Editor 's note : Fareed Zakaria is a foreign affairs analyst who hosts `` Fareed Zakaria : GPS '' on CNN at 1 and 6 p.m . ET Sundays . `` Banks are still reporting large losses , credit remains tight , home prices continue to fall , '' notes Fareed Zakaria . NEW YORK ( CNN ) -- President Barack Obama offered more detail on his plan to restore economic growth Friday , saying the economic stimulus program being debated in Congress is just one of at least three parts to his recovery plan . In a meeting to discuss the stimulus proposal with Vice President Joe Biden and Democratic and Republican congressional leadership , Obama said America also needs an improved financial system stability program as well as an overhaul of financial market regulation . CNN talked to world affairs expert and author Fareed Zakaria to get his thoughts about the most pressing issues facing the new president . CNN : What should be President Obama 's first order of business ? Zakaria : Oh , without question , the economy . This is a problem that is n't going away . Banks are still reporting large losses , credit remains tight , home prices continue to fall . It 's difficult to tell whether the measures enacted have not had time to work , or that they are not working . But the basic reality remains -- the financial system is in crisis , and as a result , the American economy is in a dangerous paralysis . President Obama needs to focus like a laser beam on this issue above and beyond everything else . CNN : Does that mean foreign policy takes a back seat ? Zakaria : Not a back seat , but if I were advising him , I would suggest that he save his presidential time , energy and political capital for the economy . He will probably need to go to Congress soon and ask for more money and more authority . Now , having said all this , the trouble with foreign policy is that it does n't wait around for you until the time is convenient . Things happen and you have to react to them -- like the violence in Gaza . That 's probably why the president called the foreign leaders he did on his first day -- [ Palestinian President Mahmoud ] Abbas [ Israeli Prime Minister Ehud ] Olmert , [ Saudi ] King Abdullah and [ Egyptian President Hosni ] Mubarak . He had to make sure that the situation did n't spiral downward . CNN : What 's the first major foreign policy problem President Obama should address ? Zakaria : Afghanistan . This is his war ; the one he said was the right war . And it is n't going well . The Taliban is gaining strength and the central government is losing power and legitimacy . CNN : The Taliban is back ? I thought we defeated them . Zakaria : The Taliban was not defeated : They retreated . They retreated into the rural areas of Pakistan . If you remember , the Taliban was born in Pakistan and supported by the Pakistani military as a tool to destabilize Soviet-controlled Afghanistan and India . Since they retreated , they have been able to slowly reassert their influence . Rory Stewart , who was just in Afghanistan , is on our show this week and he mentions that in the past , the Taliban only had a presence in southern Afghanistan . But they now can be found in Kabul . The fact they have such a presence in the capital , an area we considered secure , is very troubling . CNN : Why are they experiencing this support within the country ? Zakaria : There are many reasons . But you have to remember , this is still a very poor country that is very fragmented . Security and the rule of law are missing and the Taliban provides it . Barney Rubin remarked that the first thing the Taliban creates when they go into an area is courts . It may not be the type of justice we would like ; but for the Afghans it 's better than the corrupt system that exists . Also , we should n't assume our image of the Taliban is correct . It is a very dynamic organization and changes . We may need to find a way to negotiate with them . CNN : Negotiate with the group that harbored al Qaeda ? Zakaria : It may be a political necessity . Rory Stewart said , `` It 's not 'what ought we do , ' but 'what can we do . ' '' He argues that at some point , the reality of troops and money will force us to revaluate our goals and we should start that process now . And there are many other crises America must deal with -- Iraq , Pakistan , sub-Saharan Africa , Iran -- so we ca n't be obsessed with Afghanistan . Barney Rubin added : The question is , whether we can separate the terrorist al Qaeda connections from the political issues of the Taliban . If that can occur , then it may be possible to find a solution in Afghanistan as [ Gen. David ] Petraeus helped broker in Iraq . We 'll have to wait and see what Gen. Petraeus advises the president and what he decides to do . Done in [ the president 's ] spare time , when he 's not handling the economy . [ Barnett Rubin is one of the nation 's foremost experts on Afghanistan and Pakistan and the author of eight books . Rory Stewart , who lives in Kabul , has traveled extensively in Afghanistan and Iraq and written books about his experiences . ] .
Fareed Zakaria : Obama should save presidential time , energy for the economy . U.S. economy is in dangerous paralysis , says Zakaria . Score: 7 War in Afghanistan is top foreign policy problem Obama should address .