics tilt to the sflest yes. >> you think they are taking

a swipe at nancy by pti hein the 36 position out of 37? when i wrote the book, i argued her rating was wa low are than it ought to b and it was time to reevaluate how important she had been in the reaga presidency >> you worked for rornd what did you do for him? >> i started worki ihis before he ran for president and worked on the 80y and your cpaigns and speech writing office h wldouesib office and what? >> domestic policy. ideas to him? >> yes. international strategy -- politica consultant >> i've been a political now. >>nd y do great production work for the mclaughlin group and othert? >> correct. >> now you knona reagan firsthand. >> yes. of her influ

accomplishments of his administration >> you think she served also to strengthen his spine or do you tnk his spine was quite strong independently? the velvet glove. she needed to be. he would be the good cop she was the bad cop when it came to dealing with staff. >> do you think they ever had disagreements? something. >> sure. >> did she take any negative position on anything that he decision-making process an whenhey made a decio they stuck with it jointly. she would make her views known. a good friend of mineaid fo about a four-year period and that gave me a real good window into the relationship between nancy, the way the

white house is run, the schedule >> you think that her influence over ronald regan our current president? the -- this presidency, laura bush is very muc involved in the details of policy and decision-making in president bush's speeches >> there are differences o opinion at least their public expression of their opinion. for example in the matter of fetal tissue >> right stem-cell research is one we know as far as the public differ takes a public position dictated by politics or by his perception that he must the people and maybe he's on that side of the issue polling. but let's assume he is. what's the question i want to ask as a result of that? is he as capable, they are both capable of -- he serves

as a buffer in a sense to position on the on the usen poin of relatey >> it's true and often true that first ladies will tak a position publicly that differs from the president contrived and sometimes they do it for genuine sflen that was true with jimmy carter and roslyn? >> it was most true with betty ford and jerrold ford. outspoken on issues such as abortion, drug use, and she would take possessions tha to his policy positions. >> that was not sufficient protection for him to win the presidency >> no. i'm afraid the ford model doesn't stand scrutiny very you listed the first institute, eleanor roosevelt

and you commented on her on a rather sensitive area. son, franklin, jr. in 1916 after 11 years of her congegal duties completed. longer wanted to have intimate relations witcer. it would lasa lifetime. it was lucy mercer in fact, not eleanor roosevelt at nen 45. separately. it's been said that you have roosevelt was lesbian and that is also brought up a

an assertion by you. are you sure of all thi data? >> i'm fairly confident. you know there was a eleanor roosevelt written b blaven cook and she was the evidence thattel by sexual orientation if no a lesbian one. >> letters >> based largeor upi. she was a wire reporter. and she began covering her when she was still in new york and later continued into the white house and in in the white house >> which came first? mercer the alleged by you roosevelt, or hick ocnating

part of the early life i'm interested in perhaps doing something more on, prab book in and of itself, going a separate house which was the roosevelt family estate and lived with two other women in this house at a marriage and in fact fdr referred to the house as the honeymoon cottage and the love nest. happy living with these tw years. in her separate house at the family estate. >> that doesn't necessarily mean there was a karnal relationship among thein terms are necessarily carnal? >> some of the letters are are not. of children that were born

of eleanor roosevelt contradicts in itself your thinking she had 5 children? >> i think as the movie brokeback mountain showed us all, in earlier air as who were gay or lesbian had to part might be to have normal looking family and social pretenses do you think thank lin had an eye for the trim ankle before he saw some of trace of what you're talking about in eleanor to go back to that question? he was 36 by my calculation and mercer was 27.'r talking about 1916,1917,1918 >> very early. >> then you point out tha in 1945 when he died and you misincorrectly said he died in warm springs, west virginia where it was warm >> that's correct. >> that's an error in th book and it's a common erro because there are warm springs in west virginia.

and i've seen that in any material. but just to ease the blo so you say that lucy merce was his mistress for life. from 1916 or thereabouts in warm springs from a >> yes. hemorrhage. >> and point of fact, she married ruth ford who was a bachelor in washington and quite well-to-do. believe that the mistress status was continue us because ruth ford died and she was a free agent fo about 3-4 years before roosevelt died am i correct? >> you are correct about that. >> what's to make you thin she was continuously serving as a mess tress to him? >> their relationshi several different phase that he did have polio and that was disabling in som

sfloopts they kept in touch. >> absolutely. >> that's a strong -- >> that's a friendship. >> at least a friendship. bearing in mind this was an era when one could not easily have a relationshi especially in politics. everything had to be kept subterranean there is a lot of hidde history. wasn't at his side and the time of his death? >> i have no reason to doubt she loved him sin skerly. i have no reason to doubt that at all but i do think they were two people who were driven to be in together because of their political commitment >> they each cheated on each other? >> yes. >> did any other president of first ladies cheat on each other >> really. >> absolutely. i mean with the johnson presidency, lin don johnson quite openly flaunted his mistresses where did he do that?

>> beginning back -- >> where >> in text andas washington d.c. >> i thought it was an outlying about 65 miles from washington. wasn't that true >> some of their weekend get relationship that went o right under her nose their same social circles and with friends and kennedy is a great champ of this but i think this is -- >> you mean judith, marilyn and the harding presidenc is a great example of this. harding or his wife? >> warren harding for sure. his wife probably not. but warren harding had a blonde teenaged mistress wh her name was nan britain. way before that he had an affair with his next door neighbor's wife who his own wife was hospitalized for months with kidney disease. >> do you think this is a requisite to becom president or first lady to

indulgences on the side? politics -- >> what about even befor that? what about libido of people who are character wise and vigorous? >> aren't they that way t get to left we go too far without saying things that ought to be said about eleanor roosevelt.ry together during th depression in part? visiting work project administration sites and people came to be accustome to the fact that eleanor roosevelt would show up. a great story about her stopping at a site in california and walks acros people who are living in

hooverville and they sit they acted like it was the most normal thing on earth after the people white house and the forma duties of quote/unquote a woman president. a woman first lady. a female >> right. what? >> social activists >> that would be eleanor roosevelt who by the way also used to visit the troops as you point out to >> she was fearless in world war 2. she flew into combat zones, places that were being bombed to visit the troops >> herbert hoover has a poor reputation because of the depression. but maybe that is quite undeserved but his wife,

>> i liked lou a lot. studied geeologiy and mining engineering at a tim when - >> did she go into the mountains to did herrifle headee air as >> we only have a few seconds. wasn't pat nixon a ver stronghe helped write speeche and craft papers and came from a very humbl background born in a minin town in were any of the first

because she would go int fits at the time and for a long time people thought it was mental disorder. >> depression.e whole 4 years basically in depressio trying to contact the spirits of her dead children through sayances. quite a tragic figure. >> do you think that whe all is said and done we will have a female as president of the united states? >> i think we will i think we have got enough talented women in politics now who have got the requisite experience to be that they are ready to lead that hasn't been true until recently >> what is holding it back? back is that voters haveerne on the commander-in-chie are women ready to lead a

performed like a general in the balkans crisis and similarly other women wh had the bomb under their >> correct >> isn't it time the american people dispel tha id pr >> absolutely. we have women in the military, women in secretary women in the senate and governorships. >> john roberts thank you very much for being my guest.