US: 'Glimmers' of hope, but US not out of woods: Obama
15 Apr 2009 1:08 AM
WASHINGTON, April 14 AFP - US President Barack Obama says he sees "glimmers of hope" as America battles the deepest economic slump in generations but warned of painful choices and more deep job cuts to come.
"There is no doubt that times are still tough," Obama said in advance excerpts of a major speech on the economy he was due to give later on Tuesday.
"By no means are we out of the woods just yet. But from where we stand, for the very first time, we are beginning to see glimmers of hope."
Obama, three months into a presidency already dominated by the crisis, warned his efforts to restructure the once-mighty US auto industry and crippled insurance giant AIG would "involve difficult and sometimes unpopular choices".
And he forecast more slashing job cuts and mortgage foreclosures before the economy turns around in remarks balancing optimism for the future with a sober assessment of more rough times to come.
Obama said: "2009 will continue to be a difficult year for America's economy," in the remarks set to be delivered at Georgetown University in Washington.
"The severity of this recession will cause more job loss, more foreclosures, and more pain before it ends," he warned.
"The market will continue to rise and fall, credit is still not flowing nearly as easily as it should.
"The process for restructuring AIG and the auto companies will involve difficult and sometimes unpopular choices," Obama said, in an address styled as a direct and frank economic update to the American people.
"All of this means that there is much more work to be done and all of this means that you can continue to expect an unrelenting, unyielding, day-by-day effort from this administration to fight for economic recovery on all fronts."
Obama's remarks were released after Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke said on Tuesday there were initial signs the US recession may be easing but warned of the need for financial stability for full recovery.
He noted "tentative signs that the sharp decline in economic activity may be slowing", citing data on home sales, homebuilding and consumer spending, including sales of new motor vehicles.
And Bernanke, who has pushed massive monetary expansion in an effort to kickstart growth, said he was "fundamentally optimistic" about the prospects of the US economy.
The president meanwhile cited the Bible and the parable at the end of the Sermon on the Mount to encapsulate his efforts to overhaul the US financial system, to head off future crises.
"We cannot rebuild this economy on the same pile of sand. We must build our house upon a rock," Obama said, in the address sandwiched between a trip to Europe which ended last week and a Latin America visit starting Thursday.
"We must lay a new foundation for growth and prosperity - a foundation that will move us from an era of borrow and spend to one where we save and invest; where we consume less at home and send more exports abroad."
Obama also rebuked the news media for its fixation on instant results and Washington politicians who seek short-term gain in times of economic blight.
"For too long, too many in Washington put off hard decisions for some other time on some other day.
"There's been a tendency to score political points instead of rolling up sleeves to solve real problems - there is also an impatience that characterises this town - an attention span that has only grown shorter with the twenty-four news cycle, and insists on instant gratification in the form of instant results or higher poll numbers."
Despite the president's disdain for polls, the White House will likely welcome results of a new survey by CNN and Opinion Research, which showed 58 per cent of Americans believe Obama has a clear plan to tackle the recession.
