Act or do nothing - in President Obama's words

Yesterday President Obama gave his first weekly video address to America - you can watch it here. I thought I reproduce the text of that address, because the subject was the one that affects the UK as much as the US: the global economic crisis.

President Obama makes exactly the same case to his country as Labour is making here. The only difference is that while President Obama enjoys cross-party support for his recovery, the Conservatives choose to play politics and worse - peddle the absolutely absurd idea that doing nothing is what this country needs. Here's the President's Address:

We begin this year and this Administration in the midst of an unprecedented crisis that calls for unprecedented action. Just this week, we saw more people file for unemployment than at any time in the last twenty-six years, and experts agree that if nothing is done, 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. And we could lose a generation of potential, as more young Americans are forced to forgo college dreams or the chance to train for the jobs of the future.

In short, if we do not act boldly and swiftly, a bad situation could become dramatically worse.

That is why I have proposed an American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan to immediately jumpstart job creation as well as long-term economic growth. I am pleased to say that both parties in Congress are already hard at work on this plan, and I hope to sign it into law in less than a month.

It?s a plan that will save or create three to four million jobs over the next few years, and one that recognizes both the paradox and the promise of this moment - the fact that there are millions of Americans trying to find work even as, all around the country, there?s so much work to be done. That?s why this is not just a short-term program to boost employment. It?s one that will invest in our most important priorities like energy and education; health care and a new infrastructure that are necessary to keep us strong and competitive in the 21st century.

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