KEY POINTS:
Barack Obama delivered a stark warning yesterday of the grave dangers of an economic catastrophe if a rescue plan he intends to propose is not swiftly implemented.
He made his appeal despite a constant refrain from his aides that the United States can only have one President at a time.
But so alarmed is he about the speed at which the US economy is going into reverse that he decided to go public after consulting George W. Bush at the White House the previous day. The President-elect warned that "this recession could linger for years" if his massive job creation and tax-cutting programme is not quickly adopted by Congress.
"I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible," Obama declared. "If nothing is done ... the unemployment rate could reach double digits."
Obama said the economic meltdown had followed "after a period of profound irresponsibility" by Wall St, ordinary Americans and their political leaders.
It was his fourth and most high profile intervention in four days about the economy. He also sought to address the concerns of Republicans in Congress, saying his rescue initiative was more than "just a public works programme". It was designed, he said, to create or save at least three million jobs and that he intended to "spark the creation of a new clean energy economy".
He intends to double the amount of renewable energy being generated, to make 75 per cent of federal buildings energy efficient as well as millions of private homes. Billions of dollars would be saved and jobs created that "cannot be outsourced", he said.
Intended as a wake-up call to the public and politicians, Obama pointed out that the pain of unemployment and bankruptcy, which is already being felt across the US, will probably get worse in the coming year.
Failure to adopt his economic rescue plan swiftly would make "a bad situation dramatically worse" he said and that the country could "lose a generation of potential and promise".
The US unemployment rate is now 7 per cent nationally and is expected to reach 9 per cent or even higher by the end of this year. This week, there was a staggering warning that the federal budget deficit is set to hit US$1.2 trillion ($2 trillion) this year. That's before Obama's planned US$775 billion spending and tax cuts.
Obama also warned that America's pre-eminent position in the world would be threatened if the crisis is not dealt with. Failure would mean "more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future", Obama said. "And our nation could lose the competitive edge that has served as a foundation for our strength and standing in the world."
- INDEPENDENT
