Barack Obama's Address to the Nation on the Economy

"A bad situation could become dramatically worse." That is the message that President-elect Barack Obama delivered in his major address on the economy yesterday. Speaking at at George Mason University in Fairfax County, Virginia the President-elect warned that the nation faced the deepest economic crisis since World War II and he urged Congress to act quickly in passing his stimulus package. This was his first major speech since Election Day

Here are excerpts of the speech:

"For every day we wait or point fingers or drag our feet, more Americans will lose their jobs. More families will lose their savings. More dreams will be deferred and denied."

"And our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse."

"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. If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years. The unemployment rate could reach double digits. Our economy could fall $1 trillion short of its full capacity, which translates into more than $12,000 in lost income for a family of four. We could lose a generation of potential and promise, as more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future. And our nation could lose the competitive edge that has served as a foundation for our strength and standing in the world.

"In short, a bad situation could become dramatically worse...

"There is no doubt that the cost of this plan will be considerable. It will certainly add to the budget deficit in the short-term. But equally certain are the consequences of doing too little or nothing at all, for that will lead to an even greater deficit of jobs, incomes, and confidence in our economy. "

Here is the transcript of his entire speech.

Watch the whole speech here:

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Daily Kos TV has speech highlights here: