GE Deals Smartly With Uncle Sam

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (TheStreet) -- General Electric (GE Quote) is making a concerted push to win government business both in the U.S. and abroad, the Wall Street Journal notes on its front page Monday .

While GE has made no secret of its increased interest in federal dollars, the article presents a portrait of a company that is far savvier than other large U.S. corporations, such as Citigroup (C Quote) and Bank of America (BAC Quote) in its dealings with Washington and the public.

Though CEO Jeff Immelt is a Republican, he became an early advocate of many of the Obama administrations stimulus efforts, landing a spot on the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board, the article points out. Obama administration officials directed reporters seeking information about aspects of the President's renewable energy legislation to GE, the article states.

"It's all about J-O-B-S in the end, right?," Immelt told analysts during a conference call in May, adding: "There's going to have to be a middle ground where business and government works in concert with one another. And I think from the standpoint of GE is look, we've been in the healthcare business since 1950. We've been in the power business, the energy business since 1875. If the stimulus is going to go towards healthcare and energy, we're going to win."

This approach is far more pragmatic and suggests a higher level of polish than has been demonstrated by Citigroup, whose battles with FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair have frequently spilled out into the press, or Bank of America, whose board appeared initially to ignore investor requests that it take a thorough look at candidates outside the bank in its search for a replacement for CEO Ken Lewis.