US President-elect Barack Obama on Friday said his administration will act “swiftly” to address the “greatest economic challenge of our lifetime” that the country is facing.
“We are facing the greatest economic challenge of our lifetime. We will have to act swiftly to resolve it. I do not underestimate the enormity of the task that lies ahead,” the 47-year-old senator from Illinois, who was elected as the 44th US President, said.
“We have taken some major action to date and we will take further action,” Obama said in his first press conference after his historic victory on November 4.
He said that if the lame-duck Congress fails to pass the stimulus package before he takes office on January 20 next, then passing such a package will be his first priority.
“Immediately after I become president, I will confront this economic crisis head on by taking all necessary steps to ease the credit crisis, help hard-working families and restore growth and prosperity,” Obama said.
He stressed that the country should devise a rescue plan for the middle class that invests in immediate efforts to create jobs and provide tax relief to struggling families.
“Particularly urgent priority is a further extension on unemployment benefits for workers who cannot find work in the increasingly weak economy.”
“We are going to have to focus on jobs, because the haemorrhaging of jobs has an impact, obviously, on consumer confidence and the ability of people to — to buy goods and services.” and can have enormous spillover effects," "... A new president can do an enormous amount to restore confidence, to move an agenda forward that speaks to the needs of the economy and the needs of middle-class families all across the country," he noted.
In his opening comments, the Democrat outlined the list of things he was planning to do soon after assuming office on January 20. The list included a rescue plan for the middle class and review of the financial programmes. "I do not underestimate the enormity of the task that lies ahead. We have taken some major action to date, and we will need further action. Some of the choices that we make are going to be difficult.
"And I have said before and I will repeat again: It is not going to be quick, and it is not going to be easy for us to dig ourselves out of the hole that we are in," the 47-year-old senator from Illinois, who has become the first Afro-American President of the United States, said. "America is a strong and resilient country. And I know we will succeed, if we put aside partisanship and politics and work together as one nation. That's what I intend to do."
Replying to a question about his policy over Iran's nuclear programme, Obama said "the Iran's development of nuclear weapons, I believe, is unacceptable and we have to mount international efforts to prevent that from happening. Iran's support of terrorist organisations, I think, is something that has to cease." Obama said he will review a letter from Iranian President and then will appropriately respond to it. "It's been only three days since the election. Obviously, how we approach and deal with a country like Iran is not something that we should simply do in a knee-jerk faction. I think we have got to think it through," he added.
