Obama's Call to Action

In his address to Congress and the American people, President Obama delivered a strong statement on the need for government to act "boldly and wisely" to lift us out of our current crisis.

In a speech that rightly focused on the recession, Obama acted almost as Explainer in Chief in laying out his short- and long-term plans for American reconstruction. He championed a recovery plan that he said had already begun to put people to work, and he vowed that his mortgage initiative would give aid only to those who are in trouble through no fault of their own. He condemned the Bush administration's bank bailout, using populist rhetoric against shameless Wall Street profiteers.

Obama then made a powerful case for sustained public investment in areas vital to our future--in the transition to renewable energy, reform of our broken healthcare system and guarantee of world-class education from childhood through college. Despite public concern about rising deficits, and Beltway pundits calling on Obama to limit his agenda, he refused to back down from his campaign pledges.

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