Bush promises smooth transition, to meet Obama next week (1st Lead)

Nov 6, 2008, 16:14 GMT

(L-R) President-elect Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden and vice president-elect Joe Biden stand together after Obama addressed a crowd at Grant Park in Chicago, Illinois, USA, to celebrate his victory on Election Day 04 November 2008. Obama defeated Republican presidential candidate John McCain to become the 44th President of the United States and the first black president in US history. EPA/SHAWN THEW

Washington - President George W Bush said Thursday he would ensure a speedy and orderly transition over the next months and will welcome president-elect Barack Obama to the White House next week.

Facing the first wartime handover of power since Vietnam in 1968, Bush held a meeting with his cabinet and said his staff would immediately begin briefing Obama's advisors on policy decisions. Obama received intelligence briefings Thursday morning.

'We all share a steadfast devotion to the United States,' Bush said in a statement at the White House, flanked by his cabinet. 'All of us must ensure that the next president and his team can hit the ground running.'

Bush warned that a series of domestic and international crises facing the country would not wait for a new president to settle into office, and said terrorists 'would like nothing more than to exploit this period of change to harm the American people.'

Bush said Obama would be welcomed to the White House 'early next week' but did not specify a date. Obama has been meeting in Chicago with his own advisors to discuss the transition phase.

John Podesta, chief of staff under former president Bill Clinton, is heading Obama's transition team and some key cabinet announcements could be made in the coming days.

Illinois Congressman Rahm Emmanuel was already considering an offer to become Obama's chief of staff, but told US broadcaster CNN he had 'a lot to weigh' before accepting the job.

Emmanuel served as a senior advisor in the Bill Clinton White House in the 1990s and two years ago oversaw the successful Democratic effort to regain control of the House.

Bush urged his White House staff to 'conduct yourselves with the decency and professionalism you have shown throughout my time in office' during the final sprint to the finish.

Before leaving, Bush will host a summit of the world's 20 leading economies on November 15 to address the growing global financial crisis. The International Monetary Fund on Thursday forecast a global recession in 2009.